The Cathedral Church Of
DURHAM

A Description Of Its Fabric
And A Brief History Of The
Episcopal See

By

J.E. Bygate, A.R.C.A.

WITH FORTY-FOUR


ILLUSTRATIONS

London George Bell & Sons 1905

The Riverside Press Limited, Edinburgh

GENERAL PREFACE

This series of monographs has been planned to supply visitors
to the great English Cathedrals with accurate and well illustrated
guide-books at a popular price. The aim of each writer
has been to produce a work compiled with sufficient knowledge
and scholarship to be of value to the student of Archæology
and History, and yet not too technical in language for the use
of an ordinary visitor or tourist.

To specify all the authorities which have been made use of
in each case would be difficult and tedious in this place. But
amongst the general sources of information which have been
almost invariably found useful are:—(1) the great county
histories, the value of which, especially in questions of genealogy
and local records, is generally recognised; (2) the
numerous papers by experts which appear from time to
time in the Transactions of the Antiquarian and Archæological
Societies; (3) the important documents made accessible in
the series issued by the Master of the Rolls; (4) the well-known
works of Britton and Willis on the English Cathedrals;
and (5) the very excellent series of Handbooks to the
Cathedrals originated by the late Mr John Murray; to which
the reader may in most cases be referred for fuller detail,
especially in reference to the histories of the respective sees.

AUTHOR’S PREFACE

As much as possible of this brief description of Durham
is from the personal acquaintance of the writer with the
building. Yet many authorities have, of necessity, been consulted
in its preparation, notably a pamphlet by the Rev.
Canon W. Greenwell, and the “County of Durham,” by
J.R. Boyle, F.S.A. Thanks are also due to the authorities
of the Cathedral for having freely given permission to make
drawings and measurements, and to the late Mr Weatherall,
chief verger, for his kindly assistance and information.

The illustrations are chiefly from sketches and drawings by
the writer, and from photographs reproduced by the kindness
of the Photochrom Company, Ltd., and Messrs S.B. Bolas
& Co.

J.E.B.

CONTENTS

ILLUSTRATIONS

3

DURHAM CATHEDRAL

Table of
Contents

CHAPTER I
The Building Of The Church

The traveller northward by the East Coast Route cannot fail
to be struck by the beauty of the city of Durham, with its
red-roofed houses nestling beneath the majestic site of the
cathedral and castle. For splendid position the Cathedral
of Durham stands unequalled in this country; on the Continent,
perhaps that of Albi can alone be compared with it
in this respect. The cathedral and Norman Castle are upon
the summit of a lofty tongue of land which is almost surrounded
by the River Wear. In parts the banks are rocky
and steep, in others thickly wooded. The river itself is
spanned here and there by fine and historic bridges.

The early history of Durham is obscure. There are many
vague legends in existence, a natural consequence, perhaps,
when we remember the various and often speedy changes of
ownership to which that part of the country was for centuries
subjected.

To lead up clearly to the founding of the Cathedral of
Durham, it will be necessary to describe briefly the earliest
introduction of Christianity into the north of England. That
Christianity was known in this country during the time of
the Romans there is sufficient evidence to prove. There is,
however, little to show that it existed in the north to any
appreciable extent. All or nearly all the carved stones, altars,
etc., disinterred in that part of the country have been of
undoubted Pagan origin.

The ancient kingdom of Northumbria comprised the
present counties of Durham, Northumberland, and Yorkshire,
and a part of the south-east of Scotland as far north as the
4Firth
of Forth. This kingdom was sub-divided into two
portions. The Southern, or Deira, extended from the Tees
to the Humber, and the Northern, or Bernicia, reached from
the Tees to the Firth of Forth. The province of Bernicia
was settled about A.D. 547 by Ida, a chief of the Angles, who
made his headquarters on a steep rock on the sea-coast about
sixteen miles south of Berwick. He was succeeded by his son
Ethelric, who built himself a stronghold, which he named after
his wife Bebbanburgh, a name still retained in a shortened
form—Bamburgh. Ethelric was followed by Ella, whose son
Edwin was driven into exile by his fierce brother-in-law,
Ethelfrith, and took possession of Deira, the southern province
of Northumbria. After attaining his majority, Edwin,
assisted by Redwald, regained his kingdom, and eventually
ruled over the whole of Northumbria; it is during his reign
that we find the first authentic history of Christianity in the
north. Edwin married Ethelburga, a daughter of Ethelbert,
king of Kent, who had been converted to Christianity by
the preaching of S. Augustine. He himself received baptism
at the hands of Paulinus (625-633), the great Roman
missionary, who was sent north with the Princess Ethelburga.
Paulinus fixed his headquarters at York, where he built his
church, the forerunner of the present cathedral. This
attempt of the Romans to christianise Northumbria was,
however, of short duration. Cadwalla and Penda rose
against them, and Edwin fell in battle at Hatfield Moor in
Yorkshire. Paulinus, despairing of the cause, returned to
Kent with the queen-widow Ethelburga and her children;
and under Cadwalla and Penda, the kingdom soon relapsed
into Paganism.

