The Twenty-Six Mediæval Cathedrals Of England (Part Two).

Saint Alban’s Cathedral.

Illustration: SAINT ALBAN’S CATHEDRAL

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unless stated otherwise.

Christianity was carried to England by the Romans and spread throughout Britain, until the 5th century A.D., when it waned through the departure of the Romans and the invasion by Saxons. 

In 597 A.D., Pope Gregory sent Saint Augustine as a Missionary from Rome to Canterbury where a Church was established and run initially by Secular Canons, then Benedictine Monks from the Late-Saxon period until 1540. 

The present Cathedral Church at Canterbury is the Seat of the Archbishop of Canterbury, Primate of All England.[2][5]

A 1616 etching by Claes Van Visscher, showing the Old London Bridge, with Southwark Priory (now the Cathedral) in the foreground. The spiked heads of executed criminals can be seen above the Southwark gatehouse.

Source: This file has been extracted from another file: Panorama of London by Claes Van Visscher, 1616.jpg

Author: Angr

(Wikimedia Commons)

As begun by Alfred the Great in 871 A.D., and consolidated under William the Conqueror in 1066, England became a politically unified entity at an earlier date than other European countries. One of the effects was that the units of government, both of Church and State, were comparatively large.

England was divided into the See of Canterbury and the See of York, under two Archbishops. During the Mediæval period, there were no more than seventeen Bishops, far fewer than the numbers in France and Italy.[4]

The Nave,

Southwark Cathedral.

Photo: 24 December 2021.

Source: Own work.

Author: Protolanguage17

(Wikimedia Commons)

Benedictine Monasticism, present in England from the 6th-Century A.D., was greatly extended after the Norman Invasion in 1066. There were also a number of Cistercian Abbeys, but these were often in remote areas and not destined to become Cathedrals. 

The Romanesque Architecture of Normandy replaced that of Saxon England, the buildings being generally larger and more spacious, the general arrangement of Monastic buildings following those of the great Abbey of Cluny. 

The Romanesque Style, of which the English form is often known as Norman Architecture, developed local characteristics.[2][5]

PART THREE FOLLOWS.