ST STEPHEN’S CATHEDRAL
BRISBANE, QUEENSLAND CATHOLIC
PAUL SCOTT
In 2012 I began a project of photographing all the Australian cathedrals in detail, and creating a website for each. The two Brisbane cathedrals were among the first, and I was never very happy with my websites. There were comparatively few photos, and the photographs that there were had relatively poor resolution. This updated website will hopefully remedy these deficiencies for St Stephen’s Cathedral.
In the following sections we give a satellite overview of the Cathedral, a plan, and a short history. A tour of the Cathedral then follows.
However, here is an index of the building itself, allowing immediate access to some of the Cathedral highlights.
SATELLITE VIEW
The photo gives the geographic orientation of St Stephen’s, with geographic ‘north’ at the top. The orientation is constrained by the street layout in this district of Brisbane. It is our custom to use liturgical directions on these sites, so the apse pointing geographically southeast will be regarded as pointing due East (with a capital E), and the other directions accordingly.
The photo shows that St Stephen’s Cathedral is built with a traditional cruciform shape, although with a very long nave. There are two small Western towers (upper left), with a curious small round chapel by each. An apse has been added at the Eastern (bottom right) end, with a side chapel on either side. The Cathedral is pleasantly surrounded with grassed and paved areas. To the North is an extensive line up of stone slabs – an artwork relating the story of Stephen. On the South side, separate from the Cathedral itself, is St Stephen’s Chapel, an historic building in its own right.
In exploring this Cathedral, we shall begin at Elizabeth Street and walk right around the Cathedral in a clockwise direction. Finally navigating our way around St Stephen’s Chapel, we enter the main Cathedral through the West doors to investigate the Cathedral interior. Finally we turn our attention back to the St Stephen’s Chapel.
St Stephen’s Cathedral is cruciform in shape with the two outer upper rectangles filled in. At the top (liturgical East end) there is an apse, and it is here that the Blessed Sacrament Chapel is located.
At bottom right is the old St Stephen’s Chapel.
In exploring the Cathedral we shall look first at the nave, then the upper arc from North transept to Blessed Sacrament Chapel to South transept, followed by the sanctuary. Finally we look at the interior of St Stephen's Chapel.
HISTORY
[Wikipedia]
The Cathedral of St Stephen is the heritage-listed cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Brisbane and seat of its archbishop in Brisbane, Queensland.
History
The cathedral is located on a site bounded by Elizabeth, Charlotte, Creek, and Edward Streets. James Quinn, the first bishop of Brisbane, arrived in 1861 from Ireland, and soon planned to build a large cathedral to accommodate a growing congregation. On 26 December 1863, the Feast of St Stephen, Quinn laid the foundation stone for a grand cathedral designed by Benjamin Backhouse, but this did not at first proceed beyond the foundations. R. George Suter was then commissioned to design a smaller, simpler church partly on the foundations, and the current nave was built 1870–74, with the front gables and spires completed in 1884. No further work was undertaken until James Duhig took up the archbishopric in 1917. With plans to build new larger Cathedral on a different site, he engaged architects Hennessy, Hennessy & Co to complete the Cathedral with a crossing, transepts and sanctuary in a simpler design than intended; this was built in 1920–22.
Description
St Stephen’s is a Gothic Revival Cathedral with a cruciform shape in plan. While this is a plain cathedral by comparison with many others, it still has a selection of striking features such as the spire topped sandstone towers, imported stained glass windows from Munich, the organ, the altar and the newer Blessed Sacrament Chapel at the rear of the building. Of particular note is the stained glass window by Harry Clarke, known as the ‘Mayne’ window, which is located above the sanctuary on the East wall. The Cathedral is made predominantly of Brisbane tuff and freestone. The Blessed Sacrament Chapel is made from reinforced concrete and the restored spires from glass reinforced concrete.
Inside the Cathedral the stained glass windows are vividly illuminated by the sun and cast coloured patterns on the floor and walls. Some of them are small with intimate pictures of Christ and his followers, while the great window over the main door stands tall and proud as it depicts Christ’s ascension, then casts its majesty down the length of the great space. The lightweight plaster ceilings arc gracefully overhead. There is a noted contrast between the interior and exterior qualities of this space. The interior has a cool and refreshing quality.
Restoration and refurbishment
By the 1980s the Cathedral had fallen into a state of disrepair. The interior layout of the building was also unsuitable for the new Catholic liturgy. When it became clear that the planned Holy Name Cathedral, the construction of which had never proceeded beyond the completion of its crypt in 1934, would not proceed, it was decided that St Stephen’s and its grounds would undergo major refurbishment which would involve preserving the fabric of the building but replacing all furnishings and interior fittings. As part of the refurbishment the Cathedral grounds were enlarged and a carpark was built under the extended East end of the cathedral. The last stage of the Cathedral restoration was completed in 2000 when the Jubilee Pipe Organ was installed above the sanctuary.
Cathedral grounds
In addition to the Cathedral, the site contains numerous buildings that support the Cathedral and the Archdiocese of Brisbane. St Stephen’s Chapel (also known as Old St Stephen’s Church) stands immediately to the South of the Cathedral. The chapel was designed by English architect Augustus Pugin and built between 1847 and 1850. The first Mass was celebrated in the completed building on 12 May 1850. In June 1859 it became the cathedral for the first Bishop of Brisbane. It is the oldest Catholic church in Queensland.
