Bath Abbey I
Bath Abbey in the early morning light.
Bath Abbey dates back to the end of the 11th century – when Bishop John transferred his seat from Wells, demolished the city’s Saxon Abbey and replaced it with a Norman Cathedral that doubled as the church of the monastery – but there were religious buildings on the same site for many hundreds of years before.
Much of the work was carried out by Bishop Oliver King in the late 15th century. The bishop was said to have had a vision of angles ascending and descending a ladder during his visit to Bath in 1499 and the west front depicts that vision.
The monastery was dissolved by Henry VIII in 1539, but the church itself was saved and in 1574 Queen Elizabeth I promoted its restoration, which was completed by 1611.
Wear and tear meant it was restored once more by Sir George Gilbert Scott in the 1860s and again in the late 20th century, more damage having been inflicted by bombing during the Second World War.
Bath Abbey I
Bath Abbey in the early morning light.
Bath Abbey dates back to the end of the 11th century – when Bishop John transferred his seat from Wells, demolished the city’s Saxon Abbey and replaced it with a Norman Cathedral that doubled as the church of the monastery – but there were religious buildings on the same site for many hundreds of years before.
Much of the work was carried out by Bishop Oliver King in the late 15th century. The bishop was said to have had a vision of angles ascending and descending a ladder during his visit to Bath in 1499 and the west front depicts that vision.
The monastery was dissolved by Henry VIII in 1539, but the church itself was saved and in 1574 Queen Elizabeth I promoted its restoration, which was completed by 1611.
Wear and tear meant it was restored once more by Sir George Gilbert Scott in the 1860s and again in the late 20th century, more damage having been inflicted by bombing during the Second World War.