How could this be? Arundel Cathedral appeared to be rising, tall and graceful, from a lush Mediterranean garden.

The illusion was party down to the gloriously unseasonal October sunshine, but mainly to the exotic planting of the Collector Earl’s Gardens, from which we were observing this, the Cathedral Church of Our Lady and St Philip Howard.

The gardens form a lush paradise of palms, tropical plants and water features. Fountains burble, pools mirror the sky, and a gold crown dances on a water spout. In short, we felt we had been magically transported from West Sussex to Italy.

We had hoped to walk Phil McCarthy’s new pilgrim route from Arundel Cathedral to the Shrine of Our Lady of Consolation at West Grinstead but time pressure meant a shorter pilgrim route was needed.

The alternative path we picked began at the cathedral and ended at a second key point of Catholic pilgrimage: the Fitzalan Chapel in the grounds of Arundel Castle.

Between the two were 7.8 miles of glorious countryside, taking us out through the undulating downland of Arundel Park to the River Aran, before a waterside return. Along the way we visited the peaceful 12th century Anglican church of St Mary in the hamlet of North Stoke; and a riverside pub, the Black Rabbit at Offham, for lunch.

It was a short climb from Arundel’s tea-shop and antique-y centre to the French Gothic, Bath stone cathedral, which sails high above the town. The cathedral was built, as a mere church, by Henry Fitzalan Howard, 15th Duke of Norfolk (1847-1917), the leading lay Catholic in England. It became a cathedral in 1965. Howard built it over the road from his ancestral home, Arundel Castle.

The Fitzalan Chapel, entered from the castle grounds, is actually the chancel of the original, 14th Century church of St Nicholas. The nave has housed the Anglican parish church since the Reformation. The remains of St Philip Howard, the 13th Earl of Arundel, were taken from here for reburial in the cathedral in 1971, when the dedication was changed from St Philip Neri to this martyr saint. Howard was charged, during Elizabeth I’s reign, with being a Catholic and taking part in Jesuit plots. He died in the Tower of London, and is one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales. He was canonised by Pope Paul VI in 1970.

The Fitzalan Chapel survived the Reformation through a curious ploy: the then duke sold it to Henry VIII, with whom he was on good terms, despite his faith. Henry then gave the chancel back to him, leaving the nave to become the Anglican parish church. You can actually peer through an iron grille into the Fitzalan Chapel from St Nicholas, which you pass just before reaching the cathedral but, if you can get here by October 29, the final opening day this year, you can go inside, entering via Arundel Castle gardens.

The map below offers a downloadable GPX file so you can follow the route on your phone. The path begins and ends at Crown Yard car park in the centre of Arundel.

Andy Bull

Notes

Arundel Cathedral features in Elena Curti’s new book, Another Fifty Catholic Churches to See Before You Die, published on October 17 by Gracewing. [www.gracewing.co.uk/page330.html]

There are 20 more one- and two-day pilgrimages in Andy Bull's book Pilgrim Pathways, available from Trailblazer [https://trailblazer-guides.com/book/pilgrim-pathways-1-2-day-walks-on-britain-s-ancient-sacred-ways]

All photos and the route Copyright © Andy Bull 2023