:Gloucester Cathedral

The first recorded religious building on the site was a minster founded by Osric of Hwicce in around 679.{{sfn|Verey|Brooks|2002a|p=395}} A relative, Kyneburg, was consecrated as the first abbess by Bosel, Bishop of Worcester. Monastic life flourished, and the possessions of the house increased, but after 767 it seems probable that the nuns dispersed during the confusion of civil strife in England.

Beornwulf of Mercia is said to have rebuilt the church, and to have endowed a body of secular priests with the former possessions of the nuns.{{sfn|Page|1907|pp=53-61}} In 1022 Wulfstan, Bishop of Worcester, had the Benedictine rule introduced and the abbey dedicated to St Peter.{{sfn|Knowles|Brooke|London|1972|p=52}}

The early building history is confused; at some point in the early 11th century the monastic buildings were destroyed by fire, and it is recorded that Ealdred, Bishop of Worcester rebuilt the church in around 1058 on a site "a little further from the place where it stood, and nearer to the side of the city".{{sfn|Pevsner|Metcalf|2005|p=100}}{{efn|The history of the early church is made more complicated by its intermingling with that of St Oswald's Priory. This foundation was established in around 909 by Æthelflæd, daughter of Alfred the Great, but was also dedicated to St Peter. Over the following centuries, as the abbey grew in wealth and importance, it incorporated elements of the priory.{{sfn|Herbert|1988|pp=275-288}}}} The foundations of the present church were laid by Abbot Serlo (1072–1104).{{sfn|Verey|Brooks|2002a|p=395}} Appointed by William the Conqueror in 1072, Serlo found a new building with a complement of only two monks and eight novices.{{sfn|Pevsner|Metcalf|2005|p=101}}

The situation was worsened by another major fire in 1088.{{sfn|Verey|Brooks|2002a|p=395}} But the town retained its importance as a favoured royal seat; William celebrated Christmas there in 1085 when, in discussion with his Witan in the chapter house, he initiated the assembly of Domesday Book.{{sfn|Pevsner|Metcalf|2005|p=101}} His support, together with that of others such as Walter de Lacy and his wife,{{efn|On Walter de Lacy's death in 1085, he was buried in the chapter house at Gloucester and his son later became abbot there.Green, Judith A., The Aristocracy of Norman England. (1997) Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. p. 398 {{ISBN| 0-521-52465-2}}}} enabled Serlo to embark on a major rebuilding, and between the laying of the foundation stone in 1089 and the abbey's re-consecration in 1100, work on the nave, the apse, the crypt and the chapter house was undertaken at speed{{sfn|Verey|Brooks|2002a|p=395}} and on an "exceptional scale".{{sfn|Cannon|2011|p=339}}

St Peter's Abbey had long enjoyed important royal connections, from its foundation, then under the patronage of the Conqueror, and in October 1216 it was chosen as the venue for the coronation of Henry III, after the death of his father, King John.{{cite ODNB |url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/printable/12950 |title=Henry III (1207–1272) |publication-date=September 2010 |year=2004 |last=Ridgeway |first=Huw W. |access-date=22 December 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921053239/http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/printable/12950 |archive-date=21 September 2013 |mode=cs2 |doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/12950 |url-status=dead}} The nine-year-old boy was crowned in the presence of his mother Isabella, whose bracelet was reputedly used in place of a crown.{{sfn|Verey|Brooks|2002a|p=395}}

The abbey's royal connections continued, albeit in a darker vein, in the following century. In 1327, Edward II was buried in an elaborate shrine at Gloucester, following his death at Berkeley Castle nearby. Widely believed to have been murdered,{{sfn|Cannon|2011|p=339}} Edward was entombed at Gloucester in a lavish ceremony attended by his widow, Isabella and their young son, Edward. The abbey reputedly benefitted from substantial gifts donated by those making pilgrimage to Edward's shrine, although this is disputed. Nikolaus Pevsner suggests that the more likely source of revenue was the new king, making donations in piam memoriam.{{sfn|Pevsner|Metcalf|2005|p=104}}

Others support the traditional claim, and Jon Cannon, in his work, Cathedral: The great English cathedrals and the world that made them, is certain that the presence of the body of the dead king had a long-term, beneficial, impact on the abbey's fortunes, citing Henry VIII's later decision to make it a cathedral, on account of the presence of "many famous monuments of our renowned ancestors, kings of England."{{sfn|Cannon|2011|p=345}}

However occasioned, the cathedral's improved financial position enabled another great period of building. This work included the cloisters, with their famed fan vaulting.{{sfn|Verey|Brooks|2002a|p=398}} St Peter's was unusual as a religious foundation in commissioning its own history, the Historia Monasterii Sancti Petri Gloucestriae. Its author, Walter Frocester (died 1412), became its first mitred abbot in 1381.{{sfn|Gransden|2013|p=391}}

• In 1134, William Fitznorman gave the church of St David, Kilpeck, and the Chapel of St Mary at Kilpeck Castle to Gloucester Abbey, and a priory cell was established about 400 yards south east of the church, to house some monks displaced from Llanthony Priory by attacks of the Welsh. Kilpeck Priory closed in 1422.{{sfn|Bailey|2000|p=?}}
• The Priory of Saints Peter, Paul and Guthlac in Hereford was a dependency of Gloucester Abbey.{{cite web|url=https://www.pastscape.org.uk/hob.aspx?hob_id=110582|title=St Guthlacs Priory|work=PastScape.org.uk|publisher=Historic England|access-date=15 January 2023}}
• Ewenny Priory was founded by Maurice de Londres in 1141. Maurice granted the Norman church of St. Michael to the abbey of St. Peter at Gloucester, together with the church of St Brides Major and the chapel at Ogmore "in order that a convent of monks might be formed".{{sfn|Newman|1995|p=343}}
• In 1146 the college of Augustinian canons at Stanley St. Leonard was given to the monastery by Roger de Berkeley III, with the consent of the prior and canons, and became St. Leonard Priory. His grandfather, Roger de Berkeley I, had retired as a monk to St Peter's Abbey around 1091.Cokayne, The Complete Peerage, new edition, II, p.124

