AMAA - 10 English Cathedrals / Churches - STUNNING! - Reaction by Average Middle Aged American

In this video, I react to and discuss the video: "Top 10 Castles to Visit in England - UK Travel Guide." My commentary is based on being an Average Middle Aged American who has not ever seen an English Castle or even a European Castle in real life. :-)
Original Video: • Top 10 Castles to Visi...
‪@TRIPXTREME‬
Rochester Castle, Kent - Arundel Castle, West Sussex - Bodiam Castle, East Sussex - Alnwick Castle, Northumberland - Leeds Castle, Broomfield, Kent - Highclere Castle, Newbury, Hampshire - Warwick Castle, Warwickshire - Tower of London, City of London - Dover Castle, Kent - Windsor Castle, Berkshire
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[@trampertravels]

These are crafted buildings and were made using skilled carpenters who created the 'form work' that is all the curves were first done in wood. To get the balance between shapes, then you use 'ratio' between the height and width of the building you want to create and the individual elements of the building. Often the people paying for the building wanted it in a far from ideal position, for instance Westminster Abbey was built on the muddy edge of the River Thames and so an oak raft was created onto which the stone church was built. The leader was the 'Master Builder' or 'Master Mason' and everything was his responsibility immaterial of what crafts were involved. A Cathedral might take 400 years to complete, but really they are never complete because the work never stops.

[@stuartfitch7093]

I live just a few miles down the road from Lincoln cathedral and to see it in real life is even more magnificent than the pictures of it.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

What a treat for your guests.

[@austin12ascot]

If you go to Salisbury Cathedral there is a model showing how the Cathedral was built. The human hamster wheel is still in the tower which was used to raise stone. It was built in 1220 to 1235. In the Cathedral you can see the oldest working clock in the world, from the 1300's. Also the best copy of the Magna Carta is there. Well worth a visit.

[@TerranSol]

Just for reference. My parents live in a 120 year old house (that's not considered old in Britain) the roof has only been replaced once though the original roof was Welsh slate which is the strongest slate in the world and can last upto 200 years. We use slate in Britain. Which generally lasts about 75-100 years. The rooves of the cathedrals have Ben replaced many times.

[@dazzelcop1019]

The cloisters, stone-vaulted passageways surrounding the garth or grassed area in the middle, were integral to the monastic communities who ocupied these cathedrals. They were used by the monks to copy books or manuscrips (scriptorium), and also a space where novices were educated. The word cloister means a covered walkway.

[@hypsyzygy506]

At Guédelon in France you can visit an experimental archaeology project that is building a new medieval castle from scratch, using medieval techniques. Once they've done the castle they'll build an Abbey, and a village. KZbin has several videos on the project which are well worth seeing, giving insight into the tools and techniques they would have used. Including cranes.

[@jeffthomas2364]

Wow is that still going on? I remember the documentary on BBC years ago about it when the project first begun.

[@weejackrussell]

The walkways, that you are puzzled about are called cloisters.

[@johnhankinson1929]

a cloister is covered but open sided on the outside of a building or university designed to get from one area to another without getting wet and not internal at 10.38 those were cloisters

[@hypsyzygy506]

Cloisters are a standard part of a monastery, and the abbey church of a large and rich monastery would be splendid, and suitable for a bishop to place his chair ('cathedra'). Other cathedrals would be founded as such, and a monastery would be attached. Cloisters enclosed a protected open space, warmer than the temperature in the surrounding fields and vegetable gardens, which would often be used as a herb garden providing tender medicinal and culinary herbs, with bee hives to provide honey and wax. The cloisters themselves were a walkway that linked all the major parts of the monastery. Carrels - a semi enclosed writing booth - might be placed along the walls below the windows, for scribes and illuminators to copy books. The cloister and garden would be used for private prayer and meditation outside the liturgical services.

