St Mary

St Mary’s parish church can be found in a quiet corner of the town square and stands on the site of a Cistercian Abbey built in 1199. It survived until 1543 when it was closed by order of Henry VIII. The present church dates from 1840. The north transept was added in 1912 and the south transept in 2008.

The entrance gates bear an interesting inscription on the upper stone. The names of Thomas Andrews and James Lemont, 18th century churchwardens. The Andrews Mausoleum sits within the church grounds. It does not contain burials but is built over the tomb of the ancestors of Thomas Andrews, naval architect of the Titanic. In the beautiful grounds surrounding the church are some graves dating back to 1600.

The interior of the church may be viewed in daylight hours and here you can see exhibited nineteen stones from Comber Abbey under the care of the Northern Ireland Environment Agency. Of major importance is a monument to three members of the York Fencibles regiment killed at the Battle of Saintfield in 1798. Captain Chetwynd, Lieutenant Unite and Ensign Sparks and also the minister, Reverend Robert Mortimer, who was also killed at the Battle. There are many other interesting memorials around the church, as well as some beautiful examples of stained glass. The south transept window depicts scenes from the history of Comber and surrounding area.

The town of Comber is situated in a lovely part of Northern Ireland with plenty to do and explore locally. Comber itself is of course famous for the Comber Potato and Thomas Andrews who designed the Titanic. St Mary's remains a place of worship throughout the week and home to a diverse family of God. Many have been born in Comber and attended all of their lives with others joining from the surrounding areas.