Peel Cathedral
Yesterday (3 March 2011) I had the privilege of visiting the most recently hallowed Cathedral in England – St German Cathedral Church in Peel on the Isle of Man, Cathedral of the Diocese of Sodor and Man. (See the images on the Season Images Gallery) The church of St German was hallowed as a cathedral in 1980 – the church was consecrated in 1893 to replace the ancient church of St. Peter, in the town centre, which had become too small for Peel’s growing population.
The Dean and the Church Warden were warm and welcoming – I flew to the Isle of Man for the day from Gatwick and was collected at the airport and made to feel very welcome with a cup of tea. Although St German’s is the most recently hallowed Cathedral in the Church of England, it is very much a living, worshiping community and could teach some of its more ancient brother / sister (??) cathedrals a thing or two. If you ever get the chance to visit the Isle of Man, you must visit Peel and you must visit the Cathedral.
Peel town
Spring was definitely in the air and after photographing the Cathedral I strolled down to the promenade and enjoyed the sun and the seaside.
As Communications Officer (and former Warden) for St.German’s Cathedral, Peel, Isle of Man, I should like to thank you, Len, for your generous comments.
Whilst our Cathedral is the most recently hallowed of Church of England Cathedrals, Peel is not in England. The Isle of Man is a self-governing Crown Dependency and has no representation in the Westminster Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Our Head of State is Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in her capacity of Lord of Mann. Our parliament is Tynwald which celebrated its millennium in 1979 – it is the grandmother of all parliaments!
Thank you Richard for this information. I was aware of the status of the Isle of Man but somewhat confused by Peel Cathedral being the 43rd cathedral of the Church of England. I have made some adjustments to the text.