Southwell Minster and the Bishop’s Manor
Southwell Minster is a beautiful minster and Cathedral, in Southwell, Nottinghamshire, England. It is six miles away from Newark-on-Trent and is the Cathedral of Nottinghamshire. In 1108 Southwell Minster, as we know it, was begun. The twin "pepperpot" towers on the west front were completed by 1170 while the celebrated Chapter House - with its wonderful carved stone leaves - was constructed circa 1300. During the Civil War, Roundhead forces were stabled in the Minster. On 5th November 1711 a major fire destroyed the roof and in 1815, the spires on the pepperpot towers had become unsafe and were removed. Serious repairs started in 1851 and the building was sympathetically worked on over the next forty years. Southwell is one of England's finest medieval churches. The Bishop's Palace was rebuilt and extended for Archbishop John Kemp, 1426-36. In 1647, during the Civil War, it was occupied by the Scots Commissioners and largely demolished. A house was built in the former Great Hall in the late 18th century. The former State Chamber was restored for suffragan Bishop Edward Trollope in 1881.