Basilica of St. John the Baptist

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Basilica-Cathedral of St. John the Baptist
Religion
Affiliation	Roman Catholic
District	Archdiocese of St. John's
Ecclesiastical or organizational status	Minor basilica Metropolitan cathedral
Leadership	Archbishop Peter Hundt
Location
Location	200 Military Road St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador A1C 5M3
Geographic coordinates	47°34′02.48″N 52°42′36.36″W / 47.5673556°N 52.7101000°W / 47.5673556; -52.7101000
Architecture
Architect(s)	John Philpot Jones
Type	Latin Cross, basilica
Style	Lombard Romanesque
Completed	1855
Specifications
Direction of façade	East
Capacity	2,500 seated
Length	85 metres (279 ft)
Width	65 metres (213 ft)
Width (nave)	16 metres (52 ft)
Height (max)	48 metres (157 ft)
Materials	Irish granite & limestone Newfoundland sandstone Italian marble Egyptian travertine
National Historic Site of Canada
Official name	Basilica of St. John the Baptist National Historic Site of Canada
Designated	1983
Website
thebasilica.church

The Basilica-Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador is the metropolitan cathedral of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St. John's, Newfoundland and the mother church and symbol of Roman Catholicism in Newfoundland. The building sits within the St. John's Ecclesiastical District, a National Historic District of Canada.

The Basilica-Cathedral was the largest building project to its date in Newfoundland history. Construction lasted from the excavation of the ground in May 1839, through the laying of the cornerstone in May 1841, until the completion and consecration on September 9, 1855. At this time, it was the largest church building in North America and remains the second largest church in Canada after Saint Joseph's Oratory in Montreal and the largest cathedral church in Canada. The Basilica-Cathedral is one of the few buildings in St. John's to survive the Great Fire of 1892. During its centenary celebration in 1955, Pope Pius XII raised the cathedral to the rank of minor Basilica.^[1]

On October 17, 2007, Bishop Martin Currie of the Diocese of Grand Falls was appointed archbishop of St. John's. He assumed his position on November 30, 2007, and retired on 29 January 2019.^[2] On December 12, 2018, Bishop Peter Hundt of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Corner Brook and Labrador was appointed archbishop of St. John's. He took canonical possession of the diocese on 29 January 2019.