At its inception, the abbey stood in the see of Worcester; but its position was transformed at the Dissolution of the monasteries. Following abolition, Henry VIII created the new Diocese of Gloucester and on 3 September 1541,{{sfn|Pevsner|Metcalf|2005|p=106}} the abbey church became its cathedral, with John Wakeman, last abbot of Tewkesbury, as its first bishop.{{sfn|Verey|Brooks|2002a|p=398}} The diocese covered the greater part of Gloucestershire, with small parts of Herefordshire and Wiltshire. Although staunchly Royalist in its sympathies, the city, and the cathedral, escaped largely unscathed from the tumult of the English Civil War and plans for complete demolition formulated during the Commonwealth were not taken forward.{{sfn|Verey|Brooks|2002a|p=398}}

The 18th and 19th centuries saw repeated periods of reconstruction, renovation and rebuilding. Counter to the approach sometimes adopted elsewhere in the Victorian era, the 19th century restorations at Gloucester, firstly by the local architects, Frederick S. Waller and Thomas Fulljames, and latterly by George Gilbert Scott, were "on the whole, very tactful" [see box].{{sfn|Verey|Brooks|2002a|p=399}}{{efn|George Gilbert Scott's plans for the restoration of Tewkesbury Abbey saw a furious assault from William Morris, who subsequently founded the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings to fight against the "scraping" he considered was so often the result of Victorian restoration.{{sfn|Stamp|2015|pp=12–13}}}} During the Second World War a recess in the crypt was used to house the Coronation Chair, which had been moved in August 1939 from Westminster Abbey for safe keeping. The 13th century bog-oak effigy of Robert Curthose was placed on the chair and the whole covered by sandbags. The Great East Window was also dismantled and placed in storage.{{sfn|Shenton|2021|pp=201-202}} The remainder of the 10,000 sandbags supplied by the Office of Works were used to protect the other monuments in the cathedral, including the tomb of Edward II.{{sfn|Shenton|2021|pp=201-202}}

The cathedral celebrated its 900th anniversary in 1989. In 2015 Rachel Treweek was installed as bishop, the first woman to be appointed to a diocesan bishopric in the history of the Church of England.{{cite news|last1=Ward|first1=Victoria|title=Church of England names first female bishop to sit in the House of Lords|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/11496047/Church-of-England-names-first-female-bishop-to-sit-in-the-House-of-Lords.html|access-date=26 March 2015|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=26 March 2015}} In September 2016 Gloucester Cathedral joined the Church of England's 'Shrinking the footprint' campaign, intended to reduce the Church of England's carbon emissions by 80% by 2050. The cathedral commissioned a solar array on the cathedral roof which is expected to reduce the cathedral's energy costs by 25%.{{cite web|url= https://www.mypoweruk.com/gloucester-cathedral-installation/|title= Let there be light – 1000 year old Gloucester Cathedral becomes the oldest building of its type in the world to install solar PV|website= MyPower.com|access-date= 7 September 2018|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180908015802/https://www.mypoweruk.com/gloucester-cathedral-installation/|archive-date= 8 September 2018|url-status= live}} The installation was completed by November 2016, making the 927-year-old cathedral the oldest one in the UK with a solar installation.{{cite web |title=First panels laid on 1,000 year old Gloucester Cathedral |date= 31 October 2016 |url= https://www.solarpowerportal.co.uk/news/first_panels_laid_on_1000_year_old_gloucester_cathedral |publisher=Solar Power Portal |access-date=3 May 2021 |archive-date=7 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161107071734/http://www.solarpowerportal.co.uk/news/first_panels_laid_on_1000_year_old_gloucester_cathedral |url-status=live}}{{cite web |title=Gloucester Cathedral 'oldest' to get solar panels |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-37278405 |publisher=BBC |date=5 September 2016 |archive-date=3 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210503120349/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-37278405 |url-status=live}}
A redevelopment of an old car park next to the cathedral was finished in 2018, making the car park a green space.{{cite web | url=https://www.soglos.com/news/culture/gloucester-cathedral-celebrates-6-million-project-pilgrim-completion/13181/ | title=Gloucester Cathedral celebrates 6 million Project Pilgrim Phase One Completion | date=21 June 2018 }}

The cathedral consists of a Norman nave (Walter de Lacy is buried there), with additions in every style of Gothic architecture. It is {{convert|420|ft|m}} long, and {{convert|144|ft|m}} wide, with a fine central tower of the 15th century rising to the height of {{convert|225|ft|m|abbr=on}} and topped by four delicate pinnacles.

The crypt, nave and chapter house date from the late 11th century. The crypt is one of the four apsidal cathedral crypts in England, the others being at Worcester, Winchester and Canterbury. The nave was begun in 1089. The church was largely complete by 1100. In the early 12th century, the western towers were added; the south tower collapsed around 1165.

