Sé Catedral de Nossa Senhora da Graça de São Tomé - São Tomé, São Tomé e Principe
Posted by: 
Torgut
N 00° 20.315 E 006° 43.955
32N E 247630 N 37452
The cathedral in São Tomé is the main religious building of the country.
Waymark Code: WMFJZE
Location: Sao Tome and Principe
Date Posted: 10/28/2012
Views: 3
The Sé Catedral de Nossa Senhora da Graça de São Tomé, usually known as "Sé" or "Catedral" is the most important religious building of São Tomé e Principe, the second smallest country in Africa, inhabited by a very religious population.
The cathedral stands in the center of the old city, across the street from the former Governor's Palace, now the Presidential Palace.
This is the oldest Christian temple in the sub-Saharan Africa and it took 400 years to be finished. It all started in 1576, but only in 1958 the cathedral was concluded.
In 1493 the third Portuguese "governor" of the islands, Álvaro de Caminho, ordered a chapel to be built in this location, probably as a gratitude sign for being spared to die of malaria. However, this chapel was razed by Dutch invaders in 1501. Rebuilt as church in 1505, the new building was again destroyed by Ducth and French raiders in 1562. The current building was then started, by the command of the king Dom Sebastião, in 1576.
In 1599 the Dutch seriously damaged the cathedral. Since than the building was gradually renovated and improved until it reaches its current shape in 1958.
Address:
Sé Catedral de Nossa Senhora da Graça de São Tomé
Largo Água Grande
Religious affiliation: Roman Catholic
Date founded or constructed: Started in 1576
Web site: [Web Link]
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