Part 32

The presbytery occupies the space between the tower and the Wallingford screen, and retains its Norman walls as far as the third bay. The rest is the work of Abbot John de Hertford (1235-1260). The style is Early English. Before us is the famous Wallingford screen or reredos, erected by Abbot William Wallingford (1476-1484), which resembles that at Winchester. It was much mutilated, and has very recently been thoroughly restored, and the niches filled with statuary. There is a fine figure of our Lord in the centre, with the Virgin and St. John on either side, surrounded by angels. Below are the twelve Apostles with our Lord in the midst. On either side are figures of saints and kings connected with the history of the Abbey. On the north is the Chantry of Abbot Ramryge (1521), which has some rich Perpendicular work; the abbot's rebus--_rams_ with _ryge_ on the necks--may be discovered. Notice the representation of the martyrdom of St. Alban over the door. On the south is the Chantry of Abbot Wheathampstead (1464), which has a fine brass (that of Abbot Thomas de la Mare), and bears his arms (three ears of corn with the motto _Valles habundabunt_). Some attribute this tomb to Abbot Wallingford, but the details seem to point to Wheathampstead. This abbot caused the ceiling to be painted whereon are depicted the _Agnus Dei_ and the Eagle of St. John. There are numerous tombs and brasses of other abbots here. The south door has some fine Early English tabernacle work. The architecture of the adjoining _North Aisle_ corresponds with that of the presbytery, and through it we pass to the _Saints' Chapel_, which is the work of Abbot John de Hertford and his successors, and may well be described by Sir G. Scott as being "among the finest productions of that period." On the east side of the reredos are some fine modern statues of the Virgin and other saints. Here is the famous _Shrine of St. Alban_, broken and destroyed at the Reformation, and now happily built up again, the fragments having been collected by careful hands from many parts of the building. It was first erected by Abbot John de Marynis (1302-1308), and is of Decorated style. Gorgeous must have been its original appearance; but though shorn of all its jewels, gold and silver, it remains a noble piece of work. The holes in the panels of the base were intended for the insertion of diseased limbs, in order that they might be healed by the merits of the saint. The carved leafage in the tympana of the canopied niches is admirable. Only two carved figures remain, those of Offa and St. Oswin. On the west we see a representation of the martyrdom of the saint, and at the east his scourging. On the north side of the chapel is the _Watching Tower_, a wooden structure, probably erected by Abbot John de Wheathampstead. This and a similar one at Christ Church, Oxford, are the only watching towers remaining. A monk was stationed here to guard the treasures of the shrine. There are some curious carvings on the frieze. Treasures were preserved in aumbreys which now contain some curios. The famous Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, son of Henry IV., murdered by order of Queen Margaret (1446), lies buried here in a tomb on the south. The sculpture of the numerous figures is very bold and vigorous. Some painting is observed on the piers, and there is a figure of St. William of York. In the _North Aisle_ is part of the _Shrine of St. Amphibalus_, which shares the history of its neighbour, and has been now partially recovered. It belongs to the last half of the fourteenth century. On the sides are the initials of Ralph Whitechurch, sacrist of the Abbey.

The _Ante-Chapel_ and _Lady Chapel_ have been extensively restored. Indeed, their condition was deplorable. A public path ran through the former, and the latter was used as a Grammar School, and suffered in consequence. The story of the architecture is rather complex. The ante-chapel was begun by De Hertford and finished by his successor, Roger Norton (1260-1290), who continued to build the Lady Chapel, which was finished by Hugh de Eversden (1308-1326). The style is Decorated. The whole of the chapel has been most completely restored by Lord Grimthorpe. The modern carving is exquisite. We now pass to the _South Aisle_, which follows the architecture of the rest of the east end. Here we see an iron trellis screen of thirteenth-century work. There is here some good arcading, and an interesting panel taken from the old ceiling of the north transept representing the martyrdom of St. Alban. At the east end of this aisle was the Altar of St. Mary of the Four Tapers, and numerous other altars existed in the aisles and ante-chapel. In the wall above the old poor box is a curious figure of a pensioner carved by a sexton about 100 years ago.