In 1222, a fire damaged the timber roof and several of the monastic buildings. To repair the damage and update the architectural style, an ambitious building campaign was launched, including the revaulting of the nave Early English style (completed 1243); the construction of the central tower (begun 1237); the rebuilding of the collapsed south tower (completed 1246); and the rebuilding of the refectory.{{sfn|Herbert|1988|pp=275-288}}

The south aisle was rebuilt in 1318–29. The most notable monument is the canopied shrine of Edward II of England who was murdered at nearby Berkeley Castle in 1327. Pilgrimages to the tomb brought a huge influx of cash enabling the rebuilding and redecorating of the south transept (1329–37), the north transept (1368–73), and the choir (1350–77). The Norman choir walls are sheathed in Perpendicular tracery. The multiplication of ribs, liernes and bosses in the choir vaulting is particularly rich.

The late Decorated Great East window is partly filled with surviving medieval stained glass. When completed in 1350, it was the largest window in existence.{{cite web|url=https://gloucestercathedral.org.uk/cathedral/heritage/architecture|title=Our heritage - Great East Windwo|publisher=Gloucester Cathedral|access-date=23 December 2022}} One window is said to depict the earliest images of the game of golf. This dates from 1350, over 300 years earlier than the earliest image of golf from Scotland.{{cite web|url= http://www.foreteevideo.co.uk/Gloucester.html|title= The first Golf record?|access-date= 16 January 2009|work= A Royal and Ancient Golf History video|publisher= Fore Tee Video|url-status= dead|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090122154704/http://www.foreteevideo.co.uk/Gloucester.html|archive-date= 22 January 2009}} Another image, carved on a misericord, shows people playing a ball game, which has been suggested as one of the earliest images of medieval football.{{Cite web |title=40 Unusual Laws in History |last=Flight |first=Tim |website=History Collection|date=14 November 2019 |url= https://historycollection.com/40-unusual-laws-in-history/18/}}

Between the apsidal chapels is a cross Lady chapel, and north of the nave are the cloisters, the carrels or stalls for the monks' study and writing lying to the south. In a side-chapel is a monument in coloured bog oak of Robert Curthose, eldest son of William the Conqueror and a great benefactor of the abbey, who was interred there. Monuments of William Warburton (Bishop of Gloucester) and Edward Jenner (physician) are also worthy of note. The coronation of Henry III is commemorated in a stained-glass window in the south aisle.{{sfn|Welander|1991|p=?}}

Between 1873 and 1890, and in 1897, the cathedral was extensively restored by George Gilbert Scott. The cathedral has forty-six 14th-century misericords and twelve 19th-century replacements by Gilbert Scott. Both types have a wide range of subject matter: mythology, everyday occurrences, religious symbolism and folklore.{{cite web |title=The Misericords and history of Gloucester Cathedral |url=http://www.misericords.co.uk/gloucester.html |publisher=Misericords |access-date=3 May 2021 |archive-date=9 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109005209/http://www.misericords.co.uk/gloucester.html |url-status=live }}

Gloucester Cathedral High Altar, Gloucestershire, UK - Diliff.jpg|The Quire with the Great East Window behind - in 1350, when installed, it was the largest window in the world

Gloucester Cathedral - Stained window 6.jpg|The West Window

Cathedral Church of St Peter and the Holy and Indivisible Trinity, Ceiling in the Choir Gloucester 1245952 20230819 0288.jpg|The Quire's vaulted ceiling

Gloucester Cathedral (Holy Trinity) (15170320445).jpg|The vaulted ceiling of the Nave

Cathedral Church of St Peter and the Holy and Indivisible Trinity, Nave from the East Gloucester 1245952 20230819 0320.jpg|The Nave from the east

Gloucester Cathedral Choir 2, Gloucestershire, UK - Diliff.jpg|Facing west towards the choir, with the organ above

The cloisters at Gloucester are the earliest surviving fan vaults in England, having been designed between 1351 and 1377 by Thomas de Cantebrugge.{{sfn|Harvey|1978|p=?}}{{efn|Thomas of Catebrugge (of Canterbury) also undertook work at Hereford Cathedral.{{sfn|Pevsner|Metcalf|2005|p=130}}}} David Verey and Alan Brooks, in the 2002 revised volume, Gloucestershire 2: The Vale and the Forest of Dean, in the Pevsner Buildings of England series, call them "the most memorable in England".{{sfn|Verey|Brooks|2002a|p=425}} The cathedral itself suggests that they form "the first and best example of fan vaulting in the world".{{efn|Gloucester Cathedral also has a Little Cloister, extending from the northeast corner of the Great Cloisters.}}

The cloisters stand to the north of the cathedral and, along with the cathedral precincts to the north and east, contain a number of listed buildings. The Great Cloister itself is listed at Grade I,{{NHLE|num=1245954|desc=Cloister and lavatorium|grade=I|access-date=22 December 2022}} as are the Little Cloister{{NHLE|num=1271578|desc=Little Cloister|grade=I|access-date=22 December 2022}} and Little Cloister House,{{NHLE|num=1271579|desc=Little Cloister House|grade=I|access-date=22 December 2022}} the remains of a reservoir in the north-west corner of the Great Cloister{{NHLE|num=1245955|desc=Remains of reservoir, NW corner of cloister|grade=I|access-date=22 December 2022}} and a passage from the cloister to the former Infirmary,{{NHLE|num=1271582|desc=Passage from the Cloister to the Infirmary|grade=I|access-date=22 December 2022}} the remains of the infirmary itself,{{NHLE|num=1271583|desc=Remains of Monastic Infirmary|grade=I|access-date=22 December 2022}} and the north Precinct Wall.{{NHLE|num=1271580|desc=North Precinct Wall|grade=I|access-date=22 December 2022}}

