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Mission San Xavier del Bac is a historic Spanish Catholic mission located about 10 miles (16 km) south of downtown Tucson, Arizona, on the Tohono O'odham San Xavier Indian Reservation. It was founded in 1692 by Padre Eusebio Kino〔 and named for a pioneering Christian missionary and co-founder of the Society of Jesus (Jesuit Order), Francis Xavier. In 1700 construction began on a church at a site nearby the current Mission. It served the community until razed by Apaches in 1770. Today's Mission was built between 1783-1797 and is the oldest European structure in Arizona.〔 Widely considered to be the finest example of Spanish Colonial architecture in the United States, it hosts some 200,000 visitors each year.〔 The site is also known as the “place where the water appears”, as there were once natural springs in the area.〔(Nentvig, J. 1980. Rudo Ensayo: A Description of Sonora and Arizona in 1764. University of Arizona Press, Tucson, AZ)〕 The Santa Cruz River, which now runs only part of the year, is also nearby. The Mission is situated in the center of a centuries-old Indian settlement of the Tohono O’odham (formerly known as Papago), located along the banks of the Santa Cruz River. The Mission is a pilgrimage site, with thousands visiting each year on foot〔Fontana, Bernard L. & photos by McCain,Edward, "A Gift of Angels: The Art of Mission San Xavier del Bac", p. 41, The University of Arizona Press, Tucson, 2010, ISBN 978-0-8165-2840-0〕 and in horseback ''cabalgatas''. ==History== San Xavier Mission was established in 1692 by Father Eusebio Francisco Kino, founder of the Spanish missions in the Sonoran Desert chain. A Jesuit of Italian descent, he often visited and preached in the area, then the Pimería Alta territory of the Viceroyalty of New Spain.〔 Construction of the first mission church about two miles (3 km) from the site of today's Mission began on April 28, 1700, as noted in his diary:
The "little hill" is believed to be that southeast of San Xavier del Bac. Charles III of Spain distrusted Jesuits and banned them from Spanish lands in the Americas in 1767; more pliable and “reliable” Franciscans were installed as replacements. The original church proved vulnerable to Apache attacks, which finally destroyed it in about 1770. From 1775 on the mission community and its Indian converts were protected somewhat from Apache raids by the Presidio San Augustin del Tucson, established roughly seven miles downstream. The present Mission building was constructed under the direction of Franciscan fathers Juan Bautista Velderrain and Juan Bautista Llorenz between 1783 and 1797.〔 With 7,000 pesos borrowed from a Sonoran rancher, they hired architect Ignacio Gaona, who employed a large workforce of O'odham to create today's church.〔 Following Mexican independence in 1821, what was then Alta California was administered from Mexico City. In 1822, the Mission fell under the jurisdiction of the Catholic Diocese of Sonora. In 1828, the Mexican government banned all Spanish-born priests, with the last resident Franciscan departing San Xavier for Spain in 1837. Left vacant, the Mission began to decay. Concerned about their church, local Indians began to preserve what they could. With the Gadsden Purchase in 1854, San Xavier was brought under U.S. rule as part of the Territory of Arizona. The church was re-opened in 1859 when the Santa Fe Diocese added the Mission to its jurisdiction. It ordered repairs paid for with diocesean money, and assigned a priest to serve the community. In 1868 the Diocese of Tucson was established and regular services were held at the church once again. In 1872 the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet opened a school at the Mission. In 1895 a grant of $1,000 was given to repair the building. More classrooms were added in 1900. The Franciscans returned to the Mission in 1913. In 1947, a new school was built next to the church for the Tohono O’odham children. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Mission San Xavier del Bac」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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