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
St Chad's Cathedral, Birmingham Aston Hall, near Stafford. After Sir Thomas's death, his widow moved to a smaller residence and their chaplain, Fr Benjamin Hulme found the dusty velvet-covered box of relics under the altar, when he cleared out the chapel. Fr Hulme presented the relics to Bishop Walsh, who was in the process of deciding upon a suitable patronal dedication for his new cathedral. So it was that the relics of the saint who was the apostle of the Midlands in the 7th century were enshrined above the altar. It is the only cathedral in England which has the relics of its patron