St Michael's Church/Coventry Cathedral [split from Legend of Blitzkid]

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Re: Coventry History...

Postby Blitzkid » Sat Mar 25, 2023 11:48 am

COVENTRY--ST. MICHAEL'S CHURCH

The loss, is the more to be regretted. When the Cathedral was finished A specimen Of sheer beauty, the most beautiful steeple in Europe. A tower enriched with saintly figures on the sides, an octagon rising out of it, that lengthened into an elegant spire. Every part is so finely proportional that Sir Christopher Wren spoke of it as a masterpiece of architecture. The outside extremely handsome, the inside light and lofty, consisting a body and two aisles divided by four rows of high pillars and arches. The height of the steeple and length of the church are the same, three hundred and three feet, the width one hundred and four feet. The steeple was begun in the reign of Edward 111 in 1372, by the two brothers Adam and William Botoner at their own expense. It took over twenty years. The body was rebuilt in the reign of Henry VI, some ornament was added to the steeple at the same time.

By 1886 with the dissolution and Coventry weather it was in a sorry state, stones were falling from the steeple, when a person called ANDREWS a designer of silk ribbons formed a committee to restore the Cathedral. (the bells in the fabric of the tower was Questionable) The committee set out to raise funds for the restoration, ANDREWS was asked to lay a stone above the old foundations about 1888 and the Cathedral was restored to it's former beauty.

Saturday morning (the day the King visited) I visited with my Father. I saw grown men weeping at the destruction but slowly their fists closed. It was to be regretted by everyone but the Germans...
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Re: Coventry History...

Postby Blitzkid » Mon Mar 27, 2023 10:55 am

Can you believe Coventry people had scraped and saved in hard times to restore St Michael's put it back to it's former glory? The Germans destroyed it but a small group of men of power stopped it been restored again although the money could be supplied. Whenever a coal mine tragedy in Britain happened the Cathedral was packed to capacity for the coal miners of Coventry had great sympathy.
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Re: Coventry History...

Postby Blitzkid » Wed Apr 12, 2023 10:33 am

Dutchman, right from before the war Coventry has been getting it's history wrong. The cathedral is not the building the Bottomlys built in the 14th century. After the dissolution and Coventry weather, the cathedral was falling apart, great stones were falling from the steeple, so in 1886 a silk ribbon designer called ADAMS got together formed a committee, raised funds, and restored it to its former glory. He was called upon to lay the first stone on its foundations.

If Brindley built the canal how could he sack himself? No, Thomas Yeoman built the Coventry Canal.
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Re: Legend of Blitzkid

Postby Blitzkid » Thu Apr 13, 2023 9:45 am

It would be wrong to think St Michael's Cathedral in Coventry was the cathedral that the Bottomley brothers built in the 14th century. In 1882 a young man, a silk ribbon designer named ANDREWS was narrowly missed by a large stone from the steeple. The church was in a dilapidated state since the reformation of Henry VIII and Coventry's weather so he called together a few businessmen. They raised funds to restore it to it's former Glory, they widened the body of the church, he was called on to lay the first stone of the steeple on the foundations and by 1886-8 it was back to it's former Glory. Less than 60 years later it was destroyed by fire and never re-built on the same site.
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Re: Legend of Blitzkid

Postby Blitzkid » Fri Apr 14, 2023 11:23 am

They did have services there, all this you can read in ANDREWS' Diary inside the Gutteridge book. This book was lodged in Gladstone's Hawarden Library, ANDREWS was paid £70 by Gladstone. Hawarden is on the Welsh border, the book finally turning up in Coventry's archives.

From the book, the Baptist movement was established in Longford in 1759 and NUNEATON railway 1847, the new church was begun in 1843.

Queen Victoria combined visits to Coventry and Stoneleigh Abbey.
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Re: Legend of Blitzkid

Postby Blitzkid » Sat Apr 15, 2023 11:28 am

Coventry Cathedral was completely rebuilt in 1882-6, from foundations upwards. The body of the church was widened, they built a choir stall (they used to sing in the aisles) a golden eagle that sat on the new Pulpit, the flags of reg'ts on the rail that ran the length of the church. So it was less than sixty years old when the Luftwaffe bombed it.
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Re: Legend of Blitzkid

Postby Blitzkid » Thu Apr 27, 2023 8:59 am

Dutchman, yes Coventry Cathedral was built from the foundations upwards in 1886 time and the book that proves it was in Cladstone's Library at Hawarden long before Coventry's Herald newspaper.

You can google Hawarden if you wish to confirm, regards Kaga.
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Re: Legend of Blitzkid

Postby rebbonk » Thu Apr 27, 2023 2:20 pm

Interesting Library, Blitzkid. I'll explore the content when I have time. :thumbsup:
Of course it'll fit; you just need a bigger hammer.
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Re: Legend of Blitzkid

Postby Blitzkid » Thu Apr 27, 2023 2:31 pm

Yes Gladstone paid £70 out of some fund or other
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Re: Legend of Blitzkid

Postby dutchman » Fri Apr 28, 2023 3:52 am

Blitzkid wrote:Dutchman, yes Coventry Cathedral was built from the foundations upwards in 1886 time and the book that proves it was in Cladstone's Library at Hawarden long before Coventry's Herald newspaper.

You can google Hawarden if you wish to confirm, regards Kaga.

No need, thanks. According to british-history.ac.uk it was rebuilt between 1883 and 1889 so as you say was less than sixty-years old when it was finally destroyed. Steel beams were installed in the roof at the same time and it was the twisting of these in the extreme heat of the Blitz which contributed towards the collapse of the building.
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