Reading Minster

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Reading Minster, or the Minster Church of St Mary the Virgin as it is more properly known, is the oldest ecclesiastical foundation in Reading, Berkshire, England. Although eclipsed in importance by the later Reading Abbey, Reading Minster has regained its importance since the destruction of the Abbey and is now the seat of the Bishop of Reading.

[edit] History

According to unverified tradition, Saint Birinus founded a small chapel on the site of Reading Minister in the 7th century. Silver coins of the 9th century have been found in the churchyard, dating back to the period when Kings Ethelred and Alfred of Wessex were fighting the Danes at Reading, and also the era in which Reading supplanted Calleva Atrebatum (Silchester) as the local centre of importance.

In 979, Queen Elfrida, wife of King Edgar of England, founded a royal nunnery on the site. All that remains of this nunnery is a rounded Saxon door in the church, most likely used by the nuns to attend church services.

In the 11th century, the Danes sacked Reading and the nunnery was destroyed. By the time of the Domesday Book, the church had been granted to Battle Abbey by William the Conqueror.

In 1121, King Henry I founded Reading Abbey which grew to become one of the most important religious and political centres of England. For the following 400 years the Abbey was the centre of ecclesiastical power in the town, and the Abbot also held the post of Rector of St Mary's.

However in 1539, the Abbey was dissolved on the orders of King Henry VIII. In the reformation that followed, St Mary's church was stripped of its altar, statues and stained glass, and by 1550 was in need of extensive repair. Between the years of 1551 and 1555 the church was extensively restored, using quantities of masonry and timber from the ruins of the Abbey. Contemporary accounts include payments for the dismantling and carriage of the Abbey's choir and nave roof, and is believed that the pillars which now separate the Minster's south aisle from the nave came from the Abbey.

Most of the bells now hung in the Minster's tower date from the 17th and 18th centuries. The present peal consists of three dated 1640, two dated 1740 and two dated 1743. In 1611 the first clock was installed in the tower.

The Minster's Father Willis organ dates from 1862. The church has undergone further restoration in 1863 when a new choir aisle was added, 1872, 1935 and 1997-2003. In 1918 a war memorial chapel, known as St Edwards Chapel, was added with entry through the old Saxon doorway of the nunnery.

[edit] Sources

• Leaflet History of Reading Minster, no stated publisher or publication date, available from the church.