St. Anne's Cathedral, Leeds

In 1786, Lady Lane Chapel was the first Catholic Church built in Leeds after the Reformation. In 1838 it was replaced by Saint Anne's Church. Saint Anne's was granted cathedral status in 1878. The new status did not last. In 1889 the Leeds Corporation bought and demolished the cathedral to widen Headrow Street into a boulevard.

The site of the first cathedral is now occupied by the Light entertainment and retail complex. Ironically, Saint Anne's Cathedral was "resurrected" on the site next door to Light complex. The new cathedral was designed by architect John Henry Eastwood in the Gothic Revival style. Construction commenced in 1901. The cathedral opened in 1904.

It was a tight fit on the smaller new site. The layout of the cathedral did not include wings. It has an "aisled" nave and chancel. The roof is continuous, the transepts are narrow. Pew rows are facing the altar. There are two rows of square stone pillars on each side of the aisled nave. The ceiling is a barrel vault.

Construction was in Weldon stone, using cream-colored Ketton stone for details. A tall gable on the west front is flanked by buttresses and Gothic turrets. There is also a sizable ornamental crucifix sculpture. Leaded bay windows on the north side create a mock Georgian appearance. The Vatican flag flies from the northwest tower.

In 2006 the skulls of two of English Catholic martyrs, Peter Snow and Ralph Grimston, were placed in the altar. Snow and Grimston were two catholics who were executed under Queen Elizabeth I during Reformation.