Winchester Cathedral

Winchester Cathedral is one of the largest cathedrals in England and has the longest nave and overall length of any Gothic cathedral in Europe. Construction of the cathedral began in 1079 with the oldest part being the crypt.

One of its wealthy and powerful Bishops was William of Wykeham (1320-1404) who completed the great west window in the cathedral, although the pattern was poorly rearranged after being destroyed by governments troops in the seventeenth century.

The Epiphany Chapel has a series of Pre-Raphaelite stained glass windows which were made in William Morris's workshops.

In the chantry chapel of Cardinal Beaufort there is a statue of Joan of Arc. Beaufort had been present at the trial and condemnation of Joan of Arc and, following her canonisation in 1920, a statue was dedicated to her in the cathedral in 1923 to make some reparation.

Jane Austen is buried in the north aisle of the nave and Anthony Trollope used the cathedral setting for many of his novels about 19th century church life.

For further details about Winchester and the cathedral, visit the Winchester Cathedral or Visit Winchester websites.