York Minster

York Minster
Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of St Peter
West front of the cathedral.
York Minster Location within North Yorkshire
Coordinates: 53°57′43″N 1°4′55″W / 53.96194°N 1.08194°W / 53.96194; -1.08194
Location	York
Country	England
Denomination	Church of England
Churchmanship	Anglo-Catholic
Website	www.yorkminster.org
Architecture
Status	Minster
Functional status	Active
Heritage designation	Grade I
Designated	14 June 1954
Previous cathedrals	at least 3
Style	Early English, Perpendicular
Specifications
Length	524.5 feet (159.9 m)
Width	222 feet (68 m)
Nave height	99 feet (30 m)
Choir height	102 feet (31 m)
Number of towers	3
Tower height	Central Tower: 235 feet (72 m) Western Towers: 196 feet (60 m)
Administration
Diocese	York (since 314)
Province	York
Clergy
Archbishop	John Sentamu
Dean	Vivienne Faull
Precentor	Peter Moger
Chancellor	Christopher Collingwood
Canon(s)	Michael Smith (Canon Pastor) David Butterfield (Canon Residentiary)
Laity
Director of music	Robert Sharpe
Business manager	Richard Shephard (Director of development)

Michael Smith (Canon Pastor)

The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Archbishop of York, the second-highest office of the Church of England, and is the mother church for the Diocese of York and the Province of York. It is run by a dean and chapter, under the Dean of York. The title "minster" is attributed to churches established in the Anglo-Saxon period as missionary teaching churches, and serves now as an honorific title. Services in the minster are sometimes regarded as on the High Church or Anglo-Catholic end of the Anglican continuum.

The minster has a very wide Decorated Gothic nave and chapter house, a Perpendicular Gothic Quire and east end and Early English North and South transepts. The nave contains the West Window, constructed in 1338, and over the Lady Chapel in the east end is the Great East Window (finished in 1408), the largest expanse of medieval stained glass in the world. In the north transept is the Five Sisters Window, each lancet being over 52 feet (16 m) high. The south transept contains a rose window, while the West Window contains a heart-shaped design colloquially known as 'The Heart of Yorkshire'.

York has had a verifiable Christian presence from the 4th century. However, there is circumstantial evidence pointing to much earlier Christian involvement. According to Bede, missionaries were sent from Rome by Eleutherius at the request of the chieftain Lucius of Britain in AD 180 to settle controverted points of differences as to Eastern and Western ceremonials which were disturbing the church. Tradition speaks of 28 British bishops, one for each of the greater British cities, over whom presided the Archbishops of London, York and Caerleon-on-Usk.