An ascent of the tower reveals many interesting features of that ancient structure, and helps one to realise the formidable nature of the task which the skilful architect and builders of 1870 accomplished when they saved this massive pile from destruction.

DIMENSIONS

Total length 550 ft. Length of nave to tower 284 ft. Length of nave to screen 215 ft. Width of transepts 189 ft. Width of tower 144 ft. Total area 40,000 sq. ft.

PRINCIPAL BUILDING DATES

Saxon--Baluster shafts of windows in triforium of transepts. Norman (1077-1115)--Nine bays on north of nave, and three bays on south, transept, and three bays of presbytery. Early English (1195-1260)--Western end of nave, presbytery, Saints' Chapel with aisles. Transition (1260-1290)--Foundations of Lady Chapel and ante-chapel. Decorated--Lady Chapel and five bays of nave. Perpendicular--South buttresses of choir; windows inserted which have since been removed.

The city possesses many objects of interest:--

The Roman city of Verulamium.

The Churches of St. Michael, St. Peter, St. Stephen.

Sopwell Nunnery.

The old Moot Hall.

And the old inn called the "Fighting Cocks," said to be one of the oldest inns, and the oldest inhabited house in England, but this reputation is somewhat legendary.

NOTE

The Welsh Cathedrals of Llandaff and St. David's should be approached from Gloucester; and Chester is the most convenient starting-point for St. Asaph and Bangor.

ST. ASAPH'S CATHEDRAL

This Cathedral, like that of Bangor, is small, but its history is not unimportant. It owed its origin to Kentigern, otherwise called St. Mungo, the founder and Bishop of Glasgow, who, being driven from his northern see in the sixth century, found a refuge here, and enjoyed the protection of Prince Cadwallon. This prince aided him in building a church and founding a monastery here, and fabulous records tell of the amazing number of the monks. His biographer assures us that there was no less than 965 dwellers in this monastery, which number must be an extraordinary exaggeration. When Kentigern returned to Scotland, he left one of his followers, St. Asaph, to act as bishop of the diocese. The chroniclers are silent about the names of the subsequent bishops, until they record the doings of Norman times. In 1143 one Gilbert was consecrated bishop. The church in existence during his rule was burnt down in 1283, during the fierce wars between Edward I. and the Welsh. Anian II. was bishop during that time, and contemplated the transferring of the seat of the bishopric to Rhuddlan; but, on the advice of the Archbishop of Canterbury, he determined to rebuild the ruined church, and most of the present building is his work, or that of his two successors, Leoline and David. The work extended from 1284 to 1350. Owen Glendower, after his fashion, set fire to the church and burned the roof in 1404, and for a century the church remained in a roofless ruined state. Bishop Redman, in 1490, began to rebuild and restore the ruined church. He raised walls, erected a new roof, added the east window, and placed in the choir the stalls and a throne. Bishop Owen Jones, in 1631, made some further alterations, and repaired the steeple and belfry. Then came the disasters of the Civil War, when terrible desecration ensued, principally caused by a wretch named Miller, who turned the Palace into a wine-shop, and the church into a stable and cow-house, and the font into a hog-trough. Since the Restoration there have been several learned and devout prelates, amongst others, Isaac Barrow, William Beveridge, Thomas Tanner, author of _Notitia Monastica_; Samuel Horsley; but they were more learned in theology and their books than in the study of the correct principles of architecture. Hence they disfigured the church, and destroyed many of its most interesting features. In 1780 the choir was remodelled, a plaster ceiling erected, and much further damage done. "Oh, _Restoration!_ what evils have been wrought in your name."

