Winchester monarchs such as King Canute and William Rufus. It was once an important pilgrimage centre and housed the shrine of Saint Swithun. The ancient Pilgrims' Way travelling to Canterbury begins at Winchester. The plan of the earlier Old Minster is laid out in the grass adjoining the cathedral. The New Minster (the original burial place of Alfred the Great and Edward the Elder) once stood beside it. The cathedral has a girls choir and a boys choir, which sing on a regular basis at the cathedral. Winchester Cathedral Close contains a number of historic buildings from the time when the
Cathedral of Saint Mel in Ardagh Cathedral of Saint Mel in Ardagh The Cathedral of Saint Mell is the name given to the ruins of a small, Early Medieval church in the village of Ardagh, County Longford in Ireland, not to be confused with St Mel's Cathedral in the town of Longford. Church reform in the 12th century made Saint Mel's Cathedral in Ardagh the centre of the Diocese of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise, demonstrating the importance of the site as a Cathedral and bishopric see. Although known as Saint Mel's Cathedral, the ruined church dates from three centuries after the saint's death, and predates the introduction