Louis, (/ˈluːi/) briefly known as Lulu (/ˈluːˌluː/),^[1] and frequently known as 'Louis the Cathedral Cat' or simply 'The Wells Cathedral Cat' (c. 1998 - 14 November 2019)^[2]^[3] was a ginger tabby cat that lived in Wells Cathedral, Somerset, England after being found as a stray by cathedral staff in 2004.^[4] He would later^[5] retire in 2016 to a house in Doulting, Somerset, in which he would pass away from a short illness 3 years later at an age thought to be over 20.^[6]

Louis became a popular attraction in Wells Cathedral, described as one of the cathedral's most photographed features,^[6] he had his own range of merchandise at the cathedral gift shop, and a children's story written about him.^[7] He had gained national, and international publicity throughout his life through multiple major news networks, and was featured on BBC's The One Show.^[4]^[6]

Arrival to Wells Cathedral[edit]

In 2004, Louis was discovered as a stray in the Mason's yard south of Wells Cathedral by Mark Rowe who was a member of the cathedral yard team at the time,^[8]^[4]^[9]^: 1 a few days later he was adopted,^[8] and the cathedral workers made him a bed in one of their rooms and installed a cat-flap to allow him to come and go during the night.^[9]^: 1 During this time he was known as the cathedral yard cat.^[8]

He would later eventually become accustomed to the cathedral, choosing a specific radiator and a chair in the Sugar Chantry as his place of choice to rest during the day. Now he was known as Louis the Cathedral Cat.^[10]^[9]^: 1^[8]

Life at Wells Cathedral[edit]

Louis often passed by congregations to sit at the front as services were ongoing, he also enjoyed going for a lie in his favourite chair. He was known locally as a terror to visiting dogs which would later develop into somewhat of a controversy contributing to his internation recognition.

Louis also had to compete for attention and food with a cat called Pangur, another local tabby cat which liked to steal food as well as the limelight from Louis.

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Popularity and controversy[edit]

Louis had a wide plethora of products based off of him at the gift shop in the cathedral such as fridge magnets, pencils, mugs, and other trinkets including paperweights, clocks, bottle stoppers and candle-snuffers

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Retirement[edit]

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Death[edit]

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Children's Book by Barbara Cooke[edit]

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Plot[edit]

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Cras vitae nulla ac lectus dictum laoreet. Quisque pellentesque massa vel convallis rhoncus. Sed interdum mi sed magna rhoncus tempus. Pellentesque porta dolor sed ligula luctus finibus nec id enim. Quisque et odio sed purus bibendum auctor ac at quam. Donec bibendum sem nisl, quis commodo diam porttitor sagittis. Sed non orci quis nulla lobortis imperdiet a bibendum diam. Nam dictum ante ut mollis gravida. Ut id orci in arcu venenatis malesuada. Fusce diam orci, laoreet a mi sit amet, consequat posuere purus. Curabitur egestas erat eu est pretium consectetur.

In Literature and the Arts[edit]

Literature[edit]

Louis is the only non-fictional character in the murder mystery novel Murder at the Cathedral by Frances Evesham (official website).^[11]
Louis is featured in Lisa Rogak's book Cats on the Job: 50 Fabulous Felines Who Purr, Mouse, and Even Sing for Their Supper, described as "perhaps the most well-known church cat in Great Britain" (after Doorkins Magnificat of Southwark).^[12]

Art[edit]

The painting 'Louis, Wells Cathedral' by Celia Pike depicts Louis sitting on the Cathedral Grounds, with Wells Cathedral in the background.^[13] Pike describes her work as "Louis Guarding his territory—the beautiful Wells Cathedral".^[14]

References[edit]

^ Rose, Simon (14 April 2011). "Louis the Wells Cathedral Cat" (Video). Interviewed by Jason Bryant.
^ Rayner, Gordan (16 March 2015). "Saint or sinner? Louis the Wells Cathedral cat accused of a string of savage attacks on dogs". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 17 March 2015. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
^ "@WellsCathedral1 on Twitter". Twitter. Wells Cathedral. 15 November 2019. Archived from the original on 17 January 2024. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
^ ^a ^b ^c "RIP Louis: Wells Cathedral Cat". englishcathedrals.co.uk. 18 November 2019. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
^ McGrail, Ben (16 December 2018). "Meet Pangur - the Wells Cathedral cat...sort of. After lovely Louis (who was the Cathedral cat for many years) retired to a loving home-". Facebook. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Wells Cathedral's resident cat Louis dies". BBC.com. BBC News Somerset. 18 November 2018. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
^ Morris, Steven (2015-03-17). "'Semi-feral' cathedral cat suspected of attacking dogs in English city". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-01-17.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Taylor, Michael (16 November 2019). "Much loved Louis the Wells Cathedral Cat has passed away". SomersetLive.co.uk. SomersetLive. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Cooke, Barbara (1 April 2012). Louis the Cathedral Cat. Printed by St Andrew's Press of Wells Ltd. Close Publications, Somerset. ISBN 9780957239302.
^ Roberts, Patrick (2011). "Church Cats 11". Purr 'n' Fur, Featuring Felines. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
^ Evesham, Frances (11 May 2020). An Exham-on-Sea Murder Mystery, Murder at the Cathedral. Boldwood Books. p. 148. ASIN B08592T6S6.
^ Rogak, Lisa (2015). Cats on the Job: 50 Fabulous Felines Who Purr, Mouse, and Even Sing for Their Supper. Designed by Omar Chapa. New York: Thomas Dunne Books, St. Martin's Griffin. pp. 167–169. ISBN 9781250072375.
^ Pike, Celia. "Louis, Wells Cathedral". Celia Pike. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
^ Pike, Celia (24 April 2017). "Louis, Wells Cathedral". Facebook. Retrieved 12 February 2024.