The church is cruciform. At the west end is a large Decorated window, and a deeply-recessed doorway of six orders, with buttresses on either side, which have crocketed pinnacles; a wooden cross surmounts the gable. It will be noticed that the shafts supporting the arch of the doorway have no capitals, the wave moulding making a complete sweep round the arch, with no capitals intervening. This arrangement we shall notice in the church. The great central tower was the latest addition to the mediæval church, and was constructed late in the fourteenth century. The embattled parapets were added in 1714. It is 93 feet high. The nave consists of five bays, and at once we notice the same peculiarity observable in the west doorway. The mouldings are carried up the piers and round the arches without any break. They are very plain, and of two orders, and are of the Early Decorated style, the work of Bishop Anian. Formerly there was a clerestory, but during one of the tasteless restorations a ceiling was erected, which shuts it out from view. The windows of the clerestory were in the Perpendicular style, and exist still in the south. Grotesque carvings appear on the brackets supporting the roof. The windows of the aisles have been much restored, and are in the style of the Early Decorated. The south transept was once the Lady Chapel, the consistory court and chapter-house. The windows are of five lights, and were finished about 1336. Here is a much mutilated effigy of a bishop, which is of great beauty, especially the figures of censing angels. It is supposed to represent Bishop Anian.

The north transept has the monument of Bishop Luxmore (1830). In the south aisle are some monuments of the relatives of Mrs. Hemans, the poetess, and a tablet has been erected to the memory of that lady, who died in 1835. Under the central tower stand the old finely-canopied stalls. The throne is modern.

The style of the old choir was almost entirely changed at the eighteenth-century "restoration." It was of Early English design, and Sir G. Scott wisely resolved to restore it to its primitive form. This proceeding was somewhat drastic, but such was the condition of the choir, and so severe was the treatment it received in 1780, that perhaps no other course could with advantage have been taken. He discovered the old sedilia, and the door leading to the old chapter-house. The east window has entirely modern tracery, and the reredos is modern. Bishop Barrow's tomb outside the west door is worthy of notice.

The Bishop's Palace is a large modern building. At the foot of the hill is the parish church. From the summit of the tower of the Cathedral a fine view can be obtained of the Vale of Clwyd, with the Castles of Denbigh and Rhuddlan, and a long line of sea coast. Robert Montgomery sang sweetly of this wondrous view:--

"Thy heart might beat In thrilling answer to the strain I sing, Hadst thou beside me, from the sacred tower, Beheld this beauteous vale."

BANGOR CATHEDRAL

The early Bishops of Bangor are shadowy beings. We read of Bishop Daniel in the sixth century, concerning whom the records are misty, although he was canonised. Godwin says that there were no bishops here before the Norman Conquest. At any rate Hervey, or Harvé, was consecrated bishop in 1092, but he was so rigid in his discipline, and so severe upon the Welsh, that they rebelled, murdered his brother, and threatened him with a like fate. So he fled for refuge to the court of Henry I., and was ultimately appointed to the See of Ely. The early Celtic church was destroyed by the Normans in 1071. A second church was at once built, and here, in 1188, Archbishop Baldwin preached the Crusades, and so moved the heart of the Bishop of Bangor that he joined the army of Crusaders to rescue the Holy City from the Saracens. This church was destroyed in 1211 by a great fire. It was, however, partly restored, and again fell a prey to destruction in the wars of Edward I. and the Welsh. Bishop Anian, however, seemed to have been a favourite of the king, who helped him to rebuild his church. This bishop baptised the first Prince of Wales, born at Carnarvon Castle. He also drew up the Bangor Use, or Service Book, which ranked highly among the Cathedral uses of the mediæval church.