We must now direct our attention to a small, barren island
on the west coast of Scotland, Iona. Here came a voluntary
exile (A.D. 563), Columba, a monk, said to have been a
descendant of the Irish kings. Here he lived and founded
a great missionary monastery, which afterwards became the
centre of Christian influence in Scotland and the north of
England. He and his followers were active workers; they
wrote Gospels and devotional books, preached, and built
churches of wood. Columba died (A.D. 597), but his work
was continued.

In 634, Oswald, a son of Ethelfrith, became king
of5
Northumbria. In his youth he, with his brothers, had been
obliged to flee to Scotland, where, during his exile, Oswald
was converted to Christianity by the teachers of Iona. On
his return he defeated and killed Cadwalla at Hevenfeld,
or Heavenfield, near Hexham, in 634, and became the means
of finally introducing Christianity into his kingdom. Soon
after he became king, Oswald sent to Iona for help, and in
reply came a monk, who, for some reason, said by old writers
to be his harshness, failed in his mission. He was replaced
by another monk named Aidan (635-651), who was eminently
successful. Beda speaks of him as “a man of great piety
and zeal, combined with tender charity and gentleness.”
Aidan became intimately associated with King Oswald, the
two working together, and he chose for his headquarters the
small sandy island of Lindisfarne, off the Northumbrian coast,
which we now know as “Holy Island.”

Lindisfarne thus resembled Iona, and it is probable that
the similarity of position and surroundings influenced Aidan
in his choice. However that may be, Aidan there founded
his monastery and directed the work of his monks.

Passing over a short period, we find at Lindisfarne a
monk who is so intimately connected with this cathedral that
he demands special attention—the great S. Cuthbert, sixth
bishop of Lindisfarne, and the patron saint of Durham. Little
is known of his birth and parentage. Some writers give him
a Scotch origin, others Irish,1
and others again say he was
born of humble parents on the banks of the Tweed. The
latter is most probable. Certain it is that at an early age
he was left an orphan, and was employed as an under-shepherd
near to Melrose. From his earliest youth he was thoughtful
and pious, and watched and imitated in his mode of life
the monks of Melrose. There are numerous legends and
stories of S. Cuthbert’s youth. He is said to have wrought
many miracles, even to the extent of stilling a tempest. One
of these may be told here on account of the share it played
in his choice of monastic life:—On a certain night in A.D. 651,
while tending his sheep, his companions being asleep,
Cuthbert6
saw in the heavens a brilliant shaft of light, and angels
descending. These very shortly re-ascended, bearing among
them “a spirit of surpassing brightness.” In the morning it
was found that the good S. Aidan was dead. The vision
had a marked and lasting effect on Cuthbert, and eventually
resulted in his entering the monastery at Melrose. For ten
years Cuthbert led a holy and studious life at Melrose, under
Prior Boisil, when he was chosen among others to proceed
to the newly-founded monastery at Ripon. His sojourn
there was, however, short, as owing to doctrinal differences
concerning the celebration of Easter, he and the other
Scottish monks returned to Melrose. Some four years later,
on the death of Boisil, Cuthbert was elected his successor,
as prior of Melrose. In A.D. 664, we find him holding the
same office at Lindisfarne, where he remained for twelve
years. He then retired from his position, in order to attain
a higher degree of Christian perfection by living a solitary
life, first on a small island near Lindisfarne, and afterwards
on the island of Farne, near Bamburgh. There are many
stories told of his great piety at this time, so that even the
wild sea-birds are said to have obeyed him.

