Lichfield Cathedral
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The West Front of Lichfield Cathedral |
Lichfield Cathedral is situated in
Lichfield,
Staffordshire,
England. It is the only medieval English cathedral with three spires. The
Diocese of Lichfield covers all of
Staffordshire, much of
Shropshire and part of the
Black Country and
West Midlands. The present bishop is the Right Reverend
Jonathan Gledhill, the 98th
Lord Bishop of Lichfield.
The Cathedral is dedicated to
St Chad and
Saint Mary. Its internal length is 370 ft., and the breadth of the nave 68 ft., the central spire is 77m (252') high and the western spires about 58m (190') high.
The stone is
sandstone and came from a quarry on the south side of Lichfield. The walls of the nave lean outwards slightly, this was caused by the weight of stone used in the ceiling vaulting, some 2-300 tons of which was removed during renovation work to prevent the walls leaning further.
Lichfield suffered untold damage during the Civil War in which all of the stained glass was destroyed. However, the windows of the
Lady Chapel contain some of the finest
medieval Flemish painted glass in existence. It came from the
Abbey of
Herckenrode (now in
Belgium) in
1801 having been purchased by
Brooke Boothby when that abbey was dissolved during the
Napoleonic Wars. It was then sold on to the cathedral for the same price. It dates from the
1530s. There are also some fine windows by Betton and Evans (1819), and many fine late
19th century windows, particularly those by
Charles Eamer Kempe.
The
Lichfield Gospels are the gospels of Matthew and Mark, and the early part of Luke, written in
Latin and dating from around
730. There were originally two volumes but one went missing around the time of the
English Civil War. It is closely related in style to the
Lindisfarne Gospels. The manuscript is on display in the Chapter House from
Easter to
Christmas.
The Close is one of the most complete in the country and includes a medieval courtyard which once housed the men of the
choir. The three spires are often referred to as 'the Ladies of the Vale'.
Early History and Elavation to Archbishopric
When Chad was made
Bishop of Mercia in
669 he moved his See from
Repton to Lichfield, possibly because this was already a holy site, as the scene of martyrdoms during the
Roman period. The first Cathedral to be built on the present site was in 700AD when
Bishop Hedda built a new church to house the bones of
St Chad which had become a sacred shrine to many pilgrims when he died in 672.
Offa, King of
Mercia seemed to resent his own bishops paying allegiance to the
Archbishop of Canterbury in
Kent who, whilst under Offa's control, was not of his own kingdom of Mercia. Offa therefore created his own archbishopric in Lichfield, who presided over all the bishops from the Humber to the Thames. All this began in
786, with the consent of
Pope Adrian. The Pope's official representatives were received warmly by Offa and were present at the
Council of Chelsea (787), often called `the contentious synod', where it was proposed that the Archbishopric of Canterbury be restricted in order to make way for Offa's new archbishop. It was vehemently opposed, but Offa and the papal representatives defeated
Archbishop Jaenbert, installing
Higbert as the new
Archbishop of Lichfield. Pope Adrian sent Higbert his ceremonial garment, obviously denoting his support for this move. In gratitude, Offa promised to send an annual shipment of gold to the pope for alms and supplying the lights in
St. Peter's church in
Rome. However, The Archbishopric of Lichfield only lasted for 16 years, ending soon after Offa's death, when it was restored to Archbishop Aethelheard of Canterbury. Starting in 1085 and continuing through the twelfth century the original wooden Saxon church was replaced by a Norman Cathedral made from stone, and this was in turn replaced by the present Gothic Cathedral begun in 1195. It was completed by the building of the Lady Chapel in the 1330s.
The Choir dates from
1200, the Transepts from
1220 to
1240 and the
Nave was started in
1260. The octagonal Chapter House, which was completed in
1249 and is one of the most beautiful parts of the Cathedral with some charming stone carvings, houses an exhibition of the Cathedral's greatest treasure, the Lichfield Gospels, an
8th century illuminated manuscript.
