Durham Priory - Izeria

Durham Priory was a Benedictine priory associated with Durham Cathedral, in Durham in the north-east of England. Its head was the Prior of Durham. It was founded in 1083 as a Roman Catholic monastery, but after Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1540 the priory was dissolved and the cathedral was taken over by the Church of England.

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Durham Cathedral

Durham Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of Christ, Blessed Mary the Virgin and St Cuthbert of Durham, is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Durham, England. The cathedral is the seat of the bishop of Durham and is the mother church of the diocese of Durham. It also contains the shrines of the Anglo-Saxon saints Cuthbert and Bede. There are daily Church of England services at the cathedral, and it received 393,090 visitors in 2024. It is a grade I listed building and forms part of the Durham Castle and Cathedral World Heritage Site. The cathedral is the successor to the Anglo-Saxon Lindisfarne Priory, which was established c. 635 but abandoned in 875 in the face of Viking raids. The monks settled at Chester-le-Street from 882 until 995, when they moved to Durham. The cathedral remained a monastery until it was dissolved in 1541, since when it has been governed by a dean and chapter. The cathedral precinct formed part of Durham Castle from the eleventh century. During the Wars of the Three Kingdoms the cathedral housed 3,000 Scottish prisoners of war, 1,700 of whom died in the building. A substantial part of the present building was completed between 1093 and 1133, replacing the Anglo-Saxon "White Church". It is a significant example of the Romanesque architectural style, and the nave ceiling is the earliest surviving example of a pointed rib vault. The Galilee chapel was added to the west end of the cathedral in the 1170s, and the western towers built in approximately 1200. The east end was expanded in the Early English Gothic style in the 1230s, and the Perpendicular Gothic central tower was built in two stages in the fifteenth century. Important furnishings include the medieval bishop's throne and Neville screen, Prior Castell's Clock, and the seventeenth-century choir stalls and font cover installed by Bishop Cosin. Many of the monastic buildings survive; the monks' refectory now contains part of the cathedral library, which holds significant collections dating back to the sixth century.

New College, Durham (17th century)

New College, Durham, or Durham College, was a university institution set up by Oliver Cromwell, to provide an alternative to (and break the effective monopoly of) the older University of Oxford and University of Cambridge. It also had the aim of bringing university education to Northern England. It was formed in 1653, receiving its letters patent – though not degree-awarding powers – in 1656, but after Cromwell's death in 1659 the universities of Oxford and Cambridge petitioned his son Richard Cromwell against the new university, and the college ceased to exist with the restoration of the monarchy in 1660.

Durham Cathedral College

Durham Cathedral College forms a close to the south of Durham Cathedral in the city of Durham, England. It is part of the Durham Castle and Cathedral UNESCO World Heritage Site. The college was begun in the late 11th century as an outer courtyard to the monastic foundation established at Durham in 995, and is among the best preserved medieval monasteries in England. On the Dissolution of the Monasteries the college was repurposed to provide accommodation for the dean and 12 canons. Much of the original building fabric remains, although re-fashioning of the exteriors in the 18th and 19th centuries gives the college a Georgian appearance. Many of the buildings have historic listing designations.

The Bailey

The Bailey is a historic area in the centre of the city of Durham, County Durham, England. It consists of two streets, North Bailey and South Bailey. It is on a peninsula within a sharp meander along the River Wear, formed by an isostatic adjustment of the land. The name "The Bailey" derives from the outer bailey of the Norman motte and bailey-style Durham Castle. Vehicular access to the area is restricted by the Durham City congestion charge, which started in 2002 and is the UK's oldest such scheme.