The Cathedrals of Great Britain: Their History and ArchitectureDitchfield, P. H. (Peter Hampson)
History
The Cathedrals of Great Britain: Their History and Architecture
Ditchfield, P. H. (Peter Hampson)
Cathedrals -- Great Britain; Church architecture -- Great Britain
France, and who was the founder of All Souls', Oxford. Also there are
monuments of Archbishop Howley (1848) and Archbishop Bourchier (1486).
Up lofty steps, climbed by pilgrims on their knees, we ascend to the
_Retro-Choir_, the work of William the Englishman, the successor of
William of Sens. _Holy Trinity Chapel_ occupies the centre, where
stood the wondrous shrine of Becket. Architecturally it is interesting
as showing the triumph of English achievement over the foreign
influence, and the gradual development of the English Gothic style;
and historically it is fascinating as being the goal of pilgrims from
all quarters of the land. The famous shrine has entirely disappeared,
owing to the cupidity of Henry VIII. and his commissioners. Some idea
of what it was like is given by a representation of it in one of the
windows of the chapel. There was a stone base with marble arches, and
above the shrine covered with a wooden canopy, "which at a given
signal was drawn up, and the shrine then appeared, blazing with gold
and damasked with gold wire, and embossed with innumerable pearls and
jewels and rings, cramped together on this gold ground." One great
diamond or carbuncle was as large as a hen's egg, called the _Regale
of France_, and presented by Louis VII. All the monarchs and nobles in
mediæval times came here to worship, and crowds flocked from all
quarters "the holy blissful martyr for to seek"; the pavement is worn
by their knees; cripples begged to rub their limbs against the pillars
of the holy shrine, and perchance were healed--faith plays a wondrous
part in many a cure--and Chaucer sings of the tales and doings of the
not always very austere Canterbury pilgrims. The windows of this
chapel contain some of the best thirteenth-century glass in existence.
They record miracles wrought by Becket. Above the shrine is a gilded
crescent, concerning which many theories have been suggested, none
wholly satisfactory.
[Illustration Tomb of the Black Prince]
In this chapel is the monument of _Edward, the Black Prince_ (1376),
who fought at Creçy and Poictiers, one of the bravest of our national
heroes. The effigy is of brass and was once gilded, and represents the
prince in full armour. The head rests on a casque, and the features of
the Plantagenets are distinctly traceable. Above the tomb is a canopy,
having on it a representation of the Trinity, and above that are the
remains of dress and armour actually worn by the prince--his helmet, a
shield, a velvet surcoat, gauntlets, and the scabbard of the sword. On
the tomb is an inscription in Norman French which, translated, tells:
"Here lies the most noble Prince Edward, eldest son of the most noble
King Edward III., Prince of Aquitaine and Wales, Duke of Cornwall and
Earl of Chester, who died on Trinity Sunday, the 8th of June 1376. To
the soul of whom God grant mercy.--Amen." Then follow some verses
written by the prince, which begin:--
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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