Ripon Cathedral | |
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54°8′5″N1°31′12″W / 54.13472°N 1.52000°W | |
OS grid reference | SE 31446 71129 |
Location | Minster Road, Ripon, North Yorkshire HG4 1QT |
Country | England |
Denomination | Church of England |
Previous denomination | Catholic |
Tradition | Liberal Anglo-Catholic [1] |
Website | Official website |
History | |
Status | Cathedral (since 1836) |
Architecture | |
Functional status | Active |
Heritage designation | Grade I |
Style | Anglo-Saxon, Gothic (Early English) |
Years built | 1160–1547 |
Administration | |
Province | York |
Diocese | Leeds (since 2014) |
Clergy | |
Dean | John Dobson |
Precentor | Michael Gisbourne |
Canon Chancellor | Barry Pyke (Educator) |
Canon Pastor | Ailsa Newby |
Laity | |
Director of music | Dr Ronny Krippner |
Organist(s) | Tim Harper |
The Cathedral Church of St Peter and St Wilfrid, commonly known as Ripon Cathedral, and until 1836 known as Ripon Minster, is a cathedral in Ripon, North Yorkshire, England. Founded as a monastery by monks of the Irish tradition in the 660s, it was refounded as a Benedictine monastery by St Wilfrid in 672. The church became collegiate in the tenth century, and acted as a mother church within the large Diocese of York for the remainder of the Middle Ages. [2] The present church is the fourth, and was built between the 13th and 16th centuries. In 1836 the church became the cathedral for the Diocese of Ripon. [3] In 2014 the Diocese was incorporated into the new Diocese of Leeds, and the church became one of three co-equal cathedrals of the Bishop of Leeds.
The cathedral is notable architecturally for its gothic west front in the Early English style, considered one of the best of its type, as well as the Geometric east window. [3] The seventh-century crypt of Wilfrid's church is a significant example of early Christian architecture in England. [3] The cathedral has Grade I listed building status.
There has been a stone church on the site since 672, when Saint Wilfrid replaced the previous timber church of the monastery at Ripon (a daughter house of Saint Aidan's monastery at Melrose) with one in the Roman style. This was one of the earliest stone buildings erected in the Kingdom of Northumbria. [4] The crypt dates from this period. [5]
Today's church is the fourth to have stood on this site. [6] Saint Wilfrid brought stonemasons, plasterers and glaziers from France and Italy to build his great basilica in AD 672. A contemporary account by Stephen of Ripon tells us:
In Ripon, Saint Wilfrid built and completed from the foundations to the roof a church of dressed stone, supported by various columns and side-aisles to a great height and many windows, arched vaults and a winding cloister. [7]
Saint Wilfrid was buried in this church near the high altar. Devastated by the English king Eadred in AD 948 as a warning to the Archbishop of York, [8] only the crypt of Wilfrid's church survived but today this tiny 7th-century chapel rests complete beneath the later grandeur of Archbishop Roger de Pont l’Evêque's 12th century minster. [9] A second minster soon arose at Ripon, but it too perished – this time in 1069 at the hands of William the Conqueror. Thomas of Bayeux, first Norman Archbishop of York, then instigated the construction of a third church, traces of which were incorporated into the later chapter house of Roger's minster. [10]
The Early English west front was added in 1220, its twin towers originally crowned with wooden spires and lead. [11] The east window was built as part of a reconstruction of the choir between 1286–8 and 1330, and was described by architecture critic Pevsner as a 'splendid' example of the series of large Decorated Gothic windows constructed in Northern England. [12] Major rebuilding had to be postponed due to the outbreak of the Wars of the Roses but resumed after the accession of Henry VII and the restoration of peace in 1485. [13] The crossing tower was rebuilt after it collapsed in an earthquake in 1450 but was never completed. Between 1501 and 1522 the nave walls were raised higher and the aisles added. The church's thirty-four misericords were carved between 1489 and 1494. [14] The same (Ripon) school of carvers also carved the misericords at Beverley Minster and Manchester Cathedral. [15] But in 1547, before this work was finished, Edward VI dissolved Ripon's college of canons. All revenues were appropriated by the Crown and the tower never received its last Perpendicular arches. It was not until 1604 that James I issued his Charter of Restoration.
During the Civil War, much of the stained glass was smashed and some of the statues were destroyed. [16] [17]
The minster finally became a cathedral (the church where the Bishop has his cathedra or throne) in 1836, the focal point of the newly created Anglican Diocese of Ripon – the first to be established since the Reformation. [18]
As of 30 December 2020: [19]
The current director of music is Dr Ronny Krippner, with Tim Harper as assistant director of music. [25]
The cathedral has a fine organ by Harrison and Harrison, which is a rebuild of the original Lewis instrument dating from 1878. [26] The organ is on the screen and has casework by Gilbert Scott. A specification of the organ can be found on the National Pipe Organ Register. [27] The organ last underwent a major refurbishment in 2013. These works included a thorough cleaning and repair of all pipe work. [28]
In 1447, the organ at Ripon Cathedral was played by a priest, Thomas Litster. [29] Notable organists have included composers Charles Harry Moody and Ronald Edward Perrin.
A ring of 12 bells with an additional 'flat sixth' bell is hung in the south-west tower. A diatonic ring of ten bells was cast in 1932, and three additional bells were installed in 2008 with two new trebles being added to give a diatonic ring of twelve, and an additional 'flat sixth' bell to give a light ring of eight. [30]
York Minster, formally the Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, is an Anglican cathedral in the city of York, North Yorkshire, England. The minster is the seat of the archbishop of York, the second-highest office of the Church of England, and is the mother church for the diocese of York and the province of York. It is administered by its dean and chapter. The minster is a Grade I listed building and a scheduled monument.
