This is a list of notable ecclesiastical buildings that have suffered significant fires. Some medieval-era places of worship have been subject to repeated fires, causing significant destruction and requiring varying levels of reconstruction. While most of the primary structural elements of these buildings are fire-resistant stone, the roof structures are usually of wood construction, at least as originally built. This list compiles significant fires at prominent religious sites.
Australia St Patrick's Cathedral, Parramatta – The 1854 cathedral was rebuilt following a 1996 fire.
Austria St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna The cathedral's roof was destroyed by fire on 12 April 1945.
Belgium Cathedral of Our Lady (Antwerp) A fire on 5–6 October 1533 damaged the church. Saint Lambert's Cathedral, Liège was destroyed by fire on 28/29 April 1185. It was rebuilt and again destroyed by revolutionaries beginning in 1795 St. Salvator's Cathedral, Bruges The church's predecessor was destroyed by fire in 1116. A fire destroyed the roof of the present building in 1839.
Canada
Saint-Jacques Cathedral, Montreal burned down in 1852, 1858, and 1933. Finally demolished, with the spire and south transept wall (which had survived the 1933 fire) being incorporated into the Pavillon Judith-Jasmin of the Université du Québec à Montréal. The seat of the diocese was moved to Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral in 1894. Saint Boniface Cathedral, Winnipeg Burned down in 1860, and more famously in 1968; the facade still stands, with a modern cathedral building behind it. St. Anne's Anglican Church, Toronto Gutted by fire in 2024, destroying murals by the Group of Seven. Mcdougall United Church, Morely, Alberta Destroyed by fire in 2017, deemed to be arson.
Chile Church of the Company Fire 8 December 1863, with between 2,000 and 3,000 deaths, believed to be the most to perish in a single building fire.
China Yongning Pagoda The pagoda, built in 516, was struck by lightning in 534 and destroyed.
Czech Republic Olomouc Synagogue The synagogue in Olomouc (then Czechoslovakia was burned at Nazi instigation on the night of 15–16 March 1939. Opava Synagogue The synagogue in Opava was burned in 1938 by Sudeten Germans.
Denmark
Aarhus Cathedral The previous cathedral was destroyed by fire, along with the rest of the town, in 1330. In 1642 a fire caused by lightning destroyed the tower and some of the bells. Church of Our Lady, Copenhagen Earlier churches on the site burned in 1314 and 1728. The predecessor to the present building was destroyed during the bombardment of Copenhagen in September 1807. Roskilde Cathedral On 14 May 1443, the town suffered a fire which damaged the cathedral.
Fiji Kendrit Shiri Sanatan Dharam Shiv Temple Burned by Christian extremists in a chain of arson attacks on temples in 2008."Girmit-era temple reduced to ashes", Fiji Times, 17 October 2008"Historic Hindu temple burnt", Fiji Daily Post, 17 October 2008
Finland Oulu Cathedral The original wooden structure was destroyed by fire in 1822. Porvoo Cathedral Burned in 1508, 1571, 1590 and 1708, and again in an arson attack in 2006. Turku Cathedral The cathedral was badly damaged in the 1827 Great Fire of Turku.
France Amiens Cathedral A 1258 fire damaged the cathedral while it was under construction. The previous Romanesque cathedral burned in 1218. Angers Cathedral The predecessor to the current church burned in 1032, immediately after it was completed. Angoulême Cathedral Previous cathedrals on the site were burned in the 6th and 8th centuries. Auxerre Cathedral The predecessor to the present cathedral was destroyed by fire in 1023. Bayeux Cathedral After fires in 1077 and 1105, the 11th century Bayeux Cathedral was rebuilt into the present church, starting in the early 12th century. An 1160 fire caused extensive damage. Bayonne Cathedral An earlier cathedral on the site was destroyed by fires in 1258 and 1310. Beauvais Cathedral Three fires led to the start of a replacement for the former basilica at the site. The Basse Oeuvre is the remnant of the original church, having survived fires in the 11th and 12th centuries. The ambitious project suffered from structural instability, leading to repeated collapses, in 1284 and 1573. Belfort Cathedral A timber church on the site was destroyed by fire in 1212.The Seven Marvels of Saint John's Cathedral.
Chartres Cathedral The present building is the latest of at least five structures destroyed by fire and war, with documented events in 858, 962 and 1020.Jan van der Meulen, Notre-Dame de Chartres: Die vorromanische Ostanlage, Berlin 1975.Honour, H. and Fleming, J. The Visual Arts: A History, 7th ed., Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2005. After the 1020 fire the basis of the present cathedral was begun. In 1134 the town suffered a fire, which may have damaged the cathedral.John James, "La construction du narthex de la cathédrale de Chartres", ' 'Bulletin de la Société Archéologique d’Eure-et-Loir' ', lxxxvii 2006, 3–20. Also in English in ' 'In Search of the unknown in medieval architecture' ', 2007, Pindar Press, London. A fire destroyed the east tower in 1194, leading to the reconstruction of the nave and choir. A lightning strike in 1506 destroyed the northeast tower, leading to its replacement in flamboyant Gothic style. A further fire in 1836 destroyed the lead-covered roof. Its replacement was undertaken in iron. Cambrai Cathedral The cathedral was damaged in a fire in 1859 and restored by Viollet-le-Duc. Coutances Cathedral The cathedral's predecessor was damaged by fire before the 13th century. Dijon Cathedral was damaged by a fire in 1137 that destroyed much of Dijon. Evreux Cathedral An early church was destroyed by fire in war in 1119. A replacement burned in 1198 in continuing hostilities between France and England. Langres Cathedral The roof of the nave was destroyed by fire in 1314. A lightning-caused fire caused damage in 1562. Le Mans Cathedral A church dating to 1160 on the site burned, together with much of Le Mans, on 3 September 1134, with a second fire in 1137. The chevet survived, and a new nave was constructed. The chevet was eventually rebuilt between 1217 and 1254. Metz Cathedral A 1468 fire damaged the roof. Fireworks caused a fire in 1877. Nantes Cathedral A fire on 28 January 1972 extensively damaged the roof, requiring a full restoration of the cathedral's interior. Another fire occurred on 18 July 2020. This fire centred around the organ level right behind the main circular window. Nantes Basilica of St. Donatian and St. Rogatian Roofers working on refurbishment accidentally started a fire on 15 June 2015, which severely damaged the back and roof. Noyon Cathedral was built following a fire in 1131.
