215 Churches to Explore in United Kingdom

Kilwinning Abbey is a Benedictine monastery founded sometime around 1162. A rich, flourishing monastery for 400 years, it once covered several acres. As an incredibly wealthy establishment, the Abbey and its contents proved dangerously attractive to the aristocracy and it is recorded that the Earls of Glencairn and Angus joined forces as early as 1512, entered the abbey precincts, and tried to physically force Abbot William Bunche to resign in favour of the preceptor of Glasgow, John Forman.

Kirkoswald Parish Church is located in the small village of Kirkoswald, South Ayrshire, Scotland. It is a parish church in the Church of Scotland. The church is unusual in that its design was, at the very least, strongly influenced by Robert Adam, one of Scotland's outstanding architects. He was working at the time on his masterpiece, Culzean Castle, and there are many Adam features about the church. It was built in 1777 and is essentially unchanged since.

Kirkstall Abbey is a feat of historic architecture set amid a haven of wildlife and greenery. This medieval Cistercian Abbey is one of the most impressive and offbeat ruins in the country. It is situated in the midst of vast parkland on the banks of River Aire. It offers the perfect introduction to the life of 12-century monks. One of the unique locations which pave light to the history of th is area.

Lacock Abbey is a country house with monastic roots and Britain's birthplace of photography. It is set in spacious wooded grounds, with plenty of space to picnic, and is now recognizable from films varying from Pride and Prejudice to Harry Potter. It was home to the Fox Talbot family. In the early 19th century, polymath William Henry Fox Talbot invented the photographic negative, a cornerstone in the rise of photography as both an art and a popular hobby.

This beautiful church was a 15th-century building and it contains several pre-Conquest reminders of an earlier building, including a Saxon doorway and fragments of Saxon crosses. It is in the deanery of Lancaster, the archdeaconry of Lancaster, and the Diocese of Blackburn. Its benefice is combined with that of St John and St Anne. The present building holds Viking ornaments, crusaders’ coffins, and part of Jacobean ‘three-decker’ pulpit.

Lanercost Priory was founded about 1166 by Henry II. When completed in 1220, canons came from the priory in Norfolk, and remained for some 370 years until the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1536, by Henry VIII. The priory is situated at the village of Lanercost, Cumbria, England, within sight of Naworth Castle, with which it had close connections.

Leeds Cathedral, also known as St Anne’s Cathedral was built in the early 20th Century in the Arts and Crafts neo-gothic style. It contains war memorials, relics, and sculptures. Dedicated to Saint Anne, the mother of Our Lady, the Cathedral is situated in the heart of Leeds city center and contrasts with the surrounding new hotels and office blocks, The Light shopping center, and the Victorian Town Hall.

Leicester Cathedral is at the physical heart of our city and county. This church, built on the site of a Roman temple and dedicated to St Martin of Tours, has been embedded in the public, economic, cultural and religious life of this community since medieval times. The building you see today is predominantly Victorian. The tower and 220 foot spire were designed by the architect Raphael Brandon and were rebuilt in the 1860s. It was one of the main pilgrimage centre as well as a tourist attraction

Leiston Abbey is the impressive remains of a 14th-century Premonstratensian abbey, one of the best-preserved monastic sites in Suffolk. The abbey ruins include the thatched Lady Chapel, which is still sometimes used for worship. Founded in c. 1183 by Ranulf de Glanville , Chief Justiciar to King Henry II , it was originally built on a marshland isle near the sea, and was called "St Mary de Insula". Around 1363 the abbey suffered so much from flooding that a new site was chosen and it was rebuilt

Lichfield Cathedral is a treasured landmark in the heart of the country that prides itself in offering a warm welcome to all our visitors. The Anglican Diocese of Lichfield covers Staffordshire, much of Shropshire, and parts of the Black Country and West Midlands. The current Bishop of Lichfield, Michael Ipgrave, was appointed in 2016. It is a Grade I listed building. One of the main pilgrimage centres in this area and also a tourist attraction too.

Lilleshall Abbey was founded in about 1148 for a community of Augustinian canons. By the late 13th century, it had become a religious house of great reputation and prestige. In the 14th century, however, a financial crisis contributed to a gradual dwindling of the community. After the abbey was suppressed in 1538, it was converted into a private house. The buildings were severely damaged in the Civil War during a Parliamentarian siege, but the extensive sandstone remains still give an impression

Lincoln Cathedral is the Mother Church of the Diocese, the parish church of the County, a place of national heritage and a centre of international pilgrimage. It provides a space for God, a place for worship, praise and private prayer. was the tallest building in the world for over 200 years, but the central spire fell down in the sixteenth century and was not rebuilt. It owns one of the four surviving copies of the Magna Carta.

Liverpool Cathedral is Britain's biggest Cathedral and the 5th largest in Europe. The cathedral is free to enter, however, the tower and audio tour is highly recommended. It is a world-class visitor attraction with a full program of events from Cream Classics music sets to large gala dinners and conferences. The cathedral is based on a design by Giles Gilbert Scott and was constructed between 1904 and 1978. The total external length of the building, including the Lady Chapel.

Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral is the seat of the Archbishop of Liverpool and the mother church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Liverpool, England. The Grade II* Metropolitan Cathedral is one of Liverpool's many listed buildings. The cathedral's architect, Frederick Gibberd, was the winner of a worldwide design competition. Construction began in 1962 and was completed in 1967. Earlier designs for a cathedral were proposed in 1933 and 1953, but none were completed.

A majestic and historically important church which has been a hotbed of British legend for hundreds of years, having said to have been visited by such major figures as Robin Hood and Sir Gawain. Lud's Church is an immense natural cleft in the rock on the hillside above Gradbach, in a forest area known as the Black Forest. The feature has been formed by a landslip that has detached a large section of rock from the hillside.

Malmesbury Abbey is one of the oldest and most important religious sites in England, with a history going back to at least the 7th century. It was one of the few English houses with a continuous history from the 7th century through to the Dissolution of the Monasteries. The present building dates from about 1180. Over half of the great church has disappeared, but the remainder is used as a parish church and boasts some fine Romanesque architecture and art.

Manchester Cathedral is the Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Mary, St Denys and St George in Manchester. The former parish church was rebuilt in the Perpendicular Gothic style in the years following the foundation of the collegiate body in 1421. The medieval church was extensively refaced, restored and extended in the Victorian period, and again following bomb damage in the 20th century. The collegiate church became the cathedral of the new Diocese of Manchester in 1847, and is one of fifte

Dedicated to the patron saint of Scotland, Saint Andrew, Metropolitan Cathedral of St Andrew is the seat of the Archbishop of Glasgow. The cathedral was designed in 1814 in the Neo Gothic style by the 19th century prominent architect James Gillespie Graham.

Monk Bretton was a Cluniac priory established around 1154 by Adam Fitz Swane as a daughter house of St John's in Pontefract. When the monastery was built, however, the site in the wooded valley of the River Dearne was peaceful and remote. In the course of time the priory took the name of the nearby village of Bretton to be commonly known as Monk Bretton Priory.

It was the first Catholic Abbey to be founded in this country after the Reformation. This is a Cistercian Monastery of white monks founded in 1835 as a continuation of Garendon Abbey. Includes gardens, high calvary, gift shop, and Abbey Church. The abbey was the first permanent monastery to be founded in England since the Reformation and is the sole Trappist house in England. The monks brew the only Trappist beer in Britain.