Lake District Travel Guide - Historic Churches

There was very likely a wooden church at Bridekirk, near Cockermouth, before the Conquest. Around 1130 this was replaced a sturdy Norman church in stone. This, in turn, was replaced by the current building in 1868, which stands beside the ruins of the Norman church.
Bridekirk, Cumbria, England, CA130PE

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Heritage Highlight: Superb late Saxon or early Norman font

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The 11th-century church of St Bridget may stand on the site of an early Saxon nunnery. The interior features glorious Victorian decoration by William Butterfield. In the churchyard is the grave of Charles Christian, father of Mutiny on the Bounty leader Fletcher Christian.
Brampton, Cumbria, England, CA130XN

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Heritage Highlight: Saxon and Viking carved stones

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Set in fields beside a bend of the River Eamont is St Ninian's Church, also known as Ninekirks. The setting is superb, offering views east to the Pennines and west to the Lake District fells. The church is built of local red sandstone.
Off the A66, Brougham, Cumbria, England, CA10 2AD

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Heritage Highlight: Brougham family brasses

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St Mary's stands well away from the town centre of Broughton. There was a church here as early as the 12th century and the Norman doorway and some stonework remains from that building. The rest is mainly Victorian and includes stained glass by CE Kempe, a 15th-century bell, and an early 17th-century 'Bishop's Bible'.
Church Street, Broughton-in-Furness, Lake District, Cumbria, England, LA20 6HA

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Heritage Highlight: 15th-century bell

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St Michael's is a 12th-century church built with stones from Hadrian's Wall. It boasts two towers, one a fortified pele, made to defend the inhabitants from attacks by Scottish raiders, and later, by Border Reivers. Edward I lay in state inside St Michael's after his death on Burgh Marsh in 1307.
Burgh-by-Sands, Cumbria, England, CA5 6AW

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Heritage Highlight: Edward I lay in state here

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Carlisle Cathedral is the second-smallest cathedral in England, after Oxford. It was built in 1123 to serve a Norman priory, but in 1133 the east end of the church was made a cathedral, while the west end served as the parish church. The church was rebuilt in 1292 after a fire. The east window is one of the most impressive in the country, but pride of place must go to the superbly carved choir stalls, dating to about 1400.
The Abbey, Carlisle, Cumbria, England, CA3 8TZ

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Heritage Highlight: Marvellous Decorated Gothic east window

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A beautiful Georgian church a short stroll from Carlisle Cathedral. St Cuthbert's was founded in the 7th century, but the present building is pure Georgian, with galleries flanking the nave. Look for a 14th-century stained glass window and the marriage record of Sir Walter Scott.
St Cuthbert's Lane, Blackfriars Street, Carlisle, Cumbria, England, CA3 8UF

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Heritage Highlight: 14th-century stained glass and Sir Walter Scott connection

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The Priory Church of St Mary and St Michael incorporates the south aisle of the original church of an 1189 Augustinian Priory. Its long history leaves its legacy in the richness of architectural styles, from Transitional Norman through Decorated and Perpendicular. The priory church was one of the few to survive the Dissolution of the Monasteries, a distinction it owed to its founder, William Marshall, who stipulated that an altar should be provided within the church for the people of Cartmel.
Cartmel, Cumbria, England, LA11 6PU

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All Saints Church dates to 1854 but is at least the third church on this site. Poet William Wordsworth was baptised here, and the east window is a memorial to Wordsworth and his sister Dorothy. Their father John is buried in the churchyard.
Kirkgate, Cockermouth, Cumbria, England

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Heritage Highlight: Links to William Wordsworth

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St Andrew's Church dates to 1819 and replaced an earlier Elizabethan chapel. In the churchyard is the grave of the Victorian writer, reformer, and critic John Ruskin. Church highlights include a stained glass window by CE Kempe.
Yewdale Road (B5285), Coniston, Lake District, Cumbria, England, LA21 8DU

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Heritage Highlight: John Ruskin's grave

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