t. Albans did not become a cathedral city until 1877, but the history of the site of the cathedral church goes along way back in time. The site of the church was sacred even before Augustine arrived in Britain in around 597. A young Roman called Alban gave refuge to a Christian priest who was being hunted because of his religion. Alban helped the priest escape by pretending to be the priest himself. Alban was captured and beheaded, his head being buried. King Offa founded a monastery at the site and Benedictine monks built an abbey in the memory of St. Alban. This abbey and the surrounding area was attacked by Vikings in 930. After the Norman Conquest William the Conqueror appointed Paul of Cean, a Norman bishop, who began the construction of a new church. Some sections of Paul's early Norman church still remain today. He died before he could see its completion and consecration which took place in 1115. In 1119 Geoffrey de Gorham became abbot. His appointment should have occurred earlier but due to a hold up while travelling from his home in Maine he arrived at St. Albans and found that the position of abbot had already been filled. He became a teacher at Dunstable and waited for a post to become available. An unfortunate event took place when for a play he was performing he borrowed the sacred cloaks from the abbey and the night after the play had been performed his house and all the cloaks were destroyed by fire. To make amends for this he became a simple monk at the abbey. But his abilities soon meant he rose through the ranks to become the abbot at St. Albans.St. Albans Cathedral has the longest nave of any cathedral in England. It is 106 metres or 348 feet in length.
