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All Saints Church, Stamford
Dominating
Red
Lion
Square
this Medieval
Church
dates back to
before
1086 when it
was mentioned in the
Doomsday
book. Most
of what you now see inside is 13th
Century
early English.
However the tower, spire and some windows are 15th
Century
perpendicular completed after the
Wars
of the Roses
when two
Brothers
William
and John
Browne
richly endowed the church in which their parents where buried. Coventry Cathedral
In 1951 an open
architectural competition for a new Cathedral was held and won by a design by
Basil Spence. A new Cathedral was born, started in 1954 it was finished in
1962. Today thousands of visitors are drawn to the new building, acclaimed
as one of the most striking examples of modern architecture. The nave is
270ft long and 80ft wide with the focal point a superb 75ft high tapestry
designed by Graham Sutherland and woven in France. The theme
reconciliation and unity by all people from whatever religion of whatever creed
or colour, the rising of hope from the ashes of war. Hereford Cathedral An Anglo Saxon Cathedral already existed in Hereford so in 792 became the burial place of poor Ethelbert. Nothing of the earlier building remains and the present Norman Cathedral was begun in 1079 by the then Bishop, Robert De Losinga. The Lady Chapel and Crypt at the East end is an unusual construction from the 13th Century. King Stephens chair while probably from the 13th Century, is supposedly the chair used by King Stephen when he celebrated mass in the Cathedral at Pentecost 1138. Amongst the treasures housed in the Cathedral is a chained library of over 1,500 rare books including an 8th Century gospel, together with the unique Mappa Mundy, which is a map of the world drawn in 1290, showing Jerusalem at its heart and England/Ireland at its edge. Holy Trinity Church, Stratford Lichfield Cathedral
Dominating the skyline
of Lichfield are the three lovely spires of the Cathedral “known locally as the
ladies of the vale”. The only Cathedral in England with three spires.
The first Cathedral on the site was recorded in 700A.D. and took the name of St
Peter. The first Bishop of Lichfield in 669 was St Chad, he died in 672
but exercised tremendous influence over the region. Dedication of this
first Cathedral was eventually changed to St Peter & St Chad. The second
Cathedral was built in 1100 to a Norman design but was not considered good
enough so the more modern gothic design was started on the same site in 1200ad.
The twin spires are almost 200ft in height and the central tower 60ft taller.
Within the arcades and panels of the front are 113 statues. The Cathedral
suffered tremendous damage during the Civil War. Cannon were used to get
into the fortified close, the central spire was shot down in the course of one
action, restoration programmes took place during the 17th, 18th & 19th
Centuries. The lady chapel is unusual because it is the full height of the
Cathedral and forms a magnificent Eastern termination. Possibly the finest
feature of the chapel is the wonderful long windows filled with stained glass
from the Abbey of Herckenrode in Flanders. Leicester Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of St Martin. Is a 13th/14th
century guild Church, heavily restored by the Victorians with a 220ft spire.
The ancient diocese of Leicester created in 680AD was later incorporated in the
Dioceses of Lincoln and Peterborough until 1927 when it became a Cathedral.
St Dunstans Chapel South of the Chancel, reflects the dedication to the patron
saint of goldsmiths and organ builders. The Bishops throne dates back to
1927. Peterborough Cathedral
Founded
as a Monastery
by King
Peada
of Mercia
in 655.
Destroyed
by the Danes
in 870 and refounded by
King
Edgar
over 100 years later.
Hereward
the Wake
attacked and plundered it about 1070 and approx
40 years later it was completely destroyed by fire.
The
present church was begun in 1118. The church was dedicated in 1238.
The
building is of
Barnack
stone,
481 feet long by 206 feet wide and approx
81 feet high.
With
the tower reaching 143 feet into the heavens.
The nave is
a superb example of
Norman
architecture dating from the second half of the 12th
Century.
The
painted wooden ceiling is unique in all
England
and dates back to 1220.
In
the retrochoir the ceiling has magnificent fan vaulting and the “hedda stone” an
important piece of
Anglo-Saxon
sculpture dating from about 800.
In
front of the
Retrochoir
are two burial places St. Mary's, Warwick
14th Century Church of
St Mary with its 174ft tower and pinnacle. Situated on the site of an
early Norman church. A number of the Beauchamp family who held the title
Earls of Warwick are buried here, the Beauchamp Chapel is incomparable. St. Michael's Church, Ledbury St. Laurence, Ludlow The parish Church of St Laurence is one of the largest parish churches in England. Largely 15th Century, interesting misericords in the church choir. The East window in the chancel 30ft high by 18ft wide depicts the life, history and miracles of the patron saint in 27 separate scenes containing approx 300 figures. The finest thoroughfare in Ludlow is broad street where every building dates back to the 14/15th centuries. Worcester Cathedral
Worcester
received it first
Bishop-Bishop
Bosel
in 680. It
is thought the first
Cathedral
stood very close the present one.
We
do understand that
Bishop
Oswald
built a new
Cathedral
in 962 and it is thought that some of the existing stonework is incorporated in
the present building.
In 1084
Bishop
Wulstan
started the building of a new
Church
on the present site.
The
crypt and chapter house remain substantially as the
Norman
builders left them.
King
John
visited many times and asked that on his death he be buried in the
Cathedral
which was agreed.
The new
Cathedral
was consecrated in 1218 but further enlargement followed ending in about 1375.
From
960 to 1540 the
Cathedral
was a Monastery
under the rule of the
Benedictine
order. One interesting point the whole length of the
Cathedral
seems to be built in one piece when in fact the two
West
bays are
Norman
and the
North
side built in 1345 is far better finished than the
South
side which due to the intervention of the
Black
Death
was built some 40 years later.
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