The other major structures within the precincts are the Chapter house and the Treasury and library. They date initially from the 11th century, although they have undergone major reconstruction in subsequent centuries. Both are Grade I listed buildings. The treasury adjoins the main cathedral on its northern side, with the library above it, and the chapter house adjoins the treasury.{{NHLE|num=1245956|desc=Cathedral Treasury, Vestry and Library|grade=I|access-date=16 March 2023}}{{NHLE|num=1245953|desc=Cathedral Chapter House|grade=I|access-date=23 December 2022}}

Other structures in the precincts now form part of King's School, Gloucester including: the remains of the Abbott's lodgings{{NHLE|num=1245960|desc=Remains of Abbott's Lodgings|grade=II*|access-date=22 December 2022}} and Dulverton House,{{NHLE|num=1245957|desc=Dulverton House|grade=II*|access-date=22 December 2022}} both listed at Grade II*, and the gymnasium,{{NHLE|num=1245961|desc=King's School Gymnasium|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} Dulverton House Coachhouse,{{NHLE|num=1245958|desc=Former Coachhouse at Dulverton House|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} Wardle House,{{NHLE|num=1271584|desc=Wardle House|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} Palace Cottage{{NHLE|num=1271581|desc=Palace Cottage|grade=I|access-date=22 December 2022}} and a set of railings surrounding a playground,{{NHLE|num=1271576|desc=Railings to school playground on north side of gymnasium|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} all of which are listed at Grade II.

The Cloisters at Gloucester Cathedral.jpg|The Great Cloister

Cloister, Gloucester Cathedral 2.jpg|Another view

Gloucester Cathedral Cloister, Gloucestershire, UK - Diliff.jpg|Another view

Great Cloister, Gloucester cathedral (15864346494).jpg|Fan vaulting

Gloucester Cathedral 20190210 144152 (47623274951).jpg|Exterior

{{multiple image|caption_align=centre|perrow=3|total_width=450px|align=right|header=Plaques at the gates to the cathedral close

| image1 = Plaque at St Michael's gate at Gloucester Cathedral.jpg

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| caption1 = Plaque at St Michael's Gate

| image2 = King Edward's gate at Gloucester Cathedral.jpg

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| caption2 = Plaque at King Edward's Gate

| image3 = Abbot's lodge plaque at Gloucester Cathedral.jpg

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| caption3 = Plaque at the Abbott's lodge

}}

College Green lies to the south and west of the cathedral, forming its cathedral close.{{sfn|Verey|Brooks|2002a|p=435}} It was originally the site of a series of monastic graveyards, but was largely rebuilt in the 18th century when many of the buildings were converted to domestic use.{{sfn|Verey|Brooks|2002a|p=435}}

Miller's Green forms a close to the north of the cathedral and was originally the monastic service court. Both Miller's Green and College Green contain a large number of listed buildings. College Green is entered through St Michael's Gate, which dates from the 14th century and is listed at Grade I.{{NHLE|num=1245905|desc=St Michael's Gate, College Green|grade=I|access-date=22 December 2022}} No.s 1,{{NHLE|num=1271593|desc=1, College Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} 2,{{NHLE|num=1271594|desc=2, College Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} 3,{{NHLE|num=1271595|desc=3, College Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} and 4{{NHLE|num=1271596|desc=4, College Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} are listed Grade II and stand between St Michael's Gate and King Edward's Gate, which dates from the 16th century, was subject to a major restoration in the 19th century and is listed at II*.{{NHLE|num=1245909|desc=King Edward's Gate, College Green|grade=II*|access-date=22 December 2022}} No.s 6,{{NHLE|num=1271597|desc=6, College Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} 7,{{NHLE|num=1271598|desc=7, 7A, 7B, 7C, College Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} and 8 conclude the south-western edge of the green and are all listed at Grade II.{{NHLE|num=1271599|desc=8, 8A, College Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}}

No.9 College Green begins the western range of the close and is listed Grade II*.{{NHLE|num=1271600|desc=9, College Green|grade=II*|access-date=22 December 2022}} The western range includes No.s 10,{{NHLE|num=1271601|desc=10, College Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} 11,{{NHLE|num=1271602|desc=11, College Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} 12, Beaufort House,{{NHLE|num=1271603|desc=Beaufort House, 12 College Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} and 13,{{NHLE|num=1245895|desc=13, College Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} all of which are listed at Grade II, and concludes with No. 14, which is listed Grade II*.{{NHLE|num=1245896|desc=14, College Green|grade=II*|access-date=22 December 2022}}

The close is broken by St Mary's Gateway, a scheduled monument.{{NHLE|num=1002120|desc=St Mary's Gateway|grade=SM|access-date=22 December 2022}} The War Memorial to the Royal Gloucestershire Hussars Yeomanry, a Grade II* listed structure, stands in the centre of College Green.{{NHLE|num=1245906|desc=War Memorial to the Royal Gloucestershire Hussars Yeomanry|grade=II*|access-date=22 December 2022}} The northern side of College Green concludes with No. 15, Community House, which is Grade II listed,{{NHLE|num=1245898|desc=Community House, 15 College Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} and Church House, which was originally the Abbot's Lodge and is now utilised as offices and a restaurant and is listed at Grade I.{{NHLE|num=1245900|desc=Church House, 16 College Green|grade=I|access-date=22 December 2022}} On the south-eastern edge of the Green, No.s 17,{{NHLE|num=1245901|desc=17, College Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} 18{{NHLE|num=1245902|desc=18, College Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} and 19{{NHLE|num=1245903|desc=19, College Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} are listed at Grade II, while 20 College Green is Grade II*.{{NHLE|num=1245904|desc=20, College Green|grade=II*|access-date=22 December 2022}}

