Bell's Cathedrals: The Cathedral Church of Carlisle Part 1

Bell's Cathedrals: The Cathedral Church of Carlisle.

by C. King Eley.

PREFACE

This series of monographs has been planned to supply visitors to the great English Cathedrals with accurate and well ill.u.s.trated guide-books at a popular price. The aim of each writer has been to produce a work compiled with sufficient knowledge and scholarship to be of value to the student of Archaeology and History, and yet not too technical in language for the use of an ordinary visitor or tourist.

To specify all the authorities which have been made use of in each case would be difficult and tedious in this place. But amongst the general sources of information which have been almost invariably found useful are:--(1) the great county histories, the value of which, especially in questions of genealogy and local records, is generally recognised; (2) the numerous papers by experts which appear from time to time in the Transactions of the Antiquarian and Archaeological Societies; (3) the important doc.u.ments made accessible in the series issued by the Master of the Rolls; (4) the well-known works of Britton and Willis on the English Cathedrals; and (5) the excellent series of Handbooks to the Cathedrals originated by the late Mr. John Murray; to which the reader may in most cases be referred for further detail, especially in reference to the histories of the respective sees.

GLEESON WHITE.

EDWARD F. STRANGE.

AUTHOR'S PREFACE

Amongst the works consulted in compiling this handbook may be specially mentioned Nicolson and Burn's "History and Antiquities of Westmoreland and c.u.mberland," Hutchinson's "History and Antiquities of the City of Carlisle," Jefferson's "History and Antiquities of Carlisle," Billings'

"Architectural Ill.u.s.trations, History and Description of Carlisle Cathedral," "Guide to the Cathedral, Carlisle," by R.H. and K.H.

Much help has also been obtained from the late J.R. Green's historical works, as well as the various biographies in the "National Dictionary of Biography."

I also wish to record my thanks to my friend, Mr. A. Tapley, who kindly read through part of the ma.n.u.script; and to Mr. A. Pumphrey for permission to reproduce the photographs used.

C.K.E.

CARLISLE CATHEDRAL

CHAPTER I

HISTORY OF THE CATHEDRAL CHURCH OF THE HOLY AND UNDIVIDED TRINITY

The details of the founding of the cathedral of Carlisle are very precise and clear.

When William Rufus returned southwards after re-establishing the city of Carlisle, he left as governor a rich Norman priest named Walter. He began at once to build a church to be dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, which was to have in connection with it a college of secular canons. Walter did not, however, live to see the building finished, and Henry I. took it upon himself to complete the good work. It is said that his wife on one hand, and his chaplain on the other, urged him to do this. By the beginning of the twelfth century (1123) he founded and endowed a priory of regular Augustinian canons, making his chaplain the first prior.

Ten years afterwards--1133--Henry founded the see of Carlisle, and the priory church became the cathedral. At its endowment Henry laid on the altar the famous "cornu eburneum," now lost. This horn was given, instead of a written doc.u.ment, as proof of the grants of t.i.thes. Its virtue was tried in 1290 when the prior claimed some t.i.thes on land in the forest of Inglewood, but it was decided that the grant did not originally cover the t.i.thes in dispute. "The ceremony of invest.i.ture with a horn is very ancient, and was in use before there were any written charters. We read of Ulf, a Danish prince, who gave all his lands to the church of York; and the form of endowment was this: he brought the horn out of which he usually drank, and before the high altar kneeling devoutly drank the wine, and by that ceremony enfeoffed the church with all his lands and revenues." (Jefferson, "History of Carlisle," 171_n._)

Aldulf (or aethelwulf) was made the first bishop, and he placed Augustinians in the monastery attached to the cathedral. These were called "black" canons, their ca.s.socks, cloaks, and hoods being of that colour. A further difference between them and other monks was that they let their beards grow and covered their heads with caps. As a consequence of this order being introduced into the monastery the Episcopal chapter was Augustinian, other English cathedral chapters being generally Benedictine.

On some high ground between the west wall of the city, and the road to the castle the cathedral was built. The site was nearly square in shape, about five acres in extent, and was the highest part in Carlisle after that on which the castle stood. This situation was very advantageous owing to the presence of water near the surface, its frontage to the city wall, and proximity to the river. A narrow piece of ground of about half-an-acre, extending along the walls, and upon which the monastic grounds ab.u.t.ted, was in after years given to the priory by its owner, Robert de Eglesfield, who was chaplain to Philippa, wife of Henry III.

The church was set out, almost due east and west, diagonally across the north-west part of the site, the west end being about 100 feet from the boundary; and was finished about 1130. Its nave consisted of eight bays, and was about 140 feet long.

There was a very fine west front with a handsome central doorway of four orders. The western wall was more than 7 feet in thickness, and had four flat pilaster b.u.t.tresses nearly 7 feet broad, and 15 inches deep.

The nave was provided with north and south aisles covered with high-pitched wooden roofs, while the north and south transepts were also roofed in a similar manner, and a small apsidal chapel projected from the eastern face of each. The archway of the south transept apse is now the entrance to St. Catherine's Chapel. With the exception of the present elaborate entrance to the south transept and the window above it, the transept is identical with that of the Norman minster.

