nation as well as to the county of York. The late Sir Gilbert Scott,
speaking of the abbey, said the building was “of a kind which is more
the property of the nation than of a single parish, and one which is of
the highest value to the study of ecclesiastical architecture and to the
history of art in this country.” It was the most perfectly preserved
specimen of a monastic church in England, and attracted archæologists
from all parts of the world. The church possessed numerous tombs and
monuments of exceptional historic interest and in it could be seen every
variety of Gothic church architecture. The collapse of the central tower
in 1690, destroying the south transept in its fall, was the first of a
series of accidents that culminated in the recent terrible fire. This
conflagration, which caused such deplorable injury, broke out in the
Latham chapel, in which the new organ had been erected. Though most
damage was done in the vicinity of the instrument--not a vestige of
which remained--the fire left its mark on every part of the building,
having spread from the Latham chapel to the north transept and choir,
and from thence to the nave and tower. The choir, built in the 14th
century, and one of the noblest examples of Decorated work, suffered
much injury, but fortunately the east window--one of the finest
specimens in England of a Jesse and Doom window--escaped destruction.
The firemen were told to concentrate their efforts on this lovely
feature of the building, with the result that the tracery and mullions
survived in a more or less perfect condition. The window, happily, had
been fully insured after the restoration carried out during the
vicariate of the Rev. A. G. Tweedie, who collected £8000 for the
purpose, and who also rebuilt other portions of the building. The aisles
of the choir were left practically intact, but the north transept lost
its roof, seats, and the greater portion of its handsome window. The
nave, the last part to be attacked by the relentless flames, retained
its pillars and beautiful arches and in many ways has suffered less
severely than the rest of the building, though the roof fell and by its
fall destroyed the oak benches. The central tower (which ever since its
first foundation has been a cause of anxiety on account of its
insecurity) lost its roof and floors. It is a matter for congratulation
that the west front only suffered comparatively little damage, for its
towers were but partially burnt and the glass in the window cracked. The
renovation of this ancient Benedictine church, founded by William the
Conqueror, was put into the hands of Messrs J. Oldrid Scott & Son,
architects, of London, who estimated that £50,000 was necessary for
complete restoration. It is indeed to be hoped that this national
monument, which until last year was the only monastic building in use as
a parish church from Trent to Tweed, may be completely restored, and
that the inhabitants of Selby may once more worship in their glorious
old abbey church. The nave has already been re-roofed, and was opened on
the 19th of October 1907. Of the history of the abbey very little is
known, but no account of it would be complete without some reference to
its connection with St Germanus. The following interesting extract is
taken from Baring Gould’s _Lives of the Saints_:--
“About the middle of the 11th century, there was a monk of Auxerre,
who had a special devotion for St Germanus, and an overwhelming
desire to possess for himself a relic of this patron. One night he
stole away to the sacred body, and bit off or cut off the middle
finger of the right hand. No sooner had he done this, than he was
seized with a horror and trembling, and began to smite his breast,
with tears and lamentations, beseeching St Germanus to have mercy
on him. Then, compelled by a certain necessity, he placed the
finger on the altar. The horror-stricken brethren after this
secured the body by walls and iron doors, and prepared an ivory
case for the finger, in which it was kept over the altar instead of
the body, which appears to have been there before.”
“About that time there was a brother named Benedict, to whom St
Germanus appeared three times in the visions of the night, and said
to him, ‘Go from thy land and from thy kindred, and from this thy
father’s house, and come into a land which I shall show thee. There
is a place in England, and it is called Selby, provided for my
honour, predestined for the rendering of my praise, to be famous
for the titles and glory of my name, situated on the bank of the
river Ouse, not far distant from the city of York. There I have
provided and chosen a founder for my name, and thou shalt found for
thyself a cell upon the royal land, which pertains to the right of
the king. And fear not to undertake alone so great and such a
peregrination; for, believe me, thou shalt be comforted by my
companionship, strengthened by my counsel, defended by my
protection. My finger which is over the altar, thou shalt carry
with thee in memory of me, and that thou mayest be able to do this
securely and without fear of losing it, thou shalt with a knife
make an opening in thy arm between the elbow and the shoulder, and
therein place the finger. Nor do thou tremble to do this, for thou
shalt neither shed blood nor suffer pain.’ Benedict disregarded the
vision the first and second time, but the third time the saint
reproved him so severely for his negligence, that he set off at
once, commending himself to God and St Germanus, and carrying off
the finger without saying a word to anyone. Great was the
consternation, loud the lamentations, long and diligent the search,
when it was found the finger had disappeared. Then it occurred to
them to pursue Benedict, and at last they overtook him and
questioned him. He altogether denied having been guilty of any
sacrilege; but nevertheless they searched his clothes. And not
being able to find the relic, they returned in confusion to
Auxerre, while he made a prosperous journey to England with his
precious treasure. But the result of his inquiries on the road was
his finding himself at Salisbury instead of Selby. Here he was most
honourably entertained by a citizen named Edward, who loaded him
with many precious gifts, the chief of which was a gold reliquary
of wonderful workmanship, in which the finger was to be kept, and
where it was kept at Selby when the account was written. When,
however, he began to ask where York was, and which was the river
Ouse, he discovered that he had not yet reached the place of which
he had been told in the vision. And being sorely troubled thereat,
he was comforted by another vision of St Germanus appearing to him
with a smiling countenance, and saying, ‘I said not unto thee
Salisbury, but that thou shouldest ask for Selby.’ And then, says
the chronicler, ‘whether in the body or whether out of the body I
cannot tell; God knoweth,’ Benedict was transported to Selby, where
the Saint said to him, ‘Here shall be my rest for ever, here will I
dwell, for I have a delight therein.’ However, in the morning
Benedict was still at Salisbury. A few days after, he was shown the
way to Lymington by a priest named Theobald, and there he found a
ship bound for York, in which he sailed. They had a prosperous
voyage, and no sooner did they approach Selby than Benedict at once
recognised it as the place he had seen in the vision. ‘Here,’ he
said, ‘is the place which the Lord hath chosen; here let me land.’
And no sooner had he set his foot on the bank, than he set up the
Cross under a great oak, called by the natives Strihac, about A.D.
1069, the fourth year of William the Conqueror, Here the chronicler
expatiates on the beauties of the situation, the sweetness of the
waters, the abundance of fish, the commodity of water transport.
The very best of stone can easily be brought for building, and
everything that goes to York from foreign parts, or from any port
in England, has to go by Selby. And first Benedict built a little
cell, where he offered continually praises to the most sacred
finger, which had since his arrival made a dumb man speak. One day,
a nobleman, named Hugh, passing that way, asked him what the cross
meant. This led to a firm friendship between them, and they built
an oratory in honour of St Germanus. Then Hugh took Benedict and
introduced him to King William, who received him most kindly, and
gave him one carucate of land at Selby, the wood Flaxey, the ville
Rawcliffe, half a carucate in Braydon, and the fishery of Whitgift.
Benedict now returned, set up workshops about his chapel, and many
left their worldly employments to help in the construction of
greater buildings. At this time there was in the neighbouring woods
a gang of robbers, led by one Sevam, the son of Sigge. Sevam tried
to break into Benedict’s cell at night; but his hand stuck to the
wall, and there he remained trembling till morning, when he was
only set at liberty on making a vow that he would never offend the
blessed Germanus again. A nobleman’s son was cured of epilepsy by a
touch of the holy finger. In the ninth year of Henry I. there was a
great flood in the river Ouse, after a sudden thaw. It came on so
rapidly that when the bell rang for matins there was nothing of it
to be seen; but before the office was over, the cloisters were
flooded. The chapel being nearer the river was in great danger of
being washed away, for water continued to rise for fifteen days.
But within the chapel it never prevailed further than the altar
step, though it had been two cubits higher outside than in. In the
time of the Abbot Helias (_circ._ 1150), one who sacrilegiously
tried to break into the church, died of a torturing sickness in
three days. A similar chastisement overtook a soldier named Foliot,
who stole a horse from the churchyard. Another soldier who
kidnapped a captive from the church, was afflicted with contracted
limbs, and in fact no one who presumed in any way to offend St
Germanus escaped his scourge. In an attack upon the ‘castle’ it was
set fire to, and the chapel of the saint only saved with the
greatest difficulty. All captives who had faith in St Germanus soon
escaped by his help. A furrier of Pontefract found his fetters drop
off, so also a little boy detained as a hostage, and a cleric in
bonds for his father, and others. In the time of the Abbot Germanus
(_circ._ 1160), one Martin, who was nearly tortured to death, was
made quite well in three days. A pack-horse crossing the bridge
with some of the brethren who were going out on a preaching tour,
slipped into the river, and when with great labour they had pulled
him out, the vestments, relics, etc., in the chests on his back
were found to have been miraculously preserved from wetting.
Another time they were carrying the feretory on a waggon, which ran
over a child of two years old and killed it on the spot. The Lord
Prior exclaimed, ‘Holy Germanus, what hast thou done? We preach
that thou dost raise the dead; but now, on the contrary thou
killest the living.’ They fell to prayers, the child was placed on
the ground under the feretory, and was very soon as well as if
nothing had happened. While on this journey they passed the night
in a certain church where a recluse dwelt in a cell in the wall. To
her the saint appeared in her sleep, and described his home at
Selby, especially the churchyard planted with nut-trees, all which
she was able to relate in the morning to one of the Selby brethren
named Ralph, and by this token to prove a commission she had from
St Germanus to rebuke him for dissoluteness and levity. To a
hostess who entertained them, the saint appeared and rebuked her
for not treating his servants with sufficient consideration. And a
certain canon who had nearly died of a quartan ague was cured by
drinking water in which the relics had been washed.”
MEAUX (_Cistercian_)
1136, Founded by William de Gross, Earl of Albemarle and Lord of
Holderness--1150, Colonised by monks from Fountains under Abbot
Adam and dedicated to St Mary--1317, Richard de Otringham gives
land and money to the monastery--1349, The community visited by
plague and earthquake, and its numbers greatly reduced--1360, Many
valuable tracts of land belonging to the monastery are lost through
the inundations of the Humber and encroachments of the sea--15--,
Dissolved. Annual revenue, £299, 6s. 4d.
Meaux, three miles north of Beverley, in the East Riding of Yorkshire,
was called after a town of the same name in Normandy by those Normans,
who, coming over with the all-victorious Conqueror, settled in this part
of the country. William de Gross, founder of the abbey, was practically
the lord of all Yorkshire. Having been prevented, owing to his many
years, from fulfilling a vow made in his youth to journey to Jerusalem,
he built and endowed this abbey of which only a fragment of a wall
remains, although traces of the foundation of the church are
discernible. Some interesting relics have been discovered on the site,
including tomb slabs and tessellated pavements which are now preserved
in an adjacent house.
Meaux Abbey is fortunate in having a faithful and authentic record of
its history from its establishment to the reign of Henry VI. This folio
volume, written in Latin at the end of the 15th century, is preserved
in the British Museum and records many marvellous events. Superstition
or faith--who shall say which?--must have inspired narrations such as
the following:--“About the first hour there appeared in the sky three
circles and two suns; and a dragon of immense size was seen in St Osyth
(Osey Island, Essex) sailing the air so close to the earth, that divers
houses were burnt by the heat which proceeded from him.” This alarming
manifestation is said to have occurred “in the tenth year of Henry II.,”
while previously, in the reign of Stephen, “a certain soldier, by name
Oswey, chanced to have obtained admission into St Patrick’s Purgatory;
and upon his return he gave an account of the joys and pains which he
had witnessed there.”
