The Manila Cathedral before the 1880 earthquake The present Manila Cathedral photographed by Robby Dela Vega The present altar of the Manila Cathedral photographed by Robby Dela Vega The Manila Cathedral, also known as the Minor Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, is the only cathedral in the world that was built and renovated six times. It was the seat of the Archbishop of Manila during the Spanish Colonial Period in the Philippines.
The See of Manila, with jurisdiction over all the Philippine Islands and suffragan to the See of Mexico, was erected in 1578. The first bishop, Domingo de Salazar (born 1512), arrived in Sept., 1581.
The first cathedral, made up of nipa and bamboos, was built in 1581. It was damaged by a thyphoon in 1582 and razed by fire in 1583.
Then the new cathedral which was made up of stone was made in 1592. It was again destroyed by an earthquake in 1600.
The third cathedral with three naves and seven chapels was started in 1584 and blessed in 1614. It was toppled by another earthquake which shook Manila in 1645.
The magnificent fourth cathedral was constucted in 1654 to 1671 under Archbishop Miguel Poblete. It was severely damaged in 1863 by a very strong earthquake that even toppled the Palace of the Governor General of the Philippines. In 1880, another earthquake toppled its bell tower and since then until in 1959, the cathedral remained towerless.
The fifth cathedral was constucted in 1870-1879. It was solemnly blessed in December of 1879. The center cross of the dome is a reference point of astronomical longitudes of the archipelago. The magnificent cathedral was toppled into ruins by the bombs of World War 2 in 1945.
The present cathedral was constucted in 1954 to 1958 under Archbishop Rufino Santos of Manila and under the supervision of National Artist for Architechture Awardee, Architect Fernando Ocampo. It was elevated into the rank Basilica Minore in 1981 by Pope John Paul II.
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