(Winchester, England, U.K.)
Like many people, the first time I heard about Winchester Cathedral was in the 1966 vaudeville-style pop hit of the same name. It was recorded solely by studio musicians, so little was ever heard of the purported artist (The New Vaudeville Band) again. And for many years, that was really the only thing on my radar about Winchester Cathedral. I hadn’t even given much thought to whether there was a real place by that name.
It turns out that there really is a Winchester Cathedral. And it is really, really big. It dates back to 1079 and is the longest medieval cathedral in the world: an incredible 170 metres long. But is the building formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity and of Saint Peter and Saint Paul and of Saint Swithun in Winchester really worth a visit? If you have time to fully explore it, I think the answer is yes.
The Cathedral has instituted a novel pricing system. It currently costs GBP14.90 (about $27.95 Canadian) to get an annual pass, which is the only way to see all of the Cathedral. You could attend a service, of course, but much of what you want to see will be inaccessible. The open cathedral area that you see upon entering is barely half the length of the overall building. And there are many exhibits and things to see in the other half of the building and the various transepts.
One such exhibit is the Winchester Bible. It is the largest (936 pages) and best-preserved 12th century bible in England. Looking at it is superficially similar to seeing the Book of Kells in Dublin, although it is not nearly as old or ornate. As it is very delicate, photographs are not allowed. The same applies to the many other rare books on display.
There are many “chapels” within the Cathedral. One of the most impressive parts is the area where the choristers ultimately started singing. As you can see from the photos above and below, the carvings in the Cathedral are impossibly ornate.
Winchester Cathedral is also the final resting place for many ancient kings of England (and/or Wessex). The very oldest range from Cynegils (whose reign started in 611!) to Canute (king of England, Denmark, and Norway from 1016 to 1035). There are many more notables, including various Bishops of Winchester and, more recently, Jane Austen.
After viewing the various exhibits, we descended to the crypt. It often floods in the winter, due to the swampy terrain, although this is not as dangerous as it used to be. An English diver named William Walker is credited with saving the Cathedral by helping to restore the heavily-damaged (and underwater) foundation. He worked on it for six years, starting around 1906. It cannot have been very much fun, as disturbed human remains were part of the mess.
Thankfully, everything looked very dry when we went into the crypt. It is sometimes possible to go on a more extensive tour of the crypt, but this could not be done when we were there.
And about those choristers: it is quite something to hear them in a space like this. The Cathedral publishes its daily schedule online, so you can time your visit to hear them for at least part of your visit.
When visiting the Cathedral, take advantage of the knowledge of the reception staff. We were there on a Sunday afternoon, and they told us when the various parts of the Cathedral would be closed for public access. The closing times are staggered in accordance with the Cathedral’s needs, as it is still a functioning church. This allowed us to focus on those parts first, and finish our visit in the parts that stayed open the latest.
And, of course, be sure to allow yourself enough time to see everything of interest. Ideally, we would have arrived a little earlier so that we didn’t have to rush through the parts that would close relatively soon.
There’s still more to come from Winchester!