January 655 A.D. Peterborough Cathedral,
Cambridgeshire—Saxon Monastery Founded c.655 by (Monk) Saxult and Peada, King
of Mercia; Destroyed in Danish Raids 870;
Derelict to 966; Benedictines
Refounded by Ethelwold, Bishop of Winchester, with King Edgar and St.
Dunstan; (Romanesque/Gothic) Cathedral
Built 1118-1237; Consecrated by Robert Grosseteste, Bishop of Lincoln; Catherine of Aragon Buried Here in 1536;
Dissolved 29 Nov 1539; Mary Queen of
Scots Buried Here in 1587, But Removed to Westminster Abbey by Her Son, King
James 1; Episcopal Diocesan Cathedral Continued to Present; Called “Cathedral Church of St. Peter, St.
Paul and St. Andrew, Peterborough
Peterborough Cathedral
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Peterborough Cathedral
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Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew
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Peterborough Cathedral
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Location
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Peterborough, Cambridgeshire
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Country
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England
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Website
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Architecture
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Years built
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1118–1237
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Specifications
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Nave length
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147m
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Height
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44m
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Number of towers
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3
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Administration
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Peterborough (since 1542)
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Clergy
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Bruce Ruddock
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Jonathan Baker, Canon Missioner
Ian Black, Vicar of Peterborough |
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Laity
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Robert Quinney
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David Humphreys
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Peterborough
Cathedral, properly the Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew – also known as Saint Peter's Cathedral[1] in the United Kingdom – is the seat of the Bishop of
Peterborough, dedicated to Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Andrew, whose statues look down from the three high
gables of the famous West
Front. Founded in the Anglo-Saxon period, the architecture is mainly Norman, following a rebuilding in the 12th century. With Durham and Ely Cathedrals, it is one of the most important 12th-century
buildings in England to have remained largely intact, despite extensions and
restoration.
Peterborough Cathedral is
known for its imposing Early English
Gothic West Front (façade) which, with its three enormous arches, is without
architectural precedent and with no direct successor. The appearance is
slightly asymmetrical, as one of the two towers that rise from behind the
façade was never completed (the tower on the right as one faces the building),
but this is only visible from a distance, while the effect of the West Front
upon entering the Cathedral Close is overwhelming.
Contents
History
Anglo-Saxon origins
The original church, known
simply as "Medeshamstede", was founded in the reign of the Anglo-Saxon King Peada of the Middle Angles in about 655 AD, as one of the first centres of
Christianity in central England.[2] The monastic settlement with which the church was
associated lasted at least until 870, when it was supposedly destroyed by Vikings.
In the mid 10th century
monastic revival (in which churches at Ely and Ramsey were also refounded) a Benedictine Abbey was
created and endowed in 966, principally by Athelwold, Bishop of
Winchester, from what remained of the earlier
church, with "a basilica [church] there furbished with suitable structures
of halls, and enriched with surrounding lands" and more extensive
buildings which saw the aisle built out to the west with a second tower added.
The original central tower was, however, retained.[3] It was dedicated to St Peter, and came to be called
a burgh, hence the town surrounding the abbey was eventually named Peter-burgh. The community was further revived in 972
by Dunstan, Archbishop of
Canterbury.[2][4]
This newer church had as its
major focal point a substantial western tower with a "Rhenish helm" and was largely constructed of ashlars.[citation needed] Only a small section of the foundations of the Anglo-Saxon church remain
beneath the south transept but there are several significant artefacts,
including Anglo-Saxon carvings such as the 'Hedda Stone', from the
earlier building.
In 2008, Anglo-Saxon grave
markers were reported to have been found by workmen repairing a wall in the
cathedral precincts. The grave markers are said to date to the 11th century,
and probably belonged to "townsfolk".[5]
Norman and medieval architectural evolution
The nave
Plan
Although damaged during the
struggle between the Norman invaders and local folk-hero, Hereward the Wake, it was repaired and continued to thrive until
destroyed by an accidental fire in 1116. This event necessitated the building
of a new church in the Norman style, begun by Abbot John de Sais on 8 March 1118
(Old Style).[2] By 1193 the building was completed to the western
end of the Nave, including the central tower and the decorated wooden ceiling
of the nave. The ceiling, completed between 1230 and 1250, still survives. It
is unique in Britain and one of only four such ceilings in the whole of Europe.[6] It has been over-painted twice, once in 1745, then
in 1834, but still retains the character and style of the original. (The
painted nave ceiling of Ely Cathedral, by contrast, is entirely a Victorian creation.)
The church was largely built
of Barnack limestone from quarries on its own land, and it was paid annually for access to these
quarries by the builders of Ely Cathedral and Ramsey Abbey in thousands of eels (e.g. 4,000 each year for
Ramsey).[7]Cathedral historians believe that part of the
placing of the church in the location it is in is due to the easy ability to
transfer quarried stones by river and then to the existing site allowing it to
grow without being relocated.
