St Nicholas Cathedral, Newcastle upon Tyne
St. Nicholas Cathedral, also known as The Cathedral Church of St Nicholas Newcastle upon Tyne, is the main church of Newcastle upon Tyne and is also the church in which the Bishop of Newcastle holds a seat.
St Nicholas is the patron saint of sailors and boats - the Cathedral may be so named because of the historical ties that the city has had and still has with the waters of the Tyne and the North Sea.
History of St. Nicholas Cathedral
Initially there was a parish church on or close to the site of the present day cathedral that served Newcastle between 1091 and 1216, when it was destroyed by a raging fire.
In the fourteenth century a new church was built to serve the people of Newcastle upon Tyne – this makes up parts of the cathedral we see today. Additions have been made to the cathedral over the years such as the lantern spire that was added in the mid fifteenth century. 
The church received a lot of damage in the early seventeenth century when Scottish invaders came across the border and laid siege to the city, this damage was internal.
There could have been further damage as the Scottish wished to bombard the tower and lantern spire, but the clever people of Newcastle placed Scottish prisoners in the church to stop the Scottish from damaging the church further.
In 1882, under the orders of Queen Victoria, a Diocese of Newcastle was created and the church became St. Nicholas Cathedral.
Visiting St Nicholas Cathedral
The cathedral is located right in the heart of Newcastle, so is easily located by all forms of public transport as well as by car.
Once in the centre, the cathedral can easily be found within ten to fifteen minutes walk from any location in the city of Newcastle. The cathedral is signposted everywhere, and is also very quickly found by scanning the skyline because of its size!
Regular religious services are held at the cathedral and normally a morning and evening service is held on a Sunday, times for the services can vary.
Address:The Cathedral Church of St. Nicholas
St. Nicholas Churchyard
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 1PF
Tel: 0191 232 1939