HOW CHARLES WAS LODGED IN THE EPISCOPAL PALACE; AND HOW DOCTOR CROSBY
PREACHED BEFORE HIS MAJESTY IN THE CATHEDRAL.
The ancient episcopal palace--which had been prepared, as well as
circumstances would permit, for the reception of the king and his
suite--was a large and stately pile, and, from its size, grandeur,
and the number of apartments it contained, was well fitted to be the
temporary residence of a monarch--even had that monarch been firmly
settled on the throne--and, indeed, it was again occupied by royalty at
a later date, when George III. and his queen visited Worcester in 1788.
By far the most important mansion in the city, it occupied a commanding
position on the left bank of the river, and from its fine bay windows
presented a very imposing façade. The roof was lined with battlements,
towers, and belfries, and on the highest of these towers the royal
standard now floated, while sentries were stationed at the river gate,
and at the upper gateway. The palace was surrounded by high embattled
walls, within which was a garden laid out in the old formal style, and
boasting a broad terrace. The garden had been utterly neglected by
the Roundheads, and the terrace was covered with grass. Internally,
the mansion, which was erected probably about the beginning of the
sixteenth century, contained a noble hall, with a richly carved screen,
an exquisite chapel, a carved oak staircase of great beauty, conducting
to a long gallery, the deeply embayed windows of which, while they
embellished the exterior, commanded fine views of the country, and the
broad intermediate tract once known as Malvern Chase, but now a most
fertile district, through which, as Dyer sings,
----the wide
Majestic wave of Severn slowly rolls.
Considerable damage had been done to the gallery and the rooms opening
from it by the Roundheads, who had torn down the fine old tapestry once
adorning the oak panels, and injured the carvings. Most of the old
furniture, being of oak, had withstood a great deal of barbarous usage,
and an immense ponderous bedstead, in which many a bishop had reposed,
was prepared for his majesty. A good many other beds had to be provided
for the king's suite, and for his large retinue of servants, but this
was satisfactorily accomplished, and luckily there were rooms enough
to accommodate all. Fortunately, also, the mansion possessed a vast
kitchen, having no fewer than three large grates, whence hospitality
had been dispensed by the worthy prelates in the olden time. At these
three grates cooks had been at work, roasting and boiling, throughout
the day.
The first persons presented to the king on his arrival at the palace
were Lord Talbot, Sir John Pakington, and Colonel Mervin Touchet,
who had been kept prisoners by the commandant of the garrison. Lord
Talbot and Sir John said they had only waited to see his majesty, and
were about to depart instantly to raise recruits for his service, but
Charles would have them stay and dine with him. Another person whom the
king was delighted to see was Doctor Crosby, the loyal divine, who had
suffered imprisonment for his zeal in his majesty's behalf.
Dinner was served in the great hall, and what it wanted in
ceremoniousness was more than compensated for by abundance of viands
and excellence of wine. Not much form was observed. The mayor occupied
a seat on his majesty's right, and the sheriff on the left. Grace was
said by Doctor Crosby. We shall not particularise the dishes, but
we must mention that a Severn salmon of prodigious weight--quite a
regal fish, that had allowed itself obligingly to be captured for the
occasion--was set before the king. Moreover, the stewed lampreys were
an entirely new delicacy to his majesty, and pleased him greatly.
Charles was in high spirits, and laughed and jested in the most
good-humoured manner with those near him. Of a very sanguine
temperament, he had never doubted the success of his expedition, and
the events--unimportant as they were--that had occurred since his
arrival before Worcester heightened his confidence. For the first time
he had been victorious, and had been warmly welcomed by his subjects.
He had been assured that a great number of recruits could be raised in
the county before the general Muster took place at Pitchcroft, and he
felt certain Lord Derby would bring him large levies from Lancashire
and Cheshire. He would then give battle to Cromwell, defeat him, and
march on triumphantly to London. His confidence seemed to be shared
by all the nobles and general officers present--even by the cold
and cautious Lesley. While quaffing their claret and burgundy, they
predicted the utter defeat of old Noll and the destruction of all
rebels.