Miller's Green is entered through the Inner Gateway, between Community House and No. 7, Miller's Green. The gateway dates from the 14th century and formed the gatehouse to the monastic service court. It is a Grade I listed building,{{NHLE|num=1245899|desc=Inner Gate|grade=I|access-date=22 December 2022}} while No. 7 is listed at Grade II.{{NHLE|num=1271719|desc=7, Miler's Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} Other buildings on Miller's Green include the Deanery, listed at Grade II*,{{NHLE|num=1271712|desc=The Deanery, 1 Miller's Green|grade=II*|access-date=22 December 2022}} the Old Mill House, No. 2 Miller's Green, listed at Grade II,{{NHLE|num=1271713|desc=The Old Mill House, 2 Miller's Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} and No.s 3,{{NHLE|num=1271714|desc=3, Miller's Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} 4A,{{NHLE|num=1271715|desc=4A, Miller's Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} 4B,{{NHLE|num=1271716|desc=4B, Miller's Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} 5{{NHLE|num=1271717|desc=5, Miller's Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} and 6,{{NHLE|num=1271718|desc=6, Miller's Green|grade=II|access-date=22 December 2022}} all listed at Grade II.

9 College Green, Gloucester.jpg|No. 9, College Green

14 College Green, Gloucester.jpg|No. 14, College Green

20 College Green, Gloucester.JPG|No. 20, College Green

War memorial on College Green at Gloucester Cathedral - geograph.org.uk - 3017337.jpg|The war memorial on College Green

The Deanery, Gloucester-geograph.org.uk-4143651.jpg|The Deanery, No. 1, Miller's Green

• Dean — Andrew Zihni (since 23 April 2023){{cite web |website=Gloucester Cathedral |title=Zihni installed as the 39th Dean of Gloucester |date=26 April 2023 |url=https://gloucestercathedral.org.uk/journal/andrew-zihni-installed-as-the-39th-dean-of-gloucester |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230426135622/https://gloucestercathedral.org.uk/journal/andrew-zihni-installed-as-the-39th-dean-of-gloucester |archive-date=26 April 2023 |access-date=26 April 2023 }}
• Canon Precentor & Director of Congregational Development — Craig Huxley-Jones (since 23 July 2023 installation){{cite web |date=23 July 2023 |title=Gloucester Cathedral announces new Canon Precentor |url=https://gloucestercathedral.org.uk/journal/gloucester-cathedral-announces-new-canon-precentor-and-director-of-congregational-development |access-date=30 July 2023 |website=Gloucester Cathedral}}
• Canon Chancellor — Celia Thomson (since 15 March 2003 installation; previously Pastor){{cite web |url=http://www.christchurch-westwimbledon.org/ccn_27_candlemas_2003.pdf|title=Christ Church West Wimbledon — Information, Candlemas 2003|website=Christchurch-westwimbledon.org|access-date=2013-03-09|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923203025/http://www.christchurch-westwimbledon.org/ccn_27_candlemas_2003.pdf|archive-date=2015-09-23|url-status=dead}}
• City Centre Rector (Diocesan Canon) — Nikki Arthy (since 2009; Rector of St Mary de Lode, St Mary de Crypt and Hempsted)
• Archdeacon of Gloucester (Diocesan Canon) — Hilary Dawson (since 27 January 2019 collation)

In medieval times, daily worship was sung by boys and monks from the abbey. The cathedral's current choir was established by King Henry VIII in 1539, and at present is composed of 18 boy and 20 girl choristers, as well as 12 adult singers. The choristers attend the King's School, which was also founded by Henry VIII. The choir sings regularly during term time and at major religious festivals such as Christmas or Easter. It also takes part in concerts and has been featured in choral evensong on BBC Radio 3.{{cite web |title=Gloucester Cathedral {{!}} Cathedral Choir |url= https://www.gloucestercathedral.org.uk/music/cathedral-choir/ |website=www.gloucestercathedral.org.uk |access-date=2020-05-08 |archive-date=2021-05-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210503120344/https://www.gloucestercathedral.org.uk/music/cathedral-choir/ |url-status=live }}

The cathedral's first organ was built by Thomas Harris in 1666. Its original case remains complete, the only such surviving example from the 17th century in England. The pipes displayed on the front of the case are still functional. Over the following four centuries many of the major English organ builders have made contributions to the organ, including modifications in 1847 and a complete rebuild in 1888–1889 by Henry "Father" Willis.{{cite web |url=http://www.npor.org.uk/cgi-bin/Rsearch.cgi?Fn=Rsearch&rec_index=N07430 |title=The National Pipe Organ Register |website=Npor.org.uk |access-date=8 May 2020 |archive-date=3 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210503120357/https://www.npor.org.uk/NPORView.html?RI=N07430 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=http://www.npor.org.uk/cgi-bin/Rsearch.cgi?Fn=Rsearch&rec_index=N07431 |title=The National Pipe Organ Register |website=Npor.org.uk |access-date=8 May 2020 |archive-date=3 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210503120403/https://www.npor.org.uk/NPORView.html?RI=N07431 |url-status=live }} Harrison & Harrison undertook a further reconstruction in 1920.{{cite web |url=http://gloucestercathedral.org.uk/music/organ/|title=Gloucester Cathedral – Organ|website=Gloucestercathedral.org.uk|access-date=12 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220203736/http://gloucestercathedral.org.uk/music/organ/|archive-date=20 December 2016|url-status=live}}

In 1971 Hill, Norman and Beard, working with the cathedral's organist John Sanders, and a consultant, Ralph Downes, completely redesigned the instrument, which was again overhauled in 1999 by Nicholson & Co. In 2010 Nicholson's added a Trompette Harmonique solo reed. As of 2023, the organ is out of commission, but the cathedral has contracted with Nicholsons for the latest reconstruction to be completed by the time of the next Three Choirs' Festival in 2026.

