Canterbury Cathedral
11 June 2024
Anthony at Canterbury Cathedral on his morning run.
Anthony is trying to keep up with his running, and besides it is fun to run in new places with interesting scenery.
I plotted the landmarks for the run out on a map (using 200mg of Ibuprofen as markers).
Scenes from my run. Dane John Garden (the Pride Fest location), Cathedral from the Dane John Monument, Dane John Monument, West Gate Tower
Photos from the Stour Rivertrail.
Canterbury Cathedral Gates
Later that afternoon, Julie and Anthony Tour the Canterbury Cathedral. While waiting to enter, we took some photos of the grounds.
The Canterbury Cathedral is a masterpiece of Norman Architecture. The towering columns, intricate ceilings and detailed stained glass windows are intended to draw your gaze to heaven. And it doesn’t hurt to have something pretty to look at while the priest is droning on in Latin.
I:n 1170, four Knights of Henry II murdered Archbishop Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral. King Henry II, supposedly said, “Will no one rid me of this troublesome priest.” and the knights took it on themselves to assault Becket.
Thomas Becket memorial.
The floating sculpture marks the location in the crypt where Thomas Becket was interred until 1220.
The headsets in the Cathedral were well worth the 5. The narrative complemented the signage, and led us through the massive cathedral in an organized route.
Main Alter.
View of the ceiling over the alter.
Relics stored in the Cathedral
Henry VIII was jealous that Becket’s shrine was far nicer than those of the English Monarch, so he destroyed it. What a jerk!
One last amazing stained glass window on the way out.
Our Guide telling tales at the gates of the Cathedral.
That evening we got the Canterbury Ghost Tour, which met a frisbee’s throw from our apartment. We meandered our way up Elizabeth street, stopping at houses to hear stories of the terrible people who once lived there. Anthony thought the best story was about Thomas Beckett’s gruesome execution, which our guide had Anthony reenact in front of the Gates of the Cathedral.
A witch hunter lived here. The stories confirmed that every word in Monty Python’s Holy Grail is based upon historical fact.
Some of the interesting architecture bits like the corbels shown, are hundreds of years old, and are still in incredible shape.
Dickens wrote 3 of his novels at the Sun Hotel. According to our guide, the real Little Nell was an excellent cook at the hotel. And she was sleeping with the Archbishop of Canterbury. At some point, the archbishop brought home another floozy. Not happy to be pushed aside, Nell poisoned them both at breakfast. Years later, whilst adding plumbing to the hotel, the body of a young woman was discovered under the flagstones. Supposedly, this was young Nell who was killed and buried for her role in murdering the archbishop.