Bradford Cathedral, or the Cathedral Church of St Peter, is an

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a Metropolitan counties of England, metropolitan and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and east, South Yorkshire and De ...

, England, one of three co-equal cathedrals in the Diocese of Leeds alongside

Ripon Ripon () is a cathedral city and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. The city is located at the confluence of two tributaries of the River Ure, the Laver and Skell. Within the boundaries of the historic West Riding of Yorkshire, the ...

and

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 109,766 in the 2021 census, up from 99,251 in the 2011 census. The city is the administrative centre of the wider Metropolit ...

. Its site has been used for Christian worship since the 7th century, when missionaries based in

Dewsbury Dewsbury is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees in West Yorkshire, England. It lies on the River Calder, West Yorkshire, River Calder and on an arm of the Calder and Hebble Navigation waterway. It is to the west of Wakefield, ...

evangelised the area. For many centuries it was the

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

St Peter Saint Peter (born Shimon Bar Yonah; 1 BC – AD 64/68), also known as Peter the Apostle, Simon Peter, Simeon, Simon, or Cephas, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus and one of the first leaders of the early Christian Church. He appears repe ...

and achieved cathedral status in 1919. The cathedral is a

Grade I listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

Background

The first church on the site was believed to have been built in

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...

times and fell into ruin after the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, French people, French, Flemish people, Flemish, and Bretons, Breton troops, all led by the Du ...

in 1066. A second church was built around 1200. The first mention of the parish of Bradford as distinct from being part of the parish of Dewsbury appears in the register of the Archbishop of York in 1281. Alice de Lacy, widow of Edmund de Lacy, one of the descendants of Ilbert de Lacy, gave a grant to the parish of Bradford that is recorded in the register of the Archbishop Wickwayne. Around 1327, Scottish raiders burnt down most of this stone church. During the 14th century the church was rebuilt and some of the older masonry may have been used in the reconstruction of the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

. The construction of the third church was completed in 1458. The tower in the

Perpendicular In geometry, two geometric objects are perpendicular if they intersect at right angles, i.e. at an angle of 90 degrees or π/2 radians. The condition of perpendicularity may be represented graphically using the '' perpendicular symbol'', � ...

style was added to the west end and finished in 1508. A

clerestory A clerestory ( ; , also clearstory, clearstorey, or overstorey; from Old French ''cler estor'') is a high section of wall that contains windows above eye-level. Its purpose is to admit light, fresh air, or both. Historically, a ''clerestory' ...

was added by the end of the 15th century. Proprietary chapels were founded, on the north side of the chancel by the Leventhorpe family, and on the south by the owners of Bolling Hall. In 1854 Robert Mawer carved a new

reredos A reredos ( , , ) is a large altarpiece, a screen, or decoration placed behind the altar in a Church (building), church. It often includes religious images. The term ''reredos'' may also be used for similar structures, if elaborate, in secular a ...

Caen stone Caen stone () is a light creamy-yellow Jurassic limestone quarried in north-western France near the city of Caen. The limestone is a fine grained oolitic limestone formed in shallow water lagoons in the Bathonian Age about 167 million years ...

for the church. There is a photograph of it in the church archive. This reredos was lost during the 1950s rebuild by

Edward Maufe Sir Edward Brantwood Maufe, RA, FRIBA (12 December 1882 – 12 December 1974) was an English architect and designer. He built private homes as well as commercial and institutional buildings, and is remembered chiefly for his work on place ...

. Originally in the

Diocese of York The Diocese of York is an administrative division of the Church of England, part of the Province of York. It covers the city of York, the eastern part of North Yorkshire, and most of the East Riding of Yorkshire. The diocese is headed by the ar ...

, the church was in the Diocese of Ripon before becoming a cathedral in 1919, when the

Diocese of Bradford The Diocese of Bradford is a former Church of England diocese within the Province of York. The diocese covered the area of the City of Bradford, Craven district, the former Sedbergh Rural District now in Cumbria and the parts of the Lancashi ...

was created; it became one of three co-equal cathedrals of the new Diocese of Leeds upon its creation on 20 April 2014. The building was extended in the 1950s and 1960s by Edward Maufe. The east end of the cathedral is Maufe's work, as well as the two west wings which contain the Song Room and Cathedral offices. In his east end extension he reused the Morris & Co.

stained glass Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a material or art and architectural works created from it. Although it is traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensio ...

from the old east window. There is Victorian stained glass throughout the building including at the west end, where there is a window showing women of the

Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...