{{See also|List of musicians at English cathedrals}}

In 1582, Robert Lichfield is recorded as the organist of Gloucester Cathedral. Notable among the organists are composers and choral conductors of the Three Choirs Festival, Herbert Brewer, Herbert Sumsion and John Sanders. Herbert Howells, who was a pupil of Brewer, composed a Magnificat and Nunc dimittis for Gloucester Cathedral

An annual musical festival, the Three Choirs Festival, is hosted by turns in this cathedral and those of Worcester and Hereford in rotation.{{cite web |url= http://www.3choirs.org/|title= Three Choirs Festival|access-date= 16 January 2009|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/19990418010114/http://www.3choirs.org/|archive-date= 1999-04-18|url-status= dead}} The Three Choirs is the oldest annual musical festival in the world.

File:Gloucester Cathedral 2024-07-13 10.jpg

The cathedral's clock, bells and the chimes are referred to in a repair agreement of 1525. The present clock, installed in 1898, is by Dent and Co, who built the clock for Big Ben. There is no external dial, but there is a fine Art Nouveau clock face in the north transept, dating from 1903, designed by Henry Wilson.{{sfn|Verey|Brooks|2002b|p=23}}

The bells were rehung and augmented in 1978 to give a ring of twelve. The two oldest bells date from before 1420, so they are older than the present tower. The bells are rung 'full circle' by the cathedral's band of ringers for the weekly practice session. In addition, there is Great Peter, the largest medieval bell in Britain, weighing a fraction under three tons. Great Peter is the hour bell and can also be heard ringing before the main services.{{cite web |title=Clock, Bells & Chimes |url=https://www.gloucestercathedral.org.uk/history-heritage/clocks-bells-and-chimes/ |publisher=Gloucester Cathedral |access-date=27 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191027074456/https://www.gloucestercathedral.org.uk/history-heritage/clocks-bells-and-chimes/ |archive-date=27 October 2019 |url-status=live }}

Gloucester Cathedral has a large collection of funerary monuments from the Middle Ages to the present. Notable people buried at Gloucester Cathedral include:

• Osric, King of the Hwicce
• Robert Curthose, eldest son of William the Conqueror
• Edward II of England, 6th Plantagenet King of England (1307–1327)
• John Wakeman, last Abbot of Tewkesbury and first Bishop of Gloucester (1541–1550)
• James Brooks, Bishop of Gloucester (1554–1558)
• Richard Cheyney, Bishop of Gloucester (1562–1579)
• John Bullingham, Bishop of Gloucester (1581–1598)
• Members of the Hyett family from the 17th and 18th centuries, whose remains were discovered accidentally in November 2015{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-32914568|title=Burial vault discovered 'accidentally' at Gloucester Cathedral|work=BBC News|date=2 November 2015|access-date=2 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151102110104/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-32914568|archive-date=2 November 2015|url-status=live}}
• William Nicholson, Bishop of Gloucester (1660–1672)
• Martin Benson, Bishop of Gloucester (1734–1752)
• Richard Pate, landowner and MP for Gloucester
• Thomas Machen, mercer who was mayor of Gloucester three times and one time MP for the city
• Dorothea Beale, Principal of the Cheltenham Ladies' College, educational reformer and suffragist
• Ralph Bigland, Garter Principal King of Arms (1712–1784)
• Miles Nightingall, British army general (1768–1829)
• Albert Mansbridge, pioneer of adult education in Britain (1876–1952)
• John Yates, Bishop of Gloucester (1925–2008)

Memorial to Osric, Prince of Mercia, in Gloucester Cathedral 01.jpg|Tomb of Osric, King of the Hwicce

Robert Duke of NormandyGloucester Cathedral2.JPG|Tomb of Robert Curthose

Gloucester Cathedral 20190210 143009 (46707829225).jpg|Tomb of Edward II of England

Memorial, Gloucester Cathedral - geograph.org.uk - 876639.jpg|Tomb of Thomas Machen

Sarah Morley Memorial detail Flaxman.jpg|Detail of monument to Sarah Morley by John Flaxman

The cathedral has been used as a filming location for movies and for TV including: the first, second and sixth Harry Potter movies;{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/gloucestershire/focus/2003/08/potter_more_info.shtml|title=The Harry Potter trail at Gloucester Cathedral|publisher=BBC Gloucestershire|access-date=22 December 2022}} the Doctor Who episodes The Next Doctor{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-25710035|title=Gloucester Cathedral 'should be heritage site'|date=January 2014|access-date=7 September 2018|publisher=BBC Gloucestershire|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181024131119/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-25710035|archive-date=24 October 2018|url-status=live}}{{Cite web |url=http://www.thecityofgloucester.co.uk/things-to-do/gloucester-on-film|title=Gloucester on film|website=Thecityofgloucester.co.uk|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160815093935/http://www.thecityofgloucester.co.uk/things-to-do/gloucester-on-film|archive-date=2016-08-15|url-status=live}} and the Fugitive of the Judoon;{{cite web |url=https://www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk/news/gloucester-news/doctor-who-gloucester-probably-strangest-3760360|title=Doctor Who in Gloucester: This is probably the strangest thing you'll ever see in a cafe|work=Gloucestershire Live|last=Norris|first=Phil|date=21 January 2020|access-date=26 January 2020|archive-date=26 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200126212537/https://www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk/news/gloucester-news/doctor-who-gloucester-probably-strangest-3760360|url-status=live}}

