crowning William at Westminster, but his people liked not the change
of rulers and rebelled. The Conqueror came and ruthlessly crushed the
revolt, and after his wont erected a castle to overawe his subjects.
Again they rebelled; the king swore deep vengeance, and terrible was
the punishment inflicted on the northern kingdom. He appointed Thomas
of Bayeaux archbishop, who set about repairing the ruined church, and
built a new nave with side aisles and transepts, using the old church
as a choir for the new. For years the question of the supremacy of
York or Canterbury disturbed the ecclesiastical affairs of England,
and on one occasion at a council the Metropolitan of York, finding his
brother of Canterbury occupying the seat of honour at the right of the
Papal legate, gravely sat down on the latter's lap. In the reign of
Henry II. came Roger de Pont l'Evêque, who built the new choir and
crypt, removing the remains of the old Saxon church.
The people of York have ever been eager for fighting, revolt and riot.
Sometimes we find them killing Jews; now disputing with the monks of
St. Mary's Abbey, because some offending citizen had escaped their
vengeance by claiming the right of sanctuary; now fighting against the
Scots, and even rebelling against rulers who were obnoxious to them.
Kings of the House of Lancaster were especially hateful, and nowhere
in the kingdom did reformers of religion find more bitter opponents.
During the rule of Walter de Grey, archbishop (1216-1255), the Norman
transepts were removed and the present ones built, and in the reign of
the Edwards the old Norman nave was replaced by the present one, and
the chapter-house built. At this period York enjoyed much prosperity.
The Scottish wars brought kings here who made it the military and
civil capital of the whole country. Parliaments were held here. York
Minster saw the marriage of Edward III., and the burial of his infant
son. But rebellions against the kings of the House of Lancaster, the
famous Pilgrimage of Grace against the reformed doctrines, and other
risings, diminished its influence and deprived it of many privileges.
York was besieged for six weeks during the Civil War, and suffered
much; but happily General Fairfax exercised a restraining influence on
his soldiers and prevented them from damaging the Cathedral. Although
the citizens at the Reformation rebelled against the "new Religion,"
at the Restoration they rebelled against the overthrow of Puritanism;
and again, when James II. endeavoured to restore Roman Catholicism,
they rebelled again, attacked the Roman Catholic prelate whom the king
sent to them, wrested from him his silver-gilt crozier, and took it in
triumph to the minster, where it remains until this day.
We will now briefly trace the history of the building, which has been
rightly called "the King of Cathedrals." In 627 Paulinus built his
little wooden church for the baptism of King Edwin. A year later a
stone church was begun, which was finished by Oswald and repaired by
Wilfrid. In the crypt are some of the walls of this early church,
which show the "herring-bone" work of Saxon builders. When the
Conqueror besieged York much destruction was wrought on this church.
[Illustration Tomb of Archbishop Walter de Grey]
In 1070 Archbishop Thomas of Bayeaux built the Norman nave and
transepts, and used the old church as the choir. The apse in the crypt
and the core of the tower piers are the remains of this work.
In 1154-1181 choir and crypt were rebuilt by Roger in Late Norman
style.
In 1230-1260 the present transepts were built.
In 1291-1324 Norman nave was taken down and the new nave built, and
also the chapter-house, vestibule, sacristy and treasury. In 1338 the
west front of nave was erected.
In 1361-1400 choir rebuilt and Lady Chapel.
In 1400-1423 central tower built in place of Early English lantern.
In 1433-1474 north and south-western towers built.
The Cathedral was now complete. At the beginning of the sixteenth
century the organ-screen was erected, and two disastrous fires in 1829
and 1840 necessitated considerable repairs, and in 1875 some needful
restoration of the south transept was carried out.