[@mauricestevenson5740]

According to Wikipedia, it took 453 years to build Winchester Cathedral (1079-1532). There is a spot you can stand and see 5 different styles of ecclesiastic architecture. I suspect the work was not continuous over that period... It is a spectacular and impressive building. I visited Winchester several times and on one visit, the organist was practising a piece of music, so I heard organ music in the place it was written for. One of the things that interested me was what happened when the playing stopped momentarily: the music continued to reverberate through the building. It gave an extra dimension to the sound. I once took a friend, a citizen of the USA, in to Winchester for a look around. When we went into the cathedral, we entered through one of the side doors. She immediately lifted her camera to take photos. I told her to wait and follow me. I led her out into the nave looking down towards the altar. I then told her to turn around. When she saw the window over the front door, she nearly dropped her camera.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

I can't wait!

[@missharry5727]

I used to be in a choir that regularly sang in Winchester Cathedral. It can be difficult to find the right music to perform there because of the reverberant acoustic.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

@@missharry5727 - that is awesome. Thanks for sharing!

[@mariahoulihan9483]

I have visited a lot of the Cathedrals shown. My brother, when serving in the Royal Navy, marched with his shipmatres through Salisbury as they were on HMS Salisbury which I think had the Freedom of the City bestowed upon it and its crew members. The march through the city culminated at the Catherdral and a service was held there

[@Mark_Bickerton]

St Pauls, rebuilt by Christopher Wren followinig the great fire of London 1666... took 35 years. In fact I think he died before it was finished, but there is a small alcove that says something like, "Reader, if you seek his monument... look around you"

[@simondobbs4480]

I lived in a small town , Southwell, that has a cathedral, namely Southwell Minster. It is mainly Norman architecture. The school I went to , Southwell Minster Grammar School, was founded to provide boys for the cathedral choir. My school was founded in 956.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

956? Incredible!

[@RuneRelic]

Your courtyard is what we call a cloister 'What is a cloister in a cathedral? A cloister may be the monastery or convent that encloses a religious community away from the world, monks as well as canons, priests living together under a rule. Architecturally, a cloister is the open courtyard that connects the various buildings of the monastery by means of a covered walkway'

[@paulusarnhelm704]

I walk past York Minster a few times a week and it never ceases to amaze me how gigantic it is.....and all built by hand tools.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Just crazy!

[@vezhopkins714]

been to York minster and they have a work shop behind it in the grounds where they carve replacement stones for the ones that have been weathered away over the years really cool seeing it done ( York minster took about 250 years to finish as the labours kept dyeing of the plague)

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Sounds cool. Thanks!

[@onecupof_tea]

I was walking along the Thames by Southwark Cathedral, and saw the same. There were stonemasons in the court yard, carving and chiselling lumps of stone, to do repairs. It's like being transported back hundreds of years. There was also a cat asleep on a cushion inside the Cathedral, he was a stray who had wandered in years ago, and made it his home.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

@onecupof_tea - i am glad they are not taking the cheap way out. Thanks for commenting!

[@valeriedavidson2785]

Spain has some wonderful old churches and buildings.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

I will be checking them out. Thanks!

[@mariospacagna2132]

Washington DC was built by British stone masons and was only completed in recent years. The style is a mixture of all the elements of other Cathedral. The font is carved from a solid piece of stone donated by The Archbishop of Canterbury.

[@user-ox9ec1id9x]