In the year A.D. 685 Cuthbert was, though against his own
wishes, consecrated Bishop of Lindisfarne. His great activity
and usefulness in this office was soon cut short, for in less
than two years, on the 20th of March A.D. 687, he died.
Obediently to his own request, his body was wrapped in a
linen cloth, which had been given him by the Abbess Yerca;
and, placed in a stone coffin, the gift of the Abbot Cudda, was
interred in the church at Lindisfarne. He was not to rest,
however. In A.D. 698 the monks disinterred his remains in
order to place them in a specially-prepared wooden coffin. It
is said they found the saint’s body perfectly incorrupt. To
quote the quaint Hegge:

But whiles they opened his coffin, they start at a wonder,
they look’t for bones and found flesh, they expected a skeleton,
and saw an entire bodie, with joynts flexible, his flesh so
succulent, that there only wanted heate to make his bodie live
without a soul, and his face so dissembling death, that elsewhere
it is true that sleep is the image of death, but here
death was the image of sleep. Nay, his very funerall weeds
were so fresh, as if putrefaction had not dared to take him
7by
the coat.2

Whatever may be the truth of this, his body
was placed in a wooden coffin, portions of which are still
preserved in the chapter library at Durham.

Over a century and a half after these events the coast of
Northumbria was disturbed and troubled by the piratical
invasions of the Danes. The number and violence of these
incursions so increased that the whole country lay practically
at their mercy. Becoming alarmed for their own safety and
that of their holy relics, the monks of Lindisfarne fled, taking
with them the body of their saint, and all their sacred vessels
and books. This occurred in A.D. 875.

Here commenced that long wandering which eventually
ended in the founding of the Cathedral Church of Durham,
where the bones of S. Cuthbert found their final resting-place.

Bishop Eardulph and his monks, with their sacred charge,
travelled for seven years, over a great portion of the north of
England and part of the south of Scotland. Many churches
dedicated to S. Cuthbert in the north are thought to mark their
resting-places. From a list of these given by Prior Wessington
the probable route of the wanderers can be approximately,
made out as follows:—First to Elsdon and down the Rede to
Haydon Bridge. Up the South Tyne to Beltinghame, and then
following the route of the Roman Wall to Bewcastle. Turning
south to Salkeld, and thence by Eden Hall and Plumbland
into Lancashire, towards the river Derwent. Here they came
to a determination to cross to Ireland, and took ship from the
mouth of the Derwent. Very soon a violent storm arose, the
vessel became unmanageable and was nearly filled with water,
which, according to Symeon, immediately turned into blood.
A return was inevitable. It was during this attempt that the
famous copy of the Gospels, known as the Durham Book, was
washed overboard into the sea. This book is, perhaps, the
most beautiful example of Anglo-Saxon writing and illumination
extant, and is surpassed only by the celebrated Irish MS.,
the Book of Kells. It was shortly afterwards found on
the coast in a comparatively uninjured condition; and is
now preserved in the British Museum. The wandering
monks next turned northwards as far as Witherne, on the
Galloway coast, and then returned to England, through
8Westmoreland
and across Stainmoor into Teesdale, staying for
a time at a village, which no doubt owes it present name
Cotherstone to this circumstance. Leaving here and crossing
the hills, through Marske, Forcett and Barton, they arrived at
the abbey of Craike, near Easingwold, where they were kindly
treated by the abbot, and remained about four months. On
resuming their journey the monks removed the body of
S. Cuthbert to Cuncachester, or, as we now know it, Chester-le-Street,
a former Roman camp. Here the fraternity remained
for a hundred and thirteen years; and here was the seat of
the Bishopric of Bernicia until A.D. 995. Many are the legends
clustering round these journeyings. How, when leaving Lindisfarne,
the sea opened a passage for them, and how in more
than one difficulty the dead saint himself gave them assistance.
Notably, on one occasion when the bearers were
worn out and weary he appeared and showed them where
they would find a horse and car in which to carry their
burden. This horse and car were afterwards used on their
journeys.

In the year 995, again for safety, they removed once more
under Bishop Aldhun, first for a short time to Ripon, and
then finally to Durham. It is of this last journey the following
story is told:—

“Coming with him” (v. Sanderson), “on the East Side of
Durham, to a Place call’d Wardenlawe, they could not
with all their Force remove his body further, for it seemed
fastened to the Ground; which strange and unforeseen
Accident produced great Astonishment in the Hearts of
the Bishop, the Monks, and their Associates; whereupon
they fasted and prayed three Days with great Devotion,
to know by Revelation from God, what to do with the holy
Body, which was soon granted to them, it being revealed
to Eadmer, a virtuous Man, that he should be carried to
Dunholme, where he was to be received to a Place of Rest.
They were again in great Distress, in not knowing where
Dunholme lay; but as they proceeded, a Woman wanting
her Cow, called aloud to her Companion, to know if she had
seen her? Who answered, She was in Dunholme. This
was an happy and heavenly Sound to the distressed Monks,
who thereby had Intelligence that their Journey’s End was
at Hand, and the Saint’s Body near its Resting-place;
thereupon with great Joy they arrived with his Body at
Dunholme, in the Year 997.”

