Manchester Cathedral :: Shared Description

Manchester Cathedral sits towards the northern side of downtown Manchester, an area that has seen extensive regeneration and development in recent years. From the outside, the cathedral appears to be a relatively modern church, typical of the Victorian era. However, the main body of the cathedral largely derives from the 15th century and the present structure retains elements that are almost 600 years old and has even survived a bomb blast during World War II. Although the structure has seen its share of changes, these have taken place over hundreds of years, unlike the rapid redevelopment of the Millennium Quarter surrounding it.


Until becoming a cathedral in 1847, it was a Collegiate Church; its full title is “The Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Mary, St Denys and St George in Manchester”. Following the rapid expansion of Manchester during the Industrial Revolution, it was made a cathedral in 1847 and was extensively refaced, restored and extended in the Victorian period. All external stonework was replaced between 1850 and 1870 and the west tower was heightened in 1868. Consequently the cathedral gives the overall impression of a 19th-century structure. The cathedral also suffered a hit from a bomb in 1940, suffering the worst wartime damage of any UK cathedral apart from Coventry. Yet more restoration was needed after the IRA bomb of 1996 which exploded nearby.

The cathedral is a Grade I listed building (Historic England List entry Number: 1218041 LinkExternal link ).

LinkExternal link Wikipedia article about Manchester Cathedral
by David Dixon
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134 images use this description. Preview sample shown below:

SJ8398 : Manchester Cathedral Gardens by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Chapel of the Duke of Lancaster's Regiment, Manchester Cathedral by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Oak Carving, Manchester Cathedral Quire by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Musical Angel by David Dixon
SJ8398 : St Mary Window, Manchester Cathedral West Tower by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Manchester Cathedral, St Mary Window by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Manchester Cathedral (1978) by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Manchester Cathedral, Nave, Tower and St Mary Window by David Dixon
SJ8398 : The High Altar, Manchester Cathedral by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Manchester Cathedral, Victoria Street by David Dixon
SJ8398 : The Bishop's Seat (cathedra) by David Dixon
SJ8398 : The Lancashire Madonna at Manchester Cathedral by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Victoria Bus Station & Manchester Cathedral by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Manchester Cathedral, Joshua Brookes Plaque by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Carved Coat of Arms, Manchester Cathedral Quire by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Sixteenth Century Seat Carvings, Manchester Cathedral by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Manchester Cathedral by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Manchester Cathedral, South Aisle and Healing Window by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Manchester Cathedral (interior) by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Manchester Cathedral, Victoria Street by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Manchester Cathedral by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Humphrey Chetham Statue, Manchester Cathedral by David Dixon
SJ8398 : Manchester Cathedral, South Aisle and Jesus Chapel by David Dixon
SJ8398 : The Lady Chapel, Manchester Cathedral by David Dixon
SJ8398 : West Tower and St Mary Window, Manchester Cathedral by David Dixon

... and 109 more images.

These Shared Descriptions are common to multiple images. For example, you can create a generic description for an object shown in a photo, and reuse the description on all photos of the object. All descriptions are public and shared between contributors, i.e. you can reuse a description created by others, just as they can use yours.
Created: Wed, 27 Mar 2013, Updated: Mon, 5 Mar 2018

The 'Shared Description' text on this page is Copyright 2013 David Dixon, however it is specifically licensed so that contributors can reuse it on their own images without restriction.

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