Chapter XIII: Part 13

Ely is one of the monastic towns of England, and owes its existence to the famous church and monastery which were built here in Early Saxon days. The patriotic monkish chronicler of Ely, who compiled the _Liber Eliensis_, wishing to add glory to his church, states that in 607 St. Augustine founded a church at Cratendune, a mile south of the present site. The first monastery on the Isle of Ely was founded by St. Etheldreda, daughter of Anna, King of the East Angles. She received the Isle of Ely as her dowry from her first husband, an Earldorman of the South Girvii or Fenmen, and when she married Egfrid, afterwards King of Northumbria, feeling the call to a religious life, she left her court and retired to the lonely isle, and there founded a monastery, of which she was the abbess. As was not unusual at that time, the house was a double one, for both monks and nuns. St. Wilfrid assisted her considerably in carrying out her plans, but no fragment of this early church and monastery remains. The saintly queen died in 679, and was buried in the nuns' resting-place. Some years later her body, placed in a marble sarcophagus, was translated to the Saxon church. In 870 the isle was ravaged by the Danes, who destroyed the church and monastery, slaying both monks and nuns, plundering the town, and returned loaded with the spoils of the pillaged island. Some of the monks who escaped returned to their ruined house, and King Alfred is said to have confirmed them in their possessions. King Edgar, by the advice of Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury, and Ethelwold, Bishop of Winchester, reorganised the monastery under the Benedictine rule, restored to it all its lands, and made Brihtnoth the first abbot.

The Norman Conquest brought many troubles to the Isle of Ely. The monks espoused the cause of Hereward, "the last of the English," the hero of Charles Kingsley's romance, and here he made his last great stand against the Norman invaders; but the monks "did after their kind," and surrendered to the Conqueror in 1071. Little harm was done to the monastic buildings by the warriors of either side, and twelve years later the building of the present Cathedral was begun by Abbot Simeon, brother of Walkelin, Bishop of Winchester. He commenced with the transepts, some parts of which still declare themselves to be his work. Abbot Richard (1100-1107) continued the building, and finished the east end, where the body of St. Etheldreda was conveyed and reburied before the high altar.

Ely was now raised to the dignity of a bishopric, the revenues of the abbot being used for the endowment of the see, and henceforth the prior was the head of the monastery. The building of the church proceeded gradually. The nave was growing by degrees during the twelfth century, and Bishop Riddell (1174-1189), by his energy, did much towards its completion and that of the great west tower. The isle was much disturbed during the troublous time of Stephen's reign, and the bishop took the part of the enemies of the king, who exacted heavy fines from the prelate and his monks. Bishop Eustace (1198-1215) accomplished much, and erected the beautiful Galilee Porch. In 1235 the building of the noble presbytery was begun by Bishop Northwold (1229-1254), and here, in the presence of King Henry III. and his court, the shrines of the founders and of three other abbesses were removed, and the whole church in ground plan completed as we see it to-day.

Having finished their church, the monks turned their attention to their domestic buildings, and to the Lady Chapel, which stands here in an unusual position. It was erected by Alan de Walsingham (the sub-prior) in 1321, and finished in 1349. In 1322 a sad calamity happened--the central tower fell, and caused much destruction. But the catastrophe called forth the constructive genius of Alan de Walsingham, a prince among architects, who built the beautiful octagon and lantern tower, which add so much grace and beauty to the building. The superb Lady Chapel, with its marvellous sculptured work, the sub-structure of St. Etheldreda's shrine, and Prior Crauden's Chapel--a perfect gem of beauty and originality--are all Alan de Walsingham's work. The monks elected this great builder Bishop of Ely, but the Pope refused to ratify the election. He is admirably described on his tomb as the _Flos Operatorum_, or "flower of craftsmen."

In this period Decorated windows were inserted in the triforium of the presbytery, the outside walls being raised for this purpose, and flying buttresses added. The Cathedral then appeared externally much as we see it to-day. The Perpendicular style finds few examples in Ely except in some of the smaller chapels and one or two windows.

At the Reformation the monastery shared the fate of similar institutions, and a dean and chapter were appointed. The fact that the bishop occupied the place of the abbot of the monastery is observable in the position of the bishop's seat, which is south of the entrance to the choir. He has not a throne, which most bishops have in their cathedrals. Ely was spared much destruction in the Civil War. The Parliamentarians pulled down some of the cloisters, and broke a few windows, but the Cathedral fared better than most others at the hands of Cromwell. It has suffered, however, from the fancies of "restorers." In 1770 the ritual choir, with the stalls, was moved from under the octagon to the extreme east end, to be again moved to its present position in 1847. About the same time the massive Norman stone screen, which for eight centuries had stood across the nave, was ruthlessly destroyed, and the roof of the upper hall of the Galilee Porch removed, and the western opening of the tower arch filled with a modern window. Wyatt's destructive hand was only just restrained from working further mischief, though some authorities make him responsible for the removal of the screen and the destruction of the roof of the Galilee. A vast amount of money has during the last century been spent upon the fabric, and happily the restorers have been, in the main, governed by good taste and sounder architectural knowledge than that of their destructive predecessors.

