Cantebury

Introduction : Canterbury Cathedral is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England and belongs to the World Heritage Site.
It is the cathedral of the Archbishop of Canterburywho is the religious leader of the Anglican Church. So Canterbury is also the center of the Anglican Communion.

Why have they build a cathedral in Canterbury and what is the social consequence?
StAugustine, the first Archbishop of Canterbury, arrives on the coast of England
as a missionary in 597 AD. He comes from Rome, sent by Pope Gregory the Great. This missionary orders the constructionof a gothic church in order to convert Anglo-Saxons to Christianity. This building had been a place of worship during the Roman occupation and is the oldest church in England. Augustine established hisseat in Canterbury that’s why since that time, there has been an important christian community around the Cathedral: this community is the oldest christian organisation in all the United Kingdom.So what about the architecture?
Since its construction, the cathedral has been many times demolished, rebuilt and repaired mainly because of the wars.
The most famous building of the cathedreal isthe Norman tower of Lanfranc, the Angel Steeple which was demolished in 1430 and which the reconstruction took place fifty years later. This new tower is known as the ‘Bell Harry Tower’, it isconsidered as the most beautiful tower in the christian community. The bell still rings a hundred strokes at nine o’clock to indicate the curfew of the city.
Apart the architecture, the cathedreal iswell-known to have been the scene of a murder.
(Picture: a photography of the tower)

(What is the most famous event of the Canterbury cathedreal?)
Thomas Becket become chancellor and friend of KingHenry II during the twelfth century .He shares the pleasures of the king, goes with him to the war in Aquitaine and doesn’t hesitate to tax abbeys to cover the needs of the court. Henry II confide…