Gloucester Cathedral

“ The great defect of the glass in Gloucester Cathedral is its want of plan and uniformity,—owing to the various artists (some very indifferent) who have been employed.
In altering the south aisle, Abbot Thokey cut off the arches over the Norman windows, (those opposite should be compared,) and lowered the vaulting. This, in the{G-19} first four bays from the south porch, greatly resembles that of the nave, which is of much earlier date. The vaulting of the three last bays has its mouldings filled with the ball-flower. ”

“ The cathedral has a number of interesting ruins on the northern side. These include the remains of a Dominican monastery, founded in the ninth century and rebuilt in 1115, of which some arches and pillars remain. There are other buildings partially adapted for modern purposes.
Gloucester also possesses some churches of considerable interest, such as St. Mary de Lode, said to be the oldest in the city, with the Norman chancel and tower of the original building. In the churchyard stands a monument to Bishop Hooper, burnt alive on the spot in 1555. ”

“ A volume of excellent plans and sketches, illustrative of Gloucester Cathedral, has been published by Mr. F. S. Waller, Architect to the Dean and Chapter, (London, 1856) . To it we are indebted for the plan of the cathedral contained in this volume.
[2] Froucester’s Chronicle.
[3] Fergusson.
[4] The transepts of Oxford (102 ft.) and Rochester (122 ft.) are shorter: but neither of these cathedrals at all approaches the general dimensions of Gloucester or Worcester. The tower of Malvern Priory Church much resembles that of Gloucester, and was perhaps an imitation of it. ”

“ Its stubborn retention by the Parliamentary party in a Royalist country, and its defence by Massey, entitles it to rank with Royalist Worcester as among the most conspicuous centres of strife in that distressing conflict. But strangers nowadays only visit Gloucester to see the Cathedral—an expedition well worth the making. Belonging to the middle group of cathedrals in size, this one is chiefly celebrated for its beautiful tower and cloisters, both of the Perpendicular period. ”

“ The vaulted roof of the cloisters of Canterbury Cathedral is studded with above 800 shields, of kings and other benefactors; and the whole presents a perfect blaze of splendour. Some of these groined roofs are adorned with a ramification of ribs, running out in a fan-shape, circumscribed by a quarter or half-circle rib, the intervals filled up with ornament. The cloisters of Gloucester Cathedral present, perhaps, the first specimen of the fan-tracery roof; and after that King's College Chapel, Cambridge, Henry VII.'s Chapel, and the Abbey Church at Bath. ”

“ Fig. 267.—The Crypt, Gloucester Cathedral.
The peculiarities of this church are two,—first, the triforium or gallery of the eastern arm is vaulted with a demi-vault, and from it opened repetitions of the{122} apsidal chapels, which are placed somewhat as at Norwich; and second, no such gallery exists to the nave, but the height is there thrown into the aisle; so that we have a very lofty aisle of one storey to the nave, and two ranges of aisle of very low proportions to the eastern arm, the two arrangements coming face to face in the transepts. ”

“ Many fine examples of these remain, as in the Cathedral of Exeter and at York{xxvii} in the chapter-house; at Norwich in the cloisters; at Chester the vault is of wood with stone springers.
After culminating in the Decorated style, Gothic Architecture began to decline in the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Centuries. The transition from the Decorated to the Perpendicular took place from 1360 to 1399:
“This change began to show itself in the choir and transepts of Gloucester Cathedral before the middle of the Fourteenth Century. ”

“ Again, a great mediæval cathedral like our own glorious Gloucester, inimitable in its fadeless beauty and matchless strength, surely deals a very heavy blow to human pride, and it teaches humility to the most competent and ablest of our number, for it is a conception belonging to a past age. A great gathering, however, like the present, numbering some six or seven thousand persons, is for varied reasons an inspiring one and bids us be trustful—even hopeful. ”

