Instruct: Given a question, retrieve relevant passages that answer the question.
Query: When was Westminster Cathedral built?
The site on which the cathedral stands in the City of Westminster was purchased by the Diocese of Westminster in 1885, and construction was completed in 1903.[2] Westminster Cathedral is the largest Catholic church building in England and Wales and the seat of the Archbishop of Westminster.
When the question of a musical director was first considered, the choice fell on the singer Sir Charles Santley, who had conducted the choir of the pro-cathedral in Kensington on several occasions. But Santley knew his limitations and refused.[24] Richard Runciman Terry —Director of Music at Downside Abbey School— then became the first director of music of Westminster Cathedral. It proved to be an inspired choice. Terry was both a brilliant choir trainer and a pioneering scholar, one of the first musicologists to revive the great works of the English and other European Renaissance composers. Terry built Westminster Cathedral Choir's reputation on performances of music —by Byrd, Tallis, Taverner, Palestrina and Victoria, among others- that had not been heard since the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and Mass at the cathedral was soon attended by inquisitive musicians as well as the faithful. The performance of great Renaissance Masses and motets in their proper liturgical context remains the cornerstone of the choir's activity.
In 1550 the diocese of Westminster was reunited with that of London. Thirlby surrendered the diocese on 30 March and was made Bishop of Norwich, while Nicholas Ridley became Bishop of London and Westminster. In 1552 an act of parliament of confirmed the status of Westminster as a "cathedral church and episcopal see to the bishop of London". Westminster Abbey finally lost its cathedral status in 1556, during the reign of Queen Mary, when the chapter was abolished and the monastery restored.
Mr.Nathaniel Hitch, who died in London on Friday at the age of 92, was a notable craftsman and sculptor.
A native of Ware, in Hertfordshire, he came to London at the age of 14 and for over 70 years he worked continuously. He was responsible for the entire decorative sculpture in Truro Cathedral when it was built 50 years ago, the reredos and sculpture to the screen in Bristol Cathedral, the great reredos at All Saints’ Church, Hove, and the statues which complete Street’s screen in the Chapel of New College, Oxford. His later work included the recumbent statues of Bishop Satterlee and Bishop Harding, both in Washington Cathedral, U.S.A. and of Bishop Owen in St David’s Cathedral. Sydney Cathedral and Adelaide Cathedral both contain sculpture by him for their reredos as does also Calcutta Cathedral, and his work is to be seen in Canterbury, Lincoln and Peterborough Cathedrals, Beverley Minster and Westminster Hall.
Not all of the cathedrals that are in a revivalist style are Gothic. Westminster Cathedral, the seat of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Westminster, is an eclectic design of predominantly Byzantine style with polychrome walls, domes and a very tall Italian-style campanile. Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral in Canada is a Renaissance revival building based on St Peter's, Rome.
Westminster Cathedral has published a monthly magazine since 1896, before the building work was completed. The latest in a series of titles is Oremus, which first appeared in 1996. (The Latin word oremus translates into English as "Let us pray".) Oremus is a 32-page colour magazine, which contains features and articles by well-known members of the Catholic community, as well as non-Catholic commentators and leading figures within British society. It is the successor of titles such as the Westminster Cathedral Record, selling at 6d per copy from January 1896, the Westminster Cathedral Chronicle, a monthly, available from January 1907 at 2d a copy or 3/- a year, post paid, and the Westminster Cathedral Bulletin, first published in 1974. Dylan Parry, who edited the magazine between 2012 and August 2016, took the decision to make Oremus a free publication in 2013. The magazine is also available to download via Westminster Cathedral's website.[28][29]
The Cathedral is frequently referred to as the 'Drome'. This dates from the early 20th century days when the Lay Clerks were represented by Equity - the trade union for actors and variety artists. In the profession, it was jokingly referred to as 'The Westminster Hippodrome' - a nickname which was later shortened to the 'Drome'.[27]
Westminster Cathedral (Welsh: Eisteddfod Gadeiriol Westminster), or the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ, in London is the mother church of the Catholic Church in England and Wales.
Henry Willis III built and worked on many organs across Britain, the most notable examples of his work (in addition to Liverpool Cathedral above) being in Westminster Cathedral and Sheffield City Hall, both built in 1932. These organs both contain stops invented by the builder: the Sylvestrina at 8 foot pitch on the Choir divisions.
