Castres Cathedral

About

The Cathedral of Saint-Benoît de Castres is one of the mother churches of the Archdiocese of Albi, Castres and Lavaur and the largest church in the city of Castres. Originally there was a Benedictine abbey founded in 812 and called "Bellecelle Abbey". His abbey was raised to the rank of cathedral in 1317 before taking the title of parish church in 1801, the diocese of Castres, which had been abolished at the time of the French Revolution and had not been restored by the Concordat. In 1922 the title of Bishop of Castres was taken over by the Archbishop of Albi. The Cathedral of Castres was destroyed in the 16th century by the Huguenots, and during its reconstruction it was planned to become the largest cathedral in France. However, the works were never finished, and the current building corresponds to what should only have been a cathedral choir.

Legendary origin: A legend says that the abbey Saint-Benoît de Castres, located on the plateau Saint-Jean, was founded around the year 640 or 647 by three young nobles who, after having been combatants, decided to withdraw from the world on the banks of the Agout to live there according to the rule...