“ In any case, the work is of the greatest architectural interest, and deserves careful study. "Looking at the very early character of the clustered shafts and the mouldings of this transept in conjunction with the vertical lines with which they are associated, one might think (excepting Thokey's south aisle, the Edward II. monument, and some few examples in the triforium of the choir) that Decorated work had never fairly taken root in Gloucester." ”

“ The north transept (into which the relics of the bishop were removed in 1287) was to all appearance built expressly for the reception of the Cantilupe shrine; and the further changes and additions during the early Decorated period may safely be assigned to the increase of riches and consequence which the possession of this shrine brought to the cathedral. In the same manner, at Gloucester (see that Cathedral) the possession of the remains of Edward II. was the cause of the entire alteration of the abbey church. ”

“ They are sometimes very large, extending over the eastern bay of the nave and occasionally over the western bay of the chancel also, as may be seen by the remains of the staircases for them.
The Redcliffe Church, Bristol, the west front and south porch of Gloucester Cathedral, and part of the choir of St. Alban’s Abbey Church, with the tomb of Abbot Wheathampstead, are also of this period, and good specimens of the style. Within the next twenty years we have a crowd of examples, which it is not necessary to enumerate. ”

“ H. Donald M. Spence, D.D., Dean of Gloucester, at the Opening Service of the September (1898) Meeting of the Three-Choirs Festival in Gloucester Cathedral.
The Limits of Human Genius
"As for Wisdom, what she is, and how she came up, I will tell you, and will not hide mysteries from you, but will seek her out from the beginning of her nativity, and bring the knowledge of her into Light, and will not pass over Truth."
The surroundings of a custodian of a mediæval cathedral, beautiful though they are, at the same time are unutterably pathetic. ”

“ Is any thing known, beyond what I have stated, as to the communications with Rome on the subject of his canonization, or as to the means by which he was permitted by the English church to become a fit object for invocation and veneration?
What are the chief historical grounds that endeared his memory to the Church or the people? The compassion for his signal fall can hardly account for this, although a similar motive was sufficient to bring to the tomb of Edward II., in Gloucester Cathedral, an amount of offerings that added considerably to the splendour of the edifice. ”

“ In that remote period of way-faring, it was the custom for some churches to have a fire lighted in [Pg 233] an iron framework on the top of an angle turret, to direct the steps of the stranger, especially through those vast woods which covered our land, and of which a famous example existed in the forest of Galtres, in Yorkshire.
The visitor to Gloucester Cathedral will have noticed its exquisite cloisters, and have seen the screens or “carols” where the monkish scribe sat diligently to copy his chronicle, or the artist to illuminate its page. ”

“ I feared to be disappointed in the Cathedral, so soon after exquisite Wells and the Abbey at Bath, which I loved. But as soon as I got inside it was quite otherwise, especially as I had Sir Lionel to show me things, and he knew Gloucester of old. To me, the interior was almost as interesting as Winchester itself (which, so far, has outranked all) , for the transition from one period to another is so clearly and strangely marked, and it's the actual birthplace of Perpendicular architecture. The Cloisters must be among the loveliest in the world ”

“ Between the years 1788 and 1797 he expended a sum of £20,000 on this cathedral; shortening the nave by one entire bay; destroying the Norman triforium and clerestory, which he replaced by others of his own device; and constructing the present west front, which it is to be hoped will not be permitted to exist much longer. In 1841, at the request of the late Bishop Musgrave, a report on the actual condition of the cathedral was drawn up by Professor Willis ”

“ Worcester Cathedral—Coaching to Malvern—Great and Little Malvern—Tewksbury—Wars of the Roses—Bredon—Sunday at Kemerton—May’s Hill—The Cuckoo—Gloucester—The Church at Highnam—Architectural beauty of Gloucester Cathedral—Effect in twilight. ”

