MONUMENT TO MRS. MORLEY.MONUMENT TO MRS. MORLEY.H. C. Oakden, Photo.
William Thomson(1861-1862). Became Archbishop of York in 1862.
Charles John Ellicott(1863-). One of the ablest of modern divines. He was chairman for eleven years of the New Testament Revision Committee. He has published commentaries on various epistles; also works on "Scripture and its Interpretation," "Modern Scepticism"; also a commentary for English Readers on the Old and also on the New Testament.
The sees of Gloucester and Bristol were separated in 1897, and the separation took effect as from January 1st, 1898.
Gloucester has always been a town of importance, owing to its situation. A Roman camp was formed here in A.D. 43, and later it was fortified with a massive wall (of which the traces still survive), as befitted a military post equal in importance to Cirencester, Winchester, Chichester, and Colchester. Much of modern Gloucester rests on Roman foundations.
After the Romans left Britain in 410 A.D., the country suffered from the struggles between its petty kings, and from the invading hosts of the Angles, Jutes, and Saxons. In the end Gloucester, or Gleawan-ceastre, became one of the chief cities of the Mercian kingdom. Alfred held a Witan in the town in 896. Athelstan—the reputed founder of St. John's church—died in it in 940. King Edgar resided there in 965. Hardicanute and Edward the Confessor both held Witans here, but William the Conqueror must always be the central figure in the long line of notable men connected with Gloucester. It was in Gloucester that he spent his Christmas vacations when he could, and it was in the Chapter-House that he took "deep speech" with his wise men, and ordered the compilation of Domesday Book. His son and successor was often at Gloucester, and as Professor Freeman wrote, "in the reign of Rufus almost everything that happened at all, somehow contrived to happen at Gloucester." His death was prophesied by the Abbot of Shrewsbury in a sermon in the Abbey, and warning was sent to the king, but it was of no effect.
Henry I., Henry II., and John were frequently in the town, and the youthful Henry III. was crowned in the Abbey in 1216. Later on he was imprisoned in Gloucester by Sir Simonde Montfort. Edward I. held a Parliament, which passed the celebrated Statutes of Gloucester. Edward II., foully murdered in Berkeley Castle, was buried in the choir of the Abbey.
Richard II., in 1378, held his famous Parliament in the Abbey precincts. In this Parliament the House of Commons secured for itself the right of controlling the financial arrangements of the nation.
Henry IV. and V. assembled their Parliaments in Gloucester, and from Gloucester Richard III. is said to have issued the death-warrant of his nephews. Henry VII. was well received as Earl of Richmond, when he passed through the town on his way to Bosworth Field. Henry VIII., with Anne Boleyn, is said to have spent a week in what is now the Deanery. Later he visited the neighbourhood with Jane Seymour. Elizabeth visited the town, and stayed in the old house next to St. Nicholas' Church. She gave the city the privileges of a seaport, much to the annoyance of Bristol. Gloucester supplied one ship to the navy at the time of the Armada in 1588. In the disastrous Civil War the city played an important part. It is said that the unpopularity of Laud, who had been Dean of Gloucester, led the citizens to side with the Parliament. They held the city under Colonel Massie, against enormous odds, through a long siege, and the king, who had his headquarters at Matson House, was obliged, owing to the approach of Essex with relief, to raise the siege. This was a most serious blow to the failing cause of Charles I.
During the Commonwealth the citizens seem to have lost their heads somewhat, and to have turned against the officer who had saved their city from destruction. Some, too, had made arrangements for demolishing the Cathedral, but fortunately were frustrated in their plans.
As a matter of policy the city congratulated Charles II. at the Restoration in 1660, but without much result, as the walls and gates were ordered to be destroyed. James II. visited Gloucester, and is said to have touched over a hundred persons for the king's evil, a proceeding to which he objected on the score of expense.
The last two Georges visited the city, and Queen Victoria visited it when Princess Victoria, and again later, after her marriage.
The city, like Tewkesbury, is a curious admixture of thenew and the old. It has long emerged from the primitive state, and is now well drained and well supplied with water; but the heavy penalty attaching to transition has been paid, and many old houses and historic buildings, like the Tolsey and others, have disappeared.
