THE CATHEDRAL
The present cathedral church of the diocese of Exeter may be said to be the third building that has stood on the site. Nothing remains of the Saxon church elevated to the dignity of a cathedral when the bishopric was removed from Crediton, and of the Norman church erected by Warelwast, a nephew of the Conqueror, only the two massive towers are standing, the remainder of the building belonging almost entirely to the late Decorated style, of which it is one of the most beautiful examples we possess.
The city of Exeter does not appear to have been divided into parishes until the year 1222, in pursuance then no doubt of Archbishop Langton's Constitution of the same year. The Cathedral itself was first constituted a parish by being placed under the charge of a single dignitary, the dean, by Bishop Briwere, in 1225.
Four years after he ascended the throne in 1042, Edward the Confessor gave the united bishopric of Crediton and Cornwall to his chaplain, Leofric, who, observing that Crediton was an open town, difficult to fortify against the Danish raiders, obtained from Pope Leo IX permission to remove the episcopal see to Exeter, when the Benedictine minster of St. Mary and St. Peter became the cathedral church of the diocese.
Although no part of this church remains, an ancient seal of the Cathedral is of special interest as showing some of the architectural features of the Saxon church. It depicts the west front with two towers, the northern square and the southern circular, the latter surmounted by a cross, and pierced by three round openings in the walls. There are two porches, one in the centre the other in the north tower, and the walls show indications of characteristic Saxon masonry. On the central roof is a large flêche or turret of two stages carrying a weathercock on a very tall shaft.
Of the succeeding church the only contemporary pictorial representations we have are those on early, and somewhat imperfect, seals dating from the end of the eleventh century. The first has a church with cresting of fleurs-de-lis on a hipped and tiled roof, two gable crosses, flanking pinnacles, an arcaded clerestory, and a double door with ornamental hinges, on each side of which is a quatrefoil opening. The second seal shows an arcaded building standing on a stone plinth of four courses, and flanked by towers with conical roofs and ball finials. The roof is surmounted by a large fleur-de-lis, and exhibits an unusual form of tiling. A third seal (1194-1206) shows the west front of the Cathedral with two western towers and a central porch, and a large roof turret. Another view of the west front occurs on the seal of the Archdeacon's official, 1267, and in this example there are three pointed towers, the central one carrying a cross, the others being capped with flag vanes. In the doorway stands a figure of the official. The two Norman transeptal towers still standing give the Cathedral a unique appearance, this arrangement being found nowhere else in England, save at the highly interesting and not far distant Collegiate Church of Ottery St. Mary.
Having thus briefly sketched from pictorial evidence the architectural characteristics of the predecessors of the present Cathedral, we may begin our tour of the building. Exeter is known as a Cathedral of the Old Foundation, as in pre-Reformation days it was served by secular canons, and as such it was not refounded by Henry VIII; so that there has been no break in the continuity of its ecclesiastical history since its original institution in the days of Leofric. With the exception of Carlisle, which was served before the Reformation by Augustinian or Austin canons, all the cathedrals of the Old Foundation were served by secular canons. It must be remembered that although nearly the whole of the architectural merit of the Cathedral lies in the interior, and particularly in the magnificent stone vaulting of the roof, which is the high-water mark of vaulting on a large scale in England, there are several portions of the exterior that are worth noting. Externally the great defect of the building is the low elevation of the body, and the want of a central tower to counteract the heavy effect produced by solid square towers at each transept.
The west front, with its low, embattled screen of figures, is not a very happy architectural composition, and is not to be compared to the west fronts of Lincoln and Peterborough, where the figure sculpture is earlier and better executed than at Exeter. The one redeeming feature of an otherwise unimposing west front, is the Decorated tracery of the great window, now filled with modern, and not very satisfactory, glass in memory of Archbishop Temple, who was Bishop of Exeter from 1869 to 1885.
THE CATHEDRAL FROM THE PALACE GROUNDS
The elevation of this front consists of three stories: the basement screen, containing three portals; above this is the west wall of the nave; and above this again is the nave gable, in which is inserted a smaller window of the same character as the larger one. The apex of the gable has a canopied niche, within which is a much-restored effigy of St. Peter. The sloping walls built on each side, as if purposely to conceal the buttresses of the nave and its aisles, give this portion of the church an awkward perspective, and tend to diminish the apparent height of the whole façade. The screen itself was the last important addition to be made to the fabric by Bishop Brantyngham (1370-94), and it is little more than a low stone scaffolding for holding the rows of figures of saints, kings, and other distinguished persons which fill the niches. An attempt to identify these sixty-five individuals, with the aid of early drawings and still earlier documents, may be said to have established the identities of the majority of the effigies, although they have suffered so much from rough treatment, restoration, and weathering that many of the saintly emblems and regal attributes are difficult to decipher at the present time. Two of the figures, which were broken with falling, were replaced by new and very indifferent figures by Mr. E. B. Stevens.