THE EXTERIOR
The _West Front_ is "more architecturally perfect as a composition and
in its details than that of any other English cathedral," and is
unquestionably the best cathedral façade in this country. The lower
part, with the entrances and lower windows, belongs to the Early
Decorated period. Above the windows the work is Late Decorated, and
the towers above the roof Perpendicular. Numerous niches cover the
surface. It is doubtful whether they ever contained statues. The
principal entrance is divided by a clustered pier, and above it is a
circle filled with cusped tracery. Over the whole doorway is a
deeply-recessed arch, and over that a gable with niches, one of which
contains the statue of an archbishop, supposed to be John le Romeyn,
who began the nave in 1291, and other niches have figures of a Percy
and a Vavasour, who gave the wood and stone for the building. The
favourite ball-flower ornament of the Decorated style is seen on the
gable, and the mouldings in the arches have figures representing the
history of Adam and Eve. Above the entrance is a large eight-light
window, pronounced by many to be too large even for York Minster,
containing very elaborate and beautiful tracery, and over it is a
pointed gable. On each side of the west window are buttresses covered
with panelling and niches. The noble towers, rising on each side of
the west front, have buttresses similarly adorned, and each three
windows, and over the second an open battlement forms a walk along the
whole front. The towers have battlements and pinnacles. The south-west
tower (1433-1457) was injured by fire in 1840; and the north tower
(1470-1474) has the largest bell in the kingdom.
[Illustration Chapter House Herbert Railton]
The _Nave_ is divided into seven bays by high buttresses, on the south
side crowned with pinnacles. It was evidently originally intended to
connect them with the clerestory wall by flying buttresses to support
a stone vaulted roof. But the builders were alarmed by the great span
of the roof and substituted a wooden vault. Hence the flying
buttresses were not needed. There are some curious gargoyles. The
north side is plainer, as formerly the Palace would conceal any
elaborate carving. The style is Decorated.
The _South Transept_ (1216-1241) is of Early English design. The
central porch is not remarkable, though the clustered shafts are very
fine, ornamented with dog-tooth ornament. On each side are lancet
windows, and above similar windows; higher still a large rose window,
and in the gable a cusped triangular light. Arcaded buttresses with
octagonal turrets rise on each side. Extensive restoration took place
in 1871, when the old clock was removed.
The _Choir_ and _Lady Chapel_ are Perpendicular work. The four eastern
bays, constituting the Lady Chapel, are earlier than the later ones of
the choir, and vary in detail. The triforium passage in the former is
outside the building, and the windows are recessed. Strange gargoyles,
with figures of apes and demons, adorn the buttresses. The east end is
mainly filled with the huge window, the largest in England, which does
not leave much space for architectural detail. Above it is the figure
of Archbishop Thoresby, the builder of this part of the Cathedral.
Panelling covers the surface of the stone, and below the window is a
row of seventeen busts, representing our Lord and His Apostles, Edward
III. and Archbishop Thoresby. There are two aisle windows; buttresses
adorned with niches separate the aisles from the central portion, and
others, capped with spires, stand on the north and south of this
front.
The _Chapter-House_ (Early Decorated) is octagonal, and connected with
the north transept by a vestibule, which shows by its architectural
details that it was built after the completion of the chapter-house.
These constitute the finest examples of Decorated Gothic in England.
Buttresses project at each angle, crowned with pinnacles. Curious
grotesque gargoyles are seen, and amongst them some strange-looking
bears. The roof is in the form of a pyramid, and there is a battlement
surrounding it.
The _North Transept_ (1241-1260) is a beautiful specimen of Early
English work. The five long lancet windows, called the "Five Sisters,"
surmounted by the seven lancets in the gable, are most effective.
The _Central Tower_ is the largest in England, and is in the
Perpendicular style (1410-1433). It is 200 feet high. It has windows
ornamented with ogee gables, and its surface is covered with niches
and panelling. A pair of narrow buttresses support each angle of the
tower, decorated with panelling. This tower is one of the greatest
achievements of the fifteenth-century builders, and is one of the
finest in the world.
THE INTERIOR
_The Nave._--The first impression on viewing this nave is a sense of
its magnitude. Archbishop Romeyn and his builders determined to build
a vast church which would eclipse all other rivals. They would have
large windows, high, towering piers, a huge, vaulted roof, and
everything that was grand and impressive. Edward I. was then fighting
with the Scots, and made York his chief city. It was immensely
prosperous, and the ecclesiastical treasury was replete with the
offerings of knights and nobles, kings and pilgrims. Nowhere should
there be so mighty a church as York Minster. In order to have space
for large windows they made the triforium unusually small, which is
formed only by a continuation of the arches of the clerestory windows.
