St Albans Cathedral

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The Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Alban commemorates the first Christian martyr in England. Towards the end of the third century, when Britain was still part of the Roman Empire and the town of St Albans was still called Verulamium, Alban (a Romano-British citizen) sheltered a Christian priest, who later came to be known as Amphibalus. Alban was converted to Christianity by Amphibalus and later exchanged places with him and was executed by the Romans in an act of supreme self sacrifice.

Alban was probably buried in the nearby Roman cemetery and towards the end of the eighth century a Saxon Benedictine monastery was built in his memory. This was subsequently replaced, in 1077, by a Norman church. Parts of the earlier building can still be seen today within the current structure. Saxon remains can be viewed in the triforium of the north and south transepts and various other stages of rebuilding are still visible from the periods between the twelfth and fourteenth centuries.

In 1539 King Henry VIII split from Rome and dissolved the monasteries, including the one at St Albans; the gatehouse and abbey church are all that remain of the Benedictine abbey. The gatehouse was converted for use as a prison and the Lady Chapel, became a grammar school. During the nineteenth century funds were raised for the restoration of the church and the architect, Sir George Gilbert Scott, was appointed to carry out the work. He continued with this until his death in 1878, by which time (1877) the Abbey Church was raised to the status of cathedral for Hertfordshire and Essex. Scott is probably more famously remembered for having designed the Albert Memorial and the (recently restored) St Pancras Hotel.

Visitors to the Cathedral can join a guided tour, or a highlights tour, so that they can learn more about the building and its history, and there are also special trails and activity mornings for children. There is a gift shop within the Cathedral, where you can purchase books, greetings and postcards and gifts for weddings and baptisms. In addition there is a sale of charity Christmas cards that takes place in the weeks leading up to the festive season.

Don't forget that the Abbey is primarily a place of worship and runs services seven days a week, and has its own choirs, musicians and organ and a bell tower (reached by 205 steps) dating back to the late eleventh century. If you're brave enough to climb all the way up, and then back down again, you may be in dire need of refreshment. The Café at the Abbey serves a large selection of sandwiches, salads, hot and cold savoury dishes and homemade cakes. It can also be hired for special events and group tours.

If you decide to visit on your own without the benefit of a tour guide, several parts of the Cathedral should not be missed. These include the High Altar Screen (built in the fifteenth century), the Rose Window (opened by Diana, Princess of Wales in 1989), the St Alban's Shrine (dating from 1308 and recently restored), the Shrine of St Amphibalus and the Wall Paintings in the Nave where pilgrims used to pray before visiting the Shrine of St Alban.

These paintings were whitewashed during the Reformation and only revealed in 1862.


St Albans is twenty miles north of London, following the old Roman road of Watling Street, and can be reached easily by car or by train.

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