Liverpool Cathedral: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

Article Images

Line 85:

| logoalt =

}}

'''Liverpool Cathedral''' is the Cathedral of the [[Anglican Diocese of Liverpool]], built on St James's Mount in [[Liverpool]], and the seat of the [[Bishop of Liverpool]]. It may be referred to as the '''Cathedral Church of Christ in Liverpool''' (as recorded in the Document of Consecration) or the '''Cathedral Church of the Risen Christ, Liverpool''', being dedicated to [[Jesus|Christ]] 'in especial remembrance of His most glorious Resurrection'.<ref>The Form and Order of the Consecration of the Cathedral Church of Christ in Liverpool, 19 July 1924</ref> Liverpool Cathedral is the largest cathedral and religious building in Britain,<ref>[http://www.liverpoolcathedral.org.uk/home/about-us/about-the-cathedral.aspx Liverpool Cathedral] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171009041703/http://www.liverpoolcathedral.org.uk/home/about-us/about-the-cathedral.aspx |date=9 October 2017 }}, accessed 8 October 2017</ref> and the [[List of largest church buildings|eighth largest church in the world]].

The cathedral is based on a design by [[Giles Gilbert Scott]] and was constructed between 1904 and 1978. The total external length of the building, including the [[Lady Chapel of Liverpool Cathedral|Lady Chapel]] (dedicated to the [[Mary (mother of Jesus)|Blessed Virgin]]), is {{convert|207|yd|m}} making it the longest cathedral in the world;{{refn|The only church building to [[List of longest church buildings in the world|exceed it in length]] is [[St. Peter's Basilica]] in Rome, which however is not a cathedral.|group= n}} its internal length is {{convert|160|yd|m}}. In terms of overall volume, Liverpool Cathedral ranks as the fifth-largest cathedral in the world<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/architecture_cathedral_01.shtml |title=The Cathedrals of Britain |access-date=30 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180105174526/http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/architecture_cathedral_01.shtml |archive-date=5 January 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref> and contests with the incomplete [[Cathedral of St. John the Divine]] in New York City for the title of the largest Anglican church building.<ref>The title depends on which dimensions are counted. For a discussion on the matter of size, see Quirk, Howard E., ''The Living Cathedral: St. John the Divine: A History and Guide'' (New York: The Crossroad Publishing Co., 1993), p. 15-16.</ref> With a height of {{convert|331|ft|m}} it is also one of the world's tallest non-spired church buildings and the [[List of tallest buildings and structures in Liverpool|third-tallest structure in the city of Liverpool]]. The cathedral is recorded in the [[National Heritage List for England]] as a designated Grade I [[Grade II-listed|listed building]].<ref>{{NHLE |num= 1361681|desc= Anglican Cathedral Church of Christ |access-date= 19 August 2012|mode=cs2|postscript=none}}</ref>

The [[Anglicanism|Anglican]] cathedral is one of two cathedrals in the city. The Roman Catholic [[Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral|Metropolitan Cathedral of Liverpool]] is situated approximately half a mile to the north. The cathedrals are linked by [[Hope Street, Liverpool|Hope Street]], which takes its name from William Hope, a local merchant whose house stood on the site now occupied by the [[Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool|Philharmonic Hall]], and was named long before either cathedral was built.

Line 108:

[[J. C. Ryle]] was installed as the first Bishop of Liverpool in 1880, but the new [[diocese]] had no cathedral, merely a "pro-cathedral", the parish church of [[St Peter's Church, Liverpool|St Peter]], [[Church Street, Liverpool|Church Street]]. St Peter's was unsatisfactory; it was too small for major church events, and moreover was, in the words of the [[Rector (ecclesiastical)|Rector]] of Liverpool, "ugly & hideous".<ref name=history>[http://www.liverpoolcathedral.org.uk/about/history.aspx "History"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111007012318/http://www.liverpoolcathedral.org.uk/about/history.aspx |date=7 October 2011 }}, Liverpool Cathedral, accessed 2 October 2011</ref> In 1885 an [[Act of Parliament]] authorised the building of a cathedral on the site of the existing St John's Church, adjacent to [[St George's Hall, Liverpool|St George's Hall]].<ref name=c1>{{harvnb|Cotton|1964|p=1}}</ref> A competition was held for the design, and won by [[William Emerson (British architect)|William Emerson]]. The site proved unsuitable for the erection of a building on the scale proposed, and the scheme was abandoned.<ref name=c1/>

