The Basilica of St. Peter in Chains has lived a long history since 432 AD when it was built. Consecrated by Pope Sixtus III in 439, it has undergone several renovations including the front portico in 1475.
The basilica holds the chains of St. Peter, the very reason why the church was built. When Peter was imprisoned, an angel came and shook the earth and freed Peter (see Acts 12:3-19). The chains were kept by devout Christians, and later passed on to the Empress Eudoxia who presented them to Pope Leo the Great. The basilica also holds the tomb of Pope Julius II, as well as Michelangelo's Moses statue (1515).
Cardinal Donald Wuerl, the present Archbishop of Washington, has been the cardinal protector of the basilica since 2010.
Stational Churches in Rome
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