St Ignatius Church, Preston
| Syro-Malabar Cathedral of St. Alphonsa | |
|---|---|
| St Ignatius Syro-Malabar Catholic Church | |
Entrance from Meadow Street
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 Syro-Malabar Cathedral of St. Alphonsa
Location in Preston
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| Coordinates: 53°45′49″N 2°41′48″W / 53.7637°N 2.6967°W | |
| OS grid reference | SD5416929933 |
| Location | Preston, Lancashire |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Denomination | Catholic (Syro-Malabar) |
| Website | official website |
| History | |
| Founded | 1833 |
| Founder(s) | Society of Jesus |
| Dedication | Ignatius of Loyola |
| Architecture | |
| Status | Cathedral |
| Functional status | Active |
| Heritage designation | Grade II* |
| Designated | 27 September 1979 |
| Architect(s) | Joseph John Scoles |
| Style | Gothic Revival |
| Groundbreaking | 1833 |
| Completed | 1886 |
| Administration | |
| Parish | St John XXIII |
| Deanery | Preston |
| Diocese | Lancaster |
| Province | Liverpool |
The Syro-Malabar Cathedral of St Alphonsa also St Ignatius Church is a Catholic cathedral of Syro Malabar rite in Preston, Lancashire, under the administration of the Syro-Malabar Diocese of Great Britain (before under Diocese of Lancaster). It is situated close to the Preston city centre and the entrance to it is along Meadow Street. The building was opened in 1836 and was the first church in Preston to have a spire.
Since January 2015, the church has been used as a cathedral for the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church.
On 28 July 2016 Pope Francis raised the status of the church to that of cathedral and appointed Messenger Joseph (Benny Mathew) Srampickal as the first bishop.
Prior to the Catholic Emancipation Act of 1829 the first legal Roman Catholic churches were built in a simple style similar to that used for Non-Conformist chapels and often incorporated the priest's house. The church was originally a Jesuit foundation.
St Ignatius is one of the earliest examples of a Gothic style in the city of Preston. Work on the church started in 1833. The architect was Joseph John Scoles, who also designed the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Farm Street, in London and the Church of Saint Francis Xavier, Liverpool for the Society of Jesus.
St Ignatius is one of the oldest surviving Roman Catholic church buildings in the city, and the architectural historian Sir Nicholas Pevsner declared it to be of national interest along with the sister church of St. Walburge. He said that it was an unusually planned Roman Catholic complex for this date.
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Wikipedia