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  • Durham Cathedral (3)

    Durham Cathedral (3)

    Durham Cathedral (3)

    The see of Durham normally takes its origins from the Diocese of Lindisfarne, started by Saint Aidan at the behest of Oswald of Northumbria all around Ad 635. The see lasted right up until Advert 664, at which position it was translated to York. The see was then reinstated at Lindisfarne in Advert 678 by the Archbishop of Canterbury. Among the the numerous saints created in the group at Lindisfarne Priory, Saint Cuthbert, who was Bishop of Lindisfarne from Ad 685 right until his demise on Farne Island in 687, is central to the growth of Durham Cathedral.

    After repeated Viking raids, the monks fled Lindisfarne in Ad 875, carrying St Cuthbert’s relics with them. The diocese of Lindisfarne remained itinerant until eventually 882, when a group was re-founded in Chester-le-Road. The see experienced its seat listed here till Advert 995, when additional incursions as soon as once again brought about the monks to transfer with the relics. In accordance to area legend, the monks adopted two milk maids who were looking for a dun (i.e. brown) cow and had been led into a peninsula fashioned by a loop in the River Use. At this position Cuthbert’s coffin became immovable. This trope of hagiography was available for a indication that the new shrine should be created below. A much more prosaic established of good reasons for the collection of the peninsula is its remarkably defensible posture, and that a community set up below would appreciate the security of the Earl of Northumberland, as the bishop at this time, Aldhun, had potent family members hyperlinks with the earls. However, the street leading from The Bailey previous the Cathedral’s japanese towers up to Palace Eco-friendly is named Dun Cow Lane thanks to the miniature (dun) cows that employed to graze in the pastures nearby.

    Initially, a extremely easy short term structure was created from local timber to home the relics of Cuthbert. The shrine was then transferred to a sturdier, probably wood, making recognized as the White Church. This church was by itself replaced 3 decades afterwards in 998 by a stone building also regarded as the White Church, which was complete aside from its tower by 1018. Durham soon grew to become a web page of pilgrimage, encouraged by the developing cult of Saint Cuthbert. King Canute was a single early pilgrim, granting several privileges and much land to the Durham group. The defendable situation, circulation of revenue from pilgrims and electrical power embodied in the church at Durham ensured that a town shaped all over the cathedral, developing the early core of the fashionable town.

    The existing cathedral was made and constructed less than William of St. Carilef (or William of Calais) who was appointed as the initially prince-bishop by William the Conqueror in 1080. Considering that that time, there have been big additions and reconstructions of some elements of the creating, but the better part of the composition stays true to the Norman design. Design of the cathedral commenced in 1093 at the eastern end. The choir was done by 1096 and operate proceeded on the nave of which the partitions were completed by 1128, and the superior vault entire by 1135. The chapter dwelling, partially demolished in the 18th century, was created concerning 1133 and 1140. William died in 1099 before the building’s completion, passing duty to his successor, Ranulf Flambard, who also constructed Flamwell Bridge, the to start with crossing of the River Use in the town. 3 bishops, William of St. Carilef, Ranulf Flambard and Hugh de Puiset, are all buried in the rebuilt chapter house.

    In the 1170s, de Puiset, soon after a phony get started at the jap end where by the subsidence and cracking prevented function from continuing, added the Galilee Chapel at the west finish of the cathedral. The 5-aisled making occupies the placement of a porch, it functioned as a Woman chapel and the fantastic west doorway was blocked for the duration of the Medieval interval by an altar to the Virgin Mary. The door is now blocked by the tomb of the bishop Thomas Langley. The Galilee Chapel also retains the continues to be of the Venerable Bede. The most important entrance to the cathedral is on the northern side, going through toward the castle.

