St. Peter’s Basilica has been the main church of Christendom and Catholicism for centuries. The Church what first introduced by Constantine, the first Christian emperor. This was in the year 326 however, the original church fell and in 16th century. The church was then demolished and completely re-built during the reign of pope Jullius II. The second time around, the building of the church took quite a bit longer but it was well worth the wait; it came out stunning. All of those that were involved in the building of the church were incredibly intelligent and talented, which showed in their work. Not only is St. Peter’s Basilica a stunning work of art, it provides a significance for Christendom. (source)
The first St. Peter’s Basilica was built between the years of 326 and 333 from the orders of the first Christian Roman emperor, Constantine. This church was built in a 30 year time period. “The building consisted of five aisles, a wide central nave and two smaller aisles to each side, which were divided by 21 marble columns, which were all spoils from earlier pagan buildings. It was over 350 feet long, built in the shape of a Latin cross, and had a gable roof which was timbered on the interior and which stood over 100 feet at the center.” (source) Apart of the old church was a great mosaic, signifying the time period it was built in. There was a great ledged that Constantine took the pillars from the temple of Solomon to build the main alter in the new church; however this story was less that true. (source, source)
Despite the fact that this church was built in stunning fashion also, it did not last and in the 15th century the structure started falling apart. By the 16th century pope Jullius II decided to demolish and re-build the church altogether. People were at first surprised but soon adjusted and liked this idea even better. The significance of this St. Peter’s is just as important as thee current one that stands today. An example of this it the fact that Charlemagne was crowned here in 800 A.D. (source)
The building of the new St. Peter’s Basilica took great amounts of time, accompanied by great amounts of help and architects. The project was started by the pope Jullius II and his chosen architect, Donato Bramente. Donato was the chosen design out of a number of incredible entrees. To be picked was a great affirmation because Jullius II was determined to create the greatest church in Christendom. Donato’s plan was as such, “this plan was in the form of an enormous Greek Cross with a dome inspired by that of the huge circular Roman temple, the pantheon.” (source) This quote further explains the intentions of the original design, "Bramente molded the exterior of the Basilica almost as though it were a sculpture with its three arms, made dynamic by the twin Corinthian pillars, between which elegant cups, niches and windows open. The construction thus appears extremely vibrant but joined by the protruding cornice running all around it and on which rests an attic upon which the pilaster strips are alternated by windows already in Baroque style." (source)
However, not far into the building Donato died. After this occurred, Raffaelo Sanzio and Giuliano da Sangallo were nominated to take over the building. When this happened, they strayed away from the original design. They also found that the plan of suspending the dome by the four pillars was unsustainable. During this time, plans for the church did not go far, they went from classical Roman, to Gothic, and back again when Michelangelo became the head designer. (source, source, source)
Michelangelo in the year 1546 took over as head architect in the building of the basilica; by this time he was 72 years of age. He brought the original plans back into shape and back on track. "Michelangelo, who served as main architect for a while, designed the dome, and Bernini designed the great St. Peter's Square." (source) All of this shows the massive amounts of work that Michelangelo did on St. Peter’s Basilica. However, in some accounts of history many of the popes found it incredibly difficult to work with him because his work ethic. In my opinion, this is incredibly outrageous to point out a flaw in his slowness to complete a task. Those architect before him were equally, if not more of a task failure. This man however, at 72+ years of age created an unbelievable dome and a building coherent to the original plans. Through all this he still was never able to see the completion of his work and died before the dome was put in. The rest of the work was left up to Giacomo della Porta. (source)
Two beautiful aspects of St. Peter’s Basilica that deserve to be looked at all by themselves is the Dome and the Façade. The dome was designed by Michelangelo, when he became head architect in the building. In his time, he accomplished work, only to the drum of the dome. Which alternates highly prominent double columns with gabled windows. Then Giacomo della Porta, Michelangelo’s pupil took over, raising the dome 7 meters from its original design and completing it in 1590, making the work time only 22 months. This dome was then later used as an icon to build other domes. Such as, St. Paul’s Basilica in London and our very own capital building in Washington D.C. (source, source)
The façade, another amazing piece of the grand exterior of St. Peter’s basilica was designed by the architect Carlo Manderno. He then also completed it in 1614. In total the façade was 114.69 meters wide and 48 meters in height. The style alternates in Corinthian columns with pilasters. That at the top is crowned with 13 statues, each over 6 meters high. It is noted that the façade was built during the service of Pope Paul V Borghese. There are five entrances to the atrium and over them stand nine windows, three have balconies. The central window/balcony is called the “Benediction Loggia”. This is at the point where the pope gives his first blessings, “urbi et orbia”, to the city and the state. This worldly know façade was restored and completed in 1999, to show the whitewashes that were originally in the design, but covered by the aging over time. (source)
The straight facts of this building are also great things to know. The total cost of this church was 46,800,052 ducats and holds 60,000+ people. In total the area is 227,070 square feet, which is more that 5 acres. The total length is 730 feet and a total width of 500 feet. The drum of the dome is 630 feet in circumference and 65,6 feet in height rising 240 feet from the ground. Just these numbers alone make this building sound taunting and magnificent. (source)
This building is often described as the greatest architectural building of its age and it definitely lives up to these assumptions. It was built with many of the most incredible artists and architects of the time and is greatly influenced by these people that all took part in it.
