Lincoln Cathedral

“ The roof of the nave is decorated with painted figures, and so is the vaulted roof of the octagon.
The diocese of Lincoln was once the greatest in England, till it was subdivided in the reign of Henry VIII. About 1072 the present cathedral was begun, being a substitute for three older sites of smaller sees. It was destroyed by an earthquake, and rebuilt by St. Hugh of Lincoln, then bishop. In grandeur of situation this cathedral has no equal in England. The stone of which it is built becomes black, but is very durable, and retains its sharpness of outlines. ”

“ The Cathedral had, apart from the chorister and the services, certain pains and pleasures of its own. Occasionally assizes were held in Lincoln, and then on Sunday the judges would attend in robes of majesty with full wigs falling on to their shoulders. They walked in procession up the choir, and, reaching their seats, turned round awful pink clean-shaven faces of eternal calm, awful mouths that pronounced death-sentences. ”

“ At Bracebridge, near Lincoln, for example, the chancel arch, exceedingly narrow (being only 5 feet wide) , is of Saxon date and has a round-headed opening—a hagioscope—on either side.
The Lenten veil (a remnant of former use) , which was hung across the chancel between the screen and the altar, is alluded to in Lincoln Cathedral Statutes, “velum pendere ante altare,” and at Leverton, as “the veil of the temple hanging between the choir and the altar in Lent.” At Heckington and Claypole still remain the hooks used for this purpose. ”

“ The Restoration window may be seen in the beautiful engraving in Britton's "Cathedral Antiquities."
There also is an engraving of the great west door as it was in the early part of the century, and before the Roman cement era of which mention has just been made. This doorway, one of the most beautiful in the country, has much in common with the "Prior's doorway" on the south side of Lincoln Cathedral. ”

“ Lincoln cathedral is a natural fortress. The main body of the insurgents lay round the bottom of the hill on which the cathedral stands; the gentlemen, with their retinues, seem to have been lodged in the houses round the close, and to have been left in undisputed possession of their quarters for the night. Suffolk was known to be advancing. They determined, if possible, to cut their way to him in the morning, or else to hold out in their present position till they were relieved. Meanwhile the division in the council had extended to the camp. ”

“ Of English cathedrals, Lincoln comes next to Canterbury for the richness of its stained glass, but there is little in the nave which is worthy of notice. Almost all that escaped the stray arrows and bolts from the bows of dwellers round the close appears to have been destroyed [92] during the disastrous times of the Civil War in the seventeenth century, when the mere beauty of a work of art appears to have often served as a sufficient excuse for its destruction. In the windows of the aisles the glass is all coloured, but modern. ”

“ The external beauty of Lincoln Minster is rendered doubly impressive by the dignity of its position. While so many of our cathedrals are at a disadvantage in this respect, the site at Lincoln, as at Durham and Ely, was most happily chosen. Had it been less exposed, the spires would probably have yet been standing, but these are a small loss compared with the advantages gained. Especially when glowing with the rays of the setting sun, the three noble towers, each a conspicuous object for miles around, create an impression not soon forgotten. ”

“ The charming way, too, in which the architect has contrived that we should have a vista of another miniature church in the Lady-Chapel—a cathedral within a cathedral—is worthy of all commendation. But, as in Lincoln nave, to the eye every support is alarmingly insufficient for the work it has to do; the piers are too tall and slender, the walls too thin and pierced with too many openings. The triforium is a most unfortunate design: in harmony neither with the arcade below, nor with the clerestory above; its outer arches ugly in themselves and discordant with every other arch in the church ”

“ But from almost every point “below hill,” where the cathedral can be seen as a whole—there is a picture such as the true artist loves; not sensational at all, but simply beautiful and benevolent, which is more to my mind. Lincoln as a picture charms, it does not astonish; it is supremely effective without being in the least theatrical or unreal; unlike the architectural scenery of Italy—if I may be allowed the term—it does not suggest the painting of a drop-scene, nor the background of an opera! ”

“ The cathedral, one of the finest in England, is the principal building. It is surmounted by three towers, two of which, 180 feet in height, were formerly continued by spires of 101 feet. The central tower, 53 feet square, is 300 feet high. The interior length of the cathedral is 482 feet, the width 80 feet. The famous bell called Tom of Lincoln, cast in 1610 and recast in 1834, hangs in the central tower; it is 5 tons 8 cwt. in weight. The style of the cathedral is chiefly early English. Lincoln has numerous schools and benevolent institutions. ”

“ There is an indescribable fascination about Salisbury Cathedral, which a person must see to understand. Any one who is at all responsive to the charm of great architecture, can sit for hours under the old trees on the little common, and drink in the whole scene,—the beautiful building with its delicate shapes outlined in shadows upon the green grass.
“No doubt it is a generally accepted fact that Lincoln is the finest of the English cathedrals,” Mrs. Pitt explained after a time. “Perhaps Durham comes next in line, and Canterbury has great historical interest. ”

“ Buttresses, topped with pinnacles, pro{283}ject at each of the eight corners. The strange pyramidal roof is surrounded by a battlement and curious gargoyles; among them bears peer out into space.{284}
LINCOLN
Dedication: St. Mary. A Church served by Secular Canons.
Special features: St. Hugh’s Choir; Angel Choir; East Window; Central Tower.
Lincoln Cathedral possesses a commanding site and three splendid towers that form a beautiful picture. Distance lends enchantment to the view at all times of the day and seasons of the year. ”

“ The rose window of Lincoln Cathedral in the north transept is a compromise between the two, as all the lights are cut out independently and in one plane, but there are mouldings round each connected with flowers ”

