| Peterborough Cathedral | |
|---|---|
| Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew | |
 Peterborough Cathedral | |
 Peterborough Cathedral | |
| 52°34′21″N0°14′20″W / 52.5725°N 0.238889°W /52.5725; -0.238889 | |
| Location | Peterborough,Cambridgeshire |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Church of England |
| Previous denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Website | Peterborough Cathedral |
| History | |
| Former name | Peterborough Abbey |
| Dedication | St Peter,St Paul,St Andrew |
| Consecrated | 1238 |
| Architecture | |
| Style | Romanesque/Gothic |
| Years built | 1118–1237 |
| Specifications | |
| Length | 482 ft (147 m) |
| Nave length | 228 ft (69 m) |
| Nave width | 35 ft (11 m) / 79 ft (24 m) (With Aisles) |
| Width across transepts | 185 ft (56 m) |
| Height | 44 m (144 ft) |
| Number of towers | 4 |
| Number of spires | 2 |
| Administration | |
| Province | Canterbury |
| Diocese | Peterborough (since 1542) |
| Clergy | |
| Bishop | Deborah Mary Sellin |
| Dean | Chris Dalliston |
| Subdean | Tim Alban Jones (Vice-Dean) |
| Precentor | Rowan C. Williams |
| Canon | one Diocesan Canon vacancy |
| Canon Missioner | Steve Benoy(designate) |
| Laity | |
| Director of music | Tansy Castledine |
| Organist(s) | Christopher Strange(Organist & Acting Director) Adam Heron (Organ Scholar) |
Peterborough Cathedral, properly theCathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew, and formerly known asPeterborough Abbey orSt Peter's Abbey, is acathedral inPeterborough,Cambridgeshire, in the United Kingdom. The seat of theAnglicanBishop of Peterborough, it is dedicated to theApostlesSaint Peter,Saint Paul, andSaint Andrew, whose statues look down from the three high gables of the West Front. Founded in theAnglo-Saxon period as aminster it became one of England's most importantBenedictineabbeys, becoming a cathedral only in 1542. Its architecture is mainlyNorman, following a rebuilding in the 12th century. Alongside the cathedrals ofDurham andEly, it is one of the most important 12th-century buildings in England to have remained largely intact, despite extensions and restoration, and is one of the nation's best preserved pre-Reformation abbeys.
Peterborough Cathedral is known for its imposingEarly English Gothic West Front (façade) which, with its three enormous arches, is without architectural precedent and with no direct successor. The appearance is slightly asymmetrical, as one of the two towers that rise from behind the façade was never completed (the tower on the right as one faces the building), but this is only visible from a distance.
The original church, known as "Medeshamstede", was founded in the reign of theAnglo-SaxonKing Peada of theMiddle Angles in about 655 AD, as one of the first centres of Christianity in central England.[1] The monastic settlement with which the church was associated lasted at least until 870, when it was supposedly destroyed byVikings. In an alcove of the New Building, an extension of the eastern end, lies an ancient stone carving: theHedda Stone. This medieval carving of 12 monks, six on each side, commemorates the destruction of the Monastery and the death of the Abbot and Monks when the area was sacked by the Vikings in 864. The Hedda Stone was likely carved sometime after the raid, when the monastery slipped into decline.[2]
In the mid-10th century, monastic revival (during which churches atEly andRamsey were also refounded) aBenedictineAbbey was created and endowed in 966, principally byAthelwold,Bishop of Winchester, from what remained of the earlier church, with "abasilica [church] there furbished with suitable structures of halls, and enriched with surrounding lands" and more extensive buildings which saw the aisle built out to the west with a second tower added. The original central tower was, however, retained.[3] It was dedicated to St Peter and surrounded by a palisade, called aburgh, hence the town surrounding theabbey was eventually named Peter-burgh. The community was further revived in 972 byDunstan,Archbishop of Canterbury.[1][4]
This newer church had as its major focal point a substantial western tower with a "Rhenish helm" and was largely constructed ofashlars.[citation needed] Only a small section of the foundations of the Anglo-Saxon church remain beneath the south transept but there are several significant artefacts, includingAnglo-Saxon carvings such as the Hedda Stone, from the earlier building.