Then, after completing the
Western transept and adding the Great West Front Portico in 1237, the medieval
masons switched over to the new Gothic style. Apart from changes to the windows, the
insertion of a porch to support the free-standing pillars of the portico and
the addition of a 'new' building at the east end around the beginning of the
16th century, the structure of the building remains essentially as it was on
completion almost 800 years ago. The completed building was consecrated in 1238
by Robert
Grosseteste, Bishop of Lincoln, within whose diocese it then fell.
The choir
The lady chapel
The trio of arches forming the
Great West Front, the defining image of Peterborough Cathedral, is unrivalled
in medieval architecture. The line of spires behind it, topping an
unprecedented four towers, evolved for more practical reasons. Chief amongst
them was the wish to retain the earlier Norman towers, which became obsolete
when the Gothic front was added. Instead of being demolished and replaced with
new stretches of wall, these old towers were retained and embellished with
cornices and other gothic decor, while two new towers were added to create a
continuous frontage.
The Norman tower was rebuilt in the Decorated Gothic style in about 1350–1380 (its main beams and roof
bosses survive) with two tiers of Romanesque windows combined into a single set
of Gothic windows, with the turreted cap and pinnacles removed and replaced by
battlements. Between 1496 and 1508 the Presbytery roof was replaced and the
'New Building', a rectangular building built around the end of the Norman
eastern apse, with Perpendicular fan vaulting (probably designed by John Wastell, the architect of King's
College Chapel, Cambridge and the Bell Harry Tower at Canterbury
Cathedral), was added.
Monastic life
The existing mid-12th-century
records of Hugh Candidus, a monk, list the Abbey's reliquaries as including two pieces of swaddling clothes which
wrapped the baby Jesus, pieces of Jesus' manger, a part of the five
loaves which fed the 5,000, a piece of the raiment of Mary the
mother of Jesus, a piece
of Aaron's rod, and relics of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew – to whom the church is dedicated.[8]
The supposed arm of Oswald of
Northumbria disappeared from its chapel, probably during the Reformation, despite a watch-tower having been built for monks
to guard its reliquary. Various contact relics of Thomas Becket were brought from Canterbury in a special reliquary
by its Prior Benedict (who had witnessed Becket's assassination) when he was
'promoted' to Abbot of Peterborough.
These items underpinned the
importance of what is today Peterborough Cathedral. At the zenith of its wealth
just before the Reformation it had the sixth largest monastic income in England, and had 120 monks, an almoner, an infirmarian, a sacristan and a cellarer.
Tudor
In 1541, following Henry
VIII's Dissolution
of the Monasteries, the
relics were lost. The church survived by being selected as the cathedral of the Anglican
Diocese of Peterborough. Henry's former wife, Catherine of
Aragon, had been buried there in
1536. Her grave can still be seen and is still honoured by visitors who
decorate it with flowers and pomegranates (her symbol). It carries the legend
"Katharine Queen of England", a title she was denied at the time of
her death.
In 1587, the body of Mary, Queen
of Scots, was initially buried here
after her execution at nearby Fotheringhay
Castle, but it was later removed to Westminster Abbey on the orders of her son, King James I of
England.
Civil War to present
West prospect in the seventeenth century
The high altar
The cathedral was vandalised
during the English Civil
War in 1643 by Parliamentarian
troops. As was common at the time, almost all the stained glass and the medieval choir stalls were destroyed, and
the high altar and reredos were demolished, as were the cloisters and Lady Chapel. All the monuments and memorials of the Cathedral
were also damaged or destroyed.
Some of the damage was
repaired during the 17th and 18th centuries. In 1883, extensive restoration
work began, with the interior pillars, the choir and the west front being
completely rebuilt under the supervision of John Loughborough
Pearson, and new hand-carved choir
stalls, cathedra (bishop's throne), choir pulpit and the marble pavement and
high altar being added. A stepped level of battlements was removed from the
central tower, reducing its height slightly.
In the early evening of 22
November 2001 the cathedral was hit by a fire thought to have been started
deliberately amongst plastic chairs stored in the North Choir Aisle.[9] Fortunately the fire was spotted by one of the vergers allowing a swift response by emergency services.[10] The timing was particularly unfortunate as a
complete restoration of the painted wooden ceiling was nearing completion.[11] The oily smoke given off by the plastic chairs was
particularly damaging, coating much of the building with a sticky black layer.
The seat of the fire was close to the organ and the combination of direct damage from the fire,
and the water used to extinguish necessitated a full-scale rebuild of the
instrument, putting it out of action for several years.
An extensive programme of
repairs to the west front began in July 2006 and has cost in excess of half a
million pounds. This work is concentrated around the statues located in niches
which have been so badly affected by years of pollution and weathering that, in
some cases, they have only stayed intact thanks to iron bars inserted through
them from the head to the body. The programme of work has sought donors to
"adopt a stone".[12]
Misericords
It is believed[by whom?] that Peterborough Cathedral originally had a set of over thirty misericords dating from the fourteenth century. However, only three now survive.[citation needed]
Dean and chapter
- Canon Precentor – The Revd Canon Bruce Ruddock (since 1 September 2004)[14]
- Canon Missioner – The Revd Canon Jonathan Baker (since 1 September 2004)[14]
- Vicar of Peterborough (Canon Residentiary) – The Revd Canon Ian Black (since 8 September 2012 installation)[15]
Burials
Grave of Catherine of Aragon
- John Towers (bishop), Bishop of Peterborough (1639–1649)
- Francis Dee (bishop), Bishop of Peterborough (1634–1638)
- Richard Howland, Bishop of Peterborough (1584–1600)
- John Chambers (bishop), first Bishop of Peterborough (1541–1556)
Reliquary at Peterborough
A number of saints were interred in the altar at Peterborough[16] Wilfrid, Tatberht, Sicgrid nick named Pius Pater, Botwine reverndus sacerdos,[16] Albert praeclarus
minister, Wulfgar and Wildegel modestus.