THE EXTERIOR

As you ascend the hill from the station you will undoubtedly be struck by the external appearance of this magnificent pile. Professor Freeman remarked that the first glimpse of Ely overwhelmed us, not only by its stateliness and variety of outline, but by its utter strangeness and unlikeness to anything else. Its huge western tower, its beautiful but curious central octagon, are quite peculiar, and the general view, especially from the north-west, is extremely fine, and can never be forgotten.

We will begin our survey, as usual, with the _West Front_, which has been much altered, but remains a very imposing structure. It will be noticed that the north side differs from the south, and either was never completed or fell into decay. They both belong to the Late Norman or Transitional period. The _Galilee Porch_ is a perfect gem of exquisite architecture. It has been pronounced "the most gorgeous porch of this style in existence, combining the most elegant general forms with the richest detail." The style is Early English, and is the work of Bishop Eustace (1198-1215), who was ordered by the Pope to excommunicate King John, and had to fly from England in consequence. It will be seen that this porch is one of the earliest examples of good Early English work, and for its excellence and perfection rivals the choir at Lincoln. There is a profusion of dog-tooth ornament. The doorways are most graceful. The main arch is divided into two cinquefoiled sub-arches, separated by a slender shaft, and in the head there is very beautiful tracery. The walls are covered with arcading, of lancet-shaped arches cinquefoiled. In the interior there is a beautiful double arcading, similar to that which we have seen at Lincoln.

The _West Tower_ is earlier than the porch, and its lower stages are Transition Norman. The upper stages are Early English, except the highest octagonal stage, which is Decorated. Bishops Riddell and Northwold were the builders of earlier stages, and the octagonal summit was built during the bishopric of John Fordham (1388-1425). This magnificent tower has been a source of continual anxiety to the monks and masons of Ely, on account of the great weight of the superstructure, and continual repairs and strengthening operations have been needed.

The _North Side_ of the nave preserves its Norman character, but Perpendicular windows with ogee arches have been inserted. Formerly the Church of St. Cross stood on this side, erected by Walsingham, but it fell into decay and was pulled down in 1566. We can still see the walled-up door in the north wall of the Cathedral which led to this parish church. Norman mouldings (such as the billet) may be seen round the arches of the windows in the clerestory. The curious and beautiful _Octagon_ is a striking feature of Ely. It consists of an eight-sided tower crowned with an octagonal lantern, the dimensions of which are much smaller than those of the tower which supports it. Decorated windows of large size occupy the sides facing north-west, north-east, south-west and south-east, which are narrower than the other sides. Turrets crowned with pinnacles stand at each corner of the lower tower, and quadrangular turrets at each corner of the lantern, which is made of wood. The whole has been recently restored with the greatest possible success.

The _North Transept_ is Norman. Some Perpendicular and Decorated windows have been inserted, and the north-west corner, which fell in 1699, was rebuilt by the builder of St. Paul's, London, Sir Christopher Wren, who inserted the Renaissance door in the north side.

The _Lady Chapel_ has been pronounced to be one of the finest specimens of Decorated architecture in the kingdom. It is the work of Walsingham, and was finished in 1349. The east and west windows are later insertions, but belong to the same century. The building is oblong, and is enriched with much beautiful carving; niches destitute of figures appear in the buttresses, and at the east and west ends. The tracery of the side windows should be noticed.

The _Presbytery_ is fine Early English work, built by Bishop Northwold (1229-1254), and has been scarcely altered by succeeding builders. The windows are double lancets in each bay, and in the clerestory three lancets under an arch, the centre one higher than the others. The arrangement of the east end is as follows:--In the lower stage three tall lancets with dog-tooth moulding, above them five lancets of unequal height, and in the gable three lancets of the same height. Buttresses carved with niches stand on each side, and flying buttresses springing from the side buttresses support the roof. Alterations have been made in the triforium in order to increase the light in the church.

The _South Transept_ is Norman, with some later windows inserted. Notice the curious Perpendicular window on the south side. The _Cloister Court_ was on the south side of the church, but was destroyed by the Commissioners of Cromwell. Two doorways are remarkable, named the _Monks' Door_ and _Prior's Door_, both Late Norman work, and enriched with much carving. The tympanum over the Prior's Door contains a representation of our Lord in glory.

THE INTERIOR

We now enter the church at the west end, and are struck by the noble character of this magnificent Norman work. It consists of twelve bays (there were thirteen before the central tower fell). The two eastern bays were finished by Abbot Richard (1100-1107), and the rest completed by Bishop Riddell (1147-1189). The earlier character of the five bays nearer the central tower is discoverable. The ceiling was painted forty years ago by Mr. le Strange and Mr. Gambier Parry, whose artistic work can also be seen at Gloucester. The subjects are the Creation, the Fall, Noah Sacrificing, the Sacrifice of Isaac, Jacob's Dream, Marriage of Ruth, Jesse, David, Annunciation, Nativity, Adoration of the Shepherds and Magi, the Lord in Glory. We see also representations of the patriarchs and prophets, and in the medallions at the sides the heads of the human ancestors of our Lord. The west window was inserted at the close of the eighteenth century and filled with modern glass (when the roof of the upper hall of the porch was removed), thus effectively blocking the view of the three great lancets, 40 feet further west, through which, up to that time, the setting sun must day by day, through so many centuries, have flooded the nave with its evening light.

