St Columb's Cathedral in the walled city of

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

, is the

cathedral church A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

and

episcopal see An episcopal see is the area of a bishop's ecclesiastical jurisdiction. Phrases concerning actions occurring within or outside an episcopal see are indicative of the geographical significance of the term, making it synonymous with ''diocese'' ...

of the

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland (, ; , ) is a Christian church in Ireland, and an autonomy, autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the Christianity in Ireland, second-largest Christian church on the ...

's Diocese of Derry and Raphoe. It is also the parish church of Templemore. It is dedicated to Saint

Columba Columba () or Colmcille (7 December 521 – 9 June 597 AD) was an Irish abbot and missionary evangelist credited with spreading Christianity in what is today Scotland at the start of the Hiberno-Scottish mission. He founded the important abbey ...

, the Irish

monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

who established a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

settlement in the area before being exiled from

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

and introducing

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

and northern

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. Built after the

Reformation in Ireland The Reformation in Ireland was a movement for the reform of religious life and institutions that was introduced into Ireland by the English Crown at the behest of King Henry VIII of England. His desire for an annulment of his marriage was known ...

, St Columb's is the first

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

cathedral to have been built in Britain and Ireland after the

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

and was the first non-

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

cathedral to be built in

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...

History

The original site of the diocesan cathedral was in Templemore ( or "the Big Church"). Due to the violence of the

Nine Years' War The Nine Years' War was a European great power conflict from 1688 to 1697 between Kingdom of France, France and the Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg), Grand Alliance. Although largely concentrated in Europe, fighting spread to colonial poss ...

, the church was destroyed. It was first damaged by an accidental explosion on 24 April 1568, the church having been appropriated for the storage of gunpowder. On 16 April 1600, Sir Henry Docwra entered Derry with a force of 4,000 soldiers. He tore down the ruins of the Big Church and used its stones to build the walls and ramparts of the city. A small square stone tablet from ''An Teampall Mór'' is today fixed into the porch of the present structure. The Latin inscription reads ''"In Templo Vervs Devs Est Verec Colendvs"'' ("The True God is in His Temple and is to be truly worshipped"). The cathedral is located close to the original. The present church was built by William Parratt, from London, and was consecrated in 1633. It is a good example of " Gothic Survival" in the

English Gothic architecture English Gothic is an architectural style that flourished from the late 12th until the mid-17th century. The style was most prominently used in the construction of Gothic cathedrals and churches, cathedrals and churches. Gothic architecture, Got ...

of the 17th century, contemporary with the college

chapel A chapel (from , a diminutive of ''cappa'', meaning "little cape") is a Christianity, Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. First, smaller spaces inside a church that have their o ...

Peterhouse, Cambridge Peterhouse is the oldest Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Peterhouse has around 300 undergraduate and 175 graduate stud ...

. The style has been called " Planter's Gothic". Foundations for a

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

extending the east end were laid in 1633, but the building work advanced no further. In the porch is an inscription: After its consecration in 1633, the church was nearly unaltered until the bishop in 1776, Frederick Hervey, 4th Earl of Bristol, extended the total height of the building to by building up the tower by and adding a very tall

spire A spire is a tall, slender, pointed structure on top of a roof of a building or tower, especially at the summit of church steeples. A spire may have a square, circular, or polygonal plan, with a roughly conical or pyramidal shape. Spire ...

. This spire lasted only two decades before it threatened to collapse and was dismantled for rebuilding. The tower was finished in 1802, but the replacement spire was built another two decades later. The original south porch, attached to the hitherto unaltered nave, was removed in 1825, and in 1827 the turrets on either side of the east end were remodelled, with their previously

crenellated A battlement, in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at intervals ...

tops rebuilt with

dome A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...

s. In 1861–1862, the whole interior was remodelled with new woodwork in

oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

, and the galleries which had previously been in the

aisle An aisle is a linear space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, in buildings such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, parliaments, courtrooms, ...

s were removed. Other decorations and furnishings were replaced at the same time. In 1887, in beginning work for a new chancel, the 17th-century foundations were unearthed, and the new chancel was constructed on their plan, completing the church's intended form. The

chapter house A chapter house or chapterhouse is a building or room that is part of a cathedral, monastery or collegiate church in which meetings are held. When attached to a cathedral, the cathedral chapter meets there. In monasteries, the whole communi ...

was built in 1910. St Columb's has in its possession many documents dating back from the

Siege of Derry The siege of Derry in 1689 was the first major event in the Williamite War in Ireland. The siege was preceded by an attempt against the town by Jacobite forces on 7 December 1688 that was foiled when 13 apprentices shut the gates. Thi ...

. They have portraits of William of Orange and the original keys of the city. The cathedral also contains a memorial to Valentine Munbee McMaster VC.

