Bishop Roman I of Gurk founded the cathedral, which was built from 1140 to 1200. The article names no architect or materials. It is a Romanesque pillar basilica, with a westwork of two towers, a gallery and three apses. The twin steeple is 200 feet (60 m) tall. The text says it was consecrated in 1174, while the infobox gives 1200, which may mark completion.
The crypt has 100 columns and is the oldest part. The grave of Saint Hemma of Gurk was moved here from the former Gurk Abbey, a Benedictine nunnery founded in 1043 and dissolved around 1070 to fund the new diocese and its cathedral. The cathedral chapter moved to Klagenfurt in 1787.
It is a parish church and co-cathedral of the Diocese of Gurk, and one of the most important Romanesque buildings in Austria.
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