In 1900 [[Francis Chavasse]] succeeded Ryle as Bishop, and immediately revived the project to build a cathedral.<ref>{{harvnb|Bailey|Millington|1957|p=48}}</ref> There was some opposition from among members of Chavasse's diocesan clergy, who maintained that there was no need for an expensive new cathedral. The architectural historian John Thomas argues that this reflected "a measure of factional strife between Liverpool Anglicanism's very [[Evangelicalism|Evangelical]] or Low Church tradition, and other forces detectable within the religious complexion of the new diocese."<ref name=thomas/> Chavasse, though himself an Evangelical, regarded the building of a great church as "a visible witness to God in the midst of a great city".<ref name=thomas/> He pressed ahead, and appointed a committee under [[William Bower Forwood|William Forwood]] to consider all possible sites. The St John's site being ruled out, Forwood's committee identified four locations: St Peter's and [[Church of St Luke, Liverpool|St Luke's]], which were, like St John's, found to be too restricted; a triangular site at the junction of London Road and Monument Place;{{refn|Monument Place was later renamed Pembroke Place.<ref name=c2>{{harvnb|Cotton|1964|p=2}}</ref>|group= n}} and St James's Mount.<ref name=c2/> There was considerable debate about the competing merits of the two possible sites, and Forwood's committee was inclined to favour the London Road triangle. However, the cost of acquiring it was too great, and the St James's Mount site was recommended.<ref name=c2/> An historian of the cathedral, Vere Cotton, wrote in 1964:

{{quote|Looking back after an interval of sixty years, it is difficult to realise that any other decision was even possible. With the exception of [[Durham Cathedral|Durham]], no English cathedral is so well placed to be seen to advantage both from a distance and from its immediate vicinity. That such a site, convenient to yet withdrawn from the centre of the city … dominating the city and clearly visible from the river, should have been available is not the least of the many strokes of good fortune which have marked the history of the cathedral.<ref name=c2/>|}}

Fund-raising began, and new enabling legislation was passed by Parliament. The Liverpool Cathedral Act 1902 authorised the purchase of the site and the building of a cathedral, with the proviso that as soon as any part of it opened for public worship, St Peter's Church should be demolished and its site sold to provide the endowment of the new cathedral's [[Chapter (religion)|chapter]]. St Peter's place as Parish Church of Liverpool would be taken by the existing church of [[Church of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas, Liverpool|St Nicholas]] near the [[Pier Head]].<ref name=c2/> St Peter's Church closed in 1919, and was finally demolished in 1922.<ref>{{cite web|title=St Peter's Church, Church St, Liverpool|url=http://www.lan-opc.org.uk/Liverpool/Liverpool-Central/stpeter/stpeter.html|website=Lancashire OnLine Parish Clerks|access-date=12 June 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121127021653/http://www.lan-opc.org.uk/Liverpool/Liverpool-Central/stpeter/stpeter.html|archive-date=27 November 2012|url-status=live}}</ref>

===1901 competition===

Line 122:

For architects, the competition was an important event; not only was it for one of the largest building projects of its time, but it was only the third opportunity to build an Anglican cathedral in England since the [[English Reformation|Reformation]] in the 16th century ([[St Paul's Cathedral]] being the first, rebuilt from scratch after the [[Great Fire of London]] in 1666, and [[Truro Cathedral]] being the second, begun in the 19th century).<ref name=t1902/> The competition attracted 103 entries,<ref name=t1902/> from architects including [[Temple Lushington Moore|Temple Moore]], [[Charles Rennie Mackintosh]],<ref>[http://www.huntsearch.gla.ac.uk/cgi-bin/foxweb/huntsearch_Mackintosh/LargeImage.fwx?catno=41153&filename=crm/41153.jpg "Design for Liverpool Anglican Cathedral competition: south elevation 1903"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120402212739/http://www.huntsearch.gla.ac.uk/cgi-bin/foxweb/huntsearch_Mackintosh/LargeImage.fwx?catno=41153&filename=crm%2F41153.jpg |date=2 April 2012 }} Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery, accessed 2 October 2011</ref> [[Charles Herbert Reilly|Charles Reilly]],<ref>{{harvnb|Powers|1996|p=2}}</ref> and [[Austin and Paley]].<ref>{{harvnb|Brandwood|Austin|Hughes|Price|2012|pp=162–164}}</ref>

