The Cathedral Church of St John the Baptist, Norwich

The Cathedral Church of St John the Baptist in Norwich occupies a very prominent site on high ground, just outside the city walls.  Originally built as a parish church to serve the Catholic community of Norwich and the surrounding area, it was funded by Henry Fitzalan-Howard, the 15th Duke of Norfolk in thanksgiving for his marriage to Lady Flora Abney-Hastings in 1877.

The Duke chose George Gilbert Scott Jnr as his architect and instructed him to design a church in the Gothic style. Apparently, no other architect was considered.  George Gilbert Scott was the son of the more famous Sir George Gilbert Scott, a prolific architect of the Gothic Revival.  Sir George Gilbert Scott Snr was the son of a clergyman, and much of his early work was for the Established Church, but later works included the chapel of King’s College in London, the Albert Memorial and the Grand Midland Hotel at St Pancras Station. 

Born in 1839, and educated at Eton and Jesus College, Cambridge, George Gilbert Scott Jnr joined his father’s architectural practice.  It was while working for his father that he co-founded Watts & Co the firm of vestment makers and wallpaper designers that still exists today.  Later, working independently, his major architectural achievements included Dulwich College in South London, and buildings at three Cambridge University Colleges, namely: Christ’s, Pembroke and Peterhouse. 

In 1880, much to the dismay of his family, Scott converted to Catholicism, and shortly afterwards was commissioned to design the Church of St John the Baptist in Norwich.  Work began in 1882, but tragically, Scott was admitted to the Bethlem Hospital, in 1883 and declared to be of “unsound mind” a year later.  After a period in France, and extended periods in mental institutions in England, he died in 1897 at his father’s Grand Midland Hotel at St Pancras Station.  The supervision of the project was taken over by George’s brother, John Oldrid Scott, although it seems that the design remained substantially unchanged.  The building was eventually completed in 1910.

George Gilbert Scott Jnr had two sons, Giles and Adrian, both of whom were architects of considerable distinction.  Giles is best remembered for designing the Anglican Cathedral in Liverpool, Battersea Power Station and the red telephone kiosks that were ubiquitous for about 100 years, and are still occasionally seen.  The Carmelite Church in Kensington is perhaps his best-known Catholic Church.  Adrian Gilbert Scott built a number of churches, both Anglican and Catholic.  Nowadays, he is better remembered for his addition of a central tower to Joseph Hansom’s Holy Name Church in Manchester, and for the outdoor chapel at Aylesford Friary.

A huge church

Catholics were scarce in post reformation East Anglia, and it fell to the Jesuits to minister to the few who lived in and around Norwich.  However, by 1820, their numbers had grown sufficiently for the Jesuits to build the Chapel of the Holy Apostles in Willow Lane. This was a classical style building and still survives, as the offices of a firm of solicitors.  By 1870, the Catholic population had grown to 1,200, and a second chapel was opened in Fisher Lane, although it soon became clear that a much larger church would be required.  This became a reality through the generosity of the 15th Duke of Norfolk.

The Norfolk family was quite exceptional among the English aristocracy of the time, in that they were Catholic, and contributed generously to the building of many Catholic churches in the years following Catholic Emancipation.  The 15th Duke, who inherited his title in 1860 at the age of 12, was no exception.  After his marriage in 1877, he gave £200,000 for the building of the new church in Norwich.  This was a huge sum of money for the time, and consequently Norwich got a huge church.

Constructed between 1882 and 1910, George Gilbert Scott’s church was, at the time of its opening, the largest post-Reformation church of any denomination in England.  Built in the Gothic style of a thirteenth century English cathedral, it was cruciform in shape with a square tower over the crossing.  With a total length of 275 ft, it had a nave of ten bays and chancel of four bays as well as generous sized transepts.  Complete with triforium, clerestory and stone vaulted ceiling, the nave reached to a height of 80ft.

The nave is flanked by side aisles, and attached to the south aisle is a sunken chapel. This unusual feature, which is presumably the work of Adrian Gilbert Scott, was a memorial to the Duke’s first wife, Lady Flora, who died in 1887.  It contains statues of Saints Flora, Pauline, Ester and Barbara, being the Duchess’s Christian names.  There is a considerable quantity of stained glass manufactured by the Hardnan Company. That in the nave is designed by John Powell, and that in the chancel is by Dunstan Powell.  At the West end, the original baptistery, which now serves as a bookshop, has an impressive marble font.  Alas, baptisms now take place at a particularly miserable little font sited in the nave.

Internally, perhaps the most prominent feature is the seemingly endless arcading of circular, and somewhat stout stone columns, that extends throughout the nave and chancel.  At the chancel arch, it is interrupted by a substantial beam carrying a magnificent polychrome rood with Our Lady and St John at either side.

Solidly built

Viewed from the outside, the overall impression is one of massiveness.  Everything appears solidly built, including the central tower and the flying buttresses.  The stonework is heavily ornamented, but lacks elegance.  This is particularly evident at the East End where the three tiers of arcaded windows are unduly fussy.

The Duke was insistent that the church should be built in the Gothic style, and Scott was meticulous in carrying out this instruction.  Every detail is authentically Gothic, including the cruciform layout, the rib-vaulted ceiling, the lancet windows and the flying buttresses.  With the advantage of a generous budget, unlike most comparable projects, Scott was able to produce a building that was both massive in scale and accurate in detail.  For this reason, St John’s has been described as the most perfect of all Neo-Gothic churches, and is Grade I Listed.

In 1976, the Church of St John the Baptist became the cathedral of the newly created Diocese of East Anglia, and the second largest Catholic cathedral in the country.

Not surprisingly, the Cathedral of St John the Baptist has been the subject of some post-Vatican II reordering. The original High Altar has been removed, and in its place is an extremely large and elevated stone cathedra.  The floor of the chancel has been extended into the crossing where a new forward altar has been installed.
Under normal circumstances, a Low Mass in the Extraordinary Form is offered in St John’s Cathedral at 3pm on Sundays.