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Associated Web Link: www.portsmouthcathedral.org.uk
Transcript Of Narration
Portsmouth Cathedral is located in the High Street very close to the Square Tower and was originally called St Thomas Church. As with most places within Portsmouth it is surrounded in history. In about 1180 Jean de Gisors, the founder of Portsmouth, granted land to build a chapel, in 1188 the chancel and nave were consecrated and in 1196 the transepts, altars and churchyard were consecrated. In 1642 during the Civil War the church was bombarded by Parliamentarian forces and in 1693 a new nave and west tower were completed.
Between 1902 and 1904 the church was closed for restoration work to be carried out. In 1927 the Diocese of Portsmouth was created and in 1932 Sir Charles Nicholson published plans to enlarge St Thomas's to become Portsmouth s Cathedral. In 1939 due to the outbreak of World War II work on the extension scheme stopped. This means Portsmouth had the only incomplete Cathedral in England between 1939 and 1991. In 1990 work was started to complete the scheme and in 1991 the completed building was consecrated in the presence of HM Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.
The Cathedral stands as a prominent landmark in Portsmouth and can be spotted easily from the air. It is located in old Portsmouth off of the High Street. When entering or leaving Portsmouth by ship a glimpse of its turrets can be seen. In the Cathedral there is a Navy Aisle where bones recovered from the Mary Rose lay. The stones inscription reads "Here lies a member of the ships company of the Mary Rose", "May they rest in peace 19th July 1984".
There is also a memorial to the crew of the fishing vessel Wilhelmina J. The inscription on the memorial reads "In memory of the members of the Ship's Company of the Wilhelmina J lost at sea 10 April 1991 Michael Bell, Jeffrey Venters, Guy Ransom Davies, Christopher Thomas, Matthew Hodge, Mark Fitz.
For more information about the Cathedral have a look at www.portsmouthcathedral.org.uk.
