Chester Cathedral in Great Britain
Rating: 8,7/10 (4602 votes)  Chester Cathedral is a cathedral belonging to the Diocese of Chester and located in the city of Chester in the English county of Cheshire. Once on the site of the cathedral dedicated to Christ and the Virgin Mary, there was the Benedictine abbey of St. Verburga.
According to unconfirmed assumptions, even before the abbey, there was still a Roman basilica of Saints Peter and Paul. Only after the arrival of the Saxons was it renamed in honor of Saint Verburga. In the 10th century, the remains of this patroness of the abbey were transferred to Chester, making a tomb in the church.
By the end of the 11th century, a Benedictine abbey already stood on this site, some of the buildings they built can be seen near the cathedral today. The episcopal see was then located in the church of St. John the Baptist, but was later moved to a nearby city.
In the 16th century, the time came for the reform of the church of Henry VIII, as a result of which the monastery was dissolved, and the tomb was desecrated and destroyed. But already in 1541, the same king ordered to establish in the abbey a cathedral of the Anglican Church with the abbot Thomas Clark. At the same time, the cathedral received the name of Christ and the Holy Virgin Mary.
The building of Chester Cathedral is built of reddish sandstone. However, over time, the color of the cathedral has changed, approaching a pale pink. The cathedral is 114 meters long and 60 meters wide. The ancient Norman church practically did not leave any traces after itself, since in the XI-XIII it was globally rebuilt: the choir and the central tower 60 meters high were erected, as well as the chapel of Our Lady and the chapter house were built.
The civil war greatly spoiled the cathedral's beautiful stained glass windows and organ. Today you can see unique gold and silver utensils of the 17th and 18th centuries, as well as mosaics and wood carvings. Also in the cathedral is an ancient unique library.
The last element added to the cathedral in 1969 was the bell tower, on which both the ancient bells of the 17th century and those made in 1973 were hoisted. As a result, early and perpendicular Gothic prevails in the architecture of the cathedral, and the Tudor style is observed in the west porch. But in general, Chester Cathedral differs from most other British temples in the unity of its architecture.We also recommend reading Fort Nelson in the UK, Portsmouth resort Topic: Chester Cathedral in Great Britain. |
