York Minster

Any student of architecture has a favorite structure. As both a lover of architecture and a medievalist, the Gothic church is the intersection of both interests. It is hard to name a favorite cathedral, but the Minster in York always comes to mind in the debate. Not only for the notable stained glass and beautiful stonework, but also for the way Yorkminster continues to be a working church. We were lucky to spend a summer living in York and we regularly attended service which was a surreal experience: to worship in a place where more than a millenia of faithful had before.

A Word on Admission

There is nothing hidden about York Minister. It welcomes two million visitors annually and is one of the top tourist sites in England. I would encourage you, even if you aren't religious, to attend a service or a concert within the Minster. It is an altogether more intimate experience that joustling amongst crowds.

There are those who baulk at the cost of admission. I have never had a problem paying to visit a site of worship in order to fund its maintenance and preservation. I am there as a tourist and don't bat an eye when requested to pay for a castle. I have yet to encounter a place that does not have a free designated area for worship. It is the tour that is charge. While these places hold siginifcant bearing on faith, they are also architectural wonders. And that is expensive. York Minster costs more than 20,000 pounds per day to run. They receive neither state nor church funding for the upkeep of the Minster.

Yes, the price is steep, but that admission enables the preservation and ongoing work within the Minster. And unlike so many other places, the York Minster ticket has a year validity. If you are in York for several days or longer, you can come and go as you please to enjoy the church at different times of day or revisit a spot of particular interest.

Early History

York is a Roman city. Founded as Eboracum in 71 AD, the city saw its most illustrious event when Constantine was declared Emporer here. His father had been leader of the armies in Britain and, upon his untimely death, directly his legions to follow his son in 1306. Seven years later, the new emporer gave Christianity legal status through the Empire with the Edict of Milan. It is believed his Christian sympathies came from his Greek mother, but interestly his half-sibling was named Anastasia, meaning resurrection, and may possibly shed light on his father's beliefs.

While Constantine did not found Christianity explictly in York, it certainly was already brewing during this period. The first clear referance was to a Bishop of York, summoned in 314 for the Council at Arles. But little is known beyond that. The first indiciation of a church was the hastily assembled St. Peter's for the baptism of Edwin of Northumbria in 627. This same year, the school was established and still exists, making it the third oldest continuously operating school in the world. The church was dilapidated by 670 when St. Wilfrid was appointed to the see. He set about rebuilding although none of his efforts remain due to a fire in 741 and subsequent destruction by the Danes. Examples of his work can be found in the crypts of Hexham and Ripon and provide an idea how the early stone church in York looked.

Around 735, York was elevated to an archbishopric with Ecgbert serving as the first archbishop. He rebuilt the church into a more substantial structure with thirty altars. However, the next three hundred years would prove difficult for the Archbishops of York. Danes began raiding the area before fullyconquering York in 868. William did the edifice no favors during the Harrying of the North. What the Normans didn't damage, the Danes finished off during their efforts to reclaim York in 1075.

The Norman Cathedral

A grand rebuilding project began in 1080 under the new archbishop, Thomas of Bayeux. He was a pupil of William's half brother, Odo, and rose quickly through the ranks of the church. Thomas brought his taste for Norman arcitecture to York. His home cathedral at Bayeux still contains beautiful Romanesque arches on the first story of the nave and front towers.

While it was long thought that Thomas simply built on top of what was, no trace of the Anglo-Saxon church was found. Records indicate that the Roman Principia still stood during the first church's life so it was likely nearby. Thomas used the land of the crumbling Roman buidlings for his church. The interior pillars of the nave outline the edges of Thomas' church which ran 363 feet (111m) in length. The church featured red and white stripes as was common in Norman buildings. Thomas' church suffered a fire in 1137, but the damage was minimal. The western end including the choir was remodeled by Archbishop Roger Pont l'Eveque, another Norman. At this time, the Doomstone was added depicting Hell (right).