“ The general effect of the interior of the minster would undoubtedly have been better, had the original apse of St. Hugh still remained; the monotony of the continuous line of vaulting, carried to such a great length at an almost uniform height, would then have been avoided. But, taken by itself, there is no structure of modest dimensions in the whole range of Gothic architecture which is more beautiful in its details or more majestic in its effect than Lincoln's Angel Choir. Architecture and sculpture of the highest excellence are here united in a single work. ”

“ Plan of the Old Library, Lincoln Cathedral.
It is probable that there was originally a row of equidistant windows in the east and west walls, one to each bay on each side; but of these, if they ever existed, no trace remains. There must also have been a window at the north end, and probably one at the south end also. The present windows are plainly modern. The room is known to have suffered from a fire, which tradition assigns to 1609; and probably the original windows were changed during the repairs rendered necessary at that time.
Fig. 40. Plan of the Cloister, etc., Lincoln Cathedral. ”

“ The account of the ‘Cathedral of Man’ is reproduced in Harrison's ‘Old Historians’ of that isle (Manx Soc. xviii. 126–51) , the survey of Lincoln Cathedral formed the basis of a volume on ‘The Antiquities in Lincoln Cathedral’ (1771) , and a ‘History of Gothic and Saxon Architecture in England’ (1798) was compiled from his works and those of James Bentham [q. v.] ”

“ Although there is evidence that the Saxon bishops who ruled at Dorchester (Oxon.) in the tenth and eleventh centuries looked upon Lincoln as the real seat of their authority, it did not recover its position as an ecclesiastical capital until a Norman bishop raised his cathedral in the south-eastern corner of the hill city. Even then the cathedral stood, not with its front to the via principalis, as at Le Mans, nor with its face to the forum, as at Coutances, but in an enclosure of its own, apart from the main life of the city. ”

“ The remaining objects in this room are casts in great numbers from Greek and Roman architectural ornament, from the ornament of the Italian Renaissance, from the Alhambra, from the Gothic buildings of France, Germany and England, the specimens from England including twelve out of the thirty angels composing the so-called angel choir of Lincoln Cathedral. These figures of angels playing on musical instruments are of the thirteenth century, and are among the most beautiful works of their time. In this room again we find it impossible to do justice to our subject ”

“ John's Hospital, Peterborough, and 29 April of the same year was installed sub-dean of Lincoln Cathedral on the death of Dr. Knighton, and at the same time became prebendary of Asgarby. He is described by Browne Willis as 'an extraordinary benefactor to the church of Lincoln, having improved the house belonging to his dignity, rebuilt by his father, so very much that it may be esteemed the best house belonging to the minster' (Willis, Cathedrals, i. 99) . He died at Lincoln, 24 March 1731-2, and was buried in the retrochoir of the cathedral, by the side of his father. ”

“ At Eu, at the cathedral of Le Mans, at Seez, we have architecture which resembles that of the choir of Lincoln, but that architecture is from 1210 to 1220, it is the Norman school of the thirteenth century. ”

“ Hugh at Lincoln is chiefly of importance as marking an epoch in the history of Gothic architecture. As the earliest known example of the pointed style carried out consistently in its details, the choir of Lincoln Minster cannot be too carefully studied. Close attention will, of course, make more evident its defects; the stone vault, which has the appearance of being all askew, is especially unsuccessful, but the perfection of the Angel Choir could not be attained all at once, and the faults of the earlier work serve but to emphasise the beauties of the later. ”

“ The West Front is massive and imposing, and possesses some features of considerable interest; beyond this, little can be said for it, as it is architecturally somewhat of a sham. Why the architects threw away the opportunities they had, and finished off the western end of the church with an enormous screen wall, it is now difficult to say. The Norman front was originally furnished with three gables, one in the centre, following the line of the old nave roof, the others in front of the Norman towers, and similar to those which may still be seen on the outer sides of these towers. ”

“ When visiting the little hamlet of Dorchester we will remark upon how great was once its glory and how widely the sway of its Bishop then extended. This glory departed when Bishop Remigius (who built the central and oldest part of the Lincoln west front) decided about 1072 to remove his seat to the more lofty and far safer site upon Lincoln Hill. Before concluding the inspection of the cathedral’s exterior, it is timely to remark that through all the centuries it has been famous in story and song for its chime of bells. ”

“ Speaking of the west front at Lincoln, the writer says that "almost at the top are four or five fine pictures, but broken down in the late troubles, but with small dexterity and by as bad a handicraft." The vast façade is finished off at the ends by two octagonal stair-turrets, capped by tall, pyramidal roofs. On the top of the southern turret is Bishop St. Hugh, with staff and mitre; on the other is the Swineherd of Stow, whose reputed gift of a peck of silver pennies towards the building of the minster has secured for his statue a position as exalted as that of the great bishop himself. ”

“ The ‘angel choir’ at Lincoln is rudely executed compared with many a modern bas-relief, but the features of the winged minstrels are radiant with celestial happiness. There are figures of kings crumbling into dust in the niches of Exeter Cathedral which retain even now a dignity of attitude and lordly grace which no ‘restoration’ is likely to revive. Our nineteenth century angels look like demure Bible-readers, somewhat too conscious of their piety to be interesting. Our nineteenth century monarchs seem (in stone, at least) very well-to-do pleasant gentlemen, but are scarcely of a heroic type. ”

“ It was erected in recognition of the services of Prebendary Trollope (afterwards Bishop of Nottingham) to the cause of architecture in the diocese of Lincoln. It was designed by the late Sir G. Gilbert Scott, and executed in 1863-4 by Messrs. Ruddle of Peterborough. The pulpit is of oak, with scriptural subjects in relief and statuettes. It has an elaborate Gothic canopy of wood, and a marble base. On the whole, it can hardly be said to be worthy of imitation. The subjects are carved with little regard to durability ”