Services

The cathedral has three Sunday services, 8:00 am

Eucharist The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christianity, Christian Rite (Christianity), rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an Ordinance (Christianity), ordinance in ...

, 11:00 am Sung Eucharist (1st and 3rd Sundays of the month), Matins (all other Sundays of the month), 10:00 am Family Service (4th Sunday of the month) and 4:00 pm Choral

Evensong Evensong is a church service traditionally held near sunset focused on singing psalms and other biblical canticles. It is loosely based on the canonical hours of vespers and compline. Old English speakers translated the Latin word as , which ...

. On weekdays Morning Prayer is celebrated Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays at 10:30 am and on Tuesdays Holy Communion is celebrated with intercessions for the sick. Dean of 19 years, the Reverend William Morton, retired on 18 September 2016 and was appointed dean of

St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin Saint Patrick's Cathedral () in Dublin, Ireland is the national cathedral of the Church of Ireland. Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, Christ Church Cathedral, also a Church of Ireland cathedral in Dublin, is designated as the local cathedral of ...

. In the transition period, before the appointment of a new dean, the

Bishop of Derry and Raphoe The Bishop of Derry and Raphoe is the Church of Ireland Ordinary (officer), Ordinary of the united Diocese of Derry and Raphoe (Church of Ireland), Diocese of Derry and Raphoe in the Province of Armagh (Church of Ireland), Province of Armagh.''C ...

, Ken Good, appointed the Reverend Mervyn T. E. Peoples to assist the cathedral's curate, the Reverend Canon John Merrick. On 4 December 2016, Bishop Good appointed the Reverend Canon Raymond Stewart as the new dean of Saint Columb's Cathedral and rector of the Parish of Templemore. Stewart was inaugurated on 28 March 2017 at the cathedral by Bishop Good and succeeded the Rev William Morton who became dean of

in September 2016.

Organists

*1873-1878 James Turpin *1878-1911 Daniel Jones *1912-1914 Sydney Weale *1914-1921 Richard Henry Coleman *1921-1948 John T Frankland *1948-1968 Michael H Franklin *1968-1971 Neil Wade *1971 Ian Barber *1972-1980 Michael Hoeg *1981-1982 Marc Rochester *1982-1988 William West *1988-1990? Alexander Best *1990-1991 William West *1991-2001 Timothy Allen *2002-2004 Jonathan Lane *2005- Ian Kenneth Mills

Burials

* William Nicolson,

Bishop of Derry The Bishop of Derry is an episcopal title which takes its name after the monastic settlement originally founded at Daire Calgach and later known as Daire Colm Cille, Anglicised as Derry. In the Catholic Church it remains a separate title, but in ...

(1718–1727) File:St Columb's Cathedral2 by Paride.jpg File:St Columb's Cathedral4 by Paride.jpg File:St Columb's Cathedral5 by Paride.jpg File:Derry St Columb's Cathedral South Aisle Window Exterior View 2013 09 17.jpg,

Perpendicular Gothic Perpendicular Gothic (also Perpendicular, Rectilinear, or Third Pointed) architecture was the third and final style of English Gothic architecture developed in the Kingdom of England during the Late Middle Ages, typified by large windows, four-ce ...

tracery Tracery is an architectural device by which windows (or screens, panels, and vaults) are divided into sections of various proportions by stone ''bars'' or ''ribs'' of moulding. Most commonly, it refers to the stonework elements that support th ...

File:St Columb's Cathedral6 by Paride.jpg File:The Bomb Font St. Columbs Cathedral in Derry City.jpg, The Bomb Font (A cannonball) inside the Cathedral File:Londonderry St. Columb's Cathedral [email protected], South elevation File:St Columb's Cathedral (08), August 2009.JPG, 19th-century tower and spire File:St Columb's Cathedral (04), August 2009.JPG, Dome File:St Columb's Cathedral (07), August 2009.JPG, 19th-century chancel File:Derry St Columb's Cathedral Choir Vestry South Gable 2013 09 17.jpg, 20th-century chapter house,

tracery File:Derry St Columb's Cathedral Pew End 2013 09 17.jpg, Decorative finial with mice on a 19th-century pew File:Derry St Columb's Cathedral Ceiling 2013 09 17.jpg, Timber ceiling File:Derry St Columb's Cathedral Chancel 2013 09 17.jpg,

High altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...

and choir stalls in the chancel File:Derry St Columb's Cathedral North Aisle 2013 09 17.jpg, North aisle File:Derry St Columb's Cathedral Nave 2013 09 17.jpg, Nave, looking east File:Derry St Columb's Cathedral Nave II 2013 09 17.jpg, Nave, looking west File:Derry St Columb's Cathedral South Aisle 2013 09 17.jpg, South aisle

References

External links

St Columb's Cathedral website

Details of the organ from the National Pipe Organ Register
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