St Mungo's Cathedral

With its first church having been founded in the 12th century, Glasgow is a Scottish city with an undeniably rich religious heritage. Today it stands as the proud home of citizens practicing over 20 world religions, with Christianity being its most predominant faith, evident in the abundance of beautiful churches and cathedrals dotted around the area. Designed by some of the world’s most eminent architects, from George Gilbert Scott to Charles Rennie McKintosh, exploring Glasgow’s churches makes for an enthralling and extraordinary day out in the UK. Here’s our guide to the top 10 churches in Glasgow.
On the North bank of the river lies St Andrew’s Cathedral, a Roman Catholic church dating back to 1814 when the foundation stone was first laid. Pioneered by Reverend Andrew Scott, the church was created to accommodate Glasgow’s growing number of Catholic residents who relocated to the city during the Industrial Revolution. As the Clydeside dock became one of Britain’s main shipbuilding ports, the Catholic population spiked, and the new church thus became an integral part of the city’s religious culture. Designed by the celebrated Edinburgh architect James Gillespie Graham, the church is a handsome episcopal structure which acts as a beacon for a faith which was reinvented and reestablished after persecution during the Protest Reformation. Within its walls visitors can enjoy a newly renovated interior, including doors by the artist Jack Sloan, a new painting of Blessed John Ogilvie by Peter Howson, as well as beautiful white and gold leaf paintwork, stained-glass windows and golden chandeliers.