St Davids Cathedral
Britain's smallest city is home to a cathedral built in a hollow so it couldn't be seen from the sea, with a nave floor that climbs uphill and walls that lean.
Published
Quick Facts
- Location
- St Davids, Pembrokeshire, west Wales
- Dedicated to
- St David, patron saint of Wales
- Present building begun
- 1181, under Bishop Peter de Leia
- Setting
- The sheltered Glyn Rhosyn valley beside the River Alun
- Style
- Norman and later medieval, in purple-grey sandstone
- Famous tomb
- Edmund Tudor, father of Henry VII
- Famous quirk
- The nave floor slopes upwards towards the altar
- Neighbour
- The ruined Bishop's Palace, just across the stream
The cathedral that hides from the sea
Stand on the clifftops of Pembrokeshire and you won't see St Davids Cathedral. It sits low in a green hollow, and you only spot the tower when you are almost on top of it. That is no accident of planning. A monastery founded here by David in the 6th century was raided repeatedly by Vikings, and a church tucked out of sight of passing ships was a sensible bet. The cathedral still feels like a secret, even though the city around it is the smallest in Britain.
Two trips here, one to Rome
In the Middle Ages St Davids was a major pilgrimage destination. A popular tradition says that Pope Calixtus II declared in the 1120s that two pilgrimages here were worth one to Rome, and three worth one to Jerusalem. The visitors were not all humble. William the Conqueror came in 1081, Henry II in 1171, and Edward I and Queen Eleanor in 1284. Pilgrims came to the shrine of David, and the shrine is still here. Relics thought to be those of David and his friend Justinian were returned to a reliquary in the Holy Trinity Chapel in 2012.
Built uphill, built wonky
Work on the present church began in 1181 under Bishop Peter de Leia, and the builders were fighting the ground from the start. The site slopes, so the nave floor rises towards the east. You really can feel it as you walk towards the altar. The building has had a rough time. The tower collapsed around 1220, and an earthquake in 1248 is blamed for more damage. Look at the nave arcades and you'll see the walls leaning outwards, a legacy of settling that no restoration has fully cured. Then look up. The nave has a magnificent late medieval oak ceiling, with timber pendants hanging from it like stalactites.
A king's father, and a famously ambitious clergyman
Edmund Tudor, the father of Henry VII, is buried here. His tomb was moved to the cathedral from Carmarthen after the Dissolution of the monasteries, so the Tudor dynasty has a quiet link to this remote corner of Wales. The cathedral also features in the story of Gerald of Wales, the medieval writer who badly wanted to be Bishop of St Davids. He campaigned for years to have the see recognised as an independent Welsh archbishopric, and lost every round. His failure was England's gain and his own annoyance.
Cromwell's soldiers, Nash and Scott
The Civil War was hard on the cathedral. Parliamentary troops damaged the building and stripped lead from the roof, and the nave was left exposed to the weather. Repair came in stages. In the 1790s the architect John Nash shored up the west front, which was in danger of falling. Between 1862 and 1878 George Gilbert Scott carried out a far larger restoration, giving the building much of the look it has today.
What to look for when you visit
Start with the ceiling and the slope of the floor, then find the stone rood screen, which is the work of Bishop Henry de Gower in the 14th century. Gower was also the man behind the nearby Bishop's Palace, whose arcaded parapets are worth the short walk across the stream. St David's restored shrine stands on the north side of the presbytery. Behind the high altar, the Holy Trinity Chapel contains the reliquary associated with St David and St Justinian. Edmund Tudor's tomb lies in the presbytery. Outside, the colour of the stone is lovely, a purplish tint that glows after rain. Take the path up from the cathedral close for the wider view, then head to the coast. St Non's, the traditional birthplace of David, is a short distance away.
Notable people
- St David
- Bishop Peter de Leia
- Bishop Henry de Gower
- Edmund Tudor
- Gerald of Wales
- John Nash
- George Gilbert Scott
- William the Conqueror
- Henry II
- Edward I
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Pembrokeshire Coast National Park
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Wales's smallest national park is almost all coastline, and its hills supplied stones for Stonehenge, its islands hold puffins, and its cliff path climbs more than Everest.