Some years ago it was found that the whole of this embattled screen was merely a stone veil erected for the purpose of protecting the original west front. One or two stones were removed, a little to the right of the north door of the west entrance, and the inner mouldings exposed. Within the thickness of the wall is a little chapel dedicated to St. Radegund, in which Bishop Grandisson prepared his tomb.
The north side of the Cathedral can be viewed in its entirety from any part of the well-kept lawns, beneath which lie the bones of the citizens of seven centuries, but no stones mark their resting places. The most noticeable feature on this north side is the sturdy Norman tower, corresponding to its fellow on the south side, the original purposes of which are still a matter of much discussion among antiquaries. Built by Bishop Warelwast in the twelfth century, they stood as two distinct and independent towers, until Bishop Quivil, during the rebuilding of the Cathedral in 1280-91, ingeniously opened up the inside walls, supporting the remaining portions of the walls upon arches, thus forming the interiors of the towers into transepts. The exterior of the northern tower is plain walling for part of its height, when it is divided into four stages by horizontal bands, each stage containing elaborate Norman arcading, ornamented with zigzag moulding. It is surmounted with an embattled parapet with a turret at each angle. In the north wall a fine Decorated window was inserted by Quivil for the purpose of lighting his newly made transepts. To make way for this window a portion of the arcading of the first stage was cut away. The towers are similar to each other, and they were formerly capped with spires. In 1752 the spire on the north tower was taken down, that on the south tower having been removed at a much earlier date. Just below the window, on the face of the north tower, are the masonry marks of the gable of a house. This was the old Treasurer's House, wherein Henry VII was lodged when he came to Exeter to put down Perkin Warbeck's rebellion.
Near the north tower is the projecting north porch with its embattled parapet. On the eastern side of the interior are the fragments of what was once a Calvary, and on the central boss of the roof is a representation of the Agnus Dei.
An apartment above is known as the "Dog Whipper's" room, a relic of those days when an official was appointed whose duty it was to keep stray dogs out of the sacred building.
On the exterior of the clerestory wall immediately above the porch is a projection which marks the Minstrels' Gallery, and is lighted by a window. Along the whole length of the Cathedral, from the west end of the nave to the east end of the choir, are the flying buttresses that counteract the thrust of the heavy roof vaulting of the interior.
At the extreme eastern end of the Cathedral the Lady Chapel and its sister chantries can be seen to great advantage with their windows filled with tracery. The great Perpendicular east window is partially hidden by the more easterly portions of the fabric, but it contains some fine old glass, on which are full-length representations of nineteen saints and patriarchs, and many armorial bearings. The full beauty of the glass can only be seen from the interior. The south side of the Cathedral is very similar to the northern one, except that the portion east of the tower is hidden from view by the episcopal palace.
Once inside the nave, which should be entered by the western portal, the dullest eye cannot fail to perceive the uniform character of the work, a quality which gives to this Cathedral a congruity of structural forms and an architectonic value that is lacking in buildings which exhibit the styles of various periods. Here we see the complete architectural expression of one master mind, although the edifice was erected under the supervision of successive bishops. The present Cathedral was begun by Bishop Bronescombe (1258-80), to whom is due a portion of the Lady Chapel. His successor, Quivil (1280-91), furnished designs for the entire rebuilding of the church, and how faithfully his successors adhered to these plans is proved by the fact that a great deal of this Decorated building was erected at a time when the Perpendicular style was in full swing all over the country. With the exception of the great east window, which is of the Perpendicular period, the whole of the interior is of the purest Decorated work, and is the finest, as it is the most complete, example of this style on a large scale in the country. Exception has been taken to the lack of height in the nave, due to the low spring of the vaulting, and there is some justification for the criticism. The vaulting, however, is exceedingly beautiful, and the long line of unbroken roof stretching from the west end of the nave to the east end of the choir is so charming a feature that when inside the building we no longer regret the absence of a central tower.