, and stained glass in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

memorial window dating from 1921. The many wall monuments include a sculpture by

John Flaxman John Flaxman (6 July 1755 – 7 December 1826) was a British sculptor and draughtsman, and a leading figure in British and European Neoclassicism. Early in his career, he worked as a modeller for Josiah Wedgwood's pottery. He spent several yea ...

. In 1987 the nave and west end were re-ordered to accommodate a growing number of visitors. The roof panelling was cleaned and restored, and new lighting was installed. To enable flexibility of use, the Victorian pews were replaced by chairs. The nave

organ Organ and organs may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a group of tissues organized to serve a common function * Organ system, a collection of organs that function together to carry out specific functions within the body. Musical instruments ...

was removed to give more light and space at the west end, and a Bradford Computer Organ was installed, complementing the pipe organ in the choir with loudspeakers in the nave, though this is no longer in use. At the beginning of the 21st century, the cathedral authorities decided to develop a museum of religion in St Peter's House (built in the 19th century as Bradford's main

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...

). The visitor numbers were much lower than expected, and the project collapsed, leaving the cathedral in debt, from which it was discharged in 2007. St Peter's House is now owned by a South Asian arts group, Kala Sangam. The cathedral is set in a small

conservation area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewoo ...

which includes the close to its north. The close provides modern housing for the dean and canons residentiary, the bishop's official residence, ''Bishopcroft'', being in Heaton, approximately from the city centre. The cathedral and its predecessors were built on the shelf of alluvial land that had formed on the outside of the bend where Bradford Beck turns north, but the town grew up on the lower ground on the other side of the beck, so the church was always just outside the centre of town. In the 19th and 20th centuries the cathedral was partly hidden from the centre by buildings, first by the post office just below it, and subsequently by the 1960s developments of Forster Square and Petergate. The latter areas were demolished in 2006, leaving the cathedral more visible than for many years prior to the completion of the Broadway Centre in 2015. File:Exterior of Cathedral.jpg, Exterior of the cathedral File:The clerestory.jpg, Pre-

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

font cover at left, and the

windows above File:The nave inside the Cathedral.jpg, The nave inside the cathedral

Dean and chapter

As of 21 May 2023: * Dean – Andy Bowerman (since 19 June 2022) *Canon for Intercultural Mission and the Arts – Ned Lunn (since 31 January 2023)

Music

Bradford Cathedral has long been a place of music. During term-time, Choral Services are sung as follows: Sunday 10.30 am Choral Eucharist (rotates girls/adults, boys/adults or Cathedral Consort); Sunday 3:30 pm Choral Evensong (adults choir); Monday 5:30 pm Choral Evensong (girls choir); Tuesday 5:30 pm Choral Evensong (boys choir) The boys and girls of the Choir sing as separate top lines and are drawn from as many as 20 local schools at any time. New entrants spend a couple of terms as a probationer, receiving basic training in singing and musicianship, before progressing to full membership. Full choristers have the opportunity to take up individual, free-of-charge tuition in singing, musicianship, theory or piano on a 1:1 basis each week. The lay clerks of the Choir are highly skilled volunteers, most of whom make their living outside of music. In September 2015 residential choral scholarships were introduced. The Cathedral Consort, a high standard chamber choir consisting of adult sopranos and lay clerks, completes the Choral Foundation. In addition to the schedule above, the Choir also performs other concerts and services within and outside the diocese. Although foreign tours have been undertaken, the most recent being to Barcelona in 2010 and Bavaria in 2008, touring more recently has been within the UK, with the girls and boys each undertaking a residential tour annually, with or without the choir adults. Tours have been undertaken in recent years to Bristol, Worcester, Edinburgh and Durham. The girls and men are involved with the annual Yorkshire Cathedrals' Girls' Choirs' Festival and hosted the Festal Evensong in March 2015. The boy choristers had not been involved with the Yorkshire Three Choirs Festival since 1981, but with the recent renaissance of an independent boys' top-line at the cathedral they, along with the lay clerks, were re-included in this annual festival from October 2015. Bradford Cathedral hosted the festival in October 2016. In July 2012, the Choir recorded two services for the BBC Radio 2 Sunday Half Hour programme, which were broadcast in Autumn 2012, and the girls and men sang live for BBC Radio 4 Sunday Worship in December 2012. The Choir recorded a CD of Evening Canticles, including Humphrey Clucas's 'Bradford Service' in November 2013, and February 2014 saw the Choir recording two programmes of BBC Songs of Praise, airing on 2 March 2014 and

