Mainz Cathedral, formally known as St. Martin Cathedral or Mainzer Dom in German, is located near the historical center of Mainz, Germany.

The massive structure looms over the largely pedestrianized center market square. Its enormous red-sandstone, six-towered body shelters the half-timbered houses of the old city and commands a prominent place in the skyline of Mainz.

The cathedral's spacious interior, achieved by massive vaulted arches, houses the tombs and funerary monuments of former powerful prince-archbishops of the diocese. There are famous statues of founder St. Willigis, St. Boniface and the Madonna on the cathedral grounds.

Mainz Cathedral, along with the cathedrals of Worms and Speyer, represents the highpoint of Romanesque cathedral architecture in the Rhine Region of Germany. These particular cathedrals are often called Kaiser Domes, a reference to their consecration during the height of the Holy Roman Empire (the German word Kaiser, a variant of Caesar, means emperor). Though predominantly Romanesque, later exterior additions to the cathedral, coupled with the influence of different artisans over the centuries on the cathedral's interior, have resulted in the appearance of various styles seen today.

History

The actual establishment of a cathedral at Mainz dates back to Archbishop Willigis (975-1010), who fostered the commerce of Mainz, an important medieval trade center. Building commenced in 975. Tragically, the cathedral burned down on the day of its inauguration in 1009. Archbishop Bardo von Oppertshafen (1031-1051) presided over the completion of the cathedral begun under Willigis. By 1037 the main portions of the body of Mainz Cathedral were complete. Most of the present day cathedral was built before the 14th century.

It was at Mainz Cathedral on March 27, 1188, that Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor, known as Frederick Barbarossa, symbolically took up the Cross and enlisted the military of the Holy Roman Empire in the Third Crusade called by Pope Gregory VIII.

Mainz Cathedral has fallen victim to war damage over its long history. Prussian troops attempting to dislodge French Revolutionary forces from Mainz destroyed the east portion of the cathedral as they besieged the city in 1793. The Allied bombing of Mainz, most notably those of August 1942 during World War II, destroyed portions of the cathedral, along with most of the city; the damage was so severe that post-war renovation of the cathedral was not completed until 1960.

Mainz Cathedral is the site of the episcopal see of the Bishop of Mainz. In its prime the cathedral saw the coronation of German kings, who were subsequently crowned emperors by the Pope through the traditional political process of the Holy Roman Empire. The coronation of German kings was a rite afforded to the Bishop of Mainz during Mainz's status as an archdiocese from 747 to 1802. The Bishop of Mainz held considerable secular power as a Prince-Bishop within the Holy Roman Empire.