The individual pieces of stone were not carved in place but made elsewhere & then brought together to make the whole. You will note many pieces are identical, so put together almost like lego. Most are made of sandstone cut in local, but sometimes distant quarries. Some stone in London was shipped across the English Channel from France, as the south east of England doesn't have much good building stone. They did have cranes of a sort, like big 'hamster wheels', some remain in the attics of these buildings where they were last used. Salisbury Cathedral, built in one continuous campaign took about 50 years, in the 14th century. Saint Paul's in London took about 20 years. It was built to replace the original Church burnt down in the Great fire of London in 1666. Besides the many Cathedrals in the major cities there were also hundreds of similar sized churches in monasteries all over the UK. Most of these are ruined since King Henry 8th closed them down in c 1540 to seize their assets when he broke the English Church away from Rome. The courtyards you noted are Cloisters, square areas beside the churches where monks used to work on writings etc. Most Cathedrals had monastic communities attached to them. The buildings when new looked very different to how they appear today, because they were originally almost totally painted in bright colours, with gilded details. The whole thing was to make them seem like bits of Heaven on Earth, bright & glowing in vibrant colour, with the stained glass windows & painted interiors. The many statues of saints & Kings etc were painted in naturalistic detail, very little was left in the bare stone colour, but fancy coloured marbles etc were also used. These buildings have always needed constant repair as the stone etc erodes due to weather & climate. In the past they never worried about conserving things, but extended & replaced structures in the latest style as much as they wanted. In fact there was a sort of competition going on all the time, to see who could build the best, biggest, latest design, to display the wealth & dedication of each community. The great East window of York Minster Cathedral just cost £12 million to repair, & the whole building cost about £4 million per year to keep going, with a permanent staff of stone masons replacing worn stone. This is very much the same with all the other Cathedrals. In the Medieval period they were the major capitol investment of the country, employing most members of society in one way or another. Besides these great Cathedrals cities & towns in the UK often had many more lesser Churches, while even the smallest villages had at least one. All of these were made to the same purpose, according to the wealth of each place, but always in stone glazed & decorated in the same manner. Castles had a totally different purpose, they were built for military action & defence, but they did not neglect architectural style altogether, including using aesthetics & symmetry in their design. They were also made to impress & intimidate the local population, as well as potential enemies. A similar competition between the Lords who built them may sometimes be noticed, but their defensive needs were more important. They didn't need to look pretty.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Thank you for the info. I am glad that these sites are getting the attention they deserve!

[@onecupof_tea]

We have Portland stone, which is the white stone you see on large London buildings. It's still quarried in Portland, Dorset, and you can visit.

[@coot1925]

The whole of Europe is covered in buildings like these. A mate of mine is a stone mason and said that sometimes masons would put their own cheeky little extra bit on the back of an item that needed replacing. He once put a pair of breasts on the back of a gargoyle. Nobody can see it unless they get up there to clean or repair it, at which point they would have a good giggle.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Love It!

[@onecupof_tea]

All builders will sign and date their work, even if it's only other builders who will see it.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

@@onecupof_tea - that is cool

[@bobdurrant8558]

I live in Norwich, a city in Norfolk, England, where our anglican cathedral is over 900 years old and has the second highest spire in England. To me, what makes it more amazing is that most of the stone used to build it actually came from France! It was brought from the sea, up the river Yare to a man made canal leading to the building site! Not in those days could they phone the suppliers in Caan ( the area the stone came from) and ask for a couple of tons of faced stone! Beggars belief how they actually achieved it all!

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Blows my mind! Thanks for sharing!

[@anitaherbert1037]

RIPON CATHEDRAL is often overlooked as its in a tiny city the size of a small town with 3 rivers a small marina, a small racecourse and near both WORLD HERITAGE SITE FOUNTAINS ABBEY STUDLEY PARK ROYAL AND WATER GARDENS, AND DEER PARK. also NEWBY HALL, BRIMHAM ROCKS, MOTHER SHIPTONS CAVE and the victoriana spa town of Harrogate.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Thank you for commenting and checking out my channel!

[@mathewdunstan4142]

in Sailsbury Cathedral the height of the choir is 84 feet the length of the nave is 234 feet and it is 78 feet wide the whole cathedral was built in 38 years. An interesting (though fictional) book about the building of a medieval cathedral is "Pillars of the earth" by Ken Follett

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Thanks for the information!

[@craig3782]

Also made into a film. Also well worth watching, if you haven't seen

[@Leslie-cg7ph]

Come across the pond and walk into these cathedrals.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

It is going to happen!

