St. Chad's Cathedral, Birmingham
| St Chad's Cathedral, Birmingham | |
|---|---|
| Metropolitan Cathedral and Basilica of St Chad | |
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 St Chad's Cathedral, Birmingham
Shown within West Midlands
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| Coordinates: 52°29′08″N 1°53′55″W / 52.4855°N 1.8986°W | |
| Location | Birmingham, West Midlands |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Website | stchadscathedral.org.uk |
| History | |
| Consecrated | 1841 |
| Architecture | |
| Architect(s) | Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin |
| Style | Gothic Revival |
| Years built | 1839–1841 |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Birmingham (since 1850) |
| Province | Birmingham |
| Clergy | |
| Dean | Gerry Breen |
| Laity | |
| Director of music | David Saint |
| Organist(s) | Nigel Morris |
The Metropolitan Cathedral Church and Basilica of Saint Chad is the mother church of the Archdiocese of Birmingham and province of the Catholic Church in Great Britain and is dedicated to Saint Chad of Mercia. Built by Augustus Welby Pugin and substantially complete by 1841, St Chad's is one of the first four Catholic churches that were constructed after the English Reformation and raised to cathedral status in 1852. It is one of only four minor basilicas in England (the others being Downside Abbey, the National Shrine of Our Lady at Walsingham and Corpus Christi Priory, this last now disused). St Chad's is a Grade II* listed building. The cathedral is located in a public greenspace near St Chad's Queensway, in central Birmingham. As of 2014[update] the Archbishop was Bernard Longley and the Dean Canon Gerry Breen.
St Chad's was the first Catholic cathedral erected in England after the English Reformation initiated in 1534 by King Henry VIII. St Chad's Cathedral was built at the behest of Bishop Thomas Walsh, the local apostolic vicar (styled Vicar Apostolic of the Midland District). St Chad's Cathedral was designed by Augustus Welby Pugin, the foundation stone was laid in October 1839 and the building consecrated as a church on 21 June 1841. The project received generous donations from John Talbot, 16th Earl of Shrewsbury, who was the last catholic Earl of Shrewsbury. The church was raised to the status of cathedral in 1852 following the restoration of the Catholic Hierarchy in England by Pope Pius IX in 1850. The first Bishop of Birmingham was William Bernard Ullathorne OSB, whose monument is the Crypt of the Cathedral. He was buried at St Dominic's Priory, Stone, a convent of Dominican sisters. In 1911 the diocese was elevated to an archdiocese.
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