Palm Sunday Palm Sunday is the Christian moveable feast that falls on the Sunday before Easter. The feast commemorates Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem, an event mentioned in each of the four canonical Gospels. Its name originates from the palm bran ...

, 13 April 2014. Since 2015, the Choir has performed annually with the European Union Chamber Orchestra, singing

Vivaldi Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist, impresario of Baroque music and Roman Catholic priest. Regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, Vivaldi's influence during his lif ...

's '' Gloria'',

Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( ; ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

's '' Little Organ Mass'', and

Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; ; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. Despite his short life, Schubert left behind a List of compositions ...

's '' Mass No. 2 in G major''. A specification of the William Hill pipe organ (1904), with later modifications by Hill, Norman & Beard (1961) and J. W. Walker (1977), can be found on the

National Pipe Organ Register The British Institute of Organ Studies (BIOS) is a British organisation and registered charity which aims to promote study and appreciation of all aspects of the pipe organ. Further, it acts as a lobbying body to raise awareness of organ issue ...

. A series of organ recitals takes place on many Wednesday lunchtimes throughout the year at 1.00 pm, attracting many well-known players. An Organ Appeal was launched in February 2013, aiming to raise £250,000 over several years, in order to secure the continued reliability of the instrument, as well as making possible several tonal adjustments. A. J. Carter of

and Andrew Cooper are working in conjunction to carry out this work on a phased basis over the coming years. The first phase, entailing the substantial upgrading of the console, was carried out in October 2014. The second phase, to clean, revoice and extend the Chancel (Positive) Division, was completed in the first half of 2018.

Organists and Directors of Music

* John Simpson – 1860 * Absalom Rawnsley Swaine – 1893 * Henry Coates 1893–1939 * Charles Hooper 1939–1963 * Keith Vernon Rhodes 1963–1981 * Geoffrey John Weaver 1982–1986 * Alan Graham Horsey 1986–2002 * Andrew Teague 2003–2011 * Alexander Woodrow 2012–2016 * Alexander Berry 2017–2023 * Graham Thorpe 2023-

Sub Organists and Assistant Directors of Music

* Martin D. Baker 1982–2004 (Asst. Organist) * Jonathan Kingston 1997–2000 (Sub Organist) * Paul Bowen 2004–2011 — Paul Bowen held the office of Cathedral Organist from late 2011 to late 2014 * David Condry 2009–2012 * Jonathan Eyre 2012–2016 * Jon Payne 2016–2018 * Ed Jones 2018–2019 * Graham Thorpe 2019–2023 * Anthony Gray 2023-2024 * William Campbell 2025-

Monuments of interest

*Memorial to Abraham Balme main promoter of the Bradford Canal, sculpted by

RA.Dictionary of British Sculptors 1660–1851 by Rupert Gunnis p. 150 *Monument to Abraham Sharp (d.1742) by

Peter Scheemakers Peter Scheemakers or Pieter Scheemaeckers II or the Younger (10 January 1691 – 12 September 1781) was a Southern Netherlands, Flemish sculptor who worked for most of his life in London. His public and church sculptures in a classicism, classici ...

*Monument to Robert Lowry Turner and George Whyte Watson *The Bradford City Football Ground Fire Disaster Memorial *The Battle of the Steeple / Market Charter plaque *Memorial to Joseph Priestley

References

Bibliography

The Dioceses Commission's Yorkshire Review — A Guide to the Report

External links

* * * {{Bradford Churches completed in 1965 20th-century Church of England church buildings Buildings and structures in Bradford Anglican cathedrals in England Grade I listed cathedrals Grade I listed churches in West Yorkshire Church of England church buildings in West Yorkshire English Gothic architecture in West Yorkshire Diocese of Bradford Anglican Diocese of Leeds Basilicas (Church of England) 15th-century church buildings in England