    In 1228 Richard le Poore arrived from Salisbury the place a new cathedral was remaining created in the Gothic type. At this time, the japanese conclude of the cathedral was in urgent want of restore and the proposed eastern extension had failed. Richard le Poore utilized the architect Richard Farnham to structure an japanese terminal for the developing in which many monks could say the Day by day Workplace at the same time. The resulting making was the Chapel of the Nine Altars. The towers also day from the early 13th century, but the central tower was broken by lightning and changed in two phases in the 15th century, the learn masons being Thomas Barton and John Bell.

    The Shrine of St Cuthbert was located in the japanese apsidal conclude of the cathedral. The spot of the internal wall of the apse is marked on the pavement and St Cuthbert’s tomb is protected by a very simple slab. Nonetheless, an unknown monk wrote in 1593:

    [The shrine] “was believed to be a single of the most sumptuous in all England, so good had been the offerings and jewells bestowed on it, and infinite the miracles that ended up wrought at it, even in these previous days.”

    Cuthbert’s tomb was ruined on the orders of Henry VIII in 1538, and the monastery’s wealth handed in excess of to the king. The entire body of the saint was exhumed, and in accordance to the Rites of Durham, was found out to be uncorrupted. It was reburied less than a simple stone slab worn by the knees of pilgrims, but the historic paving close to it stays intact. Two many years afterwards, on 31 December 1540, the Benedictine monastery at Durham was dissolved, and the past prior of Durham — Hugh Whitehead — became the initially dean of the cathedral’s secular.

    Just after the Battle of Dunbar on 3 September 1650, Durham Cathedral was employed by Oliver Cromwell as a makeshift prison to hold Scottish prisoners-of-war. It is approximated that as lots of as 3,000 ended up imprisoned of whom 1,700 died in the cathedral alone, where by they have been stored in inhumane ailments, mainly devoid of food items, drinking water or heat. The prisoners wrecked a great deal of the cathedral woodwork for firewood but Prior Castell’s Clock, which showcased the Scottish thistle, was spared. It is reputed that the prisoners’ bodies were being buried in unmarked graves (see further more, ’21st century’ beneath). The survivors were being delivered as slave labour to North The united states.

    John Cosin, Bishop of Durham who had earlier been a canon of the cathedral, established about restoring the hurt and refurnishing the creating with new stalls, the litany desk and the towering cover around the font. An oak screen to have the organ was added at this time to substitute a stone monitor pulled down in the 16th century. On the stays of the old refectory, the Dean, John Sudbury launched a library of early printed publications.

    During the 18th century, the deans of Durham usually held a different placement in the south of England, and just after investing the statutory time in home, would depart to control their affairs. Therefore, following Cosin’s refurbishment, there was very little by way of restoration or rebuilding. When perform commenced all over again on the creating, it was not constantly of a sympathetic mother nature. In 1777 the architect George Nicholson, getting completed Prebends’ Bridge across the Use, persuaded the dean and chapter to permit him sleek off a great deal of the outer stonework of the cathedral, therefore significantly altering its character. His successor William Morpeth demolished most of the Chapter Home.

    In 1794 the architect James Wyatt drew up considerable plans which would have substantially reworked the developing, which include the demolition of the Galilee Chapel, but the Chapter adjusted its brain just in time to stop this taking place. Wyatt also renewed the 15th cent. tracery of the Rose Window, inserting simple glass to exchange what experienced been blown out in a storm.

    In 1847 Anthony Salvin eradicated Cosin’s wooden organ display, opening up the check out of the east stop from the nave.

    The restoration of the cathedral’s tower in 1859-60 was by the architect George Gilbert Scott, doing work with Edward Robert Robson (who went on to serve as Clerk of Works at the cathedral for six many years). In 1874 Scott was liable for the marble quire display screen and pulpit in the Crossing.[ In 1892 Scott’s pupil Charles Hodgson Fowler rebuilt the Chapter Home as a memorial to Joseph Barber Lightfoot (Bishop).

