The cathedral of the British and Irish diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia is located in the Chiswick area of London, in the London Borough of Hounslow. Until 2017, it was dedicated to the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The first Russian Orthodox parish in England was established in London by Peter I in 1698 at the Russian embassy. From 1813, the church was located at 32 Welbeck Street, in an extension built on the site of stables behind a spacious house. The Russian community was small, and the domestic chapel met their needs.

During World War I, Russian agencies responsible for supplying military equipment expanded, and the Russian community began to grow. By the end of the war and the beginning of the revolution, refugees started arriving in the country, increasing the flow of parishioners. The domestic church could no longer accommodate all the believers, and with the expiration of the church land lease, a new location was needed. At the same time, the Embassy Church was closed due to the anti-religious policies of the communist government.

In 1927, the Russian community in London split into 'Eulogians' and 'Karlovchans' after Metropolitan Eulogius transferred his parishes to the Patriarchate of Constantinople. An agreement was reached to use the church, whereby services were held alternately each week. In 1928, the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia sent Archimandrite Nicholas (Karpov) to London, who was consecrated as the Bishop of London in 1929. This episcopal consecration was the first in England after the Great Schism of 1054.

In 1954, St. Philip's Church was demolished to build a new Victoria bus station. After searching, the parish rented St. Stephen's Church on Gloucester Road, previously owned by the Scottish Presbyterian Church. Services were held here for 30 years, during which time the parish grew significantly.

In 1989, the lease expired, and the parish decided to build its own church building in the Russian style with a traditional dome and bell tower. At that time, the parish was gathering in the All Saints Chapel on St Dunstans Road in Hammersmith, which Bishop Nicholas had bequeathed to the parish. It became clear that a more spacious and permanent temple was needed. In 1992, after several years of searching, the parish acquired a plot in Chiswick, in west Greater London, with a large house.

During the construction of the cathedral, a large hall for services was added to the house. Other rooms on the first floor were used for parish needs and a refectory, while an apartment on the second floor was renovated and became the priest's residence.

On November 27, 1997, Archbishop Mark (Arndt) of Berlin and Germany and Great Britain laid the first stone for the construction of the Cathedral of the Dormition of the Mother of God of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia on Harvard Road. The first service in the new church took place on Lazarus Saturday in 1999.