Abstract: A surge voltage arrester wherein a pair of main electrodes are respectively fitted in a gastight fashion to both open ends of a hollow cylindrical body formed of insulating material, wherein the discharge planes of the main electrodes are set opposite to each other in a hollow cylindrical body wherein at least one electrically conductive member extends along the inner wall of the hollow cylindrical body in its circumferential direction and faces one of the main electrodes at a prescribed interval, wherein at least one narrow electrically conductive strip electrically connected to the electrically conductive member extends along the inner wall of the hollow cylindrical body in its axial direction and faces the other of the main electrodes at a prescribed interval, and finally wherein at least one external electrically conductive member extends along the outer wall of the hollow cylindrical body which is capacitively coupled to the electrically conductive member extending along the inner wall of the hollow cyli