When the basilica's construction began in 1914, many architects were challenging the conventional Beaux-Arts style and neoclassicism. This period was exactly around the time where expressionist architecture, constructivist architecture, Bauhaus ideas and many other facets of modern architecture began to take off, with pioneers like Le Corbusier in Europe and Frank Lloyd Wright in the United States refusing to be categorized by traditional architectural styles. It was certainly atypical for monumental classical church buildings to be constructed in cities around this time, yet Saint Joseph's Oratory was one of the largest buildings in Montreal when it was constructed, and was designed in Renaissance Revival exterior with an Art Deco interior. The basilica, as it stands today, comprises many parts, including the Crypt Church, located underneath the basilica, the Votive Chapel, between the Crypt and the rock of Mount-Royal, the Shrine, which encompasses the nave, apse and transept, and the dome, which is the largest church dome in Canada and the third largest in the world.