[2] The city of Chichester, though it retains two main cross streets laid out by the Romans, has always been small enough for the city's entire population to fit inside the cathedral at once, causing Daniel Defoe to comment: I cannot say much of Chichester, in which, if six or seven good families were removed, there would not be much conversation, except what is to be found among the canons, and the dignitaries of the cathedral.

An early addition was the Chapel of Saint Pantaleon off the south transept (now the Canons' Vestry), probably begun just before an 1187 fire which burnt out the cathedral and destroyed much of the town.

[9] That fire necessitated a substantial rebuilding, which included refacing the nave and replacing the destroyed wooden ceiling with the present stone vault, possibly by Walter of Coventry.

A restoration programme was begun starting in 1812 and in 1829 the cathedral was closed for several months while major repairs and improvements were carried out.

[13] A fund was set up to raise the £48,000 needed for the rebuilding, and the contributors included Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.

[14] A replica of the old tower and spire was rebuilt along the original lines by George Gilbert Scott from drawings which had been made by Joseph Butler, architect to the fabric (1847–1888).

Rowan Williams, then Archbishop of Canterbury, was invited to preach at a festival eucharist and dedicate the new guest house, which was originally named after Bishop George Bell.

[18][19] Typically for English cathedrals, Chichester has had a long and varied building history marked by a number of disasters.

The architectural history of the building is revealed in its fabric because the builders of different periods constructed in different styles and with changing technology.

Both inside and outside portions of the original Norman cathedral can be distinguished from the later Gothic work by the massive construction and round-topped windows.

It is similar to remaining Norman work at Winchester, where the arcade is proportionally low, and rests on solid piers rather than columns.

The eastern end was extended from the round ambulatory to form a square retrochoir or presbytery with lancet windows in a style that is transitional between Norman and Gothic.

The vault is in the Early English Gothic style, supported externally by flying buttresses and large terminal pinnacles at the eastern end.

[1][2][4] The design of the central tower, faithfully reproduced by George Gilbert Scott, was of the Early English style, having on each side two tall pairs of openings, surrounded by deep mouldings.

[1] The style and construction of the spire are obviously based on that of Salisbury Cathedral but it is not as ambitiously tall, probably because of the problem of subsidence.

At 277 ft (84 m) high, it is the fourth tallest cathedral spire in the UK after Salisbury, Norwich and Coventry.

The Lady chapel, constructed to the east of the retro-choir, is a long narrow space, with large windows in the Decorated Gothic style of the late 13th century.

[1][2][4] The other buildings related to the cathedral are the free-standing bell-tower of the early 15th century, probably the work of William Wynford who also designed the cloisters, with openings in the Perpendicular style.

[1] St Mary's Almshouses in Chichester, which are linked to the cathedral, is a Christian charity dating from the 13th century.

[21] The cathedral has many treasures and artworks, the most precious being two carved reliefs dating from the 12th century which are of exceptional rarity among English sculpture.

[2][4] Other ancient treasures include the remains of a Roman mosaic pavement, which can be viewed through a glass window, and a set of thirty-eight medieval misericords, dating from 1330, which remain beneath the seats of the choir, despite the fact that other parts of the choir stalls are largely a Victorian reconstruction.

[26] It provides a venue for visiting artists from across the world as well as those who are locally based, such as the Chichester Singers, who although an independent organisation, have since their formation in 1954, performed all their major concerts in the cathedral.

As well as singing, choristers learn the piano and an orchestral instrument, spending at least eighteen hours a week on musical performance.

It is also speculated, by Eric Shanes, that Chichester Cathedral is the subject of one of Turner's colour studies for Picturesque Views in England and Wales.