At the west end, under the tower, we notice the strengthening of the original pillars with additional Perpendicular work. The arches of the tower, though Norman, are pointed, showing that they were erected at the end of that period, and the richness of ornament and detail of the southern portion of the west transept bears out the same conclusion. _St. Catherine's Chapel_ is in the south corner, rebuilt in the old style, and the font is modern.

The _Nave Aisles_ have arcades of Norman arches, and the chevron moulding appears about them in several parts where it has not been cut away. In the south aisle is an interesting memorial of Ovin, the steward of St. Etheldreda, which has been recovered from a neighbouring village. It is part of a cross, with the inscription on the base--"_Lucem tuam Ovino da Deus et requiem. Amen._" (O God, give light and rest to Ovin. Amen).

The _Octagon_ would require a volume adequately to record its many beauties and perfections. We have already described its construction. It is pronounced by all architects as the gem of the Cathedral, and one of the most beautiful buildings in the world. The vault is of wood, and a remarkable series of paintings appears on the boarding. The Crucifixion and the Apostles are here represented. Large corbels have sculptured scenes of the life of St. Etheldreda. The vault has been painted by Mr. Gambier Parry.

The _Transepts_ were the portions of the church first begun by Abbot Simeon when he first commenced the present Norman Cathedral. The lower part of the walls and part of the triforium were built by him and finished by Abbot Richard (1100-1107). The arcading in the south transept is Transitional, and the upper windows Late Decorated.

Perpendicular windows have been inserted in the north transept. There are three chapels at the east of the north transept, one of which bears the name of St. Edmund, and is divided off by a wooden screen of the middle of the fourteenth century. The east aisle of the south transept is walled off and used as the library, and the west as the vestry.

A modern oak screen of graceful design, replacing a massive Norman screen ruthlessly destroyed in 1760, separates the octagon from the _Choir_, which we now enter. It will be remembered that the central tower fell and carried away three bays of the choir. Hence the work of these bays is later than the more eastern portion forming the presbytery, which was built by Bishop Northwold (1229-1254) in Early English style. The choir was erected by Bishop Hotham (1316-1337), and is a noble specimen of Decorated work. Between the choir and presbytery are fine Norman piers of the earlier choir. On the bosses of the roof we see figures of St. Etheldreda and the Virgin. The east wall is pierced by lancet windows, which are grouped in a most perfect manner. The stalls are splendid examples of Decorated work, and the _misereres_ have some curious grotesques. The fifty carved panels of scenes from the Old and New Testament are by Abeloos of Louvain, a modern wood-carver. The lectern is modern, and also the reredos. Of this eastern part Freeman says:--"Nowhere can we better study the boldly clustered marble pier with its detached shafts, the richly foliated capitals with their round abaci, the yet richer corbels which bear up the marble vaulting shafts, the bold and deeply cut mouldings of every arch great and small. Lovelier detail was surely never wrought by the hand of man."

On each side of the presbytery are some ancient monuments of especial interest. On the south side, beginning at the west, we see Bishop William de Louth (1298), a fine tomb of Early Decorated character; Bishop Barnet (1373), translated from Bath and Wells (the effigy has been lost); Tiptoft, Earl of Worcester, with his two wives, one of whom was the sister of "the King-maker," Earl of Warwick (this earl was one of the victims of Edward IV., and lost his head in 1470. He was a great patron of learning and art, and Fuller exclaims, "The axe did at one blow cut off more learning than was left in the heads of all the surviving nobility"); Bishop Hotham (1337), much mutilated. On the opposite side are the monuments of--Bishop Northwold (1254), which affords a good illustration of the ecclesiastical dress of the period (at the foot of the tomb is an interesting representation of the martyrdom of King Edmund, who shared the fate of St. Sebastian. Northwold was abbot of St. Edmundsbury before he came to Ely, hence the origin of the carving); a shrine, believed to be that of St. Etheldreda, of Decorated design, probably constructed by Walsingham about 1340; Bishop Kilkenny (1286), who died in Spain, his heart being buried here; Bishop Redman (1505), a fine Perpendicular structure.

At the end of the north aisle is the chantry of Bishop Alcock (1500), a fine Perpendicular work in good preservation, though the figures which once adorned it were destroyed at the Reformation. He founded Jesus College, Cambridge, and built Ely Palace. On the east is the inscription, "_Johannes Alkoc Epus Eliensis hanc fabriciam fieri fecit 1488_." In this aisle are the supposed arm of Northwold's chair, which he brought from his abbey (the sculpture represents the wolf with St. Edmund's head in his paws), and the tombs of Bishop Marson (1771), Bishop Patrick (1707), and Basevi, architect of the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge.

In the retro-choir are the monuments of Bishop Allen (1845), Canon Fardell (1819), Cardinal Louis de Luxembourg, Bishop, 1444, and an early muniment chest.

