Bringing together two churches,
a town, businesses and the
local community.
Bringing together two churches,
a town, businesses and the
local community.
Founded 900 years ago, St Mary’s possesses some of the finest architecture of any parish church in England. Here we celebrate its exceptional heritage as we work to restore the entire building over the decade ahead and make it better known.
Beverley Minster is the largest Parish Church in England. John, Bishop of York, founded a monastery on the site where Beverley Minster stands. John died in 721 and the present church was built around his tomb. It has been described as one of Europe’s Gothic masterpieces.
Beverley’s charming streets and courtyards continue to attract history buffs, music lovers, racegoers and shoppers alike. It has an upmarket shopping experience, high street names and independent shops. The Saturday market is ideal for picking up local produce and crafts.
From whichever direction the East Riding of Yorkshire town of Beverley is approached, the twin towers of the Minster and the single tower of St Mary’s dominate the skyline.
On summer evenings the sun casts a golden light on the rich coloured stone of these buildings, widely believed to be two of the finest Gothic churches in Europe. For nearly a thousand years these two churches have acted as beacons drawing the traveller and the pilgrim to the ancient market town of Beverley. Today these two buildings are among the top places to visit in the East Riding attracting more than 60,000 visitors each year. They ‘bookend’ the town and between them they determined the layout, the character and the history of Beverley.
Year by year voted one of the best places to live in the UK, Beverley is a stunning market town with cobbled streets, a popular racecourse, historic buildings, vibrant festivals and small-town charm. There is a thriving music scene and a new theatre whose patrons are Dame Judi Dench and Sir Mark Rylance. A visitor to the town can enjoy spectacular views from Westwood and the Yorkshire Wolds are on its doorstep – an inspiration for the artist David Hockney.
The Vicar of Beverley Minster, Canon Jonathan Baker, spoke of the long-term challenges that the building faces. “Covid-19 affected us in different ways. The maintenance staff were furloughed, but they are back now; so there’s no major issues with our work on the lesser south-transept......
Yorkshire Post 24/06/2020 C S Lewisʼs The Chronicles of Narnia rank among the top childrenʼs literature of all time and many growing up in the 1980s will have nostalgic memories of Sunday afternoon BBC dramatisations. LINK > Now one of Beverleyʼs oldest churches, St Maryʼs,......
