Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception

The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, in northeast Washington, D.C., is the largest Catholic church building in North America and the tallest habitable building in the capital. Its foundation stone was blessed in 1920 on land donated by the Catholic University of America, but the Depression and World War II stalled construction, and the Great Upper Church was not dedicated until 1959. It blends Romanesque and Byzantine styles beneath a blue-and-gold tiled dome and a 329-foot bell tower.

Inside, the shrine is a gallery of devotion from around the world. More than 80 chapels and oratories honor Mary under titles from many countries and cultures, from Our Lady of Guadalupe to Our Lady of La Vang, reflecting the immigrant communities that built American Catholicism. Its final major element, the Trinity Dome, covered with about 24 tons of Venetian glass mosaic, was dedicated in 2017. Pope John Paul II made the shrine a basilica in 1990, and Pope Francis visited in 2015.

• Washington, D.C.
  The federal capital district of the United States located in
• Washington National Cathedral
  An 83-year Gothic project on the highest ground in the capital related