The history of Gloucester, commercially, is a history of progress. In Domesday Book, Gloucester is mentioned in connection with iron, the founding of nails for the king's ships. As the ore was obtained locally, this branch of trade flourished till the seventeenth century. Bell-founding was practised as early as 1350 by John Sandre, and one of his bells still hangs and rings in the cathedral tower. Cloth-making, too, was practised, but, declining in the fifteenth century, was superseded by pin-making, for which Gloucester was for many years famous. Glass-making was carried on in the seventeenth century, and the Rudhall family for several generations had a bell-foundry of wide reputation.
Elizabeth made the town a seaport, and it is one still. More than that, it is the most inland port in Britain, owing to the Berkeley Ship Canal, which enables ships to dispense with the awkwardness of a voyage up and down the tortuous and dangerous Severn. It is to this canal that Gloucester owes much of its present trade, as, by sea-going vessels, corn and timber, its staple commodities, are brought in to the many wharves in ever-increasing quantities. To the railways—the Great Western and the Midland—the town also owes much of its prosperity, and one great industry, that of railway waggon building, gives employment to many pairs of hands.
In Gloucester, or its neighbourhood, will be found the following buildings of interest:—
Llanthony Priory.—This was formerly an Augustinian convent, with a church attached, founded by Milo, Earl of Hereford, in 1136. It was founded as an asylum for the convenience of the priory in Monmouthshire of the same name, which was so liable to be harried and pillaged by the Welsh. This priory was dissolved in 1539. The church was finally destroyed to make way for the Ship Canal. Some remains exist in a farm, of which the masonry is good. A gateway, in the Perpendicular style, still survives.
The Old Judges' House. Westgate St. Ed Burrow 1894The Old Judges' House.Westgate St.Ed Burrow 1894
St. Oswald's Priory.—In 909 the Princess Elfleda caused the canonised relics of King Oswald to be removed and richly entombed at Gloucester. She also founded a college for secular priests, but later on it was converted into a priory for regular canons. (Refounded 1153.)
Attached to this priory was a chapel dedicated to St. Catherine, which, after the dissolution of the priory, served for a parish church until its destruction in the siege in 1643. On this site the present Church of St. Catherine was built in 1867-69.
TheGrey Friars(or College of Friars minor, or Franciscans).—This building formerly stood at the east end of the Church of St. Mary de Crypt.
TheWhite Friars(or College of Carmelites).—This building, which was situated without Lower Northgate Street, was founded by Queen Eleanor.
In the time of Elizabeth the college was converted into a house of correction. During the siege in 1643, it was used as a fortress. Portions of it remain incorporated with private houses.
TheBlack Friars(or College of Friars, Preachers).—This college was established by Henry III. in 1237.
Remains of the building are still to be seen on the south side of the thoroughfare called Blackfriars.
The college was dissolved in 1538.
St. Mary de Lode(or St. Mary before the Abbey Gate) stands on the site of a Roman temple. The tower and chancel are all that remain of the original church, the rest being very disappointing, having been built in 1826. The low square tower formerly had a lofty spire, which was destroyed by a storm. The interior of the church has been lately restored. The pulpit is a very fine specimen of carving. In the chancel is a tomb which used to be pointed out as that of Lucius, the first British Christian King.
St. John the Baptist(in Northgate Street).—The original church is supposed to have been founded by King Athelstan.
The present building was built in 1734, the tower being all that is left of the old church. The communion plate was presented in 1659 by Sir Thomas Rich.
St. Mary de Crypt(in Southgate Street) is well worth inspection. It has two crypts—hence its name. The church is Early English, Decorated and Perpendicular, and was built by Robert Chichester, Bishop of Exeter, 1138-1155. It is cruciform in shape, and, though much restored, of great interest.
There are interesting brasses to Luke Garnon, John Cooke and his wife, and a curious squint or hagioscope. In the choir vestry is a monument to R. Raikes. On the north side is a marble monument to Dorothy Snell, by Scheemaker.
The communion plate is all early seventeenth century, and very good, though it has suffered from careless handling.
House of Robert Raikes.House of Robert Raikes.
Close by is the old building of the Crypt Grammar School. The school has migrated to more open quarters.
