The Cathedrals of Great Britain: Their History and Architecture

by P. H. Ditchfield

CHESTER CATHEDRAL

Royal Chester is one of the most ancient and interesting cities in the kingdom. It was an important Roman station. It was called the "City of Legions," and the twentieth Legion of the Roman army was stationed here, and left behind it many traces of its occupation. Saxons and Danes also held the place. The warlike daughter of Alfred the Great, and wife of Ethelred of Mercia, drove out the Danes and rebuilt the walls, but the Welsh again gained the mastery until the first Saxon Edward reconquered it, and later Edgar subdued the Britons, and in 973 was rowed in his victorious vessel on the Dee by eight British chieftains. William the Conqueror made his nephew Earl of Chester, and for years he and his successors ruled as kings in this corner of England, until Henry III. bestowed the title on his eldest son, and since that time the earldom has always been held by the king's first-born. Edward I. often came here when he was waging war against Llewellyn and the Welsh, and worshipped in the great church. Here Henry IV. brought as a captive the luckless King Richard II. and imprisoned him in the castle. Of Royal visits old Chester had abundance. The city was famous for its "miracle plays," which were performed in the streets. Frequently the dread visitor plague made its presence felt, and grass grew in the neglected streets. Tradition states that the name "God's Providence House" was given to a house in Watergate Street, because that was the only dwelling which the plague passed over. Chester played an important part in the Civil War, and bravely resisted a siege and frequently repelled formidable attacks, and the inhabitants were reduced to great straits and much ruin wrought. The walls of the city are quite complete, and on one of the towers called the Phœnix is the inscription: "King Charles stood on this tower September 24th" (27th it should be) "1645, and saw his army defeated at Rowton Moor."

Chester retains many of its historical associations, its extensive Roman remains, its walls and ancient houses, its wonderful Rows, "like which there is nothing else in the world," the quaint street names, the interesting churches, all contribute to make Chester one of the most delightful cities in England. Although the great church is ancient, the present see is not. Chester was one of the dioceses founded by Henry VIII. in return for some of the great stores of treasure which he and his courtiers filched from the church. It appears, however, that just after the Norman Conquest there were Bishops of Chester. In 1075 the Bishop of Lichfield removed the seat of the bishopric to Chester, and the Church of St. John the Baptist was his Cathedral. Then Coventry became the centre of the diocese, but the title of Bishop of Chester was frequently used, but fell into disuse in later time, until Henry VIII. constituted the new see.

