St Andrew the Great is a Church of England parish church in central Cambridge. Rebuilt in late Gothic style in 1843, it is a Grade II listed building. The church has a conservative evangelical tradition and participates in the Anglican Reform movement.^[1] The congregation includes Cambridge residents, overseas visitors and students.

A church on the site of St Andrew the Great is first mentioned by name in 1200, and is possibly recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086. Little is known of the first building, which was probably a wooden structure, and was replaced with a more substantial stone building in the early 13th century, which was given to the Diocese of Ely in 1225-1228 by Absolom, the then rector. During the 16th century the church was a centre of Reformation preaching, with William Perkins serving as "lecturer" from 1585 until his death in 1602,^[2] when he was succeeded by Paul Baynes and Ralph Cudworth.

By 1650 the medieval church building was in a poor state, and it was suggested that the parish be merged with that of Holy Trinity; it was however rebuilt largely at the expense of Christopher Rose (twice Mayor of Cambridge, in 1637 and 1654). Thomas Tenison, Archbishop of Canterbury from 1694, was curate of St Andrew's from 1662, where he set an example by his devoted attention to sufferers of the plague.^[3] Temple Chevallier, the theologian and astronomer, was curate and then vicar from 1822 until 1835.^[4]

To accommodate a growing congregation, the church was entirely rebuilt in 1842–3 in a 15th-century East Anglian style by the architect Ambrose Poynter.^[5] It was rebuilt with a nave of five bays with side aisles and a west tower of four stages; the south porch and vestries were added later in the 19th century. It does however retain elements of the earlier structure including early 12th-century double capitals in the heating chamber and some wall memorials, notably that of Captain James Cook and his family.^[6]

The church is open for public services every Sunday: 10am, 11.45am (during University term time) and 5pm. Services are about an hour in length, with a strong emphasis on Bible teaching. There are six age-banded Sunday school groups for children and evening meetings for undergraduates (Tuesdays), 20s-30s (Wednesdays), internationals (Thursdays), and teenagers (Fridays and Sundays).^[12]

The church is within the conservative evangelical tradition of the Church of England.^[13] The parish has passed resolutions to reject the ordination and/or leadership of women, and it receives alternative episcopal oversight from the Bishop of Ebbsfleet (currently Rob Munro).^[14]

The following men have served as vicar of St Andrew the Great (or Holy Sepulchre before the move) since 1955:^[15]

• 1955–1987: Mark Ruston
• 1987–2010: Mark Ashton^[16]
• 2011–present: Alasdair Paine.^[17]

• Official website