Immaculate Conception Cathedral, Managua Immaculate Conception Cathedral, Managua The Metropolitan Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of Mary (Spanish: "Catedral Metropolitana de la Inmaculada Concepción de María"), referred to as the New Cathedral ("La Nueva Catedral"), is located in Managua, Nicaragua. It was dedicated to the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary. The cathedral was built in 1991 to serve as a replacement for the Old Cathedral of Managua or St. James' Cathedral ("Catedral de Santiago"). The old cathedral was damaged and thought to be unrestoreable after a 1972 earthquake that destroyed 90% of the city. The new cathedral was designed by the Mexican architect
Managua the Old Cathedral of Managua was designed by Belgian architects, and the iron that was used to shape the core of the cathedral was shipped from Belgium. Construction lasted from 1928 to 1938, overseen by Pablo Dambach, who was a Belgian engineer residing in Managua. The architects had been inspired by the church of Saint-Sulpice in Paris, France. The St. James' Cathedral became the first cathedral in the Western Hemisphere to be built entirely of concrete on a metal frame. The cathedral survived the 1931 earthquake, but was heavily damaged during the 1972 earthquake, which eventually led to the construction