“ To fully appreciate the beauty of the cathedral, it must be studied under different aspects and at different times. Much will depend upon the mood of the visitor, much, too, upon the time of day. The Lady Chapel at 7 A.M. is quite a different thing from the Lady Chapel at 10:30 or 12 noon, though always beautiful. The same holds good with the choir and the nave. A slanting light through the south clerestory playing fitfully upon the lace-work of the north side of the choir, or the sturdy pillars of the ever-impressive nave, gives a charm that cannot be described. ”

“ Under the tower is some good late Jacobean panelling. In the chancel are two squints, four each side, arranged venetian-blind fashion. Several of the tombs are worth inspecting—viz. the Window monument in the chancel, 1659, and one to the wife of Rev. Helpe-Fox, 1657. There is a good tomb to Alderman John Walton and his wife, 1626, which, though in good preservation, is beginning to suffer from damp. There is also a brass, 1585, to Thos. Sancky; and a slab to John Hanbury, who represented Gloucester in Parliament in 1626. A fine view of the cathedral can be got from the top of the tower. ”

“ The Early English portion of the cathedral (the whole of the church east of the central tower) is by far the most interesting, and affords some very good examples of design and sculpture. On the whole, however, although the entire building deserves, and will repay, careful examination, it can hardly be said to rank among English churches of the first class. The Norman cathedral, which covered nearly the same ground as that which now exists, terminated eastward (as appears from the crypt, § XXII.) in a broad apse, with small apsidal chapels attached at the sides. ”

“ This reredos was taken down in 1807, and was for many years in the old church at Cheltenham. When, however, the church at Cheltenham fell into the hands of the restorer, parts of the carved work were brought back to Gloucester.
Passing towards the Whispering Gallery, the flying buttresses inserted to support the walls of the clerestory, which were weakened by the insertion of the great east window of the choir, 1347-1350, should be noticed.
The Whispering Gallery, to which the ordinary visitor pays more attention than anything else in the building, has remarkable acoustic properties. ”

“ Here three flying buttresses should be remarked, which spring from the outer walls of the cathedral at the bend of the apse, and meet in a point behind the wall of the choir. These really sustain the weight above the triforium, so that the slight Perpendicular pier below (§ XIII.) is not called upon to do more than half the duty. In the Whispering Gallery much Norman stone-work has been re-used—a practice of common occurrence throughout the cathedral. ”

“ There would be a vista, too, but the effect of the lofty choir would be lost entirely without the presence of the screen and the organ, and the nave would look more dwarfed in height. There is one more point, too, always forgotten by these enthusiasts—viz. this, that the building was not designed by Henry VIII. at the Dissolution as a parish church. He laid down quite clear and simple rules for the regulation of44 the cathedral foundation, and he intended the choir to serve, as it had served for the monks before, as the private chapel of those on his new foundation. ”

“ In 1836 the Sees of Bristol and Gloucester were united, and remained so until 1897, when they were again separated.
The church has a history long before it became a Cathedral. It was the church of the monastery of Augustinian canons, founded in 1142 by Robert Fitzhardinge, afterwards Lord of Berkeley, on the site of Augustine's oak (so tradition says) , where Augustine met the British bishops in conference and offended them by his haughty demeanour. The consecration of probably the chancel took place six years later. ”

“ Following the course of the tale our next objective was the city of Gloucester, the crowning glory of which is the great cathedral, founded by the Saxon earl, Osric, in 680 A.D. The massive Norman nave was commenced in 1088 and the fine choir was completed in the fourteenth century. The great east window, measuring seventy-two feet in height, thirty-eight feet in width, and containing two thousand seven hundred and thirty-six square feet of glass, is the largest in England if not in the world. ”

“ XV. The north-east transept opens immediately beyond Bishop Stanbery’s chantry. The main character of this lesser, or eastern transept, is at present early Decorated, (geometrical) ; but it retains traces of the original Norman ground-plan. The Norman cathedral, like most great churches in England of that period, seems to have terminated in a triple apse, of which the arrangement may have resembled the eastern apses of Norwich and Gloucester, (see those Cathedrals) . Portions of the central apse remain in the walls of the vestibule to the Lady-chapel ”