(as Archdeacon of Bath from 1798) 1815–1837† Charles Crook 1839–1854 William Brodrick (later Viscount Midleton and Dean of Exeter) 1854–1859† Thomas Carr (formerly Bishop of Bombay) 1859–1874† Charles Kemble 1875–1895 Richard England Brooke (grandfather of Rupert Brooke) 1895–1901 John Quirk (appointed Bishop of Sheffield) 1902–1938 Sydney Boyd (as Archdeacon of Bath from 1924) 1938–1947 William Selwyn (as Archdeacon of Bath; appointed Bishop of Fulham) 1947–1960 Edwin Cook 1960–1989 Geoffrey Lester 1990–2000 Richard Askew 2001–2003 Simon Oberst (resigned, disqualified from priesthood) 2004–2017 Edward Mason 2018– Guy Bridgewater † Rector died in post Architecture The Abbey is built of Bath stone, which gives the exterior its yellow colour, and is not a typical example of the Perpendicular form of Gothic architecture; the low aisles and nave arcades and the very tall clerestory present the opposite balance to that which was usual in perpendicular churches. As this building was to serve as a monastic church, it was built to a cruciform plan, which had become relatively rare in parish churches of the time. The interior contains fine fan vaulting by Robert and William Vertue, who designed similar vaulting for the Henry VII chapel, at Westminster Abbey. The building has 52 windows, occupying about 80% of the wall space, giving the interior an impression of lightness, and reflecting the different attitudes towards churchmanship shown by the clergy of the time and those of the 12th century. The walls and roofs are supported by buttresses and surmounted by battlements, pinnacles and pierced parapets, many of which were added by George Manners during his 1830s restorations. The nave, which has five bays, is long and wide to the pillars and rises to , with the whole church being long and wide. The west front, which was originally constructed in 1520, has a large arched window and detailed carvings. Above the window are carvings of angels and to either side long stone ladders with angels climbing up them. Apart from the story mentioned above connecting it with Oliver King, Bishop of Bath and Wells (1495–1503), this is a direct reference to the dream of the patriarch Jacob mentioned in the Bible (Genesis 28:12) and commonly called Jacob's Ladder. Below the window a battlemented parapet supports a statue and beneath this, on either side of the door, are statues of St Peter and St Paul. Restoration work in the late 20th century involved cleaning with electronically controlled intermittent