Ninth Century; and these were in turn succeeded by the regular canons,
who built their chapter-house, dormitory, refectory and cloisters. In
1158 they began the present Cathedral, which was completed in 1180,
having swept away the Saxon church rebuilt by King Ethelred in 1004,
according to some critics, while other antiquaries think that much of
the present Cathedral is St. Ethelred’s. The church was dedicated to the
Holy Trinity, St. Mary, and St. Frideswide, and was somewhat peculiar
for the Twelfth Century, in being more elegant than was usual at that
time. Cramped for room the south transept was cut off for the sake of
the cloisters; and aisles were given to the north transept. There was no
room for a Lady-Chapel at the east end; and, consequently, an additional
aisle north of the north aisle of the choir was built. The same
arrangement occurs at Ripon; the Elder Lady Chapel at Bristol holds a
similar position.
“St. Frideswide Church, now Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford, is a
fine example of late Norman and transitional work of early
character. It was consecrated in 1180, and was probably building
for about twenty years previously: the confirmation, by Pope
Hadrian IV. (Breakspeare, the only English Pope), of the charters
granting the Saxon monastery of St. Frideswide to the Norman monks
was not obtained until 1158, and it is not probable that they began
to rebuild their church until their property was secured. The Prior
at this period was Robert of Cricklade, called Canutus, a man of
considerable eminence, some of whose writings were in existence in
the time of Leland. Under his superintendence the church was
entirely rebuilt from the foundations, and without doubt on a
larger scale than before, as the Saxon church does not appear to
have been destroyed until this period.
“The design of the present structure is very remarkable; the lofty
arched recesses, which are carried up over the actual arches and
the triforium, giving the idea of a subsequent work carried over
the older work; but an examination of the construction shows that
this is not the case, that it was all built at one time, and that
none of it is earlier than about 1160. In this church the central
tower is not square, the nave and choir being wider than the
transepts, and consequently the east and west arches are
round-headed, while the north and south are pointed: this would not
in itself be any proof of transition, but the whole character of
the work is late, though very rich and good, and the clerestory
windows of the nave are pointed without any necessity for it, which
is then a mark of transition.”--(J. H. P.)
St. Frideswide (Bond of Peace), or “the Lady,” as she was called in
Oxford, lived early in the Eighth Century, when Ethelbald was king of
Mercia. Her father, Didan, was a prince who lived in the city of Oxford
about 727, where Frideswide was born. Of her early piety, her refusal of
marriage, her foundation of this nunnery at Oxford, her miracles of
healing and her “glorious death,” there are many pretty stories.
St. Frideswide’s Church was burned in 1002, when Ethelred the Unready
ordained the Massacre of the Danes.
Ethelred afterwards made a vow that he would rebuild St. Frideswide’s
Church; and in 1004 he began the splendid edifice, of unusual
magnificence for the period.
Robert of Cricklade, prior from 1141 to 1180, seems to have restored
Ethelred’s church; and in that year the relics of St. Frideswide were
translated to a more conspicuous place in the church.
Many distinguished noblemen and prelates were present:
“After they were meet, and injoyned fasting and prayers were past,
as also those ceremonies that are used at such times was with all
decency performed, then those bishops that were appointed,
accompanied with Alexio, the pope’s legat for Scotland, went to the
place where she was buried, and opening the sepulchre, took out
with great devotion the remainder of her body that was left after
it had rested there 480 yeares, and with all the sweet odours and
spices imaginable to the great rejoycing of the multitude then
present mingled them amongst her bones and laid them up in a rich
gilt coffer made and consecrated for that purpose, and placed it on
the north side of the quire, somewhat distant from the ground, and
inclosed it with a partition from the sight hereafter of the
vulgar.”--(A.-à-W.)
In 1289 these relics were again translated and placed in the position of
the old shrine, probably in the north-choir-aisle, where the marble base
recently discovered now stands (see page 385).
“In the Lancet period (1190-1245) the works went on apace. An upper
stage was added to the tower and on that the spire was built--the
first large stone spire in England. It is a Broach spire, i.e., the
cardinal sides of the spire are built right out to the eaves, so
that there is no parapet. On the other hand, instead of having
broaches at the angle it has pinnacles. Moreover, to bring down the
thrusts more vertically, heavy dormer windows are inserted at the
foot of each of the cardinal sides of the spire,--altogether a very
logical and scientific piece of engineering, much more common in
the early spires of Northern France than in England.”--(F. B.)
