Aire Cathedral () is a
Roman Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
church
Church may refer to:
Religion
* Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying
* Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination
* Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...
dedicated to
Saint John the Baptist
John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...
in the town of
in the
Landes département of France.
It was the seat of the
Bishops of Aire
The Diocese of Aire and Dax (Latin'':'' ''Dioecesis Adurensis et Aquae Augustae''; French: ''Diocèse d'Aire et Dax'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in France. It comprises the ''département'' of ...
until the diocese was abolished in 1801 and again from 1822 when the diocese was restored; in 1857 it was renamed the
Diocese of Aire and Dax
The Diocese of Aire and Dax (Latin'':'' ''Dioecesis Adurensis et Aquae Augustae''; French: ''Diocèse d'Aire et Dax'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in France. It comprises the ''département'' o ...
. In 1933 the bishop moved to
Dax
The DAX (''Deutscher Aktienindex'' (German stock index); ) is a stock market index consisting of the 40 major German blue chip companies trading on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. It is a total return index. Prices are taken from the Xetra t ...
, making
Dax Cathedral
Dax Cathedral () is a Roman Catholic church in the town of Dax in the Landes département of France.
The diocese of Dax was not restored after the French Revolution but with several others, including Aire, was added to the Diocese of Bayonne b ...
his seat, when the cathedral at Aire became a
co-cathedral
A co-cathedral is a cathedral church which shares the function of being a bishop's seat, or ''cathedra'', with another cathedral, often in another city (usually a former see, anchor city of the metropolitan area or the civil capital). Instances o ...
.
It was listed as a
national monument
A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a sp ...
in 1906.
History
The cathedral is situated in the lower town, where the bishops used to live. In origin a structure of the 11th and 12th centuries, it was subject to much alteration between the 14th and 17th centuries and its present appearance shows a variety of styles. The great
rotunda
A rotunda () is any roofed building with a circular ground plan, and sometimes covered by a dome. It may also refer to a round room within a building (an example being the one below the dome of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C.). ...
on the
chevet
In architecture, an apse (: apses; from Latin , 'arch, vault'; from Ancient Greek , , 'arch'; sometimes written apsis; : apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an '' exedra''. In Byzan ...
is especially noticeable. From the 12th century there remain three bays and an
apse
In architecture, an apse (: apses; from Latin , 'arch, vault'; from Ancient Greek , , 'arch'; sometimes written apsis; : apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical Vault (architecture), vault or semi-dome, also known as an ' ...
.
The severe 13th century façade, surmounted by a tower with a slate roof, has a simple vaulted portal with a pointed arch. The present
sacristy
A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christianity, Christian churches for the keeping of vestments (such as the alb and chasuble) and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records.
The sacristy is us ...
is in origin a
chapter house
A chapter house or chapterhouse is a building or room that is part of a cathedral, monastery or collegiate church in which meetings are held. When attached to a cathedral, the cathedral chapter meets there. In monasteries, the whole communi ...
of the 14th century, with
Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, a Germanic people
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Gothic alphabet, an alphabet used to write the Gothic language
** Gothic ( ...
vaulting supported by central pillars; this is of
Tolosan construction and evokes the "palm trees" of the
Dominicans
Dominicans () also known as Quisqueyans () are an ethnic group, ethno-nationality, national people, a people of shared ancestry and culture, who have ancestral roots in the Dominican Republic.
The Dominican ethnic group was born out of a fusio ...
. The
nave
The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...
has
ogive
An ogive ( ) is the roundly tapered end of a two- or three-dimensional object. Ogive curves and surfaces are used in engineering, architecture, woodworking, and ballistics.
Etymology
The French Orientalist Georges Séraphin Colin gives as ...
vaults of the 14th century. The
quire is flanked by four
apsidiole An apsidiole or absidiale refers to a small semicircular or polygonal recessed space projecting from or arranged around the main apse of a cathedral. In medieval Catholic church design, apsidioles serve as basic units and key features of architectur ...
s giving onto the transept. The organs and side-altars are of the late 18th century, as are the stalls, the high altar and the rest of the handsome furnishings.
While the apse is being extended towards the park, the
orangery
An orangery or orangerie is a room or dedicated building, historically where orange and other fruit trees are protected during the winter, as a large form of greenhouse or conservatory. In the modern day an orangery could refer to either ...
, a stone building of the 17th century, is being used for temporary exhibitions.
The overall dimensions of the cathedral are 48 metres in length, 8 metres in width across the nave and 15 metres in height to the highest point of the vault.
Pilgrimage
Aire Cathedral marks a stage on the
Via Podiensis
The Via Podiensis or the Le Puy Route is one of the four routes through France on the pilgrimage to the tomb of James, son of Zebedee, St. James the Great in Santiago de Compostela in Galicia (Spain), Galicia in northwest Spain. It leaves from Le-P ...
, one of the pilgrimage routes of the
Way of St. James of Compostela, running from
Le Puy-en-Velay
Le Puy-en-Velay (, ; , before 1988: ''Le Puy'') is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Loire Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region of south-central France.
Located near the rive ...
to
Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela, simply Santiago, or Compostela, in the province of Province of A Coruña, A Coruña, is the capital of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, in northwestern Spain. The city ...
via the
Pass of Roncevaux
Roncesvalles Pass, Ronceval Pass or Roncevaux Pass (; ; ; elevation 1057 m) is a high mountain pass in the Pyrenees near the border between France and Spain. The pass itself is entirely in Spain.
Location
The pass is located between the towns of ...
.
References
External links
*
Location
{{coord, 43, 42, 2, N, 0, 15, 44, W, type:landmark_region:FR, display=title
Roman Catholic cathedrals in France
Churches in Landes (department)
Churches dedicated to John the Baptist in France
Catholic churches dedicated to John the Baptist
Cathedrals dedicated to John the Baptist