St Edmund

St Edmund's is Gateshead's oldest building and has been the parish church for Gateshead since 1980. Since 2010 it has also been the venue for Sanctuary Artspace, a gallery which is installed along the north wall of the building. Exhibitions are held almost every week of the year, so there is always something new to see on our walls. St Edmund's was built in the 13th century as a pilgrim's hospital and consists of one very long nave with some beautiful 19th century stained glass portraying northern Saints such as St Hilda and the Venerable Bede. The building was run by a group of nuns until the dissolution of the monasteries, when the chapel fell into disrepair. The Newcastle architect John Dobson refurbished the chapel in the early 19th century and 40 years later Holy Trinity was built on the side of St Edmund's effectively annexing the medieval church as a Lady Chapel. Holy Trinity closed in 1969 and St Edmund's reopened as a parish church in 1980.