List of tallest churches

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From the year 1311 until the advent of the skyscraper, Christian churches were among the tallest buildings in the world. Indeed, from 1311, when the spire of Lincoln Cathedral surpassed the height of the Great Pyramid of Giza, until 1884, a succession of churches held the title of world's tallest building. Even now, particularly in Europe, churches are still some of the most dominant buildings on the landscape. If it is ever completed, which currently seems quite likely, Barcelona's Sagrada Familia will become the tallest church in the world, at 170 m (558 ft) tall.

This list does not include structures from other religions. For example, the minaret of Casablanca's Hassan II Mosque is 210 m (689 ft) tall. Churches in italics either no longer exist or no longer stand to their original full height as listed.

Height (metres) Height (feet) Name Completion City Country Comment
161.5 m 530 ft Münster 1890 Ulm Germany intended to be shorter, but size increased in order to outdo Cologne Cathedral; second largest Gothic church (and largest Protestant Gothic church) in Germany
159.7 m 524 ft Cathedral 1311 Lincoln England today 83 m - spire collapsed in 1549; tallest building in the world from 1311 to 1549
158.4 m 520 ft St. Olav 1519 Tallinn Estonia today 123m - spire destroyed by lightning in 1625; tallest building in the world from 1549 to 1625
158.0 m 518 ft Our Lady of Peace Basilica 1989 Yamoussoukro Côte d'Ivoire largest church in the world; world's tallest church dome
157.4 m 516 ft Dom 1880 Cologne Germany tallest building in the world from 1880 to 1884; largest Gothic church in Germany
153.0 m 502 ft Saint-Pierre Cathedral 1569 Beauvais France tower collapsed in 1593
151.0 m 495 ft Notre-Dame Cathedral 1876 Rouen France tallest building in the world from 1876 to 1880
150.0 m 493 ft Old St. Paul's Cathedral 1240 London England spire destroyed by lightning in 1561; whole cathedral destroyed in Great Fire of London in 1666
147.3 m 483 ft St. Nikolai 1847 Hamburg Germany tallest building in the world from 1847 to 1876; rest of church destroyed in bombing in 1943 - only tower left standing
144.0 m 472 ft Notre-Dame Cathedral 1439 Strasbourg France tallest building in the world from 1625 to 1847
137.0 m 449 ft Stephansdom 1570 Vienna Austria  
136.0 m 446 ft St. Peter 15th Century Riga Latvia tower collapsed in 1666 and again in 1721; tower and roof damaged in World War II
134.1 m 440 ft Neuer Dom 1924 Linz Austria  
132.8 m 436 ft St. Petri 1878 Hamburg Germany  
132.5 m 435 ft St. Peter's Basilica 1626 Vatican City Vatican City largest church with tallest dome in the world from 1626 to 1989
131.9 m 433 ft St. Michaelis 1786 Hamburg Germany  
131.3 m 431 ft Abbey Malmesbury England spire collapsed in the late 15th or early 16th century
130.6 m 428 ft St. Martin 1500 Landshut Germany tallest brickwork structure of the world
128 m 420 ft Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lichen 2000 Stary Licheń Poland largest church in Poland, seventh largest in Europe and eleventh largest in the world
127.0 m 417 ft Martinikerk 1482 Groningen Netherlands spire burned down in 1577
