St. Martin's, the medieval church in the center of Leicester, only became a cathedral in 1927. In AD 680, the Saxons established the first bishop in Leicester. Two hundred years later, his successor fled from the invading Danes. Subsequently, the people of Leicester were shepherded by the bishop of Lincoln (from 1072) and later Peterborough (from 1837). The first St. Martin's was built by the Normans in the 11th century. It was rebuilt in the 13th and 15th centuries, becoming the "civic church" since the
Guildhall is across the street. The Victorians also added to and redesigned some of the church. When the diocese of Leicester was re-established, it was chosen as the bishop's church.
The exterior of the church is surrounded by yet more renovations, mostly due to the discovery of
King Richard III's remains in a car park across across the street.
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Leicester Cathedral (with construction) |
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Where Richard III's body was found |
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Detail of the side entrance |
We entered through the west entrance and came upon the 1849 baptismal font.
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Nave from the baptismal font |
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The font |
To the right is St. George's Chapel, dedicated to the
patron of England with memorials of the
Royal Leicester Regiment. The tiger emblem from their seal has been adopted by the local rugby team, the
Leicester Tigers.
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St. George's Chapel with regimental colours |
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Mosaic of the regiment |
Further up the south aisle of the church is the Archdeacon's Court, which has activities for children, including a replica of the church created by a Sunday school class.
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Recreation of the church and other crafts |
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Memorial to John Johnson (not someone so historically significant, but I liked the carving) |
Around the corner is
St. Dunstan's chapel, notable for the Greek icon of Mary and Jesus
Pointing the Way and the Russian icon of the
Hospitality of Abraham.
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Mary and Jesus |
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Hospitality of Abraham |
In the north aisle is
St. Katharine's Chapel with memorials to the Herrick family. The family's home stood where the
Greyfriars friary was located. It's now some town offices and the car park where Richard was found.
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One memorial to the family |
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The chapel |
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Banner for the Mothers' Union |
At the center of the church is the main altar with the high altar behind it. This area also has a memorial stone to Richard.
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Main altar |
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High altar at the back |
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Memorial to Richard III |
Also by the high altar is the
cathedra, the bishop's seat from which the cathedral gets its name.
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Bishop's chair |
Also notable in the church are the ceiling decorations and trim, which add a nice bit of color.
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Over the main altar |
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Well trimmed |
I talked to one of the docents in the cathedral and she said they are getting an area ready for the tomb of Richard, though as of my writing (March 2014), the decision has not yet been made whether he would be entombed here or at
York Minster (where he is from).
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