Westminster Cathedral, Catholic cathedral in Westminster, London, England
Westminster Cathedral is a Catholic cathedral in Westminster, London, built from 1895 to 1903 to John Francis Bentley's neo-Byzantine design. Its façade alternates red brick with pale Portland stone bands, and a tall square campanile with a domed top stands beside the arched west portal, whose tympanum carries a mosaic of Christ and saints. The interior has a wide nave, narrow aisles and side chapels, with mosaics on walls and ceilings.
Work began in 1895 following plans by architect John Francis Bentley, who chose Byzantine models for the building. The consecration took place in June 1910, though the interior decoration has never been fully completed.
The name honors Westminster as a historic center of Catholic life in London, while the architecture deliberately adopts Byzantine forms to distinguish itself from Gothic Anglican churches. Visitors today witness regular worship and religious ceremonies in a space whose unfinished state creates a particular character.
Access is from Francis Street, and visiting is possible daily, though services and prayer times may affect visitor flow. The interior areas are largely accessible, but some chapels remain reserved for quiet devotion during liturgy.
In a side chapel of the nave, the body of St John Southworth, a priest executed in 1654, has been displayed for veneration since 1930. The mosaics on the ceilings and walls were never finished, so raw brickwork and concrete remain visible in the upper nave.
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