Clifton Cathedral

Clifton Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of SS. Peter and Paul
Clifton Cathedral, opened in 1973
Clifton Cathedral Shown within Bristol
51°27′35″N 2°36′59″W / 51.4597°N 2.6163°W / 51.4597; -2.6163Coordinates: 51°27′35″N 2°36′59″W / 51.4597°N 2.6163°W / 51.4597; -2.6163
Location	Bristol, Bristol
Country	England
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Website	www.cliftoncathedral.org.uk
History
Consecrated	1973
Architecture
Architect(s)	R. Weeks, F.S. Jennett and A. Poremba of Percy Thomas Partnership
Years built	1970-1973
Specifications
Capacity	1000
Administration
Diocese	Clifton (since 1973)
Province	Birmingham
Clergy
Bishop(s)	Declan Ronan Lang
Dean	Bosco MacDonald
Laity
Director of music	Richard Jeffrey-Gray
Organist(s)	Stephen Bryant

The Cathedral Church of SS. Peter and Paul is the Roman Catholic cathedral in the English city of Bristol. Located in the Clifton area of the city, it is the seat of the Diocese of Clifton and is known as Clifton Cathedral. It has been a Grade II* Listed Building since 2000.^[1]

History

Pro-Cathedral of the Holy Apostles

Clifton cathedral was built to replace the previous diocesan seat of Pro-Cathedral of the Holy Apostles in Bristol (1850-1973). The pro-cathedral had a history of problematic construction work. It was built as a church on a challenging hillside site, making work there difficult. Building started in 1834, stopped a year later, started again in 1843, stopped shortly after and the building lay abandoned until 1848 when a roof was placed on the half-completed building so that it could be used as a church.^[2]

Two years later, in 1850, Clifton was made an episcopal see and the church became the Pro-Cathedral, intended to act in this capacity until a more fitting cathedral church could be constructed.^[2]

Move to Clifton

In 1965, architects were commissioned to undertake the design of a new cathedral on a different site in Clifton. The design was primarily by R.J. Weeks,^[3] working with F.S. Jennett and A. Poremba of the Percy Thomas Partnership.^[4]

Construction began in March 1970 and completed in May 1973 by John Laing & Son Ltd,^[5] also the main contractor at Coventry Cathedral. That same year, on 29 June, the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, the new cathedral was consecrated and opened and the pro-Cathedral was closed.

In 2011, it hosted the filming of 'Dechrau Canu Dechrau Canmol' an S4C television programme, that translates as 'Start Singing Start Praising'. The Cathedral hosted musicians, singers, cameramen and crew filming for the faith and music programme.^[6]

Construction

The interior design has been seen as unusual.^[7] Its internal shape is due to the architect's innovative response to the requirements set down by the Second Vatican Council. It was decreed in the Council that the congregation should all have a good view of the altar.;^[7] accordingly, the sanctuary is Hexagonal to allow the 1,000 capacity congregation a close and clear view of the altar, and there are no windows within the congregation's line of sight of the altar. Daytime lighting is provided by natural roof lights, so that the light from outside comes from the ring beam walls. This ensures that the sanctuary area remains the focus of the cathedral.^[8] The baptistery is situated close to the entrance, whilst the seating is around the lectern and altar space, reflecting a person's sacramental journey within the Catholic Church.^[8]

The mathematical form of a triangle ^[9] is important in the design of the building. The architect used this to determine the spacings of the furnishings within the cathedral. The votive candelabrum hanging in the Lady Chapel was designed by the architect and is constructed of twenty such triangles and was made by Brother Patrick of Prinknash Abbey.^[8]

Facts

The interior of Clifton Cathedral. The walls are made from reinforced white concrete

• A copper tube containing plans of the cathedral and other items was buried under the foundation stone.
• The cathedral is constructed from reinforced concrete clad with panels of Aberdeen granite.
• The narthex contains two stained glass windows constructed from over 8,000 pieces of glass collected from England, France and Germany.
• On 14 July 2016 Clifton Cathedral was featured in a BBC Two documentary in the UK, "The Hairy Builder", presented by Dave Myers.^[10]

Archives

The archives of Clifton Cathedral, Bristol are held at Bristol Archives (Ref. 38031) (online catalogue), including registers of baptisms, marriages, confirmations, burials and members. The archive also includes notices of banns and minutes of the deanery.

See also

• Bishop of Clifton
• Churches in Bristol

References

External links

• Clifton Cathedral
• Architectural Description of Clifton Cathedral
• Virtual Tour of Clifton Cathedral
• Twentieth Century Society Building of the Month

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Clifton Cathedral.

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