Christianity was first preached in Britain while the Romans were
there. It was carried by missionaries even beyond the Roman frontiers
into Ireland, and afterwards into Scotland. When the Romans left the
country, after ruling there for 400 years, there came over the seas
the forefathers of the English--a race of wild, bold seamen. They
were not Christians; but at first they did not conquer either Ireland
or Scotland, and the Christian religion continued among the ancient
peoples of those countries. Some of the most ancient of the Irish and
Scottish monuments relate to the time when the English were newly
come into England. This round tower, for instance, is probably a
monument of that time. It is in a very beautiful mountainous portion
of Ireland, and is known as the Round Tower of Glendalough.
[Sidenote: 5. Iona Cathedral.]
Crossing the sea to Scotland, we come to the islet of Iona, placed
out in the Western ocean beyond the coast of the mainland of
Scotland. Here are the ruins of a Cathedral of great antiquity. At
Iona there ruled the Lord of the Isles, who was King over the pirates
from the North. They seized all the Western isles of Scotland and
held them until about six hundred years ago, when they were defeated
at sea, and there was peace on the ocean off Britain.
[Sidenote: 6. King Alfred’s Statue at Winchester.]
Let us now return to England--to the England which had been conquered
by the Romans and abandoned by them, and had been conquered afresh
by the tribes of the English from over the water. Let us pass on
through some dark centuries, as they are called, because history has
little to tell of them, until we come to the first great Englishman,
King Alfred the Great, from whom our present King-Emperor, Edward the
Seventh, is descended. King Alfred lived a thousand years ago, and is
called Great because he united the tribes of the English, and made
the Kingdom of England. Here is the monument erected in his city of
Winchester on the thousandth anniversary of his death.
[Sidenote: 7. Bradford-on-Avon Church.]
Some generations before King Alfred, Christian missionaries came
again to the land of England and slowly converted the English to
Christianity--first one tribe and then another. Here is, perhaps,
the most ancient of the Christian churches of England--it is at
Bradford-on-Avon. The missionaries came from Rome, and taught the
English to build in stone, with round tops to the windows, as the
Romans built.
We have now mentioned five ages of English history. First, were the
Ancient Britons; second, the Roman conquerors; third, the English
conquerors; fourth, the Christian Missionaries; and fifth, was King
Alfred. A sixth age had to elapse before the England which we know
was made. In this a new race of fierce seamen came over the water,
who were called Normans, or North men. One branch of them were the
Pirates just now mentioned at Iona. Another branch conquered the
southern part of Britain, the part now called England, and added
one more strain of blood to the people who have ever since lived
in Britain and sailed the ocean. The Normans completed the work of
King Alfred, and the English, being now united, have not since been
conquered from across the water. You see that it was by no chance
that the people of Britain became the race of sea-fighters and of
rulers beyond the sea such as they are now known in all parts of the
world.
[Sidenote: 8. Iffley.]
[Sidenote: 9. Durham Cathedral.]
All this time the English were advancing in civilisation. Though
they fought among themselves, though they obeyed their rulers with
difficulty, already they venerated the churches of their Christian
religion. While they could not put their wealth into beautiful
houses, which might be pillaged, yet they were able to build
magnificent churches, which all men respected, and these churches
are the most splendid monuments they have left to us. Before they
crossed to Britain the Normans stayed for a time on the mainland of
Europe and learned there a new style of building. Here is the Norman
church of Iffley. You still notice the rounded Roman arches, but
the building is clearly of a more finished type than the church of
Bradford-on-Avon, which we saw just now. Next is the great cathedral
at Durham, also Norman work, but with some later building added, for
in each generation men loved to enlarge and enrich the chief temple
of their town or district.
[Sidenote: 10. Canterbury Cathedral.]
We now come to a Cathedral of later date. It is that of Canterbury.
Here, as you see, the windows have pointed tops to them, for they
are built in the Gothic style, which succeeded the Roman style of
the Normans. Canterbury Cathedral is a very large church. Its three
great towers contain bells which call the people to worship. This is
the cathedral of the Archbishop of Canterbury, and is placed where
the missionary Augustine first taught the Christian religion to the
English, who had lately crossed the seas into Britain.
