Wells Cathedral - Somerset

It would be hard to imagine a more imposing building than Wells Cathedral. This architecturally impressive edifice towers massively above the sleepy city of Wells in Somerset and yet blends perfectly with the charming medieval buildings surrounding it.

The area around Wells Cathedral has a history that goes back much further than medieval times.

Two excavations in the nineteenth century and a much more extensive archaeological investigation from 1978 - 1980 revealed exciting proof of religious buildings stretching far back into the past and confirming the existence of the great Anglo-Saxon minster church of St. Andrew.

Near the wells archaeologists found the remains of stone age flints and fragments of Roman pottery. The remains of a late Roman mausoleum, probably Christian, was uncovered, with the burial vault, robbed of its original contents, still intact. It is a stone-lined burial chamber with postholes and slots in the walls showing that it was originally contained within a larger building.

In 909 the large diocese of Sherbourne was split and the Minster church of St. Andrew became the first Wells Cathedral. Giso, the last Saxon bishop erected buildings for live-in priests, and built a cloister to the north of the site.

After the death of Giso in 1088, his successor, John of Tours, moved his seat to Bath Abbey so Wells was temporarily demoted.

In the early 1100s Bishop Robert partially rebuilt the neglected church. Carved stone fragments from this Norman period have been recovered during excavations.

By 1180 the foundations of an entirely new church were being laid to the north of the old one on an east-west alignment. Bishop Reginald, the then Bishop of Bath and a Norman by family, was responsible for the Gothic architecture from this period.

It is thought that by 1196 the demolition of the Saxon cathedral was begun as the new church was sufficiently advanced to be used for worship. Some ancient stone was recycled for use in the new building.

In 1477 Bishop Robert Stillington embarked on a complete rebuilding of the chapel on a grand scale. The foundations of this cruciform building are what can be seen today in the Camery garden. This grand chapel did not last long and was blown up with gunpowder in 1552 when Edward VI abolished Chantry chapels in the height of Reformation zeal.

It is impossible to give more than a hint of the Cathedral’s imposing nature but suffice to say it is one of the most magnificent buildings in England. The south aspect is a truly formidable monument to the stone mason’s art, yet the rest of the building boasts many outstanding features.

Imposing painted tombs, beautiful columns and an architecturally amazing flight of steps are just a few of the attractions. Every visitor finds something new.

Wells Cathedral really is an historian’s delight. The ‘icing on the cake’ is a delightful, well stocked and ‘not to be missed’ museum, just a two minute walk from the Cathedral doors and staffed by people who are both enthusiastic and knowledgeable.

www.wellscathedral.org.uk