History
The original church was founded by King Edmund I in about 943 as a royal collegiate church; however, no traces of its structure survive. According to the Domesday assessors, it belonged to the King, and was served by a college of seven priests. The current cathedral dates from the fourteenth century, although it appears to be based on an earlier medieval building, which drawings show was about the same size as the present church. It may be that it became structurally unstable and was pulled down. The 212 feet (65 m) tower dates from 1510 to 1530 and was built in the popular perpendicular Gothic style of the time.
Under the Protestant persecutions of Queen Mary, Joan Waste was tried for heresy at the cathedral in 1556. The execution took place on the Burton Road in Derby.
Apart from the tower, the building was rebuilt in a classical style to the designs of James Gibbs of 1725, and it was further enlarged in 1972. At the same time, the ciborium was added over the altar.
The building, previously known as All Saints' Church, became a cathedral by Order in Council on 1 July 1927.
The cathedral contains the oldest ring of ten bells in the United Kingdom, with the 15th century tenor being older than the tower itself. A carillon in the tower uses the same bells to provide a tune at 9am, 12pm, and 6pm. Other treasures include an eighteenth-century nave with a wrought iron rood screen by Robert Bakewell, for which he charged the church £157.10.0d; the memorial to Bess of Hardwick; and the Cavendish brasses, including those of Henry Cavendish and Georgiana Spencer, the wife of one of the Dukes of Devonshire. The entrance gates are also by Robert Bakewell, but these were only relocated to the cathedral from St Mary's Gate in 1957. Notable 20th century additions are the stained glass windows designed by Ceri Richards, and the bronze crucifix by Ronald Pope.
In late 2005, it was discovered that a pair of Peregrine falcons had taken up residence on the Cathedral Tower. In 2006 a nesting platform was installed, and they nested here in April. The same pair successfully reared chicks in 2007, 2008, 2009 and other pairs continue to do so. Webcams were installed in 2007 and 2008 to enable the birds to be seen at close-range without being disturbed by human contact.
In 2009, more than 150 members of the Derby Mountain Rescue Rescue team abseiled down the tower for charity in 2009. Further abseils have taken place in 2011 and 2012.
The entrance gates were refurbished in 2012 and renamed the Queen Elizabeth II Gates to celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.
Read more about this topic: Derby Cathedral
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