Basilica of St. Francis & St. Flora
Middle Tenne: Basilica of St. Francis & St. Flora
To avoid confusion, the coronation church for Schulminion monarchs is the tiny, ancient Church of St. Francis and St. Flora, located in the heart of the old capital city of Wirt, on the island of Schulmanicus. So, what we will see here is something brand new, and much, much bigger. The Basilica of St. Francis and St. Flora is the largest religious structure in the nation and serves as a focal point for pilgrimages and religious activities in the rapidly expanding Tenne area of Schulmania. The massive, majestic new structure is located on an island in a Tenne River lake whose shoreline is designated as an archbishopric and administered by religious officials in the adjacent city of Franciflorianopolis.
The massive edifice dominates the small island, which is accessible only by boat, and is accompanied by several small support structures. The orientation of the basilica itself has the front facing the front of the saints’ residential compound across the water. The design for the church comes from a team of monks headed by Schulmanopheus of Temple Terrace and Theomeowric of New Atkinos. The cost was entirely paid for by donations from the faithful and surplus donations were used for scholarships to the nearby monastic school in Franciflorianopolis.
Now, to tour the island and its magnificent centerpiece, the Basilica of St, Francis and St. Flora.
We arrive on Franciflora Island as the port by ferry from Franciflorianopolis
Due to the isolated location of the basilica, the thoughtful monks have built an accommodations building for worshipper and pilgrims. The structure offers free rooms for those staying overnight on the island.
The monks also operate other support facilities for the pious travelers. They could not think of everything, though… they were unable to design diagonal or curved functional pedmall tiles. But after all, who doesn’t like right angles?!
The small support services area is on the southern tip of the island, just across the lake from the residence of St. Francis and St. Flora
Here is our first glimpse of the majestic basilica
And here’s the whole island. Now we can see just how massive the structure is.
A rear view, highlighting the stunning stone architecture of the building
From the side, one can appreciate the massive vaulted roof and soaring towers
The entry is stunning
As is typical in Schulminion construction, nature is always nearby
A different view of the basilica
As you can imagine, this church has the highest number of flying buttresses in Schulmania
The soaring towers can be seen from miles away
Entrances feature elaborate carved stone by artisans from across the nation
The towers are names after the patron saints. The one on the left of the main entry is St. Francis Tower and the right is St. Flora
The massive, soaring façade is the largest structure of any kind in the Middle Tenne area and became iconic even as construction was finishing
In case you were wondering what type of fish you can catch whilst on the island, it is the holy mackerel
“Holy Mackerel”?! Lame, yes. But, it was so easy I just HAD to do it!
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