Next day, being Sunday, was comparatively calm after the great previous
excitement. Not that the city had by any means resumed its ordinary
aspect--that was clearly impossible with a large army encamped outside
the walls, and many regiments quartered within them--but the Scottish
soldiers, being strict observers of the Sabbath, conducted themselves
in a very orderly and decorous manner. Much preaching was there in
the camps at Red Hill and Pitchcroft, and officers might be heard
reading the Bible and holding forth upon sacred texts to their men, who
listened with the profoundest attention.
All the churches--and Worcester, as we know, abounded in churches--were
filled with congregations in which the military element predominated;
but the cathedral--as might be expected, since it was known that
the king would attend divine service there--collected within it all
the principal personages of the city, all the chief officers of the
army, and as many regiments as the vast pile could contain. Never,
perhaps, before or since, has the interior of this grand old edifice
presented such a striking sight as it did on this memorable occasion.
Its marble monuments and effigies, its chantry and lady-chapel, had
been mutilated, as we have already told, by the Roundheads, but these
injuries were now concealed from view by the throng collected within
the aisles of the choir and the retro-choir. Owing likewise to the
attention being directed to other objects, the loss of the splendid
painted glass in the windows was scarcely noticed. The majestic pillars
lining the broad nave rose up amid a mass of troops that not only
occupied the body of the fane, but the aisles. Seen from the entrance
of the choir, paved with steel caps, and bristling with pikes, muskets,
and carabines--for the men all carried their arms--the nave presented
an extraordinary coup-d'oeil. Stationed within the south transept,
Pitscottie's Highlanders contributed materially to the effect of the
picture. All the nobles in attendance upon the king, with the general
officers, occupied the stalls in the choir--Charles being seated in the
bishop's throne.
As this was the first time on which the service of the Church of
England had been performed within the cathedral since its desecration
by the Parliamentarians, it may be conceived with what satisfaction
the members of that religion were enabled to resume their own form
of worship within it--and this satisfaction was heightened by the
circumstances under which they came back. The organ was gone, but the
military music substituted seemed not inappropriate to an occasion
when hymns of triumph were sung. Certes, the drums, trumpets, and
other martial instruments, resounding from the roof, produced an
extraordinary effect.
The sermon was preached by Doctor Crosby, and was a most eloquent and
fervid discourse. The pale countenance of the venerable dean flushed,
and his eyes blazed as with fire, while he denounced the murderers of
the martyr king, and declared that the vengeance so long delayed would
speedily fall upon them. Rebellion, which had stalked unchecked through
the land, would be crushed, and the monarchy restored. To Charles he
attributed the highest spiritual authority, and spoke of him as "in
all causes, and over all persons, next under God, supreme head and
governor"--expressions at which his Presbyterian hearers took great
offence. The earnestness, however, of his manner could not fail to
impress them with a conviction of his sincerity.
A council of war was subsequently held within the palace, and it was
decided that the fortifications should at once be thoroughly repaired,
so as to enable the city to stand a siege, if necessary, though no
tidings had yet been heard of Cromwell. After an early repast, Charles
rode forth with his retinue into the city, and was surprised to find
the High-street so empty, and almost all the houses shut up; but his
surprise ceased when he reached the camp at Pitchcroft, and found
that the vast plain was covered with people, and resembled a fair.
The Scottish soldiers were quiet, and took no part in the profane
recreations of the dissolute Cavaliers, who were everywhere swaggering
about, and making love to all the pretty damsels.
Charles was enthusiastically received, but he did not stay long on
Pitchcroft. After riding through the principal line of tents, he
returned and crossed the river to St. John's, where Dalyell's brigade
was placed to protect the approach to the bridge. Lower down, on the
meadows on this side of the river, Pitscottie's Highlanders were
encamped, and the king passed them on his way to Powick, which he
desired to see. From the Highlanders' camp, which was almost opposite
the episcopal palace and the cathedral, the finest view of old
Worcester could be obtained, and he paused for some minutes, enraptured
by the charming picture.
A delightful ride of a mile, or somewhat more, along this bank of the
Severn brought the king and his attendants to the Teme at its point of
junction with the larger river, and then following its deeply-ploughed
channel, and watching its swift-flowing current through the fringing
trees, they rode on to Powick.
Near Powick there was a woody island of some little extent, round which
rushed the river--here, as elsewhere, too deep to be forded. The island
was gained by a bridge from either bank, and the importance of the
point was so obvious, that the king determined to place a battery upon
it.