During the wars of Owen Glendower in 1402 the church was completely gutted, and for nearly a century it lay in ruins. A new church was begun by Henry Deane in 1496, who finished the choir, and the Cathedral was completed by Bishop Skeffington, Abbot of Beaulieu, Hants, who was appointed to the See of Bangor in 1509. The style of the architecture was therefore entirely Perpendicular. Though the body of this benefactor was buried in his Hampshire Abbey, his heart was conveyed for sepulchre to the church he loved so well. The church suffered at the Reformation, when the see was held by Bishop Bulkely, who cared not for his church, and sold its store of vestments, plate, ornaments, and the bells given by his predecessor. Bishop Rowlands, in 1598, put a new roof on the church, and gave four new bells. In the Civil War it suffered much; the soldiers destroyed all the woodwork and broke the glass. At the Restoration the church was renovated and beautified, and Brown Willis gives a good account of "its lightsome" appearance. In the early nineteenth century some terrible "restorations" took place, and the church was divided into two portions, one for the Welsh and the other for the English service. The general appearance of the church was stunted and low, and was much inferior to many parish churches, possessing neither dignity nor beauty. In 1866 a very thorough restoration was undertaken by Sir G. Scott, which practically amounted to a rebuilding. He, however, carefully collected all the old materials found built up in the wall, and from these he endeavoured to reconstruct the church as it originally stood.

The plan of the church consists of a west tower, a nave with aisles, a central tower, transepts and choir, and on the north a muniment room, and above it the chapter-house. The _West Tower_ was built by Bishop Skeffington (1509-1533), and is a good example of Late Perpendicular work. It has three stages, and is 60 feet high. The door is of the usual character of the style, and above it is the inscription:-- "_Thomas Skevynton, episcopus Bangorie hoc campanele et ecclesiam fieri fecit, A^o Partus Virginei, 1532._" In each of the other stages there is a window of three lights. The _Nave_ has six bays, and the Perpendicular style is evident in the arches, octagonal piers and characteristic bases. The windows in the south aisle are Decorated, and those in the north Perpendicular. The masonry of the walls seems to have survived the various fires and other accidents which befell this ill-fated Cathedral, and probably are the remains of Bishop Anian's work. The font was probably erected by Skeffington, and is good Perpendicular. The _Transepts_ have been almost entirely rebuilt, and the Perpendicular work, which was much decayed, was replaced by Decorated, authority for which was discovered by Sir G. Scott in the fragments of old stone-work built up in the walls. Some very fine thirteenth-century piers stood at the crossing until an unfortunate restoration in 1824, when they were replaced by imitation Perpendicular. These have now been removed, and new piers and arches constructed in accordance with the conjectured design of the originals. There was no central tower in the Perpendicular church, but the relics of earlier work prove that the original church had such a tower. Hence Scott added this to his design, and when completed it will enhance the dignity of the building.

The _Choir_ has had a chequered history, which, as Sir G. Scott states, is of a threefold nature. The Norman choir had an apsidal termination. This apse was removed, and the length of the choir or presbytery greatly increased in Early Decorated times. After the destruction wrought by Owen Glendower, Bishop Deane (1496-1500) restored it, and the main object of Scott's restoration was to make the present choir conform to the condition in which Bishop Deane left it. The Civil War brought much destruction to this excellent work of the Perpendicular period, and decay had also left its marks upon it; but during the recent restorations all has been again renewed, and all that we see conforms as nearly as possible to that produced in the days of Henry VII. Cromwell's soldiers left none of the fittings untouched. The stalls were destroyed. Now all has been restored, and most of the fittings are new. The modern tiles of the floor are worthy of notice. Some mural paintings have been added at the east end. The tombs on either side are probably those of Bishop Anian (1328), the rebuilder of the church, and one Tudor ap Tudor (1365). In the south transept is recorded the burial of Owen Gwynedh (1169), the son of the last King of Wales, Gryffydh ap Gynan, who also was buried here. A rude representation of our Lord upon the Cross appears over the supposed Royal tomb. In the north transept is a memorial to a Welsh bard, Gronovil Owen (1722).

Sir G. Scott entirely rebuilt the old chapter-house and muniment room on the north side of the choir in the Early Decorated style.

The Bishop's Palace is a large mansion, but has no great architectural merits. The Deanery and some old almshouses and an Elizabethan school are all near the Cathedral.

