There are few cathedrals in the world which, as one approaches, reveal
themselves more charmingly than does Lichfield; here one feels an almost
studied coquetry, disclosing new beauties at each stage of our advance.
When viewed from a distance the three graceful spires, "The Ladies of
the Vale," seem to beckon one on to a nearer view of the sanctuary over
which they preside. On entering the town it is temporarily lost from
view, only promptly to appear again, this time across the little pools
which lie along the south side of the Close and which, aided by the
green of the trees, provide so lovely a foreground and setting for the
full-length picture of the great edifice. Again we lose it, and then the
last revelation of all comes when one rounds the corner into the green
Close and there bursts upon you the final and complete aspect of the
glorious west front, brilliant in its red sandstone, adorned by its army
of over 150 stone figures of prophets, saints, and English kings, a
splendid facade, impressively culminated by the towering spires that
first signalled to us where we should find this lovely picture.
Unfortunately for the cathedral, Bishop de Langdon, Treasurer of England
under Edward I., by surrounding the Close with a wall and a fosse, made
of it a stout fortress. Centuries after this very feature resulted most
disastrously, for, during the Civil Wars, the military strength of its
position caused it to sustain three successive sieges. Of these the
first was the most disastrous, for, when the Roundheads broke in after a
three days' assault, they revenged the death of their leader, Lord
Brooke, first upon the Royalist defenders, and next upon the cathedral
itself, wrecking and destroying ancient tombs, stalls, &c., and, of
course, the old glass. In addition to their work of destruction they
carried off all that had been left by Henry VIII.'s Commissioners of the
rich offerings brought by devout pilgrims to the shrine of St. Chad. To
this same Lord Brooke Sir Walter Scott pays his respects in the lines
telling how Lord Marmion's body was brought
"To moated Lichfield's lofty pile;
And there, beneath the southern aisle,
A tomb, with Gothic sculpture fair,
Did long Lord Marmion's image bear,
(Now vainly for its sight you look;
'Twas levelled when fanatic Brook
The fair cathedral stormed and took;
But thanks to Heaven and good St. Chad,
A guerdon meet the spoilers had!)"
The interior is of modest dimensions, and is elaborately decorated, the
richly carved capitals, &c., giving us indications of how gorgeous it
must all have been before it was looted. An interesting feature is the
slight inclination of the choir northward from the axis of the nave,
which is said to be symbolic of the inclination of Christ's head on the
cross after death. At Troyes and at Quimper in France there is the same
deviation in orientation and the same poetic explanation, but
investigation reveals that it was caused by a change in the street line
in the first instance, and in the other by the annexation of an existing
chapel standing slightly north of the true axis.
[Illustration: LADY CHAPEL, LICHFIELD CATHEDRAL
Excellent example of Renaissance colouring, freer from applied
paint than then customary. This glass was brought from Belgium]
Practically all of the ancient glass which originally adorned the
embrasures has been destroyed; the north window of the north transept
has some Early English work much restored, and on the east of the south
portal of the south transept is a short lower window, in the central
lancet of which is a richly dressed female figure with arms thrown about
a cross. Just before entering the Lady chapel we remark two small
three-lanceted windows, one on each hand, the one to the left having
donors on each side, and in the middle St. Christopher carrying the
infant Jesus. But it is to the seven most easterly windows of the Lady
chapel that we must repair to see the famous Flemish glass, brought
here in 1803, which is the cause of our visit. The dates which appear
upon them run from 1534 to 1539, and they were originally made for the
Abbey of Herckenrode, near Liege, Belgium, by Lambert Lombard--the
earliest and best of those glaziers of the Low Countries who show the
Italian influence. All are of three lancets, except the most westerly
pair, which have six. The traceries above them are grouped in pyramids
of trefoil openings, similar to some in the Lady chapel at Wells.
The scenes are taken from the life of Christ, and there are as well
portraits of certain benefactors of the Abbey. The composition as well
as the grouping of the figures is not so crowded as in the slightly
earlier (1527) glazing of King's College Chapel, Cambridge, or St.
Margaret's, Westminster. The artist drew his personages on such a large
scale that it is evident his work was planned for a more spacious
interior--this chapel is so narrow that one cannot stand far enough
away to get the full effect of the pictures. Although now in the fully
developed picture epoch and passed beyond the conventional trammels of
the canopy with its imitation stonework, the glazier is not forgetful of
what his craft had learned during that period, for he has made agreeable
use of architecture, notably as the background for the Last Supper in
the east window. Even if the dates were not displayed in the usual
sixteenth century continental fashion, we would have no difficulty in
fixing them, not only because of the obviously Renaissance style of the
architecture depicted, but also by reason of the general breadth and
style of the treatment. Nor is it difficult to note the effect upon the
artist of the Italian influence, coming as it did from a land where
abundant sunshine makes it desirable that the illumination of the
windows be somewhat reduced by the use of paint. Still, it is only
fair to say that these particular windows contain much more than was
then customary of glass coloured during the making and not painted
afterwards. An excellent impression of the colour effect as a whole can
be got if we retire to the central aisle of the nave and look east. Now
the sides of the choir become a graceful frame for the three easterly
windows. The upper part and the centre show an almost solid expanse of
blue, while all the rest of the glass yields a golden grey, forming an
excellent _ensemble_.
Before leaving the town, admirers of English literature will do well
to visit the house in which Dr. Samuel Johnson was born. It now
appropriately serves as a museum wherein are exposed a number of
manuscripts, pictures, and familiar objects in some way related to that
great scholar. Although the worthy Doctor said that his fellow townsmen
were "more orthodox in their religion, purer in their language, and
politer in their manners than any other town in the Kingdom," one must
be pardoned for taking _his_ opinion upon manners with a pinch of salt!