ST. OSWALD'S GATE

The church has, however, a very interesting history. Possibly there may have been a Christian church here in Roman times. An old chronicler tells us of an early church dedicated to SS. Peter and Paul, and that in the time of the Saxons it was re-dedicated to St. Werburgh and St. Oswald. St. Oswald we have met before at Durham and elsewhere. St. Werburgh was the daughter of Walphur, King of Mercia, A.D. 660, who, perceiving that his daughter was much disposed to a religious life, caused her to take the veil. Her aunt, St. Ethelreda of Ely, was her spiritual mother, and when St. Werburgh died her body was conveyed to Chester, where a monastic house was built, dedicated to her. The early history of this house is somewhat uncertain. Ormerod, the historian of Chester, states that it continued a nunnery until the time of the Norman Conquest, when secular canons were installed in their stead, but this change took place in the time of King Athelstan (925). Leofric, the husband of Lady Godiva, is also recorded as a great benefactor of the church and monastery. When Hugh Lupus, the nephew of the Conqueror, became Earl of Chester, in the time of William Rufus he founded a new monastery of Benedictine monks, and endowed it with rich possessions. He introduced the famous Anselm, Abbot of Bec, afterwards Archbishop of Canterbury, who made his chaplain, Richard, the first abbot. The Norman church was begun in his time, and some of the features of the Norman Abbey of Bec were introduced at Chester, especially the stone roof of the apse in the south-east of the Cathedral. Some fragments of this church remain in spite of the changes which time has wrought, notably the small arches in the east wall of north transept, and an arch in the canons' vestry, the north wall of the nave, the doorway between the east cloister and the nave, the lower part of the north-west tower and the crypt. Fire played havoc here as elsewhere, and we find Abbot Geoffrey lamenting over the intolerable ruin of his church. This was at the close of the twelfth century, and some reparation was affected, while, during the time of his successor, Hugh Grylle, prosperity dawned upon the Abbey, and the number of monks was soon after increased. Increased wealth tempted the rapacious, and the abbey had to withstand a siege. A noted abbot was Simon de Albo Monasterio, or Whitchurch, who did much for his monastery. He rebuilt the Lady Chapel, enlarged the chapter-house, and began the present choir. The refectory, with its beautiful pulpit, must have been constructed about this time, the close of the thirteenth century, when the king, Edward I., gave grants of venison from his forests for the support of the monks, "who were engaged on the work of building the church." No records tell of any work being done by succeeding abbots until the time of Simon Ripley (1472-1493); but where records are silent the stone-work tells us that in the fourteenth century some beautiful work was accomplished, notably the shrine of St. Werburgh, the sedilia and choir stalls. Simon Ripley was an energetic abbot, and rebuilt the nave, tower and south transept. This south transept was claimed as the Parish Church of the parishioners of St. Oswald, and there were much disputings, but the people had their way, and retained their rights until 1881. We also find that the usual quarrels took place between the monks and citizens about the rights to hold fairs and markets. Abbot Birkenshawe continued Ripley's work, and completed the west front and part of the west tower. An unfortunate alteration was made at this time. The vault of the cloisters was raised, tradition says, by Cardinal Wolsey, and mars the beauty of the earlier work. Then came the dissolution of monasteries, and the Abbey of St. Werburgh shared the fate of the rest. The See of Chester was created in 1541, the last abbot becoming the first dean, and John Byrde the first bishop. Most of the lands and wealth of the church were seized by the king and his courtiers. But, shorn of its wealth, the Cathedral itself was at this time one of the most beautiful in England. Dire troubles were, however, in store. The waves of the Civil War beat fiercely on Royal Chester; and when, after the protracted siege, the victorious Puritan soldiers entered the city, they defaced the Cathedral choir, injured the organ, and demolished the font, broke all the painted windows, and used the church as a stable. Randle Holme, the historian of Chester, utters a sad lament over the condition of the city which he loved so well, and compares it with Jerusalem, "the beloved citie of God, with not a stone left upon another." Since then the story of the Cathedral has been one of continual reparation and restoration. The exterior of the choir was recased by Bishop Stratford (1689-1707). Bishop Law, in 1818, effected some considerable repairs, and other efforts were made, until at length Sir G. Scott was engaged in 1868, when Dean Howson ruled, and a very "thorough" restoration was made. A modern authority on Gothic architecture states that Sir G. Scott's was "a rebuilding of every external feature of this Cathedral in the style of his own Victorian Gothic." Perhaps this criticism is a little too severe. It must be remembered that the stone of Chester Cathedral was very soft and perishable, that the state of the fabric was so bad that it was almost dangerous, and that the difficulties of the architect were great. However, in spite of what has been done, there is still much to admire, and we will proceed to examine the details of this ancient church.

The Exterior

To examine the exterior we must avoid the narrow streets in its vicinity, and ascend the old walls of the city, from which we can obtain an excellent view. Starting at the east gate, we get a good view of the south-east of the Cathedral, including the tower, the east side of the south transept, choir and Lady Chapel. We notice the colour of the stone—red sandstone. The plan of the church is cruciform. The Tower is Perpendicular in style, and was probably built by Abbot Ripley. Two windows of Perpendicular character look out from each side. It has been much restored, and was only just saved from destruction by this process. Sir G. Scott devised the turrets and pinnacles out of his inner consciousness, and also the parapet; but the effect, though differing, doubtless, from the original design, is not unpleasing. The Lady Chapel is a simple and beautiful construction of Early English design. On the south side there are three triple lancets under a pointed arch, separated by buttresses crowned with pinnacles, and a parapet above. The south aisle of the choir is Early Decorated, and there is a modern apsidal termination, with a curious steep roof, almost resembling the spire of a church, which Sir G. Scott constructed, and for which he found justification in the remains of the earlier roof. This example is unique in England, but not unusual in France. The south transept is unusually large, which is accounted for by its being the Church of St. Oswald. There are some curious modern sculptures in a corbel here, representing modern statesmen, and the features of Mr. Gladstone and Lord Beaconsfield are not difficult to discover. Passing along the wall of the city, at the east of Abbey Street we see the north-east view. Near at hand, on the right, is the refectory, and on the left the chapter-house, which is Early English. The north transept is Norman work. The north choir aisle, which extends along the side of the Lady Chapel, is, in its eastern part, Perpendicular; further west it is Early Decorated, while by the canons' vestry we see unmistakable Norman work. In this wall much of the old stone remains, as it has not suffered so much from the weather as on the south side. We see the long expanse of the nave roof, and then pass along Abbey Street, and have a fine view of this north side. Then houses interfere with the prospect. Then we see the old Abbey gateway, a fourteenth-century structure, and the new buildings of the King's School, which occupies the site of the old Palace, and soon stand opposite the West Front, which lacks the grandeur of this feature of many cathedrals. It has a large Perpendicular window of good design and rich tracery; beneath it is a Tudor doorway, and canopied niches, and on the south the base of a tower which was never completed. Passing along we have a grand view of the south side.