The high street of the village is sweet and full of leaning building, old pubs & free houses that housed the pilgrims that came to the town in the Middle Ages. The pilgrims' journey is forever remembered in Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, with a variety of English folks from various background making the pilgrimage to the cathedral to pray at the shrine of Saint Thomas a Becket, murdered in 1170 at the cathedral by some lords thinking they were fulfilling Henry II's wish to "rid him of this troublesome priest."
The cathedral is the burial place of the Black Prince (Henry III's son) and Henry IV, one of the few kings not buried in Westminister Abbey in London. It is also the seat of Anglican church, called the Anglican Communion. It's formal title is Cathedral Church of Christ at Canterbury.
The cathedral was begun in 597 by St. Augustine, sent by Pope Gregory the Great to England to convert them to Christianity. Since then, there has been a church, abbey, hospital, cathedral all on this site. It is spectacular.
I gave Will a little English history lesson too, as he didn't understand why there was a candle where the shrine of Thomas Becket was, since Henry VIII destroyed it when he dissolved the monasteries. English history is not his forte.
the cloisters
the candle lit where St. Thomas Becket's shrine was.
The weavers' house, some of the oldest buildings in Canterbury
Canterbury Cathedral
No visit is complete without our portrait
The windows and spires of the church
Site where Thomas was murdered
The aisle
The remaining water system for the church
1 comment:
These are great images Miriam!
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