Orientation
The walk is described in four parts, which begin in the cathedral close, at the west end of the cathedral. However, to help with orientation we also look some introductory forays to two hills around Winchester.
Both are popular spots, which provide distant view of the cathedral and its surroundings, and hence help to provide a wider context.
Catherine’s hill lies to the south of the city, close to the notorious Twyford Down, where protestors unsuccessfully tried to stop the M3 motorway cutting through a site of special scientific interest.
This is an appropriate place to begin, because the iron age hill fort which stood here is among the earliest evidence of human settlement in the Winchester area.
Because it gives a clear view up the valley from a high vantage point, the view from St. Catherine’s hill demonstrates how Winchester sits low in the Itchen valley, and how the cathedral dramatically fails to dominate the skyline. The cathedral itself is relatively inconspicuous from a distance. Unlike Salisbury, its nearest neighbour, there is no spire, only a low tower.
Winchester is built on a gravel spur, on the west bank of the river Itchen.
Today Winchester is the county town of Hampshire. It was the capital of Wessex under Alfred the Great. Until the Norman conquest it was the capital of England, and second only to London in size. It remained a major administrative centre under the Normans. William the Conqueror was crowned at both Westminster and Winchester. The Domesday book was collated and held at Winchester.
(Winchester itself does not appear in the Domesday book, presumably because it was a royal city with tax privileges).
Winchester was originally settled in the Iron age. But the present layout of the town is based on the street layout of the Roman town Venta Bulgarum, which was re-established by King Alfred in the 9th century. Winchester peaked in importance in the 13th century, then declined until the 18th.
Our next outing will be to St Giles’ hill, which is the green, grassy area to the right of the satellite photograph.
Running from the top left corner of the satellite photograph to the bottom of St Giles’ hill is the high street. The high street acts as the spine of the town centre, running up to the West Gate at the top of the hill.
The cathedral sits to the south of the high street. It is easy to identify in the satellite photograph, surrounded by the greens of the cathedral close. Two earlier minsters, and an abbey have existed in the same area since Saxon times. The bishops palace still lies within the cathedral grounds.
Surrounding the cathedral grounds there are remains of a medieval defensive wall, with Winchester school, the house where Jane Austen died, a medieval town gate, and the river Itchen all lying just outside the grounds. These are difficult to identify on the satellite photograph, but easy to find on the ground, and we will visit all of them during the walk.
St Giles’ hill overlooks the town from the east. This is where the medieval fairs were held, and today the hill offers a clear view of the cathedral itself, and of its relationship to the town.
On foot, St Giles' hill is a steep climb from the end of the east end of the high street, or from the long-stay car park in Chesil street. However, it can be reached more easily by car from the residential area just beyond. The most straightforward route from the High street is to continue east into Bridge street, cross the river by the old mill, turn left at the roundabout and climb Magdalen hill. Ignore the right turns into St Giles's hill and Baring road, but take the right turn into Petersfield road. Then turn right into Northbrook Avenue. There is limited street parking available.
Today St. Giles Hill is a pleasant park, with seats and paths overlooking the town centre and the cathedral.
The best views are in the morning as the sun rises behind the hill and lights the east end of the cathedral.
This photograph corresponds roughly with the area shown on the street plan, and both cover roughly the southern half of the medieval walled town.
Near to us are the roofs of the Chesil Street car park, various commercial offices, interspersed with a few medieval buildings.
The river Itchen crosses between St Giles’s hill and the cathedral. There is a water mill at the point where the high street crosses the river. The medieval town wall, and some remains of roman town walls, lie along the river bank.
To the right of the picture it is easy to identify the green-roofed tower of the guildhall, but more difficult to identify the statue of King Alfred which stands in the centre of the high street at its easterly end. At the top of the high street, the road is crossed by the old West gate of the town.
In Saxon times the south-east of the city was occupied by the largest group of ecclesiastical buildings in northern Europe. Today the cathedral and surrounding buildings occupy this part of the town.
A cathedral is the seat of a bishop. Some, like Winchester, were also associated with a monastery. The cathedral itself is in the form of a cross, running more or less East to West, and North to South.
Nearest to us in this picture, the chancel forms the “top” of the cross at the east end. It has a high narrow roof, with a low, wider extension. It is the most sacred part of the building, contains the choir, the altar, and held significant religious relics. The two arms of the cross are the north transept to the right of the picture, and the south transept to the left. Apart from the religious significance of forming the arms of a cross, the transepts have practical purposes. They add to the structural strength of the building, as well as providing additional space for chapels. The chancel and transepts would originally be used only by clerics. The largest part of the cross, the nave, is hidden here behind the north transept. It forms the main part of the building, and provided access to the general public.
At the point where transepts, chancel and nave meet there is a short tower.
Broadly speaking English cathedral architecture falls into four groupings (far be it from me to draw any parallels with the IT industry here):
Some more examples of English gothic architecture
At heart this is an early Norman building. Construction began in 1079 to replace an earlier Saxon cathedral which lay just to the north of the present building. The only parts of the original early Norman building which remain essentially unchanged are the north and south transept. The original tower collapsed in 1107, and had to be rebuilt, in a later Norman style, and with better quality construction.
Starting in 1202 the entire east end of the cathedral was rebuilt. Work began with a new lady chapel attached to the existing chancel, but over 200 years the Norman chancel was completely replaced. In the second half of the 14th century (1345-1404) the nave was remodelled, leaving the existing structure in place, but with a dramatic change of style. In the 15th century the chapels at the far east of the cathedral were remodelled, and then in the 19th and early 20th century a substantial amount of restoration work was carried out.
Navigation
This view of the cathedral, looking eastwards from the cathedral close, emphasises the large size of the nave. The close is where the walk around the exterior of the building begins.
The cathedral close is south of the high street, and well signposted from the surrounding streets.
Click on the picture to continue with the walk around the exterior of the cathedral.