Worcester Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of Christ and Blessed Mary the Virgin, is a Church of England cathedral in Worcester, England. The cathedral is the seat of the bishop of Worcester and is the mother church of the diocese of Worcester; it is administered by its dean and chapter. The cathedral is a grade I listed building and part of a scheduled monument.
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Bristol Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Bristol, England. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bristol. The cathedral was originally an abbey dedicated to St Augustine, founded in 1140 and consecrated in 1148. It became the cathedral of the new diocese of Bristol in 1542, after the dissolution of the monasteries. It is a Grade I listed building.
Hexham Abbey is a Grade I listed church dedicated to St Andrew, in the town of Hexham, Northumberland, in the North East of England. Originally built in AD 674, the Abbey was built up during the 12th century into its current form, with additions around the turn of the 20th century. Since the dissolution of the monasteries in 1537, the Abbey has been the parish church of Hexham. In 2014 the Abbey regained ownership of its former monastic buildings, which had been used as Hexham magistrates' court, and subsequently developed them into a permanent exhibition and visitor centre, telling the story of the Abbey's history.
Manchester Cathedral, formally the Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Mary, St Denys and St George, in Manchester, England, is the mother church of the Anglican Diocese of Manchester, seat of the Bishop of Manchester and the city's parish church. It is on Victoria Street in Manchester city centre and is a grade I listed building.
Blackburn Cathedral, officially known as the Cathedral Church of Saint Mary the Virgin with Saint Paul, is an Anglican cathedral situated in the heart of Blackburn town centre, in Lancashire, England. The cathedral site has been home to a church for over a thousand years and the first stone church was built there in Norman times.
Carlisle Cathedral is a Grade I listed Anglican cathedral in the city of Carlisle, Cumbria, England. It was founded as an Augustinian priory and became a cathedral in 1133. It is also the seat of the Bishop of Carlisle.
Bradford Cathedral, or the Cathedral Church of St Peter, is an Anglican cathedral in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, one of three co-equal cathedrals in the Diocese of Leeds alongside Ripon and Wakefield. Its site has been used for Christian worship since the 7th century, when missionaries based in Dewsbury evangelised the area. For many centuries it was the parish church of St Peter and achieved cathedral status in 1919. The cathedral is a Grade I listed building.
Southwell Minster, strictly since 1884 Southwell Cathedral, and formally the Cathedral and Parish Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is a Church of England cathedral in Southwell, Nottinghamshire, England. The cathedral is the seat of the bishop of Southwell and Nottingham and the mother church of the diocese of Southwell and Nottingham; it is governed by a dean and chapter. It is a grade I listed building.
Ronald Edward Perrin was a British cathedral organist.
Leeds Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of St Anne, also known as Saint Anne's Cathedral, is the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Leeds, and is the seat of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Leeds. It is in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom. The city of Leeds does not have a Church of England cathedral although it is in the Anglican Diocese of Leeds. The cathedrals of the Anglican diocese are in Ripon, Wakefield and Bradford. The city instead has a Minster which is similar to nearby Dewsbury Minster and Halifax Minster, all of which are parish churches.
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Leeds Minster, also known as the Minster and Parish Church of Saint Peter-at-Leeds is the minster church of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It stands on the site of the oldest church in the city and is of architectural and liturgical significance. A church is recorded on the site as early as the 7th century, although the present structure is a Gothic Revival one, designed by Robert Dennis Chantrell and completed in 1841. It is dedicated to Saint Peter and was the Parish Church of Leeds before receiving the honorific title of "Minster" in 2012. It has been designated a Grade I listed building by Historic England.
St Wilfrid's Church, Harrogate is an Anglican parish church in the town of Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England. It is a Grade I listed building, the only such building in Harrogate. It was designed by the architect Temple Lushington Moore and is one of his best-known works. It is designated as a "Major Parish Church" and is the 38th largest parish church in England.
The Choir of Leeds Minster is the choir of Leeds Minster, Leeds, England, which became a Minster in September 2012. The choir was founded by vicar, Richard Fawcett probably as early as 1815, and was certainly in existence by 1818. The church's choir - boys and men - was, from its origins, a charge on the church rate; and, in what was then a largely non-conformist town, a none-too-popular one. By the 1830s, the choir's resourcing had been taken over by a list of voluntary subscribers. On arrival as Vicar of Leeds in 1837, Walter Farquhar Hook said he found "the surplices in rags and the books in tatters". Additional to its extensive commitment in the provision of choral services, the choir is known to a wide public through many recitals, recordings and broadcasts and by its regular choir tours - the first tour was held in July 1968 and the 40th anniversary tour, from 22 to 27 July 2008, included singing in Ely Cathedral, King's College, Cambridge, the National Musicians' Church St Sepulchre-without-Newgate in the City of London, All Saints Pastoral Centre London Colney and the Chapel of the Royal Hospital Chelsea.
St Mary Magdalene Church, Newark-on-Trent is the parish church of Newark-on-Trent in Nottinghamshire, England. It is dedicated to Mary Magdalene and is the tallest structure in the town.
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The Chapel of St Mary Magdalen, Ripon, is an active Anglican church on Magdalens Road in the city of Ripon, North Yorkshire, England. The chapel, which is dedicated to Jesus' companion Mary Magdalene, is quite close to Ripon Cathedral, and belongs to the cathedral's benefice, deanery and archdeaconry. The chapels' origins lie in the 12th century when it was built at the behest of Archbishop Thurstan. It was situated opposite the St Mary Magdalen Hospital grounds, becoming the chapel to the hospital and the church for lepers initially, and then later, blind priests.