More information : (SU48192927. Old Minster sited from authy 1 and OS 10000 1968)
Old Minster and St Swithun's Monastery. In 648, Cenwalh, leader of the West Saxons, built the church which would later become the Old Minster and Winchester Cathedral, in the SE corner of the Roman fort on the South side of the Forum. It stood a little to the North of the present cathedral nave, part of the South transept and the SW corner of the minster being built over. By 675 it had achieved Cathedral status after the West Saxon bishopric had transferred from Dorchester-on-Thames. The Old Minster was dedicated to St Peter and St Paul.
At the time of its enlargement in the later C10th under Bishop Aethelwold, it was still served by secular priests, but following Aethelwold's reforms, the monks were expelled and replaced by monks of the Benedictine order from Abingdon, thus founding St Swithun's Monastery. From 971-80, the church was extended Westwards over the site of St Swithun's grave, (his body having been transfered), and by 993 the church had further been extended Westwards. It had attained its final cruciform form, being 76m long, with a total area of 354 sq m, the West work standing on a base of 25m square probably standing to a height of 40-50m, the largest building in England at the time. The monastery was also rebuilt during Aethelwold's episcopate.
Throughout the C11th, the Old Minster was the principle church of Wessex, and remained so until the land was required to build the nave of the succeeding Cathedral in 1093. Demolition began on the day after St Swithun's Day, 1093, and was completed in 1094. (1)
Many fragments of grave covers, grave markers, columns, capitals, friexes, string courses etc have been found during excavations on the site of the Old Minster. 96 of these in Winchester City Museum are fully described. (2) |