The design for the stone vaulted roof was never carried out. The
builders feared that the great weight of a roof with so large a span
would be too much for the walls, so a wooden vault was substituted.
The piers have octagonal bases, and consist of various sized shafts
closely connected. The capitals are beautifully enriched with foliage
of oak and thorn, and sometimes a figure is seen amidst the foliage.
We notice thirty-two sculptured busts at the intersection of the hood
moulding with the vaulting shafts. Coats of arms of the benefactors of
York appear on each side of the main arches. The clerestory windows
have each five lights. The old roof was destroyed by fire in 1840. The
present one has a vast number of bosses representing the Annunciation,
Nativity, Magi, Resurrection, besides a quantity of smaller ones. The
whole scheme of decoration is most elaborate.
[Illustration North Aisle of Choir Herbert Railton]
The west window is a noble specimen of Decorated work, with its
curvilinear tracery, one of the finest in the kingdom. It has been
entirely restored. There are eight lights. It was glazed by
Archbishop Melton (1317-1340). Niches and arcading cover the west
wall. The pinnacles are carved with figures of men and animals, and
also the brackets of the niches. The aisles have stone vaulting,
windows Decorated like the west window, carved panels and arcading
work. Over the north doorway are some sculptured figures of doubtful
signification. The walled-up door which led to the Chapel of the Holy
Sepulchre has a headless figure of the Virgin. Here is a tomb of an
archbishop of Late Perpendicular work, with Tudor flower cornice. All
the other monuments have been destroyed. Over the south aisle door are
three sculptured representations of David killing the lion, Samson and
the lion with Delilah cutting his hair, and a man and woman fighting.
The glass of the windows should be especially noticed. Most of it is
either Decorated or Early English.
The _South Transept_ is the earliest part of the present Cathedral
(1230-1241). The finest view is obtained on entering by the south
door. The extraordinary magnitude of the transepts, the five lancets
with their old glass, and the beauty of the Early English
architecture, are most striking. The triforium is not dwarfed as in
the nave, but assumes large proportions, whereas the clerestory is
small. The former consists of semi-circular moulded arches, with
dog-tooth ornament, each enclosing two pointed arches, and sub-divided
into two similar arches. Five pointed arches in each bay constitute
the clerestory, with sculptured heads. Clustered shafts of stone and
Purbeck marble form the piers. The vaulting is of wood of the
fifteenth century, and the bosses are curious. A mermaid and merman, a
monk and a nun, look down upon us; an arcade of pointed arches lines
the walls. Chantry chapels were formerly in the east aisle. On the
south was Ludham's Chantry, archbishop (1258-1265). It contains the
large modern monument of Dean Duncombe. Next we see the Chapel of St.
Michael with the tomb of its founder, Archbishop Grey (1216-1255), the
builder of this transept, and near it the monument of Archbishop Sewal
de Bovill (1256-1258).
The _North Transept_ resembles the south, but differs in details.
Especially noticeable is the profusion of dog-tooth ornament, the
magnificent lancet windows, called the "Five Sisters," with the five
smaller ones over it. These are the largest ancient lancets in
England.[16] Curious grotesques are seen in the triforium moulding.
The monuments here are:--(1) a brass to the memory of soldiers slain
in India; (2) Archbishop Harcourt's tomb (1808-1843); (3) a skeleton
memorial of Thomas Huxby, treasurer (1418-1424); (4) Archbishop
Greenfield's tomb (d. 1315), which lies before the place where the
altar of St. Nicholas stood; (5) effigy of Dr. Beckwith (d. 1847).
In 1829 a disastrous fire occurred in the Cathedral, caused by a
lunatic incendiary named Martin. He hid himself on the night of the
fire behind the tomb of Archbishop Greenfield. There is a curious
doorway leading to the vestibule of the chapter-house of Decorated
style.
Entering the _Vestibule_ we notice the exact place where the Early
English builders finished their work, and the Decorated style begins.