The community at Meaux Abbey was severely stricken by the plague in
1349--only ten of the thirty-two monks being left. The same year, a
great earthquake “threw the monks so violently from their stalls that
they all laid prostrate on the ground.” About the year 1360 the
monastery lost large tracts of land, owing to the encroachments of the
sea. It would seem as if Meaux escaped the depredations and attacks of
marauders and enemies only to fall prey to every possible form of the
ravages of nature.
[Illustration: FOUNTAINS.]
CHAPTER IV
YORKSHIRE (WEST RIDING)
FOUNTAINS: BOLTON: KIRKSTALL
FOUNTAINS (_Cistercian_)
1132, Thirteen monks leave the Abbey of St Mary’s, York, and found
a monastery of the Cistercian Order in Skeldale--1134, Hugh, Dean
of York, bequeaths his wealth to the Brotherhood--1137, Serlo and
Tosti, Canons of York, become benefactors to the abbey. In the
following years kings and popes endow it with various
privileges--1140, The house consumed by fire--1204, Restorations
are commenced and the foundations of the church laid--1247, The
church completed by Abbot John of Kent--In the 13th and 14th
centuries members of the House of Percy become patrons of, and
benefactors to, the abbey--1540, Abbot Bradley surrenders the abbey
and receives a pension of £100 per annum. Annual revenue, £998, 6s.
8d.--After being sold by Henry VIII. to Sir Richard Gresham and
passing through the hands of various families, the Abbey purchased
by William Aislabie, Esq., of Studley Royal, who annexes the ruins
to his own estate, both being now in the possession of the Marquis
of Ripon.
“‘Here man more purely lives, less oft doth fall,
More promptly rises, walks with nicer heed,
More safely rests, dies happier, is freed
Earlier from cleansing fires, and gains with-all
A brighter crown.’[1] On yon Cistercian wall
That confident assurance may be read;
And, to like shelter from the world have fled
Increasing multitudes. The potent call
Doubtless shall cheat full oft the heart’s desires;
Yet, while the rugged age on pliant knee
Vows to rapt fancy humble fealty,
A gentle life spreads round the holy spires;
Where’er they rise, the sylvan waste retires,
And aëry harvests crown the fertile lea.
_Cistercian Monastery_ (WORDSWORTH).
Fountains Abbey is one of the earliest and most important of the houses
belonging to the Cistercian order, an order which was under the
immediate control of the Bishop of Rome, and which was introduced into
England in the year 1129. After that time very few, if any, houses of
the Benedictine order were founded in this country. The rules of the
Benedictine and Cluniac orders having apparently become somewhat
relaxed, it was found necessary to form new orders in which stricter
observance should be paid to the original purpose of such religious
houses--to personal self-denial for the good of others--to the
fulfilment of the monastic vows of poverty, chastity and
obedience--while less attention should be given to the attainment of
worldly prosperity. These new orders--the Cistercian and
Carthusian--settled in thinly populated districts, whereas the
Benedictine and Cluniac orders built their houses as a rule in the
vicinity of some town or trading centre. Robert de Molême is supposed to
have founded at Citeaux the chief monastery of the Cistercian Order,
although its popularity dates from the 12th century when St Bernard
joined the community. The wave of sanctity which led Robert de Molême to
Citeaux spread till it reached York and the Abbey of St Mary--then under
the rule of St Benedict. Seven monks, wearied of the relaxed rules of
the house, banded themselves together to observe stricter rules,
eventually taking council with their prior, Richard, whom they found to
be in sympathy with their aims. Violent discussions followed between the
abbot and the prior and his associates, till in 1132 Prior Richard
appealed to Thurstan, Archbishop of York. Thurstan was refused
admittance to the abbey, while the monks prepared to drag Richard and
his companions to the monastery cells. The archbishop came to their
rescue, and with his help the thirteen brethren freed themselves for
ever from their self-indulgent home. They were given land in the valley
of the Skell--then a wilderness of rocks and trees--and could only
depend upon chance means of subsistence. Their sole shelter was seven
yew trees--some of which still remain--but after a while they began to
build a hut under an elm tree, which had at one time furnished not only
their shelter but their food. Far away from any inhabited place, and
dependent on the bounty of the archbishop, they began to suffer great
privations. A famine spread over England and the monks had to live
chiefly on herbs and elm leaves, reserving any better food for the
workmen who were finishing the building of their house. During the
absence of Richard at Clairvaux--whence he had gone to ask St Bernard
for work and shelter for his monks--Hugh, Dean of York, fell sick and
ordered himself to be taken to Fountains, carrying with him money,
valuables, and many books. When the abbot returned from France, he and
his monks resolved to remain in Skeldale, where they were joined in
course of time by Serlo and Tosti, Canons of York, whose wealth greatly
enriched the abbey. Within three years of their arrival beside the
Skell, the monks of Fountains had acquired land and riches.
Though the Cistercian abbeys do not contain so much rich moulding, nor
in any way approach the intricate workmanship of the great Benedictine
abbeys, the austere dignity and simple grandeur make the Cistercians’
work every whit as imposing and beautiful as that of the earlier orders.
What ruins of a Benedictine house can compare with the grace of those of
Tintern, Whitby, Newstead, and Fountains Abbeys, built by the Cistercian
or “White monks”?
The cultivated surroundings of Fountains Abbey help in great measure to
place it in the foremost rank of the many beautiful ruins in England.
Surrounded by thickly-wooded trees, from which many delightful and
unexpected glimpses of the ruins may be descried, the Abbey of St Mary’s
stands in grounds of which words fail to describe the enchantment and
many beauties. A level piece of land, watered by the river Skell,
extends immediately beyond the ruins, but in all directions, green
slopes, and gentle, leafy eminences meet the eye, while in the far
distance the Yorkshire wolds form a dark and effective background to the
grey stone of the picturesque ruins. The skeleton of the lofty northern
tower gives a sense of completeness to the ruins, and helps to create
the illusion, when viewing the abbey from a distance, that the edifice
has suffered but little from the ravages of time. On closer inspection
it will be seen that sufficient is yet in good preservation to show the
spaciousness and loftiness of the various apartments, and the admirable
proportions of the abbey church. This imposing edifice measures 385 feet
by 67 feet, and is composed of a nave of eleven bays, divided from its
aisles by massive columns of Norman Transitional work. Above is a
clerestory formed of round-headed lights resting on the string course. A
Galilee of the same period stood at the west end of the nave, and in it
were interred, as at Canterbury, the bodies of the primates. The
transepts had each two chapels, and adjoining the north wing, a tower of
four stages was built in the 15th and 16th centuries by Abbot Marmaduke
Huby. John of York built the aisleless choir in the 15th century. Beyond
it is the magnificent Lady chapel, 150 feet in length, in which Abbot
John of Kent placed nine altars as in Durham Cathedral. The great east
window, now a blank, is of Perpendicular work. In addition to the church
are many most interesting buildings. Foremost among these are the
celebrated cloisters on the western side of the cloister garth. The
vaulting here is still intact, and covers a nave of two aisles, divided
by a range of columns. The almost subterranean gloom is lighted by
several lancet-windows, themselves enveloped in thick foliage. The
cloister garth is 126 feet square, the church being on the north side,
the chapter-house on the east, the refectory, the frater house, kitchen,
and other offices opening on to the south side, while the cloisters,
which span the river here, are on the west side. Three tiers of seats
still remain in the chapter-house, which was built in rectangular form
by Abbot Fastolph in 1153, and formerly divided into aisles by ten
marble columns. The Early English refectory is an apartment of noble
dimensions, consisting of a nave and two aisles. On the northern side,
the reading gallery from which the Scriptures were read to the monks
during their meals can still be seen. To the east of this is the vaulted
frater house (Transitional Norman), and beyond again is the staircase
which led to the “Hall of Pleas.” The 13th century bridge which spans
the Skell, leads to a fragment of the gate-house--whilst portions of the
infirmary, guest-hall and other buildings also remain. When complete,
the abbey covered twelve acres of ground, its possessions reaching from
Pennicent to St Wilfrid’s lands at Ripon--a distance of thirty miles. In
Craven as much as 60,000 acres belonged to the abbey. Though now
deprived of its possessions and shorn of its former glory, Fountains
Abbey is unrivalled in the extent of its domain and is the object of
every care on the part of its present owner. The small fee exacted from
all who visit the ruins keeps the beautiful grounds in a condition
worthy of the treasured relic which they surround.
BOLTON (_Augustine Canons_)
1120, Monastery founded and endowed at Embsay by William de
Meschines and his wife Cecile, and dedicated to the Blessed Virgin
and St Cuthbert--1151, Canons remove to Bolton, where Alice de
Romillé exchanges land with them, for the purpose of erecting a
priory to the memory of her son--1308, Edward II. confirms the
grants conferred upon the abbey by various benefactors--1540,
Dissolved. Annual revenue, £212, 3s. 4d.
Of this magnificent priory (incorrectly called abbey) very little is
left standing. The ruins possess, however, an attraction and a charm
peculiarly their own, and of the many abbeys for which Yorkshire is
famous, not one holds so high place in popular favour as Bolton.
History, tradition, and sentiment alike have contributed to this
estimation. Picturesquely situated in Wharfedale, the ruins of the abbey
stand on a slightly elevated meadowland, past which the river Wharfe
flows in a bend, after raging through its rock-bound bed higher up in
the valley, and leaping over precipitous cliffs. Some stepping-stones,
placed there no doubt by the monks, afford an easy means of crossing the
river below the abbey. Surrounding hills protect this ancient house of
prayer--enclosing it on three sides by Simon’s Seat, Barden Fell, and
the thickly wooded hills of Bolton Park.
Part of the original nave of Bolton Priory has been converted into the
present parish church--the choir and transepts are, however, in a
ruinous state. The remains of the Perpendicular east window (overlooking
the Wharfe) and of the Perpendicular tower at the west end are of later
date than the rest of the ruin. The tower was in course of erection by
the last abbot, Richard Moon, when, in the 16th century, the dread order
for dissolution fell upon the abbey. The superstructure has fallen, but
in the lower portion a large Perpendicular window of five lights in two
tiers, placed within panelled buttresses, still remains. Over the
entrance to the tower may be seen the arms of
[Illustration: BOLTON.]
the house of Clifford, a family always friendly to the monks. It is
evident that the refectory was to the south of the sacred structure, the
dormitory and store cellar toward the west, and other offices on the
east side. On the south side of the nave, signs of conventual buildings
are to be seen. This side of the church is of more ancient date than
that of the north, and boasts six beautiful lancet-windows in the
clerestory. At the east end of the north aisle is a chantry to the
Mauleverer family, whose bodies were, it is said, buried standing--
“There face to face and hand by hand
The Claphams and Mauleverers stand.”
