Westminster Cathedral

Loading map...

Just a short walk away from Victoria Station, towering above the shops and offices of Victoria, is Westminster Cathedral - the home of the Catholic Church in England and Wales. These Westminster Cathedral virtual tours allow visitors to explore the Byzantine cathedral in all its splendour.

Elizabeth I outlawed Catholic priests and denied Catholics many rights allowed to other Christians. In 1829, the Catholic Emancipation act began to dismantle many of the anti-Catholic laws of the previous centuries. In the new climate in England, it was decided that a new cathedral should be built in the heart of London. The site was chosen in Victoria (the site was previously home to the Tothill Fields Bridewell prison for 'indolent paupers', and prior to that as a burial field for victims of the plague) and construction began in 1895. The building was completed in 1903 (although the interior still needed much work), but according to the laws of the church, could not be consecrated until 1910 when it was free from debt and had the main fabric complete.

Two historic visits have taken place over the last 30 years - in 1982, Pope John Paul II celebrated Mass at Westminster Cathedral, John Paul II was the first reigning pontiff to visit the UK. In 1995 Queen Elizabeth visited Westminster Cathedral - this marked the first visit of a reigning monarch of the United Kingdom to a Catholic liturgy for several hundred years.