St Martins Cathedral & Monastery, Ieper

Is the 10.2.1940 classified. The tower is 102 m high and rebuild in 1922-30 (Arch. Cooman ,Ieper) It's a faithful rebuild from the 13 th cent. gotic church. Only the top of the tower was addid.
During the restauration in 19 th cent was the gate on the south side change and where 3 gates made as the french cathedraal example. But after WWI is rebuild in the first form.

The gigantic Cathedral of Saints Martin and Nicholas has a huge rose window in stained glass donated by the British Royal Air Force to the King and the people of Belgium in memory of the war.

Outside the cathedral's main entrance, to the left, is found a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary in gold, standing on a crescent on a pillar, trampling on the head of the serpent. It is a Christian symbol of Mary's entrustment by God as bearer of salvation and the defeat of evil. It is also an interpretation of verses from the Book of the Apocalypse or Revelation usually read on the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary on 15 August.

Apocalypse/Revelation 12:1-6
"1A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. 2She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. 3Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on his heads. 4His tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that he might devour her child the moment it was born. 5She gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter. And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. 6The woman fled into the desert to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days."

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The cathedral was essentially destroyed during World War I and has been rebuilt to what is high quality and accuracte reconstruction. It is a beautiful structure. There are pictures inside which detail the condition of the cathedral prior to reconstruction. The Cloth Hall, also accurately resored, is adjacent.

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This cathedral was till 1500AC a monastry, during the grand war completely destroyed, so the original, mainly wooden construction like the roof and the pullpit are vanished
The rebuilding started in 1922 and finished in 1930. So it took about 8 years - the original cathedral was builded in the middleages - and that took 2 centuries
Inside you will find the memorials and thombs of 18 bishops
The stainless glass symbolises some Apostels and evangelists. The outer circle some weapon shields of the British Army divisions who defended Ieper during the great war.
Another pictue in this frame and located near the cathedral : "The Lapidarium"
Damaged thombstones and sculptures - a previous palace the monks builded besides the Cath.- also completely destroyed during the grand war but never rebuilded.

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"Lakenhalle" - City hall - Belfry - Cathedral - Flanders Field Museum - Cemeteries and memorials
Ieper is a city in west flanders, completly ruined in the great war but defended by mainly the British, Canadian and French army - Finally rebuilded as from 1922 after authorisation of the British government and this on two conditions :
1 A memorial Arc (Meense poort)
2 The raising of an Anglican Church

The entire cathedral was lost due to bombing in the Great War. But it was rebuilt in the same style as the original 13th century one.

In the building you can find the graves of bishop Jansenius and Count Robrecht van Bethune, the "Leeuw van Vlaanderen"(lion of flanders).

The tower is 100 m high and not open to the public.

Entrance is free except during Mass.

In 1559 Ieper was proclaimed a Bisdom and ruled relgiously over a large part of Southern Flanders as well as Northern France. Filips the second of Spain was behind this nomination and he also initiated the building of a new cathedral in Ieper. For more then 200 years Ieper had it's bishop (18 to be precise). Already in the year 1000 there was a church on this place which was later reconstructed bigger and in a differnt style (first Romanic, later Gothic). Only in the last century there were plans to built the cathedral as you see it now, however the first worldwar made an abrupt ending to the work at hand. Luckely architect Cooman flea and took the plans with him to later return and erect the masterpiece as you see it now. The Saint Martin's Cathedral.

Next to the now-a-days theatre of Ieper is still a silent remember of the original purpose of this building. This is the monastry gate of the former Sint Maartens (Saint Martins). The original dated back to 1500, but it was not long belonging to this name. Already in 1560 the monastry was closed as Ieper became the seat of a Bishop. In 1780 it was remodelled in classic style and after the destruction in WW1 this copy came back again in 1938.

Around the corner following the ship of the Cathedral we will find the Ieper theatre (stadsschouwburg). This however used to be a monastry's "bar", called Capitel Bibael. The monastery of Saint Maarten however made place for the newer and restyled in neo-gothic and neo-renaissance as being the theatre and concerthall. A part is still reminding of the bar. It's the inn that is also in the same building: the Parnassushof.

The cathedral is a former bishop's church in gothic style, reconstructed after the First World War. Inside, there is a beautiful side altar. The cathedral can always be visited, but not shortly before and during the services.