Vicar’s Close
Set to the side of the Cathedral is Vicar’s Close, widely understood to be the only complete mediaeval street in England and the oldest continuously inhabited street in Europe. The street is cobbled and not a comfortable ride for wheelchair users, but we feel it is well worth a brief visit, even just to view it from the main entrance archway.
Accessibility Rating: 4/5
Visit Length: 5 minutes
“With a bit of imagination it is not difficult to imagine Vicar’s Close as a bustling community of people employed in the service of the Cathedral. And this place is so photogenic, it’s hard to imagine it not ending up in every visitor’s photo album”
Dick Hodgson, wheelchair user
Vicar’s Close was built in the 14th century to house the so-named Chorister Vicars, who had the duty to chant divine service in the Cathedral eight times a day. Originally 42 houses were built – one for each vicar. The houses comprised a ground floor hall of approximately 6 by 4 metres and an upper floor of the same size, both with a fireplace in the front wall. Washing facilities and a latrine were outside the back door. Number 22 still has most of its original medieval structure and provides the best example of the original vicar’s accommodation.
Following the Reformation, when vicars became allowed to marry, some houses were combined. Today, the Close comprises 27 residences and, continuing the centuries-old tradition, the current occupants still include all twelve men of the Vicars Choral, plus the organists and virgers.
By making the bottom end of the street taper out by 3 metres, the architect created the illusion that the street viewed from the Cathedral is much longer and thinner, and when looking towards the Cathedral it is much shorter, wider and more intimately connected to the Cathedral. Check this illusion out yourself.
Now imagine Vicar’s Close in Mediaeval times, with 42 young men, all cloistered together. When they were “on duty”, they would be gathered together in the communal dining hall (completed in 1348) which is directly connected to the Cathedral by a covered walkway over the Chain Gate Bridge. Here they would eat bread and drink weak beer (safer than water) and probably long for the distractions of the city e.g. meeting young ladies in the nearby Lovers Walk or supping ales in the bawdy taverns along St. Thomas Street. And so, (for the benefit of the moral rectitude of the Choristers) it was decided to enclose the top end of the street by building a chapel (in the 1420s) and putting gates up at both ends of the street. This effectively created an entirely gated community, supposedly keeping the young men safe from mortal perils.