THE SANCTUARY, EXETER CATHEDRAL
The bosses that unite the vaulting ribs represent a variety of subjects, the last but one, near the west window, depicting the martyrdom of Becket. The corbels from which the vaulting shafts spring are mostly sculptured heads of the Plantagenets; those on each side of the Minstrels' Gallery depict Edward III and Queen Philippa. This gallery cuts into the triforium on its north side, and contains niches in which are sculptured angels with musical instruments. Until the middle of the last century it was customary for the surpliced choir to sing the Gloria in Excelsis from the gallery on Christmas Eve.
The Gothic arches of the nave, large and beautiful, rest upon massive clustered piers of Purbeck marble. The development of these piers as the building progressed westwards is clearly seen. Between the Lady Chapel and the choir is a pier of four shafts, then one of eight, which eventually develops into one of sixteen shafts, repeated throughout the length of the nave. Although the tracery of the aisle windows is very varied in design, each window on the north side has its counterpart on the south side, and some of the tracery of these windows has a marked tendency to the flamboyant, thus showing the lateness of much of the work at Exeter, for what is called the flamboyant style is contemporary in France with our Perpendicular work, which is a purely English style unknown on the Continent.
The choir screen was put up by Bishop Stapledon (1465), but its height and effectiveness are sadly marred by the great organ placed upon it. Until comparatively recent years an altar stood on each side of this screen. The great west window of the nave, the beautiful tracery of which has already been alluded to, was due to Bishop Grandisson (1327-69). The font at the western end of the south nave aisle was made specially for the baptism of Princess Henrietta, while the nave pulpit, erected in 1877, to the memory of Bishop Patteson of Melanesia, "is", says the Rev. Baring-Gould, "much of a piece with the stuff turned out by clerical tailors and church decorators who furnish us with vulgar designs in illustrated catalogues".
The transepts, as we have seen, were bored by Quivil through the two Norman towers built by Warelwast, and in consequence are of small dimensions. In the north tower is the great bell called "Peter", which was brought from Llandaff by Bishop Courtenay towards the end of the fifteenth century, and which weighs 12,500 lb., the only heavier bell in this country being great "Tom of Oxford", the weight of which is 17,000 lb. "Peter" was rung formerly by the united exertions of twenty-four men using two ropes and double wheels, but it was cracked on 5 November, 1611, from a "too violent ringing in commemoration of the Gunpowder Plot".
In 1752 the bell was placed in the lower part of the tower, and so fixed in a massive framework of timber that it cannot now be rung; it is, however, used as a clock bell, and the sound of its deep notes can be heard at a great distance. The old clock in the same transept has been regarded as the gift of Bishop Courtenay, but this is doubtful, as from entries in the fabric rolls it seems that the clock was constructed more than a century before that prelate presided over the see. If so, the clock would date from about 1317. This ancient clock is very remarkable, being constructed upon the idea that the earth and not the sun was the centre of the solar system. It shows the hour of the day and the age of the moon. The dial is about seven feet in diameter, and on it are two circles, one numbered from 1 to 30 for the age of the moon, the other numbered from 1 to 12 twice over, for the hours. In the centre of the dial a semi-globe is fixed representing the earth, around which a smaller globe indicating the moon revolves monthly, and by turning on its axis as it revolves, shows the various lunar phases. Between the two circles is a third globe representing the sun, with an attached fleur-de-lis which points to the hours as the ball revolves around the earth. In 1760, more works were added—to show the minutes, which are painted in a circle. The works of the clocks have been renewed many times, and are now placed in the disused chantry of Sub-Chanter Sylke, situated in the northeast corner of the transept, just below the ancient clock.
On the eastern side of this transept is St. Paul's Chapel, now used as a vestry.
OLD COURTYARD IN THE CLOSE
The south transept, that corresponds with the northern one, is formed from the lower part of the south tower, which contains a fine set of bells, although only ten of them are now rung. There are some interesting monuments in this transept. Here are the great Courtenay tomb, originally occupying a place in the nave; the Elizabethan tomb of Sir John Gilbert, brother of Sir Humphrey Gilbert and half-brother to Sir Walter Ralegh; and the monument to Sir Peter Carew. A niche in the wall holds a few fragments of sculptured stone saved from the tomb of Leofric, first Bishop of Exeter, who was buried in "the crypt of his own church". A marble slab against the south wall is believed to be the resting place of "Bishop John the Chanter" (1186-91). A small door in this transept leads to the Chapel of the Holy Ghost and to the Chapter House.