[@dazzelcop1019]

Only to add, the stonemasons, carpenters & others served out a long apprenticeship with master masons etc

[@RonSeymour1]

To appreciate these buildlings, churches and cathedrals you have to see them with your own eyes. If you were asked to build one these days you would laugh and say impossible. Subscribed.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

So true. Thanks for subscribing! Welcome to my channel!

[@chrisbingham3289]

Lime mortar hand carved sandstone some granite, windows hand made glass and lead.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Amazing!

[@TerranSol]

Castles are built purely for fortification, cathedrals were created for ascetic's. No point making a castle look pretty if it won't stop a rock from a catapult.

[@margaretflounders8510]

Exactly....

[@hardywatkins7737]

Many of our little churches are really nice ... crammed full of adornments, carving, moulding, fancy organs, ornate feature pieces, amazing ceilings, churchyards you want to hang out in. - One of the reasons i bought my flat, ... because with no garden of it's own, the churchyard right opposite is a comfortable place to read a book on a sunny day. In my local church at christmas, there is a lovely christmas tree display with the church ... which is quite beautiful, stuffed with trees all adorned with decorations and lights, i remember walking into a very nice little church at Mary Tavy once at harvest festival time and the church was empty of people but crammed with harvest vegetables and flowers and a rich smell of frankincense in the air.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Sounds Wonderful!

[@AndreaLightfoot-i3p]

Hi AMAA - I recommend that you check out the two cathedrals in Liverpool. One is the Anglican Cathedral and the other is the Metropolitan Cathedral, which is Catholic. Both cathedrals are literally just down the road from each other on Hope Street

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

@@AndreaLightfoot-i3p - Thanks!

[@mariahoulihan9483]

also a lot of earlier churches and cathedrals had wall painting son them originally.. now lost. Imagine what that looked like too.

[@Codex7777]

Regarding the area you were confused about. It looked like part of a cloister.Cloisters are covered walkways around a garden or quadrangle. They're usually partly, or fully open to the garden area they surround. It was a place for both discussion and quiet contemplation, even learning. The idea of 'walking learning' (peripatetics) was much more common, the further you go back in history.

[@ianphillips9455]

No Liverpool cathedrals (there are two one each end of Hope Street) amazing they where left out

[@danielferguson3784]

The Liverpool cathedrals are both modern, while the featured ones are medieval gothic etc.

[@ianphillips9455]

@@danielferguson3784 Where in the title does it mention "medieval gothic" ? it says "10 English Cathedrals / Churches - STUNNING" now have you seen Liverpool Anglican Cathedral? because if you have how could you not say that it is stunning? it is quite bizarre not to have at least that one 🤔🤔🤔😁😎

[@dogwithwigwamz.7320]

It always amuses me when North Americans wonder at old European buildings and question their reality. Oh, yes ! These buildings are real - and plain to see. Damn it ! I have not counted the number of times I`ve been to Gloucester - and have seen the cathedral but never been inside it. Seeing this makes me wish I`d taken the time...... Still, it`s only a 4 hour drive from where I live.

[@user-gv9kc7il3m]

The hallways you refer to are the cloisters where the priests and monks used to walk performing their daly prayers or as they referred to them as their offices. Each priest/monk is required to say prayers every day, you will also note the different coloured slabs in the floor which are the graves of the monks/priests and nobility as it used to be a belief that the closer you were buried to the altar the better chance you had to go to heaven.

[@suefinnegan6185]

Look at how long it took to build Liverpool Anglican Cathedral which is fairly modern. Plus Liverpool have two cathedrals. The Catholic cathedral has been given the nickname Paddies wigwam

[@revbenf6870]

Regarding "wasted space"...the driving force here was reverence and desire to glorify God, and the larger and grander it was the more glory it gave God. Cathedrals often had hundreds and hundreds of pilgrims turning up to worship so they needed space, but it also provided places for quiet contemplation, meditation and reflection, and on high days and holidays a wide place for processions to take place. We modern people come at this from a very different place!

