Bell's Cathedrals: The Abbey Church of Tewkesbury Part 4

The two western bays of the triforium are not alike. On the north the openings correspond to those in the other bays, and are not contracted to correspond with the narrowed arch below; whereas on the south side they are so contracted. By this means the square angle of the western pier was continued to the roof. On the north side the western pier ends abruptly at the capital of the respond.

The clerestory windows are partly concealed by the vaulting. Of course the original windows were much smaller, and were removed and the s.p.a.ce enlarged when the re-roofing was done in the fourteenth century.

=The Roof.=--Originally, no doubt, as at Peterborough, where it remains, the inner roof was a flat panelled ceiling of wood, supported by a moulded framing. Whether the wooden roof decayed or was destroyed by fire, it was found necessary in the early part of the fourteenth century to re-roof the nave, and the present vaulting was then constructed. Beautiful though it is architecturally, it has the effect of dwarfing the nave, as it springs directly from the tops of the piers in the nave. In character it is a simple pointed vaulting, and the ribs at their many points of intersection are lavishly decorated with bosses.

Originally the vaulting was painted and gilded, but owing to the idiosyncrasies of those who fancied they were having things done "decently and in order," it was colour-washed in the early part of this century. The present scheme of colour decoration was carried out by Mr. T. Gambier Parry. Its chief merit is that it throws out the bosses in very strong relief. The bosses can be studied with an opera-gla.s.s, but it is less fatiguing to examine them with the help of a pocket mirror. There is a tradition that the bosses were carved by a monk who was not held in much esteem by his companions, and was a b.u.t.t for their gibes and witticisms. Whether this was so or not, he knew how to carve rudely and effectively in stone, and long may his work remain with us. They represent in a highly pictorial manner the life of our Lord. Beginning at the west end, the central bosses depict: (1) The Nativity. (2) The Shepherds rendering homage. (3) The Magi on their journey. (4) The Magi in adoration. (5) The finding of Christ in the Temple. (6) The triumphal entry into Jerusalem. (7) The Last Supper.[8] (8) The Betrayal. (9) The Flagellation. (10) The Crucifixion. (11) The Resurrection. (12) The Ascension. (13) The Day of Pentecost. (14) The Coronation of the Virgin. (15) The Last Judgment.

The other bosses contain angels bearing musical instruments of every known kind, and alternating, more or less regularly, with angels censing and angels bearing emblems of the Pa.s.sion.

On the south side: (1) Angels with pipe and tambourine. (2) Angels with cymbals and bagpipes. (3) Angels with hurdy-gurdy and harp. (4) Angels with dulcimer and organ. (5 and 6) Angels censing. (7) St.

Matthew and St. John with their emblems, a scroll and an eagle. (8) Angel with a violin; others with emblems of the Pa.s.sion, _i.e._, posts, spear, and scourges.

On the north side are to be found: (1) Angel with pipe and tabor; another censing. (2) Angel with harp; another censing. (3) Angels with rebec and zither. (4) Angels with tabor and zither. (5 and 6) Angels censing. (7) St. Luke and St. Mark, with their emblems, a winged ox, and a winged lion. (8) Angel with a harp; others with emblems of the Pa.s.sion, _i.e._, a crown of thorns, a sponge, a cross, and a scourge.

Mr. Gambier Parry, who personally supervised, where he did not personally execute, the decoration of the roof, termed it "a marvellous specimen of English carving," and says that "together with the cathedrals of Gloucester and Norwich, it combined some of the finest features of mediaeval sculpture." Further he adds that though "fine details must not be looked for, yet it exhibited a vigour of conception and a charm of inspiration which quite atoned for any faults."

At the west end of the building are two half-figures, male and female, like the figure-heads of ships, which serve as corbels for the vaulting of the roof. They have been thought by some to represent Adam and Eve, and by others to represent the founder, Fitz-Hamon, and Sibylla his wife.

=The Font= (p. 40).--With the exception of the shaft, which has some good hall-flower ornament,[9] and the Purbeck marble base, this is entirely new work, dating only from the restoration carried out 1875-79. Formerly the old font, of which portions remain in the church, stood in the apsidal chapel in the south transept, and the choice of position for the new one is not quite happy. The canopy is very fine work, but the font as a whole is as much too high as the choir screen is too low. It is also placed at far too great a height above the surrounding floor to be comfortable for a party of sponsors, and from its height it interferes with the beautiful vista of the nave as viewed from the outside of the open west door on a fine day in summer. There is no reason for placing the font in this position, and a Baptistery could have well been made in the north-west corner of the nave.

=The Lectern=, also a gift from Rev. C.W. Grove in memory of his wife, was presented in 1878. Formerly it blocked up the central pa.s.sage up the nave, but was removed to counterbalance the pulpit.

=The Pulpit= was given to the church by Mrs. Glynn, of Tewkesbury, in memory of her husband. In style it is Perpendicular. The shape is octagonal, and it is supported by seven shafts of Purbeck marble, springing from a base of the same, polished; the bases and capitals of the octagonal shafts being of stone. Of the seven panels, four are of pierced work, and three are sculptured representing our Lord blessing little children; preaching on the Mount; giving His charge to the Apostle Peter. Below the panels is a brattice of Purbeck marble--from this at the angles rise octagonal columns supporting angels, which again support a canopy of elaborate work. The pulpit rests on a base of Purbeck marble.

