i. HALL WITH TERMINATING CHAPEL

(a) Infirmary.—The early form of a hospital was that of a church. A picturesque fragment of St. James’, Lewes, is figured in Beauties of Sussex;[77] the foun­da­tions re­mained with­in mem­ory, con­sisting, ap­par­ent­ly, of nave, aisles and chancel, the di­men­sions of the lat­ter being about 34 × 15 feet. From an ancient deed in the Record Office, this build­ing is shown to have been the sick-ward with its chapel; it refers to the “sick poor in the great hall of the hos­pi­tal of Suth­eno­vere.” Men­tion is fre­quent­ly made of cha­pels “with­in the dor­mi­tory” or “in the in­fir­mary,” and of beds “in the hos­pi­tal on the west of the church.” The statutes of Kings­thorpe show how this ar­range­ment met the patients’ spiritual wants:—

“In the body of the house adjoining the chapel of the Holy Trinity there should be three rows of beds joined together in length, in which the poor and strangers and invalids may lie for the purpose of hearing mass and attending to the prayers more easily and conveniently.” p113

[♦ ]

20. ST. NICHOLAS’, SALISBURY

Black.

Extant remains (xiii. cent.).

Tint.

Site of destroyed walls.

Dotted lines.

Probable arrangement of original buildings.

AA.

The Chapels.

BB.

Cubicles.

C.

Latrines.

D.

Porch.

E.

Old Hospital.

F.

Covered way.

The finest remaining example of such an infirmary is St. Mary’s, Chichester. (Pl. XVIII.) It is now a great hall of four bays, and seems originally to have been longer by two bays. (See Ground-plan, Fig. 19.) The hall measures over 84 feet, and opens into a chapel 47 feet in length. A wide and lofty roof with open timbers spans the whole building, the pitch of the roof being such that the north and south walls are unusually low. (Pl. VI.) The Domus p114 Dei, Portsmouth, was of similar construction. Its thirteenth-century chapel still exists as the chancel of the Royal Garrison Church, the nave and aisles of which replace the infirmary, or “Nurcery” as it is called in one document.

The early French hospitals were usually of three wings, as at St. Jean, Angers, built by Henry II. It is probable that the same design was commonly adopted in England. St. Bartholomew’s, London, had three chapels—besides those now called “St. Bartholomew’s the Great” and “the Less”—and possibly these three were terminating chapels of an infirmary. At St. Nicholas’, Salisbury, a double-hall opened into two chapels. (Fig. 20, Ground-plan.) Here there are some traces of Early English work, which can almost be dated, for an entry of 1231 records a grant of timber,[78] and Bishop Bingham completed the hospital before 1244. Buckler’s sketches (Pl. XV) give some idea of the charm of the existing buildings, which are mainly of the fourteenth century.

(b) Almshouse.—The infirmary-plan became a model for some of the later almshouses. A fine example remains at Higham Ferrers (about 1423). The dimensions of this building were as follows:—Hall, 63 × 24 feet; Chapel, 17 feet, 10 inches × 20 feet. Wooden screens subdivided the dormitory; and the statutes directed that each bedeman should join in evening prayers at his chamber door. Although not so secluded as the separate-tenement type, the early arrangement was good, for inmates had the benefit of air from the spacious hall, with its fine and lofty oak ceiling. Modern examples of this cubicle-system are still seen at Wells, St. Mary’s, Chichester, and St. Giles’, Norwich. In the latter case, the dormitory forms p115 part of a church adapted for the purpose; the compartments communicate with a corridor-hall and are open above to the panelled ceiling of St. Helen’s church with its heraldic devices. The early fifteenth-century Maison Dieu at Ripon was not unlike that of Higham Ferrers. The ruined chapel exists, with the arch which led into the domicile. By means of a partition, four men, four women and two casual guests were accommodated, and the priest had apartments at the west end.

[♦] PLATE XI. ST. MARY MAGDALENE’S, GLASTONBURY

(a) VIEW FROM THE WEST. (b) GROUND-PLAN

St. Saviour’s, Wells, was a contemporary foundation. Leland remarks:—“The Hospitale and the Chapelle is buildid al in lenghth under one Roofe.” This interesting old dwelling-place still exists, but has lost its former character, as has also the Glastonbury almshouse for men, of which a view and ground-plan are shown on Plate XI.

Slightly different again was the plan of a two-storied block, having a chancel-like chapel with a roof of lower pitch. Sherborne almshouse (Dorset) was built thus. It opens to both stories of the adjoining domicile; this is done on the upper floor, by means of a gallery in which the women sit during service.

Later, it was customary for the chapel to extend to the height of the whole building under one roof, as at Browne’s hospital, Stamford. (Fig. 5.) Although the lofty chapel corresponded in height to both stories, only the lower one—which in this case was the dormitory—communicated with it. This block formed part of a suite ranging round a quadrangle. A ground-plan and views of this imposing almshouse, with descriptions of its architectural features, are found in Wright’s history. There is a striking similarity of construction between it and p116 Wigston’s hospital, Leicester (figured by Nichols[79]). Both were good specimens of the domestic Perpendicular style.

The earlier almshouse in Leicester, called the “Newark” (afterwards known as Trinity) was a large building. Nichols’ view (1788)[80] shows a range of dwellings below, others above with dormer windows in the roof, clumsy chimneys, a bell-cote, and at one end a chancel-like extension. There must originally have been extensive buildings to accommodate the hundred poor. Leland says: “The large Almose House stondith also withyn the Quadrante of the Area of the College”; and of the church associated with it Camden says that “the greatest ornament of Leicester was demolished when the religious houses were granted to the king.” Bablake hospital, Coventry (circa 1508), which was somewhat similar to the Leicester almshouse, still exists. This “Hospitall well builded for ten poore Folkes,” as Leland reports, formed a simple parallelogram; below, ambulatory, hall, dining-room, and kitchen; above, dormitories.