| PLATE XCIII | DURHAM CATHEDRAL FROM THE WEAR RIVER |
Litchfield Cathedral is sometimes styled the "Queen of English minsters," and, though surpassed by other cathedrals in age, size, grandeur of site and elaborate decoration, it has yet claim to the title because of the symmetry, proportion and picturesqueness of its general effect. It is built of red sandstone, and dates mainly from the thirteenth to the fourteenth centuries. The earliest structure on the present site was a Norman church dating from about 1100. The oldest part of the existing building is the lower part of the west half of the choir, erected about 1200. The transepts followed in 1220-40; the nave dates from 1250, and the west front from about 1280, while the Lady-Chapel belongs to the beginning of the fourteenth century. The cathedral close was formerly surrounded by a wall and moat; and in 1643 the cathedral was defended against the Puritans, who battered down the central tower and demolished many of the carvings, monuments and windows. It was, however, restored before the end of the century. The most conspicuous external features are the three beautiful spires and the fine west façade. This façade is one of the most graceful and harmonious in England; and it has the advantage over such a front as that of Peterborough in its organic connection with the rest of the building. It is covered with niches for about one hundred statues, almost all of which are now filled with modern carvings.
| HEREFORD CATHEDRAL | FROM NORTHEAST |
Chichester Cathedral was originally begun about 1085, completed in 1108 and burned down in 1114. In its present form it is substantially a Transitional Norman building of the twelfth century, with some pointed details introduced after a second fire in 1186. The Lady-Chapel dates from 1288-1304. The spire, erected in the fifteenth century, collapsed in 1861, and has since been rebuilt. The whole edifice has been restored since 1848. The detached Bell Tower, a feature peculiar to Chichester among English cathedrals, is, despite its weather-worn appearance, one of the most recent parts of the building, dating from the fifteenth century.
Canterbury Cathedral, the third church erected on the same site, represents English architectural history from 1070 to 1495; but its general external appearance is that of a magnificent building in the Perpendicular style. The present structure was begun by Laufranc, the first Norman architect, and was finished in 1130. The choir of this Norman cathedral was burned in 1174, and the present choir, in the Transitional style from Norman to Early English, was erected by William of Sens (who may almost be said to have introduced the Pointed style into England), and by his successor, William the Englishman (1174-1180). The old Norman nave and transepts remained intact for two hundred years more, when in 1378-1410 they were replaced by the present Perpendicular structure. The great central tower was added in 1495. The northwest tower is modern, the older tower having been pulled down, with doubtful wisdom, to make room for one to match its southwest neighbor. In spite of its huge proportions the interior of the nave produces a wonderful effect of lightness. The choir, one hundred and twenty feet long, is the longest in England. The great Norman arches, supported by circular and octagonal piers alternately, furnish a striking contrast to the inner portions of the nave.