When the cathedral was first built, seven bells – representing the sacraments – were cast at the Fonderie Paccard in Annecy-le-Vieux, Savoy, France and were blessed on October 21, 1900. However, they were soon found to be out of tune and were sent back to Europe, this time to a foundry near Bristol. This time, eight bells were made in order to complete an entire octave when rung. They were reinstalled in the cathedral in 1906 and operate on change ringing. They are one of the few peal of bells hung in the English style found in North America, and one of three in British Columbia – the others are located at Westminster Abbey in Mission and Victoria's Christ Church Cathedral. The bells were notably rung on Dominion Day in 1911 – the first peal ever to be rung in Canada – and on February 12, 2010, in honour of the opening of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
Westminster diocese was dissolved in 1550, but the abbey was recognised (in 1552, retroactively to 1550) as a second cathedral of the Diocese of London until 1556. The already-old expression "robbing Peter to pay Paul" may have been given a new lease of life when money meant for the abbey, which is dedicated to Saint Peter, was diverted to the treasury of St Paul's Cathedral.
The abbey was restored to the Benedictines under the Catholic Mary I of England, but they were again ejected under Elizabeth I in 1559. In 1560, Elizabeth re-established Westminster as a "Royal Peculiar" – a church of the Church of England responsible directly to the Sovereign, rather than to a diocesan bishop – and made it the Collegiate Church of St Peter (that is, a non-cathedral church with an attached chapter of canons, headed by a dean.)
Westminster Cathedral Choir School is a boarding and day preparatory school for boys in the area of Victoria in the City of Westminster. All choristers at the cathedral board at the school. The school has direct passageways to the Cathedral on Victoria Street and is therefore considered a part of it. It is one of two Roman Catholic cathedral schools in the United Kingdom, the other being St John's in Cardiff, Wales.
On 23 November 2011 a new anthem "Laudate Dominum" was performed at the Festival of St. Cecilia Service at Westminster Cathedral. This had been specially commissioned by the Musicians Benevolent Fund and was sung by the combined choirs of Westminster Cathedral, Westminster Abbey and St. Paul's Cathedral under Martin Baker.
Some important deans include the deans of St Paul's, Canterbury Cathedral and Westminster Abbey. Westminster Abbey is a royal peculiar, not the seat of any bishop or a cathedral, but is led by a dean. The deans of Washington National Cathedral and St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin are likewise important clerics in their churches.
The Sacred Heart Cathedral, properly the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and also known as the Stone House by locals, is a Gothic Revival Roman Catholic cathedral in Guangzhou, China. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Guangzhou. The cathedral is located at 56 Yide Road (in Chinese: 一德路56号), on the north bank of the Pearl River at the heart of the old town. It is one of the few cathedrals in the world to be entirely built of granite, including all the walls, pillars, and towers (the other three are Notre Dame de Paris, Westminster Abbey and Cologne Cathedral).
Unlike most other English cathedrals, Westminster does not have a separate quire; instead, the choir are hidden from view in the apse behind the high altar. This, with the excellent acoustic of the cathedral building, contributes to its distinctive sound.
The Diocese was founded in New Westminster in 1879, but with the phenomenal growth of the City of Vancouver, the See city was moved there in 1912. There are, therefore, two churches styled as "cathedrals" in the diocese — Christ Church Cathedral in Vancouver has been the cathedral since 1929, while Holy Trinity Cathedral in New Westminster was the cathedral from 1892 to that date. Although no longer a cathedral, the Diocesan Synod allowed Holy Trinity to keep the title "cathedral" as a courtesy for historical reasons (it is, strictly speaking, a pro-cathedral).
The founder of Westminster Cathedral, Cardinal Herbert Vaughan laid great emphasis on the beauty and integrity of the cathedral's liturgy. Initially, he determined there should be a community of Benedictine monks at the new cathedral, performing the liturgies and singing the daily Office. This caused great resentment amongst the secular clergy of the diocese, who felt they were being snubbed. In the end, negotiations with both the English Benedictines and the community of French Benedictines at Farnborough failed and a 'traditional' choir of men and boys was set up instead.[21] Despite great financial problems, the Choir School opened on 5 October 1901 with eleven boy choristers, in the building originally intended for the Benedictine monks. Cardinal Vaughan received the boys with the words "You are the foundation stones".[22] The Cathedral Choir was officially instituted three months later in January 1902.[23] Sung Masses and Offices were immediately established when the cathedral opened for worship in 1903, and have continued without interruption ever since. Today, Westminster Cathedral Choir is the only professional Catholic choir in the world to sing daily Mass and Vespers.
