Bell's Cathedrals: The Cathedral Church of Salisbury: A Description of its Fabric and a Brief History of the See of SarumWhite, Gleeson
History
Bell's Cathedrals: The Cathedral Church of Salisbury: A Description of its Fabric and a Brief History of the See of Sarum
White, Gleeson
Salisbury Cathedral
A Charter of Henry III., dated 30th of January, 1227, gives certain
powers to make new roads and bridges, to inclose the city of New
Saresbury, to institute a fair from the Vigil of the Assumption of the
Blessed Mary to the octave of the same feast, etc., etc. This
development of the city, more especially by its roads and bridges, is
held to have been fatal to the prosperity of Wilton, which from that
time ceased to progress, and was over-shadowed by the now rapidly
increasing New Sarum.
Bishop Poore was ably supported in his great undertaking by a group of
notable men, among whom were: William de Wanda, the Dean, who threw
his whole soul into the work, and traversed the diocese of London to
collect alms in its behalf, besides leaving us most elaborate accounts
of the various ceremonies; and the Precentor, Roger de Sarum, a man of
some weight, who soon after became Bishop of Bath and Wells; Henry de
Bishopston, a learned man and a scholar, should also be remembered,
and, if Leland could be credited, we should need to add another member
to this group, and find in Robert Hilcot, of Sarum, the author of the
"Philobiblon" so generally attributed to Richard de Bury.
After Bishop Poore was translated to Durham, his three successors,
Bishops Robert Bingham (1229-1246), William of York (1247-1256), and
Giles of Bridport (1257-1262), continued the works of the new building
with great energy. In 1258 it was consecrated--some accounts say by
Bishop Giles of Bridport, "who covered the roof throughout with lead,"
but more probably by Boniface of Savoy, Archbishop of Canterbury.
Henry III. and his queen were present at the consecration; and as
indulgences of a year and forty days were offered to all who should be
present during the octave of the dedication, vast crowds visited it.
It was not entirely completed according to a note in a Book of
Statutes, until 1266, and it has been said that with all our modern
appliances we could hardly shorten the forty-six years it occupied.
The cost of the whole building, according to ancient authority, was
about 40,000 marks, equal to L26,666 13s. 4d., of the money of that
day, and probably equivalent roughly to half a million in our own
time. Among many benefactors, one, Lady Alicia Bruere, who according
to Leland contributed the marble and stone for twelve years, deserves
to be mentioned. The cloisters and chapter house were not commenced
until the episcopate of Bishop Walter de la Wyle (1263-1271) and
possibly not completed until some ten years later. From the will of
Robert de Careville, the treasurer in 1267, we find that there were
seven altars in the church at this date; he bequeathed seven pounds to
provide fourteen silver phials (each bearing a representation of three
keys) in order that each altar might have two. The erection of the
spire, evidently not included in the original plan, is often
erroneously assigned to Wyville (1336-1375), who certainly completed
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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