Southwell Minster

Today I went to Southwell Minster for the first time. It is one of my aims in life to visit all of England's cathedrals (apart maybe from Coventry's new cathedral), so it comes as a surprise why I haven't visited one that is so close to where I live. I didn't grow up and n Mansfield despite being born here and living here now so I never went there on school trips like most of my friends. Which means they weren't keen to go there on days out.

But now I have and I have to say it was worth the wait. Ely and Norwich are probably my two favourite (hopefully I'll write posts about them soon) but this is a nice cathedral all the same. I say cathedral although it is known as a minster the fact that this is where the bishop of Southwell and Nottingham makes this a cathedral all the same.

That isn't the only anomaly about Southwell as it isn't really a city despite having a cathedral. The cathedral status wasn't bestowed on the minster until 1884. It seems odd to a church of such history and pedigree.

The fact that the area had a Roman building of some sort if fairly unusual for the area, having grown up near Chichester and along the south coast it was almost taken for granted that things would be built upon Roman foundations.

From it's earliest days as a church it was associated with the Archbishops of York and a number of them are hurried at the minster. It wasn't however until the 12th century that the current building started to take shape. This was a rich time for buildings of this type and many of the elements of the minster can be seen all over the country and even in France.

The minster seems to be on a more human level than most cathedrals of the same period which reached for the heavens both in terms of their connection with religion and also with power and status of those that built them. The grand arches are close for inspection and so is some of the intricate carvings on the walls and this is evident in the Chapter House.

Southwell how ever wasn't build with the same intentions although it's huge towers make it just as awesome to look at. Many of it's expansion is visible on it's outer walls. It's 19th century restoration has helped preserved a building well worth visiting.

This is part of the country that was central to the civil war that saw the country briefly become a republic and this are more obviously clear on the landscape of the nearby Newark and Nottingham. It was Southwell Minster however that Charles I was captured.

There is still so much to see and explore and will be visiting again and maybe exploring more of the town and taking more photos.