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You are here: Home > Things to Do > History and Heritage > Cumbrian Churches > Churches of The Western Lakes & Coast

Churches of The Western Lakes & Coast

The coastline of the western lake district, with its maritime history, has brought a variety of people and faiths to Cumbria’s shores.  Many of whom settled, integrated and made the region their home. 

St Mary’s, Gosforth, is rich in history and artefacts of the Scandinavian Vikings.  The Norse ‘Gosforth Cross' dating from around 940AD, depicts a fusion of Viking and Christian stories which reveal the transition from pagan to Christian beliefs.  One of the smallest churches near the deepest lake and the highest mountain in England; St Olaf’s, at Wasdale Head, honours the early Viking settlers to these dales as well as those lost on the surrounding peaks.  St Bees Priory, is partly dedicated to St Bega.  Bega was an Irish princess who sailed single handed across the Irish sea to escape a forced marriage to a Viking chief.  Stained glass in the Priory depicts her landing.  The Cistercian monastery of Holme Cultran Abbey was founded in 1150 by David I of Scotland, the order itself was established near Dijon, France.  Buddhist symbols, in honour of a Sri Lankan vicar, are engraved into the glass doors of St James, Whitehaven.  Step inside and you will find an impressive 18th Century interior.   Once home to Benedictine Monks, spiritual descendants of early medieval Italy and Gaul, the now Roman Catholic church of Our Lady Star of the Sea & St Michael, Workington is also home to several mice; the carved symbol of the furniture maker Robert ‘Mouseman' Thompson of Kilburn.

Below, we have highlighted just a few of the churches in the Western Lakes & Coast area for you to explore. As well as this area, you can also find out more about churches in the following areas of the county:

  • Churches of Carlisle and Hadrian's Wall
  • Churches of Eden Valley & North Pennines
  • Churches of The Lake District
  • Churches of Morecambe Bay
  • Churches of The Eastern Lakes and Yorkshire Dales
  1. Holme Cultram Abbey, Abbeytown
    Holme Cultram Abbey, Abbeytown
    Caught in the Anglo Scottish wars of the 14th century, a good bit of luck followed the Dissolution of the Monasteries for this church, when the local people successfully petitioned Thomas Cromwell to allow them to continue to use the church.
    1. St. Mary's Church, Gosforth
      St. Mary's Church, Gosforth
      St Mary's has been an important religious site since the 8th century.
    2. St. Bees Priory
      St. Bees Priory
      The priory is one of the architectural jewels in Cumbria and well worth a visit. This beautiful and historic church in the seaside village of St Bees, built in 1120, is all that remains of the original Priory, but it is a thriving and much loved parish church.
      1. St. Olaf's Church, Wasdale Head
        St. Olaf's Church, Wasdale
        The smallest church near the deepest lake and the highest mountain in England.
        1. St. James' Church, Whitehaven
          A fine example of a Georgian church, which has been sympathetically modernised.
          1. Our Lady Star of the Sea & St Michael Church, Workington
            Our Lady Star of The Sea & St. Michael, Workington
            The church was designed by Edward Welby Pugin (son of Augustus Welby Pugin) and built between 1873 - 1876 to replace a chapel in the grounds which now forms part of St Joseph's High School.

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            • 19The Pheasant Inn
            • 20The Edge Hotel - Whitehaven
            • 21The Treehouse at Another Place, The Lake
            • 22The Crown Inn, Coniston
            • 23Common Land: Septenary Perspectives
            • 24Haverigg & the Whicham Valley
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