Inverness Cathedral


(St Andrew's Cathedral)

Inverness Cathedral, dedicated to St. Andrew, lies on the west bank of the River Ness in Inverness, Highland, and was the first new Cathedral to be completed in Britain since the Reformation. The initiative of Robert Eden (1804-86), the energetic Bishop of the Diocese of Moray, Ross and Caithness in the Scottish Episcopal Church, the cathedral replaced a modest chapel on the opposite bank of the Ness which the congregation had outgrown. It was built in the Gothic-Revival style during the period 1866-69 at a cost of £15,106 and was designed by local architect Alexander Ross (1834 - 1925), who was a member of the congregation. It was originally intended that the twin towers were might be topped with 30m (98 feet) spires but the spires were never constructed. In the tower nearest the River Ness are ten bells, hung for change ringing, with an eleventh bell hung for chiming.

The cathedral opened for worship on 1st September, 1869, but was not completed and formally consecrated until 1874, when the debt incurred in the construction was fully paid off. A marble bust of Bishop Eden is in the north aisle, where also is a display of Russian icons, three of which were presented by Tsar Alexander II to Bishop Eden when he visited Russia in 1866. The Angel Font (1871) is largely a copy of Bertel Thorvaldsen's Kneeling Angel in Copenhagen, and was carved by Derbyshire-born James F. Redfern (1838-76).


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