The choir was only 80 feet long, reaching to the end of the present stalls. Eastward it terminated in an apse. Its width can be judged from traces of the original roof, still perceptible in the west wall of the present choir. In accordance with a frequent arrangement, the ritual choir extended westward of the crossing, and included the two eastern bays of the nave.

In the centre was a low square typical Norman tower, 35 feet square, of which the lower parts of the piers remain. To allow for the extension of the ritual choir the eastern and western arches of the crossing were carried on corbels.

White or grey sandstone from quarries in the district was used in the construction of the minster, perhaps supplemented by stones from the Roman wall. Stucco was applied to the exterior, red lines marking the joints. There is no doubt that this stucco has materially helped to keep the Norman stone-work in a good state of preservation.

It will be seen then that the original church was a Norman minster, of moderate size, consisting of a nave, with north and south aisles, a small choir, a low square tower, and north and south transepts.

Thus it remained till about 1250, when, as usually happened, the clergy became dissatisfied with the smallness of their choir, and a new one was projected on a much larger scale. Its length was to be equal to the nave, while in height and breadth it was to be greater. The increased length allowed room for the ritual choir on the east side of the crossing.

Any extension of the cathedral on the south was prevented by the presence of the conventual buildings: therefore the north choir-aisle was thrown into the choir, and a new one added northward of the former.

One consequence of this alteration is seen by comparing the entrance to each aisle. That of the south choir aisle is the original Norman arch, while the entrance to the north aisle is a beautiful late thirteenth-century arch (Decorated). The corresponding Norman arch of the north aisle has been blocked up, but is still easily traced.

Another consequence is, that the extension having taken place on one side only, the eastern arch of the tower fills but a part of the west end of the choir. The choir arch consequently is symmetrically placed with regard to the roof of the nave, but not with the choir roof; and the central line of the choir does not coincide with that of the nave; for, though the south wall of the choir is in a line with the south wall of the nave, the choir being 12 feet broader than the nave, the axis of the former is to the north of the axis of the nave. The view from the east end looking towards the nave is quite spoiled by this want of symmetry.

Not very much remains to-day of this thirteenth-century Early English choir. In 1292, just as it had been roofed in, a terrible fire, the most disastrous the cathedral has ever experienced, destroyed everything except the outer walls of the aisles, the graceful lancet windows, and the beautiful cinque-foiled arcading beneath them. Belfry and bells, too, shared in the destruction.

One hundred years pa.s.sed away while a new choir was being built. Bishop Halton (1292-1325), a very energetic prelate, and a great favourite of Edward I., began the work, and laboured at it for quite thirty years, and was followed by Bishops Kirkby, Welton, and Appleby. It was arranged to rebuild the choir on a still larger scale, a bay being added, and the east end rebuilt from the foundation. The general plan of the earlier work of the aisles was followed in the new bay. The glory of the cathedral--the great east window, which marks a distinct transition in art--was also projected, but at this time only carried up as high as the top of the choir arches.

The wall arcade and the lancet windows above were repaired, and later work of a more elaborate character added. The great arches, and the groin ribs of the aisle ceilings were underset with new pillars; so that we get Early English _arches_ of the thirteenth century on Decorated _pillars_ of the fourteenth century.

After some years interval, building was resumed about 1350. The Decorated portions of the choir were now put in hand: the triforium, clerestory, and upper part of the east end, as well as the tracery and much of the mouldings of the east window and the roof. The carving, hitherto unfinished, was now completed; but, as the style had developed in the mean-time, we once more find examples of decidedly early work with much later work both above and below. The roof inside was finished with a very fine panelled ceiling. The building was finished 1375-1400, and in the roof were placed the arms of those who had helped in the rebuilding--the Lacys, the Nevilles, and the Percys.

The material used for the new choir was red sandstone, both for the interior and the exterior, giving in some cases a curious patched appearance to the walls.

[Ill.u.s.tration: THE CATHEDRAL AND PRECINCTS. From an old Plan in Lyson's "_Magna Britannia_."]

About 1380-1384 the east window was filled with gla.s.s.

In 1392 the cathedral once again suffered from fire, and the damage was repaired by Bishop Strickland (1400-19). No efforts appear to have been made to bring the nave into correspondence with the extended choir, and the end of the thirteenth century marks the close of the cathedral's history in the direction of its enlargement and beautifying.

On a review of the cathedral we find in the aisles thirteenth-century work, on a small scale, in its perfection.

The south aisle shows development of window tracery, and the gradual steps taken towards uniting single lights under one arch.

Tracery carried to its perfection can be seen in the east window.

Early English carving is shown in St. Catherine's Chapel, especially in the corbels; and the more naturalistic carving which was developed at a later period, is exhibited in the corbels of the roof of the choir and the capitals of the piers. The latter afford the most complete representation of the seasons known to exist. On the south side (from east to west) are the first six months, and on the north side (west to east) the remainder.

About 1401, William Strickland being Bishop of Carlisle, the tower was rebuilt on its original scale, probably because the foundations would not permit one to be erected proportioned to the size of the choir. It was capped by a short wooden spire covered with lead; this, however, was removed in the seventeenth century.

The forty-six stalls in the choir, erected on a plinth of red sandstone, belong to this period (1401-19). The elaborate tabernacle work by Prior Haithwaite (1433) was originally gilded and coloured, and the niches were filled with images.