At the east end of the south aisle is Bishop West's chantry (1534), a beautiful chapel in the Late Perpendicular and Renaissance style. The carving is very elaborate, with delicate tracery. This Bishop was the champion and chaplain of Catherine of Arragon, Henry VIII.'s queen. Above his tomb, in seven small niches, are deposited the bones of six Saxon bishops and of Earl Bryhtnoth, killed by the Danes in 991, who exclaimed when he died, "God of Nations, I thank Thee for all the joy I have had in life." Here are the tombs of Bishops Woodford (1885), Sparke (1836), Keene (1781). In the south aisle are--an ancient gravestone of Norman date, representing Michael carrying to heaven the soul of a bishop, with the inscription, "_St. Michael oret pro me_"; Bishop Hotham (1337), Canon Selwyn (1875), Dean Steward (1557), last prior and first dean of Ely; Bishop Gunning (1684), author of _The Prayer for All Conditions of Men_; Bishop Goodrich (1554), a zealous reformer, destroyer of images and shrines, compiler of "Duties to God and Neighbour," in the _Catechism_; Bishop Heton (1609), Dean Tyndall (1614), and other monuments.

The _Lady Chapel_ is a superb structure, with its beautiful sculptured work, one of the finest specimens of Decorated architecture in the kingdom in spite of the cruel mutilation to which it was subjected at the Reformation. It was completed in 1349, but the east window is a little later and shows evidence of the approach of the Perpendicular period. An arcade of sculptured canopies runs round the walls, of extremely delicate carving. The mythical history of the Virgin and of Julian the Apostate appear in the spandrels, and the bosses of the roof have some sculptured figures representing the Crucifixion, Ascension, Annunciation, the Virgin crowned, the Virgin and Elizabeth, and some which cannot be distinguished.

* * * * *

[My thanks are due to the Dean of Ely for his kind assistance in interpreting the history of the Cathedral which he knows and loves so well.]

DIMENSIONS

Total length 517 ft.
Length of nave 230 ft.
Breadth of nave 78 ft.
Height of vault 70 ft.
Length of transept 190 ft.
Diameter of octagon 65 ft.
Height of west tower 215 ft.
Area 46,000 sq. ft.

PRINCIPAL BUILDING DATES

1083-1189--Transepts, nave, lower stages of tower, monks' and
prior's doorways.
1189-1254--Galilee porch, presbytery, upper stages of
tower.
1316-1349--Lady chapel, octagon, choir, windows of triforium of
presbytery, buttresses, Prior Crauden's Chapel, stalls.
1388-1534--Highest stage of tower, chapel and some
windows.
1699--North-west corner of north transept and doorway.

NORWICH CATHEDRAL

Norwich, the capital of East Anglia, is a delightful city, beautifully situated on the winding Wensum and full of the charm of the associations of mediæval times. The hill on which the castle stands carries our thoughts back to Saxon days, to King Uffa in the sixth century. Saxon, Dane and Norman held sway here. It was also the city of the Dutch. The cruelties of Alva sent Flemings and Walloons, who came with their silks and threads and worsteds and implements, and made the textile manufactures the glory and fortune of the county. Here kings kept their Christmas feasts, and in no less royal fashion did the old Dukes of Norfolk, when Norwich was the gayest of episcopal cities. Very independent were the turbulent burghers, who often contended with the monks and bishops for rights and privileges, as when in 1272 they quarrelled over the tolls of a fair, and sacked the Cathedral, and in 1549 when Kett the tanner raised his formidable rebellion, which was with difficulty subdued. Few cities can rival Norwich in the interest of its associations and the treasures of antiquity which here abound.

THE CATHEDRAL--ITS HISTORY

The See of Norwich was created in Norman times, Dunwich, Elmham and Thetford having previously been the episcopal seats. In the time of Rufus there was a general transference of bishoprics to the larger towns, in accordance with a decree of a church synod, hence in 1094 Norwich had the honour conferred on it by Bishop Herbert de Losinga, who two years later commenced his Cathedral. This bishop obtained his preferment by simony, and it is said built the church in expiation of his crime. Beginning at the east end "he finished the church as far as the altar of St. William,"[19] which was on the north side of the present screen. This included the choir and transepts with the two chapels and two bays of the nave. His successor, Bishop Eborard, finished the nave. Herbert built also a Bishop's Palace, and a monastery of Benedictine monks was attached to the Cathedral. A curious scene was witnessed here in 1144 when a number of Jews were tried for the ritual murder of the boy saint, St. William of Norwich, in Thorpe Wood, whom they cruelly tortured. The houses of the Jews were plundered, and in memory of the miracle-working boy a chapel was built on the scene of his murder, and a shrine erected in the Cathedral.

Fire played its usual destructive part here, as elsewhere, in 1171, and the church was repaired and perfected by Bishop John of Oxford in 1197. In the Early English period there seems to have been little progress, except the building of the Lady Chapel at the east end by Walter de Suffield (1244-1257), which was destroyed in the time of Queen Elizabeth. The entrance only remains.