125.0 m 410 ft St. Jacobi 1962 Hamburg Germany  
125.0 m 410 ft Marienkirche 1350 Lübeck Germany  
124.0 m 410 ft Cathedral 1972 Maringá Brazil  
123.7 m 406 ft St. Olav 1931 Tallinn Estonia once much taller
123.0 m 404 ft Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekathedraal 1521 Antwerp Belgium  
123.0 m 404 ft Cathedral 1315 Salisbury England  
123.0 m 404 ft St. Peter 1973 Riga Latvia once much taller
123.0 m 404 ft Peter and Paul Cathedral 1733 St. Petersburg Russia  
122.3 m 400 ft Abbaye-aux-Hommes 13th Century Caen France spire replaced by a lower tower in the 17th century
121.0 m 397 ft San Gaudenzio 1878 Novara Italy  
119.8 m 392 ft Cathedral Basilica of St. James the Apostle 1892 Szczecin Poland the cathedral's tower collapsed during a bombardment in 1944; nowadays it measures 67 m  
119.8 m 392 ft Riverside Church 1930 New York City United States  
119.2 m 390 ft Domkyrka 1435 Uppsala Sweden  
118.3 m 387 ft Cathedral 1468 Metz France  
117.5 m 385 ft Dom 1892 Schwerin Germany  
117.0 m 384 ft St. Petri 1577 Rostock Germany  
116.5 m 381 ft Münster 1330 Freiburg Germany  
116.5 m 381 ft Dom 1905 Berlin Germany dome damaged in World War II
115.9 m 379 ft Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk 1350 Bruges Belgium  
115.3 m 377 ft St. Katharinen 1657 Hamburg Germany  
115.3 m 377 ft Sagrada Familia in progress Barcelona Spain intended to eventually be 172 m (564 ft) tall
115.0 m 376 ft St. Andreas 1389 Hildesheim Germany  
115.0 m 376 ft Duomo 1434 Florence Italy  
114.6 m 375 ft Cathedral 1514 Chartres France  
114.0 m 374 ft Saint-Michel 1492 Bordeaux France  
112.5 m 369 ft Domtoren 1382 Utrecht Netherlands the cathedral's nave collapsed during a storm in 1674
112.0 m 367 ft Dom 1894 Schleswig Germany  
112.0 m 367 ft Notre-Dame Cathedral 1549 Amiens France  
111.5 m 366 ft St. Paul's Cathedral 1710 London England tallest building in London until 1962
111.0 m 364 ft Johanniskirche 14th Century Lüneburg Germany  
110.4 m 361 ft Herz-Jesu-Kirche 1891 Graz Austria  
110.1 m 360 ft New Cathedral 1733 Salamanca Spain  
109.0 m 358 ft Duomo 1858 Milan Italy  
108.8 m 357 ft Nieuwe Kerk 1496 Delft Netherlands  
106.0 m 348 ft Sanctuary of the Black Madonna 1900 Częstochowa Poland  
106.0 m 348 ft Saint-Joseph 1957 Le Havre France  
105.0 m 344 ft Niguliste Church 1230 Tallinn Estonia  
105.0 m 344 ft Dom 1856 Regensburg Germany  
105.0 m 344 ft Cathedral 1899 Zagreb Croatia  
105.0 m 344 ft Dom 1341 Lübeck Germany  
105.0 m 344 ft Les Invalides 1706 Paris France  
105.0 m 344 ft Sankta Klara 1888 Stockholm Sweden  
105.0 m 344 ft St Petri 1310 Malmö Sweden  
105.0 m 344 ft St. Patrick's Cathedral 1939 Melbourne Australia  
105.0 m 344 ft Cathedral of Christ the Saviour 2000 Moscow Russia reconstruction; original cathedral consecrated 1883 and demolished by Soviets in 1931  
104.0 m 341 ft Dom 1520 Magdeburg Germany tallest church in former East Germany
103.3 m 339 ft St. Patrick's Cathedral 1878 New York City United States  
103.0 m 338 ft St. Stanislaw and St. Waclaw 1496 Świdnica Poland  
103.0 m 338 ft Katharinenkirche 1430 Osnabrück Germany  
102.6 m 337 ft St. Mary 1854 Chojna Poland  