[Sidenote: 11. Salisbury--West Front.]
Here is the west front of Salisbury Cathedral. You see clearly that
we are coming into civilized times, for the men who built this
cathedral could work in stone with delicate skill. They no longer
employed great massive columns and rows of narrow, round headed
windows. All this front has pointed arches, and in many of them you
have sculptured images of the good men of past times.
[Sidenote: 12. Wells Cathedral.]
[Sidenote: 13. Wells--West Front.]
This is Wells Cathedral, surrounded by beautiful trees and gardens.
And here is the front of the same cathedral, with still more delicate
and elaborate work. Do you realise the love which the builders put
into each little piece of what they did?
[Sidenote: 14. Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford--Interior.]
And here lastly is the interior of Oxford Cathedral. It is very
interesting, because upon arches of Norman date, roughly and
massively hewn, you have a vaulted roof of the latest and most
delicate Gothic or pointed style. In this respect the cathedrals
of England are like everything else that is English. In each age
Englishmen accept with veneration what their forefathers hand down to
them, and adapt it with as little change as possible to the needs of
their own time. It is only so that a mighty and lasting Empire can be
founded.
In the country parts of England, where no town requires a large
building for worship, here and there a church has fallen, in times
of past strife, into decay. But the people of the present take care
of these ruins, and regard them with veneration, for they are often
very beautiful, and preserve a record of the past most faithfully,
because there has been no need to adapt them to modern requirements.
[Sidenote: 15. Glastonbury.]
[Sidenote: 16. Netley.]
Here, for instance, is the ruin of Glastonbury Abbey, and here that
of Netley Abbey. In both, as you see, the roof has fallen in, but you
can imagine what kind of church there must have been formerly. With
these exceptions the buildings in England are maintained in perfect
order, for the cool, moist climate requires that, for comfort sake,
the weather should be kept out.
While the cathedrals were built without defence, and beautiful
churches were often set in the green country and yet were not
attacked even in wild ages, the houses of the great men of the land
were formerly small fortresses or castles. These castles still stand
in different parts of the country, having in some cases been adapted
to modern requirements; but for the most part they have become ruins,
for it was easier to build again from the foundations. Moreover, many
of them were broken in warfare.
[Sidenote: 17. Stirling Castle.]
[Sidenote: 18. Alnwick Castle.]
Here is Stirling Castle, set high on a rock, in Scotland; and here
is Alnwick Castle, built near the frontier between England and
Scotland. For centuries there was much fighting between the English
and the Scots, though now, as you know, they have joined together in
friendship, and are subjects of one King.
[Sidenote: 19. Windsor Castle.]
Here is the greatest of all the Castles. It is Windsor Castle--the
castle of the King of England. It stands on a hill beside the River
Thames, higher up the river than London. You can see the Round Tower
in the centre of it. In all the old castles there was a strong refuge
in the centre for final defence in case a besieger should effect an
entry into the outworks, and this most important part of the castle
was called the “keep.” At Windsor the Round Tower was the keep. Here
to the right we have the church of the castle, called St. George’s
Chapel. In the old times there lived within such a castle as this of
the King of England almost a whole town of his servants. You will
remember from the second lecture that the Parliament and the Judges
used to sit in the King’s Palace at Westminster. In modern times
people think it healthier and more comfortable not to be crowded.
[Sidenote: 20. Windsor Round Tower.]
Now we go inside the castle and stand beside the Round Tower. You see
from the slightly pointed heads of the windows that the Tower belongs
to a later time than that of the Normans, who built with round-headed
windows.
[Sidenote: 21. Windsor from Home Park.]
Here is one more view of Windsor Castle. The Round Tower is in the
background to the right, for this front of the building is new, and
is in the nature of a palace rather than a castle. These wooded
slopes are the beginning of the beautiful park which lies round the
castle. Here are the rooms in which used to live Queen Victoria, our
Empress, the mother of King Edward.