Gothic Glory: The Minster

By 1200, Gothic architecture became all the rage. In 1215, Walter de Gray was named Archbishop of York. He wanted to rebuild the cathedral to rival that at Canterbury in the newest style. Building commenced in 1220 in the South Transcept and wouldn't be fully realized until 250 years later when the Minster was consecreated in 1472. Due to the lengthy building period, the Minster reflects the variety of Gothic styles that came and went throughout England.

Few significant building works were carried out after this period. The Minster escaped the English Civil War relatively unscathed, thanks to Sir Thomas Fairfax, the leader of the Parliamentarian forces that captured York. Minimal destruction occured and the church was restored with the Church of England in 1660. A new floor was added in 1731 (what we see today) and the quire had to be rebuilt after an arson attack in 1829 by a radical Methodist preacher who was mentally unstable.

Two more fires followed. The first in 1840 that destroyed the nave roof and then in 1984 when the minster was struck by lightening. Firefighters deliberately brought the roof down in the South Transcept to save the remainder of the Minster. The reconstruction of the roof included fire protection measures including retardants. Some of the ceiling bosses were redesigned by school children across Britain. The magnificent Rose Window cracked under the intense heat of the fire, but the leading held allowing for a careful and masterful restoration.

In 2013, the undercroft of York Minster opened. This area had been cleaned out during works to shore up the Central Tower. Four Norman pillars are visible, likely dating to Archbishop Roger Pont l'Eveque's rebuilding in the late twelfth century. In 2018, the a lengthy restoration project of the East End was completed to protect the Great East Window.

Touring York Minster

The Nave

Enterance to the Minster is through the Nave. The sheer size is overwhelming. Unlike Canterbury that divides into two levels, York Minster is flat. Even with the rood screen in place, it is possible to see the back. It is the longest church north of the Alps and the widest Gothic nave in England. Due to the width, the roof is spanned in wood, not stone. The shields that you see are those who served Edward I in his Scottish Wars. In the glass of the celestory (the top windows) are the shields of those who accompaned Edward II's disastrous Scottish campaigns as well as some recycled Norman panels in an effort to stretch the budget. Due to York's proximity to Scotland, parliament was regularly held at the Minster under Edward I and II. The larger window cycles below were paid for by wealthy donors along with Masses that would have been said in the Chantry chapels that previously lined the Nave. Most were removed during the Reformation, but 15 are still extant.

The roof was destroyed by fire in 1840, but was restored to its medieval form. The roof bosses feature the life of the Virgin with golden figures on a field of blue. The Nativity was altered to fit Victorian standards as a breastfeeding Madonna was scandalous. The Nursing Madonnas had already fallen out of favor during the Council of Trent in the mid-sixteenth century.

The Great West Window was built between 1338 and 1339 under the direction of Archbishop Melton who appears with other Archbishops in the bottom row. Above this ecclesiastical crew are the apostles. The window depicts the life of the Virgin and Christ. Pollution and erosion depleted the tracery so severly that it was replaced in 1990. The arches beneath the window were also replaced and glazed in 1998 with events from the Books of Genesis.

The Crossing

The Nave is divded by the King's Screen featuring 15 English kings. This was a part of the rebuilding project after the collpase of the tower in 1407. The screen served to support the arches. If you think it looks wonky, you aren't wrong. Due to the odd number, the screen's archway is slightly offset with seven rulers to the north and eight to the south. Originally, 14 monarchs had been planned, but Henry V's reign of only nine years made it necessary to add his son, Henry VI. He was a controversial figure and his statue was removed and replaced several times. The one we see today is a recreation made in 1810. Traces of paint can still be made out on the kings' robes, evidence of how tastes change across the centuries. Above the screen sits the organ, in this position since the mid-seventeenth century.

Look up and admire the tower. This footprint dates from the Norman period, but the tower is of later design. There are eight coats of arms above the soaring arches, those of: the See of York, St. Wilfrid, St. Peter, Bishop Walter Skirlaw of Durham (paid for the East Window and tower), Henry IV, Edward the Confessor, Edwin of Northumbria, Oswald of Northumbria. The massive roof boss in the center features Peter and Paul and the keys of York. If you squint, there is a cable hanging, used to hold the Advent Wreath during Christmas and the Cross during Lent and Easter.

