CITY
|
CHURCH
|
BELLS
|
HISTORY
|
BIRMINGHAM |
C Church of St. Philip |
12 |
Cathedral building started in 1709 and was consecrated in 1715. It has stained glass windows designed by Burne Jones and made by William Morris |
BLACKBURN |
C Church of St. Mary the Virgin |
10 |
A church was first recorded on this site in AD 596. The present day structure was built in 1826 and was the Parish Church which was elevated to Cathedral when the Diocese of Blackburn was created in 1926. |
BRADFORD |
C Church of St. Peter |
12 |
The first church fell into ruin during the Norman Invasion of 1066. The next was destroyed by raiding Scots 300 years later. The present building from the 13th century became a Cathedral in 1919 on the formation of the Diocese of Bradford. |
BRISTOL |
C Church of the Holy & Undivided Trinity |
8 |
The foundations were an Augustianian Abbey in 1140 and became a Cathedral in 1542. Its vaulting is unique and described by Pevsner ” ….and proves that English design surpasses that of all other countries” at that date. |
CANTERBURY |
C Church of Christ |
14 |
The Cathedral is part of a World Heritage Site and is the office of The Archbishop of Canterbury leader of the Church of England. It was founded in 597 and has been rebuilt several times. Thomas Becket was martyred in 1170 by knights of King Henry II. |
CARLISLE |
C Church of Holy & Undivided Trinity |
13 |
Was originally an Augustianian Priory and became a cathedral in 1133. It is the second smallest cathedral in England. |
CHELMSFORD |
C Church of St. Mary the Virgin, SS Peter & Cedd |
12 |
It became a Cathedral when Chelmsford was created a Diocese in 1914. It has American connections due to the US servicemen stationed nearby during the war. |
CHESTER |
C Church of Christ & Blessed Virgin Mary |
12 |
Was originally a Benedictine Abbey dedicated to St. Werburgh and became a Cathedral in 1541. There are indications that Romans worshiped on this site. A free-standing bell tower was added in 20th C. |
CHICHESTER |
C Church of The Holy Trinity |
8 |
The Cathedral was founded in 1075 with Norman and Gothic architecture and moved Nikolaus Pevsner to describe it as “…the most typical English Cathedral”. Its spire can be seen from the sea. It has a free-standing medieval bell tower. |
COVENTRY |
C Church of St. Michael |
12 |
St. Mary’s Priory was elevated to a Cathedral between 1095 and 1102. The second Catheral was St. Michael’s built in the late 14th C and this was bombed to ruins in WWII but with the spire remaining as the third highest in England. Within the ruins the third Cathedral was built and was consecrated as thus in 1962. Many well known artists have contributed and it is ecumenically connected to Berlin’s Memorial Church. |
DERBY |
C Church of All Saints |
10 |
Records show that a church was built on this site by King Edmund 1 about 943 but no traces remain. The present building dates from around the 14thC and became a Cathedral in 1927. It contains the oldest ring of 10 bells in the UK. |
DURHAM |
C Church of St. Cuthbert |
10 |
The present Cathedral was founded in AD 1093 as one of the finest examples of Norman architecture and is now a UNESCO site. It houses the relics of St. Cuthbert of Lindisfarne, St. Oswald of Northumbria and of the Venerable Bede. The riches of the Library also include three copies of the Magna Carter. Durham Castle was built as the residence of the Bishop of Durham. The Cathedral was used by Oliver Cromwell as a prison. |
ELY |
C Church of St. Etheldreda |
NO BELLS |
The first church was founded by St. Eheldreda daugher of the Anglo-Saxon King Anna. She founded a monastery in 673. After Dutch invasions a new monastery was built which later became a cathedral in 1109. The distinctive octagonal ‘Lantern’ tower was built as a result of its predecessor collapsing in 1322. |
EXETER |
C Church of St. Peter |
12 |
The present building is of the Gothic style but originally of Norman architecture which was started in 1107 by William Warelwast nephew of William the Conqueror. It is supposed to have the longest uninterrupted vaulted ceiling in England. It also houses an astonomical clock dating from the 14th C. |
GLOUCESTER |
C Church of Holy & Undivided Trinity |
12 |
The present Cathedral is dedicated to St. Peter because it is built on the ruins of the St. Peter’s Abbey which was dissolved under Henry VIII. The foundatons were laid around 1072 and it became the Cathedral of Gloucester in 1541. The earliest images of the sports of golf and football are contained within. |
GUILDFORD |
C Church of The Holy Spirit |
12 |
