Portsmouth - Places of Worship

Places of Worship

Portsmouth is among only a few British cities that have two cathedrals; the Anglican cathedral of St Thomas, in Old Portsmouth and the Roman Catholic cathedral of St John the Evangelist, in Edinburgh Road, Portsea.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth was founded in 1882 by Pope Leo XIII. Vatican policy in England at the time was to found sees in locations other than those used for Anglican cathedrals and the Ecclesiastical Titles Act forbade a Roman Catholic bishop from bearing the same title as one in the established church. Accordingly, Portsmouth was chosen in preference to Winchester.

In 1927 the Church of England diocese of Winchester was divided and St Thomas's Church became the cathedral for the newly created Diocese of Portsmouth. When St Mary's Church, Portsea, was rebuilt in Victorian times, it had been envisaged that it might be the cathedral if Portsmouth became the seat of a bishop, but St Thomas's was given the honour because of its historic status.

Another historic old Portsmouth church, the Garrison Church, was bombed during the Second World War with the nave kept roofless as a memorial. Of more modern buildings, St Philip's Cosham is cited as a fine example of Ninian Comper's work. There are numerous other active churches and places of worship throughout the city. There are some mosques, a synagogue and a Jewish cemetery in the city.

The city also has three Salvation Army churches: Portsmouth Citadel, Portsmouth North and Southsea.