Winchester Cathedral, Hampshire
N 51° 03.646 W 001° 18.777
30U E 618221 N 5657936
The Cathedral is dedicated to St Swithin. He was a Bishop of Winchester and pilgrims came from far and wide to visit his shrine. St Swithin's day is the 15 July and it is said that if it rains on this day it will rain for the next 40 days
Waymark Code: WM52BG
Location: United Kingdom
Date Posted: 10/30/2008
Views: 18
The building of the current Cathedral was commenced by Bishop Walkelin in 1079. The stone came from the Isle of Wight and timber from one of Hampshire's oak forests. Over the centuries much of the building has been restored, with only the crypt and transepts surviving. The east end of the cathedral was greatly extended to include the Retrochoir during the 13th century. The Retrochoir still contains the largest surviving area of 13th century floor tiles in the country. The Nave was completely remodelled in around 1400 and since then there has been more minor alterations and the introduction of tombs, chapels and monuments.
Early in the twentieth century the problem of serious subsidence needed to be addressed. A diver, William Walker, and 250 other workers spent many years underpinning the foundations of the cathedral to stop further serious damage. The low lying site of the Cathedral still causes flooding in the crypt in the winter.
Visit Instructions:
To post a visit log to this waymark you need to visit and write about the actual physical location. Any pictures you take at the location would be great, as well.