In 2008, Anglo-Saxon grave markers were reported to have been found by workmen repairing a wall in the cathedral precincts. The grave markers are said to date to the 11th century, and probably belonged to "townsfolk".[5]
Although damaged during the struggle between theNorman invaders and local folk-hero,Hereward the Wake, it was repaired and continued to thrive until destroyed by an accidental fire in 1116.[6] This event necessitated the building of a new church in theNorman style, begun by Abbot John de Sais on 8 March 1118 (Old Style).[1] By 1193, the building was completed to the western end of the Nave, including the central tower and the decorated wooden ceiling of the nave. The ceiling, completed between 1230 and 1250, still survives. It is unique in Britain and one of only four such ceilings in the whole of Europe.[7] It has been over-painted twice, once in 1745, then in 1834, but still retains the character and style of the original. (The painted nave ceiling ofEly Cathedral, by contrast, is entirely aVictorian creation.)
The church was largely built ofBarnacklimestone from quarries on its own land, and it was paid annually for access to these quarries by the builders of Ely Cathedral andRamsey Abbey in thousands of eels (e.g. 4,000 each year by Ramsey).[8] Cathedral historians believe that part of the placing of the church in the location it is in is due to the easy ability to transfer quarried stones by river and then to the existing site allowing it to grow without being relocated.
Then, after completing the Western transept and adding the Great West Front Portico in 1237, the medieval masons switched over to the newGothic style. Apart from changes to the windows, the insertion of a porch to support the free-standing pillars of the portico and the addition of a "new" building at the east end around the beginning of the 16th century, the structure of the building remains essentially as it was on completion almost 800 years ago. The completed building was consecrated in 1238 byRobert Grosseteste,Bishop of Lincoln, within whose diocese it then fell.
The trio of arches forming the Great West Front, the defining image of Peterborough Cathedral, is unrivalled in medieval architecture. The line of spires behind it, topping an unprecedented four towers, evolved for more practical reasons. Chief amongst them was the wish to retain the earlier Norman towers, which became obsolete when the Gothic front was added. Instead of being demolished and replaced with new stretches of wall, these old towers were retained and embellished with cornices and other gothic decor, while two new towers were added to create a continuous frontage.
TheNorman tower was rebuilt in theDecorated Gothic style in about 1350–1380 (its main beams and roof bosses survive) with two tiers of Romanesque windows combined into a single set of Gothic windows, with the turreted cap and pinnacles removed and replaced by battlements. Between 1496 and 1508, the Presbytery roof was replaced and the "New Building", a rectangular building built around the end of the Norman eastern apse, withPerpendicularfan vaulting (probably designed by John Wastell, the architect ofKing's College Chapel, Cambridge and the Bell Harry Tower atCanterbury Cathedral), was added.
As in all Benedictine abbeys, the monks of Peterborough made vows of stability in the abbey until death. The community was governed by theRule of St Benedict and was focused chiefly on the daily services of theConventual Mass and theLiturgy of the Hours in the church. Meals and meetings were also important ritual events, with monks eating in silence while listening to readings from spiritual texts. Outside of this schedule they engaged in scholarship, education, pastoral care for the local community, and other kinds of work with daily time set aside for recreation, an opportunity to socialise with other members of the community and with guests. The duty of welcoming guests and pilgrims is a cornerstone of the Benedictine Rule and at Peterborough this was probably the primary focus of activity.[9]
Pilgrimage to Peterborough was common because of the abbey's many relics. The existing mid-12th-century records ofHugh Candidus, amonk, list the Abbey'sreliquaries as including two pieces of swaddling clothes which wrapped the babyJesus, pieces of Jesus' manger, a part of the five loaves which fed the 5,000, a piece of the raiment ofMary the mother of Jesus, a piece ofAaron's rod, and relics ofSt Peter,St Paul andSt Andrew – to whom the church is dedicated.[10]
The supposed arm ofOswald of Northumbria disappeared from its chapel, probably during theReformation, despite a watch-tower having been built for monks to guard itsreliquary. Variouscontact relics ofThomas Becket were brought from Canterbury in a special reliquary by its Prior Benedict (who had witnessed Becket's assassination) when he was "promoted" to Abbot of Peterborough.
_in_Peterborough_Cathedral.jpg)
These items underpinned the importance of what is today Peterborough Cathedral. At the zenith of its wealth just before the Reformation it had the sixth-largest monastic income in the country and was one of the most powerful communities in theEnglish Benedictine Congregation. It had a 120 monks, including all the standard roles of a monastic community such as thealmoner, the infirmarian, thesacristan and thecellarer, and many more dependant lay brothers and employees.
