Portsmouth Cathedral

Portsmouth Cathedral (the Cathedral Church of St Thomas of Canterbury) is an Anglican cathedral in the heart of Old Portsmouth, close to the harbour and waterfront. A Grade I listed building, it blends medieval origins with a Baroque-era rebuild and twentieth-century extensions.

How did Portsmouth Cathedral begin?

Around 1180, a wealthy Norman merchant named Jean de Gisors granted land to the Augustinian canons of Southwick Priory so they could build a chapel honouring Thomas of Canterbury, who had been murdered only a decade earlier. Construction was under way by the mid-1180s, and the chancel and nave were consecrated in 1188. The church was cruciform with a central tower, which besides ringing bells also worked as a lighthouse and lookout over the channel.

Civil War damage and rebuilding

In 1642, during the English Civil War, Parliamentary forces attacked the town and the church was badly damaged. The original nave was lost. Between 1683 and 1693 a new aisled nave and a west tower were built, with a cupola added in 1703. This part of the building carries classical-style decoration, which is why the interior mixes several eras.

What is the architecture like?

The surviving chancel and transepts are in a transitional style between Romanesque and early English Gothic, with close parallels at Chichester Cathedral and Boxgrove Priory. Historic England describes the building as a mix of Transitional, Early English, Classical and Byzantine elements. Sir Charles Nicholson carried out work between 1935 and 1939, and a west extension by Michael Drury of Winchester followed in 1990–91. The completed cathedral was consecrated in 1991.

From parish church to cathedral

St Thomas's served as a parish church until the twentieth century, when it became the cathedral of the new Diocese of Portsmouth. Sources give different years for the change of status (1927 or 1935), so it is safest to place it in the late 1920s to 1930s.

What to look for when you visit

• The medieval chancel and transepts, the oldest parts of the church.
• The late seventeenth-century nave.
• The 1703 cupola on the west tower.
• The twentieth-century additions, visible at the west end.

The cathedral sits in the historic Old Portsmouth quarter, so it pairs easily with a walk along the waterfront and through the old streets.

Frequently asked questions

Is Portsmouth Cathedral a listed building? Yes, it is Grade I listed, the highest level of protection in England.

Who is the cathedral dedicated to? St Thomas of Canterbury (Thomas Becket).

How old is the building? The oldest parts date from the late twelfth century, the nave and tower from 1683–1693, with twentieth-century extensions.

Where is it? In Old Portsmouth, near the harbour, on the south coast of England in Hampshire.