Derby Cathedral, properly known as the Cathedral Church of All Saints, stands as one of the most architecturally distinctive religious buildings in England. Its unique combination of a 16th-century Perpendicular Gothic tower with an 18th-century Neo-Classical nave makes it a remarkable survivor of Georgian ecclesiastical design, whilst its bells hold a record that has stood for over three centuries.
A Thousand Years of Worship
The site has been a place of Christian worship since approximately 943, when Anglo-Saxon King Edmund I founded a royal collegiate church dedicated to All Saints. The Domesday Book of 1086 records the church as belonging to the king, served by a college of seven priests. A new building was constructed in the 14th century, roughly the same size as the present structure.
The tower that dominates Derby's skyline today was built between 1510 and 1532 in the Perpendicular Gothic style. Standing 212 feet (65 metres) tall and constructed from Ashover Grit sandstone quarried at Duffield Bank, it features twelve large sculpted grotesque animal figures, three on each face, together with Green Man stone heads flanking the main West Door.
The Georgian Transformation
The present church owes its existence to an act of remarkable ecclesiastical decisiveness. In February 1723, Dr Michael Hutchinson, then vicar, unilaterally demolished the medieval church overnight. In its place rose a building designed by James Gibbs, the Scottish architect who had trained in Rome under Carlo Fontana. The first sermon was preached on 25 November 1725.
Gibbs produced a Neo-Classical interior that he himself described as "plain" and "austere." In his 1739 Book of Architecture, he wrote: "It is the more beautiful for having no galleries, which, as well as pews, clog up and spoil the insides of churches ... the plainness of this building makes it less expensive, and renders it more suitable to the old steeple." The result is a rare and largely intact example of Georgian church architecture, notable for its clarity of space and light.
Among the finest features of Gibbs's interior is the wrought iron chancel screen, manufactured by Robert Bakewell, a local ironsmith born in Uttoxeter in 1682. The screen, which cost £157.10.0d (150 guineas), was completed five years after the church opened and remains in daily use after nearly three centuries. Bakewell, who also created the famous Birdcage Arbour at Melbourne Hall, died in 1752 and was buried at St Peter's Church in Derby.
The Oldest Ring of Ten Bells in the World
The cathedral's bells represent one of its most remarkable treasures. According to the cathedral's official website, Derby Cathedral holds the oldest ring of ten bells in the world. The bells were augmented from six to ten in 1678, a date that precedes any other complete ring of ten by a considerable margin.
The largest bell weighs 19 cwt (965 kg) and is over 500 years old, believed to have been cast around 1525 or earlier. It originated at Dale Abbey in Erewash, Derbyshire, and was moved to All Saints following the Dissolution of the Monasteries. The youngest bell in the ring dates to 1693, meaning all ten bells are now more than 330 years old. The eighth bell spent its early years at Ashbourne parish church until 1815.
When the church became a cathedral in 1927, the bells were retuned and rehung in a new metal frame at a lower level; previously they had hung in a wooden frame. Today they continue to ring out across the city, and are also used by a carillon to play tunes daily at 9am, 12 noon, and 6pm. The carillon, installed in 1931 by John Smith of Derby, plays a different melody each day of the week, including "The Derby Ram" on Saturdays, a march associated with the Sherwood Foresters regiment.
From Parish Church to Cathedral
The transformation from parish church to cathedral came on 27 October 1927, when the building was consecrated as the Cathedral Church of All Saints. An Order in Council dated 1 July 1927 had created the Bishopric of Derby, and the Right Revd Edmund Pearce was enthroned as the first Bishop on 28 October. The building was granted Grade I listed status on 20 June 1952.
The 20th century saw significant additions to Gibbs's original design. Between 1967 and 1972, architect Sebastian Comper, son of Sir Ninian Comper, designed the retroquire, the section extending eastwards behind the high altar. The project included stained glass windows by Welsh artist Ceri Richards, installed in 1965, depicting "All Saints" and "All Souls."
Notable Memorials and Burials
The cathedral contains the monument to Bess of Hardwick, Elizabeth, Countess of Shrewsbury, who purchased the crypt area in 1590 for her family's burials. The Cavendish family vault contains over forty coffins, including those of Henry Cavendish, the scientist; Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire; and William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire.
Among other notable burials is John Lombe, the silk mill pioneer. The cathedral also marks the place where Joan Waste, a blind Protestant woman, was tried for heresy in 1556 before her execution on Burton Road.
The Cathedral Today
Derby Cathedral remains an active centre of worship, culture, and education. It is home to a breeding pair of peregrine falcons, first discovered in late 2005, with nesting platforms and webcams installed to allow visitors and online viewers worldwide to observe the birds. The cathedral also supports Derby Cathedral School, the first Church of England secondary school in the city, which opened in 2018.
The cathedral is open to visitors seven days a week, with services, concerts, and community events forming a regular part of its programme. Its doors stand open to all, continuing a tradition of welcome that stretches back more than a millennium.