On the roof of the south choir aisle are bosses carved with representations of the heads of Edward I and Queen Eleanor. This aisle contains many interesting effigies, among them two of those of unknown knights, considered to commemorate Sir Humphrey de Bohun and Sir Henry de Ralegh. The body of the latter knight was the cause of a contention, between the Dean and Chapter of the Cathedral and the Dominican Friars, in the year 1301. The quarrel was a bitter one, and lasted for five years. The Dean and the Chapter affirmed that from time immemorial, and by special arrangement with the friars, they had the right to have all bodies which were intended to be buried in the Dominican church, with the exception of those which belonged to the convent, brought to the Cathedral with the usual wax and offerings for the first mass. The friars refused to allow Sir Henry Ralegh's body to be taken to the Cathedral, and they claimed the wax and offerings. After a lengthy dispute the executors and friends of the knight took his body to the Cathedral, where the usual mass was celebrated, after which the body, with the bier and pall belonging to the friars, was carried back to the convent doors. The friars now refused to readmit the body, upon which the executors took it again to the Cathedral, "and after keeping it for a day and a night, and the friars still refusing to receive it, they carried it to be buried in the Cathedral, as it could not be left longer unburied owing to the stench (fetare)".
On the south side of the aisle is the Chapel of St. James, which was built by Bishop Marshall and restored by Quivil in the early Decorated style. The vaulting and the windows are similar to those of the choir aisles. Over it was formerly the muniment room, but in 1870 the archives were removed to the Chapter House for greater safety. During some excavations a crypt was found beneath the chapel with a finely groined roof. The crypt now contains the machinery used for blowing the organ. The next chapel on the south side is the chantry of Bishop Oldham, or St. Saviour's Chapel, richly decorated with carvings, among which the "owl" of the bishop, forming part of the rebus of his name, is prominent. His armorial bearings are also charged with the three owls. The effigy of the prelate rests beneath an ogee arch, and is lavishly coloured, although the original work has been restored by Corpus Christi College, Oxford, in memory of Bishop Oldham, who contributed 6000 marks to the collegiate foundation. On the south side of the Lady Chapel is St. Gabriel's Chapel, built by Bishop Bronescombe in honour of his patron saint. Here lies the effigy of the bishop in a carved and richly gilded tomb.
The Chapel of St. Mary Magdalene, originally built by Bronescombe, was altered by Quivil. It has a Perpendicular screen and some fifteenth-century glass in the east window. Close by, on the north side of the north choir aisle, is Sir John Speke's Chantry, or St. George's Chapel, of Perpendicular work and containing the effigy of the knight. When the Cathedral was divided into two parts, in Puritan days, a doorway was made where the altar now stands, leading into "East Peter's". On the north side of the choir aisle is St. Andrew's Chapel, corresponding with that of St. James on the south. By the north wall is the large sixteenth-century monument of Sir Gawain Carew, his wife, and his nephew, Sir Peter Carew (1571). The effigy of the last-named is cross-legged, and so late an example of this disposition of the lower limbs supports the now generally accepted archæological fact that the cross-legged attitude had no particular reference to the romantic wars of the Crusades.
Other interesting monuments in this aisle are the cross-legged effigy of Sir Richard de Stapledon, half-brother to the bishop, and that of Bishop Stapledon. The latter, although in the choir, is seen to better advantage from below. A story runs to the effect that while Sir Richard was riding one day in London with his brother, a cripple laid hold of his horse by one of the fore legs, throwing both horse and rider to the ground, and causing the knight's death, hence the name "Cripplegate". Bishop Stapledon was Treasurer to Edward II, and held London against Queen Isabella. The bishop was taken prisoner, and condemned to death at a mock trial. He was beheaded at Cheapside, and his body cast on a rubbish heap, whence it was eventually taken to Exeter and accorded an honourable burial.
THE ABBOT'S LODGE
No examples of miserere carvings are known in English churches before the thirteenth century, and the set at Exeter are probably the earliest we have, the character of their foliage denoting the Early English period. They are thought to have been the gift of Bishop Bruere (1224-44). The complete set numbers forty-nine, and among the subjects represented are a merman and a mermaid, an elephant, and a knight slaying a leopard.
