Concattedrale di Sant'Andrea

The Concattedrale di Sant'Andrea is a major church in Subiaco's central square. Commissioned by Cardinal Giannangelo Braschi, later Pope Pius VI, it was rebuilt in the late eighteenth century and consecrated by the pope in 1789. The present building also bears the marks of wartime destruction and postwar reconstruction.

Why it matters

The church's history stretches back to the medieval town: a parish is documented here among five churches near the river in the twelfth century. Braschi approved the reconstruction in 1773, and the church became a cathedral in 1876. Its rank changed to co-cathedral in 1915 when diocesan jurisdiction shifted back to the abbot of Santa Scolastica.

What to notice

The façade rises in two orders, with six columns and three portals below, four Ionic columns and a loggia above, and Braschi's papal arms at the top. Twin bell towers carry clocks with different systems of timekeeping. The interior follows a Latin-cross plan with three naves and gilded stuccoes. Side chapels contain works associated with Guido Reni, Antonio Cavallucci, Sebastiano Conca and Christoph Unterberger. Pope Urban IV's consecration medal commemorates the six-hour rite of 1789.

Context and history

Bombing in 1944 left much of Subiaco's centre and the basilica severely damaged. The church was rebuilt between 1945 and 1952 to a design associated with Florestano Di Fausto and reopened under abbot-bishop Simone Lorenzo Salvi. In December 1952 Pope Pius XII granted the rebuilt church the title of minor basilica. The parish returned to the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Tivoli in 2003, and Sant'Andrea remains a co-cathedral.