An engraving of Landseer’s famous picture “Bolton Abbey in the Olden
Times,” was at one time on the walls of every middle-class dwelling, and
to-day it is one of the select few dear to the cottager’s heart. This
throws a side-light on the affection which the toilers of the West
Riding have for Bolton. Taking their history from the picture, they
doubtless look upon Bolton as a place where abundant good cheer was the
daily rule. Some colour is lent to this by the Compotus, or household
book of Bolton Priory still in the possession of the Duke of Devonshire,
a list of the members of the household and its expenses during the years
1290-1325. Such items as 636 quarterns of malted oats used in one year’s
brewing, and 1800 gallons of wine, bought for a similar period,
naturally suggest a generous course of life, especially when it is
remembered that the ecclesiastics (réligieux) did not exceed two dozen
in number. But Bolton was nevertheless a large establishment. The prior
was attended by twenty gentleman-retainers, each with his body servant.
Scores of other servants had various duties on the priory estates, and
these were daily supplied by the priory. The prior in short was a great
feudal dignitary, who kept state in accordance with that position. No
small part of his expenses must have been incurred in entertainment,
the monastery being ever open to all and sundry, and the Compotus tells
us that the visit of a single hunting party was responsible for the
consumption of twenty-two quarters of wheat. We do not find that much
money went on books, the purchase of but three being recorded in the
thirty-five years covered by the Compotus. On the other hand Bolton did
its share in the preparation of illuminated manuscripts, the same
faithful authority telling of various purchases of gold, colours, and
inks.
Historical criticism, so fatal to popular story, has not left Bolton
unvisited. Wordsworth has consecrated the time-worn tradition of the Boy
of Egremont, drowned by the straining of his dog in the leash whilst
attempting to jump the Strid. Some such incident doubtless occurred, for
minute detail is not wanting, as for example that young Romillé had
gained the other side but was pulled into the swift stream by the
resisting hound--a not improbable story when the scene is before us.
Sentiment is still aroused by the story of the forester who bore the
dread news to the mother and began, “What is good for a bootless bene?”
receiving the prophetic reply, “Endless sorrow” in answer to that
ominous opening. The first madness of grief passed, the Lady Alice de
Romillé, after the fashion of those days, transferred the religious
foundation of her father, William de Meschines and her mother, the
heiress Cecile de Romillé, from Embsay to Bolton, housing the good monks
in sumptuous quarters in memory of him who had been heir to the vast de
Romillé possessions. But whatever substratum of truth there may be in
the whole romantic legend, it is established by historical documents
that her only son William de Romillé (and in the legend the Boy of
Egremont is the younger of the two) was a consenting party to the
transfer of estates whereby in 1151 the monks of Embsay entered into
possession of Bolton. What of romantic tradition is further associated
with Bolton lingers round the name of the Shepherd Lord, though this
legend has strictly speaking no connection, save in popular fancy, with
the priory itself. Most visitors to Bolton, however, naturally walk the
four miles of exquisite river scenery between the abbey and Barden
Tower--an old possession of the Cliffords. These fierce supporters of
the Lancastrian cause came, for the moment, to grief with the triumph of
the Yorkist party at Tewkesbury. The youthful heir was smuggled away
into the wilds of Cumberland, and then hid and cherished by some
faithful retainer. With the settlement of Henry VII., young Clifford,
rough and untutored, was revealed as the heir and received the family
estates. Quiet and contemplative by nature, he spent much time at
Barden, and being devoted to astronomy received the reputation among the
simple folk of the district of being an astrologer and magician, though
his constant association with the canons of Bolton should have saved him
from the imputation.
Bolton was included in the Act of 1539, and early in the next year
Richard Moon surrendered his possessions into the hands of the Crown.
How far Bolton was open to the grave charges levelled at monastic
institutions as a whole we do not know. What is certain, is, that the
number of canons in residence had declined, and with them the revenues
likewise. The estates were sold in 1542 to Henry Clifford, Earl of
Cumberland, and held by his successors till 1635, when they passed by
marriage to the Earls of Burlington, and by marriage again in 1748 to
their present owners, the ducal house of Devonshire. There are monuments
near the priory to the memory of a distinguished member of this family,
the unfortunate Lord Frederick Cavendish, assassinated in the Phœnix
Park, Dublin, 1882.
KIRKSTALL (_Cistercian_)
1147, Founded by Henry de Lacy--1540, Surrendered by John Ripley,
last abbot, to the Commissioners of Henry VIII. Annual revenue,
£329, 2s. 11d.--1889, Colonel North buys the abbey from the Earl of
Cardigan, and presents it to the Corporation of Leeds.
Perhaps no abbey has a more uninteresting history or less result to show
of labour undertaken, than this monastic house of St Mary’s in Airedale.
Certainly the populous city of Leeds has the advantage of possessing a
very necessary lung for her toilers in the cool retreat and quiet shade
of the abbey grounds. The site of the abbey would at its foundation, and
for many centuries afterwards, be a very beautiful one; for then the
river flowed between gently rising hills in a well-wooded part of
Airedale, where now a forest has sprung up in every direction, not of
stately trees, alas! but of multitudinous chimneys, houses, etc.; and
though these only extend a part of the way between the heart of Leeds
and Kirkstall, they are well in sight when the ruins are reached, while
these again are surrounded by numbers of the jerry-built monstrosities
so beloved by the modern master builder. How different the aspect must
have been even in 1770 when Gray thus describes his visit.
“It was a delicious quiet valley: there are a variety of chapels
and remnants of the Abbey, shattered by the encroachments of the
ivy, and surrounded by many a sturdy tree, whose twisted roots
break through the fret of the vaulting and hang streaming from the
vaults. The gloom of these ancient cells, the shade and verdure of
the landscape, the glittering and murmur of the stream, the lofty
towers and long perspectives of the church in the midst of a clear
bright day detained me for many hours.”
The abbey lies on a level piece of land on the right bank of the river
if approached from Leeds; and
[Illustration: KIRKSTALL.]
though its dark and reverend walls form the centre of a pleasure ground,
not a whit of its dignity is dispelled, nor is its solemnity intruded
upon by the sight of the usual seats, refreshment stalls,
penny-in-the-slot machines and placards imploring visitors not to walk
on the grass, common in such places. No ancient building could more
easily be restored than Kirkstall, but when, if ever, this most
desirable necessity will be accomplished it is impossible to guess.
The ruins, now stripped of the clinging ivy have an area of 340 feet
north to south, by 445 feet east to west, and are an example of
Transitional Norman work. They include a quadrangle or cloister of
considerable size, on the west of which was an ambulatory with a
dormitory above; also a chapter-house--a fine apartment in a fairly good
state of preservation; portions of the refectory, the kitchen and
lavatory.
Of the church not very much remains, but quite sufficient to show the
visitor that in its maturity it must have been of noble and imposing
dimensions characterised by the dignified simplicity of all the churches
of the Cistercian order. The nave, divided from its aisles by massive
columns, is long and lofty, and in times past must have been but dimly
lighted by its small round-headed windows of single lights in the
clerestory. In each end of the transepts are two stages of triple
lights. The choir is aisleless, and of a central tower, unskilfully
restored in the reign of Henry VII., only a portion remains--the rest
having fallen in 1779. The west front has a deeply recessed Norman door
of five orders, and two aisle windows also of the same period. The
stately gate-house, north-west of the abbey, part of which is Abbot
Alexander’s work, is now converted into a farm-house.
There is much to interest the student of architecture at Kirkstall--and
possibly some among the masses of people who resort there at holiday
time may appreciate these sermons in stones. The principal historical
interest of the abbey is associated with its foundation. It was never
distinguished for its benefactions, nor for its learning, and its
historical records do not enlighten one as to whether it served any
useful purpose whatever. Legend tells the following story of the
occupation of its site by Saleth the hermit. In obedience to a voice
which bade him “Arise, go into the province called York, and there
search diligently until thou findest a valley called Airedale, and a
place therein called Kirkstall, where thou shalt provide a place for the
future habitation of brethren to serve Jesus of Nazareth, the Saviour of
the world,” Saleth, with a few others, founded a hermitage. This retreat
was discovered by Alexander, former prior of Fountains, to whom had been
granted by Henry de Lacy, Baron of Pontefract, land at Barnoldswick as a
thank-offering for recovery from illness. The community (which he had
settled at Barnoldswick) was harassed in so many ways that Alexander,
its abbot, determined to seek fresh pastures--and so pleased was he with
the combination of wood and stream in this particular spot of Airedale,
that he begged his patron Henry to sanction the removal of the house
from Barnoldswick to Kirkstall. Henry agreed readily, and after laying
the foundation of the building with his own hands, continued his favours
and endowments, providing subsequently for a lamp to be kept burning day
and night before the high altar. After the death of de Lacy and
Alexander, the monks of Kirkstall had many anxious experiences. By 1284
the community was over £4000 in debt--this sum, however, was reduced in
the course of less than twenty years to £160 by the exertions of Abbot
Hugh Grimstone.
After the abbey was surrendered in 1540, the site and demesnes passed
through various hands--among others the Saviles of Howley, the ducal
house of Montague, and the Earls of Cardigan, a member of which noble
family sold them to the “Nitrate King,” Colonel North, on whose
suggestion, and at whose cost, they are now the property and, we trust,
the proud possession of the citizens of Leeds.
PART II--SOUTHERN COUNTIES
CHAPTER V
KENT: SURREY: SUSSEX: BERKSHIRE
MINSTER: FAVERSHAM: BATTLE: CHERTSEY: READING: ABINGDON
MINSTER (_Benedictine_)
710, Founded by Queen Sexburga, widow of Ercombert, King of Kent,
on land given to her by her son Edward--Benedictine nuns
established here--885, Danes burn the Abbey Church and disperse the
nuns--1130, William de Corbeuil, Archbishop of Canterbury, restores
the monastery and church--15--, Dissolved. Annual revenue, £129,
7s. 10d.--1881, Restored.
These ruins, containing the remains of what is probably the most ancient
abbey church in England, stand on the north coast of the isle of Sheppey
near Kent. In former times the monastery, dedicated to St Mary and St
Sexburga, was situated about the centre of the island, but is now, owing
to the rapid encroachments of the sea, not so far inland. Sheppey, or
“isle of sheep,” a barren, treeless island, is eleven miles long, and is
bounded by the ocean to the north and east, the Thames and Medway to the
west, and the Swale to the south. Very little of the conventual church
exists in the present somewhat peculiarly constructed building, which
consists of two aisles, a south porch, and an unfinished tower at the
west end. The middle wall of the church, with its Saxon windows, was
formerly the south wall of the original Saxon building, this being
pierced in 1130 to allow of the addition of St Katherine’s aisle. Many
alterations took place in the 15th century, when also the erection of
the present tower was begun. At this time the nuns used the north side
of the church, whilst the south side was appropriated by the parish
folk. Nowadays one aisle forms both chancel and nave.
