Salisbury Cathedral and Chichester Cathedral, 1402 to 1861) and fallen down; instead, Salisbury became the tallest church spire in the country on the collapse at Lincoln in 1549. The large supporting pillars at the corners of the spire are seen to bend inwards under the stress. The addition of reinforcing tie-beams above the crossing, designed by Christopher Wren in 1668, halted further deformation. The beams were hidden by a false ceiling, installed below the lantern stage of the tower. Significant changes to the cathedral were made by the architect James Wyatt in 1790, including replacement of the original rood screen and demolition
Architecture of the medieval cathedrals of England against the openwork spires of Germany and France), and tallest spire in the world that remains from the Medieval period that has not been entirely rebuilt. However, it was greatly surpassed in height by the spires of Lincoln and Old St. Paul’s. At Lincoln, between the early 14th century and 1548, the central tower was surmounted by the tallest spire in the world at about but this fell in a storm. Lichfield Cathedral, uniquely in England, has three medieval masonry spires. Although single western towers are common in English parish churches, only one medieval cathedral, Ely, retains a centrally placed