St. Nicholasis situated at the bottom of Westgate Street, and, owing to alterations in the street, is much below the level of the road. The floor of the church is nearly two feet higher than it was originally. There is much good Norman work, and some good Early English with Perpendicular insertions.
On the south door is a fine (so-called) sanctuary knocker; the door is quite unworthy of the knocker. Under the tower is some good late Jacobean panelling. In the chancel are two squints, four each side, arranged venetian-blind fashion. Several of the tombs are worth inspecting—viz. the Window monument in the chancel, 1659, and one to the wife of Rev. Helpe-Fox, 1657. There is a good tomb to Alderman John Walton and his wife, 1626, which, though in good preservation, is beginning to suffer from damp. There is also a brass, 1585, to Thos. Sancky; and a slab to John Hanbury, who represented Gloucester in Parliament in 1626. A fine view of the cathedral can be got from the top of the tower. The spire was shortened after being damaged in a storm. The chimes are worth hearing.
St. Michael'sis situated where the four main streets meet, and near the church was formerly the Cross. The church was restored in 1885, and the monuments and tablets are all grouped together. The most interesting is a brass of 1519, to William Henshawe.
The curfew is still rung from the tower every evening.
Remains of Old Gloucester.—The New Inn was built in Abbot Seabroke's time by John Twynning or Twining (one of the monks), to accommodate the large number of pilgrims who came to the shrine of Edward II.
Close by, at the corner of New Inn Lane, is a beautifully carved angle post and bracket, which has been preserved for many years by being plastered over (videp. 130). The houses on the right-hand side of the lane are also old.
The Gloucestershire Seed Warehouse, 154 Westgate Street, does not look specially interesting, but up the passage, which was formerly "Maverdine Lane," is a portion of the old front of the house. It is a fine specimen of domestic architecture, with very good windows, and has a distinctly Flemish look. There are some good rooms inside, with oak panelling and carving. A chimney-piece bears the text, "I and my house will serve the Lord," and it is dated 1633. The house is usually called the "Old Judge's House," but it is more famous as the house from which Colonel Massie issued his orders in 1643 when Gloucester was besieged by Charles I. (videp. 125).
THE NEW INN.THE NEW INN.From a Drawing by E. J. Burrow
163 Westgate Street contains a fine panelled room (the greater part dating back from 1530-1550), which was discovered in 1890 when alterations were being made. It is shown on payment of a fee, which includes a printed description of the house. Some of the carving—such as the Royal Arms of England—seems earlier than 1520, but the arms may have been copied from an earlier document. Near St. Nicholas' Church is another interesting house, where Queen Elizabeth is said to have stayed in one of her many progresses through the country. The side of the house abuts curiously on the church of St. Nicholas. Inside there is a quaint overmantel, with Elizabethan carving, and E.R. in the centre panel.
CARVING AT NEW INN LANE ED J BURROW 1897CARVING AT NEW INN LANE ED J BURROW 1897
In Southgate Street, opposite the Corn Exchange, is a well-known house with a carved front. There is an elaborateover-mantel dated 1650. It bears the arms of the Yates, the Berkeley, and the Box families. Opposite St. Nicholas' Church is the Bishop Hooper Pharmacy. It is said to be the house where the Bishop was kept closely guarded on the night before his execution.
Remains of the Roman Wall Under 36 Westgate Sr. Ed J. Burrow dil/94.Remains of the Roman Wall Under 36 Westgate Sr. Ed J. Burrow dil/94.
The house of Robert Raikes, of Sunday School fame, is a fine house of three gables, and is well preserved.
The house where Raikes held his first Sunday School can still be seen in St. Catherine Street, Hare Lane.
The old Roman wall can be seen in several places—e.g.at 36 Westgate Street, at Messrs Lea & Co.'s furniture warehouse in Northgate Street, at Mr John Bellows' in Eastgate Street.
TheGloucester Candlestick.—One of the most interesting relics of the Abbey of Gloucester is a candlestick which is now in the museum at South Kensington. It is a remarkably fine piece of metal work, about 16 inches in height, cast by thecera perdutaprocess in very pale bronze, richly gilt anddecorated. The upright stem is divided into two compartments by bosses, ornamented with the emblems of the Evangelists, and supporting a cup at the top. A triangular base supports the stem, and the whole is enriched with forty-two monsters in various grotesque attitudes, wrestling and struggling with nine human beings.