Among the many interesting memorials in this church may be mentioned a
Decorated tomb in the south wall, on which lies a cross-legged effigy,
supposed to be Sir Robert de Shurland, knight banneret in the time of
Edward I.; an effigy in Purbeck marble of a knight who holds in his hand
a symbol representing a soul in prayer; and also, in the chancel, a
monumental brass of the 14th century. The latter commemorates Sir John
de Northwode and Joan his wife. De Northwode was knighted by Edward I.
at the siege of Caerlaserock in 1300. The knight’s shield hangs on his
left hip, instead of on his arm, from which fact we may infer the brass
to be of French origin, the French knights of that day having adopted
the custom known as “Ecu eu Cauteil.” Sir John’s lady wears a fur-lined
mantle, and the stiff wimple covering her neck and throat, which was
then the mark of widowhood, indicates that she survived her husband. In
the 13th century the legs of the knight having entirely disappeared they
were replaced by modern ones with very incongruous effect, and in
addition to this ill-judged restoration, a strip was cut out of the
middle of the effigy in order to make the knight’s figure correspond in
size to his lady’s.
FAVERSHAM (_Cluniac_)
1148, Founded by Stephen and Maud--Dedicated to St Saviour--153--,
Dissolved--The site given to Sir Thomas Cheney, Lord Warden of the
Cinque Ports--The greater part of the monastical buildings pulled
down. Annual revenue, £286, 12s. 6d.
The town of Faversham, formerly a Saxon centre of some importance, and
situated on the river Swale, south of the Isle of Thanet, contains some
scanty ruins of an abbey, in the precincts of which were buried its
founder, King Stephen, as also his Queen and son. Faversham was known
in Saxon times as “Favresfield,” and there, in 930, King Athelstan held
a Wittenagemot, or council of wise men. The town sheltered a succession
of royal and distinguished visitors in the 16th and 17th
centuries--amongst others, Mary, Queen of France, King Henry VIII., with
Catherine of Aragon, Cardinal Wolsey and Warham, Archbishop of
Canterbury. Queen Elizabeth “lay two nights” there. Nor was the place
less favoured by the succeeding house of Stuart, for Charles II. dined
with the Mayor of Faversham in 1660 at an expense to the town of £56,
0s. 6d. In the year 1688 James II. was arrested at Faversham whilst
making his first attempt to leave England after the landing of the
Prince of Orange.
At the time of the Dissolution of the monasteries, the site of this
Cluniac monastic house and its adjoining lands came into the possession
of Sir Thomas Cheney, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, and by him they
were afterwards alienated to Thomas Ardern, the hero of probably the
most notable domestic tragedy ever dramatised in this country. There are
three old editions of the drama, and at least one popular ballad on the
subject. Thomas Ardern came from the neighbourhood of Canterbury to
Faversham at the age of 56, with a wife 30 years his junior--who became
so blindly infatuated with one Mosbie that “with callous depravity and
cruelty she engaged hirelings to despatch her husband during the fair of
St Valentine.” It says little for the morality of Faversham and its
neighbourhood that no less than ten persons of decent social position
were found ready to lend themselves to the murderous undertaking. Eight
of these were in the long run actually executed. “Ardern of Faversham”
(1592) is a drama of very slight pretension to literary art, and the
republication of 1887 adds further errors to those of the original
carelessly printed drama.
BATTLE (_Benedictine_)
1067, Built and endowed by William the Conqueror--Rebuilt in the
time of the Plantagenets in the form of a large quadrangle, one
side of which was, after the Dissolution, converted into a private
house by Sir Anthony Browne. Annual revenue £880, 14s. 7d.--1857,
Sir Harry Fane restores the abbey and converts it into a mansion.
Battle Abbey was founded in 1067 by William I. in gratitude to God for
the victory vouchsafed to the Norman arms at Hastings “that perpetual
praise and thanks might be given to God for the said victory and prayers
made for the souls of those who were slain” (Dugdale’s _Monasticon_). Of
the few remaining portions of the abbey buildings, the grand entrance
gate, consisting of a three-storeyed tower, embattled with octagonal
turrets of the late Decorated period, is still in a good state of
preservation. Adjoining it are the monastic offices, with square windows
and an embattled parapet. A short drive from the abbey gate brings one
to the Abbot’s Lodge--of picturesque and mediæval aspect, although
hardly any of the ancient features are intact. The Abbot’s Lodge is now
the residence of the Duchess of Cleveland, in whose absence only, the
interior is open to visitors. The great hall is remarkable in its
proportions--being as high as it is long--but all its details show signs
of modern restoration. A few ruins lying a little to the south of the
house are known as the old refectory. These are the remains of a fine
Early English building, of which the roof has unfortunately disappeared,
and beneath it are some vaulted crypts--also of the same period. During
the excavations in 1817 the foundations of the eastern part of the abbey
church were exposed, disclosing a triple apse and several bases of a
crypt. Of the abbey church hardly one stone remains, its former site
being now a flower garden.
William the Conqueror had planned the erection of the abbey on a vast
scale, intending to endow it with sufficient land to maintain seven
score monks. Several Benedictine monks were transported from Marmontier
in Normandy, and one of their number, Gausbertus, elected abbot. Many
privileges were granted to the abbey by its royal founder, including
sanctuary; freedom from the Bishop’s jurisdiction, treasure trove, and
to the abbot, the right to forgive any condemned thief he might meet
going to execution. According to some accounts William was present at
the consecration of the abbey--while other historians write of that
ceremony as taking place in 1094, seven years after the king’s death.
The Roll of Battle Abbey was supposed to be a list of the barons, and
other eminent persons, who accompanied the Conqueror to England, and to
have been compiled by the monks of Battle and hung up in their
monastery. An English version of some verses referring to the Roll was
inscribed on a tablet in the parish church of Battle and ran thus:--
“This place of war is Battle called because in battle here,
Quite conquered and overthrown the English nation were;
This slaughter happened to them upon St Cecilia’s day,
The year thereof (1066) this number doth array.”
A considerable amount of historical research has been undertaken at
different times with a view to establishing the authenticity of this
list of names (notably by the Rev. Joseph Hunter, F.S.A.), and not a few
of our English aristocracy, whose ancestors came over with the
Conqueror, trace their pedigree from some forefather whose name they
claim to have been inscribed on the Roll of Battle Abbey. The site of
the abbey at the Dissolution was granted to one Gilmer and passed
through the hands of many families of distinction. In 1857 the estate
was bought by Sir Harry Fane. Public admission to the historical field
of Senlac is given only once a week. It is to be hoped that the site of
one of the most memorable events in English history may some day become
national property and that the many tourists attracted to Battle Abbey
may help towards safeguarding its interests as a sacred possession of
the people.
CHERTSEY (_Mitred Benedictine_)
666, Founded by Frithwaldus, governor of the province of Surrey
under Wulfar, King of Mercia--Church and conventual building burnt
by the Danes in the 9th century--964, Refounded by King Edgar for
Benedictine monks--1110, The abbey rebuilt--15--, Dissolved. Annual
revenue, £659, 15s. 8d.
It is indeed a national loss that of this noble and extensive
foundation, consisting formerly of a monastic church, a hospitium, two
mills, a bridge and a few buildings beyond the Thames, practically
nothing should remain save two walls and an arched gateway.
“So total a dissolution I scarcely ever saw,” says Dr Stukeley,
“human bones of the abbots, monks, and great personages who were
buried in great numbers in the church and cloisters were spread
thick all over the garden so that we may pick up handfuls of bits
of bones at a time everywhere among the garden stuff.”
Excavations undertaken by the Surrey Archæological Society have brought
to light some of the foundations of the abbey, carved stones, stone
coffins, and several monumental tiles illustrating the Arthurian
legends. A piece of the chapter-house flooring and part of a stone chair
have also been discovered. This ancient monastic foundation in Chertsey
attained to great magnificence, its head becoming one of the mitred
abbots, and consequently enjoying all the privileges of a seat in
Parliament. The abbots of Chertsey suffered little, if at all, from
molestations from without, or from rebellion and schism within. They
cultivated vineyards, hunted hares and foxes, and retained peaceful and
uninterrupted possession of the manor for close on 500 years. Though at
the time of the Dissolution Henry VIII. appeared to relent his drastic
measures with regard to this foundation, yet one year only elapsed
between the placing of the Chertsey monks in the refounded priory of
Bisham in Berkshire and the compulsory surrender to the Crown of the
newly formed religious establishment.
The irregularly built market town of Chertsey in Surrey is situated on
the banks of the Thames, and is connected with Middlesex by the
seven-arched stone bridge which spans the river. Here lived and died
Abraham Cowley, a poet of great celebrity in his day, who, after being
ejected from Cambridge as a Royalist in 1643, engaged actively in the
royal cause and obtained at the Restoration the lease of a farm at
Chertsey which he held under the Queen. In the old church of Chertsey
the curfew is regularly tolled upon a bell which was used for
generations in the abbey.
READING (_Mitred Benedictine_)
1126, Built and endowed by Henry I.--Dedicated to the Virgin Mary
and St John the Baptist--1121-1467, Parliaments held here--15--,
Dissolved. Henry Farringdon, last abbot of Reading, executed at
Tyburn.
“Hugh, Abbot of Reading, and his convent, reciting by their deed
that King Henry I. had erected that abbey for the maintenance of
monks then devoutly and religiously serving God, for the receipt of
Strangers and Travellers, but chiefly Christ’s poor people, they
therefore did erect an Hospital without the gate of the abbey there
to maintain 26 poor people; and to the maintenance of Strangers
passing that way they gave the profits of their mill at Leominstre.
Also Aucherius, Abbot of Reading, built near this abbey a house for
lepers that was called St Mary Magdelene’s, allotting for their
sustenance sufficient of all things as well in diet as other
matters.”
The foregoing extract from Dugdale’s _Monasticon_ indicates the pious
and generous motives which inspired the endowment of the once important
mitred abbey of Reading. The abbots of Reading ranked next to those of
Glastonbury and St Albans, their influence extending far beyond the
precincts of the monastery.
Built upon the site of an ancient nunnery, the abbey ruins are
beautifully situated on an eminence overlooking the river Kennet to the
south and the Thames to the north. From the remaining portions it can be
seen that the abbey church consisted of a nave and choir, both with
aisles, transepts with eastern chapels, and also a Lady chapel--the
entire length being 420 feet. The chapter-house on the east side of the
cloister adjoins the south transept and possessed an apse in which were
five large windows. On the south side of this cloister garth stood the
Norman refectory. The stone facings of the buildings have been removed,
leaving only flintstone, but fortunately the abbey mill still stands
intact. Henry I. and his two queens, Matilda and Adeliza, were buried in
Reading Abbey, though by some strange fancy of disseveration the king’s
bowels, brains, heart, eyes and tongue were buried at Rouen. Many real
or fancied relics of saints were presented to the abbey. Among other
singular objects of the time was one assumed to be the head of the
Apostle James--later the hand of this Apostle was brought from Germany
by the Empress Maud--carefully enclosed in a case of gold, of which it
was afterwards stripped by Richard I. It seems like some curious pioneer
movement of foreign missions when one reads that the “maintenance of two
Jewish female converts” was imposed on this house by King Henry III.
ABINGDON (_Mitred Benedictine_).
