St. David's Cathedral

St. David's Cathedral is located in the tiny city of St. David's, which is near the birthplace of the Patron Saint of Wales, St. David.

The building of the Cathedral, as we see it today, was a massive task which began in 1180 and was not completed until 1522. This long construction duration resulted from the acculmanation of building catastrophies and 'the building bishop'.

The two main building catastrophies were the collapsing of the central tower in 1220 and an earthquake in 1248.

These were followed by the arrival of Bishop Gower, who undertook many changes to the cathedral. These included the raising of the aisle walls, inserting of larger more decorated windows, building of the south porch, transept chapels, and the Lady Chapel.

The last of the great builders to contribute to the cathedral was Bishop Vaughan, who in the 16th century raised the tower to its present height and built the perpendicular chapel dedicated to the Holy Trinity.