Ely Cathedral, Cambridgeshire by SharpeImages.co.uk / Ely Cathedral was built by William the Conqueror as a prominent outpost after the bloody and lengthy rebellion by Hereward the Wake. Ely Cathedral is the principal church of the diocese of Ely, in Cambridgeshire, England, and the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Ely. It is known locally as "the ship of the Fens", because of its prominent shape that towers above the surrounding flat and watery landscape