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St. Columb's Cathedral Review

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St. Columb's Cathedral

Address: London St. off Bishop St., West Bank, Derry
Phone: 028/7126-7313
www.stcolumbscathedral.org

Category: Museums/Galleries, Religious Sites
Location: Derry

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Fodor's Review:

St. Columb's Cathedral was the first Protestant cathedral built in the United Kingdom after the Reformation, and contains the oldest and largest bells in Ireland (dating from the 1620s). It's a treasure house of Derry Protestant emblems, memorials, and relics from the siege of 1688-89—most visitors come to see the keys that locked the four main gates of the city during the siege. The church was built in 1633 in simple Planter's Gothic style, with an intricate corbeled roof and austere spire. In the vestibule is the 270-pound mortar ball that during the Siege of Derry was fired over the wall with an invitation to surrender sent by King James. Legend has it that when it was read, every man, woman, and child in the city rushed to the walls and shouted, "No surrender!"—a Protestant battle cry to this day. The attached Chapter House Museum has the oldest surviving copy of a map of Derry (from 1600) and the Bible owned by Governor George Walker during the siege. Display cases and new information panels were added in 2006 as part of the Walled City Signature Project. Knowledgeable tour guides are on hand.

Cost: £2
Open: Daily 9-5.

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