Church plan and dates

Saxon Cathedral  883-995

Our church's place in history began with events which took place two hundred years before the present church was built.

In 883, driven southwards by the Viking invasions, the monks of Lindisfarne arrived in Chester-le-Street, carrying with them the martyred King Oswald's head, a coffin containing Saint Cuthbert's body, and the Lindisfarne Gospels.

Here they built a shrine to Saint Cuthbert on land given to them by King Alfred. (This royal foundation is still commemorated in the unusual red colour of the cassocks worn by the choir.) 

The original building was probably of wood, though the frontispiece to the manuscript of Bede's  "Life of Saint Cuthbert" (illustrating the giving of the book to the shrine by King Athelstan) seems to show a stone building in the background.

None of the original ninth-century building survives today. 

For 112 years, the building was the Cathedral of a huge diocese stretching from Edinburgh in Scotland to Teesside in Northern England and from the east to the west coasts of Britain. 

It attracted important visitors and benefactors because of the legends of the miracles attributed to Cuthbert's remains. 

In 937, King Athelstan came to ask for Saint Cuthbert's assistance in a forthcoming battle with the Scots, bringing with him many treasures . The King's visit also confirmed the territorial possessions of  the Bishop of Chester-le-Street.

In about 950, here in Chester-le-Street, the priest Aldred added his Anglo-Saxon translation to The Lindisfarne Gospels, one of the outstanding surviving works of early Mediaeval art. 

None of these treasures remain in the town today (unless they are buried beneath the church). Some were stolen and others are now on public display in various places, including the British Museum in London.

The monks left Chester-le-Street with the body of Cuthbert in 995, when Viking invasions threatened again. They were never to return and Cuthbert now lies in Durham Cathedral.

The Norman Period 995-1286
church plan   

 At this time the church became a Rectory. 

About 1050, Bishop Egelric of Durham pulled down the old cathedral in order to build a stone church. (Whilst doing so he found a hoard of treasure, which he kept for himself,  and on completion of the church he resigned his Bishopric and retired to Peterborough in order to spend it.) 

The oldest part of the present church is the vestry, with the greater part, including the chancel and the nave, being built towards the end of this period (about 1267). 

The Mediaeval Period 1286-1547
church plan 

 Bishop Bek raised the status of the church from a Rectory to a Collegiate Church in 1286, and this was confirmed by Pope Boniface in 1332.

The church now hosted a dean, 5 chaplains, 3 deacons, and 7 other ministers. 

The revenue was drawn from the church's endowments of tithes from land in the parish of over 80 square miles.

It was at this time (about 1409) that the transepts and spire were added. The spire of the Church is prominent for miles around and the 8 bell peal still calls Christians to worship Jesus Christ.

After the Reformation 1547-186
church plan 

As a consequence of the Reformation, the Collegiate Church was dissolved and the revenues were taken by the Crown. It became a Parish Church. The 16 clergy were replaced by a single curate on a stipend of £10 a year but with the same size parish!

The church interior after the Reformation

In the 16th century the Anchorage extension was built.

In 1742 the South Porch was built to replace an older one.

In 1862 major alterations to the interior of the building took place. The plaster (a relic of the Reformation) was stripped from the walls and columns, the floor cemented, the gallery at the west end pulled down, the chancel arch rebuilt and the west arch reopened. The roof was restored to its original height and the wood from the old box pews was reworked into the backs of new open pews.

To the present day - 21st century

In 1865, the church became a Rectory again.

In the same year, the present organ was installed.

In 1883, the church's millennium, further internal alterations were made in order to celebrate the event. These included those in the chancel, with the erection of a screen with return stalls so as to revive the layout of the Collegiate Church. A new ring of 6 bells was installed. 

In the 20th century, alterations included work in the sanctuary, the making of the war memorial chapel and, in 1964, the addition of doors to the South Porch. In 1981 this became the choir vestry. 2 more bells were added in 1908, making a peal of 8. 

The Tower, Spire and bells    

The tower was built in three stages. First the square base, then the octagonal section and in 1409, the spire. 

To the top of the weathervane the spire reaches a height of 158 feet. 

Three bells were presented to the church when the spire was added. Two became cracked, and in 1883, their metal was melted down and was incorporated in a new ring of six bells. Two further bells were added in 1908 to make a ring of eight.

 (click on a bell to listen)

The "odd ninth," the only one left of the three 1409 originals, is still rung for the last few minutes before each service, and is dedicated to Saint Cuthbert.

The inscription on it reads, when translated from the Latin, "Master Robert Aschburn, Dean of Chester made me: This bell given is thus named Cuthbert"

The Anchorage

A unique and famous feature of Chester-le-Street Church is the tiny two-storey anchorage beside the west door at the base of the tower.

Now the "Anker's House Museum", it was from 1383 to 1547 the dwelling-place of an Anchorite, or hermit.

The Anchorite, having been approved by the Bishop, took monastic vows and was sealed in for the rest of his life.

A small window allowed limited access and the passing in of food, and an angled slit in the interior wall forms a "squint" through which the Anchorite could observe the celebration of the Mass in the side chapel of the church.

Church opening times

The church is open for visitors. 

From November to Easter:-

From Easter to October:-

Inquiries via the Church Secretary @ Administration