Very stormy times befell the Cathedral at the end of the thirteenth century. The city was sacked by the revolting barons in 1266, and a few years later a dispute arose between the citizens and the prior about the right of tolls to a fair held in the Tombland at Whitsuntide, which were of much profit to the monastery. It was the same story which is told of many towns, the quarrels of the burghers and the ecclesiastics. In 1272 the disputants fell to blows, and some of the citizens were slain. They arrested some of the men of the monastery for murder, and an interdict was hurled by the prior against them. Moreover, he imported three barges-full of mercenaries who plundered the burghers' houses and killed and wounded many. Reprisals followed. The citizens stormed the Priory and Cathedral, routed and slew the monks and their mercenaries, set fire to the buildings, and pillaged the church. Such violence against the Church was then unheard of, and dire punishment was inflicted on the citizens of Norwich. The Pope excommunicated them, Henry III. deprived them of their liberties, and ordered 3000 marks to be paid towards the restoration of the Cathedral. New gates and gatehouses were erected by order of the Pope in order to prevent the renewal of such sacrilege, and St. Ethelbert's Gate was built at the close of the thirteenth century to guard the precincts. History concludes that the violence of the fierce prior was the main cause of the trouble, and not the obstinacy of the people. The work of restoration was immediately begun and the church reconsecrated in 1278 in the presence of King Edward I. and his queen and a grand assembly of bishops, knights and nobles, when Bishop Middleton was raised to the see. His successor, Bishop Ralph de Walpole, began to rebuild the cloisters, which were continued by Bishop Salmon, and form some of the largest and most beautiful in the country. Their style is mainly Decorated, but there is some Perpendicular work constructed in Bishop Wakering's time, who was a great persecutor of the Lollards (1416-1425). The chapter-house was erected by Walpole.

In the time of Edward IV. troubles sore oppressed the diocese. Bishop Anthony, who was of a violent and imperious spirit, rendered himself very obnoxious to the monks, and was poisoned by his servants, and six years later the Black Death is said to have carried off 50,000 inhabitants. This was in the time of Bishop Bateman, buried at Avignon, a mighty prelate who compelled the powerful Lord Morley to do penance in the Cathedral for killing the bishop's deer.

The lofty spire was blown down by a fierce hurricane in 1361, and rebuilt by Bishop Percy, who rebuilt also the clerestory. His successor, Henry de Despencer, was a very warlike prelate, who ruled with an iron hand. He crushed the revolting peasants in 1381, and fought in the Netherlands for Pope Urban VI. against the adherents of his rival, Clement. The vicissitudes of prelates were great in those days; both he and his successor, Totington, were imprisoned by the king. Bishop Alnwick (1426-1449) began to alter the west front, and Bishop Lyhart put in the large west window and built the rood-screen and vaulted the nave. During the rule of Bishop Browne (1436-1445) the quarrel between the burghers and the monks again broke out, and the former besieged the monastery, for which conduct the king deprived them of their rights and liberties. A fire occurred in 1463, caused by lightning striking the spire, and did much damage to the presbytery, which was restored by Bishop Goldwell (1472-1499), who also finished the spire. Fire again did much damage in 1509 during the rule of Bishop Nykke or Nix (1501-1536), whose reputation was not so unblemished as his name (_snow_). The transept roof was destroyed, which Nykke rebuilt in stone. The dissolution of monasteries soon followed in 1538, and Norwich shared the fate of the rest. The Cathedral foundation was renewed, the last prior being made the first dean. The church suffered from the usual acts of spoliation and desecration at the hands of the Commissioners of Edward VI. and the Puritans. Dean Gardiner (1573-1589) destroyed the chapter-house and the beautiful Lady Chapel. Bishop Hall (1641-1656) thus alludes to the misdeeds of the Puritans:--

"It is tragical to relate the furious sacrilege committed under
the authority of Lindsey, Tofts the sheriff, and Greenwood;
what clattering of glasses, what beating down of walls, what
tearing down of monuments, what pulling down of seats, and
wresting out of irons and brass from the windows and graves;
what defacing of arms, what demolishing of curious stone-work,
that had not any representation in the world but the cost of
the founder and the skill of the mason; what piping on the
destroyed organ pipes; vestments, both copes and surplices,
together with the leaden cross, which had been newly sawn down
from over the green yard pulpit, and the singing books and
service books were carried to the fire in the public market
place; a lewd wretch walking before the train, in his cope,
trailing in the dirt, with a service book in his hand,
imitating in an impious scorn the tune, and usurping the words
of the Litany; the ordnance being discharged on the guild day,
the cathedral was filled with musketeers, drinking and
tobaccoing, as freely as if it had turned ale-house."

The citizens joined eagerly in the work of spoliation and burned in the open market, by order of the court of assembly, "Moses and Aaron, and four Evangelists that came from the Cathedral, and some other superstitious pictures."

The Restoration of the Monarchy caused the restoration of the Cathedral. A new organ and church plate were presented, and since that time much restoration has taken place, which has greatly enhanced the glory and beauty of this ancient House of God.

THE EXTERIOR

We enter the Cathedral precincts by the Erpingham Gate, built by Sir Thomas Erpingham, a knight who fought at Agincourt, and is mentioned by Shakespeare (_Henry V._, Act IV). The style is Early Perpendicular. Notice the figures of saints in the arch moulding, the donor's kneeling figure in the niche above the arch, his arms and those of his two wives on the buttresses, and the word _Yenk_ (think) on the shafts. The other gates are that of St. Ethelbert, Early Decorated, much restored, built by the citizens in expiation of their sacrilege in 1272, and the Bishop's Gate leading to the Palace, built by Bishop Alnwyck in Early Perpendicular style.

