Pilgrimage to Corpus Christi feast

Many visited the cathedral to see the spectacular carpet of flowers, covering more than 90ft of the central aisle.

Women parishioners laid out the floral display on Tuesday, maintaining a tradition dating back more than a century.

This year's design marked the 40th anniversary of the Arundel and Brighton Catholic Diocese. Symbols of the blessed sacrament reflected the carpet's other theme, the Year of the Eucharist, decreed by the late Pope.

The carpet was on view on Wednesday and Thursday, when the Corpus Christi feast day mass was led by Bishop Kieran Conry in the cathedral.

Following the service, the clergy and congregation, including the Duke and Duchess of Norfolk and members of their family, processed over the floral carpet and out of the cathedral to the castle quadrangle, for a brief service of benediction.

Flower girls scattered petals along the route of the procession, and the blessed sacrament was carried beneath a canopy which has been used in the ceremony for many years.

Coach parties from all over the south-east visited Arundel for the celebrations, and an army of volunteers served refreshments in the nearby St Mary's Hall.