Guildford was made a Diocese in 1927 but it did not have a cathedral until the present building. The foundation stone was laid in 1936 but WWII halted construction until work resumed and it was consecrated in 1961. It was designed by Sir. Edward Maufe and stands on Stag Hill overlooking the city. |
HEREFORD |
C Church of St. Ethelbert & St. Mary the Virgin |
10 |
The first building was dedicated to St. Ethelbert the King who was beheaded by Offa, King of Mercia in 792. The present Cathedral dates from 1079 and containes the 13th C treasure of the ‘Mappa Mundi’. The 10 bells are known as ‘The Grand Old Lady’ as they have a unique ring. |
LEICESTER |
C Church of St. Martin |
12 |
The first recording of a church on the site dedicated to St. Martin dates from 1086. The present building was created a Cathedral in 1927. There are links with Richard III. The St. George’s Chapel was the centre for the Guild of St. George who kept an effigy of the saint on horseback which was borne through the streets of the city on April 23rd in a procession known as ‘riding the George’. |
LICHFIELD |
C Church of St. Chad |
10 |
It is the only medieval English cathedral with three spires. It suffered greatly during the Civil War with the exception of the windows in the Lady Chapel that contain some of the finest medieval Flemish painted glass. In February 2003 a sculptured panel was discovered and is known as ‘The Lichfield Angel’ thought to be part of a chest that contained the relics of St. Chad. |
LINCOLN |
C Church of St. Hugh |
12 |
The foundation to the first Cathedral were laid in 1088 by its first Bishop. The building was almost destroyed by an earthquake in 1141. There are 13 bells the heaviest known as ‘Great Tom’ The Cathedral contains remains of Queen Eleanor of Castile. It held an original copy of the Magna Carta as Bishop Hugh of Wells was a singnatory but this has since been moved to Lincoln Castle. Architecturally it is known for its two ‘Eyes’ ie: rose windows at the north and south end. |
LIVERPOOL |
C Church of Christ |
13 |
The total external length of the building is the 2nd longest Cathedral in the World and the 5th largest in the World. Giles Gilbert Scott won the competition for building the new Cathedral in 1903. The first part – The Lady Chapel, was consecrated in 1910. There are 13 bells funded by Thomas Bartlett and known as the Bartlett Bells. They are the highest and heaviest peal in the world. The heaviest – ‘Great George’ named after King George V, at 14 half tons is the second heaviest after ‘Great Paul’ of St. Paul’s Catheral. |
LONDON – St. Paul’s |
St. Paul’s |
12 |
Bede records the presence of a Saxon cathedral in AD 604. The present building dates from the 17th c designed by Sir Christopher Wren after the damage to the 4th building by the Great Fire of London of 1666. Wren’s building has the highest dome in the world. It occupies a significant place in the national identity of the English population. Grinling Gibbons was responsible for the woodwork. The NW Tower contains 13 bells and the SW 4 that inclludes ‘Great Paul’ weighing 16 half tons the largest bell cast in 1881. |
NEWCASTLE |
C Church of St. Nicholas |
12 |
The original Parish Church was destroyed by fire and was rebuilt in 1359 becoming a Cathedral in 1882. It is the most northerly Cathedral in England and named after St. Nicholas patron saint of sailors and boats. It has 12 bells |
NORWICH |
C Church of Holy & Undivided Trinity |
NO BELLS |
The Catheral is built of Caen limestone from Normandy and building began in 1096 and completed in 1145. The Cathedral has the 2nd tallest spire and the largest Close in England. It has no bells similar to Salisbury and Ely. |
OXFORD |
Christ Church Cathedral |
12 |
On the site of St.Frideswide buried in 8th C. The Priory was taken over by Cardinal Wolsey in 1522 who started to build a college. It was then repossessed by King Henry VIII in 1529 and created a Cathedral. |
PETERBOROUGH |
C Church of SSS Peter, Paul & Andrew |
12 |
The origins of the Cathedral date from a monastry founded by King Peada in 655AD. Destroyed by Vikings and rebuilt as a Benedictine Abbey between 960-970. In its present state it became a Cathedral in 1541. Architecturally important in that its West Front built in Early English Gothic style has three enormous arches. |
PORTSMOUTH |
C Church of St. Thomas |
12 |
Around 1180 a Norman merchant gave land to Augustinian Canons to build a chapel in honour of St. Thomas of Canterbury, Martyr. In 1194 King Richard I seized Portsmouth for the Crown. In 1591 Queen Elizabeth I worshipped at this church which after several occasions of rebuild became a Cathedral in in 1932. |
