Christ Church Cathedral

Lisburn, United Kingdom

The first church was built on the site of  Christ Church Cathedral in Lisburn in the early 1600s by Sir Fulke Conway as a chapel of ease for his new castle at what was then called Lisnagarvey. It was consecrated in 1623 and dedicated to St Thomas, but was destroyed along with much of the town during the rebellion of 1641.

The church was quickly rebuilt and in 1662 St Thomas's was designated the cathedral church and episcopal seat of the United Diocese of Down and Connor by Charles II and renamed Christ Church Cathedral. Additional gallery seating was introduced in 1674 with access via a bell tower. The cathedral burned down a second time in 1707.

Again it was quickly rebuilt starting in the 1708 and completed 11 years much after in the (1719), retaining the galleries in the nave with access via the tower which had survived the fire. The octagonal spire was added in 1804 and the chancel built and consecrated in 1889. In the year of 2003, the 1796 front gates were replaced and in 2004 the clock chimes refurbished.

On 31 July 1914 protesting Suffragettes bombed the Cathedral. A small explosion blew out one of the oldest stained glass windows. Four women arrested after the attack.

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Address

Castle Street 18, Lisburn, United Kingdom
See all sites in Lisburn

Details

Founded: 1708
Category: Religious sites in United Kingdom

More Information

en.wikipedia.org

Rating

4.6/5 (based on Google user reviews)

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User Reviews

William J Ford (4 months ago)
We saw the signs saying lunch and went inside. What a lovely place and what a fantastic place to worship. Lunch was good, the stained glass windows magnificent and what a change from the normal places to eat. The staff were really nice and what a pleasure to have a bite to eat in somewhere so special. This was a great idea to have the tea rooms at the end of the main isle and brings the Cathedral into an everyday place to visit. Well done to whoever thought this up. We'll be back again.
jhpatterson100 (9 months ago)
Cafe worth a visit.
Richard Robinson (12 months ago)
Great tour by knowledgeable guide.
bob smith (17 months ago)
Nice place, but unfortunately too contempary for a church of Ireland cathedral! Had a look around and their cabeling and drums seem to be very untidy and couldn't read some of the placks on the wall. Beautiful building tho.
Gilbert Young (2 years ago)
Small car park usually park on street. Coffee bar. Welcoming.
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