LLANDAFF CATHEDRAL

The history of the Welsh sees carries us back to the early days of British Christianity. When the Saxon tribes swept over the land they destroyed the churches and monasteries, and drove the British west-ward, who found a refuge in the hills of Wales, in Devon, Cornwall and Somerset, and in the regions north of the Mersey, and there the British Church continued to exist and flourish, though the rest of England was submerged in the flood of Paganism. When Augustine came he found in these parts of England a church governed by its bishops, who did not recognise the authority of the Pope, and whose customs differed somewhat from those of Rome. He summoned them to a conference, which was held at a place called "Augustine's oak," where by his haughty demeanour he offended the representatives of the ancient native church, who refused to abandon their accustomed usages, especially in the matter of the time for observing Easter and the forms of the tonsure.

In Roman times Caerleon was a see, which seems to have embraced the whole of Wales. Then there were five principalities, each of which had a bishop. These were Bangor, Llanelwy (St. Asaph's), St. David's, Llandaff and Llanbadarn, afterwards incorporated with St. David's. Judging from the number of the names of saints which occur in Welsh nomenclature, we may conclude that the Welsh Church was famous for its zeal and activity and for the holiness of its members. It sent preachers and missionaries to Ireland, to Brittany, and Cornwall and Devon. It founded colleges and schools, and the great Celtic Church assisted in the conversion of the Northern Saxons of England, and even sent missionaries to the Continent. By degrees the British Church became merged in the English, founded by Augustine, and with the appointment of Norman prelates in the time of the Conqueror, any lingering survivals of ancient customs and usages were lost, and the unity of the church fully established.

The earliest bishop of the See of Llandaff whose name is recorded was St. Dubricius. He is reputed to have founded the see in 612 A.D., but his successor, St. Teilo, seems to have had the chief credit of accomplishing the work. Of course the mythical King Lucius is dragged in as the earliest founder, but we have always neglected the legends connected with him. Of the early Welsh bishops we have no sure information, though there is the famous _Book of Llandaff_, which does not afford much certain knowledge, and is full of inaccuracies. Bishop Urban was consecrated in 1107, conveyed here the relics of Dubricius, and began to rebuild his Cathedral, for which an indulgence was granted by the Archbishop of Canterbury to all who should assist him in the work. Possibly it was finished in his time, but we have no certain information, and the stones of the church can alone tell the story of its building. During the thirteenth century the western part of the nave was erected, and also the chapter-house, which is of Early English design. During the Decorated period the Lady Chapel was added and the presbytery rebuilt, and the walls of the aisles also renewed. The north-west tower was erected in the Perpendicular period by the Earl of Pembroke, uncle of Henry VII. Thus the church was completed. It was not a very beautiful structure, and time has dealt hardly with it. The spoilers at the Reformation plundered it; decay and desolation reigned in the deserted "long-drawn aisle." Some bishops seem to have attempted to do something, but the whole condition of the church was deplorable. Then the troubles of the Civil War period fell upon this Job-like structure, and in spite of some attempts to improve its condition at the Restoration, and at subsequent periods, it still remained in a ruinous state. Then in 1723, when the taste for Italian models was rampant, the authorities erected an Italian temple-like building at the east end. This happily has been entirely removed during the restorations, which commenced in the middle of the last century, when the church was completely renovated, and all the old portions which had escaped the action of time, or the barbarous efforts of the followers of Christopher Wren, restored to their original state. The work was finished in 1869. Although much of the church is new, on close inspection we can discover some ancient work that lacks not interest.

The _West Front_ is very beautiful. The doorway is a fine example of Early English work. It consists of a round arch, with two sub-arches, and in the tympanum there is an episcopal figure, probably that of St. Dubricius. The shafts at the sides of the doorway are Early English. Above them are lancet windows, and in the gable a figure of our Lord in glory. The cross above the gable is modern. The front is flanked on each side by two towers. The north-west tower is Perpendicular, the work of Jasper Tudor, Earl of Pembroke, uncle of Henry VII.; the south-west tower is modern.