Canterbury Cathedral

Canterbury Cathedral

The pilgrims window

The Black Prince,victorious in battles over the French

The nave

Canterbury Cathedralis one of the oldest and most famouschurchesinEngland.Thecathedralis inCanterbury,Kent.It is aUNESCOWorld Heritage Site.It is also one of the greatest examples ofmediaevalNorman architectureinBritain.The cathedral is the 'seat' of thearchbishop of Canterbury.The archbishop is the most importantbishopin theChurch of England.

History

The church was founded byAugustine of Canterburyin 597 AD. The present version was built on the remains of the oldSaxonchurch byLanfranc,starting in 1066. Lanfranc, the firstNormanArchbishop, was put in position byWilliam the Conqueror.His cathedral was dedicated in 1077. Thearchitectureof the present cathedral is basicallyRomanesque,with many later repairs and additions. Thenave(where thecongregationsits) was rebuilt in the 14th century with newly discovered building methods. The new style ofEnglish Gothic architecture('perpendicular') gave the building greater height and larger windows. Some of thestained glassin the cathedral is from the 12th century. It was probably made between 1130 and 1160.There was a great fire in 1174 and the people built most of the cathedral again. The fire did not destroy some of the old windows from the 12th century.

The cathedral area, called theprecinct,has walls all around it. Canterbury also hasdefensive wall.Much of this wall is still standing. The cathedral precinct includes many other buildings: a school, a conference building, a number of houses and apalace.The Deanery is where thedeanof Canterbury lives: he is the manager of the cathedral. The dean andchapter(a committee) take the decisions. The archbishop's job is to run the wholeAnglican Church.

The cathedral costs £12,000 a day to run and repair,and there are no government grants. Because of this, fund-raising is one of the Dean's main jobs. The cathedral is a working church. On Sundays there are six services (of different kinds). On weekdays there are three services. These are free of any entry charge. Tourists visiting pay a fee to see the cathedral when there is no service.

It was whereThomas BecketwasmurderedbyknightsofHenry II,after the king asked, supposedly,"Who will rid me of this turbulent priest?" Beckett was the second archbishop of Canterbury to be murdered. The first wasAlphegein 1012. The third wasThomas Cranmer,in 1533.

in 1988,UNESCOand theWorld Heritage Committeenamed Canterbury Cathedral, the ruins ofSt Augustine's Abbey,andSt Martin's Churchtogether as aWorld Heritage Site.As a group, they are buildings which show thedevelopmentof Christianity in Britain.

Events of note

• 1498 The great bell tower, called 'Bell Harry Tower', completed the cathedral more or less as it is today.
• 1538 Becket'sshrinedestroyed byHenry VIII
• 1540Monasterydissolved by Royal Command.
• 1660/1704 Repair afterPuritandamage.
• 1790/1830s The original northwest tower was replaced during the 1830s. This was the last major structural alteration to the cathedral.

Literary references

• The Canterbury Taleswas written byGeoffrey Chaucerin the 14th century. The book is about a group of travellers who are going fromLondontoCanterbury.As they travel along, each person tells a tale (a story).

Related pages

• List of World Heritage Sites of the United Kingdom
• Canterbury Cathedral, St Augustine's Abbey, and St Martin's Church

Other websites

Media related toCanterbury Cathedralat Wikimedia Commons

• Cathedral website
• Canterbury Cathedralat SacredDestinations.com