Notre-Dame Cathedral, Paris On 15 April 2019 the cathedral's roof caught fire, leading to the destruction of the 12th-century roof structure and the 19th-century spire. Poitiers Cathedral The organ was destroyed in a fire on 25 December 1681. Quimper Cathedral One tower burned in 1620. Reims Cathedral An earlier Our Lady of Reims was destroyed by fire on 6 May 1210. Work on the present building began a year later. A fire in 1481 destroyed the attic framing, central tower and aisle gallery roofs. During World War I, German shelling set fire to scaffolding at the north tower, destroying the roof and the bishop's palace. In both cases, the lead roofing material melted. After the war, the cathedral roof was reconstructed using concrete framing. Rouen Cathedral Its immediate predecessor was struck by lightning in 1110. An early version of the present church burned on Easter in 1200. It was struck by lightning in 1284. The main spire blew down in 1353. More lightning strikes took place in 1625 and 1642. A fire in 1727 damaged the choir roof. A replacement spire was destroyed by lightning in 1822, and was replaced with a neo-Gothic spire. Two aerial bombings in 1944 damaged the church, the second destroyed the roof, the north tower and much of Rouen by fire. Rouen Synagogue In 2024 an arsonist caused "significant damage" before being shot and killed by police. Senlis Cathedral In 1504 a fire caused by lightning destroyed the roof and vaulting. Strasbourg Cathedral A Carolingian basilica at the site caught fire in 873, 1002 and 1007. Its replacement burned in 1015. Synagogue du Quai Kléber The main synagogue of Strasbourg was deliberately burned by Hitler Youth on the night of 30 September-1 October 1940, following a previous attempt on 12 September.
Germany Berlin Cathedral An incendiary bomb set fire to the dome on 24 May 1944. Capernaum Church, Berlin The church was bombed and burned out in May 1944, and the tower burned in February 1945. Cologne Cathedral The second cathedral was destroyed by fire in 1248 as it was being demolished to make way for a new cathedral. The cathedral was damaged by 14 bomb strikes during World War II. Dresden Frauenkirche The Frauenkirche was destroyed in the bombing of Dresden, catching fire on 13 February 1945 and collapsing on 15 February. Hildesheim Cathedral In 1046, the cathedral caught fire and the nave of the building was destroyed. On 22 March 1945, a bombing raid during World War II set fire to the building and destroyed the cathedral.. Lübeck Cathedral On the night of Palm Sunday (28–29 March) 1942 a Royal Air Force bombing raid destroyed the eastern vaults. A fire started in the adjoining museum and spread to the attic, and on Palm Sunday the towers collapsed. An Arp Schnitger organ was lost in the flames Magdeburg Cathedral The cathedral burned in 1207. On 16 January 1945, during World War II, a bombing raid set fire to the church. It was successfully contained, but caused significant damage. Mainz Cathedral On 29 August 1009, on the Day of the consecration of the cathedral, a fire burned out the building. New Synagogue (Berlin) An attempt was made on Kristallnacht to burn it down. It was finally destroyed during aerial bombing in late 1944 into early 1945. At least 267 synagogues of varying sizes were burned or destroyed during Kristallnacht.
Speyer Cathedral On 31 May 1689 a fire started during the Nine Years' War destroyed the western part of the nave.
Hungary Gothic Protestant Church of Avas Burned down in 1544, during the Ottoman occupation of Hungary. Rebuilt during the 16th century.Dobrossy István: Miskolc írásban és képekben Wooden Church Set on fire on 4 December 1997, rebuilt in 1999.A templom története
Ireland St Mel's cathedral, Longford The cathedral was heavily damaged on Christmas Day in 2009 by a fire that originated in a chimney flue.
Israel/Palestine Al-Aqsa Mosque The Minbar of the al-Aqsa Mosque was burned in an arson attack in 1969. Church of the Holy Sepulchre 1808
Italy Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls During the 5th century the roof was destroyed by fire. On 15 July 1823 repairs to the lead roof started a fire that destroyed nearly all of the basilica."The Basilica", Saint Paul Outside the Wall
Japan Kinkaku-ji Built beginning in 1397, burned in 1565 and again burned by arson in 1950. Yanaka The five-story pagoda in Yanaka Cemetery, Taitō, Tokyo was burned in a murder-suicide in 1957. It had previously burned in the Great Fire of Meguro in 1772.
Kosovo Cathedral of Saint George Burned during the 2004 unrest in Kosovo in Prizren. Our Lady of Ljeviš Burned during the 2004 unrest in Kosovo in Prizren.
Latvia The synagogues of Riga were burned in a pogrom by German forces in July 1941, some with refugees inside. The Great Choral Synagogue was burned on 4 July and the fire was filmed for propaganda purposes. Only the Peitav Synagogue was spared.Maureen Shamee. "Reopening of the renovated sole synagogue in Riga" , European Jewish Press, 28 August 2009. Retrieved on 2 January 2014.
Libya