102.3 m 336 ft St. Maartenskerk 20th Century Ypres Belgium almost exact replica of the medieval church destroyed during the First World War
102.0 m 335 ft St. Bartholomew 1600 Plzeň Czech Republic  
101.8 m 334 ft Saint Isaac's Cathedral 1858 St. Petersburg Russia  
101.5 m 331 ft Cathedral of St. Stanislaw 1912 Łódź Poland  
101.0 m 331 ft Anglican Cathedral 1978 Liverpool England largest cathedral and Protestant church in Europe and possibly the largest Protestant church in the world
101.0 m 330 ft St. Wenceslas Cathedral 1892 Olomouc Czech Republic  
101.0 m 330 ft Cathedral 1558 Segovia Spain  
100.0 m 328 ft Gedächtniskirche 1904 Speyer Germany  
100.0 m 328 ft Münster 1893 Bern Switzerland  
100.0 m 328 ft Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception 1959 Washington, DC United States largest Roman Catholic church in the Americas
100.0 m 328 ft Cathedral 1954 São Paulo Brazil  
99.5 m 326 ft Saint Vincent 1883 Eeklo Belgium  
99.5 m 326 ft St. Vitus Cathedral 1929 Prague Czech Republic  
99.5 m 326 ft Frauenkirche 1525 Munich Germany  
99.0 m 325 ft St. John 1892 Stargard Szczeciński Poland  
99.0 m 325 ft Votivkirche 1879 Vienna Austria  
98.0 m 322 ft St.-Petri-Dom 1893 Bremen Germany  
98.0 m 322 ft Onze-Lieve-Vrouwentoren 15th Century Amersfoort Netherlands rest of church accidentally blown up in 1797
98.0 m 322 ft Grote Kerk Breda Netherlands  
98.0 m 322 ft St. Martin 1534 Amberg Germany  
97.8 m 321 ft Nidaros Cathedral 1300 Trondheim Norway  
97.3 m 319 ft Marktkirche 14th Century Hannover Germany  
96.9 m 318 ft Martinikerk 1627 Groningen Netherlands once much taller
96.9 m 318 ft Sint-Romboutskathedraal 1520 Mechelen Belgium the tower was supposed to be 127 m (417 ft) tall, but the money ran out
96.9 m 318 ft Saint Joseph's Oratory 1967 Montreal Canada tallest church in Canada
96.6 m 317 ft Agricola Church 1935 Helsinki Finland still the tallest building in Finland
96.0 m 315 ft Cathedral 1480 Norwich England  
96.0 m 315 ft Domkirke 1500 Aarhus Denmark  
96.0 m 315 ft Kreuzkirche 1788 Dresden Germany  
96.0 m 315 ft Saint Leopold Church (Donaufeld) 1914 Floridsdorf, Vienna Austria  
96.0 m 315 ft St. Stephen's Basilica 1905 Budapest Hungary still the tallest building in Budapest
96.0 m 315 ft St. Paul's Cathedral 1931 Melbourne Australia  
95.7 m 314 ft Tyska Kyrkan 1884 Stockholm Sweden  
95.1 m 312 ft Frauenkirche 1743 Dresden Germany destroyed by bombing in 1945 and rededicated in 2005
95.1 m 312 ft Kaiserdom 1877 Frankfurt Germany  
94.1 m 309 ft St. Walburge 1866 Preston England  
93.8 m 308 ft Kreuzkirche 1800 Dresden Germany  
93.8 m 308 ft St. John's Cathedral 1861 Limerick Republic of Ireland tallest church spire in Ireland
93.8 m 308 ft Dom 13th Century Paderborn Germany  
93.5 m 307 ft Church of the Resurrection of Christ 1907 St. Petersburg Russia  
93.5 m 307 ft St. Ulrich und Afra 1594 Augsburg Germany  
92.9 m 305 ft Eusebiuskerk 1965 Arnhem Netherlands  
92.9 m 305 ft St. James' Cathedral 1853 Toronto Canada  
92.9 m 305 ft Cathedral 1196 Seville Spain  
92.6 m 303 ft Grote Kerk 1424 The Hague Netherlands  
92.6 m 303 ft Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church 1973 (?) Fort Lauderdale United States  
92.3 m 302 ft Cathedral 1792 Murcia Spain  