Entering by the Erpingham Gate, on the left is the Grammar School, formerly the Chapel of St. John the Evangelist, founded by Bishop Salmon in 1315. Below was a charnel-house, now used as a gymnasium. The porch was added by Lyhart at the end of the fifteenth century. Here Nelson was educated, and George Borrow and many other distinguished men.

The _West Front_, in spite of its noble window, is far from being a satisfactory compilation. The injudicious restoration of 1875 has had much to do with this. Portions of the original Norman work remain in a great part of the wall, two side doors, arcades and windows above. The main doorway was erected by Bishop Alnwyck, who seems to have cased the old Norman with Perpendicular work--an arch of the old work was uncovered by Dean Goulburn. The same bishop left money for the great Perpendicular window of nine lights, which was erected by Bishop Lyhart. We can see the result of perverse modern restoration by comparing the present front with those shown in earlier illustrations, and discover that the towers flanking the great window have been cut down and shorn of their cupolas, and also the turrets at the extreme north and south have suffered a like deprivation, and some inelegant pinnacles erected instead, while the battlemented parapet has been removed, and some ridiculous little round windows inserted. Certainly the efforts of modern architects have not been crowned with success.

The best view of the long nave is obtained from the upper close, or from the cloister garth. The wall is divided into three storeys. Behind the cloisters some late windows have been inserted in the aisle. Above the cloisters we see a Norman arcade with Norman windows over it, which have been blocked up; above them a row of Perpendicular windows, with a battlemented parapet, and above this a row of Norman windows, and parapet added later. Two Perpendicular windows were inserted at the west end by Bishop Nykke. Norman buttresses divide the windows. The north side resembles the south, and is enclosed by the bishop's garden.

The south transept is Norman, but it has been recased with new stone, and pyramid caps set on the turrets in imitation of Norman work, instead of some Perpendicular turrets which these replaced. Why will architects and restorers thus destroy the history of a building written in stone by trying to imitate what they imagine to have been the original form? On the east is the dean's vestry, formerly a chapel. The chapter-house and ancient slype have been destroyed, also an apse-shaped chapel on the east side of the south transept.

The _Choir_ in its lower storeys resembles the nave, with its Norman arcade, windows, and inserted Perpendicular windows, but it has a lofty clerestory of Late Decorated style supported by flying buttresses, erected by Bishop Percy, when the fall of the spire destroyed the old Norman clerestory. Carved figures surmount the summits of the exterior buttresses. There are projecting Chapels of St. Mary-the-Less (Decorated), St. Luke and the Jesus Chapel (Norman).[20] The Lady Chapel was destroyed by iconoclastic Dean Gardiner, as we have mentioned, who regarded Lady Chapels as relics of Popery. The north front is very similar to the south, and needs no separate description.

The chief glory of Norwich is its _Tower_ and _Spire_. The tower is a very fine example of Norman work. At the four corners are noble Norman buttresses, crowned with crocketed pinnacles, added in Early Perpendicular times, when the fall of the old wooden spire had carried away the original Norman ones. On the surface of each wall are three Norman arcades, and in the upper and lower three of the arches have been pierced with windows, and above are two rows of small circular windows. The spire is Perpendicular work, erected by Bishops Lyhart and Goldwell towards the end of the fifteenth century. May it long escape the fate of its predecessors, one of which was blown down in 1361, and the other struck by lightning, on each occasion causing considerable damage to the church.

The _Bishop's Palace_ is on the north, founded by Bishop Herbert, but subsequent alterations have left little of the original structure. Some of the original vaulting is in the basement, and the ruin in the garden is the remains of the great hall built by Bishop Salmon in 1318. In the chapel are monuments to Bishop Reynolds (1661-1676) and Bishop Sparrow, a learned divine, who assisted in the revision of the Prayer Book in 1661.

There was a curious open-air pulpit, with a cross over it, somewhat similar to Paul's Cross in London, on the north, in what was known as Green Yard. Galleries were erected around it, and good accommodation provided for the mayor and his officers, with their ladies, who came in summer time to hear the sermons.

THE INTERIOR

The view of the nave from the west end is magnificent. A long vista of Norman arches, and beautiful expanse of vaulted lierne roofing, is most impressive. A fine screen, with organ above it, prevents a full view of the whole interior, but this detracts nothing from the grandeur of the view.

The nave has fourteen piers on each side, divided into seven bays, two arches to each bay. The lower arches, and those in the triforium, are about equal. Each pier has several shafts attached. A lofty shaft runs up the face of the main arch to support the roof. The zigzag and billet mouldings will be observed on the arches. The clerestory is Norman, and has triple arches. The first Norman prelate, Herbert, built the nave as far as the two most eastern bays, and his successor, Eborard, finished it. The old Norman roof was destroyed by fire in 1463, when Bishop Lyhart, who loved to display his punning rebus, a stag lying in water, erected the lierne stone vaulted roof, which is a noble specimen of its kind. The bosses are very interesting, and contain a full epitome of Bible history from the Creation to the Descent of the Holy Spirit, and include the terrors of Hades and the Final Judgment. One boss is absent, and through the hole in the roof it is conjectured that on Whitsunday a white pigeon was released and a burning censer swung, as an eyewitness testifies to a similar representation in old St. Paul's. There is a somewhat similar custom in Florence at the present time.

