Newcastle Cathedral

St Nicholas Cathedral
Cathedral Church of St Nicholas
St Nicholas Cathedral Shown within Tyne and Wear
Coordinates: 54°58′12″N 1°36′40″W / 54.97000°N 1.61111°W / 54.97000; -1.61111
Location	Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear
Country	England
Denomination	Church of England
Tradition	High Church
Website	stnicholascathedral.co.uk
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Style	English Gothic
Years built	c. 1080 – c. 1500
Specifications
Capacity	1000
Number of towers	One
Administration
Diocese	Newcastle (since 1882)
Province	York
Clergy
Bishop(s)	Christine Hardman
Dean	Chris Dalliston
Canon(s)	John Sinclair, Evangelism Clare MacLaren, music and liturgy Steven Harvey, education
Laity
Director of music	Ian Roberts
Organist(s)	Kris Thomsett

The Cathedral Church of St Nicholas is a Church of England cathedral in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It is the seat of the Bishop of Newcastle and is the mother church of the Diocese of Newcastle, the most northerly diocese of the Anglican Church in England, which reaches from the River Tyne as far north as Berwick-upon-Tweed and as far west as Alston in Cumbria.

Founded in 1091 during the same period as the nearby castle, the Norman church was destroyed by fire in 1216 and the current building was completed in 1350, so is mostly of the Perpendicular style of the 14th century. Its tower is noted for its 15th-century lantern spire. Heavily restored in 1777, the building was raised to cathedral status in 1882, when it became known as the Cathedral Church of St Nicholas.

The cathedral is named after St Nicholas, the patron saint of sailors and boats. This may reflect the cathedral's position on the northern heights above the River Tyne. It was originally a parish church, built in 1091. It was built close to the line of Hadrian's Wall through Newcastle, which may have passed through the churchyard, but unfortunately the exact location of its line through the very centre of the city is currently lost. Close to the south of the cathedral is Newcastle Castle, which gave the city its name, and which was itself built on the site of the Hadrian's Wall fort of Pons Aelius. The Norman church was destroyed by fire in 1216 and the present structure was completed in 1350.