About the Thirteenth Century the monks built the Chapter-House now
standing; then the Lady-Chapel; altered the Norman windows to Decorated;
and in the Fifteenth Century made many changes in the new Perpendicular
style.
Wolsey destroyed half of the nave in order to build Tom Quad. His idea
was to erect a magnificent church on a large scale; but in the meantime
his fall occurred. In 1546 St. Frideswide’s was made, as already noted,
the Cathedral Church of Oxford.
In the Seventeenth Century the tracery of many windows was altered for
the sake of glass by the Dutchman Abraham Van Ling, for which old
windows depicting scenes from St. Frideswide’s life and ancient arms
were sacrificed. In later times some of Van Ling’s windows suffered the
same fate, for modern work. One of his windows, however, remains (see
page 382). Some of the windows were smashed during the Puritan wars; but
on the whole the Cathedral escaped damage.
Christ Church being a royal college, during the Civil War a University
regiment of Cavaliers was drilled in Tom Quad; and when Charles I.
occupied Oxford, after Edgehill, he held court in Christ Church.
The Cathedral went through the fate of all English cathedrals in the
Nineteenth Century; and finally, in 1870, a thorough restoration was
undertaken by Dean Liddell and Sir Gilbert Scott, whose conservative
alterations and restorations of windows, etc., have brought all the
parts of the Cathedral into harmony. The windows of Burne-Jones are a
great addition to the charm of the interior.
“The whole church is exceedingly interesting. It fills a niche in
the history of English architecture all by itself. It is not the
early and rude Traditional work of the Cistercians. On the other
hand, it has not yet the lightness and grace of Ripon; still less
the charm of the Canterbury choir, Chichester presbytery, Wells and
Abbey Dore--Gothic in all but name. In spite of a pointed arch here
and there, it is a Romanesque design.
“The work commenced, as usual, at the east, as is shown by the
gradual improvement westward in the designs of the capitals. The
evidence of the vaulting, too, points in the same direction. In the
choir-aisle the ribs are massive and heavy; in the western aisle of
the north transept they are lighted; in the south aisle of the nave
they are pointed and filleted.”--(F. B.)
Owing to its secluded position it is almost impossible to get a view of
the Cathedral; but the tower and spire can be seen from the cloisters.
The =Cloisters= line three sides of the square only, for the west side was
destroyed by Wolsey for the hall staircase, which is surmounted by the
=Bell Tower=, in which the bells from the Abbey of Oseney hang.
“From the same position at the west of the cloister one can enjoy
the best view of the tower and spire of the church. One is close
enough to see all the detail and yet from this angle nothing is
lost of the general effect. On a moonlit evening the effect is
particularly solemn and beautiful. From this point also should be
noticed the difference in the masonry of the south transept. The
lower story is entirely rubble, while the upper story is partly of
good ashlar work.
“On the south side of the cloister is the Old Library, as it is now
called, which was formerly the refectory of the monastery, and is
all that now remains of the conventual buildings. Its large
Perpendicular windows, rising like a clerestory above it, look on
to the cloister, but they were spoilt on the inside by a staircase,
when the building was turned into undergraduates’ rooms. On the
other side, facing the meadow buildings, there is a curious little
oriel window, its lights now walled up, that once contained the
pulpit whence the lessons were read during meals.”--(P. D.)
We may remember, as we stand here, that Cranmer was unfrocked in this
quadrangle.
Entering through the porch in Tom Quad, cut through one of the canonical
houses, we come into a sort of ante-chapel with the organ screen before
us. Passing under the screen we have an unbroken view of the =Nave=, the
Choir with its wonderful ceiling and the handsome wheel-window rising
above the arcade and two round-headed windows at the east end.
“Christ Church is the smallest of our cathedrals; for even with the
new ante-chapel it measures about 175 feet in length. Instead of
being of the usual cruciform plan, it is now almost square,--in
fact, the length from the reredos to the organ-screen is 132 feet,
while the breadth across from the Latin Chapel to St. Lucy’s Chapel
is 108 feet. The church is made up of the shortened nave with its
two aisles, and ante-chapel, the central tower, the north transept
with its one aisle, the south transept, and the eastern half of the
church, which itself contains no less than six divisions,--the
choir, with its two aisles, the Lady-Chapel on the north, and the
Latin Chapel (or St. Catherine’s) on the north again of that, while
on the south is the small chapel of St. Lucy.