The nave must have terminated in the same way as the nave at Gloucester, viz., with an altar and with two side chapels--one in each aisle. In the handbook to Gloucester, page 44, will be found the ill.u.s.tration of the altar and chapels redrawn by Mr. Waller from the drawing given in Browne Willis' "Survey of Gloucester Cathedral,"

published in 1727. This arrangement no doubt obtained at Tewkesbury, which, like Gloucester, was a Benedictine foundation.

The s.p.a.ce thus given up to the altar and chapels is indicated by the step which comes in the nave near the second pillar, counting westward from the western tower piers. In each of these, on the aisle side are to be seen the ascending spiral made by the recently inserted pieces of stone which show the exact position of the staircase that led up to the rood-screen overhead.[10] This step no doubt marks the site of the original western termination of the ritual choir. It seems strange that, after undergoing so many vicissitudes as a whole, the survival of so interesting a point should have been permitted. Gloucester Cathedral was repaved in 1720, and no doubt the corresponding step disappeared in the process in the levelling-up of the nave to a height nearly ten inches higher than the original floor level. This step was restored by Sir Gilbert Scott when the floor of the nave was lowered.

On the face of the pillars here some traces of fresco-painting are in some lights still to be seen.

A screen of most uninteresting work separated the choir from the nave up to the time of the restoration work that was begun in 1875, and upon this stood the organ. In front of the organ was hung a huge and unsightly gas corona, portions of which are still lying in the north transept.

Two bays of either aisle were also disfigured with low galleries, as were also the transepts. These erections, with the screen and the screens across the aisles, have fortunately disappeared. As Bennett wrote, "These additions, however much they may add to the convenience and comfort of those who attend divine service, little harmonise with the general character of the building."

=The Screen.=--This dates from the restoration of 1892, and was erected in memory of Mrs. Glynn, by Archdeacon Robeson and Mr. E.F.

Glynn. The screen is of carved oak, and consists of a central door, with wrought-iron gates, and on either side four openings. At the top, which is seventeen feet above the floor level, is an overhanging cornice with elaborate cresting of carved work on both sides. The cross in the centre is richly ornamented on the stem and the arms.

These latter are terminated with paterae, with pierced and carved work.

The centre of the cross is composed of a quatrefoil in which is carved the Agnus Dei. Flanking the cross are two figures, one representing St. John, and the other the Virgin Mary. These figures are well carved (by Boulton, of Cheltenham), but, like the cross, look too small on the top of the screen.

The side sections of the screen terminate in ogee arches, elaborately cusped and crocketed, with perpendicular tracery in the spandrils. The separating shafts terminate with pinnacles.

In the central section there are two arches, one being semi-circular with very delicate foliated tracery; the other is an ogee trefoil supported from brackets which take the form of angels.

The lowest stage of the screen is solid panel work and calls for no special mention.

The gates were made by Clarke, of Brackley, and were designed by Mr.

J.O. Scott for the donor, Rev. W.R.F. Hepworth. Intricate in their design, and cleverly wrought as they are, they seem slightly incongruous in this wooden screen. The shields bear the correct arms of the Abbey, and round the shields are intertwining iron rods.

Scrolls with leaves and other devices are also introduced. Across the top of the gates is a band of square panels with varied design in pierced work, and on the top is an elaborate cresting.

On the inside of the gates, on the shields are the texts, "_Serve the Lord with fear._"; and "_Rejoice unto Him with reverence._"

The whole screen looks too low for its position, whether it be viewed from the west end or from the triforium of the choir at the east end.

The workmanship will not bear any minute comparison with the loving hand-craftsmanship of mediaeval times; much of it is more skilful as church furniture of a very mechanical kind than beautiful as real carver's work.

The =Great West Window= dates back, as far as the masonry is concerned, to 1686, and was erected then to replace the window blown in by the wind in 1661. The gla.s.s was inserted in 1886 by Rev. C.W.

Grove in memory of his wife, and represents various scenes in the life of Christ. In the lowest tier is the Annunciation, with the Nativity in the centre, and the Presentation in the Temple on the right. Above is the Baptism by St. John in the Jordan, the Last Supper in the centre, the Agony in the Garden on the right. In the topmost tier is the Bearing of the Cross, the Crucifixion, and the appearance of our Lord to Mary after the Resurrection. In the head of the window are angels, those in the two side lights on either side being engaged in censing. In the central top light is Christ in Majesty, with angels.

The gla.s.s is by Hardman.

=The Aisles.=--The aisles of the nave are very much lower in height than the nave, and the vaulting is simpler in character. There are, however, many fine bosses, and, like those in the nave, they have been treated in a tentative way with colour and gold. As a whole, the effect of decorated bosses standing out in such strong relief from the simple, unadorned stonework is rather spotty and distracting. The arms of the Despenser family are to be found on some of the bosses in the south aisle, and it is to the munificence of that powerful family that the execution of the work is due. The Norman roof of the aisles was a lean-to roof of wood, as is indicated by the half-arch between either aisle and the transept.

