Duc Ba Cathedral 

All Vietnam Tours

Car rentals

Charter- Boat Rental

Visa services

Duc Ba Cathedral



The cathedral is composed of two main central bays with two sidereal corridors, with tall pillars and light coming in through sets of high windows, and a semi-circular shrine.

Location: Duc Ba Cathedral or the Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigonis located on Han Thuyen Street, facing down Dong Khoi Street, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City.
Characteristic: The resplendent Governors Palace, completed in 1875, symbolized the regimes political power in Asia. And five years later, the Duc Ba (Our Ladys) Cathedral was inaugurated, and became the spiritual and cultural crucible of the French presence in the Orient.

 

saigon-tours
the Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon
the Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon
the Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon

 

After the first French colonizing force arrived in Vietnam in the mid - 19thcentury, it took only 21 years before the country had a cathedral to match the hulking Gothic edifices of France itself. The cathedral is supposed to represent the glory of the French Empire. Yet, as is always the case with colonization, this attempt to import French traditions into Vietnam transformed the colonizers culture in the process. Even though the cathedral is built in a Western architectural style, it has a uniquely Eastern aspect.

Several architects put forward design proposals for the cathedral, but in 1877 the authorities selected Mr Bourard, who was famed for his religious architecture. He envisaged, and executed, a basilica-like structure with a square plan. The cathedral is composed of two main central bays with two sidereal corridors, with tall pillars and light coming in through sets of high windows, and a semi-circular shrine. The style follows a Roman pattern, although the outside contains some modifications: the cathedrals vaults are Gothic, and a modern steel skeleton supports the whole building.

vietnam-guided-tours
the Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon at city centre of HCM today


In 1894 a pointed minaret was added to the bell tower, at the behest of an architect named Gardes, who was also responsible for the Xa Tay Palace, the building that now houses the Municipal Peoples Committee. The cathedral is a much smaller than those in France, but it was the largest in the French empire. The interior is very large: the principal shrine and two additional bays are 93m long, and reach 35m in width at one point. The semi-circular shrine at the rear seats a choir during services, and there are five chapels.

The walls are made of Bien Hoa granite, combined with red tiles from Marseilles, all without coating. Red tiles from France were also used on the roofs, but they were later replaced with tiles of equal quality from Phu Huu. Natural light streams in through stained-glass windows which were made by the Lorin Company from the French town of Sartre.

the Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon
Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon is located in the heart of Saigon’s chaotic District 1, not far from Saigon Post Office and Reunification Palace

In 1959, a statue of Our Lady of Peace was installed outside the church, made with granite in Rome. After the statue ceremony, Saigon Church became more commonly known as Notre-Dame Cathedral. In 1960 it earned the official title of Saigon Chief Cathedral, and two years later was anointed by Pope John XXIII, gaining basilica status and earning its current title of Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon.

The whole building is well-ventilated thanks to a system of air-holes placed above and under the windows. The belfry is 57m high. For a long time it was the highest structure in the city centre, and was the first thing an arriving traveller would see when approaching the city by boat. Six bells weigh a combined 25,850kg. In 1885, the floor was taken apart and new pillars were added, because the original foundation could not bear the cathedrals weight. Stepping inside the cathedral, tourists see a line of Chinese characters eulogizing the Jesus mother, "the innocent and unblemished Virgin Mother", and stained-glass portraits of Vietnamese believers amid Asiatic plants. On the square in front of the cathedral, there is a statue of the Virgin Mother made of white marble, symbolizing peace. All told, it's an unusual building: a Western architectural and religious style that has been transplanted into, and adapted to, the East. The colonizers were trying to impose French beliefs and customs onto Vietnam but once that culture arrived on Asia's shores, it took on a life of its own. The cathedral is seen as a unique synthesis, adding an unmistakable Oriental flavour to an ancient Occidental recipe.

HCM city today
HCM city today

 

 

 Please click "HCM city guided tour " to see more pictures of Saigon - Vietnam


Other news:  ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    - Giac Vien Pagoda
    - Xa Loi Pagoda
    - Giac Lam Pagoda
    - Phung Son Pagoda
    - Cu Chi Tunnels
Thanks for visiting our website and hope you would like the information, if you have any question, please don’t hesitate to write us, we are here to help!
With appreciation for your: