Wakefield Cathedral

Open for Business!

Wakefield Cathedral will be open every day during the November lockdown. Speaking earlier this week the Dean of Wakefield, the Very Revd Simon Cowling said, “the rules are quite clear: places of worship are able to remain open for ‘independent prayer’ and our wonderful cathedral will be open between 10.00 and 14.00 from Monday to Saturday. People will be able to come in, light a candle, say a prayer or simply take a few moments to reflect in peace and quiet. And on Sundays we will be streaming a service at 10.00 on our social media channels”. The cathedral is also busy planning and preparing for Christmas: the choir will continue to rehearse via Zoom during November and further details about the Christmas programme will be published towards the end of the month.

----

Wakefield Cathedral is a landmark building at the heart of the city.

Worship began on the site of the Cathedral around Saxon times and the Normans erected the first stone structure sometime in the 11th Century.

Wakefield, as a town, prospered during the 15th century, thanks to the wool trade and during this period many alterations were made to the building, including extending the aisles and putting in the clerestory windows in order to bring in more light. The replacement paneled roofs with carved and gilded bosses remain intact today.

A new tower, surmounted by a spire, was erected at the west end. This spire rises to 247 feet, making it the tallest in Yorkshire.

Much of the above work took place during the Wars of the Roses, even while the Battle of Wakefield was being fought nearby, at Sandal Magna (Castle) in 1460.

The Cathedral today is the focal point for a busy Northern diocese, eighteenth in size of population which contains towns such as Halifax, Huddersfield, Dewsbury, Barnsley and Pontefract.

People come not only for regular worship but also for the big services that every cathedral and civic church has to provide. They also come individually from the adjacent shopping precinct to light a candle and pray or simply just to soak up the peaceful atmosphere.