91.7 m 301 ft National Cathedral 1990 Washington, DC United States  
91.1 m 299 ft Sint-Jacobuskerk 1878 The Hague Netherlands  
91.1 m 299 ft St. Andreas 12th Century Braunschweig Germany  
90.0 m 295 ft Notre-Dame Cathedral 1345 Paris France  
90.0 m 295 ft Old Cathedral 1433 Coventry England the spire was the only part of the cathedral that survived intact when it was bombed in 1940
90.0 m 295 ft Cathedral of Santa Eulalia 15th Century Barcelona Spain  
90.0 m 295 ft Dom 1776 Riga Latvia  
90.0 m 295 ft Neue evangelische Garnisonkirche 1897 Berlin Germany  
90.0 m 295 ft St. Nikolajs 1829 Copenhagen Denmark  
90.0 m 295 ft St. Mary's Episcopal Cathedral 1917 Edinburgh Scotland  
90.0 m 295 ft St. James' Parish Church 1515 Louth England reputedly the tallest Anglican parish church in the UK
90.0 m 295 ft Garnisonkirche St. Martin 1900 Dresden Germany  
90.0 m 295 ft Georgskirche 1501 Nördlingen Germany  
90.0 m 295 ft El Escorial 1584 San Lorenzo de El Escorial Spain  
90.0 m 295 ft Cathedral 1440 Toledo Spain  
90.0 m 295 ft Abbaye-aux-Hommes 13th Century Caen France formerly much taller
90.0 m 295 ft Saint-Eloi 15th Century Dunkirk France  
89.9 m 294 ft Vor Frelsers Kirke 1696 Copenhagen Denmark  
89.3 m 292 ft St. Bavo's Cathedral 1538 Ghent Belgium  
89.3 m 292 ft St. Mary Redcliffe 1872 Bristol England second-highest parish church spire in England; the previous spire collapsed in a storm in the 1440s
88.7 m 290 ft Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King 1967 Liverpool England  
88.3 m 289 ft Peterskirche 1885 Leipzig Germany  
87.7 m 287 ft Dreikönigskirche 1857 Dresden Germany completely destroyed in the 1945 bombing and now rebuilt
87.1 m 285 ft Cathedral 1787 Orléans France  
87.1 m 285 ft Saint-Epvre 1872 Nancy France  
86.8 m 284 ft Westminster Cathedral 1903 London England  
86.5 m 283 ft Schlosskirche 1897 Chemnitz Germany destroyed in 1945 and rebuilt considerably lower
86.2 m 282 ft Liebfrauenkirche 1651 Bremen Germany  
86.2 m 282 ft St. Wulfram's Church 1450 Grantham England  
86.2 m 282 ft Aegidienkirche 1840 Lübeck Germany  
86.2 m 282 ft St. Jacob's Cathedral 1225 Riga Latvia  
86.2 m 282 ft Marienkirche 14th Century Mühlhausen Germany largest parish church and second largest church in Thuringia
86.2 m 282 ft Jakobskirche 16th Century Straubing Germany  
86.2 m 282 ft Saint-Ouen 1851 Rouen France  
85.9 m 281 ft Hofkirche 1755 Dresden Germany elevated to cathedral status in 1980; the largest church in Saxony
85.9 m 281 ft Cathedral 1834 Turku Finland  
85.9 m 281 ft St. Elphin's Church 1860s Warrington England church itself dates from 1354
85.6 m 280 ft Saint Denis Basilica 1281 Saint-Denis France now considerably shorter
85.6 m 280 ft Dom Berlin Germany reconstructed after World War II; formerly considerably taller
85.3 m 279 ft Westerkerk 1638 Amsterdam Netherlands largest Protestant church in the Netherlands
85.3 m 279 ft Johanneskirche 1881 Düsseldorf Germany  
85.3 m 279 ft Saint-Esprit 1931 Paris France  
85.0 m 278 ft St. Mary Abbot, Kensington 1879 London England tallest church spire in London
85.0 m 278 ft Saint-Nicolas 19th Century Nantes France  


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