I like Wakefield Cathedral. It's not one of Britain's vast soaring ecclesiastical treasures but it has an accessible and friendly feel, and is not without beauty. Originally All Saints parish church, it became a cathedral in 1888 when the Diocese of Wakefield was created. The site has held a church since Saxon times and the medieval building has been extended and altered many times. Most of the building you see now is a Victorian restoration by Sir George Gilbert Scott, who designed London's St Pancras station and the Albert Memorial.
Wakefield Cathedral looks to be a fine building. The silhouettes of the spire and finials could have been cut out with pinking shears!
ReplyDeleteWakefield, I remember a book with that name in title. By Thomas Hardy? I like this cathedral very much, beautiful , with "human size", not too big.
ReplyDeleteGilbert Scott was responsible for our traditional red telephone boxes too.
ReplyDeleteKaren
it's gorgeous...I love all the little intricate architectural details!
ReplyDeleteIt looks pretty appealing to me, in a serious and dark way. I have never figured out the difference between a church and a cathedral.
ReplyDeleteIn England it's about the church hierarchy, Jack. Parish (churches) are gathered into area Dioceses with a Diocesan Bishop at the head. The cathedral is the seat of the Bishop. Usually, but not always, it's the biggest ecclesiastical building. But some of our cathedrals are smaller than others as they used to be parish churches. The Diocesan boundaries have changed over the years and bigger Dioceses got split into smaller ones so they had to designate a cathedral. Now the process is happening in reverse. It's likely that soon Bradford, Wakefield and Leeds/Ripon will all merge to become one Diocese.
DeleteIts a beauty. I love the scalloping up the spire.
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