Devastation of The English Civil War
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The Sleeping Children by Francis Chantrey (1817), portrays two young sisters, Ellen-Jane and Marianne, who died in tragic circumstances in 1812 |
There were three great sieges of Lichfield during the period
1643-
46 as the cathedral was surrounded by a ditch and defensive walls, and made a natural fortress. The cathedral authorities with a certain following were for the king, but the townsfolk generally sided with the parliament, and this led to the fortification of the close in
1643.
Lord Brooke,led an assault against it, but was killed by a deflected bullet by John Dyott (Known as 'dumb' because he was a deaf mute) who along with his brother Richard Dyott had taken up a position on the battlements of the central cathedral spire on
March 2,
1643. His deputy
Sir John Gell, 1st Baronet took over the siege. Although the
Royalist garrison surrendered to Gell two days later. The close yielded and was retaken by
Prince Rupert of the Rhine in this year on
20 April Rupert's engineers detonated the first mine to be used in England to breach the defences. Unable to defend the breach, the Parliamentarians surrendered to Rupert the following day. The cathedral suffered extensive damage: the central spire was demolished, the roofs ruined and all the stained glass smashed. The devastation was massive,
Bishop Hacket began the restoration of the Cathedral in the
1660s, aiding by substantial funds donated by the restored monarch, but it was not until the
19th century that the damage caused by the
Civil War was fully repaired. Up until the 19th Century, on top of an ornamented gable, between the two spires, stood a colossal figure of
Charles II, by
Sir William Wilson. Today it stands just outside the south doors.
Victorian Restoration
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The Cathedral Close with its many fine buildings, is one of the most unspoilt in the country |
Although the
18th century was a Golden Age for the
City of Lichfield, it was a period of decay for the cathedral. The
15th century library, on the north side of the nave, was pulled down and the books moved to their present location above the Chapter House. Most of the statues on the West Front were removed and the stonework covered with Roman cement. At the end of the century
James Wyatt organised some major structural work, removing the High Alter to make one worship area of Chior and Lady Chapel and adding a massive stone screen at the entrance to the Choir. The ornate west front was extensively renovated in the
Victorian era by Sir
George Gilbert Scott. It includes a remarkable number of ornate carved figures of kings, queens and saints, working with original materials where possible and creating fine new imitations and additions when the originals were not available. Wyatt's choir-screen had utilised medieval stone-work which Scott in turn used to create the clergy's seats in the sanctuary. The new metal screen by
Francis Skidmore and
John Birnie Philip to designs by Scott himself is a triumph of High Victorian art, as are the fine Minton tiles in the choir, inspired by the medieval ones found in the Choir foundations and still seen in the Library.
Modern History
Fresh restoration work continued throughout the
20th century. In
1957 extensive work was carried out on the roofing and spires, a process which began again in
1987 with a ten year programme of repair and cleaning. Facilities for visitors in the Close have been improved by a Visitors' Study Centre, a tea room and a bookshop. Today concerts and major artistic events are often held in the Cathedral, especially in July when the annual International Lichfield Festival is held. In the year 2000 the Cathedral celebrated its official 1300th birthday with a special Dedication Service.
*
Bishops of Lichfield*
The Lichfield Gospels*
Lichfield Cathedral Web Site*
Lichfield Cathedral Choir Web Site*
Lichfield Cathedral Photography Gallery by Tom Allwood*
Lichfield Cathedral School Web SiteImage:Southwestview.jpg|The Cathedral from the South West, overlooking Minster Pool in the 1880sImage:Lichnorthtrancept.jpg|Inside from the North Trancept in the 1880sImage:LichfieldGospelsEvangelist.jpg|An Illumination from The Lichfield GospelsImage:Lichwestfrontdetail.JPG|The outside of the West Front is covered in statues of Norman and Saxon kings, disciples of Jesus and prophets of the Old TestamentImage:Statuecathedral.jpg|Monument to Bishop Ryder by Sir Francis ChantreyImage:CharlesIIstatue.jpg|Monument to Charles II who contributed to the restoration of the Cathedral following the English Civil WarImage:DSC00437.JPG|The Cathedral at night from the Memorial Gardens