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Thanks for explaining!

[@alistairbolden6340]

@@Average_Middle_Aged_American What you were asking about is the outside hallways around a cloister. The UK did have electricity long before anyone else :) but not until much later then these were built. As for how they built: Skill? The Romans and even before them the Greeks were building similar structures people 2000+ years ago were not just living in mud huts. Many Roman buildings still exist all over Europe. If what you meant was how do they still exist after such a long time? They require constant careful maintenance, In many cases its over a thousand years of continuous effort. As an American there is a good chance your family once came from the UK, and a potion of their taxes went towards building one of these grand structures. I really love Christmas eve mass in Durham Cathedral its a magical experience even for the non religious.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

@@alistairbolden6340 - Yes, I have Scottish and German ancestors.

[@LouiseMorgan-xv9jx]

They did not build castles for beauty but to withstand warfare ​@@Average_Middle_Aged_American

[@amacater]

Wells Cathedral - the scissor arches at the end were a quick hack to support the tower. The clock is one of the older clocks around - the mechanism goes round and a knight gets knocked off his horse by a lance. Architectural schools: masons learned from each other and wandered around from place to place building - for a few hundred years. You could get it wrong - spires fell sometimes

[@stevehartley7504]

I hope one day you get to see the wonders of European buildings modern and ancient. 👍

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

We will, for sure. Just a matter of time and money 🙂

[@claregale9011]

Thanks for reacting to this .stunning buildings love em 😊

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

My pleasure!

[@hypsyzygy506]

People have been building in stone for millennia, always using tools to cut, smooth and carve, and cranes have been used for thousands of years. Experienced builders and masons would move wherever work was available and politically safe, be that Egypt, across the Roman Empire, throughout Europe and Christendom, Byzantium, Arabia, Persia, India, and along the Silk Road to China. As they travelled they spread ideas and techniques, and would gain commissions from travelling prelates and nobles who saw something they liked and wanted something similar at home to outdo the neighbours. Masons weren't magicians - sometimes an ambitious roof would collapse or a spire would burn down, but changes would be made and the incident would usually be forgotten. The famous 'scissor arches' (one seen in the 1:35 photo) at Wells cathedral were built to strengthen the central tower which was becoming unstable.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Just amazes me. I am just an Average Middle Aged American. 🙂

[@kaywhy245]

How was the dome of St Paul's constructed. Watch and see. I think the dome in Florence, Italy is larger.

[@chrisbingham3289]

Salisbury Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England. The main body was completed in only 38 years, starting in 1220.

[@COLINSCARBOROUGH]

The walkways of Gloucester Cathedral are the cloisters which allows access around the site protected from the weather.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Thanks for letting us know!

[@markwhalebone751]

I was married in Southwark cathedral :)

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Congradulations! That is AWESOME!

[@Mex1c070]

Just seen your channel, loved this, subscribed! 👍👍

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Thank you!

[@paulflame8863]

My GGGGG- Grandad born 1747 built the house our family lived in until 20 years ago when it was sold. He was a one of long line of stone masons, my grandad being the last. The roof on the house has not been repaired since it was built and still looks like new except for the discoloration and moss.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

That is awesome! Thanks for sharing.

[@neil1964100]

Teams of masons are still employed to this day maintaining the stonework

[@mariospacagna2132]

I think Lincoln Cathedral was once the tallest building in the world

[@reginaldwilson7482]

When it had a wooden spire on top of the central tower

[@gabbymcclymont3563]

No paper bach when these were made, it was parchment, hans made. When these were built England had loads of different t8me zones, hellish.

[@Andyww08]

They are Cloisters where the Lay Brothers and other preists use to read the scriptures and meditate

[@bepto4877]

The honour of 'first English cathedral' is usually awarded to Canterbury Cathedral, begun in 597 AD by St Augustine.