“If the unusual appearance of the cathedral is partly due to
Wolsey’s destruction, it is partly due also to its being used as a
college chapel, and partly to the fact that in general plan, and to
some extent in detail, it is Ethelred’s design, commenced seventy
years before the great developments of Norman architecture
began.”--(P. D.)
We stop at the west end of the north aisle of the nave to examine the
one remaining window designed by Van Ling.
“There are various opinions about this window, which represents
Jonah sitting under his gourd, and the town of Nineveh in the
distance. We must confess to a great admiration for it; the foliage
is fine and rich, and if it is a little over-strong in its green,
that only makes it more characteristic of its age. And, however
that may be, there cannot be two opinions as to beauty of the town
in the background, which reminds one irresistibly of Dürer; and,
with its rich brown houses, bluish roofs, touches of greenery, and
fair purple hills beyond, makes the right-hand light of the window
a picture of which one never wearies. The whole is leaded in
rectangular panes, like Bishop King’s window.”--(P. D.)
We now cross to the west end of the south aisle of the nave to see
Burne-Jones’s =Faith, Hope and Charity= window, a memorial to Edward
Denison (died 1870), son of the Bishop of Salisbury, and a pioneer
worker in the East End of London.
“The figure of Hope has a greyish-blue drapery, varied in tint and
diapered with the pattern of a flower in stain. The scarf floating
round the figure is sky-blue in tone and lighter than the dress.
The figure of Charity has a ruby over-mantle, with a white dress
underneath; while the figure of Faith has a blue dress beautifully
and richly diapered, the upper portion with a sumptuous Venetian
design familiar on the brocades of the Sixteenth Century, and the
lower portion with a sprig of foliage. The tone of the backgrounds
is a rich, warm green, and is very carefully painted with foliage,
and the contrast yielded by
[Illustration: OXFORD: TOWER AND ENTRANCE]
[Illustration: OXFORD: CHOIR, EAST]
the pale blue of the drapery, and the rich, warm green of the
background in the two outside windows, is most harmonious and
striking. The detail in this window is very elaborate, and every
part of it bears traces of care and thought.”--(P. D.)
The =Choir= consists of four bays, with the presbytery beyond.
Perpendicular alterations are noticeable in the upper part. The
triforium is late Norman. The pillars are larger than those in the nave
and their capitals are very fine specimens of stone carving. Some
critics go so far as to say they are Saxon.
The most striking feature of the whole Cathedral is the pendant =ceiling=
of the Choir.
“Fergusson considers this work to be the most satisfactory attempt
ever made to surmount the great difficulty presented in all
fan-tracery by the awkward, flat, central space which is left in
each bay by the four cones of the vault. At Gloucester, King’s
College Chapel, Cambridge, Henry VII.’s Chapel, Westminster, and
other places, various attempts were made to deceive the eye, and
hide the unmanageable space; in Henry VII.’s Chapel the well-known
pendants were boldly introduced with this object. None were wholly
satisfactory, but, says Fergusson:--
“‘Strange as it may appear from its date, the most satisfactory
roof of this class is that erected by Cardinal Wolsey over the
choir of Oxford Cathedral. In this instance the pendants are thrust
so far forward, and made so important, that the central part of the
roof is practically quadripartite. The remaining difficulty was
obviated by abandoning the circular, horizontal outline of true
fan-tracery, and adopting a polygonal form instead. As the whole is
done in a constructive manner and with appropriate detail, this
roof, except in size, is one of the best and most remarkable ever
executed.’
“Fan-tracery is a peculiarly English feature, and was invented,
according to Fergusson, in order to get rid of the endless
repetition of inverted pyramids which earlier vaulting produced. He
therefore considers it an improvement on the vaulting of the early
English and Decorated periods; and, as he thinks the ceiling of
Christ Church Cathedral to be the best example of fan-tracery, he
comes near to pronouncing it the finest in the world.”--(P. D.)
The East End is Scott’s restoration in the style of the Twelfth Century.
The large wheel-window (an imitation from Canterbury) and the two
round-headed windows below produce a fine effect.