The fourteenth century windows in the =North Aisle= were partially blocked up with stonework up to 1825, when they were restored and reglazed. Most of the stained gla.s.s was inserted in 1892. The window at the west end is a memorial, inserted in 1869, to Mr. John Terrett and his sister. The subject is the "Adoration by the Magi"; the gla.s.s is by Heaton Butler and Bayne. The _first_ window east of the porch represents the "Angel appearing to the Shepherds" and "The Star of Bethlehem," and "The Wise Men before Herod," in the lower part. The _second_ shows "Christ Disputing with the Doctors," and below are "Eli and Samuel," "David and Samuel," and "Saul at the feet of Gamaliel."

The _third_ represents the Sermon on the Mount, and below, Christ talking to the Woman at Samaria, Christ with Mary and Martha, and Christ with Nicodemus. The _fourth_ represents the Transfiguration; the _fifth_ gives the triumphal entry into Jerusalem; beneath, Christ is driving out the money-changers from the Temple and weeping over the city; the _sixth_ depicts the removal of Christ from the Cross, and the Entombment.

These windows are more or less attempts to reproduce the style of the old gla.s.s in the choir. Four of them contain groups under canopies, with a background of grisaille and a wide border. Owing to the lights being narrower in the fifth the border is omitted, and in the sixth the grisaille work is also omitted. All the windows in the north aisle, with the exception of that in the west wall and that next to it, were presented to the Abbey by Rev. C.W. Grove.

It will be noticed that the windows in the north aisle are slightly longer than those in the south aisle. The curtailment in the latter was due to the fact that the cloisters were built against the outside of the south wall. There is more variety in the tracery of the windows in this north aisle than in those of the south aisle.

In the north aisle near the transept [P][11] is a recessed tomb, much mutilated, with a very graceful arch. On the tomb lies a knight in armour, with his hands clasped and his feet resting upon a lion. The armour is worth noticing, as it is curious. The gorget is of edge-ringed mail, the surcoat is blazoned with a chevron between three leopard's faces. Banded mail, with which the knight is dressed, is rarely met with in monuments, only three other instances being known, viz., Newton Solney, Tolland Royal, and Dodford.

This tomb has usually hitherto been a.s.signed to Lord Wenlock, who was killed by the Duke of Somerset at the fatal battle of Tewkesbury.

Against this theory is the fact that the tomb is of much earlier date than that of Lord Wenlock's death, and the fact that Lord Wenlock built a chantry chapel in Luton Church for his wife Elizabeth and himself, to which, according to Leland, he is said to have been removed. The figure is supposed, with considerable probability, to represent Sir John de Burley.

In the north aisle, on a bra.s.s plate inserted in a flat stone is a Latin inscription to Amie Wiatt, of Tewkesbury, who died on August 25th, ... Following the inscription is a set of elegiac verses, the initial letters of which form the lady's name.

"A me disce mori, mors est sors omnibus una Mortis ut esca fui mortis ut esca fores.

In terram ex terra terrestris ma.s.sa meabis Et capiet cineres urna parata cinis.

Vivere vis clo, terrenam temnito vitam: Vita piis mors est mors mihi vita piae.

Iejunes, vigiles, ores, credasque potenti.

Ardua fac: non est mollis ad astra via.

Te scriptura vocat, te sermo, ecclesia, mater; Te que vocat Sponsus, Spiritus atque Pater."

A punning epitaph, also acrostic in form, but in English, is to be found in the nave, to one Merrett, a barber chirurgeon, who died in 1669.

"T hough only stone salutes the readers eye, H ere in deep silence precious dust doth lye, O bscurely sleeping in Death's mighty store, M ingled with common earth till time's no more; A gainst Death's stubborn laws who dares repine, S ince so much _Merrit_ did his life resigne.

M urmurs and tears are useless in the grave, E lse he, whole vollies at his tomb might have; R est here in peace, who like a faithful steward R epaired the church, the poor and needy cured.

E ternall mansions do attend the just, T o clothe with immortality their dust, T ainted (whilst under ground) with worms and rust."

In the pillar nearest to the north door in the nave is all that remains of the stoup or benitier for the holy water. We may probably attribute the wanton damage it has sustained to one of the zealots who ministered here after the Reformation.

=South Aisle.=--This aisle has five Early Decorated windows. The western four have three lights each; the other, near to the south transept, has four lights, and the tracery in it is slightly more elaborate.

All the stained-gla.s.s windows in this aisle were presented to the church by the Rev. C.W. Grove, in 1888, as a memorial to his wife. The windows are by Hardman.

The _first_ window, _i.e._, the westernmost, represents Christ walking on the sea; the _second_ represents the cripple at the pool of Bethesda; the _third_, the raising of the widow's son at Nain; the _fourth_, the feeding of the five thousand; the _fifth_, the changing of the water into wine at Cana.

At the west end of the south aisle is a memorial window to Mr. H.P.

Moore. This is also by Hardman, and represents the home at Nazareth.