102 London: Southwark Anglican cathedral, with the tomb of Shakespeare's brother
Be careful, there are
actually two Southwark cathedrals, one for the Anglicans and the other for the
Catholics. This is the Anglican one, the oldest one (though the Catholics might
say that is only because the Anglicans nicked it from them a few hundred years
ago).
Its full name is The Cathedral and
Collegiate Church of St Saviour and St Mary Overie, Southwark. Now to take
these folk in order, it is first important to note that Saint Saviour (if I
understand correctly) is not some saint who thought he would benefit from a
holier name than your other, common or garden saints. It just means “holy
saviour”, so the church is actually dedicated directly to the bearded Fellow
himself.
St Mary Overie, similarly, is not the
patron saint of gynaecologists. The expression is simply an old one meaning “St
Mary’s over the river”. The cathedral is indeed, close to the Thames, opposite
the city of London more or less.
Many claim the first religious building on
the site was a convent from the beginning of the 7th century, but I
am told this is unlikely. The present building includes whole chunks from the
13th and 14th century, and this is the first ever Gothic
church to be built in London.
Under Queen Mary, a few protestants were
condemned to death here. William Shakespeare’s brother is buried here, and
there is a stained glass window with scenes from William’s plays. John Harvard,
founder of some college, was baptized in this church. And there is a memorial
to Nelson Mandela.
There are a number of beautiful elements
inside, my own favourite being the baptismal font. The noticeboard is
cheeringly occupied by expressions of opposition to oppression and hardship.
The poster concerning the cathedral’s resident cat is, well, different.