    In the 1930s, under the inspiration of Dean Cyril Alington, do the job started on restoring the Shrine of St Cuthbert powering the Superior Altar as an appropriate aim of worship and pilgrimage, and was resumed following the Second Earth War. The 4 candlesticks and overhanging tester (c. 1950) ended up developed by Ninian Comper. Two massive batik banners symbolizing St Cuthbert and St Oswald, included in 2001, are the get the job done of Thetis Blacker. Elsewhere in the making the 1930s and 40’s observed the addition of a number of new stained glass windows by Hugh Ray Easton. Mark Angus’ Day by day Bread window dates from 1984. In the Galilee Chapel a picket statue of the Annunciation by the Polish artist Josef Pyrz was included in 1992, the similar yr as Leonard Evetts’ Stella Maris window.

    In 1986, the cathedral, jointly with the nearby Castle, turned a Environment Heritage Web-site. The UNESCO committee categorised the cathedral under requirements, reporting, “Durham Cathedral is the greatest and most fantastic monument of ‘Norman’ type architecture in England”.

    In 1996, the Great Western Doorway was the setting for Monthly bill Viola’s large-scale video set up The Messenger.

    At the beginning of this century two of the altars in the 9 Altars Chapel at the east close of the Cathedral were re-committed to Saint Hild of Whitby and Saint Margaret of Scotland: a striking portray of St Margaret (with her son, the potential king David) by Paula Rego was dedicated in 2004. Nearby a plaque, to start with installed in 2011 and rededicated in 2017, commemorates the Scottish troopers who died as prisoners in the Cathedral soon after the Struggle of Dunbar in 1650. The stays of some of these prisoners have now been recognized in a mass grave uncoverered for the duration of creating functions in 2013 just outdoors the Cathedral precinct near Palace Eco-friendly.

    In 2004 two wooden sculptures by Fenwick Lawson, Pieta and Tomb of Christ, ended up put in the Nine Altars Chapel, and in 2010 a new stained glass window of the Transfiguration by Tom Denny was focused in memory of Michael Ramsey, previous Bishop of Durham and Archbishop of Canterbury.

    In 2016 previous monastic buildings all around the cloister, like the Monks’ Dormitory and Prior’s Kitchen area, ended up re-opened to the community as Open up Treasure, an comprehensive exhibition displaying the Cathedral’s background and belongings.

    Durham Cathedral was highlighted in the Harry Potter films as Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where it had a spire digitally added onto the major of the well known towers. It is also featured on Television in Year 5’s final episode of Inspector George Gently.

    Architectural historian Dan Cruickshank selected the cathedral as one particular of his four alternatives for the 2002 BBC tv documentary sequence Britain’s Very best Properties.

    In November 2009 the cathedral showcased in the Lumiere competition whose spotlight was the “Crown of Mild” illumination of the North Front of the cathedral with a 15-moment presentation that informed the story of Lindisfarne and the foundation of cathedral, applying illustrations and text from the Lindisfarne Gospels. The Lumiere competition was repeated in 2011, 2013 and 2015

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    Posted by Walruscharmer on 2018-03-16 18:44:51

    Tagged: , River Put on , Cathedral , UNESCO Entire world Heritage Web page , Norman Building , St. Cuthbert , The Venerable Bede , Durham , County Durham , England , Medieval Monastic Buldings , Towers-Torri-Torres-Excursions-Türme

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  • Durham City’s County Durham England: The Magnificent Durham Cathedral

    Durham Cathedral, Durham City, County Durham, England.

    Durham Cathedral, located in the city of Durham in England, is a cathedral that serves as the seat of the Bishop of Durham. It was built in the Norman era, starting in 1093, and was designed to replace the city’s previous ‘White Church’. The cathedral is home to the Shrine of St Cuthbert, a highly esteemed religious relic. Durham Cathedral and Durham Castle were designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986.

    The relics of Durham Cathedral include St Cuthbert’s, which was transported to Durham by Lindisfarne monks in the 800s, St Oswald’s head, and the Venerable Bede’s remains. The Durham Dean and Chapter Library contains sets of early printed books, pre-Dissolution monastic accounts, and three copies of Magna Carta. From 1080 until 1836, the Bishop of Durham held the powers of an Earl Palatine, which included military, civil, and religious leadership to protect the Anglo-Scottish border.