675, Built and endowed by Heane, Viceroy of Wiltshire--955, Monks
reinstalled by Edred, King of all England, after the ravages of the
Danes--_c._ 955, Abbot Ethelwold builds the church, dedicates it to
St Mary and institutes the rule of St Benedict--1071, Egclwya,
Bishop of Durham, dies after imprisonment in the dungeons of the
abbey--1084, William the Conqueror keeps the Easter festival at
Abingdon--1146, Pope Eugenius III. grants many privileges to the
Abbey--15--, Dissolved. Annual revenue, £1876, 10s. 9d.
One Aben, having escaped the cruel treatment Hengist perpetrated on the
Barons and great men of the land, hid himself in the south of
Oxfordshire for a great while, and the people of the place, pitying him,
built him a house and chapel. This then was the beginning of the
monastical institution in “Abendun,” so called, after the fugitive. The
town of Abingdon, with its narrow winding streets and quaintly gabled
houses, has grown up round the mitred monastery of many centuries ago.
So closely are the ruins surrounded by houses that there is some
difficulty in defining the original site of the abbey. The approach to
the ruins is through a gateway of Perpendicular work, built probably
about the end of the 14th century. The parapet is battlemented, and over
the centre arch may be seen a canopied niche containing the figure of
the Blessed Virgin, the patronal saint of the abbey. A few yards further
on after turning slightly to the right one reaches the rest of the
monastical remains, which consist only of the guest house, with its
adjoining abbot’s or prior’s house.
The guest house presents at first sight a somewhat barn-like appearance;
it is worthy however of closer inspection. It has two storeys--the
ground floor forming the day room and the upper the dormitory. The
prior’s house, built in the 14th century, is also a two-storeyed
building. A flight of wooden steps, put up for the convenience of the
visitor, leads through a pointed doorway into the upper apartments. In
a direct line with the entrance is a wall dividing the storey into two
rooms, of which the one to the right contains some imposing remains of a
columned fireplace, a blocked-up pointed window and stairway door; and
the other to the left, a blocked-up window. There are open windows on
either side of the entrance, each lighting up one of the apartments. The
kitchen or crypt forms the ground floor of the prior’s house, from the
one single octagonal column of which spring the ribs that support the
groined roof. The fireplace is to the right and facing the entrance is a
doorway which formerly communicated with the abbey brook, now known as
the mill stream. After being used as a malt house for several years the
buildings have been restored by the Abingdon Corporation, by whom the
room over the gateway is used as council chamber. To the left on passing
through the gateway is the site of the former magnificent abbey church,
enclosed in the private grounds of the Bishop of Reading. The whole of
the foundations are unfortunately covered by greensward; but it is still
possible to gain some idea of the immense size and bold outline of the
structure. William of Worcester gives the following dimensions--
Nave, 180 feet.
Two Towers west end, 100 feet high.
Large central tower, 36 feet square.
Choir, with chapel at east end, 162 feet.
Central transepts, 174 feet broad.
Other transepts, 138 feet broad.
At the upper end of the guest house a half circle of stone marks the
site of Ethelwold’s church, built on the site of an earlier church
erected by Heane in the 7th century. This was peculiar in form, having a
circular east end. The fine carved roof of the Lady chapel in St Helen’s
church is said to have been removed from the abbey. Along its shields
are slight indications of these words
“In the worship of our Lady
Pray for Nicholas Gold and Amy.”
The Chronicle of Abingdon, written by the monks at a time when they were
sure of the confidence of the people, is a faithful record of the
monastic life-work. A quotation from Mr Stevenson’s review on the
translation of the Abingdon Chronicle may be of some interest, as it
portrays not only the daily customs of the monks at Abingdon, but of
many other monastic establishments.
“Most persons who have bestowed any attention to our early annals
will admit, however strong may be their Protestant prejudices, that
the best features of our modern civilisation are due to the social
organisation introduced by the monks. Agriculture, for example, the
parent of all other arts, was despised and neglected by the pagan
tribes of German origin, whereas the rule of St Benedict, which was
of primary authority with every monastic establishment, proclaimed
the ‘nobility of labour’ as a religious duty, inferior in its
responsibility only to prayer and study.
“Benedict thought it good that men should be daily reminded that in
the sweat of their face they should eat bread, and day by day they
toiled in the field as well as prayed in the church. After having
been present at the service of Prime, the monks assembled in the
chapter-house, each individual received his allotted share of work,
a brief prayer was offered up, tools were served out, and the
brethren marched two and two, and in silence, to their task in the
field. From Easter until the beginning of October they were thus
occupied from six o’clock in the morning until ten, sometimes until
noon. The more widely the system was diffused the more extensive
were its benefits. Besides the monks lay brethren and servants were
engaged, who received payment in coin, and as by degrees more land
was brought into tillage than the monastery needed, the surplus was
leased out to lay occupiers. Thus, each monastery became a centre
of civilisation, and while the rude chieftain, intent on war or the
chase, cared little for the comfort either of himself or his
retainers, the monks became the source, not only of intellectual
and spiritual light, but of physical warmth and comfort, and
household blessings.”
CHAPTER VI
WILTSHIRE: HAMPSHIRE: DEVONSHIRE
MALMESBURY: LACOCK: NETLEY: BEAULIEU: ROMSEY: SHERBORNE: CERNE:
TAVISTOCK: BUCKLAND: BUCKFASTLEIGH
MALMESBURY (_Mitred Benedictine_)
--, Founded by Maydulphus--635, King Berthwald gives land at
Summerford on Thames to the monastery--680, The monastery receives
the town of Malmesbury from Lutherius, Bishop of Winchester--1248,
Pope Innocent confirms the various grants and ordains that the
rules of St Benedict “should always be observed here”--1539,
Dissolved. Annual revenue, £803, 17s. 7d.
As in the case of Abingdon, the ruins of “the right magnificent abbey”
of Malmesbury have been ruthlessly encroached upon--squalid streets and
shabby houses crowd about its walls, and only a small stretch of land
remains undisturbed in the immediate precincts of the abbey. One
indignity upon another has been heaped upon this monastery (with which
the name of St Aldhelm is inseparably connected), which formerly stood
second alone to Durham for beauty of situation and majesty of aspect. At
the Dissolution, one William Stumpe, clothier, bought the monastery with
the adjoining land for the extraordinarily large sum of £1117, 15s.
11d., selling the nave of the abbey soon afterwards for use as a parish
church. The conventual buildings he converted into a mill for the
weaving of cloth--whilst small houses were built and streets laid out
over the gardens and orchards. Later on, the conventual buildings were
turned into a stone quarry, and to-day nothing remains of them except
[Illustration: MALMESBURY.]
the abbot’s house which has been rebuilt, serving now as a picturesque
and beautiful private house.
Of the ruins there still stand the nave of seven bays with its massive
Norman pillars, the aisles, and a wall belonging to the south transept.
The south porch--a beautiful piece of Norman work--is said to be the
finest of its kind in England, in execution as well as design. The west
front--also Norman work--is ornamented with the signs of the Zodiac. In
the north wall may be seen a door which led into the cloisters. These,
and also the tower at the west end of the church were destroyed during
the furious bombardment of Malmesbury by Oliver Cromwell, and on
Restoration Day when the abbey was reduced to its present mutilated
condition. Nothing remains of the great central tower save two arches.
Work of the 12th and 14th centuries are evident in the vaulting of the
nave and aisles. The Decorated clerestory was added during the reign of
Edward III. The monument to the devout King Athelstan is also on the
south side.
St Aldhelm, master of oratory, master of music and master of Greek,
Latin, and Saxon letters, was buried in the precincts of Malmesbury.
Fuller writes that, “the English monks were bookish themselves and much
inclined to bound up monuments of learning.” This can be applied to
Malmesbury more perhaps than any other monastic house. For 400 years the
monks worked not only at translating the Greek and Latin Classics,
compiling and writing theological books and books on law, but also in
illuminating these books, and in binding them in gilded and jewelled
covers. This huge library was destroyed to the last folio, while the
manuscripts were used for such purposes as stopping the bungholes of
barrels of special ale, and for lighting the bakery ovens. The splendid
traditions as well as the location of Malmesbury might have led one to
expect its inclusion among the abbeys destined after the Dissolution
for preservation as cathedrals. Malmesbury was surrendered on December
15th, 1539, by Robert Frampton, who accepted a pension amounting in the
money of our time to about £2000 a year.
LACOCK (_Augustine Nuns_)
1232, Founded by Ella, widow of William Longespee, Earl of
Salisbury, for nuns--1246, The foundress elected abbess--1539,
Dissolved. Annual revenue, £168, 9s. 2d.
The ruined walls of Lacock, or “waterlea,” stand in an open meadow on
the banks of the river Avon, sheltered by many stately trees. Though the
church was totally destroyed at the time of the Dissolution, many of the
conventual parts remained unchanged, and are decidedly the best
preserved of any nunnery in the kingdom. The cloisters were built in the
reign of Henry IV.; the chapter-house and sacristy--both of two aisles
divided by four pillars--are on the east side; the great hall on the
north; and the ambulatory--above which is the dormitory--on the west.
The remains of a former bathroom can be discerned near the sacristy. The
historical and legendary associations of Lacock Abbey are of exceptional
interest, and are fully dealt with in the Rev. Canon Bowles’ _History of
Lacock_. The abbey was founded in 1232 by Ella, Countess of Salisbury,
in pious remembrance of her husband William Longespee, brother of
Richard Cœur de Lion. The Earl, who was in close attendance on King
John, assisted in founding Salisbury Cathedral, and died by poisoning in
1226. A few years afterwards Ella, directed by visions, founded the
monastery and became abbess of her own establishment. This office she
retained until five years before her death, when she retired from
monastic life. She was buried in the church, but though at the
Dissolution the bones of the foundress and her family were scattered,
her epitaph and stone were preserved with the cloisters and cells of the
nuns.
NETLEY (_Cistercian_)
1237, Founded by Henry III. Dedicated to SS. Mary and
Edward--Inhabited by Monks from Beaulieu--1239, Receives its
charter from Henry III.--1539, Suppressed. Annual revenue, £100,
12s. 8d.--Granted to Sir William Paulet who adapts part of it to
the purpose of a dwelling--1572, Comes into possession of the Earl
of Hertford, and late in the 17th century into the possession of
the Earl of Huntingdon.
At first sight, the abbey is not impressive. There are no majestic
towers nor light and graceful spires--nothing but dense luxuriant
foliage. The cloisters have vanished entirely, but where they stood is a
deep turfed court, thick with trees and bounded with ivy-covered walls.
“Behind this court is the site of the refectory, entirely destroyed
except for its cloister walls; to the left the quarters of the lay
brothers; to the right the wonderful triple arch of the chapter-house;
and in front, seen only dimly through the trees, the windowed wall of
the south aisle of the church.” All the buildings to the south of the
cloister have been destroyed. The abbey church is fortunately in a
fairly good state of preservation, for with the exception of the north
transept the rest of the ruin is intact. It is of course roofless, but
the elegant east window still conveys an idea of the elevation of this
exquisite building. The nave was of eight bays with chapels, the choir
of five bays with aisles, the transepts (with eastern chapels) measured
120 feet, and there was also a presbytery and central tower. The whole
building appears to have been about 200 feet in length by 60 in breadth.
