Saint-Denis Cathedral, Réunion

Contents

Saint-Denis Cathedral[1] (French: Cathédrale Saint-Denis de Saint-Denis de La Réunion)[2] or at greater length the Cathedral of St. Denis, Saint-Denis, Réunion,[3] is a Roman Catholic cathedral located in Saint-Denis, capital of the island of Reunion,[4] a province of France in the Indian Ocean, part of Africa. It is dedicated to Saint Denis, after whom the city of Saint-Denis is named, and is the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Saint-Denis-de-La Réunion.

History

Constructed according to the plans of an engineer called Paradis on the site of a church that had preceded it in the 18th century, the first foundation stone was laid on 4 November 1829, by the governor of Penfentenyo. Despite being consecrated as a cathedral in 1860 by Monsignor Maupoint, bishop of Saint-Denis de La Réunion, it did not take its final form until 1863 with the construction of the western porch in the prostyle style and the later addition of a bell tower.[5] The whole building was registered as a monument historique on 13 October 1975.

On 25 May 1946, just outside the cathedral, politician Alexis de Villeneuve was shot dead in the middle of a crowd gathered to hear him speak.

References

  1. 1.Cathedral of St. Denis in Saint-Denis, Réunion
  2. 2.Carillet, Jean-Bernard; Presser, Brandon (1 January 2010). Lonely Planet Mauritius, Reunion & Seychelles. Lonely Planet. ISBN 9781741791679.
  3. 3.Richards, Alexandra (1 January 2012). Mauritius. Bradt Travel Guides. ISBN 9781841624105.
  4. 4.Dodd, Jan (1 January 2004). Mauritius, Réunion & Seychelles. Lonely Planet. p. 160. ISBN 9781740593014. Cath%25C3%25A9drale%2520de%2520Saint-Denis%2520de%2520La%2520R%25C3%25A9union.
  5. 5."Revue historique et littéraire de l'Ile Maurice. Archives coloniales". Retrieved 8 April 2025.