Canterbury Cathedral

Canterbury Cathedral’s history as a religious site dates back to AD 597 when Pope Gregory’s missionary, St Augustine, was given a church in the town by King Ethelbert. The cathedral is a masterpiece of Romanesque and Gothic architecture. Inside, visitors can see stained glass windows dating from the 12th century and the medieval tombs of King Henry IV and Edward the Black Prince, as well as those of numerous archbishops. The cathedral is also the former site of the shrine to the Archbishop Thomas Becket, who was murdered in the northwest transept in 1170. His shrine, which was desecrated in 1538 during the Reformation, became one of the most visited by pilgrims during the Middle Ages, many of whom travelled the famous Pilgrims’ Way from Winchester to see it.