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It was initially planned in the 15th century by Pope Nicholas V and then Pope Julius II to replace the ageing Old St. Peter's Basilica, which was built in the fourth century by Roman emperor Constantine the Great.
St. Peter’s Basilica is the present basilica of St. Peter in Vatican City (an enclave in Rome), begun by Pope Julius II in 1506 and completed in 1615 under Paul V. It is designed as a three-aisled Latin cross with a dome at the crossing, directly above the high altar, which covers the shrine of St. Peter the Apostle.
Whilst much of the building was designed by Bernini, the most celebrated architectural aspect of St Peter’s Basilica is probably its vast dome. Designed by Michelangelo in the mid-16th century, but not finished until after his demise, the dome of St Peter’s rises a magnificent 448 feet in height.
Its architectural history is a tapestry woven from the visions of legendary architects such as Bramante, Michelangelo, and Bernini. Each contributed their genius to the Basilica's construction, leaving a lasting legacy.
When was St. Peter’s Basilica built, by whom, and why? The original basilica (known as Old St. Peter’s Basilica) was built by Roman emperor Constantine in the fourth century. It was gradually replaced by the structure we know today, AKA New St. Peter’s, starting in the 1500s.
Pope Julius II commissioned Bramante to build a new basilica—this involved demolishing the Old St Peter’s Basilica that had been erected by Constantine in the 4th century. This ancient church was in disrepair.
In 1505, after a competition, Pope Julius II — the most ambitious artistic pope — commissioned the architect Donato Bramante to build a new basilica for Saint Peter. Bramante was the most well known of High Renaissance architects. The pope sought to create the world’s most magnificent church.
As early as the mid-9th century, the area around the ancient St Peter's Basilica was a fortified citadel with walls built by Leo IV (847-855), the so-called "Leonine city". Between the end of the thirteenth century and the first decades of the fourteenth century some buildings had been built around…
In this place, on the Vatican Hill and on the other side of the Tiber River, in 318 AD the Emperor Constantine decided to build a large Basilica in honor of the Apostle St. Peter, known as the Constantinian Basilica. Construction began between 319 and 322, consecrated in 326 AD and finally completed around 349 AD.
Saint Peter’s Square was designed by the architect Gian Lorenzo Bernini, at the behest of Pope Alexander VII. It was completed in 1667, after eleven years of intense and onerous work.