The Cathedral of St. Trophime (Trophimus / Cathédrale Saint-Trophime in French) is a Roman Catholic church and former cathedral built between the 12th century and the 15th century in Arles.
The church is an important example of Romanesque architecture, and the sculptures over the portal, particularly the Last Judgement, and the columns in the adjacent cloister, are considered some of the finest examples of Romanesque sculpture.
The Cathedral of St. Trophime was built upon the site of the 5th century basilica of Arles, named for St. Stephen. In the 15th century a gothic choir was added to the Romanesque nave.

The ancient Cathedral (Church)
Roman sarcophagus in the church, reputed to hold the remains of Saint Honoratus
At the time the Cathedral was built, in the late 11th century or early 12th century, Arles was the second-largest city in Provence, with a population of between 15,000 and 20,000 people. It had a busy port on the Rhone River, and two new cities, on either side of the old Roman town, surrounded by a wall. It was at least formally independent as the Kingdom of Arles, and it had attracted many religious orders, including the Knights Hospitalier, the Knights Templar and mendicant orders, which had built a number of churches within the town
The apse and the transept were probably built first, in the late 11th century, and the nave and bell tower were completed in the second quarter of the 12th century. The Romaneque church had a long central nave 20 meters high; lower collateral aisles on either side; a transept supporting the square central bell tower; and a chevet behind the altar at the east end with a hemispherical vault. The windows are small and high up on the nave, above the level of the collateral aisles

The Cloister
The cloister was constructed in the second half of the 12th century and the first half of the 13th century. for the use of the Canons, the priests who attended the bishop and managed the church property. Under a reform instituted by Pope Gregory, the Canons were required to live like monks, with a common dormitory, refectory and cloister within the cathedral enclosure, separated by a wall from the city.
The refectory, or dining hall, was built first, next to the church, along with a chapter house, or meeting room, for the canons. The dormitory for the canons, a large vaulted room on the east side of the cloister, was built next. Work on the cloister began with the northern gallery, then the eastern gallery, which were finished around 1210-1220. Then work suddenly stopped.
Soon after the construction of the east and west galleries, the city began to decline. The Counts of Provence moved from Arles to Aix, the center of church authority moved to the papal palace in Avignon, and in 1251 Charles of Anjou suppressed the movement of the leaders of Arles for more independence.

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The Cathedral of St. Trophime - Arles	The Cathedral of St. Trophime - Arles	The Cathedral of St. Trophime - Arles	The Cathedral of St. Trophime - Arles
The Cathedral of St. Trophime in Arles	The Cathedral of St. Trophime in Arles	The Cathedral of St. Trophime in Arles	The Cathedral of St. Trophime in Arles

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