The Cathedrals of Great Britain: Their History and Architecture

by P. H. Ditchfield

The stone screen before the Chapel of St. Edward should be examined, with its curious sculpture. Before the Reformation there seems to have been some laxity of conduct among the chaplains and choristers, who were accused of playing games in the church, and here in one of these chapels we see nine holes, which were probably used for the favourite pastime of "Nine Men's Morris."

In the south transept there are the slender remains of the once famous tomb of Bishop Dalderby (d. 1320), to which there was great resort of pilgrims in mediæval times. His shrine was destroyed at the Reformation. This bishop built the upper part of the tower.

The Screen is good Decorated work, and consists of arches ornamented with figures of ecclesiastics and grotesques. It has been somewhat severely handled by fanatical destroyers, but, in spite of mutilation and restoration, it remains a noble example of the workmanship of the period. The organ stands above this screen. The doorways on each side of the screen are Early English, and are very beautiful.

Entering the Choir, we see the earliest known example of pure Lancet Gothic or Early English, free from the trace of Norman influence. It was built by Bishop St. Hugh. The first stone was laid in 1192. The perfection of the ornament is wonderful. This part of the church suffered severely from the fall of the tower in 1237, and many traces of the disaster may still be seen. Screens divide the choir from the aisles, and were erected to strengthen the building. The Choir Stalls are very fine, and were erected by Treasurer Welbourn in 1370. The carving is most elaborate and beautiful, and the misereres are extremely curious and interesting. Behind each stall is a list of the Psalms which, according to the constitution of Lincoln, each prebendary is bound to repeat daily. The pulpit and bishop's throne are fairly modern. The brass lectern bears the date 1667. The Reredos was restored about the middle of the eighteenth century, but contains some thirteenth-century work. A very interesting feature of the north side is the Easter Sepulchre, fashioned for the deposition of the consecrated elements of the Eucharist from the evening of Good Friday until the morning of Easter day; during which time it was watched by a quasi-guard. Three figures of sleeping soldiers appear in the carving. The style is Decorated. This tomb has been very doubtfully assigned to Remigius. There are the monuments of Katherine Swinford, third wife of John of Gaunt (d. 1403), from whom King Edward is descended in a direct line, and of her daughter, the Countess of Westmoreland (d. 1440), much mutilated by the soldiers. In the North Aisle of the choir the beautiful double arcade work of Bishop Hugh is seen on the wall. In the South Aisle are the remains of the Shrine of Little St. Hugh, the Christian boy with whose crucifixion the Jews were charged in 1255. The style is Decorated, but the shrine was mutilated by the soldiers in the Civil War. The great chronicler, Henry of Huntingdon, also lies buried here.

The eastern transept is part of Bishop Hugh's church. In each arm, on the east side, there are two apsidal chapels, with arcading round the walls. The style of the construction resembles that of the choir. On the south of the north arm is the so-called Dean's Chapel, the use of which can only be conjectured. The iron-work of the door is worthy of notice, and also the faded paintings of some Lincoln prelates, by Vincenzo Damini (1728). It is sad to see the fragments of the tomb of Grosseteste, to whom the Cathedral of Lincoln and the whole Church of England owe so much, stored away in one of the chapels. Respect for his memory and gratitude for his work might suggest the restoration of this tomb. The southern arm of this east transept has been much altered, and most of the present work is later than the choir. In one of the chapels the sub-dean was murdered by one of the vicars in 1205. Here is the tomb of Bishop Kaye (d. 1853). The screen and lavatory of the choristers' vestry are beautiful examples of Decorated work.

The Angel Choir

We now enter the Angel Choir (1256-1280), pronounced by Sir Gilbert Scott to be "the most splendid work of that period which we possess, and did it not lack internal height, I do not think it could be exceeded in beauty by any existing church." It is the latest portion of the main fabric, and was built when the Early English style was developing into the Decorated. The piers are beautiful clustered shafts, with carved capitals of Purbeck marble. The east window of eight lights is very fine (the glass is modern), and is said to be the noblest example of Geometrical Decorated in the kingdom. The choir takes its name from the carved angels in the spandrels of the triforium, which exhibit combined grace and dignity. The famous Lincoln Imp can with difficulty be distinguished on the north side, above the most eastern pier. Early English glass fills the east windows of the north and south aisles. On the north of the Angel Choir is the Fleming Chantry, which contains the double effigy of the bishop (d. 1431), the founder of Lincoln College, Oxford, first in his episcopal robes, and then of his corpse in a state of decay. Bishop Fleming exhumed and burnt the bones of Wyclif. Opposite this chantry is the Russell Chantry, founded by Bishop Russell (d. 1494), Chancellor of Richard III., and near this the Chantry of Bishop Longland (d. 1547).

Here in the Angel Choir stood, in former days, the rich shrine of St. Hugh, plundered at the Reformation, and a monument of Queen Eleanor, the beloved wife of Edward I., who caused to be erected the famous Eleanor crosses at every place where her body rested, as it was borne to its final resting-place at Westminster. This monument was destroyed by Cromwell's soldiers, and recently a modern copy of the original has been erected. The Burghersh monuments are worthy of careful study. The family played an important part in history, and held high honours. Also we notice the tombs of Nicholas de Cantelupe (much mutilated), the artists Peter De Wint (d. 1849) and W. Hilton (d. 1839); Bishop Fuller's memorial of St. Hugh, Bishop Fuller (d. 1675), Bishop Gardiner (d. 1705) and Sub-Dean Gardiner (d. 1732), Bishop Wordsworth (d. 1885), Dean Butler (d. 1894), Bishop Sutton (d. 1299) and Robert Dymoke (d. 1735), whose family held the office of King's Champion.

The Cloisters were erected in the thirteenth century, with the exception of the north colonnade, which was built by Sir Christopher Wren. Over this is the Library, which contains many treasures: an original copy of Magna Charta, a letter of Edward I.; a chalice of Bishop Grosseteste (1254) and his ring; Bishop Sutton's ring and chalice and paten (1299); a Roman mile-stone (260 A.D.). Of books there is a large collection, including a MS. copy of the Vulgate (1106), other valuable MSS., and many versions of the Bible in English. The old desks are curious and interesting.