Bell's Cathedrals: The Church of St. Martin, Canterbury: An Illustrated Account of its History and FabricRoutledge, C. F. (Charles Francis)
History
Bell's Cathedrals: The Church of St. Martin, Canterbury: An Illustrated Account of its History and Fabric
Routledge, C. F. (Charles Francis)
St. Martin's Church (Canterbury, England)
There is, however, one objection remaining which must be faced, because
it is put forward with all the professional knowledge of a skilful
architect. The nave of the church is described as "being built of old
stuff used anyway just as it came to hand, and tells of a time when there
were ruins near, at which the builders were free to help themselves--a
state of things unlikely in Roman Kent, but likely enough after, the
wars which accompanied the English occupation." This seems a forcible
argument, but it is not altogether borne out by facts, neither is it
a fair description. That a great part of St. Martin's Nave is patchy
and rudely built no one can deny; but let us consider what periods of
destructiveness and neglect it would have passed through, supposing it
to have been built in Roman times. Durovernum (Canterbury) was abandoned
by the Britons flying before the Jutish invasion, and was at first left
unoccupied by the conquerors themselves. Its site lay for many a year
uninhabited and desolate; its very name was forgotten, and the church
would naturally have fallen into a state of partial ruin. Restored at
the coming of Queen Bertha, probably ravaged by the Danes, repaired and
enlarged to a great extent in the Early English period, gradually falling
once more into decay, in what condition should we expect its walls to
be? Even within the last thirty years some interesting features have
been destroyed, and the walls have been carelessly patched. When we
consider all this, are we surprised if parts of it look like old stuff
used anyway? But (as we have stated) this is not a correct description
of the lower portion of the walls, especially where they have been
comparatively preserved behind the woodwork of the present pews. And
even if the description "old stuff," etc., be applicable to portions
of the nave walling, the same description would equally apply to the
undoubted Roman work in the Pharos at Dover.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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