In 1541, following Henry VIII'sdissolution of the monasteries, the relics were lost. The church survived by being selected as the cathedral of theAnglican Diocese of Peterborough. The lastAbbot of Peterborough,John Chambers, became the firstBishop of Peterborough. Henry's former wife,Catherine of Aragon, had been buried there in 1536. Her tomb was damaged in 1643 and restored in the 19th century.[11] To this day, her grave is honoured by visitors who decorate it with flowers and pomegranates (her symbol). The gold letters at the site read "Katharine Queen of England", a title she was denied at the time of her death. A festival to commemorate the Queen is held yearly.
In 1587, the body ofMary, Queen of Scots was initiallyburied here after her execution at nearbyFotheringhay Castle, but it was later removed toWestminster Abbey on the orders of her son, King James VI of Scotland andJames I of England.
The cathedral was vandalised during theEnglish Civil War in 1643 by Parliamentarian troops. As was common at the time, almost all thestained glass and the medieval choir stalls were destroyed, and the high altar andreredos were demolished, as were thecloisters andLady Chapel. All the monuments and memorials of the Cathedral were also damaged or destroyed.
Some of the damage was repaired during the 17th and 18th centuries. Extensive restoration work began in 1883, which was initiated after large cracks appeared in the supporting pillars and arches of the main tower. These works included rebuilding of the central tower and its foundations, interior pillars, the choir and re-enforcements of the west front under the supervision ofJohn Loughborough Pearson. New hand-carved choir stalls, cathedra (bishop's throne), choir pulpit and the marble pavement and high altar were added. A stepped level of battlements was removed from the central tower, reducing its height slightly.
The cathedral was hit by a fire on the early evening of 22 November 2001; it is thought to have been started deliberately amongst plastic chairs stored in the North Choir Aisle.[12] The fire was spotted by one of thevergers allowing a swift response by emergency services.[13] The timing was particularly unfortunate, for a complete restoration of the painted wooden ceiling was nearing completion.[14] The oily smoke given off by the plastic chairs was particularly damaging, coating much of the building with a sticky black layer.[15] The seat of the fire was close to theorgan and the combination of direct damage from the fire, and the water used to extinguish necessitated a full-scale rebuild of the instrument, putting it out of action for several years.
An extensive programme of repairs to the west front began in July 2006 and has cost in excess of half a million pounds. This work is concentrated around the statues located in niches which have been so badly affected by years of pollution and weathering that, in some cases, they have only stayed intact thanks to iron bars inserted through them from the head to the body. The programme of work has sought donors to "adopt a stone".[16]
The sculptorAlan Durst was responsible for some of the work on the statues on the West Front.[17]
Peterborough Cathedral most probably had a set of over thirtymisericords dating from the fourteenth century. However, only three now survive.[18]
A wooden-framed striking clock in the Midlands tradition which required daily winding survived installed in the north-west tower until 1950.[19] It contains parts from ca. 1400 to the 1830s. John Watts of Stamford 1687 upgraded the clock with the removal of the foliot and addition of a pendulum at a cost of £7 (equivalent to £1,500 in 2023).[20] At this point the pendulum was about 6 feet (1.8 m) long with a beat of 1.2 seconds.
In 1836, John Wilson of Peterborough added a new metal framed timekeeping movement. At this point the pendulum had a length of 10 feet (3.0 m) and beat 37 times per minute.
This mechanism was restored by Michael Lee in 1984 and in 1986 was put on display within the body of the cathedral.
The mechanical clock was replaced in 1950 by an electric installation[21] at a cost of £220 (equivalent to £9,500 in 2023).[20]
As of 1 January 2022:[22]
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A number ofsaints were interred in the altar atPeterborough[30]Wilfrid,Tatberht, Sicgrid nicknamedPius Pater,Botwinereverndus sacerdos,[30] Albertpraeclarus minister,Wulfgar and Wildegelmodestus.
https://www.peterborough-cathedral.org.uk/home/musichome/worship-and-music/organ.aspx
The records of organists at Peterborough Cathedral list Richard Storey as organist in 1540. Notable organists of Peterborough Cathedral have includedStanley Vann, SirMalcolm Sargent and SirThomas Armstrong.
He restored Peterborough Abbey to its former royal splendor and dedicated "a basilica there furbished with suitable structures of halls, and enriched with surrounding lands."
Edward [the Confessor] also became a party to an agreement between the Abbot of Ramsey and Abbot of Burgh (Peterborough) in regard to the exchange of lands; to bounds and limits of King's-delf; also the right to Ramsey Abbey to dig stone both 'squared and broken' at the quarries of Barnack. For this privilege the Abbey had to give the Monks of Peterborough 'four thousand eels yearly in Lent'
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