Rome - Basilica of St John Lateran

(Local Name: San Giovanni in Laterano) Before the Popes established their residence in the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican after their return from exile in Avignon they lived mainly in the Lateran; and St John Lateran has remained the episcopal church of the Pope. Various additions and alterations were carried out in the fifth, eighth, 10th, 13th and 15th centuries, and in the 16th and 17th centuries the church was almost completely rebuilt. The west porch, the interior and the main facade were entirely refashioned at this period. During medieval times the church was put under the patronage of St John the Baptist and St John the Evangelist. The basilican plan of the church, with its porch, narthex, five-aisled apse, presbytery and apse, was established in the original Constantinian church and respected in the Baroque rebuilding.