List of cathedrals in England
This is a list of cathedrals in England, the Isle of Man, Guernsey and Jersey, as well as Gibraltar. Former and intended cathedrals are listed separately. Cathedrals in overseas territories can be found at List of cathedrals in British Overseas Territories.
A cathedral church is a Christian place of worship that is the chief, or "mother" church of a diocese and is distinguished as such by being the location for the cathedra or bishop's seat. In the strictest sense, only those Christian denominations with an episcopal hierarchy possess cathedrals. However, notable churches that were formerly part of an episcopal denomination are still often informally called cathedrals.
It is a common misconception that the term "cathedral" may be applied to any particularly large or grand church. A cathedral may be a relatively small building, particularly if it is located in a sparser or poorer community. Modern cathedrals frequently lack the grandeur of those of the Medieval and Renaissance times, focusing more on the functional aspect of a place of worship. However, many of the grand and ancient cathedrals that remain today were originally built to much smaller plans, and have been successively extended and rebuilt over the centuries.
Some cathedrals were purpose-built as such. Some were formerly abbeys or priories, whilst others were parochial, or parish churches, subsequently promoted in status due to ecclesiastical requirements such as periodic diocesan reorganisation.
For the other parts of the United Kingdom, see
List of cathedrals in Northern Ireland; List of cathedrals in Scotland; List of cathedrals in Wales
For the Falkland Islands, which has a similar constitutional status to Gibraltar, see Christ Church Cathedral (Falkland Islands)
Contents of this list
The following list comprises all locations of current cathedral churches, or former cathedral churches, including those locations where no trace remains of the structure, indeed where the precise location is no longer known.Also included are those structures or sites of intended cathedrals as well as pro-cathedrals, which are churches serving as an interim cathedral,, or as a co-cathedral where the diocesan demographics/geography require the bishop's seat to be shared with a building in another location.
The inclusion of dependencies is strictly for ecclesiastical reasons—the included dependencies are those that share a province with the mainland of England.