On the left of the Choir we come to the most curious part of the
Cathedral. Columns and arches mark the divisions of the
north-choir-aisle, the =Lady-Chapel= further north and the =Latin Chapel=
beyond--practically three aisles. The east end of each aisle contains a
beautiful Burne-Jones window. The north transept forms the western
boundary of these three aisles, which are in reality only an extension
of this transept.
“Here the eye wanders among pillars and arches which branch away in
so many directions that the grandest churches can scarcely give
more thoroughly the idea of infinity. And here one stands on the
site of St. Frideswide’s first little church, with the very arches
that she had built for her, still standing in all their primitive
simplicity.
“At the end of the north-choir-aisle is the St. Cecilia window,
presented in honour of the patroness of music by Dr. Corfe, a
former organist, in 1873. In the centre light the saint is
represented playing her regal or small hand-organ; two angels
holding other musical instruments, with palms in their hands, stand
by her. The drapery is wrought in white glass, the angels have
pale-blue wings, and the flesh tints matted over with red tell warm
against the drapery. In the lower panels are three scenes from her
life: ‘Here St. Cecilia teaches her husband,’ ‘Here an angel of the
Lord teaches St. Cecilia,’ ‘Here St. Cecilia wins a heavenly
crown;’ the saint’s figure in the last panel is most touchingly
drawn. These lower panels are richer in colour than the rest, and a
greater variety of tints is introduced; but the colours are so
delicate, and so skilfully blended, that they fall in most
harmoniously with the main parts of the window.”--(P. D.)
In the most eastern arch between the north-choir-aisle and the
Lady-Chapel we stop to examine the =Shrine of St. Frideswide=.
“The coffer or shrine, which was made for the translation in 1289
(its base being therefore the most ancient monument in the
cathedral), was knocked to pieces at the Reformation (1538), and,
being of wood, must have entirely perished. But gradually, and from
different places, fragments of the base were brought together:
first, several pieces of delicately carved marble were discovered
in the sides of a square well in the yard south-west of the
cathedral; then a part of the plinth on the south side was found to
be in use as a step, luckily with the carved portion turned
inwards; next a spandrel was detected by Mr. Francis, the head
verger, in the wall of the cemetery; and last of all a piece of the
plinth was found in a wall in Tom Quad. Though some portions are
still wanting, it is not impossible that more may yet be found.
“As the monument stands now, it cannot, of course, impress one as
it would have done in its perfect state, with the rich
superstructure crowning it: especially as the restored shafts are
merely square stone supports of the clumsiest description, so
studiously careful has the restorer been not to confuse them with
the original work. Still, though the base of St. Frideswide’s
shrine is only a collection of fragments, these fragments are of
remarkable beauty and interest. It is of Forest marble, measuring
seven feet by three and a half; and consists of an arcade of two
richly cusped arches at the sides and one at each end. On the top
of this was fixed the _feretrum_, containing the jewelled casket
that held the relics themselves. The spandrels are filled with
wonderfully carved foliage, unusually naturalistic, and preserving
still the traces of colour and gilding to remind one of its former
glories. On the south side there is maple in the central spandrel,
with a wreath of what is probably crow’s-foot in a boss below: the
two side spandrels contain columbine and the greater celandine. On
the north side the foliage is mostly oak, with acorns and numerous
empty cups; sycamore and ivy filling the adjoining spandrels. At
the east end one of the spandrels contains vine leaves and grapes,
the other fig-leaves, but without the fruit; the cusp under the
vine has a leaf which may be that of hog-leaf. At the west end
there is hawthorn and bryony. The choice of all this foliage was
doubtless made for symbolical reasons, referring first to St.
Frideswide’s life in the oak woods near Abingdon, and next to her
care for the sick and suffering at Thornberrie (now Binsey). And in
this connection it is pleasant to think that the sculptor, with
tender fancy, chose plants which were famous for their healing
virtue.”--(P. D.)
The =Lady-Chapel= (Thirteenth Century and Early English) is sometimes
called the Dormitory, because many canons are buried here.
Characteristic curling foliage decorates the capitals. The shafts are
filleted. Traces of colouring can be observed here and there and also
figures of angels on the roof. The Decorated window (restored) at the
east end contains glass designed by Burne-Jones and made by William
Morris, a memorial to Frederick Vyner, murdered by brigands at Marathon
in 1870.
