Ely Cathedral

Ely Cathedral
Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity
Ely Cathedral from the southeast
Ely Cathedral Location of Ely Cathedral in Cambridgeshire
52°23′55″N 0°15′50″E / 52.39861°N 0.26389°E / 52.39861; 0.26389
Location	Ely, Cambridgeshire
Country	England
Denomination	Church of England
Tradition	Broad church
Website	www.elycathedral.org
History
Dedication	Holy Trinity
Architecture
Style	Romanesque, English Gothic
Years built	1083–1375
Specifications
Length	163.7 m (537 ft)
Height	66 m (217 ft)
Nave height	21.9 m (72 ft)
Number of towers	2
Tower height	66 m (217 ft) (west tower), 52 m (171 ft) (lantern tower)
Bells	5 (hung in west tower; used for clock)
Administration
Province	Canterbury
Diocese	Ely (since 1109)
Clergy
Bishop(s)	Stephen Conway Dagmar Winter (Suffragan Bishop)
Dean	Mark Bonney
Precentor	James Garrard
Canon(s)	James Reveley, Jessica Martin (IME)
Laity
Director of music	Edmund Aldhouse
Organist(s)	Glen Dempsey

Ely Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, is an Anglican cathedral in the city of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England.

The cathedral can trace its origin to the abbey founded in Ely in 672 by St Æthelthryth (also called Etheldreda). The earliest parts of the present building date to 1083, and it was granted cathedral status in 1109. Until the Reformation, the cathedral was dedicated to St Etheldreda and St Peter, at which point it was refounded as the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Ely. It is the cathedral of the Diocese of Ely, which covers most of Cambridgeshire and western Norfolk, Essex, and Bedfordshire. It is the seat of the Bishop of Ely and a suffragan bishop, the Bishop of Huntingdon.^[1]

Architecturally, Ely Cathedral is outstanding both for its scale and stylistic details. Having been built in a monumental Romanesque style, the galilee porch, lady chapel and choir were rebuilt in an exuberant Decorated Gothic. Its most notable feature is the central octagonal tower, with lantern above, which provides a unique internal space and, along with the West Tower, dominates the surrounding landscape.

The cathedral is a major tourist destination, receiving around 250,000 visitors per year,^[2] and sustains a daily pattern of morning and evening services.^[3]