RIPON & LEEDS |
C Church of SS Peter & Wilfrid |
13 |
The Church was founded by Saint Wilfrid in AD 672 and the Crypt is one of the oldest in the country, The building was originally a Minster but was created a Cathedral in 1836. It has inspired such artists as lewis Carroll and Wilfrid Owen. |
ROCHESTER |
C Church of Christ & the Blessed Virgin Mary |
10 |
The second oldest English Cathedral having been founded by Bishop Justus in 604AD. In 1642 Cromwell’s soldiers damaged the Cathedral. In 1872 George Gilbert Scott carried out major restoration work. 2004 the 1400th anniversery of the Cathedral and Diocese. |
ST.ALBANS |
C Church & Abbey of St. Albans |
12 |
St. Alban was a Roman/British citizen of Verulamium became a Christian around 3rd C. Was martyred by refusing to acknowledge the Roman Gods. St. Bede mentions a church which later became a Benedictine monastry around 793. It is the 2nd longest Catheral in England |
ST.EDMUNDSBURY & IPSWICH – |
C Church of St. James |
12 + 2 |
The earliest church, an Abbey, was built for the remains of Edmund, King of the East Angles who was killed by the Danes in 869. St. James’s was built within the Abbey and became a Cathedral in 1914. |
SALISBURY |
C Church of Blessed Virgin Mary |
NO BELLS |
A Norman Cathedral was built in 1075 at Old Sarum. The best preserved version of The Magna Carta, the result of King John’s meeting with the Barons at Runnymede in 1214, is held within the Chapter House of the Cathedral. It has the tallest spire in the country. The Cathedral celebrated its 750th anniversary in 2008. |
SHEFFIELD |
C Church of SS Peter and Paul |
13 |
The building has Saxon beginnings with a cross of Sheffield dating from this time now in the British Museum. There are Norman parts dating from 11th – 12thC. It became a Cathedral in 1914. |
SOUTHWARK |
Collegiate C of St. Saviour & St Mary Overie |
12 |
Possibly a religious centre as early as 7th C. It was mentioned as a Minster in the Domesday Book of 1086. It became an Augustinian Priory dedicated to St. Mary ‘Over the River’ together with a hospital thought to be the predecessor of St. Thomas’s in honour of St. Thomas a Becket. It became a Cathedral in 1905. |
SOUTHWELL & NOTTINGHAM – |
Minster Church of Blessed Virgin Mary |
13 |
The site has Roman origins with preserved fragments. In 956 King Eadwig of Wessex grants land for a Collegiate church. In 1040 it became a Minster. The two towers were completed in 1170. It became a Cathedral in 1884. |
TRURO |
C Church of St. Mary |
14 |
A Bill was passed by Parliament in 1876 establishing Truro as the Diocese centre and the Parish Church of St. Mary was rebuilt as the Cathedral which was completed in 1880. |
WAKEFIELD |
C Church of All Saints |
14 |
The cathedral is on the site of a Saxon Church which was mentioned in the Domesday Book. It was rebuilt in the early 15th C and later restored in the 18th by Sir George Gilbert Scott. Although it has a ring of 14 bells usualy no more than 12 are rung. |
WELLS |
C Church of St. Andrew |
10 |
The place name Wells is because of the wells and springs that have been there since Roman times.The Vicar’s Close founded in 1348 is said to be the oldest medieval street in England. Made in 1390 The Clock is thought to be the second oldest clock mechanism in England. |
WINCHESTER |
C Church of Holy Trinity & SSS Peter,Paul & Swithun |
14 |
The Saxon ‘Old Minster’ in 1093 became a Cathedral and the Royal Church of the Saxon Kings. The resting place for King Alfred the Great, King Cnut, William Rufus and St. Swithun. The latter was Bishop from 838 – 852AD. The Winchester Bible is the largest and possibly the finest of all surviving 12thC English bibles. It was written and illuminated 800 years ago. |
WORCESTER |
C Church of Christ and Blessed Virgin Mary |
12 |
St. Wulfstan was a Bishop and after the Norman Conquest rebuilt the Cathedral.He died in 1095 and was buried alongside St. Oswald. King John too is buried at his own request oin the Cathedral. The whole Cathedral and its treasures suffered terribly in the Civil War between 1642 and 1651. The Battle of Worcester took place in 1651. |
YORK |
Minster & Metropolitan Ch of St. Peter |
14 |
The first Church on the site was in 627 BC to enable the Baptism of Edwin King of Northumbria. York Minster is the 2nd largest Gothic cathedral in Northern Europe.It has suffered many repairs due to fires, Civil War damage and The Reformation. It is reknowned for its glass windows notably the great Rose Window. |