I tend to prefer trees to buildings, but there is something so compelling about Salisbury Cathedral.

We were there on a sometimes-sunny Sunday, and walked along a footpath beside the Harnham Water Meadows towards the cathedral. At each sight of it between the trees I stopped. The green seemed to raise the spire higher, and the spire to emphasise the green spread out at its feet. It all looked so beautiful and balanced, truly belonging where it stood, and as though not much had changed since it was completed in 1238.

Two things I’ve discovered since that visit are, first, that Salisbury Cathedral was never part of a monastery, and second, that other medieval cathedrals attempted spires similar to Salisbury’s but many collapsed.

If you would like to find out a bit more about Salisbury Cathedral this video will give you a tour. It includes close-ups of some of the over four decades of restoration work that have been completed recently.

Copyright Georgie Knaggs & The Phraser 2023