[@mariahoulihan9483]

the beautiful area you were marvelling at in Gloucestershire Cathedral.. I hail from that county, are the Cloisters. they were for clergy. monks back then.. to pray in and gather. They do serve the function of an outside of the cathedral main area.

[@mariahoulihan9483]

plus at Canterbury and all cathedrals from the middle ages.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

@@mariahoulihan9483 - really is amazing!

[@stirlingmoss4621]

your 'courtyard' is the Cloister...

[@dorothysimpson2804]

St Paul's cathedral was rebuilt in the late 1600s after the Great fire in 1666. The corridors are called Cloisters, the monks would walk in procession down them praying. I was shocked that Westminster Abbey and The Anglican Cathedral Liverpool were not included.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Thank you for that information!

[@JohnMatthews-tv7tf]

Westminster Abbey isn't a cathedral. There is no bishop (The Bishop of London is based at St Paul's). It has the status of a Royal Peculiar

[@jonathangoll2918]

The masons who built the cathedrals were awesome, but occasionally mistakes were made. Th central tower of Ely Cathedral collapsed; and in the view of Wells Cathedral's nave, at the end is a strange H-shaped structure. This is beautiful, but is actually a gigantic stone support, because the tower was beginning to collapse.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Hard to believe any structure stands after 500-1000 years for me. It is just amazing.

[@tomgrant29]

I visited Salisbury cathedral only two weeks ago and the whole time I was there I was just thinking "How did they do this?"

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

@@tomgrant29 - that will be me at every town!

[@birdie1585]

The impact is really lost when not seeing the sheer size of religious buildings in particular, far more so than castles. The scale and grandeur is, or should be breath-taking, no matter anyone's beliefes. Ely cathedral sits on a slight rise in very flat country so can be seen for miles and miles, and miles in all directions - it gives me goosebumps from a few miles out whenever I visit. I shall never tire of seeing it. So far as lasting all those years - they have teams of masons and every trade imaginable, keeping them standing.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

It is easy to take things for granted, I am glad to see that some don't.

[@birdie1585]

@@Average_Middle_Aged_American Most are in ruins to some degree, but the dissolution of the monasteries (1530's, basically) led to the destruction of in some way of 399 religious sites, not all were grand on the scale of most UK cathedrals, but quite a few were. Fountains Abbey was absolutely huge and had existed for over 400 years in one form or another. It was in a pretty dire financial state beforehand, but Henry dissolved it.

[@jungatheart6359]

Arundel is another visible from miles around. The cathedral sits right at the top of a tiny town set on a steepish hill rising up from the flat Sussex coastal plain; and right below it is an enormous Norman castle. It's quite a sight even when seen from the railway between Brighton and Chichester some miles to the South, and is more reminiscent of something in France or Spain.

[@johnhankinson1929]

The human brain was just as advanced and ingenious a thousand years ago as it is today all they didn't have was the machinery , just look what the Egyptians were building 5,000 years ago

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Just blows my mind.

[@kevinpraetzel1283]

The area you said was stunning is referred to as a cloister

[@alanmon2690]

How did they learn how to build like this? Simple, they built many that fell down and the survivors learnt by ther mistakes. They had machines to lift. There's a castle that is being built in France using the original materials, tools, and machine. Worth watching.

[@angelabushby1891]

Or a weather clock on the other side

[@Diamondmine212]

Most Cathedrals where also part of a monastery, the wide passageways would be where they’d sometimes sit and pray , but your judging these buildings on recently built( ie ,only a couple of hundred years old) some of ours are a thousand years old,not forgetting of course ( you’ll be surprised how many do forget) there was no such thing has ‘ safety’ rules. 😱

[@johnadey9464]

They didn't have paper when these were built either - they drew the plans in chalk on the floor.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Insane! Can't imagine.