In 1903, the assessors recommended a proposal submitted by the 22-year-old [[Giles Gilbert Scott]], who was still an articled pupil working in Temple Moore's practice,<ref name=scott/> and had no existing buildings to his credit. He told the assessors that so far his only major work had been to design a pipe- rack.<ref>"Liverpool's 75-year-old infant", ''The Guardian'', 21 October 1978, p. 9</ref> The choice of winner was even more contentious with the Cathedral Committee when it was discovered that Scott was a Roman Catholic,{{refn|At this time it was customary for architects to undertake ecclesiastical work only for the denomination to which they belonged. When Bodley's partner [[Thomas Garner]] became a Roman Catholic in 1897, the partnership was dissolved and Garner's church work was thereafter exclusively for the Roman Catholic church while Bodley worked solely on Anglican churches.<ref name=thomas/>|group= n}} but the decision stood.<ref name=scott>Stamp. Gavin. [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/35987 "Scott, Sir Giles Gilbert (1880–1960)"], {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130502203835/http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/35987 |date=2 May 2013 }} ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004, accessed 2 October 2011 {{subscription}}</ref>

===Scott's first design===

Line 137:

The [[lady chapel|Lady Chapel]] (originally intended to be called the Morning Chapel),<ref name=thomas/> the first part of the building to be completed, was consecrated in 1910 by Chavasse in the presence of two Archbishops and 24 other Bishops.<ref>Forwood, William. "Liverpool Cathedral — Consecration of the Lady Chapel", ''The Times'', 30 June 1910, p. 9</ref> The date, 29 June — St Peter's Day — was chosen to honour the pro-cathedral, now due to be demolished.<ref>"Liverpool Cathedral", ''The Times'', 30 June 1910, p. 11</ref> ''[[The Manchester Guardian]]'' described the ceremony:

{{quote|The Bishop of Liverpool knocked on the door with his pastoral staff, saying in a loud voice, "Open ye the gates." The doors having been flung open, the Earl of Derby, resplendent in the golden robes of the Chancellor of Liverpool University, presented Dr. Chavasse with the petition for consecration. … The Archbishop of York, whose cross was carried before him and who was followed by two train-bearers clad in scarlet cassocks, was conducted to the ~~sedilla~~ and the rest of the Bishops, with the exception of Dr. Chavasse, who knelt before his episcopal chair in the sanctuary, found accommodation in the choir stalls.<ref>"Liverpool Cathedral — Consecration of the Lady Chapel", ''The Manchester Guardian'', 30 June 1910, p. 7</ref>|}}

[[file:Anna Hinderer Stained Glass at Liverpool Cathedral.jpg|thumb|The missionary [[Anna Hinderer]] is in one of the Lady Chapel windows]]

Line 143:

The richness of the décor of the Lady Chapel may have dismayed some of Liverpool's Evangelical clergy. Thomas suggests that they were confronted with "a feminised building which lacked reference to the 'manly' and 'muscular Christian' thinking which had emerged in reaction to the earlier feminisation of religion."<ref name=thomas/> He adds that the building would have seemed to many to be designed for [[Anglo-Catholic]] worship.<ref name=thomas/>

The décor includes a stained glass featuring women of various backgrounds and professions, who are considered to have contributed significantly to society. These include:<ref>{{cite book |last1=Liverpool Cathedral Staff |title=Noble Women - Of Liverpool Cathedral : Windows |date=1951 |publisher=Liverpool Cathedral |asin=B009PBBYUK }}</ref>

