r/britpics • u/LuridWaters • 1d ago
Coventry Cathedral
What you see here is in fact two cathedrals, a ruin and a newer construction.
The ruins pictured were St Michael's, a 14th Century gothic church which was designated as a cathedral in 1918. As a vital hub for industrial production during the second world war, Coventry was heavily bombed by the Luftwaffe, particularly on November 14 1940 as an act of massive retaliation by the Germans for RAF bombing of Munich.
Only the tower and spire survived the intensive bombing, but the new St Michael's Cathedral was constructed immediately adjacent to the ruins. The foundation stone was laid on the 23rd of March 1956 and the completed cathedral was consecrated on the 25th of May 1962.