Western history is divided into three periods which are generally
known as Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and the Modern Times. The last
of these periods began about four centuries ago. The Middle Ages
included about a thousand years. The Romans belonged to Antiquity,
but King Alfred is of the Middle Ages, and so are most of the castles
and cathedrals, except St. Paul’s Cathedral, which was built about
two hundred years ago, when the earlier cathedral of London had been
destroyed by fire.
[Sidenote: 22. Hatfield.]
It took the whole of the Middle Ages--a thousand years--to establish
law and justice and order in England, a fact which shows with what
care order should be treasured, once it has been attained. But at
last men began to feel that even their rulers, who in a rough age are
liable to attack, might leave their houses unfortified, and place
them in the midst of pleasant gardens. This was the beginning of
Modern Times. Here is Hatfield House, built for one of England’s
most famous statesmen, the Lord Burleigh, who three hundred years
ago, served one of her greatest monarchs, Queen Elizabeth. A few
years ago Hatfield was the home of another British statesman, Lord
Salisbury, who was a descendant of Lord Burleigh, and served a still
greater monarch--Queen Victoria. You see how different from a castle
is the appearance of this house. It has square broad windows, giving
a flood of light within, even to the ground floor; for the men who
built it had no longer to fear that they would be attacked by arrows
and by guns through their windows, and therefore they could afford
to let in the light of the sun, which is loved in this cool Northern
land.
But you must not think that all of England’s greatness has been made
by her rich and powerful men. It is the glory of England that some
of the most valuable things done for her have been done by poor men.
You remember from the second Lecture that in Westminster Abbey, not
only was our King-Emperor crowned, with the dignitaries of the empire
round him, but also that there is a space called the Poets’ Corner,
where are the tombs and monuments of some of the chief writers who
have inspired the English with ideals of order and justice and
freedom. These poets were mostly poor men--some of them very poor.
[Sidenote: 23. Stratford-on-Avon.]
Here in the town of Stratford-on-Avon, in the centre of England,
is the humble cottage, still preserved with care, in which at
the time when the splendid house of Hatfield was built for Lord
Burleigh, there was born and lived the greatest of all English
writers, Shakespeare. To-day, in every town in which the English live
throughout the world there are copies of at least two books, the holy
book of the English--the Christian Bible--and the book full of human
wisdom, which was written by Shakespeare.
[Sidenote: 24. Blenheim.]
In London, in the Cathedral of St. Paul, we saw the monuments over
the tombs of Nelson and Wellington, the sailor and the soldier who
won the victories of Trafalgar and Waterloo. Two hundred years ago,
that is to say a hundred years before Nelson and Wellington, there
lived another great general, who commanded the armies of England
and won victories in the days of Queen Anne. He was the Duke of
Marlborough, and this is the house, Blenheim Palace, which England
built for him in gratitude for the victories he had won. In our own
times, Queen Victoria and King Edward have given rewards to Lord
Roberts and Lord Kitchener, whose names and deeds you know. Blenheim,
as you see, is a modern palace, not a fortified castle of the Middle
Ages. But it is built in the ancient style, for there was law and
order in the Empire of the Romans, and they also could therefore
build spaciously and openly.
[Sidenote: 25. Eton--from Playing Fields.]
[Sidenote: 26. Eton--from the River.]
[Sidenote: 27. Eton--4th June.]
Now there is one kind of old building in the land of England which
we have not yet mentioned, though it is very interesting and very
important. The youth of the English race, and especially that part
of it which in after years is to work for Government at Home, in
India, and in the Colonies, is carefully brought up in the midst
of monuments of the past. For Englishmen wish that the citizens of
the British Empire should not think too greatly each of himself,
but should think greatly of the State which they serve. Therefore
they bring up their youths to know that among their ancestors there
were also men who did good work for the Nation. The highest thing
an Englishman can do is to play his part well in his generation by
adding a little to the great scheme of order and freedom which we
call the British Empire. This is the ancient building of Eton, the
chief of the public schools of Britain. It was founded by one of the
Kings of England under the shadow of Windsor Castle. Here is another
view of it, taken from the Thames, which flows between Windsor and
Eton. And here are the boys amusing themselves in boats on their
annual festival-day. The view, as you see, contains the Round Tower
of Windsor Castle.
