'The Ship of the Fens'. Ely Cathedral, Cambridgeshire
The cathedral and town of Ely are built on what was once an island surrounded by the vast marshes and boggy wetlands known as the Fens.
Its watery past is remembered in its name; 'Ely' means Isle of eels.
Attempts to drain those wetlands known as the Fens that cover a huge part of eastern England began in the 17th century, but weren't really successful until the early 19th century when steam and then electric pumps could be used.
The cathedral can be seen for huge distances across the flat, featureless landscape of the fens and it is indeed reminiscent of a ship in full sail, sailing above the rich black soils of the area.
I saw this for myself travelling to our BnB in a village on the edge of the fens near Newmarket, but at first I thought it was a power station far in the distance, visible on the flat horizon. I was thrilled to find it was the cathedral, still dominating the view from all around as it has done for nearly 1000 years.
...And, rather fancifully, it was a religious power station of its day, at a time when belief was the only explanation for everything.
Viewed from the gardens of the Almonry in the Cathedral Close. A destination café selling teas and light lunches in a pillared and vaulted 13th century building.
'The Ship of the Fens'. Ely Cathedral, Cambridgeshire
The cathedral and town of Ely are built on what was once an island surrounded by the vast marshes and boggy wetlands known as the Fens.
Its watery past is remembered in its name; 'Ely' means Isle of eels.
Attempts to drain those wetlands known as the Fens that cover a huge part of eastern England began in the 17th century, but weren't really successful until the early 19th century when steam and then electric pumps could be used.
The cathedral can be seen for huge distances across the flat, featureless landscape of the fens and it is indeed reminiscent of a ship in full sail, sailing above the rich black soils of the area.
I saw this for myself travelling to our BnB in a village on the edge of the fens near Newmarket, but at first I thought it was a power station far in the distance, visible on the flat horizon. I was thrilled to find it was the cathedral, still dominating the view from all around as it has done for nearly 1000 years.
...And, rather fancifully, it was a religious power station of its day, at a time when belief was the only explanation for everything.
Viewed from the gardens of the Almonry in the Cathedral Close. A destination café selling teas and light lunches in a pillared and vaulted 13th century building.