We notice in the west the large window erected by Lyhart, with modern glass, and the Norman arch over the door. The north aisle has Decorated windows inserted in the Norman walls. A reconstruction of the roof was made in the fifteenth century, when the walls were raised and Perpendicular windows added, and the slope of the roof changed into one much less steep. The _South Aisle_ differs little from the north. In the centre was Bishop Nykke's Chapel, which he devised for himself, to perpetuate a not very desirable memory. Here we have Late Perpendicular work in the vaulting and windows. Few monuments or brasses escaped the destructive hands of the Puritans. In the aisles there are a few--the altar tomb of Sir T. Wyndham and four wives; Dean Prideaux (d. 1724), a distinguished divine, the author of _The Connection between the Old and New Testament_, Sir John Hobart, Attorney-General to Henry VII. (1507); Bishop Parkhurst (1574).

The _Choir_ occupies the space between the two last arches of the nave, being shut off from it by an interesting stone _Screen_. The lower part of this structure is ancient, having been erected by Bishop Lyhart in Perpendicular style. The upper portion was added about 1830. Two altars stood near the central door, one dedicated to the boy saint of Norwich, St. William, slain by the Jews. The scanty remains of these altars mark the site of two chapels, over which were the rood-loft and organ, destroyed by the iconoclastic Puritans, whose sacrilege and abominable riotings have been already mentioned in the records left us by Bishop Hall. At the Restoration Dean Croft endeavoured to remedy the result of their evil deeds, and fashioned a new organ which, with additions and improvements, remains and stands over the screen.

Modern taste has removed some of the obstructions erected in times when the ideas of beauty and fitness were defective, and the alterations and improvements of the east end were not concluded till a few years ago. The stalls are very good Perpendicular work, fashioned at the time when the art of wood-carving had attained its highest development. The _misereres_ are specially worthy of examination. The old popular legend is often repeated concerning them, that if one of the monks fell asleep during service, and caused the bench to fall, he was condemned to severe penance. This idea has no foundation in fact, as the raised seat was designed, as its name implies, out of _pity_ for the infirmities of the brethren, and not for any idea of punishment. The bishop's throne and pulpit are modern, and the lectern is good Decorated work.

The presbytery was damaged on two occasions by the fall of the tower, and these accidents obliged subsequent repairs and alterations, which were constructed in the style then in use. Hence we have blended with the old Norman work the Decorated clerestory of Bishop Percy (1355-1369), and the Perpendicular roof of Bishop Goldwell, erected a century later. The lower arches were altered by the same bishop into the Perpendicular style, and his name is preserved in the canting rebus--gold and a well. The old Norman triforium remains. The vaulting of the roof is curious. Between each pair of clerestory windows is a niche, and from the heads of these spring the ribs, which form a beautiful example of lierne vaulting. The eastern termination is the original Norman apse, built by Bishop Herbert. The old bishop's throne is particularly interesting, chiefly from its position in the centre of the apse, with the presbyters' seats on each side. This idea was probably derived from Rome, where this position was not uncommon, though unusual in this country. The bishop's throne at Torcelli is a well-known example of this use. The present altar is modern, and also the present floor, designed by Sir Arthur Blomfield.

The following are the principal _Monuments_:--

A slab marks the resting place of Bishop Herbert, the founder; Goldwell's Chantry and tomb; Bishop Wakering's tomb (d. 1425); Bishop Overall (d. 1619); Sir W. Boleyn (d. 1505).

The _North Transept_, built by Herbert, has good Norman arcading, and a vault erected by Nykke. The clerestory resembles the nave. There was at the east an apsidal chapel dedicated to St. Anne, but it is now closed and used for baser purposes. A processional path runs round the presbytery. On the north side is a curious bridge, which was connected with the Reliquary Chapel, now destroyed, situated on the exterior of the church. This bridge was an ante-chapel to that in which the relics were stored, and is adorned with mural paintings. Probably relics were exhibited here for the worship of the pilgrims, who went in procession along the path below.

The curiously-shaped _Chapels_--the _Jesus_ and _St. Luke's_--with their Norman arcading are next seen. In the former there is some mural painting much restored--a facsimile of the ancient picture--and over the chapel is a museum. The latter is a parish church for the precincts. The windows are sham Norman, having been inserted in the last century. There is a mutilated font of fifteenth century, carved with Crucifixion and Seven Sacraments. Above it is the treasury. Here is a curious oil painting accidentally discovered by Professor Willis, which was part of a reredos, converted into a table after the Puritan outbreak. It is sometimes attributed to an Italian artist of 1370, but there is no reason to suppose that it was not the production of genuine English art of that period. Even Dean Stanley attributes the Eleanor bronze to an Italian, Torel, and Professor Freeman calls De Noyer of Lincoln a "crazy Frenchman," and others ascribe the Exeter chancel-screen to French workmen. This error of attributing pure English work to foreign artists has caused a very unjust depreciation of the skill and genius of our native craftsmen. The subjects of these paintings are the last scenes of our Lord's life. Other mural paintings are:--On ceiling of sacrist's room of late thirteenth century--subjects: Virgin, SS. Catherine, Margaret, Andrew, Peter, Paul, and Richard of Chichester. On south wall of south aisle--SS. Wulstan, Edward the Confessor, and others.

