TimeRef - History Timelines - St. Albans Cathedral

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» Places » St. Albans Cathedral - [Cathedral] (TL 1450 0710)

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Official Site : St. Albans Cathedral home page

St. Albans did not become a Cathedral city until 1877, but the history of the site of the Cathedral church goes along way back in time. The site of the church was sacred even before Augustine arrived in Britain in around 597. A young Roman called Alban gave refuge to to a Christian priest who was being hunted because of his religion. Alban helped the priest escape by pretending to be the priest himself. Alban was captured and beheaded, his head being buried. King Offa founded a monestary at the site and Benedictine monks built an abbey in the memory of St. Alban. After the Conquest a Norman Bishop was appointed abbot and rebuilding work commenced. Some sections of this Norman church still remain today. St. Albans Cathedral has the longest nave of any cathedral in England. It is 106 metres or 348 feet in length.

Mini Timeline

1077		St. Albans Cathedral building begins
		Work began on St. Albans Cathedral. (More Information to follow)
1195 - 1214		Alteration to the West End
		Modifications to the west end of the church were undertaken under the direction of the abbot John de Cella. The plan was to add an extra three bays to the existing structure. Progress was slow due to mismanagement of the funds and when John de Cella died not much progress had been achieved. The work was completed under the direction of the next abbot, William of Trumpington.
1250	Qtr 4	Earthquake shakes St. Albans Abbey
		Matthew Paris, the medieval historian, reported that an earthquake shook and damaged the church at St. Albans. Earthquakes are unusual in this area.
1257		Building work at St. Albans
		Sections of the Norman apses at the eastern end of the church were damaged during the earthquake of 1250. It was decided to knock these down and replace them with a plan based on work that had been carried out at Westminster Abbey. The work took over sixty years to complete due to periods when funds were lacking.
1323		Sections of St. Alban collapses
		Parts of the ceiling of the church collapsed when several columns in the nave fell down.