[@stirlingmoss4621]

The walls of Salisbury cathedral are in fact 84 feet high. The whole building/church is based on the Fibonacci Sequence...look it up.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Amazing!

[@monza1002000]

Salisbury Cathedral sits on water, and when you visit, they open a little hatch to measure where the water level is on that day. It took 38 years to build

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

that is interesting. thanks!

[@carolineb3527]

@@Average_Middle_Aged_American I grew up in Salisbury and spent many hours as a child playing in the Cathedral Close - which is an area of land surrounding the building. Salisbury's is the largest close in Britain so there were many daisies to pick! The Cathedral is built on marshland with chalk streams running through it. Chalk streams usually have beds of gravel and the cathedral is built on some of those - it is in fact the shifting gravel moving with the pressure of water which keeps the building on a level keel. The cathedral's foundations are only 1-4 feet deep. The building was not originally meant to have a spire, that was added nearly 100 years later - but the shallow foundations still bear its weight. The Cathedral has been undergoing major maintenance/repairs for the last forty years, keeping teams of masons, woodworkers, engineers, plumbers, etc in work. The last piece of scaffolding was removed last year, after 37 years - which means that some of the people who saw the scaffolding come off are grandparents who don't remember it going on! It's this sort of programme that is needed for the upkeep of ancient buildings - a long-term view, a commitment to the funding, and a sense of obligation to both the past and to the future.

[@danielferguson3784]

The two wings are the sides of the cloister, a rectangular space for work & study by the monks who lived in the monastery. Most are built using local stone, usually limestone. Sometimes this was carried by boat long distances along the rivers to where it was required. Stone for use in London was sometimes brought across the English Channel, as there was very little good stone in the London area. Many parts of these structures are repeated pieces, so often they were made made away from site as batches, then brought together like a puzzle to make the final design. They didn't have paper, but might have used parchment made of deerskins, but often they scribed things out full size on the ground. York Minster as it is now, after several rebuilds, took 200 years to build, & was finished 500 years ago. Durham was built nearly 1000 years ago. St Pauls in London is quite recent, having been built around 1680-1700 AD, after the earlier cathedral burnt down in the Great Fire of London, in 1666. Add to these, & many other cathedrals around the country, numerous Monastery churches often of cathedral size, & the smaller, but still substantial churches in almost every village, while towns & cities had many churches, along with Friaries & other institutions, & you can realise just how much of a major industry building them was in the medieval era. This was a large part of the capital investment of the country, employing a very large section of the workforce, & supporting a huge backup force to feed & supply it. On top of this was an equally massive campaign of Castle building, also country wide, another major segment of the labour market.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Thank you!

[@weejackrussell]

You've not seen Caernarfon Castle then? It is absolutely stunning. We had a lot more beautiful buildings until Henry VIII and, later, Oliver Cromwell had them destroyed. St Paul's Cathedral was built to replace the one that preceded it which was burnt down in the fire of London. So it's the baby of the collection shown as it was built in the late 1600s. The latter was designed by Sir Christopher Wren.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Amazing

[@Joseph13163]

Cathedrals took generations to build and even today there is a cathedral thats not finished yet though building started decades ago ,its the segradia familia in barcelona.They had human powered cranes called windless ,basically a giant hamster wheel.They had technology it looks primitive to us but it worked for them.

[@Joseph13163]

i read on wikipedia that the milan cathedral which was started in 1386 finished in 1965.It is wikipedia though but they are certainly not a quick build

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

600 years. Insane.

[@Joseph13163]

@@Average_Middle_Aged_American you should have a look at la sagrada familia in barcelona,it will be finished probably in 2026 ,100 years after the death of the architect of the cathedral antonio gaudi .

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Will do. Thanks!

[@christinephipps8236]

York minster took 250 years to build so generatons of familes would have worked on it.Yorks history goes back to roman times and also has a viking history,

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Blows my mind. Thanks!

