the heaviest peal of eight bells in the world. Some see thirteen centuries of history, ever since St Aldhelm, new bishop of the West Saxons, chose to build his cathedral here. Two Saxon kings are buried here; for over 800 years the chanting of Benedictine monks filled the air. Thomas Wyatt, Tudor courtier and poet, has his grave here; Sir Walter Raleigh worshipped here. But it is a living tradition: the Abbey today is still the spiritual home of a large and vibrant Christian community. It remains above all a place of prayer and of worship. First, a little history. The See (or Diocese) of Sherborne was created in AD 705 when the great Diocese of Winchester was divided in two, and Aldhelm, Abbot of Malmesbury, was appointed as the first Bishop of the West Saxons. Aldhelm chose the place of the Scire-burne -- the 'clear stream' -- as the site for his seat, or cathedra. The new Cathedral of Sherborne served St Aldhelm and twenty-six succeeding Saxon Bishops. Small at first, it was later enlarged. A few important early features still survive (when you come into the Abbey, see the fine Saxon doorway in the NW corner). However, soon after the Norman Conquest the Bishop's seat was moved to Old Sarum, and later Salisbury. Earlier, in 998, St Wulfsin had ejected the community of secular canons who served the Cathedral, and invited monks of the Order of St Benedict to replace them. Sherborne Abbey remained a Benedictine house until 1539 when Abbot John Barnstaple and his sixteen ...

• published: 03 Oct 2010
• views: 1032
• author: Haridas Thakur Das