Compared with Beaulieu, when both the abbeys were standing, Netley was
far the smaller of the two. The little abbey’s almost perfect
proportions are very apt to deceive one as to its real size, and its
dimensions are very much smaller than one would ever imagine. Its length
was 220 feet, while its height inside the church was only 43 feet. Of
the classical reserved 13th century style, Netley, along with the
abbeys of York and Rievaulx, attain more than any other the finality of
pure Gothic architecture.
In 1700 the entire church was sold by Sir Berkeley Lucy on condition
that the buildings be wholly removed, to a certain Walter Taylor, a
builder of Southampton. Taylor was a Nonconformist and friend of the
father of the eminent Dr Watts, by whom he had been advised to have
nothing whatever to do with the impending sacrilege. Still persisting,
however, in his communications with Sir Berkeley, he became tormented in
dreams, in which it was revealed to him that his death would follow
should he take any part in the ruin of the abbey. The unhappy man,
however, signed the agreement with Lucy. He removed the roof, destroying
the vaulting of the choir, nave, and north transept, together with the
centre tower, selling them as so much building stone. While at work on
the west end the tracery of the great window fell upon him suddenly,
inflicting dreadful injuries to which he soon succumbed. In 1861 steps
were taken to preserve what was left of the abbey by the next owner, Mr
Chamberlay. The treatment which was given it was quite judicious, and it
has not been furbished up into smug neatness like Kirkstall or Tintern,
nor has it been abandoned to decay like Rievaulx. As the result of this
careful handling, Netley is now left to rest a faultless and perfect
ruin--a thing of almost indescribable beauty. The present-day value of
Netley really lies in the infinite picturesqueness of its ruins. In the
words of Sir Horace Walpole: “They are not the ruins of Netley but of
Paradise. Oh! the purple Abbots! what a spot they had chosen to slumber
in.”
[Illustration: NETLEY.]
BEAULIEU (_Mitred Cistercian_)
1204, Founded by King John--1539, Dissolved. Annual revenue, £326,
13s. 2d.
The spiritual brothers of every monastic order had in common, it would
seem, the gift of discerning for their foundations sites as perfect in
natural charms and resources as in their adaptability for lives of study
and meditation, and in their security against encroachments from
without. Beaulieu and Netley had each in a measure these advantages. At
the time of the Dissolution remoteness and inaccessibility proved the
salvation of Netley Abbey. The vast mother-abbey of Beaulieu however lay
along tide-water, and its stones were materially available for the
king’s purposes. Very little remains therefore of this seat of a mitred
abbot except a few of the domestic buildings, including the refectory,
now used as the parish church of Beaulieu (Early English), some remnants
of the cloisters, and also the fratry and kitchen. On the east side of
the cloister area three arches of the chapter-house still stand. The
ruins of the abbey may be reached through a stone gateway adjoining the
abbot’s house--now a modern mansion, in the Decorated hall of which is a
particularly fine vaulted roof. Surrounding the house is a moat
constructed by an Earl of Montague as a defence against the attacks of
French privateers.
The site of the abbey church was fully disclosed during excavations
undertaken at the instigation of members of the ducal house of
Buccleuch, and we may trace the location of every wall and pier of what
must once have been a noble church with its great nave of nine bays and
complete double-aisled choir with a circular termination. The body of
Isabella, wife of Richard, Earl of Cornwall, known as King of the
Romans, has been found in front of the high altar. The loss of Beaulieu
is irreparable in the history of English architecture. One can but be
thankful that the little that remains is in the hands of so thoughtful
and reverent a custodian, and that the exquisite natural charms are
left, not only undisturbed, but are tended with such appreciation and
discrimination that “Bellus locus” justifies its name as fully as ever
it did. Close to the New Forest, surrounded by majestic trees, the
beauty of the scene is greatly enhanced by the sheet of water which
spreads itself in sight of the foliage--whilst glimpses of a tidal river
can be seen winding between banks edged with trees towards the not far
distant ocean.
“Now sunk, deserted and with weeds o’ergrown
Yon prostrate walls their awful fate bewail;
Low on the ground their topmost spires are thrown,
Once friendly marks to guide the wandering sail.
The ivy now with rude luxuriance bends
Its tangled foliage through the cloistered space
O’er the green windows ’mouldering height ascends
And fondly clasps it with a last embrace.”
ROMSEY (_Benedictine_).
907, Founded by Edward the Elder--Greatly enlarged and rebuilt in
the reign of Edgar, grandson of Edward the Elder, by Ethelwold,
Archbishop of Winchester--Benedictine nuns placed there--974,
Opened by the King on Christmas day--Almost destroyed by the Danes
early in 11th century--Subsequently restored, enjoying many
privileges and high repute under the Norman and Plantagenet
rule--1129-69, Nave built by Bishop Henry de Blois--15--,
Dissolved. Annual revenue, £393, 10s.
The village of Romsey has grown round the venerable abbey church of SS.
Mary and Elfleda, where in former days devout women lived their secluded
and consecrated lives. There is considerable difference of opinion as to
the origin of the name Romsey, for while some authorities see in it a
survival of the Roman “Romana insula,” others trace its present form to
the Saxon “Rumes-eye”--“the broad island.” Romsey may formerly have been
a Roman city, its position making it practically equidistant from other
well-known Roman stations, whilst the island site of the town,
surrounded by the tributary stream, the Test, affords some support to
the theory of the Saxon origin of the name. The abbey minster has been
wisely treated at its various restorations, and although definite types
of Early English and Decorated work are represented, the dominating
Norman characteristics have not been interfered with. Eastern apsidal
chapels, peculiar to Norman work, are in both transepts. The nave of
eight bays was built by Henry de Blois, Bishop of Winchester in the 12th
century, whilst two examples of Norman piscinæ may be seen--one in the
south choir aisle and the other on the south side of the choir. The west
window is Early English, the central of the three lights being 40 feet
high. The doors at the west of the north and south aisles, and the
graceful arch which spans the west front of the nave are all beautiful
work of this period. There is a bas-relief of the Crucifixion on the
outer wall of the south transept. The apsidal chapel of the north
transept is now used as a school.
There are many peculiarities in the interior of the church--amongst
others, the elevation of the flooring of the aisles above that of the
nave, where the nuns had their stalls. Many of these nuns were of royal
blood, and in Saxon times the nunnery enjoyed high patronage. Under the
rule of the Abbess Marivanna the monastery was blessed with peace, and
Marivanna is said to have miraculously warned her successor Elwina of
the approach of Sweyn and his band of Danish marauders. Matilda, wife of
Henry I. and niece of the Abbess Christina, was educated here; and
subsequently Mary, Countess of Boulogne, daughter of King Stephen, was
elected abbess. This royal abbess openly defied the Pope and, in spite
of her monastic vows, married the son of the Count of Flanders, without
obtaining the necessary dispensation from the Vatican. After ten years
of married life, the rash lovers were compelled to separate, the power
of the Church proving too strong for them. In the reign of Henry III.
power to condemn and to hang criminals was restored to the abbess of
Romsey--this peculiar privilege having become obsolete. The rules of the
monastery were strict and the discipline well maintained, earning for
Romsey a reputation for high moral tone, as well as for liberality and
learning. A marvellously beautiful piece of the nuns’ handiwork can
still be seen in an altar cloth of the present church. It is of green
brocaded velvet embroidered with golden stars and with lilies
exquisitely worked into the material. This work belongs to the 12th or
13th century and was formerly intended for a cope.
SHERBORNE (_Benedictine_)
705, Ina, King of the West Saxons, makes Sherborne the seat of a
Bishopric--998, Bishop Wulfsiu builds a priory--1075, Bishop Herman
transfers the See to Sarum--1122, Sherborne and Horton made one
house--1139, Roger, Bishop of Salisbury, changes the priory of
Sherborne into an abbey, that of Horton being
destroyed--Benedictine monks placed within it--1436, The abbey
suffers from fire, and is changed in restoration from Norman to
Perpendicular style--1539, The monastery surrenders to Henry VIII.
Annual revenue, £682, 1s.--Sold to Sir John Horsey for £200--The
parishioners of Sherborne buy the church from him for
£230--1848-58, Restored at a cost of over £32,000.
The old-fashioned town of Sherborne, or “clear brook,” lies on a gentle
slope above the river Yeo, in the vale of Blackmore. The first view of
Sherborne is delightful. The narrow, winding, roughly-paved streets make
a picturesque setting for the solid and stone-built houses, and there is
a general impression of peaceful comfort and prosperity about the
place. The surrounding country is rich and fertile; the air clear and
invigorating. In monastic days the hillsides were covered with vines, so
sheltered was Sherborne from extreme severity of weather. It is only
from the south that a good view of the parish church--originally the
abbey church of the monastery--can be obtained. From the other sides it
is much built in.
This abbey of St Mary’s has undergone many vicissitudes, having been
built and rebuilt in remote Saxon times; burnt by the dreaded Sweyn when
passing through the town on his march from Exeter to Sarum; nearly razed
to the ground and again rebuilt in the 15th century; dissolved in the
16th century, at which time the church was made parochial and purchased
by the inhabitants of the town; and finally restored at an enormous cost
in the 19th century, with the result that no church of such antiquity
was ever in a better state of preservation. Considering the chequered
history of the building, its many examples of different architectural
periods is not to be wondered at. Perpendicular work is most largely
represented--the abbey having been restored in the reign of Henry VI.
(when this style was in vogue) after a fire, which devastated
particularly the east end of the structure. The Norman period found
expression in a peculiar south porch and part of the transepts, while
the Lady chapel affords a good example of Early English architecture.
The church is cruciform, with transepts, choir, and presbytery. The
nave, with its two aisles--the one to the north boasting some Decorated
windows--has a beautiful vaulted roof and clerestory. From the central
tower there is an extensive view over the undulating country for many
miles round Sherborne. In the bell chamber below hang ten bells--a
sanctus bell, a peal of eight, and a fire bell. Cardinal Wolsey is said
to have given the tenor bell--the largest tenor bell in England ever
rung in a peal--to the abbey. It was imported from Tournay, and
although recast still bears this distich--
“By Wolsey’s gift I measure time for all;
To mirth, to griefe, to church, I serve to call.”
Attached to the church are some ancient chapels, including the Wickham
Chantry, where lies Sir John Horsey, also Bishop Roger’s Chantry, with
its beautiful Early English window. Sir Thomas Wyatt, the poet, Bishop
Asser, tutor to Alfred the Great, more than one of the Saxon kings, and
Abbot Clement (1163) (of whose tomb but a fragment remains in the north
choir aisle) are interred in the cathedral church. The cloisters were on
the north side of the church--the former dormitory is now used as a
schoolroom. A portion of the refectory still remains, also the abbey
barn and the abbey house--the latter being rebuilt after the
Dissolution.
CERNE (_Benedictine_)
987, Founded by Egelwaldus or Ethelwerdus--Dedicated to St
Peter--Endowed by Ethelmer, Earl of Cornwall--15--, Dissolved.
Annual revenue, £515 17s. 10.
“St Augustine, the monk, after he had converted Kent, travelled
with his companions over the rest of King Ethelbert’s dominions,
which extended as far as the Northumbers, preaching the Gospel of
Christ. And being in Dorsetshire, a great company of people offered
themselves for baptism in a place where water was wanting,
whereupon by miracle a fountain of water burst out of the ground,
which was in the succeeding times called St Augustine’s Fountain.