The Transcepts

The South Transcept is the oldest part of the current Minster. Appropriately as the force behind the Minster's gothic transformation, Archbishop de Gray is buried here in a massive Purbeck marble tomb. Along with the 68 bosses mentioned earlier is the massive Rose Window. The tracery is from 1240, but the glass dates to 1500. Commissioned to celebrate the wedding of Elizabeth of York to Henry Tudor, it is a powerful piece of propaganda weaving the Lancastrian and Yorkist emblems together, the red and white rose intertwined. It was severely damaged during the fire. But the leading held it all together and conservationalists were able to adhere speciality film to the glass and remove it painstakingly, piece by piece. The window was then completey restored and two coats of glass were added the sides. This Tudor Oreo protects the glass from further damage from the elements or, heaven-forbid, another fire.

The North Transcept holds a medieval treasure, the Five Sisters window. Made from five windows that stretch 53 feet into the area, the glass dates from the mid-thirteenth century. The colors are muted, a style known as grisaille (greyness in French). The glass forms intricate geometric patterns, not the biblical stories we are used to seeing. The vivid colorful panel at the bottom of the central window is earlier Norman glass.

On the east side of the North Transept is the St. Nicholas Chapel with memorials to both World War I and II including a Book of Remembrance for the Yorkshiremen lost. A doorway between the chapel and the window leads to the Chapter House. The octagonal structure was built between 1260 and 1286 in the decorated style. The windows contain the oldest figurative glass in situ in the church. The soaring roof rises to 66 ft (20m), only slightly taller than the width at 63 ft (19m) There are 44 seats lining the walls for the College meetings in groups of six. Look at the seat canopies. Roughly 80% of the carvings are original and contain funny faces, beasts, and the people of York. The room was once covered in painting but the Victorian restoration saw the walls scrubbed clean. Some of the ceiling painting survive in the church collections. It is still used for ecclesiastical meetings today as well as for youth during Sunday service.

The Quire

Back in the church behind the King's Screen lies the Quire. It was destroyed by an arsonist. There were no detailed drawings available and so it was rebuilt to the best of everyone's memory. The new quire does not feature the traditional misericords, the flip up seats with their elaborate carvings. Instead, fixed seats are the order of the day. Visiting choirs sing on school holidays, but the school choristers (both boys and girls) regularly sing Evensong. It is well worth attending.

The High Altar sits above the quire. Once dominated by the shrine of St. William (he was relegated to the crypt), the area now is a more understated affair with an impressive gold crucifix and a series of golden tapers. The altar cloths change seasonally. The quire aisles once housed chantry chapels, but now hold some sculpture, lovely stained glass, and the tomb of Edward III's infant son who died at four months old.

The East End

The crowning jewel of the Minster is the Great East Window. Glazed between 1405 and 1408 by John Thornton of Coventry, the window covers a tennis field with 117 panels in rows of 9. It is believed to be the largest medieval window in the world The glass contains both Old and New Testament stories crowned by the figure of God with the words "I am the Alpha and Omega" in Latin.

A painstaking restoration, York Minster Revealed, was completely in 2018. It involved removing the glass panel by panel, replacing all the lead, restoring the hand painted faces and elements of the glass, and reassembling the six hundred year old fragments. An informative video about the process can be found here and here. The work was carried out by the York Glaziers Trust. Another facet of this work was the replacement of stonework that was too damaged to remain in place. A team of master stone masters carved each replacement piece on the York Minster property. You can watch them at work here.

Visting Information

The Minster offers regular free tours (admission required). The stained glass tour is particuarly good. You can also climb the tower for an added fee. It is a trek so wear good shoes. Tower visits are available to those 8 and older. Check the visitors page for up to date tour and tower information. Also note that the undercroft has different hours than the minster so plan accordingly.

Along with Evensong, the Minster has hosted concerts since the nineteenth century. Many world reknowned classical artists have performed within the nave. To find out what events are on and to purchase tickets, visit the events page.

Remember, your ticket is good for a full calendar year from purchase so you can come and go as you please. This is especially helpful for young families who may not have the stamina to view all of it at once!