[@kopynd1]

didnt need a computer or calculator in those days because they had brains

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

That is a lot of drawing...

[@kopynd1]

Antonio Gaudi was a genius, Sagrada Familiar, a think it took 130 yrs to build that's fast, for a Cathedral, it could take that long just to get it out the ground

[@janetdunn7583]

They are called cloisters

[@elizabethmcintyre8529]

It's all real

[@ronkelley5348]

Castles were fortifications and are ruined since one of history's villains (Oliver Cromwell) set about destroying them. He is also responsible for a lot of the damage to cathedrals such as the loss of a lot of the stained glass and the statues that used to be in the various niches. The kinds of things that happen when religious extremists take charge.

[@stevehartley7504]

They did have human and animal powered winches and cranes Wooden scaffolding Masses of employed masons turning out the same shaped prices of masonry day after day then they're lifted into place

[@jeffthomas2364]

The places you call Courtyards are actually called Cloisters.

[@jamesohara4295]

You get these clowns who wax lyrical about the Pyramids; but this is the ultimate in laying one stone upon another.

[@chrisbingham3289]

I not 100% but I think the were nomaly formed in a cross shape .

[@Kingshieldwall]

Castles are for Warfare Cathedrals are for Worship. Why make a Defensive Structure pretty ? Two totally different uses etc and the cost of course.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Houses are to avoid the elements. Why make them pretty? :-)

[@astrodoops]

They added electrical lights. There was no electrical lights in the 1300s.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

LMAO!

[@stevetaylor8698]

You are thinking of LEDs, these didn't come in until 1740.

[@sandraback7809]

We feel exactly the same when we explore these buildings. The detail and workmanship is stunning. If you get over here I would highly recommend St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle. It’s a day trip from London, you see a beautiful old town by a river, an ancient castle that is still lived in and an exquisite Chapel that is the burial place of our late Queen, Elizabeth 11. (Plus many other notable persons in British history)

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

@@sandraback7809 - We will get to England and the UK for sure. Probably our first European trip. Thanks for the information!

[@paulhadfield7909]

kings paid for it, took decades to do, it is regualrly maintained,

[@davidsharpe7644]

Its a cloister.

[@anitahargreaves9526]

Aliens 😅😅😅😅😅🇬🇧

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

🙂

[@TC-qd1zw]

The School is the school life. The used there brain not like today you need battery’s to breath some do.

[@Joseph13163]

actually the capital thing would be lost on many ,for me i think washington dc as the capitol don't think of it as a building.I know you call your parliament building the capitol,but when i think of a capitol i think of the whole city as the capitol.

[@davidtaylor9593]

Dry as fuck. Just like we British like it.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

LMAO!

[@improvesheffield4824]

Why should castles look like Cathedrals? They’re built for different purposes - castles for defence, cathedrals for beauty and the glorification of god. Your comment made no sense.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

Your comment made no sense! 😝 Why can't a castle like as nice?

[@stevehartley7504]

A lot of your buildings are called colonial for a reason!

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

yep!

[@angelabushby1891]

Churches and Cathedrals of square towers are NORMAN, the ones with tall spiers are ANGLO-SAXON.

[@weejackrussell]

Not necessarily, it has just shown Salisbury Cathedral, as Norman as it can be, with a spire!

[@user-ki2je2di6i]

Music not meeting what you see 🫤 sorry can’t watch

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

I did not create the music

[@jacklomas7773]

Grumpy old UK man, please remove the neon it's a distraction. Ok so far .

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

What should I put there? I have a big black block. I don't want to cut off the video like some do. Aspect ratios are important. Let me know!

[@jacklomas7773]

@@Average_Middle_Aged_American maybe keep the neon but can you dim it a little. Still watching though.

[@Average_Middle_Aged_American]

@jacklomas7773 - will check it out. 👍

[@RichardDevereauxEarlofEssex]

Those two halls are part of a quadqrangle