Here Edwaldus, brother of St Edmund the King and martyr, led a
hermit’s life and died with a reputation of great
sanctity”--(Dugdale’s _Monasticon_).
These circumstances, according to Dugdale, led to the founding of the
abbey of Cerne in 987. Other writers, however, hold the opinion that
credit is due to the great Apostle of the Anglo-Saxons for an even
earlier foundation.
Only the gateway of this once magnificent abbey remains, and near it the
well dedicated to St Augustine. The gateway--a large embattled
structure--is in a good state of preservation, and even yet possesses
some of its former dignity. When excavating on the site of the abbey
church, a stone effigy of peculiar interest was found. It is 15th
century work, representing a lady, of royal birth possibly, who once
held the position of abbess in this monastic house. She carries a staff
in her right hand and in her left she holds a book. Fragments of a
leaden chalice and paten and encaustic tiles, chiefly of Perpendicular
work, have also been found. The present abbey house has been built from
the remains of the abbey.
Near the town of Cerne on the southern slope of Trendle Hill there may
be seen the outline of a remarkable figure of a man, 180 feet high and
with outlines about 2 feet broad. Various traditions are held concerning
the origin of this figure; one being that it represents a Saxon deity
Heil (Hercules), and another that it serves as a memorial to Cendric,
king of the West Saxons; while the most popular legend speaks of the
figure as that of a giant, who, after eating some sheep, indulged in a
post-prandial nap and was pinioned by the inhabitants of the town, who
in this way judged his dimensions. _Chacun à son gout!_--for there is
doubtless a grain of truth in all three stories, and failing opportunity
and inclination for authentic research, imagination and prejudice may be
allowed to have free play.
TAVISTOCK (_Mitred Benedictine_)
961, Founded by Ordgarus, Earl of Devonshire and father of the
infamous Elfrida, Queen of Wessex--981, Building completed by
Ordulph--King Ethelred endows it with land and liberties--997,
Burnt and despoiled by the Danes--11--, Henry I. becomes a
benefactor to this house which is re-established--1513, Tavistock
becomes a mitred abbey--1539, Dissolved. Annual revenue, £902, 5s.
7d.--The estate given to the first Lord Russell by whom it has
descended to the family of Bedford.
Tavistock, like Buckland, is on the Tavy, and here, amidst beautiful
country in a trough of hills, stands the skeleton of a formerly
magnificent structure, once inhabited by Benedictine monks. Typical
Devonshire scenery, both stern and gentle, with its bleak moorland and
well-wooded, peaceful valleys, is nowhere more strongly exemplified than
in the surroundings of this abbey, for though sheltered in a fertile
valley, the dreary Dartmoor lies very close, and stretches away in the
far distance, adding a grim and sombre tone to the aspect.
Two gateways, the fratry, and a porch are the principal portions
remaining of the abbey. The frater, which has a fine portico, is now
used as a Unitarian chapel. This Benedictine house of Tavistock was
fortunate in gaining (among other benefactions) the goodwill and support
of King Ethelred, Leving, Bishop of Worcester, and of Henry I. A school
for the study of Saxon was founded in connection with the abbey soon
after its re-establishment, and later, after the introduction of
printing into England, a press was set up there and many books,
including a Saxon grammar, were published. History and legend combine
with exceptional interest in connection with the foundation of
Tavistock--attributed to Ordgarus, whose good work was carried on by his
son Ordulph, father and brother respectively of Queen Elfrida, who so
treacherously and cruelly connived at the murder of her stepson.
Ordulph is said to have been of such gigantic stature as to be able to
break the bars of gates and to stride a river 10 feet wide. Huge bones,
said to be his, may still be seen in Tavistock church. Ordulph endowed
the abbey with many lands, which bounties, added to the benefactions of
King Ethelred, were the cause of the institution becoming both wealthy
and flourishing. After total destruction by the Danes, the abbey was
rebuilt only to become more prosperous than ever.
There are still evidences of its former grandeur and of the sumptuous
manner in which the dignitaries lived. Risdon relates the following
curious circumstance, from which we can gather the unexpectedness of
some of the many sources from which wealth accrued to the abbey.
“It is lefte us by tradition,” says he, “that one Childe, of
Plimstocke, a man of faire possessions, havinge noe issue,
ordained, that wherever he shoulde happen to be buried, to that
churche his land should belong. It so fortuned that he, ridinge to
hunt in the forest of Dartmoor, casually lost his companye, and his
waye; likewise the season beinge so colde and he so benumbed
therewithe, that he was enforced to kill his horse, and havinge so
killed him, to creepe into his bellye to gett heat; which not
beinge able to preserve him, he was there frozen to deathe; and so
founde was carried by Tavystokemen to be buried in the churche of
the Abbeye; which was not so secretlye done, but the inhabitants
got knowledge thereof, which to prevent, they resorted to hinder
the carryinge of the corpse on the bridge where they concluded
necessitye compelled them to passe. But they were deceived by a
guile, for the Tavystokemen forthwith builded a slyghte bridge and
passed at another place without resistance, buried the bodye, and
enjoyed the lands. In memory whereof, the bridge beareth the name
of Gylebridge to this daye.”
John Penryn, elected Abbot of Tavistock in 1522, began his rule in peace
and quietness, little thinking that he was to be last abbot of
Tavistock. In 1526 this dignitary, according to Oliver’s _Monasticon_,
was ordered to supply a servant of the king with a corrody, consisting
of “One white loaf, another loaf called Trequarter, a dish called
General, another dish of flesh or fish called Pitance, and three
pottels, or three halfpence daily; also a furred robe at Christmas
yearly, of the same kind as that of our esquires, or the sum of 20
shillings.” Pensions were paid to one John Elyote and William Tyler,
M.A., of Oxminster; in the first instance for doing the duties of
organist and choirmaster, and in the second for teaching grammar to the
boys of the house and for expounding Scripture in the refectory. One
wonders why this work had ceased to be done by the monks themselves. The
literature of the time shows plainly that monks and friars were losing
hold on popular regard--although some of the best houses were still
doing earnest work in study and in relieving distress. Cromwell had a
large share of public opinion on his side when he suppressed nearly four
hundred of the smaller houses. John Penryn, among other wise abbots,
expecting the blow, had been putting his house in order, and making
arrangements for its future good management. He called his twenty
brethren together a month or so before the Act of Parliament for the
Suppression was passed, and surrendered his monastery--with its manors,
churches, lands, down to books and parchments, into the hands of the
king. In doing so he secured fairly good terms for himself and his
monks, for the abbot’s pension was equivalent to more than £100 a year
in our present money, and the monks, with the exception of one, received
pecuniary compensation in proportion.
BUCKLAND (_Cistercian_)
1278, Founded and endowed by Amicia, Countess of
Devonshire--Dedicated to St Mary and St Benedict and colonised by
Cistercian monks from Quarr Abbey--1541, After the Dissolution the
site and demesne sold by Henry VIII. to Sir Richard
Grenville--1571, The new owner converts the abbey church into a
private residence and afterwards sells it to Sir Francis Drake.
The history of this Cistercian house is of twofold interest, for in
addition to its foundation as a religious establishment in the 13th
century, it became eventually, after its reconstruction as a manor
house, the home and favourite residence of one of England’s greatest
naval heroes, Sir Francis Drake. Buckland Abbey, one of the most notable
ancient halls of England, is still in the possession of the Drake
family, and many relics of the famous explorer are to be seen within its
walls, including a Bible which had been his constant companion on all
his journeys. The building consists chiefly of stones of the original
structure, although totally different in construction.
Of the monastical parts of this foundation, practically only a barn, 180
feet long, and a belfry are still preserved. The fragments in the
Vicarage garden are supposed to be all that is left of the last abbot’s
house. Still, even in these days, it is quite possible to picture the
happy situation and consequent beauty of the monastic demesne. The river
Tavy flows past the abbey, which is surrounded on all sides by
delightful gardens, including an orchard said to have been the first
planted in Devonshire. To the industry and discernment of the monks is
greatly due the fame of Devonshire for the excellence of its cider--the
greatest care having been taken in those early days to secure the very
best grafts from Normandy. Nothing particular is recorded of the
fortunes of this religious house. Disgrace fell upon it at one time--the
monks having presumed to perform certain ceremonies without the
necessary permission of Walter de Bronescombe, Bishop of Exeter, and
being consequently excommunicated. From this suspension they were
happily relieved by the interposition of Queen Helena.
Buckland Abbey, as in the case of all religious foundations, succumbed
to the demands of the insatiable Henry VIII., but was fortunate in
eventually passing into the hands of Richard Grenville, who did not
utterly remove all vestiges of the original structure when building the
present noble house called Buckland Abbey. The connection of the great
Drake with the manor house was not limited to his ownership of the old
abbey, for here he spent the earliest, and not a few of the later years
of his life; while many of his triumphs were won on the waters which
washed this lovely county of Devon. It is sad that at the close of a
life so full of successful effort, a life almost unparalleled in its
daring initiative of action, Sir Francis Drake should not have found a
resting place in his beloved home. Failure attended his expedition to
the West Indies, where he had hoped to strike a blow at the gigantic
power of Spain. By the capture of the Spaniards of one of Drake’s
smaller vessels, the plans of the English admiral became known to his
enemies and all his schemes were more or less defeated. Bent down and
disheartened by failure, Drake succumbed after twenty days’ illness to
disease which had broken out among his men, receiving a sailor’s funeral
off the shores of Puerto Bello, December 1595.
BUCKFASTLEIGH (_Cistercian_)
Founded and endowed for Cistercian monks by Richard Bauzan in the
12th century on the site of a Saxon Benedictine house--15--,
Dissolved. Annual revenue, £466, 11s. 2d.--Used as a stone
quarry--1882, French Benedictine monks buy the Gothic mansion built
in this century on part of the original site--1886, The abbey
partially rebuilt by the monks and the restored portion opened on
April 26th.
In an opening of the forest near the river Dart a small band of
Cistercian monks built an abbey for their order in the 12th century,
hoping in the seclusion of the spot to be free from the prevalent
disturbances of those early times. The name Buckfastleigh implies a spot
where deer may safely venture to drink, “buckfast”--the fastness of the
deer--and “leigh”--a lea or pasture,--and is probably symbolical also of
the peace and quiet so essential to the retired lives led by the holy
men of old. The actual beginning of this religious house reaches back
into antiquity, and in the course of its long history it has twice
changed its order of rule. In the Saxon time it was subjected to
Benedictine sway, after the Conquest it was refounded for Cistercian
monks, and lastly, some years ago, a mansion was built on a portion of
the site which has since been inhabited by Benedictine brothers from
France who have partially rebuilt the old abbey.
The remains of the 12th century building are somewhat insignificant.
They are situated on the north side of the village on the right bank of
the river, and consist of a tower covered with ivy, and a large tithe
barn, together with a Saxon crypt. A woollen factory now occupies part
of the abbey site, and in connection with this fact it is interesting to
note that trading in wool was an important source of revenue in the days
of the Cistercians. Still further back the woollen fabrics of Rome had
obtained special excellence, and in time, the Roman manufactures were
carried to the countries in which Roman colonies had been established.
