Editing Beverley Minster (section)

==History==
The minster owes its origin and much of its subsequent importance to Saint [[John of Beverley]], [[Bishop of York]] (706–714?), who founded  a monastery locally {{circa|700}} and whose remains still lie in a vault beneath the nave. Archaeological excavations in 1979–82 confirmed that a major church stood on or near the present minster site from {{circa|700}} to {{circa|850}}. That last date could support a tradition of the sacking of the monastery by Vikings.{{sfn|Pevsner|1995|p=280}}

Another tradition attributes to [[Æthelstan|King Æthelstan]] the refoundation of the monastery as a [[collegiate church]] of secular canons. The establishment of a major minster and its privileges was more likely a gradual process but, by the early 11th century, Bishop John's tomb had become a major pilgrimage centre. He was [[canonised]] in 1037, and his [[Cult (religious practice)|cult]] encouraged the growth of a town around the minster.{{sfn|Pevsner|1995|p=280}} The archbishops of York, the lords of Beverley throughout the Middle Ages, secured grants for four annual fairs which enhanced the town's trading role. From the 12th century Beverley was a major exporter of wool to the Low Countries.{{sfn|Pevsner|1995|p=282}}

A 12th-century charter indicates substantial rebuilding work following the canonisation of St John of Beverley in 1037. Archbishop Kynesige (1051–60) added a high stone tower; his successor [[Ealdred (archbishop of York)|Ealdred]] (1060–69) expanded the church with a new presbytery. He also installed a painted and gilded ceiling from the presbytery to the tower. Nothing remains of this Anglo-Saxon church, and no records of building work under the Normans survive. However, large quantities of Norman masonry have been found in excavations throughout the town, and four large arches built behind the nave [[triforium]] during the 14th century are composed of reused Norman [[voussoir]]s.{{sfn|Pevsner|1995|p=283}}

In 1067/68 Gamel, Sheriff of York was informed in a writ by [[William the Conqueror]] that ''[[Ealdred (archbishop of York)|Archbishop Ealdred]] should draw up a ''privilegium'' for the lands belonging to the church of St John of Beverley and that they shall be free from the demands of the king, his [[Reeve (England)|reeve]]s, and all his men, except for those of the [[archbishop of York|archbishop]] and [[catholic priest|priest]]s of the church.''

Saint [[Thomas Becket]] of Canterbury (December 1119 or 20 – December 1170) was named [[Provost of Beverley Minster|Provost of Beverley]] in 1154.

===Rebuilding===
A fire in 1188 seriously damaged the minster and the town. Much of the church was damaged and complete rebuilding was required. Money was collected for the work and reconstruction began at the east end soon after the fire.{{sfn|Phillips|2017}}{{Page needed|date=October 2021}} During the construction, a new lantern tower over the eastern crossing designed to illuminate the shrine of St John was under construction, but it collapsed {{circa|1219}} necessitating a partial rebuild of the church. [[Henry III of England|Henry III]] granted 40 oaks from [[Sherwood Forest]] in 1252, and by {{circa|1260}} the [[Retroquire|retrochoir]], [[Choir (architecture)|choir]], [[chapter house]], [[transept]]s, and [[Crossing (architecture)|crossing]] were complete.{{sfn|Pevsner|1995|p=283}} Filled with light, overwhelmingly tall and spacious, and speaking to the increasing skills of the stonecarvers, this new work was radically different from the old Saxon and Norman structure it replaced. It was the product of the novel structural systems and artistic development that together define the [[Gothic architecture|Gothic]] style, originating in France and brought to England in the late 12th century.

Work did not progress beyond the first bay of the nave. Of this Early Gothic building campaign, only the [[chapter house]] has been lost, although its wonderful staircase survives in the north choir aisle. The only major alteration was the insertion of a great [[Perpendicular Gothic|Perpendicular]] east window, for which money was bequeathed in 1416.{{sfn|Pevsner|1995|pp=283, 288}}

[[File:Beverley_Minster,_East_Riding_of_Yorkshire.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|The [[Perpendicular Gothic]] West towers of Beverley Minster]]
A new shrine for St John was ordered from Roger de Faringdon of London in 1292,{{sfn|Coldstream|1991|p=182}} to which the saint's remains were translated on 25 October 1307. Collections for further rebuilding were resumed in 1308, and work on the nave had begun by 1311. The architectural style current in England had developed into something much different from the Early Gothic displayed in the first part of the rebuilding; the new style is referred to as [[Decorated (architecture)|Decorated]]. More structurally daring, more richly decorated forms merge with the earlier, simpler forms in the nave of Beverley Minster, in an effort both to respect the older work and to bring it up to date. Building on the nave was ongoing in 1334, and may have been halted by the [[Black Death]] in 1348 as in many other instances across England.{{sfn|Pevsner|1995|p=288}}

Work did not resume until later in the century, when the nave was completed and the west front with its two great towers was built, {{circa|1400}}.{{sfn|Pevsner|1995|pp=286–7}} These towers are a superlative example of the Perpendicular style, and formed the inspiration for the present west towers of [[Westminster Abbey]] {{citation needed|date=January 2025}}, designed by [[Nicholas Hawksmoor]]. By the early 15th century, with the building of the north porch, the Minster was structurally complete.{{sfn|Pevsner|1995|p=287}} The great east window (bequeathed in 1416 as previously mentioned), a chapel funded by the Percys ({{circa|1490}}, in the extreme northeast corner of the church), and the choir stalls ({{circa|1520}}) were the only major later work.{{sfn|Pevsner|1995|pp=283–5}}

[[Henry Percy, 4th Earl of Northumberland]] (1449–1489), was buried in the church after being murdered by his own retainers at Cockslodge near [[Thirsk]], in 1489 during the [[Yorkshire rebellion 1489|Yorkshire rebellion]] over high taxes imposed by King Henry VII.

===English Reformation and beyond===
In 1548, the minster was reduced to the status of a [[parish church]], the college of secular canons established before the Norman Conquest was dissolved (decreasing the minster's staff from at least seventy-five to four),{{sfn|Pevsner|1995|p=282}} and the shrine of St John was dismantled. The chapter house, now unused, was demolished. By the early 17th century the parish church of St Martin, formerly attached to the three southwestern bays of the nave, was also gone.{{sfn|Pevsner|1995|p=285}}

As with many English churches during the wars of religion in the 16th century, Beverley Minster was not immune to dissension. Church authorities cracked down hard on those they felt were part of the "Popish" conspiracy contrary to royal decrees. "Among those holding traditional beliefs were three of the clergy at the minster, who were charged with Popish practices in 1567; John Levet was a former member of the college and Richard Levet was presumably his brother. Both [[Levett|Levet]]s were suspended from the priesthood for keeping prohibited equipment and books and when restored were ordered not to minister in Beverley or its neighbourhood."{{sfn|Baggs et al.|1989|pp=76–80}}{{sfn|Phillips|2017|p=318}}

By the early 18th century the church was in a state of decay. The stone vaulting used in all areas of the Minster called for [[flying buttress]]es, which had been constructed everywhere except on the north transept. By 1700, progressive structural failure of this transept over the centuries had almost brought about its collapse and the ruin of the crossing itself, with the transept gable overhanging the base by 4&nbsp;ft (1.2 m). Restoration continued from 1717 to 1731 under Nicholas Hawksmoor. William Thornton of York, one of the supervisors of the project, devised an ingenious method of levering the wall back into place and securing it with a great wooden frame. The southwestern bays of the nave, where the north wall of St Martin's parish church had been, were reconstructed at this time as well to harmonize with the rest of the nave.{{sfn|Pevsner|1995|pp=285–6}}