Gallery
Partial
elevation
17th-century
view
View from
the south east, c. 1898, after the 1880s rebuilding
The Hedda
stone. An 8th Century Anglo-Saxon carving from the original church.
The hanging
crucifix or rood designed by George Pace in 1975, the figure of Christ is by
Frank Roper.
Painted
nave ceiling.
The
cathedral as represented on the frieze around the Royal Albert Hall
French enamelled casket made c. 1180 for Benedict to take some relics of Thomas Becket to Peterborough Abbey when he became its Abbot. As Prior of Canterbury
Cathedral he had witnessed Becket's assassination in 1170. The casket is now in the Victoria and
Albert Museum, London
Cathedral music
Organ
Organists
See also: List of musicians at English cathedrals
The records of organists at Peterborough
Cathedral list Richard Storey as organist in 1540. Notable organisrts of
Peterborough Cathedral have included Stanley Vann,
Sir Malcolm Sargent and Thomas
Armstrong.
See also
References
1.
Jump up^ "Peterborough". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 2009. Retrieved 5 March
2009.
2.
^ Jump up
to:a b c Sweeting, W.D (5 October 2004) [1898]. "Chapter 1. History of the Cathedral Church of St
Peter". In Bell,
E. The Cathedral Church of Peterborough: A Description of
its Fabric and a Brief History of the Episcopal See. Bell's Cathedrals (Project Gutenberg transcription of the 1926 reprint of the
2nd ed.). London: G. Bell and Sons. Retrieved 23 April
2007.
3.
Jump up^ Biddick, Kathleen (1989). "1 – Consumption and Pastoral Resources on the Early
Medieval Estate". The Other Economy: Pastoral Husbandry on a Medieval
Estate.University
of California Press. p. 13. ISBN 0-520-06388-0. Retrieved 25 April
2007. "He
restored Peterborough Abbey to its former royal splendor and dedicated "a
basilica there furbished with suitable structures of halls, and enriched with
surrounding lands.""
4.
Jump up^ The most recent survey of the Anglo-Saxon history of
Peterborough Abbey is in Kelly, S.E. (ed.), Charters of Peterborough Abbey, Anglo-Saxon Charters 14, OUP, 2009.
5.
Jump up^ Anglo-Saxon graves found at Peterborough Cathedral.[dead link] Medievalists.net. Retrieved on 15 May 2008.
6.
Jump up^ The others are at Zillis, Switzerland, Hildesheim in Germany and Dädesjö, Sweden. The longest of these is less than
half the length of Peterborough's ceiling.
7.
Jump up^ Beeke, Clive (2006). "Abbots of Ramsey". Ramsey Abbey website. Clive Beeke. Retrieved 23 January
2007.
"Edward [the Confessor] also became a party to an agreement between the
Abbot of Ramsey and Abbot of Burgh (Peterborough) in regard to the exchange of
lands; to bounds and limits of King's-delf; also the right to Ramsey Abbey to
dig stone both 'squared and broken' at the quarries of Barnack. For this
privilege the Abbey had to give the Monks of Peterborough 'four thousand eels
yearly in Lent'"
8.
Jump up^ Brooke, Rosalind; Brooke, Christopher (1984).
"Chapter 2".Popular Religion in the Middle Ages; Western Europe
1000–1300. Thames and Hudson. pp. 19–21. ISBN 0-500-25087-1.
9.
Jump up^ "CATHEDRAL FIRE: Candle theory on cathedral
arson"(Newspaper). Peterborough Evening Telegraph. Johnston Press Digital Publishing. 27 November 2006.
Archived fromthe original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 23 January
2007.
10.
Jump up^ "FIRE: 'I watched the beautiful building go up in
smoke'".Peterborough
Evening Telegraph. Johnston Press Digital Publishing. 23 November 2006.
Archived from the originalon 30 September 2007. Retrieved 23 January
2007.
11.
Jump up^ "FIRE: Devestating blow to appeal work (sic)".Peterborough Evening Telegraph. Johnston Press Digital Publishing. 23 November 2006.
Archived from the originalon 28 September 2007. Retrieved 23 January
2007.
12.
Jump up^ Adopt a Stone a gift to last a life time. Peterborough
Cathedral 2013 (accessioned 20131229) [1]
16.
^ Jump up
to:a b Nicholas Brooks, Catherine Cubitt, St.
Oswald of Worcester (Continuum, 1 Jan 1996) page 255
Further reading
External links
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