Photographs of Ely
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Ely is the third smallest city in England and is situated in the
Fens, north of Cambridge. The name Ely means 'the island of the eels' and is so
called because until the 17th century, when the Fens were drained, it was an
island surrounded by water and marshes full of eels.
The city's origins lay in the foundation of an abbey in 673AD, a mile north
of the village of Cratendune on the Isle of Ely, under the protection of
Ethelreda, daughter of King Anna. The abbey was destroyed in 870 by Danish
invaders and not rebuilt for over a hundred years. The site was one of the
last areas in England to hold out against the rule of William the Conqueror.
Hereward the Wake defended the islands in the Fens against the Normans until 1071.
Ely is dominated today by the magnificent Cathedral built by the Normans
between 1083 and 1351 and among its many interesting features are the Lady
Chapel, the Octagon Tower, and the Victorian painted ceiling in the Nave.
