St Nicholas is a church in St Nicholas Street, Bristol

Bristol

Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

.

The first church was founded before 1154, with a chancel extending over the south gate of the city. The gate and old church were demolished to make way for the rebuilding of Bristol Bridge

Bristol Bridge

Bristol Bridge is an old bridge over the floating harbour in Bristol, England, the original course of the River Avon.-History:Bristol's name is derived from the Saxon 'Brigstowe' or 'place of the bridge', but it is unclear when the first bridge over the Avon was built. The Avon has the 2nd highest...

 and the church was rebuilt in 1762-9 by James Bridges

James Bridges (architect)

James Bridges was an architect and civil engineer working in Bristol between 1757 and 1763. He was the son of Henry Bridges, an Essex carpenter and clockmaker and famous for his Microcosm...

 and Thomas Paty

Thomas Paty

Thomas Paty was a British surveyor, architect and mason working mainly in Bristol. He worked with his sons John Paty and William Paty.-List of works:* Bristol Bridge , with James Bridges...

, who rebuilt the spire. Part of the old church and town wall survives in the 14th century crypt.

The interior was destroyed by bombing in the Bristol Blitz

Bristol Blitz

Bristol was the fifth most heavily bombed British city of World War II. The presence of Bristol Harbour and the Bristol Aeroplane Company made it a target for bombing by the Nazi German Luftwaffe who were able to trace a course up the River Avon from Avonmouth using reflected moonlight on the...

 of 1940 and rebuilt in 1974-5 as a church museum, which has now (2007) closed and the building is used by the city council as offices. The building still holds statues of King Edward I

Edward I of England

Edward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...

 and King Edward III which were removed from Arno's Court Triumphal Arch

Arno's Court Triumphal Arch

Arno's Court Triumphal Arch is in Junction Rd, Brislington, Bristol, England.- Construction :The arch was built around 1760 by James Bridges, for William Reeve, a prominent local Quaker and business man. It is built from Bath stone, of classical proportions but with Gothic and Moorish detail...

. The original statues were taken from Bristol's Lawfords' Gate that was demolished around 1760. Other statues are 13th century figures from Bristol's Newgate representing Robert, the builder of Bristol Castle

Bristol Castle

Bristol Castle was a Norman castle built for the defence of Bristol. Remains can be seen today in Castle Park near the Broadmead Shopping Centre, including the sally port.-History:...

, and Geoffrey de Montbray, bishop of Coutances

Geoffrey de Montbray

Geoffrey de Montbray , bishop of Coutances , a right-hand man of William the Conqueror, was a type of the great feudal prelate, warrior and administrator at need....

, builder of the fortified walls of Bristol. They were moved to the church, due to their deteriorating condition, in 1898.

It also holds the Hogarth

William Hogarth

William Hogarth was an English painter, printmaker, pictorial satirist, social critic and editorial cartoonist who has been credited with pioneering western sequential art. His work ranged from realistic portraiture to comic strip-like series of pictures called "modern moral subjects"...

 altarpiece which was originally painted for St Mary Redcliffe

St Mary Redcliffe

St. Mary Redcliffe is an Anglican parish church located in the Redcliffe district of the English port city of Bristol, close to the city centre. Constructed from the 12th to the 15th centuries, the church is a Grade 1 listed building, St...

 Church, Bristol, and removed from there by the Victorians..

It has been designated by English Heritage

English Heritage

English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...

 as a grade II* listed building.

See also

• Churches in Bristol
  Churches in Bristol
  The English city of Bristol has a number of churches.The churches listed are Anglican except when otherwise noted.- External links :*...
  
  
• Grade II* listed buildings in Bristol
• List of tallest buildings and structures in Bristol