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Rochester Cathedral
604 - the first church is built on the site of Rochester
Cathedral.
The church of St. Andrew the Apostle, Rochester was founded by
Ethelbert, King of Kent, as a college for a small number of secular
canons under Just
us,
Bishop of Rochester in AD 604. Very little is known about the
history of this house. It never seems to have had much influence
outside its own walls and though it possessed considerable landed
estates, seems to have been relatively small and poor. It also
suffered at the hands of the Danes. Bishops Justus, Romanus,
Paulinus and Ithamar were all remarkable men but after Bishop
Putta's translation to Hereford in AD 676, very little is heard of
Rochester. Bishop Siweard is not mentioned as having been at
Hastings with King Harold, as were many of the Saxon bishops and
abbots. The house put up no opposition to King William I when he
seized its lands and gave them to his brother Odo, Bishop of
Bayeux, whom he had created Earl of Kent. The chroniclers say that
the house was destitute and that when Siweard died in 1075, it was
barely able to support the five canons on the establishment.
In 1083 Lanfranc, Archbishop of Canterbury, visited Rochester
and himself instituted 22 monks of the Benedictine order in the
house: some from Bec, France, probably some from the two houses at
Canterbury, Christchurch and St Augustine, and possibly some from
Caen. He endowed the house with property, making careful and
distinct provision for the bishop and the monks. Some of the lands
he gave them were his own, others he bought and some he had
acquired in 1076. Gundulf, Bishop of Rochester, also acquired a
great deal of property for his house, which rapidly found favour
with the Norman kings. Together with Archbishop Lanfranc, he began
the rebuilding of the church and monastery buildings. In the
rebuilding of his church, Gundulf followed the usual practice of
starting the new building to the east of the existing church so
that there would be no interruption in the services of the church.
He also appears to have incorporated part of the city wall into his
building, as the tower known as Gundulf's Tower was one of the
watch towers. Substantial parts of his work remain today,
particularly in the crypt.
William of Perth
Gifts of property, lands and rents to St. Andrew's Priory,
Rochester were numerous, particularly in the early years and again
in the 13th century. The first upsurge of giving was in the time of
Lanfranc and Gundulf. The second probably coincides with the murder
of William of Perth in 1201 and his subsequent canonisation in
1256. William was a Scottish pilgrim who was murdered shortly after
leaving Rochester following a brief stay at the Priory. It mattered
little who he was or why he was murdered. Every religious house at
some time or other needed an impetus to improve its finances and
its worth in the eyes of the world and the possession of the shrine
of a saint to which pilgrims could come and worship was as good a
way as any other. Canterbury profited richly from the tomb and
shrine of Thomas Becket but until 1256, Rochester had nothing
similar to offer would-be pilgrims and benefactors. There is no
evidence that a special officer was appointed to deal with the
money and gifts offered at the tomb, however. The only reference to
it is in the deed in the cathedral archives relating to John de
Sheppey's charity, which was nearby.
The Reformation
The Cathedral priory of St Andrew the Apostle, Rochester, was
technically surrendered into the hands of the Crown on 20 March
1539 but no actual surrender was made until the Commissioners had
surveyed the lands and written up the deeds of surrender. This was
not finished until 16 April 1540. The new charter of 20 June 1541
set up a cathedral church which was to be run by a dean and six
canons regular of the new established religion.
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