Carlisle Cathedral

Carlisle was the first Cathedral cities that I visited on what can very loosely be described as my pilgrimage to visit all of the cathedrals in England. And, I was still learning how to do it right and, to be honest, I still am.

A couple of years before, I took the night train from Euston to Fort William to go on the Jacobite steam train to Mallaig. The main reason being that the train goes over the viaduct shown in the first Harry Potter movie.

Having had a very positive experience on the night train, I thought that I’d take it to Carlisle. Also, the night train was upgrading its rolling stock and I wanted to experience it. This was a major mistake.

When I got to Euston, it was the old rolling stock, disappointment number 1. Disappointment number 2 was being woken up at 3 am with breakfast in order to leave the train at 4. So, at 4am, I’m turfed off the train onto a cold platform. Fortunately, the waiting room was open and I spent a very chilly and uncomfortable 5 hours in it until Carlisle started to wake up. What I learnt was to only get a night train if you’re going to its final stop.

I bought a coffee and sandwich and started my exploration of the city and its Cathedral. It’s the second smallest cathedral in England but very lovely and seeing it first spoilt me for some of the others I have seen and will see on future trips. Building was started in the 1120’s, initially as an Augustin priory and became a Cathedral in 1133. It has been upgraded over the years most notably in the 13th and 14th centuries. During the English Civil War, it was partially demolished and its stone used to reinforce the nearby castle.

Here are some photos of the cathedral