    Durham Cathedral’s origins stem from the Diocese of Lindisfarne, founded by Saint Aidan and translated to York in 664. Lindisfarne Priory produced many saints, including St Cuthbert, who was central to the development of Durham Cathedral. After repeated Viking raids, the monks fled from Lindisfarne in 875 and resettled at Chester-le-Street. Further Viking incursions caused the monks to move with their relics until they found themselves on a peninsula formed by a loop in the River Wear, where they established the City of Durham. The simple temporary structure initially built to house St Cuthbert’s relics was replaced twice, with the final building being known as the White Church. Durham became a site of pilgrimage, with King Canute granting the Durham monks many privileges and estates.

    The present cathedral was designed and built under William de St-Calais, who was appointed as the first Prince-Bishop in 1080 by King William the Conqueror. He divided the extensive lands of the church between his bishopric and the new Priory of St. Cuthbert at Durham. The monks built the monastic buildings, while the bishop completed the cathedral, which was designed to house the bodies of St. Cuthbert and the Venerable Bede. Construction of the cathedral began in 1093, and the choir and chapter house were completed by 1096. The Galilee Chapel, a Lady chapel, was added at the west end of the cathedral in the 1170s, and the Chapel of the Nine Altars was added in 1228 by Richard le Poore, Bishop of Salisbury. The cathedral towers and central tower were added in the early 13th century, and the central tower was replaced in the 15th century after lightning damage.

    The Bishop of Durham was the temporal lord of the palatinate, and the bishop competed for power with the Prior of Durham Monastery, who held his own courts for his free tenants. The Shrine of St Cuthbert was located in the eastern apsidal end of the cathedral and was estimated to be one of the most sumptuous in England.

    Today, Durham Cathedral is a popular tourist site, with daily Church of England services and the Durham Cathedral Choir singing daily except for Mondays and holidays. The cathedral received 727,367 visitors in 2019.

    Posted by millicand@rocketmail.com on 2022-09-26 05:16:01

  • Durham Cathedral Located in Durham City, County Durham, England, with a Cobbled Street Leading to It.

    Cobbled Street Leading To Durham Cathedral, Durham City, County Durham, England.

    Durham Cathedral is a cathedral located in the city of Durham, England. It was built by William de St-Calais in the Norman era in 1093, replacing the previous White Church. It is the seat of the Bishop of Durham and was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986. Durham Cathedral is home to the Shrine of St Cuthbert and houses relics such as St Cuthbert’s and the Venerable Bede’s remains. It also contains the Durham Dean and Chapter Library, which has sets of early printed books, some of the most complete in England, and three copies of Magna Carta.

    The See of Durham originated from the Diocese of Lindisfarne, founded by Saint Aidan in about 635. Among the saints who originated at Lindisfarne Priory, the greatest was St Cuthbert, Bishop of Lindisfarne, who is central to the development of Durham Cathedral. After repeated Viking raids, the monks fled from Lindisfarne in 875, carrying Saint Cuthbert’s relics with them. The diocese of Lindisfarne remained itinerant until 882, when the monks resettled at Chester-le-Street. Finally, in 995, they moved to Durham, where Cuthbert’s coffin became immovable, which was taken as a sign that the new shrine should be built on that spot.

    Initially, a very simple temporary structure was built from local timber to house the relics of Saint Cuthbert. The shrine was then transferred to a sturdier, probably still wooden, building known as the White Church. This church was itself replaced three years later in 998 by a stone building also known as the White Church, which in 1018 was complete except for its tower. Durham soon became a site of pilgrimage, encouraged by the growing cult of Saint Cuthbert. King Canute was one of the early pilgrims, and granted many privileges and estates to the Durham monks. The defensible position, flow of money from pilgrims and power embodied in the church at Durham all encouraged the formation of a town around the cathedral, which established the core of the city.

