Coventry Cathedral

The Cathedral Church St Michael – better known as Coventry Cathedral – is a Grade 1 listed building. It replaced the 14th century St Michael’s Cathedral, destroyed in a German air raid in 1940.

Architect Basil Spence’s radical modernist design for the new building caused controversy when it was revealed in 1950. Modernism rejected the neo-classicalism common for many Victorian churches and instead used new construction technologies such as steel and reinforced concrete.

The cathedral is 91.5m long and 33.5m wide. It’s famous for its unusual spire, known as a fleche – the French word for arrow. The spire rises to 90m and is the tallest structure in Coventry. Other well-known features are a huge tapestry designed by artist Graham Sutherland and the Great West Window, which is suspended from the roof.

To learn more about Coventry Cathedral click here: https://www.ice.org.uk/what-is-civil-...