The Lady Chapel has been destroyed, as we have said, by Dean Gardiner in Elizabeth's reign, but happily the doorway remains, the only part of the Cathedral of Early English workmanship. The profusion of the dog-tooth ornament is evident. The doorway is formed of a double arch, with clustered shafts, and was built, together with the Lady Chapel, about the middle of the thirteenth century by Bishop Walter de Suffield. Stone was brought from Caen and Barnack for the purpose. The destruction of these Lady Chapels was a sign of the decay in the worship of the Virgin, which was so extensively followed in mediæval times.

There is another chapel on the south; that of St. Mary-the-Less, now used as the consistory court, built by one Bauchun in the fourteenth century. An ecclesiastical lawyer, Seckington, added the groined roof in the fifteenth century. The altar has been displaced by a doorway. The sculptured bosses represent the legendary history of the Virgin.

We enter the _South Transept_ by a Tudor doorway, over which is some rich open screen work of fifteenth-century design, under the original Norman arch. This transept, built by Herbert, is fine Norman work, with good arcading, the vault being added by Bishop Nykke. This transept has the oldest coloured glass in the Cathedral, a copy of Raphael's Ascension, erected by Dean Lloyd in 1790. Here we see the following _Monuments_:--

Bishop Bathurst (d. 1837), by Chantrey; and memorial tablets to East Anglian heroes who fell in China and Afghanistan.

The _Cloisters_ are extremely interesting and beautiful. We enter them by the Prior's Door, a fine Decorated work, having four columns on each side, with archivolt mouldings, in front of which are seven canopied niches, with richly-sculptured crockets, containing figures. The Norman cloisters, probably constructed of wood, were destroyed in 1272, at the time of the citizens' revolt. The east walk was rebuilt by Bishop Walpole (1289-1299) in Early Decorated style. His successor, Bishop Salmon, built the south walk, the windows of which show a great advance in the same style, the windows having flowing tracery. The west walk has also Late Decorated work, and the north walk has at the east end an Early Decorated window, at the west end two Late Decorated, while the other five are Perpendicular in their tracery. This part was finished by Bishop Alnwyck (1426-1436). The slype and chapter-house have both been destroyed. The usual plan of Benedictine monasteries was followed here. The dormitory was on the east side, the refectory on the south, with entrance at south-west corner, and near to this is the monks' lavatory, the kitchen being further west. Carved figures representing the Temptation of Adam and Eve are above this door leading to the refectory. The locutory or parlour of the monks was on the west side of the cloisters and the hospitium, and from this walk the _Monks' Door_ leads us back to the Cathedral. The bosses are extremely interesting. In the east walk the subjects are foliage, the four Evangelists, the Scourging, Crucifixion and Resurrection of Christ, and Nebuchadnezzar eating grass. In the south and west, scenes from the Book of the Revelation of St. John; and in the north, legends of the saints--Christopher, Laurence (being burnt on a gridiron); the dancing of Herodias's daughter before Herod, which represents her as tumbling rather than dancing, in accordance with the usual conceptions of mediæval artists.

DIMENSIONS

Length of church 407 ft.
Nave length 252 ft.
Nave to choir-screen 204 ft.
Width of nave 72 ft.
Height of roof 95 ft.
Height of spire (from ground) 315 ft.
Height of tower 140 ft.
Height of spire from tower 174 ft.
Area 34,800 sq. ft.

OBJECTS OF INTEREST IN NORWICH

The _Castle_, of which I have already written.

_Guild Hall_, parts of which were built in 1407, and contains
much that is interesting--portraits of Norwich worthies,
regalia, etc.

_St. Andrew's Hall_, once the Church of the Dominicans, in
Perpendicular style, which has passed through many
vicissitudes, and has some good pictures.

Norwich abounds in interesting churches--

St. John of Timberhill--Norman font, squint; parvise,
principally Decorated.

All Saints--fine Perpendicular font.

St. Michael-at-Thorn--Norman doorway, curious registers.

St. Peter, Mancroft; St. Gregory, Pottergate; St. Giles, St.
Helen's, St. John the Baptist, St. Michael-at-Plea.

The Stranger's Hall is well worthy of a visit, and Norwich
abounds in objects of the greatest interest.

The old "Maid's Head" hotel is one of the most ancient and
interesting hostels in the kingdom.

PRINCIPAL BUILDING DATES

Norman (1091-1145)--Choir, transept with chapels, nave and
tower.
Early English (1244-1257)--Door of Lady Chapel.
(1278-1299)--Ethelbert's gate, east walk of cloisters.
Decorated (1299-1369)--Chapter-house and cloisters, clerestory
of presbytery, Chapel of St. Mary-the-Less, some windows.
Perpendicular (1420-1538)--West front altered, Erpingham Gate,
presbytery restored, vault of nave and transepts, spire,
screen, stalls, some windows, Bishop's Gate.
(1573-1859)--Chapter-house and Lady Chapel destroyed.

FOOTNOTES:

[19] _Registrum Primum._

[20] The restorers have been very busy here, and most of the windows are imitations of Norman work.

ST. ALBAN'S CATHEDRAL