I think those of us who have been brought up in a country where Christianity is the main religion will regard a vicar much the same way as we do a priest, but the word in actual fact comes from the Latin Vicarius meaning substitute, and in medieval Wells a vicar was someone who deputized for the canons in providing music for the church while the cleric leaders were occupied with their other business.
Originally posted 2025-11-02 15:45:05.
The size of the cathedral at Wells was built, I believe, not just to make a statement of spiritual influence and authority over its worshippers, but also to win the struggle with Bath over where the bishop’s seat should be. In other words the size of the local community really had nothing to do with the stature of the cathedral, and for those who are interested, the population of Wells today is still only around 11,000.
Originally posted 2025-10-21 09:34:09.
In the previous post I explained how the name of England’s ‘smallest’ city originated from the springs that surface in the grounds of the Bishop’s Palace. I also briefly touched on how it achieved its city status, but to put things in perspective I’m now going to delve a little deeper to explain how the cathedral came into being, and then follow it up with some information about its most prominent feature – the magnificent West Front.
Originally posted 2025-10-05 07:24:39.
Now that’s cleared that up, the next question is what constitutes somewhere being called a city? In Britain at least, it was traditionally a place that had a cathedral. I’ll refrain from delving deeper into why that’s no longer the case but keep to the script instead and try to explain why Wells has such a magnificent cathedral for such a small place.
For that I really need to go back to 705 AD when Ine, the King of Wessex, founded a minster church here dedicated to St Andrew. A couple of hundred years later it became the seat of the newly formed bishopric of Wells, but when the episcopal headquarters moved to Bath, the canons of Wells and the monks of Bath fell out, and it was only when it was agreed to rename the bishopric the Diocese of Bath and Wells that ecclesiastical order was restored: That was back in 1245, but today’s bishop is still known as the Bishop of Bath and Wells.
It may have come under joint administration, but when the cathedral was built during the first half of the 13th century, Wells not only became a city, it also became the principle seat of the diocese, and so it remains.
Originally posted 2025-09-16 16:32:35.