The difference between the styles in the chapter-house and vestibule
shows that the former was erected first. It has a wall arcade, and
above are windows of curious tracery, filled with beautiful old glass.
The shafts of the arcade support trefoiled arches, with a cinquefoil
ornamented with a sculptured boss. Each boss and capital is
beautifully carved with foliage, amidst which the heads of men and
dragons appear. The glass is Early Decorated, and contains
representations of Royal personages.
The _Chapter-House_ is one of the most beautiful in England. The
entrance is an arch, divided into two arches by a canopied pier, which
bears a mutilated statue of the Virgin and Child. Clustered shafts,
with capitals, are on each side of the doors, which have remarkably
good scrolled iron-work. The chamber itself is very magnificent. It is
octagonal, and in each bay there are six canopied stalls under a
five-light window. The window tracery is superb. Clustered shafts
support the vaulted roof. Everywhere we see richly-carved stone-work,
the finest in any cathedral, the foliage of maple, oak, vine, and
other trees. Here are pigs and squirrels feeding on acorns, men
gathering grapes, birds, and coiled dragons and reptiles. The
grotesques are most curious and interesting. In 1845, unfortunately,
the building was restored, and the painted figures of kings and
bishops were destroyed, a poor tiled floor laid down; but, in spite of
all, it can still maintain its proud boast:--
"_Ut Rosa flos florum,
Sic est Domus ista Domorum._"
["As the Rose is the flower of flowers, so is this House the chief of
Houses."]
[Illustration The Ladye Chapel Herbert Railton 1899]
The _Choir-Screen_, erected in 1500, is good Perpendicular work,
and has figures of kings from William I. to Henry VI. The rebus of
the master-mason, Hyndeley (a hind lying) occurs in the capitals. The
canopies are richly carved. There is an ogee pediment, and a niche
with angels on each side, with censers. The Tudor flower is used as an
ornament, and plaster angels by Bernasconi were added in 1810. The
organ was erected in 1632.
[Illustration THE CRYPT]
_The Choir and Lady Chapel._--The Lady Chapel, occupying the four east
bays, was built in 1361-1405, the choir in 1407-1420. The style is
Perpendicular, though it follows the design of the nave; yet the
builders endeavoured to improve upon the earlier work and remedy its
defects. They were eminently successful, and produced one of the most
stately and magnificent choirs in England. The roof is made of wood,
like the nave, and has a large number of foliated bosses. A disastrous
fire in 1829 destroyed all the old carved stalls and _misereres_, and
the modern substitutes are fairly successful. The altar-screen is a
good reproduction of the ancient one, and the reredos was designed by
Street, with reliefs by Tinworth. The lectern was given by T. Cracroft
in 1686. The differences in the style of the clerestory windows in
the east and west portions will be readily noticed. Only in the
western part is the Perpendicular style fully developed. The east
window is the largest window in England, retaining its original
glazing, but in actual size it is surpassed by that at Gloucester. Its
height is 75 feet, and breadth 32 feet, and each compartment is a yard
square. The artist of the glass was one Thornton, of Coventry.
The Altar of the Virgin stood under this window, and here was a
chantry, founded by the Percys. There is a curious ancient carving,
much mutilated, of the Virgin and Child. Archbishop Bowet's Chantry
(1407-1423) was at the east of the south aisle, and his tomb is here,
the finest in the Cathedral, though much mutilated. There are many
monuments in the choir, which are too numerous to mention--the second
son of Edward III. (d. 1344), Archbishop Savage (d. 1507), Archbishop
Sterne (1689), Archbishop Scrope, beheaded by Henry IV., to whose tomb
there was great resort by pilgrims.
The _Crypt_ was mainly discovered after the fire of 1829. It has fine
Norman piers, part of Roger's Cathedral (d. 1181), and contains some
"herring-bone" work of Saxon architecture, the remains of Edwin's
church. The vestry has some very interesting antiquities: an old
Installation Chair, used at the consecration and enthronement of the
archbishops; an old treasury-chest; Prayer-Book and Bible, presented
by Charles I.; an old chained Bible; two _misereres_, left after the
fire; a pastoral staff of 1686; the famous Horn of Alphus, presented
before the Conquest, the title-deed to several acres of land held by
horn tenure; chalices and patens of the fourteenth and fifteenth
centuries; episcopal rings, and the bowl of the Cordwainers' Company,
formerly belonging to Archbishop Scrope.