    The present cathedral was designed and built under William de St-Calais, who in 1080 was appointed as the first Prince-Bishop by King William the Conqueror. The monks continued at their own expense to build the monastic buildings while the bishop took the responsibility for completing the building of the cathedral. Stone for the new buildings was cut from the cliffs below the walls and moved up using winches. The primary reason for the cathedral was to house the bodies of St. Cuthbert and the Venerable Bede. Since that time, many major additions and reconstructions of parts of the building have been made, but the greater part of the structure remains the original Norman structure.

    Construction of the cathedral began in 1093, at the eastern end, and the choir was completed by 1096. At the death of Bishop William of St. Calais on 2 January 1096, the Chapter House was ready enough to be used as his burial place. In 1104, the remains of St. Cuthbert were translated with great ceremony to the new shrine in the new cathedral. The monks continued to look after the Shrine of St Cuthbert until the dissolution of the monasteries. Work proceeded on the nave, the walls of which were finished by 1128, and the high vault by 1135. The chapter house was built between 1133 and 1140. William of St. Carilef died in 1096 before the building was complete and passed responsibility to his successor, Ranulf Flambard, who also built Framwellgate Bridge, the earliest crossing of the River Wear from the town. Three bishops, William of St. Carilef, Ranulf Flambard and Hugh de Puiset, are all buried in the now rebuilt chapter house.

    In the 1170s, Hugh de Puiset added the Galilee Chapel at the west end of the cathedral after a false start at the eastern end where subsidence and cracking prevented work from continuing. The five-aisled building occupies the position of a porch and functioned as a Lady chapel, with the great west door being blocked during the Medieval period by an altar to the Virgin Mary. The door is now blocked by the tomb of Bishop Thomas Langley. The Galilee Chapel also holds the remains of the Venerable Bede.

    In 1228, Richard le Poore, Bishop of Salisbury, was translated to Durham, having just rebuilt Salisbury Cathedral in the Gothic style. At that moment, the eastern end of Durham Cathedral was in urgent need of repair and the proposed eastern extension had failed. Le Poore employed the architect Richard Farnham to design an eastern terminal for the building in which many monks could say the Daily Office simultaneously. The resulting building was the Chapel of the Nine Altars. In 1250, the original roof of the cathedral was replaced by a vault which is still in place. The towers also date from the early 13th century, but the central tower was damaged by lightning and replaced in two stages in the 15th century, the master masons being Thomas Barton and John Bell.

    The Bishop of Durham was the temporal lord of the palatinate, often referred to as a Prince-bishop. The bishop competed for power with the Prior of Durham Monastery, a great landowner who held his own courts for his free tenants. An agreement dated about 1229, known as Le Convenit, was entered into to regulate the relationship between the two magnates. The Shrine of Saint Cuthbert was located in the eastern apsidal end of the cathedral. The location of the inner wall of the apse is marked on the pavement and Saint Cuthbert’s tomb is covered by a simple slab. However, an unknown monk wrote in 1593 that the shrine was estimated to be one of the most sumptuous in all England, so great were the offerings and jewels bestowed upon it, and endless the miracles that were said to have occurred there.

    Today, Durham Cathedral is one of the most popular tourist destinations in England, receiving 727,367 visitors in 2019. There are daily Church of England services at the cathedral, and the Durham Cathedral Choir sing daily except Mondays and holidays. The cathedral continues to inspire awe and wonder, showcasing not only the incredible craftsmanship and skill of the Norman era, but also centuries of English history and spirituality.

    Posted by millicand@rocketmail.com on 2022-09-26 05:16:02

  • Knocker at the Sanctuary, Durham Cathedral, in Durham City, located in County Durham, England.

    Sanctuary Knocker, Durham Cathedral, Durham City, County Durham, England.

