Cathedrals, Churches & Chapels
 Bayeux Cathedral, France |
Churches and Cathedrals were built in the shape of a cross
and had tall towers or spires as they believed it would help
them to be closer to Heaven. Each town and village had at
least one church. Each bishop’s diocese had a cathedral
as his home church and a cathedral was generally much larger
and more ornate than the churches.
They were built from the best quality materials by skilled craftsmen as beautifully as possible. It was believed that the more splendid the architecture, the more God was being praised. It was considered a great honour to help build a cathedral and only the best craftsmen were chosen. They only had basic tools and the scaffolding erected was not very strong, but workers were told that if they were killed whilst working on a church or cathedral, they would go to Heaven. |
| There were statues, stained glass windows and wall paintings to tell bible stories to those who couldn’t read. There were also bells to signal the start of services. Behind the altar (at the east end of the building) there was often a rose (round) window, signifying eternity. |
 The Rose Window, Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris |
Almost every castle had a chapel and many had more than one, usually located in the keep but sometimes in the bailey as a separate building. They could be tiny although several were a large as a cathedral. They were the central place for community gatherings although some had a private chapel for the use of the lord’s family only.
There would be a chaplain in charge who acted as parish priest of the castle and could hear confession and perform absolution and communion. Being literate, the chaplain would often have other jobs in the castle such as a clerk, accountant or physician.
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