* Theologian [[Julian of Norwich]] (1343-1416)

* Mother of [[Methodism]] [[Susanna Wesley]] (1669-1742)

Line 173:

===Completion===

Scott died in 1960. The first bay of the nave was then nearly complete, and was handed over to the Dean and Chapter in April 1961. Scott was succeeded as the architect by Frederick Thomas.<ref>McNay, Thomas. "Liverpool's Anglican Cathedral", ''The Guardian'', 24 October 1978, p. 8</ref> Thomas, who had worked with Scott for many years, drew up a new design for the west front of the cathedral. ''The Guardian'' commented, "It was an inflation beater, but totally in keeping with the spirit of the earlier work, and its crowning glory is the Benedicite Window designed by [[Carl Johannes Edwards|Carl Edwards]] and covering 1,600 sq. ft."<ref>Riley, Joe. "Finished — but for the way ~~in to~~into the nave", ''The Guardian'', 25 October 1978, p. 8</ref>

The version recorded in [[Gavin Stamp]]'s obituary of Richard Gilbert Scott, which appeared in ''[[The Guardian]]'' on 15 July 2017, differs slightly: "When his father died the following year (1960), Richard inherited the practice and was left to complete several jobs. He continued with the great work of building Liverpool Cathedral but, after adding two bays of the nave (using cheaper materials: concrete and fibreglass), he resigned when it was proposed drastically to alter his father's design. The cathedral was eventually completed with a much simplified and diminished west end drawn out by his father's former assistant, Roger Pinckney".<ref>{{cite news |author=Gavin Stamp |url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2017/jul/12/richard-gilbert-scott-obituary |title=Richard Gilbert Scott obituary |work=The Guardian |access-date=17 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181017082116/https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2017/jul/12/richard-gilbert-scott-obituary |archive-date=17 October 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Line 211:

===Services and other uses===

The cathedral is open daily all year round from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm (except [[Christmas Day]], when it closes to the public at 3 pm), and regular services are held every day of the week at 8:30 am: Morning Prayer (Holy Communion on Sundays). 12:05 pm Monday–Saturday (Communion) and Monday–Friday at 5:~~30pm~~30 pm (Evensong or said Evening Prayer according to day and time of year). At the weekend, there is also a ~~3pm~~3 pm Evensong service on Saturdays and Sundays with athe main Cathedral Eucharist at 10:30 am, which attracts a large core congregation each week. It also has a more intimate Communion on Sundays at 4 pm. Since early 2011, the cathedral has also offered a regular, more informal form of cafe-style worship called "Zone 2", running parallel to its main Sunday Eucharist each week and held in the lower rooms in the Giles Gilbert Scott Function Suite (formerly the Western Rooms). The core services at 5:~~30pm~~30 pm on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, 10:~~30am~~30 am on Sundays and ~~3pm~~3 pm Saturdays and Sundays are supported on each occasion during term time by the cathedral choir.<ref>[http://www.liverpoolcathedral.org.uk/worship/services.aspx "Service Times"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111007012003/http://www.liverpoolcathedral.org.uk/worship/services.aspx |date=7 October 2011 }}, Liverpool Cathedral, accessed 3 October 2011</ref>

Following the closure of their [[St Andrew's Church, Liverpool|building in Rodney Street]] in 1975, the Liverpool St. Andrew's congregation of the [[Church of Scotland]] used the Radcliffe Room of the cathedral for Sunday services. The congregation finally disbanded in November 2016.<ref>[http://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/39533/Blue_Book_2017.pdf “Word of Life”] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180606054759/http://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/39533/Blue_Book_2017.pdf |date=6 June 2018 }}, accessed 28 March 2018</ref>

Admission to the cathedral is free, but with a suggested donation of £5.{{refn|There is a charge for those who wish to take the visitor's Great Space experience, including a short film showing the construction of the cathedral, an audio tour (several different languages and a junior version available) and an opportunity to go up the tower (fee payable). The tower is closed to the visiting public during times of particularly bad or windy weather or if a special event or service prevents access.|group= n}} Car parking is available ~~on site~~onsite on a pay-on-exit basis. Parking is free for attendance at all services. Access to the main floor of the cathedral is restricted during services and some of the major events.<ref>[http://www.liverpoolcathedral.org.uk/visitingevents/opening-hours.aspx "Opening Hours"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111006050444/http://www.liverpoolcathedral.org.uk/visitingevents/opening-hours.aspx |date=6 October 2011 }}, Liverpool Cathedral, accessed 3 October 2011</ref>