    Durham Cathedral is a cathedral located in Durham, England, and is the seat of the Bishop of Durham, the fourth-ranked bishop in the Church of England hierarchy. The present Norman era cathedral was built in 1093 to replace the city’s previous ‘White Church’. The cathedral is also home to the Shrine of St Cuthbert and has relics including Saint Cuthbert’s, Saint Oswald’s head and the Venerable Bede’s remains. The Durham Dean and Chapter Library contains sets of early printed books, some of the most complete in England, the pre-Dissolution monastic accounts and three copies of Magna Carta. Durham Cathedral’s walls formed part of Durham Castle, the chief seat of the Bishop of Durham, from 1080 until 1836, when the Bishop of Durham held the powers of an Earl Palatine in order to protect the Anglo-Scottish border. There are daily Church of England services at the cathedral, and the Durham Cathedral Choir sings daily except Mondays and holidays, receiving 727,367 visitors in 2019.

    The See of Durham takes its origins from the Diocese of Lindisfarne, founded by Saint Aidan at the behest of Oswald of Northumbria in about 635, which was translated to York in 664. Among the many saints who originated at Lindisfarne Priory, the greatest was Saint Cuthbert, Bishop of Lindisfarne from 685 until his death in 687, who is central to the development of Durham Cathedral. After repeated Viking raids, the monks fled from Lindisfarne in 875, carrying Saint Cuthbert’s relics with them. The diocese of Lindisfarne remained itinerant until 882, when the monks resettled at Chester-le-Street, which became the City of Durham, due to the highly defensible position and the protection of the Earl of Northumbria. Initially, a very simple temporary structure was built from local timber to house the relics of Saint Cuthbert. The shrine was then transferred to a sturdier, probably still wooden, building known as the White Church. This church was itself replaced three years later in 998 by a stone building also known as the White Church, which in 1018 was complete except for its tower.

    Durham soon became a site of pilgrimage, encouraged by the growing cult of Saint Cuthbert. King Canute was one of the early pilgrims, and granted many privileges and estates to the Durham monks. The defensible position, flow of money from pilgrims and power embodied in the church at Durham all encouraged the formation of a town around the cathedral, which established the core of the city. The present cathedral was designed and built under William de St-Calais, the first Prince-Bishop appointed by King William the Conqueror in 1080. Stone for the new buildings was cut from the cliffs below the walls and moved up using winches. The primary reason for the cathedral was to house the bodies of St. Cuthbert and the Venerable Bede. Since that time many major additions and reconstructions of parts of the building have been made, but the greater part of the structure remains the original Norman structure.

    Construction of the cathedral began in 1093, and the choir was completed by 1096. The Chapter House was ready enough to be used as Bishop William of St. Calais’ burial place. In 1104 the remains of St. Cuthbert were translated with great ceremony to the new shrine in the new cathedral. Work proceeded on the nave, the walls of which were finished by 1128, and the high vault by 1135. The chapter house was built between 1133 and 1140. Three bishops, William of St. Carilef, Ranulf Flambard and Hugh de Puiset, are all buried in the now rebuilt chapter house. In the 1170s Hugh de Puiset added the Galilee Chapel at the west end of the cathedral. The five-aisled building occupies the position of a porch and functioned as a Lady chapel with the great west door being blocked during the Medieval period by an altar to the Virgin Mary. The door is now blocked by the tomb of Bishop Thomas Langley. The Galilee Chapel also holds the remains of the Venerable Bede. In 1228 Richard le Poore was translated to Durham and employed the architect Richard Farnham to design the Chapel of the Nine Altars. In 1250, the original roof of the cathedral was replaced by a vault which is still in place. The towers also date from the early 13th century, but the central tower was damaged by lightning in the 15th century and replaced in two stages, the master masons being Thomas Barton and John Bell.

    The Bishop of Durham was the temporal lord of the palatinate, often referred to as a Prince-bishop. The bishop competed for power with the Prior of Durham Monastery, a great landowner who held his own courts for his free tenants. The Shrine of Saint Cuthbert was located in the eastern apsidal end of the cathedral, and the location of the inner wall of the apse is marked on the pavement. Saint Cuthbert’s tomb is covered by a simple slab. However, an unknown monk wrote in 1593: “The shrine was estimated to be one of the most sumptuous in all England, so great were the offerings and jewells bestowed upon it, and endless the miracles that were…”.