The figures represent Samuel the Prophet, David, King of Israel, John
the Evangelist, and Timothy the Bishop. In the panels beneath are, Eli
instructing the young Samuel, David slaying Goliath, St. John at the
Last Supper, and Timothy as a little boy learning from his mother.
Here also is the tomb of =Elizabeth Lady Montacute=, who gave Christ
Church Meadow to the Priory for the support of two priests for her
chantry in this Lady-Chapel. Her effigy lies on the top of the tomb, and
portraits of her children appear in the panels below. The whole was
originally brilliantly coloured.
Four arches divide the Lady-Chapel. Under the easternmost one is a
large tomb known as the =Watching Chamber=.
“Its real nature is still a matter of dispute: some maintaining it
to have been used as a chantry chapel for the welfare of those who
were buried below; others, that it served as a ‘watching chamber’
to protect the gold and jewels which hung about the shrine of St.
Frideswide.
“Most elaborately carved and crocketed, the ‘watching chamber’ is a
beautiful example of full-blown Perpendicular workmanship; ‘most
lovely English work, both of heart and hand,’ according to Mr.
Ruskin. It consists of four stories, the two lower, in stone,
forming an altar tomb and canopy, and the two upper in wood. A door
from the Latin Chapel leads one up a small and well-worn stone
staircase into the interior of the little upper chapel, which is
now a rough wooden room. Its extreme roughness suggests that it was
once panelled and otherwise adorned, while there are marks at its
east end, which may be the site of an altar, or of the _feretrum_
itself.”--(P. D.)
Lastly we come to the =Latin-Chapel= also called =St. Catherine’s=, in
honour of the patron of students of theology.
“The Decorated vaulting was built when the chapel was enlarged in
the Fourteenth Century. The foliage of its bosses is very
beautiful; the water-lilies especially of the third boss, so
suggestive of Oxford streams, and the roses a little further east,
are a happy combination of naturalistic treatment with decorative
restraint. It will be noticed that the vaulting does not run true
in the third bay, the Decorated work there having been somewhat
awkwardly joined to the Early English of the second bay.
“A prominent feature in the Latin-Chapel is the old oak stalling,
which a second inspection proves to be patchwork. The returned
stalls at the west end probably belonged to the choir of the
conventual church, and in that case would have been fitted in here
when Dean Duppa ‘adorned’ the choir by destroying the old
wood-work. Near to these is some of the work prepared for Cardinal
Wolsey’s new chapel. The poppy-heads are good specimens of
wood-carving, and contain a monogram I.H.S., a heart in a crown of
thorns, a cardinal’s hat, and other devices. The pulpit, with its
delicate canopy, an excellent specimen of Seventeenth Century
wood-work, was formerly the Vice-Chancellor’s seat in another part
of the church, occupied by him during university sermons. It was
then used by the Regius Professor of Divinity for his lectures, but
since the altar was restored six years ago, the chapel has been no
longer used as a lecture-room.”--(P. D.)
Here we find some of the best glass in the Cathedral. At the east end is
the famous =St. Frideswide window= by Burne-Jones; and the three windows
on the north are beautiful specimens of the Fourteenth Century, replaced
here by Dean Liddell. In the middle of each light is a figure and the
rest of the space is covered with the diamond-shaped pieces of glass
bearing leaves and flowers, technically called “quarries.” Medallions
and borders with various beasts--even monkeys--decorate the spaces in
the tracery. The first window depicts St. Catherine, a Virgin and Child,
and next a figure, probably St. Frideswide; the second window represents
an archbishop and angels; and the third, St. Frideswide with St.
Margaret on one side and St. Catherine on the other. It is very
interesting to compare these with the Burne-Jones’s St. Frideswide at
the east end:
“Though this is one of the first windows that Burne-Jones ever
designed it is one of his best. Better suited (as many think) to
the purpose of a window, at all events in this enclosed chapel,
than the freer method of the other glass, it carries on the best
traditions of the craft, in its infinite variety of gem-like colour
and complexity of detail; while it attains a degree of perfection
in pictorial effect and figure-drawing which was impossible during
the great era of mediæval glass-painting. The death of the saint,
with its lovely effect of light through the latticed window, for
instance, and the picture of her in the pig-sty, would be perfect
as finished pictures, and yet do not for an instant outstep the
convention which is necessary for their function as part of a
window.