List of church and cathedral cats[edit]

Louis
	Louis on the cathedral grounds, 2007
Species	Felis catus
Breed	Domestic short-haired cat
Sex	male
Born	c. 1998
Died	November 14, 2019 (aged 20–21); Doulting, Somerset
Cause of death	Euthanisation after pleural effusion and possibly lung cancer
Nation from	England
Occupation	Cathedral cat, Mouser
Years active	2004-2016
Successor	Pangur
Residence	Wells Cathedral (2004-2016) Doulting (2016-2019)
Appearance	Ginger Tabby


Image	Name	Sex	Church/Cathedral	Region	Active during
	Louis	Male	Wells Cathedral	Somerset, England	2004-2016
	Pangur	Male	Wells Cathedral	Somerset, England	????-present
	Basil	Male	Wells Cathedral	Somerset, England	????-present
	Doorkins Magnificat	Female	Southwark Cathedral	London, England	2008-2019
	Hodge	Female	Southwark Cathedral	London, England	2020-present
external image	Inigo	Female	St. Pauls, Covent Garden	London, England	2011-present
external image	Jones	Male	St. Pauls, Covent Garden	London, England	2011-present
external image	Captain	Male	Salisbury Cathedral	Wiltshire, England	19??-1980
	Wolfie Mozart	Male	Salisbury Cathedral	Wiltshire, England	2004-2011
external image	Pushkin	Male	Birmingham Oratory	West Midlands, England	2008-2018
	Budge	Male	Norwich Cathedral	East Anglia, England	2018-present
	Stapledon	Male	Exeter Cathedral	Devon, England	????-present
external image	Laptop	Male	Cantebury Cathedral	Kent, England	2008-2013
external image	Fred	Male	Edinburgh Cathedral	Edinburgh, Scotland	2003-????
	Tom	Male	St. Mary. Redcliffe	Bristol, England	1912-1927
	Tiddles	Female	St. Mary. Fairford	Gloucestershire, England	1963-1980
	Tiddles 2	Female	St. Mary. Fairford	Gloucestershire, England	????-2009
external image	Reverend Red	Male	St. Mary. Clapham	West Sussex, England	????-2010
	Faith	Female	St. Augustine, Walting Street	City of London, England	1936-1940
external image	Miss Macavity	Female	St. Hubert, Dunsop Bridge	Lancashire, England	1999-2004
external image	Ko-Ko	Male	St. Hubert, Dunsop Bridge	Lancashire, England	2004-2008
external image	Mungojerrie	Male	St. Hubert, Dunsop Bridge	Lancashire, England	2008-????

[1] Rose, Simon (14 April 2011). "Louis the Wells Cathedral Cat" (Video). Interviewed by Jason Bryant.

[2] Rayner, Gordan (16 March 2015). "Saint or sinner? Louis the Wells Cathedral cat accused of a string of savage attacks on dogs". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 17 March 2015. Retrieved 17 January 2024.

[3] "@WellsCathedral1 on Twitter". Twitter. Wells Cathedral. 15 November 2019. Archived from the original on 17 January 2024. Retrieved 17 January 2024.

[:0-4] "RIP Louis: Wells Cathedral Cat". englishcathedrals.co.uk. 18 November 2019. Retrieved 17 January 2024.

[5] McGrail, Ben (16 December 2018). "Meet Pangur - the Wells Cathedral cat...sort of. After lovely Louis (who was the Cathedral cat for many years) retired to a loving home-". Facebook. Retrieved 17 January 2024.

[:1-6] "Wells Cathedral's resident cat Louis dies". BBC.com. BBC News Somerset. 18 November 2018. Retrieved 17 January 2024.

[7] Morris, Steven (2015-03-17). "'Semi-feral' cathedral cat suspected of attacking dogs in English city". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-01-17.

[:3-8] Taylor, Michael (16 November 2019). "Much loved Louis the Wells Cathedral Cat has passed away". SomersetLive.co.uk. SomersetLive. Retrieved 17 January 2024.

[:2-9] Cooke, Barbara (1 April 2012). Louis the Cathedral Cat. Printed by St Andrew's Press of Wells Ltd. Close Publications, Somerset. ISBN 9780957239302.

[10] Roberts, Patrick (2011). "Church Cats 11". Purr 'n' Fur, Featuring Felines. Retrieved 17 January 2024.

[11] Evesham, Frances (11 May 2020). An Exham-on-Sea Murder Mystery, Murder at the Cathedral. Boldwood Books. p. 148. ASIN B08592T6S6.

[12] Rogak, Lisa (2015). Cats on the Job: 50 Fabulous Felines Who Purr, Mouse, and Even Sing for Their Supper. Designed by Omar Chapa. New York: Thomas Dunne Books, St. Martin's Griffin. pp. 167–169. ISBN 9781250072375.

[13] Pike, Celia. "Louis, Wells Cathedral". Celia Pike. Retrieved 12 February 2024.

[14] Pike, Celia (24 April 2017). "Louis, Wells Cathedral". Facebook. Retrieved 12 February 2024.

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