[Sidenote: 28. Oxford--from Magdalen Tower.]
[Sidenote: 29. Oxford--High Street.]
[Sidenote: 30. Oxford--Wadham Garden.]
When the boys have grown to be young men, they go from school
to the Universities. There are two ancient Universities in
England, well-known to not a few students from India, Oxford and
Cambridge, each adorned with beautiful buildings and gardens, and
full of memories of the great men of the past. There are also
ancient Universities in Scotland and Ireland, and there are new
Universities in England such as the London University. But the
historic Universities of Britain are Oxford and Cambridge. Here is
the University of Oxford as viewed from the tower of one of its
colleges. We see that it is a city filled with monuments and splendid
buildings. This is the High Street in Oxford, with the Church of the
University and some of the Palaces called Colleges, within which
the young men live, together with some of the Professors who teach
them. There are twenty-one of these colleges in Oxford, each with
200 or 300 students living within. Here is the garden of one of the
colleges, where men may walk and think.
[Sidenote: 31. Cambridge--King’s.]
[Sidenote: 32. Cambridge--King’s Chapel--Interior.]
[Sidenote: 33. Cambridge--Clare Bridge.]
Let us visit for a moment the sister University of Cambridge. This is
the Church in the college that is called King’s College, for it was
founded by one of the ancestors of King Edward. Here is the interior
of that church. You see how delicately the great span of the vault
is built. This church was erected at the close of the Middle Ages,
when men no longer put up fortresses for houses. Therefore they had
learned to build lightly, and to plan arches and windows with daring
skill. Next is a scene in the gardens of the Cambridge colleges, with
a bridge spanning the little River Cam.
[Sidenote: 34. Oxford--Commemoration Procession, with Prince of
Wales.]
[Sidenote: 35. Oxford--Merton College Library.]
We will return for a moment to Oxford and see something of the
working of the Universities. Here is a solemn procession of the
dignitaries of the University of Oxford. This is the President of the
University, called the Vice-Chancellor, and beside him, as a member
of the University, is the Prince of Wales, the son of the King. In
front of them are two Bedels carrying the maces of state. Next we
have the interior of one of the many libraries of the University. It
is the library of Merton College. The first duty of the University
is to treasure and increase knowledge. The second is to impart that
knowledge, so that it may be used for the good of mankind. But there
is also a third, which, for an imperial nation, is very important.
How comes it that young Englishmen, at home and in all lands of
the earth, have learned to work together? In part, no doubt, it is
because the schools have taught them not to think too highly each of
himself. In part, also, it is because they have learnt from books,
and are intelligent. But in part it is due to the games which they
play at school and at the University. These games not only develop
the body and give decision to the character, but they also teach
each man to sacrifice himself for the common cause. If eight men
row a boat in a race, no one can win victory for himself alone, but
submitting his will, must strive that his boat may win against the
boat which is chasing it.
[Sidenote: 36. Oxford Boats--The Start.]
[Sidenote: 37. The same--The Race.]
[Sidenote: 38. The same--A “Bump”.]
[Sidenote: 39. The same--After the Race.]
Let us look for a moment at two or three scenes in these contests at
Oxford, where men learn to work together, to keep their tempers, to
bear defeat, and to try again. The subject is one of great interest
to us here in India, for our young men now play the same games as the
English. Here is the start for the race. The boats are arranged in
procession at equal distances. All start together at the firing of a
pistol. Each tries to overtake and touch the boat in front of it. A
boat which succeeds in the effort starts the next day in the place
ahead of the boat which it has overtaken. Thus at the end of many
days a boat may work its way up to the head of the procession. But
a man who rowed in that boat would not say that he won the race--he
would only claim to have rowed along with other good men in the
victorious boat. Thus all men will know that he has not only learnt
to strive hard, but also to obey. Here is the race in progress, and
here is a “bump”; the second boat has caught the first, and the man
who steers the first boat is good-temperedly acknowledging defeat by
holding up his arm. Here lastly are the boats resting at the close of
the race.