    Posted by millicand@rocketmail.com on 2022-09-26 05:16:02

  • Durham Cathedral in Durham City, County Durham, England.

    Durham Cathedral, Durham City, County Durham, England.

    Durham Cathedral is a Norman era cathedral located in the city of Durham, England, and is the seat of the Bishop of Durham. The cathedral was built in 1093 and replaced the city’s previous ‘White Church’. It is home to the Shrine of St Cuthbert and many other relics, including Saint Oswald’s head and the Venerable Bede’s remains. The cathedral also contains the Durham Dean and Chapter Library, which has some of the most complete sets of early printed books in England, pre-Dissolution monastic accounts, and three copies of Magna Carta.

    The diocese of Durham originated from the Diocese of Lindisfarne, founded by Saint Aidan in about 635. Among the many saints who originated at Lindisfarne Priory, the greatest was Saint Cuthbert, Bishop of Lindisfarne from 685 until his death in 687, who is central to the development of Durham Cathedral. After repeated Viking raids, the monks fled from Lindisfarne in 875, carrying Saint Cuthbert’s relics with them. The diocese of Lindisfarne remained itinerant until 882, when the monks resettled at Chester-le-Street, 60 miles south of Lindisfarne and 6 miles north of Durham. The see remained at Chester-le-Street until 995, when further Viking incursions once again caused the monks to move with their relics. According to local legend, the new shrine should be built on the current site of the cathedral, on a peninsula formed by a loop in the River Wear, due to its highly defensible position.

    Initially, a very simple temporary structure was built from local timber to house the relics of Saint Cuthbert. The shrine was then transferred to a sturdier, probably still wooden, building known as the White Church. This church was itself replaced three years later in 998 by a stone building also known as the White Church. Durham soon became a site of pilgrimage, encouraged by the growing cult of Saint Cuthbert. The present cathedral was designed and built under William de St-Calais, who in 1080 was appointed as the first Prince-Bishop by King William the Conqueror. In 1083 he founded the Benedictine Priory of St. Cuthbert at Durham and replaced secular canons with monks from the monasteries of Wearmouth and Jarrow. The extensive lands of the church were divided between his own bishopric and the new Priory. The monks continued at their own expense to build the monastic buildings while the bishop took the responsibility for completing the building of the cathedral.

    Construction of the cathedral began in 1093, at the eastern end, and the choir was completed by 1096. The chapter house was built between 1133 and 1140. The present structure of the cathedral is largely the original Norman era structure, with many major additions and reconstructions of parts of the building over time. The Galilee Chapel, located at the west end, holds the remains of the Venerable Bede. The Chapel of the Nine Altars, designed by Richard Farnham and built by Bishop Richard le Poore, was added in the 13th century, and the original roof of the cathedral was replaced by a vault in 1250. The towers also date from the early 13th century, and the central tower was damaged by lightning and replaced in two stages in the 15th century.

    Durham Cathedral played an important role in Anglo-Scottish border control. From 1080 until 1836, the Bishop of Durham held the powers of an Earl Palatine, including exercising military, civil, and religious leadership. The cathedral walls formed part of Durham Castle, the chief seat of the Bishop of Durham. Today, there are daily Church of England services at the cathedral, and the Durham Cathedral Choir sing daily except Mondays and holidays, receiving 727,367 visitors in 2019.

    In 1986, the cathedral and Durham Castle were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The cathedral and its surrounding areas have a rich history, and Durham Cathedral’s relics and archives reflect this history. From its origin at Lindisfarne to its present-day status as a significant cultural and religious site, Durham Cathedral remains an important landmark and a testament to the continued importance and relevance of the Church of England.

    Posted by millicand@rocketmail.com on 2022-10-25 16:35:11