I have been informed that having a cathedral is what makes a city a city in the UK. Or at least in England. I didn't know that. So Grimsby is a town. Heh. Godless bunch that they are. :)And I note with Sherlock Holmes-like sharpness that Leeds has at least two main one-way streets. Nothing escapes me.
But then, Grimsby is today primarily an Amish enclave, I think. Having driven out the Vikings long ago.
Now there was an interesting war. I must blog about that one day.
Whilst there's some truth in what you say, I ought to point out that Leds' city status was conferred despite it not having a cathedral.
ReplyDelete189?
What? you cry, but I specifically posted a picture of Leeds Cathedral!!!
Oh dear. See, all this religious stuff is a bit confusing, but the story goes back to King Henry VIII, and his major squabble with the Pope. So he officially declared the Roman Catholic church as persona non grata in his realm, and appointed his very own kinglyness as the head of the Church of England.
As a result, since 15** the only cathedrals that count, city-wise, are Anglican ones.
The reigning monarch, however, can grant a city-charter to a town regardless of whether it has a cathedral. So Leeds became a city. Although Leeds has a rather splendid parish church, that church's governing church is the cathedral of Ripon, and the vicar of Leeds' superior officer is the bishop of Ripon.
So St Anne's Cathedral, which your picture shows, does not confer city status. It's a rather unexciting building, and, in cathedral terms, it's shiny and new, barely a hundred years old, whereas the Cathedral church of St Wilfrid, Ripon?, the earliest part dates from around 670 a.d.
Grimsby is a town. But it has a rather splendid tower, in the docks, thats almost as grand as a cathedral. I rather like Grimsby.
It's named for a norse settler, Grim, who had a farm ('by') there.
Oh arse! Leeds, not Leds. the typing finger is to blame for all and any spelling errors.
ReplyDeleteThere are all sorts of strange little exceptions such as:
ReplyDeleteRochester in Kent used to be a city but is no longer, in spite of having a cathedral AND a castle AND being ancient.
Reading has wanted to be a city for a long time so has started to label buses and signs with "City Centre". So too has Milton Keynes. This is not done, you know, in civilised society.
City status is given to local government districts which sometimes cover a number of towns, for example one of the more recent cities is Brighton & Hove.
I could go on, but you'll be relieved to hear that I won't.
@Soubriqet - I think you may have missed my incredible post on Grimsby which occurred while you had more important things on your mind. You also missed my worst post of all time, I think, where I tried to speak Yorkshire. But you don't have to bother with that one.
ReplyDeleteUmm, that's not a picture of that Cathedral in Leds. It's in East LA. Similar though, no?
If the magnificent St. Ann's (or St. Anne's as YOU call it) does not confer cityship to Leeds, I would say that is more of a ripoff than a ripon. If I may say.
ReplyDeleteI do remember Henry #8 but doubt he would do much for Yorkshire. So who was the raining monarch wot done the deed?
I may be wrong, though seldomly.
Ok, I may be getting my War of the Roses mixed up with the Danny DeVito one. There could be me err.
ReplyDelete@A. - Well, hell, that clears it up then.
ReplyDeleteThe Scots of course, as usual doing things correctly, had none of this popish nonsense, as you will know doubt no. Tsk! My spelling is becoming Yankee!
ReplyDeleteOur cities are cities because they are. And there are no cathedrals bar the foreign ones, e.g English or Roman. We have 'Kirks.'
Ah! I've remedied my error, and caught up on my reading. I see that you are in fact an aficionado of fairest Grimsby.
ReplyDeleteYour cathedral in east L.A. looks like a really well detailed replica of St Anne's in Leeds, so much so that they've even built the old City of Leeds school on the other side of the street.
@Adullamite - Popish is the Yankee spelling?
ReplyDeletekirk |kərk|
noun Scottish & N. English
1 a church.
2 ( the Kirk or the Kirk of Scotland) the Church of Scotland as distinct from the Church of England or from the Episcopal Church in Scotland.
And your cities are because they are. Another Yankee-like thing. You may be coming around. I'll have to check into this more deeply. The only kirk I've heard of is Dunkirk, and I'm sure that's quite different.
Wait, I've also heard of Captain Kirk. And wasn't Robinson Crusoe's real name something Kirk? He was a Scot, you know.
I thought Episcopals were only in New York. I have a lot to learn.
@Soubriquet - I am indeed a booster of Greater Grimsby, wherein 70% of UK seafood is processed each year. Largest port in the UK. I could go on.
ReplyDeleteEast Los Angeles is a city. Capital E please. Los Lobos are from there. Well-known for medium-tasty enchiladas and perfect cathedral replicas, not to mention...
Well, not to mention.
Alexander Selkirk is the man from Lower Largo who was the inspiration for Robinson Crusoe. The book was written by Defoe when he was in Scotland spying for England and bribing the rich to sell out their country in 1707.
ReplyDelete@Adullamite - The typical mercat isn't technically cruciform. At least it hasn't been since the iconoclasm of the Reformation.
ReplyDeleteThey were, however, good places for protesters to publicly tear up copies of the treaty.