The following is a list of Basilicas in Rome. An ecclesiastical basilica is a Roman Catholic church building which has been granted special status by the Pope. There are 66 such churches in Rome, more than any other city, [Note 1] and more than 125 of the 131 countries in the world that have basilicas. [Note 2]
There are four major basilicas of the Catholic Church: All four are in Rome, and are distinguished by their having a holy door and for being prescribed as destinations for visits as one of the conditions for gaining the Roman Jubilee. They are also signified by an Umbraculum (a baldachin resembling an umbrella, made of cloth of gold and red velvet) and a Tintinnabulum (a small bell mounted on a pole). The four are also designated Papal basilicas, so that only the Pope or his delegate may celebrate Mass at the high altar.
| Basilica | Municipality | Year of creation | number (per source. [1] ) | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Giovanni in Laterano | Municipio I | ancient | 1 |  . |
| San Pietro in Vaticano | Vatican City | ancient | 2 |  . |
| San Paolo fuori le Mura | Municipio VIII | ancient | 3 |  . |
| Santa Maria Maggiore | Municipio I | ancient | 4 |  . |
Several minor basilicas are also designated as papal basilicas; there is one such in Rome,
| Basilica | Municipality | Year of creation | number (per source. [1] ) | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Lorenzo fuori le Mura | Municipio II | ancient | 5 |  . |
A minor basilica is a church designated as such by apostolic grant (or from immemorial custom) as an outstanding centre of pastoral and liturgical excellence. They are often also sites of pilgrimage. Minor basilicas are also marked by the tintinnabulum and umbraculum, though for a minor basilica this is of yellow and red silk.
A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the pope and typically hold the title for life. Collectively, they constitute the College of Cardinals.
The pope, also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome, head of the worldwide Catholic Church, and has also served as the head of state or sovereign of the Papal States and later the Vatican City State since the eighth century. From a Catholic viewpoint, the primacy of the bishop of Rome is largely derived from his role as the apostolic successor to Saint Peter, to whom primacy was conferred by Jesus, who gave Peter the Keys of Heaven and the powers of "binding and loosing", naming him as the "rock" upon which the Church would be built. The current pope is Francis, who was elected on 13 March 2013.
Pope Clement XII, born Lorenzo Corsini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 12 July 1730 to his death in February 1740.
Pope Victor III, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 24 May 1086 to his death. He was the successor of Pope Gregory VII, yet his pontificate is far less notable than his time as Desiderius, the great abbot of Monte Cassino.
The Papal Archbasilica Cathedral of the Most Holy Savior and of Saints John the Baptist and the Evangelist in the Lateran is the Catholic cathedral church of the Diocese of Rome in the city of Rome, and serves as the seat of the bishop of Rome, the pope. The archbasilica lies outside of Vatican City proper, which is located approximately 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) to the northwest. Nevertheless, as properties of the Holy See, the archbasilica and its adjoining edifices enjoy an extraterritorial status from Italy, pursuant to the terms of the Lateran Treaty of 1929. Dedicated to the Christ, in honor of John the Baptist and John the Evangelist, the place name, Laterano (Lateran) comes from an ancient Roman family (gens), whose palace (domus) grounds occupied the site; the adjacent Lateran Palace was the primary residence of the pope until the Middle Ages.
A jubilee is a special year of remission of sins, debts and universal pardon. In Leviticus, a jubilee year is mentioned to occur every 50th year; during which slaves and prisoners would be freed, debts would be forgiven and the mercies of God would be particularly manifest.
The College of Cardinals, more formally called the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. As of 12 February 2024, there are 239 cardinals, of whom 130 are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Cardinals are appointed by the pope for life. Changes in life expectancy partly account for historical increases in the size of the college.
The Basilica of Saint Mary Major, or church of Santa Maria Maggiore, is a Major papal basilica as well as one of the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome and the largest Catholic Marian church in Rome, Italy.
Papal regalia and insignia are the official items of attire and decoration proper to the Pope in his capacity as the visible head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State.
Urbi et Orbi denotes a papal address and apostolic blessing given by the pope on certain solemn occasions.
The umbraculum is a historic piece of the papal regalia and insignia, once used on a daily basis to provide shade for the pope. Also known as the pavilion, in modern usage the umbraculum is a symbol of the Catholic Church and the authority of the pope over it. It is found in the contemporary Church at all the basilicas throughout the world, placed prominently at the right of their main altars. Whenever the pope visits a basilica, its umbraculum is opened.
In the Roman Catholic Church, protonotary apostolic is the title for a member of the highest non-episcopal college of prelates in the Roman Curia or, outside Rome, an honorary prelate on whom the pope has conferred this title and its special privileges. An example is Prince Georg of Bavaria (1880–1943), who became in 1926 Protonotary by papal decree.
Saint Anthony Cathedral Basilica in Beaumont, Texas, is the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Beaumont. The cathedral was raised to the status of a minor basilica in 2006.
Mary, the Help of Christians, is a Roman Catholic title of the Blessed Virgin Mary, based on a religious devotion now associated with a feast day of the General Roman Calendar on 24 May.
A tintinnabulum is a bell mounted on a pole, placed in a Roman Catholic basilica to signify the church's link with the Pope. It consists of a small gold bell within a golden frame crowned with the papal tiara and Keys of Heaven. If the Pope were to say Mass within the basilica, the tintinnabulum would be used to lead the very special procession down the shrine's aisle. However, these symbols are not stipulated in the 1989 Vatican directives.
The Basilica of the Visitation is a baroque, collegiate parish church located in the western part of the island of Gozo in the village of Għarb.
The Basilica of Saint Mary in the Old Town Old and Historic District, of Alexandria, Virginia, and is a minor basilica and parish church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Arlington in Virginia. The Basilica of Saint Mary is the oldest Roman Catholic church in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It was founded in 1795 by the Very Reverend Francis Ignatius Neale, then the president of Georgetown University, in present-day western Washington, D.C.
Basilicas are Catholic church buildings that have a designation, conferring special privileges, given by the Pope. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectural sense. Basilicas are either major basilicas, of which there are four, all in the Diocese of Rome, or minor basilicas, of which there were 1,810 worldwide as of 2019.
