The Cathedral's full name is The Cathedral Church of St Peter at Exeter.
You do not need to enter the Cathedral for any of the answers though I would thoroughly recommend looking inside as it is a magnificent building with many interesting features.
A brief history of the Cathedral: The central Exeter area of Cathedral Close has been a site of importance to the city since Roman times when there was a basilica and a bath house in this area. In the centre of the green is a statue of Richard Hooker, an eminent 16th-century Anglican theologian, who was born in Exeter.
As well as the Cathedral itself there are a number of important buildings in Cathedral Close. Two churches face the Cathedral - St Petrocks Church and St Martin’s. There are also a number of other grade 1 listed buildings: Mol's Coffee House, No 5, Nos 8, 9 and 9a and No 10 Cathedral Close.
The area was first used for Christian purposes in Saxon times when evidence shows that the grassy area near to the current war memorial was used as a burial ground, and also that a minster or monastery was built close-by in the late 7th century. Crediton born St Boniface, who became the patron saint of Germany, was educated at this minster.
By 1050, with Exeter now the 6th most prosperous city in England, Bishop Leofric of Crediton decided to convert the existing minster into a Cathedral as he felt this site within the city walls would be more protected from lawlessness than the more open site of the church in Crediton. In 1114 Bishop Warelwast, the nephew of William the Conqueror, initiated the building on the minster site of a Romanesque style cathedral which was consecrated in 1133 and the two massive towers that still survive today were completed by about 1200.
In 1285 a twelve-foot wall with seven gates was built around the Cathedral Close which was locked from dusk till dawn to help reduce friction between the Cathedral and the secular rest of the city, though these have all been removed over the years to allow access into the close. Further building work was carried out during the 15th century.
The cathedral suffered a direct hit during the bombing of Exeter in May 1942, necessitating a great deal of repair work, and restoration and repairs are continually being carried out by maintenance teams as erosion and pollution take their toll on the historic buildings.
Interesting features of the cathedral include the longest unbroken stretch of Gothic stone vaulting in the world, and the Bishop’s Throne – a fine example of late 14th century woodwork.
The clock in the North Transept is considered to be one of only 4 of its kind in England and dates from 1376. The Exeter Book, a very important and treasured item collection of Bishop Leofric’s own Anglo-Saxon poems and riddles, is held at the Cathedral library.
More detailed information can be found at http://www.exetermemories.co.uk/em/cathedral.php and at the official cathedral site: http://www.exeter-cathedral.org.uk/
Waypoints
1. Looking through the metal gates on the front elevation of the Cathedral – the number of pink doors which have a round handle, including the one where the knob itself is currently missing (@ 24/8/2023) but the inner spindle remains = E
2. Plaque on wall opposite main entrance doors of the Cathedral – the Anno Domini year in which the bathhouse of the Roman 2nd Augustan Legion was originally built is BC
3. Cenotaph – the number of letters in the 7th word of the 8-word English inscription = D
4. At the SIGNPOST at the St Martin’s Lane entrance to Cathedral Close (there are still hoardings around the burnt-down Royal Clarence Hotel here), the time needed to walk to Exeter St David's Station is F5 minutes.
5. On the Circular plaque set into the foot-path which transverses the Close parallel to the long aspect of the Cathedral, the number of faces around the edge of the circle is GH
6. Continuing along to the end of this path leftwards when facing the cathedral, you will find two lines of poetry. The year of the poet’s birth is XXJK
YOU CAN FIND THE CACHE AT:
N50 (B -E) K . (F + G) (B - G) G
W003 (H - B) (J - D) . (B - C) G E