Rochester Cathedral

Squeezed between its larger diocesan neighbours in Canterbury and London, Rochester Cathedral has been rather overlooked by historians of England’s medieval diocesan cathedrals. This visit is an opportunity to review that, and is undertaken in the light of the recent restoration work on the crypt.

Rochester was the second cathedral to be founded in the wake of Augustine’s mission, and though nothing can now be seen of that church (founded in 604), its position and plan are known. The current cathedral reflects an expansion initiated by Bishop Gundulf in the decades following the Norman Conquest. Material from this phase certainly survives, as does the repaired nave and west front – both reconstructed following a fire in 1137 – and the early Gothic presbytery and choir. We shall look at all this work, along with the important fragmentary remains of the cloister east range and Rochester’s important collection of later medieval tomb monuments.

There are regular train services to Rochester from London Victoria and London St Pancras International (including the high speed Javelin service)