Wimborne Minster is pleased to announce Special Guided Tours conducted during the Dorset Architectural Heritage Week (Friday 6th to Sunday 15th September 2024).
SPECIAL, separate guided tours of the Minster, the Bell Tower and the Chained Library.
St. Cuthburga founded her double Monastery in AD705 and around it the town of Wimborne grew. Sometime around 1043, Edward the Confessor re-founded the place as a College of Canons. During the Civil War, Wimborne’s fighting priest started a riot here and in the nineteenth century Isaac Gulliver, the smuggler, became Church Warden. The Minster is full of our heritage and we would like to share some of that with you. For thirteen hundred years the Minster has been very much part of the town.
The Bell Tower (Event 62)
Monday 9th, 2pm and 3pm
A rare opportunity to visit the Bell Tower of Wimborne Minster which was built in 1464. Sit in the ringing chamber and watch the ringers in action. Discover the history of the bells and hear about ringing for special events. Children must be over 7 and accompanied by an adult. Participants need to be able to climb and descend the 72 uneven spiral stone steps to the Ringing Chamber. No disabled access. No dogs. Accompanied children welcome. Not normally open to the public.
The Chained Library (Event 63) (Photo attached)
Saturday 7th, 12.45 to 1.45pm
Wednesday 11th, 12.45 to 1.45pm
Special one-hour Guided Tours of the Chained Library, offering an introduction to one of only a few chained libraries still open to the public in England. Dating from 1686, displaying examples of a handwritten book on vellum from the 1300s, together with early printed ones from the 1400s. The books cover a wealth of subjects including theology, history, anatomy, geography and philosophy. Authors include Sir Walter Raleigh, Machiavelli and Erasmus. Music from the Elizabethan era such as Thomas Tallis and William Byrd. You will also see the Great Seals of Elizabeth I and Charles I.
Still in its original location, via a spiral staircase of 26 uneven steps, in a room atop a Norman Tower built in the 1320s to house the Minster’s Treasury. No disabled access.
The Minster (Event 64) (Photo attached)
Tuesday 10th, 2pm to 3.15pm – The Building Tour
Thursday 12th, 2pm to 3.15pm – The Characters Tour
Friday 13th, 2pm to 3.15pm – The Artefacts Tour
- The Building Tour – A look at the structure of the Minster including the different phases of architecture and an invitation to imagine how it might have looked at various stages in the past.
- The Characters Tour – An introduction to some of the characters associated with the Minster.
Including the legend of Cuthburga, the dancing nuns, Ethelred, Margaret Beaufort, the man with two left feet, Edmund Barnes, our own Dick Wittington together with other personalities from our past.
- The Artefacts Tour – We look at several interesting items, be they of stone, glass, wood, or metal that relate to the Minster’s long and interesting heritage.
Level access available into the Minster. Steps with handrails up to the Choir and High Altar and down into the Crypt. Two steps up into the Baptistery. Accompanied children welcome.
Photography, for private collections, welcome.
No Parking – Please use nearby public car park.
All tickets are available via TicketSource (See Event Numbers). Limited availability and it’s free-of-charge, so don’t be disappointed!