The choir stalls, carved to illustrate the Benedicite, the pulpit, and the reredos are all modern, having been erected from designs by Sir Gilbert Scott. The lofty tapering bishop's throne, an essential feature of every cathedral church, is the most remarkable of the choir fittings. It has been ascertained from the fabric rolls that it was the gift of Bishop Stapledon (1465), and the exact sum paid for the work and timber was just under thirteen pounds, a considerable sum of money when its modern equivalent is calculated. The throne consists of a series of pinnacles and niches, rising in diminishing tiers until the crowning pinnacle almost reaches to the clerestory window. There is not a single nail in the whole of this canopied seat, although it rises to a height of more than sixty feet from the choir floor. It has been taken to pieces on at least two occasions; once by the son of Bishop Hall, when it was hidden away during the Civil Wars to save it from Cromwell's troopers, and a second time by Sir Gilbert Scott, for the purposes of cleaning. It is highly probable that the oak of which it is made came from Chudleigh, some ten miles away, where the bishops of Exeter had a palace, of which fragments remain in Palace Farm.
The beautiful stone sedilia was due to Stapledon. Above the seat are three arches 10 feet in height, surmounted by elaborately designed tabernacle work. The arches spring from three carved heads reputed to be those of St. Edward the Confessor, Leofric, and Edith.
The Lady Chapel is at the eastern end of the choir, from which it is separated by a broad ambulatory, and within it are the tombs of Bishops Stafford, Bronescombe, Simon of Apulia, and Bartholomew, as well as the tomb of Sir John Doddridge. A plain slab marks the resting place of Bishop Quivil, the stone bearing an incised cross and around it the inscription—
"PETRA TEGIT PETRUM
NIHIL OFFICIAT SIBI TETRUM".
The large number of interments in Lady Chapels was due to the perfectly natural desire of our forefathers to be laid to rest in the chapel dedicated to the Blessed Virgin.
The cloisters stood formerly on the south side, in front of the Chapter House. They were so sadly mutilated by the Cromwellian troopers that houses were erected and a weekly market held on the site. In 1887 a portion of the ruinous cloister was restored, so that a new cathedral library could be placed above it for the purpose of housing the valuable libraries bequeathed to the Cathedral, no more space being available in the Chapter House. An interesting manuscript, preserved in the library of the Devon and Exeter Institution, contains many references to the city which have not been recorded by other historians. With reference to the cloisters the unknown author of this manuscript says:
"1657. The Cloysters neer to Peters churche was converted into the serdge markett, which was before in Southgate street.
"1660. The wall which divided East & West Peters was taken downe in December and in the month following the serdg markett was removed out of the Cloystures, and carried againe into Southgate street whear it was before. Also the uniting of severall parishes into one was againe made void & each parrish to enjoy her owne priviledges and lyberties as before."
When Daniel Defoe visited Exeter, in 1723, it had the largest serge market in England, next to Leeds.
Although the Close has not succeeded in retaining any of its gates it is interesting by reason of the few old houses that still surround it, whilst behind their gabled roofs rises the double-towered Cathedral, completing the picturesqueness of a really charming scene, of which the prevailing tone is a dark grey, stained and almost blackened by weathering and by age. In the fourteenth century the Close at Exeter was enclosed with walls, and until comparatively recent times it was built over. The well-kept Close is peculiar to England.
The Bishop's Palace dates from about 1381, and is supposed to have been either built or enlarged by Bishop Courtenay. It was in a very ruinous condition when Bishop Philpotts set to work to restore it, when many old fragments of masonry were let into the new work. The fine archway leading into the cloisters was put up at this time, and the large oriel window of the library came from another old house in Exeter. Within the hall of the Palace is an ancient chimney-piece erected about 1486, upon which are sculptured the Courtenay arms and badges, the arms of England, and the emblem of St. Anthony. During the Commonwealth the Palace came into the possession of a sugar baker, and the succeeding bishop was content to leave him undisturbed. The next occupant of the see, however, turned the sugar baker out of the house, which he occupied himself. Several traces of the sugar refinery were discovered when the Palace was restored by Bishop Philpotts. The Palace Gardens are very extensive, and are bounded on the south side by the remains of the city wall, upon which is now a pleasant walk. Near the centre of the wall is a curious building generally known as the Lollards' Prison, although whether it ever was used for this purpose is a matter of conjecture. One of the finest views of the Cathedral is that obtained from a corner of the lawn in the Palace Gardens.