Holy Trinity became the first Anglican Cathedral of the Anglican Diocese of New Westminster in 1892. It located in the City of New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada and since 1929 it has been the pro-cathedral. Services commenced at Holy Trinity in 1860.
The history of England's churches is extensive, their style has gone through many changes and has had numerous influences such as 'geographical, geological, climatic, religious, social and historical, shape it. One of the earliest style changes is shown in the Abbey Church of Westminster, which was built in a foreign style and was a cause for concern for many as it heralded change. A second example is [[St Paul's Cathedral]], which was one of the earliest Protestant Cathedrals in England. There are many other notable churches that have each had their own influence on the ever-changing style in England, such as [[Truro]], [[Westminster Cathedral]], [[Liverpool]] and [[Guildford]]. Between the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, the style of church architecture could be called 'Early English' and 'Decorated'. This time is considered to be when England was in its prime in the category of a church building. It was after the [[Black Death]] that the style went through another change, the 'perpendicular style', where ornamentation became more extravagant.
The current building for Holy Trinity Cathedral was built during the period from January 1, 1899 to January 1, 1902. 
Although Holy Trinity was established as the cathedral of the Anglican Diocese of New Westminster in 1892, since 1929 the cathedral of the diocese has been Christ Church Cathedral, Vancouver in the City of Vancouver. Holy Trinity was allowed the privilege of continuing to describe itself as a cathedral for historical reasons.
The great opportunity of Bentley's career came in 1894, when he was commissioned to design a new Roman Catholic cathedral in Westminster, London. After deciding on a Byzantine Revival design, Bentley travelled to Italy to study some of the great early Byzantine-influenced cathedrals, such as St Mark's Basilica in Venice. Because of illness and an outbreak of cholera in Istanbul, he was unable to complete his tour with a study of the Hagia Sofia. Bentley ended his tour in Venice and returned to London to begin work on Westminster Cathedral.
Holy Rosary Roman Catholic Cathedral, a grand neo-romanesque structure on 13th Avenue in the West End, was completed in 1912 and consecrated in 1913; at the time, its 235-foot twin spires were the tallest structures in Regina. Its Casavant Frères pipe organ, originally installed in 1930, repaired after a disastrous 1976 fire, and extensively refurbished and enlarged in 1992–1993, remains the largest organ in Regina. When it suffered its disastrous 1976 its congregation repaired next door to Westminster United, which gladly offered its worship space to Holy Rosary for the duration.
Westminster Presbyterian, now United Church, immediately to the east of Holy Rosary on 13th Avenue, was also completed in 1913 and designed by architect Neil R. Darrach. Wascana Methodist, later United Church, a fine, elegant wooden structure in plain vernacular style on 13th Avenue at Pasqua, originally stood on 14th Avenue as Fourteenth Avenue Methodist Church, was moved in 1925 to its new site at 13th and Pasqua and later sold by its congregation when they built a new church in the West End; the congregation was subsequently dissolved and merged into Westminster. The West End, where the Cathedral is located, has acquired a somewhat bohemian air, and has in recent years increasingly attracted the sobriquet "the Cathedral Area."
Prior to the re-opening of Catholic churches, Mass in this period was said in Catholic embassies or in private houses. In 1866 the Carmelites opened the first Catholic church in the district. The parish church of Our Lady of Victories opened on 2 July 1869, the Feast of the Visitation, and became the Pro-Cathedral of the Archdiocese of Westminster. The Westminster Cathedral (in Victoria) was not built until 1903 so until that time, Kensington’s church was the foremost Catholic church in England.
In Monsignor Robert Hugh Benson's apocalyptic science fiction novel Lord of the World, Westminster Cathedral is the only church in London still used for religious purposes. The others have all been confiscated by the State. The Campanile Bell Tower of Westminster Cathedral was featured prominently in the Alfred Hitchcock film Foreign Correspondent, at which the attempted murder of a journalist played by Joel McCrea took place. In Shekhar Kapur's Elizabeth: The Golden Age scenes taking place at El Escorial were shot in Westminster Cathedral. The Cathedral has been painted by London Irish artist Brian Whelan.