The building also plays host to a wide range of events and special services including concerts, academic events involving local schools, graduations, exhibitions, family activities, seminars, conferences, corporate events, commemorative services, anniversary services and many more. Its maximum capacity for any major event including special services is 3,500 standing, or about 2,300 fully seated. The ground floor of the cathedral is fully accessible.

Line 290:

===Artists and sculptors===

[[File:Liverpool Anglican Cathedral High Altar, Liverpool, UK - Diliff.jpg|thumb|right|The high altar]]

In 1931, Scott asked [[Edward Carter Preston]] to produce a series of sculptures for Liverpool Cathedral. The project was an immense undertaking ~~which~~that occupied the artist for the next thirty years. The work for the cathedral included fifty sculptures, ten memorials and several reliefs. Many inscriptions in the cathedral were jointly written by Dean Dwelly and the sculptor who subsequently carved them.

In 1993 "The Welcoming Christ", a large bronze sculpture by [[Elisabeth Frink|Dame Elisabeth Frink]], was installed over the outside of the west door of the cathedral.<ref name="Art in the Cathedral">{{cite web|title=Art in the Cathedral|url=http://www.liverpoolcathedral.org.uk/home/about-us/art-in-the-cathedral.aspx|access-date=27 August 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150909214749/http://www.liverpoolcathedral.org.uk/home/about-us/art-in-the-cathedral.aspx|archive-date=9 September 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> This was one of her last completed works, installed within days of her death.<ref>{{cite book|title=Discovering Cathedrals|first=David|last=Pepin|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Qxs7peepspMC&pg=PA87|date=2004|publisher=Shire Publications|location=Princes Risborough, Buckinghamshire, UK|access-date=27 August 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160424053858/https://books.google.com/books?id=Qxs7peepspMC&pg=PA87&lpg=PA87|archive-date=24 April 2016|url-status=live|isbn=9780747805977}}</ref>

Line 296:

In 2003 the Liverpool artist, Don McKinlay, who knew Carter Preston from his youth, was commissioned by the cathedral to model an infant Christ to accompany the 15th century Madonna by Giovanni della Robbia Madonna now situated in the Lady Chapel.<ref>[http://docs.newsbank.com/openurl?ctx_ver=z39.88-2004&rft_id=info:sid/iw.newsbank.com:UKNB:LDPC&rft_val_format=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&rft_dat=133590EFAC2452D0&svc_dat=InfoWeb:aggregated5&req_dat=102CDD40F14C6BDA "Hidden gems"], ''Daily Post'', Liverpool, 6 November 2010</ref>

In 2008 a work entitled "For You" by [[Tracey Emin]] was installed at the west end of the cathedral below the Benedicite window. The pink neon sign reads "I felt you and I knew you loved me", and was installed when Liverpool became the European Capital of Culture. The work was originally intended to be a temporary installation for one month as part of the Capital of Culture programme, but is now a permanent feature.<ref name="Art in the Cathedral"/>

Another work by Emin, "The Roman Standard" takes the form of a small bronze sparrow on a metal pole, and was installed in 2005 outside the [[The Oratory, Liverpool|Oratory Chapel]] close to the west end of the cathedral.<ref>{{cite news|title=Emin unveils sparrow sculpture|website=BBC News|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/4293245.stm|access-date=12 June 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080917041652/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/4293245.stm|archive-date=17 September 2008|url-status=live}}</ref> The sparrow was stolen (twice) in 2008, but on both occasions was returned and replaced.<ref>{{cite news|title=Stolen Emin sparrow returns again|website=BBC News|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/7614218.stm|access-date=12 June 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080915230442/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/7614218.stm|archive-date=15 September 2008|url-status=live}}</ref>