[Sidenote: 40. A Football Match--England v. Scotland.]
You must not think, however, that these games are confined to the
Public Schools and the Universities. The millions of people who never
go to either play the same games and learn the same lessons from
them. Here you will recognize a football match. It is being played
between England and Scotland, each country having chosen the best
team available from among its countrymen. In this game you can see at
once that a man would be unpopular who played selfishly for his own
distinction and not for the victory of his team.
[Sidenote: 41. A Cricket Match--England v. Australia.]
Football is in England a winter game, for it requires considerable
activity. Cricket is more especially the national game, and it is
a game which, as you know, the English carry with them into every
corner of the globe, including the tropics. The great Colony of
Australia is not everywhere tropical, but as a whole it is much
warmer than the home country. Cricket is played there with much zest.
Now, because Australia is in the south and Britain in the north,
their seasons are reversed. Therefore, during the Australian winter
a cricket eleven is often sent to England, where it arrives during
the northern summer. This is a cricket match, played before many
spectators between England and Australia.
[Sidenote: 42. Oxford and Cambridge Athletics--The Hurdles.]
[Sidenote: 43. Finish for the Half Mile.]
There are many other athletic contests in which strength and skill
are matched. Here, for instance, is a race between representatives
of the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge. Even in this contest,
where one man only can win, the English do not say simply that he
won the race, but they say that he won it for Oxford or Cambridge,
as the case may be. Part of the glory is not his, it belongs to the
University which trained him. Here is the finish of another race.
[Sidenote: 44. Ladies Playing Hockey.]
Lastly, we must not forget that half the nation consists of women.
The English like their women to play games, and to learn lessons of
courage and self-control which shall make them brave and helpful
wives in foreign countries or on the borders of the Empire. These
ladies are playing the game of hockey. Probably, they are students
at one of the Universities, for it is felt that women require
intelligence no less than men, if they are to be the wise mothers of
a race of rulers.
LECTURE V.
COUNTRY LIFE AND THE SMALLER TOWNS.
In the last Lecture we saw how the history of England, and the
monuments which have come from it, surround the schools and the
universities, and influence the upbringing of the men whom we know
here in India as officers of the Army and of the Navy, as Civil
Servants, and as merchants. Let us now, however, describe the early
surroundings of those whom we know chiefly as the rank and file of
the Army and as the sailors of the Navy.
Let us consider the homes of the people outside the Metropolis--the
small towns scattered over the whole land, and the hundreds of little
villages, the farms, and the cottages in the green countrysides and
by the shores of the sea.
[Sidenote: 1. View of Chipping Campden.]
Here is the little town of Chipping Campden, in the West of England,
set in a valley amid low hills and shaded by green trees, with its
church tower rising in the centre. Do you see the sloping roofs of
the houses which speak of a rainy climate, and the chimneys rising
from their ridges, telling of the cold winters and of blazing fires
round which in the long evenings the families gather?
[Sidenote: 2. Street in Chipping Campden.]
This is a street in the same little town of Chipping Campden. Is
it not peaceful and silent? How different the lives of the people
brought up here from those who live in the sound of the unending
traffic of London!
[Sidenote: 3. A Business Street.]
Here is another street in a country town, with shops where food and
clothing are sold. There is an inn, too, which bears the sign of a
Cock. The use of signs instead of names to distinguish houses is
an old custom which has survived from the times when men could not
read. See the school children gathered in the street watching the
photographer who is taking the picture.
[Sidenote: 4. A Residential Street.]
Next we go into a residential street, where are the houses of the
doctors and the lawyers of the little town. Some of the shopkeepers
also dwell here, for when they can afford it they like to withdraw
in the evening from their shops. These people are known in England
as the middle classes, for they are neither very rich nor very poor.
From among their children have come many who have helped to make
England what she is.
[Sidenote: 5. Town Church and Town Hall.]