The structure is located at 45 Great George Street, between the harbour and the Confederation Centre of the Arts.

The present stone structure was built between 1913 and 1919 after a fire destroyed the original cathedral in 1913.

[2] In 1929, ten years after its completion, the church was blessed by Pope Pius XI as a basilica.

In October 1980 it was the site of a state funeral when Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau gave the eulogy during the funeral for Veterans Affairs Minister Daniel J. MacDonald (M.P.

[3] The basilica was designated as a National Historic Site of Canada in 1990.