Round the stem is a ribbon bearing the inscription—
ABBATIS PETRI GREGIS ET DEVOTIO MITIS ME DEDIT ECCLESIE SANCTI PETRI GLOUCESTRE.
ABBATIS PETRI GREGIS ET DEVOTIO MITIS ME DEDIT ECCLESIE SANCTI PETRI GLOUCESTRE.
Round the cup is a ribbon, on the outside of which a couplet is inscribed—
LUCIS ONUS VIRTUTIS OPUS DOCTRINA REFULGENSPREDICAT UT VICIO NON TENEBRETUR HOMO.
LUCIS ONUS VIRTUTIS OPUS DOCTRINA REFULGENSPREDICAT UT VICIO NON TENEBRETUR HOMO.
Inside this same ribbon are two hexameters—
HOC CENOMANNENSIS RES ECCLESIE POCIENSISTHOMAS DITAVIT CUM SOL ANNUM RENOVAVIT.
HOC CENOMANNENSIS RES ECCLESIE POCIENSISTHOMAS DITAVIT CUM SOL ANNUM RENOVAVIT.
After its removal from Gloucester, the candlestick was given to the Cathedral of Le Mans by Thomas de Poché or de Pocé (POCIENSIS). Subsequently it belonged to the Marquis d'Espaulart of Le Mans, and was sold to Prince Soltykoff for about £800, and finally was bought from his collection for £680 for the Museum at South Kensington.
Bishop Hooper's Memorialstands in the churchyard of St. Mary de Lode, and is on the actual site of the burning. This is perhaps the chief or the only interest in the memorial, as its architectural merit is almostnil. The inscriptions to prevent defacement are glazed over, and as the glass is broken the effect is wretched. A previous monument to the Bishop was erected at the other end of the churchyard.
An interesting relic of the execution of the Bishop is in possession of the rector of St. Mary's Church—viz. the sergeant's mace, which was the authority of the soldiers who conducted the Bishop down to Gloucester. This mace, which is the only surviving example of a London sergeant's mace, was found in a house in Westgate Street, belonging to a Mr Ingram. It is to be hoped that some day the mace may be deposited in some public national museum.
Style.Abbot at the Time.Date.South Porch, West End of Nave, and Aisles.P.Morwent.1421-1437.South Aisle of Nave.Pilasters N., Windows and Groining D.Serlo.1089-1100.Thokey.1307-1329.Nave.Piers, Arches, Triforium, Groining E.E., Windows P.Serlo.1089-1100.Foliot.1242.Morwent.1421-1437.North Aisle of Nave.Walls and Groining N., Windows P.Serlo.1089-1100.Morwent.1421-1437.South Transept.Tr. (D. to P.)Wygmore.c. 1330.Choir and Presbytery.P. cased on N. Walls.Staunton and Horton.1337-1377.Ambulatory and Chapels.Walls and Groining N., Windows D. and P. inserted in N. Openings.Thokey, Wygmore, Staunton, and Horton.1307-1377.Lady Chapel.P.Hanley and Fawley.1457-1499.North Transept.P. on N. Walls.Horton.1368-1373.Reliquary.E. E.Foliot.(?)c. 1240.Cloisters, S.E. part.D. to P.Horton.1351-1377.Cloisters, rest.P.Boyfield and Froucester.1381-1412.Abbot's Cloister.Chapter-House West-End.N.Serlo.1089-1100.Chapter-House East-End.N. and P.Hanley.c. 1460.Tower.P.Seabroke.1450-1457.
These Notes are adapted from Mr F. S. Waller's "Notes and Sketches."
N. Norman. E.E. Early English. Tr. Transitional. D. Decorated. P. Perpendicular.
PLAN OF GLOUCESTER CATHEDRALPLAN OF GLOUCESTER CATHEDRAL
FOOTNOTES:[1]They have been given on pp. 3 and 4.
[1]They have been given on pp. 3 and 4.
[1]They have been given on pp. 3 and 4.