Old Minster, Winchester Old Minster, Winchester The Old Minster was the Anglo-Saxon cathedral for the diocese of Wessex and then Winchester from 660 to 1093. It stood on a site immediately north of and partially beneath its successor, Winchester Cathedral. The minster was constructed in 648 for King Cenwalh of Wessex as the church of St Peter and St Paul. It became a cathedral when the West Saxon bishopric was transferred from Dorchester-on-Thames in the 660s. It was enlarged and redecorated over the years and Saint Swithun was buried outside it in 862. By the 10th century, the Minster was the priory church
Bishop of Winchester Bishop of Winchester The Bishop of Winchester is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Winchester in the Church of England. The bishop's seat ("cathedra") is at Winchester Cathedral in Hampshire. The Bishop of Winchester is appointed by the Crown, and is one of five Church of England bishops who sit "ex officio" among the 26 Lords Spiritual in the House of Lords, regardless of their length of service. The Diocese of Winchester is one of the oldest and most important in England. Originally it was the see of the kingdom of Wessex, with the "cathedra" at Dorchester Cathedral under