In England the making of woollen cloths was introduced by the Romans,
but it was in the hands of a few only. The Cistercians at Buckfastleigh
were all wool-traders, and to this day there is a road called “Abbot’s
Way”--said to be the former post road by which the wool of the community
was conveyed to Plymouth for export.
PART III--EASTERN COUNTIES
CHAPTER VII
LINCOLNSHIRE: SUFFOLK: ESSEX
CROYLAND: THORNTON: SWINESHEAD: BURY ST EDMUNDS: WALTHAM
CROYLAND (_Mitred Benedictine_)
716, Founded in the isle of Croyland by Ethelbald, King of Mercia,
in memory of St Guthlac--870, Church and monastery destroyed by the
Danes--948, The abbey rebuilt and re-endowed by King Edred--1060, A
new church begun by Abbot Ultcyter--1091, New church destroyed by
fire--1113, Restored by Abbot Geoffrey, subsequently becoming a
mitred abbey of great magnificence--15--, Dissolved. Annual
revenue, £1082, 15s. 10d.
The ruins of Croyland Abbey are of exceptional interest and show many
styles of architecture. The west arch of the central tower with its
zig-zag moulding is Norman work, and is undoubtedly the most ancient
part of the ruin. The west front consists of two styles--Early English
in the lower part and Perpendicular in the upper. The north-west tower
was erected in 1427; its buttresses and spire, and also the adjoining
west porch are, however, 16th century work. The remainder of the ruins
are mostly Perpendicular--the nave, aisle, transepts and Lady chapel
having been built in the 15th century. The north aisle of the abbey
church has been used as the parish church since 1688 when the roof of
the abbey fell in. Croyland in its prosperity was one of the most
wealthy and magnificent monastic foundations in England.
Founded in Saxon times, it was re-established after the Norman invasion
and subsequently became a mitred abbey. The original church and
monastery suffered greatly at the hands of the Danes in the 9th century,
the “Abbot being slain at the altar where he was celebrating the Holy
Communion and many of the monks being tortured and killed in the most
cruel manner.” Shrines and monuments were specially singled out by the
Danes for destruction, the sacred contents being irreverently scattered
in all directions, and the costly memorials rifled. But for the
influence of monasticism, Croyland (derived from the Latin _Crudam
terram_--muddy land) might still be a small and insignificant island.
Owing to the religious enterprise and enthusiasm of King Ethelbald, the
abbey was built on the tract of land with which he endowed it. At his
instigation oak and alders were driven in as piles, and hard earth
brought in boats from the upland. An excellent system of drainage, too,
was carried out, converting marsh into rich pasture land, watered by the
Welland alone instead of the four streams by which it was originally
enclosed.
A curious triangular bridge, the most ancient of all non-Roman bridges
in Europe, stands high and dry in the centre of the village. From its
steep ascent it is not used by carriages--the ascents having been made
into steps paved with small stones. In connection with the history of
Croyland and its abbey one may learn another of the means by which so
many rich and sumptuous religious houses were built in the kingdom.
Joffrida or Geoffrey, Abbot of Croyland, obtained indulgence from the
Archbishop for the third part of the penance enjoined for any particular
sin and to everyone who helped in any way towards the building of the
monastery. Monks were sent out to collect money and before long a
foundation stone was laid with great ceremony. The abbot laid the first
cornerstone, every nobleman according to his rank laying his stone,
accompanied in every case by substantial gifts in kind. The poorer
people offered one day’s work a month, small gifts of money--certain
numbers of them holding themselves responsible for whole pillars,
pedestals, etc. The abbot in return made every helper a member of the
fraternity, to which in later years Henry VI., King of England, was also
admitted. In the time of the Civil wars, Croyland became a garrison for
one or other of the contending sides, and the abbey was taken by
Cromwell in 1642.
THORNTON (_Mitred Augustine Canons_)
1139, Founded by William de Gross, Earl of Albemarle--Canons
regular introduced from Kirkham--1148, Richard, their prior,
elected abbot by Pope Eugenius III.--Richard I. “confirmed all the
possessions given to the abbey of St Mary of Thornton and the
canons there, with the grant of large Liberties and Immunities”
(Dugdale’s _Monasticon_)--1517, The abbey mitred--15--, Dissolved.
Annual revenue, £594, 17s. 10d.
The ruins of this Augustine house are at a distance of a little over a
mile from the village of Thornton Curtis, and about five miles from
Barton-on-Humber, in the county of Lincoln. In former days the abbey
demesne extended to 100 acres, and was surrounded by a moat and wall.
The beautiful early Perpendicular gate-house, undoubtedly one of the
finest of the period existing in this country; a fragment of the south
transept of the church (Decorated); the abbot’s house, now converted
into a farm; and a small portion of the chapter-house still remain--the
latter dating from between 1282-1308. Several slabs and stone coffins
lie about in the area of the nave of the abbey church. It is evident
that the choir was built in the 14th century, the presbytery, however,
was probably work of a later period.
Old associations ensure reverent treatment for the scanty remains, and
although the rude hand of Time cannot be stayed, still such wanton
destruction as was meted out to the sacred establishment by some of the
former possessors is not likely to be repeated in the present healthy
state of popular opinion in such matters. The mode of capital
punishment, not uncommon in monasteries, and described with such
thrilling and awful detail in the second Canto of _Marmion_, had
evidently been exercised within the walls of Thornton, for in taking
down a wall in the ruins, a skeleton, supposed to have been the remains
of the 14th abbot, was found with a table, book and candlestick. Mingled
feelings must have moved the obsequious monks, when a few years before
the impending storm of the Dissolution, Henry VIII. with his gentle
consort, Jane Seymour, visited the abbey in solemn state. Sumptuous
hospitality and flattering attentions were showered upon the royal
guests, and not without effect, for, though Thornton shared in the
general suppression of monastic houses, its coffers were left
unplundered, and the money used towards the endowment of a college which
was established there. This institution in turn was suppressed--liberal
provision being made for several of its members. Thornton was part of
the estate of Henry Percy, Earl of Northumberland, and afterwards
belonged to Henry, son of Hotspur, who distinguished himself in the
Civil War of York and Lancaster.
SWINESHEAD (_Cistercian_)
1134, Founded and endowed by Robert Greslei--Dedicated to the
Virgin Mary--Henry II. confirms all the grants given to the abbey
and the monks--1216, King John shelters here for one night--15--,
Dissolved. Annual revenue, £167, 15s. 3d.--1551, Site granted to
Edward, Lord Clinton--c. 1610, Entire building demolished by Sir
John Stockton. The materials of the abbey used to build the present
mansion known as Swineshead abbey.
Many interesting records are extant of religious life in the county of
Lincoln. In the 13th and 14th centuries hundreds of pilgrims made their
way from Lincolnshire to Rome and to the Holy Land, inspired doubtless,
in great measure, by the spiritual influence emanating from the abbeys
of Swineshead, Thornton, and Croyland. The monastic chronicles, with
their references to larger incidents of history beyond monastic bounds,
were introduced into England by the Normans. The writers in such
chronicles were usually monks, drawn from the lower or middle classes,
who spoke chiefly of events as they touched the religious and
substantial welfare of the people. We read therefore that the gild of
the Resurrection at Lincoln (founded in 1374) had among its rules, “If
any brother or sister wishes to make a pilgrimage to Rome, St James of
Galicia, or the Holy Land, he shall forewarn the gild; and all the
brethren and sistern shall go with him to the city gate, and each shall
give him a halfpenny at least.” The same rule is found in the Gild of
Fullers of Lincoln, founded in 1297; the pilgrim going to Rome was
accompanied, as far as the Queen’s Cross outside the town if he left on
a Sunday or Feast; and if he could let them know of his return, and it
were not a working day, all went to meet him at the same place and
accompanied him to the monastery. Again, the tailors also gave a
halfpenny to him among them who is going to Rome or St James, and a
penny to him who goes to the Holy Land. The activities of these Gilds
were probably directed to some extent from the Abbey of Swineshead or
Swinestead, seven miles from Boston in Lincolnshire.
Founded in 1134, the abbey was at first of small importance. One of the
early abbots, Gilbert de Holland--particular friend and biographer of St
Bernard--worked strenuously to promote the welfare of the new order of
Cistercian or “white monks.” Little is known of the work of this
religious establishment, but history has familiarised the name of
Swineshead to many readers, for it was here that King John sought refuge
after the misfortune which befell him on the banks of the Wash. Greatly
annoyed at the loss of his treasures and baggage carriages, which were
suddenly swept away by the return of the tide, the king and his men
proceeded to Swineshead Abbey. On the night of their arrival the king
was seized with a violent fever which, after a few days’ illness, proved
fatal. One authority attributes his sudden death to a surfeit of fruit
and new cider. Shakespeare evidently ignores both versions of the king’s
sudden demise, for in _King John_, Act V. Scene VI., in a conversation
near Swineshead Abbey, Hubert de Burgh speaking to Philip Falconbridge
says:
“The King, I fear, is poisoned by a monk;
I left him almost speechless....
_Philip._ How did he take it? Who did taste to him?
_Hubert._ A monk, I tell you; a resolved villain.”
There are very few adherents to this theory, for, such an act on the
part of a monk, unless inspired by the King’s enemy, would have been
motiveless and contrary to the prevailing spirit in the hospitable
monasteries. Among other ancient customs still prevalent in Swineshead
are the daily curfew at 8 p.m. and the cutting of a large cross in the
turf on the spot where death by violence has befallen any one. An
interesting Danish encampment near the town, and known as Manwarings, is
60 yards in diameter and surrounded by a double fosse.
BURY ST EDMUNDS (_Mitred Benedictine_)
_c._ 637, Monastery founded in Beodericsworth by Sigberct, King of
the East Angles--903, King Edmund the Martyr buried in the
church--925, Church receives benefactions from King Athelstan, King
Edmund, son of Edward the Elder, and King Edwy--1020, Benedictine
monks introduced in place of secular priests by Canute--1021, A new
church built by Aldwius, Bishop of East Anglia--1032, Consecrated
in honour of Christ, the Blessed Mary and St Edwin--1065, Edward
the Confessor visits the abbey in the guise of a pilgrim, greatly
enriches the house, and grants to the abbot and monks the right of
coining within the monastery--1071, Pope Alexander II. grants to
the abbot and his successors episcopal jurisdiction--1081, The
church and town of Bury declared to be exempt from the Bishop’s
jurisdiction--_c._ 1097, The newly erected church pulled down by
Abbot Baldwin, who builds another of hewn stone. 11--, Henry I.
visits the abbey and offers his crown before St Edmund’s
shrine--1214, King John receives hospitality from the monks--1327,
The burgesses of Bury gain forcible possession of the monastery and
for several months harass the community; the king’s judges put an
end to these disgraceful riots in December; a claim of £140,000
lodged against the townspeople by the monastery, which is defrayed
by Edward III.--1447, Henry VI. and Queen Margaret visit the
abbey--Humphrey Duke of Gloucester arrested and foully murdered by
Suffolk during the Royal visitation--1465, Abbey suffers great
destruction from fire--15--, Dissolved. Annual revenue, £1659, 13s.
11d.