The Hollow Crown;{{cite web |url=http://www.thisisgloucestershire.co.uk/case-breach-Gloucester-Cathedral-provided/story-14984279-detail/story.html|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130505121416/http://www.thisisgloucestershire.co.uk/case-breach-Gloucester-Cathedral-provided/story-14984279-detail/story.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=5 May 2013|title=It was a case of 'once more into the breach' for Gloucester Cathedral which has provided the backdrop for another star studded drama|date=20 January 2012|work=Gloucestershire Live|access-date=12 December 2016}} Wolf Hall;{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-30913127|title=The stately homes of Wolf Hall|date=7 September 2018|access-date=7 September 2018|publisher=BBC News|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180908025709/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-30913127|archive-date=8 September 2018|url-status=live}} the Sherlock special The Abominable Bride;{{cite news|url=http://www.gloucestercitizen.co.uk/Sherlock-watch-Benedict-Cumberbatch-Martin/story-25906850-detail/story.html|title=Sherlock watch: Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman set for filming in Gloucester Cathedral|publisher=Gloucester Citizen|date=22 January 2015|access-date=23 January 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150122230913/http://www.gloucestercitizen.co.uk/Sherlock-watch-Benedict-Cumberbatch-Martin/story-25906850-detail/story.html|archive-date=2015-01-22|url-status=dead}}{{cite news|url=http://www.gloucestercitizen.co.uk/Sherlock-stars-filming-Gloucester-Cathedral-today/story-25913024-detail/story.html|title=Sherlock stars back filming at Gloucester Cathedral today|publisher=Gloucester Citizen|date=23 January 2015|access-date=2015-03-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150126035512/http://www.gloucestercitizen.co.uk/Sherlock-stars-filming-Gloucester-Cathedral-today/story-25913024-detail/story.html|archive-date=2015-01-26|url-status=dead}} Mary Queen of Scots;{{cite web |last1=Hughes |first1=Janet |title=Spot Gloucester Cathedral in trailer for £180million Margot Robbie blockbuster Mary Queen of Scots |url=https://www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk/news/celebs-tv/spot-gloucester-cathedral-trailer-180million-1786376 |publisher=Gloucestershire Live |date=15 July 2018 |access-date=10 November 2020 |archive-date=3 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210503120356/https://www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk/news/celebs-tv/spot-gloucester-cathedral-trailer-180million-1786376 |url-status=live }} and all three of The Cousins' War adaptations{{snd}}The White Queen,{{Cite web |url=https://twitter.com/EngageGlosCath/status/1247846319185711104|title=Gloucester Cathedral Engagement|publisher=Gloucester Catherdral Twitter account|date=8 April 2020|access-date=16 March 2023}} The White Princess{{Cite web |url=https://www.itv.com/news/westcountry/2016-06-13/gloucester-cathedral-plays-host-to-actors-filming-white-queen-sequel|title=Gloucester Cathedral plays host to actors filming 'White Queen' sequel|publisher=ITV News|date=13 June 2016|access-date=16 March 2023}} and The Spanish Princess.{{Cite web |url=https://www.visitgloucester.co.uk/film/filmed-in-gloucester|title=Filmed In Gloucester|publisher=Film Gloucester|access-date=16 March 2023}}

Degree ceremonies of the University of Gloucestershire and the University of the West of England (through Hartpury College) both take place at the cathedral.{{Cite web |title=University announces honorary awards |author= |website=University of Gloucestershire |date= 2 September 2016|access-date=9 July 2021 |url= https://www.glos.ac.uk/content/universityannounceshonoraryawards/ |quote=The graduation ceremonies will take place at Gloucester Cathedral on Thursday November 19 and Friday November 20, 2020}}{{Cite web |title=Hartpury University Graduation |author= |website=Hartpury University and Hartpury College |access-date=9 July 2021 |url= https://www.hartpury.ac.uk/events/2021/11/hartpury-university-graduation/ |quote=Award ceremonies at Gloucester Cathedral on 3–5 November 2021 }} The cathedral is also used during school term-time as the venue for assemblies by The King's School, Gloucester, and for events by the Denmark Road High School, Crypt Grammar School, Sir Thomas Rich's School for boys and Ribston Hall High School.{{cite web |title=G15 Celebration of Success 2018 |date=5 July 2018 |url=https://makemusicglos.wordpress.com/2018/07/05/g15-celebration-of-success-2018/ |publisher=Make Music Gloucestershire |access-date=27 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191027074451/https://makemusicglos.wordpress.com/2018/07/05/g15-celebration-of-success-2018/ |archive-date=27 October 2019 |url-status=live }}

