Begun in 1386 and consecrated in 1577 (but not totally completed until 1897), the Cathedral is the 3rd largest church in the world and the largest Gothic church in Italy. It is said to be able to hold 40,000 people. Famous for its 135 marble spires, it is the spiny appearance of the building that is most familiar to tourists. The cathedral was built on the site of a previous cathedral, Santa Maria Maggiore, which had been damaged in 1162 and not restored. The archbishop of Milan at the time of the cathedral's consecration was Charles Borromeo, who is buried in the cathedral. St. Charles, a member of the noble Borromeo family, was born in 1538 and received his doctorate in civil and canon law at the University of Pavia in 1559. His uncle, Cardinal de Medici, who had been elected pope (Pope Pius IV), elevated him to the cardinalate and later nominated him as the Archbishop of Milan. St. Charles founded the Vatican Academy for literary work and, as Papal Secretary of State, was instrumental in re-assembling the participants in the Council of Trent in 1562. It was during the great plague in 1575 that he proved himself to be a caring and capable shepherd of his flock, tending to many of the dying in Milan. He died in 1584 and is the Patron Saint of Seminarians. His feast day is November 4th.