History
In the late 19th century, the Catholic Church's hierarchy had only recently been restored in England and Wales, and it was in memory of Cardinal Wiseman (who died in 1865, and was the first Archbishop of Westminster from 1850) that the first substantial sum of money was raised for the new cathedral. The land was acquired in 1884 by Wiseman's successor, Cardinal Manning, having previously been occupied by the second Tothill Fields Bridewell prison.
After two false starts in 1867 (under architect Henry Clutton) and 1892 (architect Baron von Herstel), construction started in 1895 under Manning's successor, the third archbishop Cardinal Vaughan with John Francis Bentley as architect, and built in a style heavily influenced by Byzantine architecture.
The cathedral opened in 1903, a little after Bentley's death. For reasons of economy the decoration of the interior had hardly been started and still much remained to be completed. It is often presumed that Westminster Cathedral was the first Catholic place of worship to be built in England after the English Reformation; however that honour belongs to St Patrick's in Soho Square built in 1792. Britain's first Catholic churches built after the Reformation are both in Banffshire, Scotland. They are St. Ninian's, Tynet, built in 1755 and its near neighbour, St. Gregory's, Preshome, built in 1788. Both churches are still in use.
Under the laws of the Catholic Church at the time, no place of worship could be consecrated unless free from debt and having its fabric completed, so the consecration ceremony did not take place until June 28, 1910.
In 1977, as part of her Silver Jubilee Celebrations, the cathedral was visited by Her Majesty The Queen. Although there was no religious service (the visit was to a flower show) it was highly symbolic as the first visit of a reigning monarch of the United Kingdom to a Catholic church in the nation since the Reformation.
On May 28, 1982, the first day of his six-day pastoral visit to the United Kingdom, His Holiness, Pope John Paul II, celebrated Mass in the cathedral.
In 1995, at the invitation of Cardinal Basil Hume, the cathedral was visited by HM The Queen, the first visit of a reigning monarch of the United Kingdom to a Catholic church liturgy for several years.
On Saturday 18 September 2010, on the third day of his four day state visit to the United Kingdom, His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI, also celebrated Mass in the Cathedral.
On 15 January 2011 the cathedral was the venue for the ordination of three former Anglican bishops into the newly-formed Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham.
Read more about this topic: Westminster Cathedral
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