• 678-79 A small religious community was founded in Anglo-Saxon times by Osric of the Hwicce. His sister Kyneburga was the first abbess.
• 1017 Secular priests expelled; the monastery given to Benedictine monks.
• 1072 Serlo, the first Norman abbot, appointed to the almost defunct monastery by William I.
• 1089 Foundation stone of the new abbey church laid by Robert de Losinga, Bishop of Hereford.
• 1100 Consecration of St Peter's Abbey.
• 1216 First coronation of Henry III.
• 1327 Burial of Edward II.
• 1331 Perpendicular remodelling of the quire.
• 1373 Great Cloister{{cite web |title=The Cloister Project |website=gloucestercathedral.org.uk |date=2022-09-29 |url=https://gloucestercathedral.org.uk/cathedral/projects/the-cloister-project |access-date=2022-09-29 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220822211621/https://gloucestercathedral.org.uk/cathedral/projects/the-cloister-project |archive-date=2022-08-22 }} begun by Abbot Horton; completed by Abbott Frouster (1381–1412)
• 1420 West End rebuilt by Abbot Morwent.
• 1450 Tower begun by Abbot Sebrok; completed by Robert Tully.
• 1470 Lady Chapel rebuilt by Abbot Hanley; completed by Abbot Farley (1472–98).
• 1540 Dissolution of the abbey.
• 1541 Refounded as a cathedral by Henry VIII.
• 1616–1621 William Laud holds the office of Dean of Gloucester
• 1649–1660 Abolition of dean and chapter, reinstated by Charles II
• 1666 Installation of Great Organ by Thomas Harris
• 1735–1752 Martin Benson, Bishop of Gloucester, carried out major repairs and alterations to the cathedral.
• 1847–1873 Beginning of extensive Victorian restoration work (Frederick S. Waller and George Gilbert Scott, architects).
• 1953 Major appeal for the restoration of the cathedral; renewed
• 1968 Cathedral largely re-roofed and other major work completed.
• 1989 900th anniversary appeal.
• 1994 Restoration of tower completed.
• 2000 Celebration of the novecentennial of the consecration of St Peter's Abbey.
• 2015 Installation of Rachel Treweek as the Church of England's first female diocesan bishop.

• Architecture of the medieval cathedrals of England
• Gothic cathedrals and churches
• List of Gothic Cathedrals in Europe
• List of cathedrals in the United Kingdom
• List of tallest structures built before the 20th century
• Christopher Whall works in Gloucester Cathedral

{{notelist}}

{{reflist}}

• {{cite book

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|title=The Parish Church of St Mary and St David at Kilpeck

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• {{cite book |last=Heighway |first=Carolyn |author-link=Carolyn M. Heighway |title=Gloucester Cathedral and Precinct: an archaeological assessment |url=https://www.bgas.org.uk/publications/gcar/gcar-03-x.pdf |date=2003 |publisher=Bristol & Gloucestershire Archaeological Society}}
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• {{cite book

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| publisher = Penguin

| location = London, UK

| isbn = 0140710566

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• {{Cite book

|last=Page|first=William

|title=A History of the County of Gloucester

|url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/glos/vol2/pp53-61

|chapter=The Abbey of St Peter at Gloucester

|volume=2

|series=Victoria County History

|year=1907

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|publisher=Archibald Constable and Company

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|last1=Pevsner|first1=Nikolaus|last2=Metcalf|first2=Priscilla|author-link1=Nikolaus Pevsner

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|series=The Cathedrals of England

|year=2005

|location=Cambridge

|publisher=Folio Society

|oclc=71807455

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• {{cite book

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• {{cite book

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| publisher = Aurum Press

| location=London

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• {{cite book

|last1 = Verey| first1 = David| last2 = Brooks| first2 = Alan

| year = 2002a

| orig-year = 1970

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| series = The Buildings of England

| location = New Haven, US and London

| publisher = Yale University Press

| isbn = 978-0-300-09733-7

| oclc = 249275468| url = https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/249275468

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• {{cite book

|last1=Verey |first1=David |last2=Brooks |first2=Alan

|title=Gloucester: The cathedral church of the Holy and Indivisible Trinity

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{{refbegin}}

• {{cite book |title= Who's who in music and musicians' international directory|last= Simmons|first= D A|year= 1962|edition= 4th.|publisher= Burke's Peerage Ltd|location= London|oclc= 13309419}} Published in America as {{cite book |title= Who's who in music and musicians' international directory|last= Simmons|first= David|year= 1962|edition= 4th.|publisher= Hafner Publishing Company|location= New York|oclc= 12923270}}

{{refend}}

{{commons category|Gloucester Cathedral}}

• {{Official website|http://www.gloucestercathedral.org.uk/ }}
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20060820005604/http://www.ofchoristers.net/Chapters/Gloucester.htm A history of the choristers of Gloucester Cathedral]

{{Cathedrals of the Church of England}}

{{Monasteries in Gloucestershire}}

{{Deans of Gloucester}}

{{Buildings and structures in Gloucester}}

{{Authority control}}

{{Benedictine houses of England and Wales}}

{{Buildings and structures in Gloucester}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gloucester Abbey}}

Category:681 establishments

Category:Anglican cathedrals in England

Category:Benedictine monasteries in England

Category:Church of England church buildings in Gloucester

Category:Coronation church buildings

Category:Diocese of Gloucester

Category:English Gothic architecture in Gloucestershire

Category:Grade I listed churches in Gloucestershire

Category:Grade I listed cathedrals

Category:Grade I listed buildings in Gloucestershire

Category:Grade II* listed buildings in Gloucestershire

Category:Monasteries in Gloucestershire

Category:English churches with Norman architecture

Category:Tourist attractions in Gloucestershire

Category:History of Gloucester

Category:Pre-Reformation Roman Catholic cathedrals

Category:Monasteries dissolved under the English Reformation

Category:Anglo-Saxon monastic houses

Category:Burial sites of the De Lacy family

Category:Burial sites of the House of Normandy