The vastness of York Minster, with its forest of clustered pillars,
its unrivalled ancient stained glass, its importance as the
metropolitan church of Northern England, combine to make this splendid
Cathedral one of the most interesting in the kingdom.
OTHER OBJECTS OF INTEREST IN THE CITY
_St. Mary's Abbey_, in the Museum Gardens, founded by Earl Sward in
1050. The present buildings were erected, after a fire in 1137, in
1270, and the Abbey grew to become one of great wealth and
importance. The style is Decorated. On the site of the abbot's house
is the _King's Manor_, or _Royal Palace_, now used as a Blind School.
Near at hand is the _Multangular Tower_, which formed part of the old
Roman wall, and _St. Leonard's Hospital_, founded by King Athelstan in
936 A.D., and rebuilt by Stephen. The Museum is worthy of a visit, and
the _Hospitium_ of the old Abbey, which now contains a good collection
of Roman antiquities and carved stones from the Abbey.
_St. William's College_ (College Street), the famous abode of the
chantry priests of the Cathedral, founded in 1460, is now a series of
cottages.
The city walls should be visited, and the old gates--Mickelgate,
Walmgate, Monkgate, and Bootham Bar. The hall of the Merchant
Adventurers' Company is interesting, and Clifford's Tower, the keep of
the Conqueror's castle, celebrated for the Massacre of the Jews in
1190. Many of the churches are ancient, and have beautifully-carved
doors and interesting old glass. The Church of St. Mary the Younger
has a Saxon tower.
DIMENSIONS
Total length 486 ft.
Length of nave 262 ft.
Breadth of nave and aisles 104 ft.
Height of nave 99 ft.
Length of choir 224 ft.
Length of transept 223 ft.
Height of central tower 198 ft.
Height of western towers 196 ft.
Area 63,800 sq. ft.
For Building Dates _see_ page 312.
[Illustration PLAN OF YORK CATHEDRAL]
FOOTNOTE:
[16] We must except Lord Grimthorpe's modern innovations at St.
Albans.
BEVERLEY MINSTER
[Illustration Beverley Minster, the West Front]
Although Beverley is not a cathedral, its Minster is certainly worthy
of being ranked as such, and perhaps some day, when our dioceses are
again divided, it may have a bishop of its own. Of John of Beverley's
foundation want of space forbids us to write, or of the great
Æthelstan, who conferred great privileges on the place. Ælfric and
Archbishop Aldred were great builders, and did much for the Minster;
but in 1188 a great part of the church was destroyed by fire. The nave
seems to have escaped without much serious injury, and the monks set
about repairing the east end and building a central tower; but, after
the manner of towers, this one fell, and reduced the eastern arm of
the church to ruins. Then came the era of the great Gothic builders,
and early in the thirteenth century the monks began to rebuild the
east end of the church, the tower, and one bay of the nave, and nobly
did they accomplish their undertaking. They accomplished a work which
caused their Minster to rank with the best achievements of Early
English Gothic art, and we must look to Salisbury or the choir of
Lincoln to find anything equal to it. For many years the old Norman
nave remained. Nearly 100 years passed away, and then a new era of
building dawned. At the end of the first quarter of the fourteenth
century the monks set to work to rebuild the nave. Quickly the work
progressed, until the Black Death, which seems to have been especially
virulent in monasteries, laid low many of the builders. The noise of
the chisel ceased, until at length the monks resumed their work, and
built that crowning glory of their Minster, the noble west front. Such
was the history of the building of Beverley Minster. Since that time
little has been done, except to preserve the exquisite workmanship of
these early builders. The church suffered from neglect, and from the
evil genius and vile taste of the Georgian architects; but happily all
their monstrosities have been removed by Sir Gilbert Scott, who
restored the Minster to its ancient beauty.
[Illustration BEVERLEY MINSTER]