Originating as the church of the Abbey of St. Benignus, it became the seat of the Diocese of Dijon during the French Revolution, replacing the previous cathedral when it was secularised, and has been the seat of the succeeding Archbishopric of Dijon since the elevation of the diocese in 2002.
The first church here was a basilica built over the supposed sarcophagus of Saint Benignus, which was placed in a crypt constructed for it by Saint Gregory of Langres in 511; the basilica over the crypt was completed in 535. From the early 9th century St .Bénigne was the personal monastery of the bishops of Langres. In 869 Isaac, Bishop of Langres, re-founded it as a Benedictine abbey,[1] and restored the basilica at the same time.
In 989 Bruno, Bishop of Langres, requested Mayeul, Abbot of Cluny, to send monks to re-settle the abbey, grown decadent, as a Cluniac house.[2] In 990 William of Volpiano was appointed the new abbot. By 1002, the ruin of the previous building had been razed and construction began on a new Romanesque structure designed by William, consisting of a subterranean church round the sarcophagus of Benignus, a ground floor church for worship, and a rotunda,[3] 17 metres in diameter, on three levels in the place of the apse, linking the two.[a] Dedicated in October 1016 by Lambert I,[4] this suite of buildings was decorated in the ornate Cluniac style, of which only a few traces survive.
Reconstruction of William of Volpiano's Abbey by Ann Wethey and Kenneth Conant
In 1137 a fire destroyed most of the town of Dijon and damaged the monastery and its church. The repaired building was consecrated by Pope Eugene III in 1147.
In 1272 the crossing tower collapsed, destroying the whole of the upper church and severely damaging the subterranean one, and smashing some of the supporting columns of the rotunda. Then the abbot, Hugh of Arc, of a powerful Burgundian family, was able, thanks to his contacts, to mobilise enough support to begin the construction of a new Gothic abbey church in 1281. Progress was at first rapid, and at Hugh's death in 1300 the building was close to completion. Progress slowed, however, and the work was not finished until 1325. The new church, unlike its Cluniac predecessor, is noted for its plainness and severity.
The abbey was secularised during the French Revolution, but the church was made, firstly, a parish church, and then in 1792 the cathedral of the Diocese of Dijon. The rotunda was however destroyed at that time; all that remains is the lowest storey, which was excavated in the 19th century and has since been reworked as a crypt.[3]
^The construction the new abbey over the next decades became soon one of the most ambitious and most prestigious buildings of its time, since it exceeded even the dimensions of its contemporary mother monastery Cluny Abbey (known as Cluny II). See the reconstruction by Kenneth J. Conant (1965).
Catholic Hierarchy: Diocese and Archdiocese of Dijon
Diocese of Dijon official website (in French)
Dijoon-free.fr - Dijon tourist and local history site (in French)
Saint-Bénigne de Dijon on the site Bourgogne Romane (in French)
External linksedit
High-resolution 360° Panoramas and Images of Dijon Cathedral | Art Atlas
April 15, 2024
dijon, cathedral, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, april, 20. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Dijon Cathedral news newspapers books scholar JSTOR April 2016 Learn how and when to remove this template message Dijon Cathedral or the Cathedral of Saint Benignus of Dijon French Cathedrale Saint Benigne de Dijon is a Roman Catholic church located in the town of Dijon Burgundy France and dedicated to Saint Benignus of Dijon The Gothic cathedral building constructed between 1280 and 1325 and dedicated on 9 April 1393 is a listed national monument Dijon CathedralCathedral of St Benignus of DijonCathedrale Saint Benigne de DijonReligionAffiliationRoman Catholic ChurchProvinceArchdiocese of DijonRegionBurgundyRiteRomanEcclesiastical or organizational statusCathedralYear consecrated1393StatusActiveLocationLocationDijon FranceGeographic coordinates47 19 17 N 5 2 4 E 47 32139 N 5 03444 E 47 32139 5 03444ArchitectureTypeChurchStyleGothic RomanesqueGroundbreaking1280Completed1325Originating as the church of the Abbey of St Benignus it became the seat of the Diocese of Dijon during the French Revolution replacing the previous cathedral when it was secularised and has been the seat of the succeeding Archbishopric of Dijon since the elevation of the diocese in 2002 Contents 1 History 2 Burials 3 See also 4 Notes 5 References 5 1 Studies 6 Sources 7 External linksHistory editThe first church here was a basilica built over the supposed sarcophagus of Saint Benignus which was placed in a crypt constructed for it by Saint Gregory of Langres in 511 the basilica over the crypt was completed in 535 From the early 9th century St Benigne was the personal monastery of the bishops of Langres In 869 Isaac Bishop of Langres re founded it as a Benedictine abbey 1 and restored the basilica at the same time In 989 Bruno Bishop of Langres requested Mayeul Abbot of Cluny to send monks to re settle the abbey grown decadent as a Cluniac house 2 In 990 William of Volpiano was appointed the new abbot By 1002 the ruin of the previous building had been razed and construction began on a new Romanesque structure designed by William consisting of a subterranean church round the sarcophagus of Benignus a ground floor church for worship and a rotunda 3 17 metres in diameter on three levels in the place of the apse linking the two a Dedicated in October 1016 by Lambert I 4 this suite of buildings was decorated in the ornate Cluniac style of which only a few traces survive nbsp Reconstruction of William of Volpiano s Abbey by Ann Wethey and Kenneth ConantIn 1137 a fire destroyed most of the town of Dijon and damaged the monastery and its church The repaired building was consecrated by Pope Eugene III in 1147 In 1272 the crossing tower collapsed destroying the whole of the upper church and severely damaging the subterranean one and smashing some of the supporting columns of the rotunda Then the abbot Hugh of Arc of a powerful Burgundian family was able thanks to his contacts to mobilise enough support to begin the construction of a new Gothic abbey church in 1281 Progress was at first rapid and at Hugh s death in 1300 the building was close to completion Progress slowed however and the work was not finished until 1325 The new church unlike its Cluniac predecessor is noted for its plainness and severity The abbey was secularised during the French Revolution but the church was made firstly a parish church and then in 1792 the cathedral of the Diocese of Dijon The rotunda was however destroyed at that time all that remains is the lowest storey which was excavated in the 19th century and has since been reworked as a crypt 3 nbsp Choir Dijon CathedralBurials editPhilip the Good Wladyslaw the White Polish Duke of the Piast dynastySee also editList of Gothic Cathedrals in EuropeNotes edit The construction the new abbey over the next decades became soon one of the most ambitious and most prestigious buildings of its time since it exceeded even the dimensions of its contemporary mother monastery Cluny Abbey known as Cluny II See the reconstruction by Kenneth J Conant 1965 References edit Dijon Cathedral CurateND Conant Kenneth John Cluny II and St Benigne at Dijon Archaeologia vol 99 1965 pp 179 194 doi 10 1017 S0261340900011152 a b Dijon Cathedral Religiana Geary Patrick J Phantoms of Remembrance Memory and Oblivion at the End of the First Millennium Princeton University Press 1994 p 4 Studies edit Conant Kenneth John 1965 IV Cluny II and St Benigne at Dijon Archaeologia Second Series 99 179 194 doi 10 1017 S0261340900011152 Sources edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dijon Cathedral Dijon Cathedral at Structurae Catholic Hierarchy Diocese and Archdiocese of Dijon Diocese of Dijon official website in French Dijoon free fr Dijon tourist and local history site in French Saint Benigne de Dijon on the site Bourgogne Romane in French External links editHigh resolution 360 Panoramas and Images of Dijon Cathedral Art Atlas Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Dijon Cathedral amp oldid 1189430635, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