9

11
Arrived at Dunholm they raised a “little Church of Wands
and Branches” to protect the sacred relics until a building
more worthy of such a charge could be erected. This was
the beginning of the Cathedral and City of Durham.

The condition of the place at this time must have been
very wild, and it certainly was a natural stronghold. The
only open spot seems to have been the plateau where the
cathedral now stands. The site is curiously described in a
Saxon poem, from which the following is a translation:—

As soon as possible a stone chapel was built, in which the
body of S. Cuthbert was placed. Bishop Aldhun, not satisfied
with this, determined to establish a great church. Work was
immediately commenced and progressed so rapidly that the
building, known as “the White Church,” was consecrated in
A.D. 999. Of this there would seem to be no authentic
remains existing; although some authorities think portions
of it are included in the present cathedral. Bishop Aldhun
died in 1018. The next date of importance is the year 1081,
when William of Saint Carileph was appointed Bishop by the
Conqueror. He was a monk of the Benedictine order, and
at once drove out and dispossessed the secular clergy at
Durham, replacing them from the Benedictine Monasteries
which were established at Jarrow and Monkwearmouth.
Bishop Carileph is the man to whom we owe the present
Cathedral of Durham. In 1088 he was obliged to flee into
12
exile in Normandy, where he remained three years, through
his having taken part in the rebellion against William II.
It was probably during this time of banishment that he conceived
the idea that if he returned to Durham he would
build a more worthy church, such as were already erected
and in course of construction in Normandy.

Soon after his return in 1091 he commenced to carry out
his scheme; and we learn that on the 11th of August 1093, the
foundation stone of the new church was laid, with great pomp.

The work proceeded rapidly, commencing at the east
end. By the time of Bishop Carileph’s death, which occurred
in 1096, the walls of the choir, the eastern walls of the
transepts, the tower arches, and a portion of the first bay of
the nave, were completed. It is also very probable that the
lower portion of the walls of the whole church are of Carileph’s
time.

After the death of Bishop Carileph the see of Durham remained
vacant for three years. The monks, however, were
not idle during this period, and they continued the work
vigorously, completing the west walls of the transepts and the
vaulting of the north transept. In 1099 Ralph Flambard
was appointed bishop, and he held the office until 1128. He
carried on the building as the funds at his disposal would
allow, sometimes rapidly and at others more slowly. Before
his death it would appear that he completed the nave as
high as the wall plates and altogether finished and roofed
the aisles. The western towers as far as the height of the
roof of the nave are also the work of Flambard. In 1104 the
work was so far advanced as to permit the removal of the
body of S. Cuthbert, from the temporary shrine which Bishop
Carileph had erected over it, into the new church. This
ceremony was performed on August 29th, 1104, and the
coffin was placed in a shrine behind the high altar.

On Flambard’s death in 1128 the see was again left vacant
for five years, but we are told that the monks continued the
work and completed the nave. The portion built by them
at this time must of necessity have been the vaulting and
roof, the architectural features of which are quite in accordance
with the date, being late Norman.

Flambard’s successor was Galfrid Rufus, who was Bishop
from 1133 to 1140.

13
During his episcopate the chapter-house, which had been
commenced by the monks, was completed. Rufus also
replaced the then existing north and south doorways of the
nave, by those standing to-day.

The next bishop, William de St Barbara (1143 to 1152),
does not appear to have added anything to the cathedral.
During his time of office the see was usurped by William
Cummin, and building operations were no doubt neglected
through the troubles arising from the usurpation. His successor,
Hugh Pudsey (1153 to 1195) was, however, a great builder;
appointed to the see at a comparatively early age, and, living
as he did, at a time when very great changes were taking place
in architectural style, he was able to carry out a great deal
of beautiful work.

He began to build a Lady Chapel at the east end of the
choir, but although he had made careful preparations, and
engaged skilled architects and workmen, great cracks appeared
in the walls before the work had proceeded far, and the
building was stopped. Bishop Pudsey, taking this as a
divine revelation that the work was not pleasing to God,
and the patron S. Cuthbert, abandoned it and commenced
another chapel at the west end of the church, using in its
erection the Purbeck marble bases and columns which he had
had prepared for his eastern chapel. This second attempt
was successful and remains to us in that beautiful and unique
specimen of Transitional work, the Galilee Chapel. Its date
may be taken, says Canon Greenwell, “as about the year
1175.” Besides this work Pudsey built the hall and solar now
called (at the top) the “Norman Gallery” of Durham Castle.

Little or nothing further seems to have been done until the
translation of Bishop Poore from the see of Sarum to Durham
in 1229. The name of Bishop Poore is inseparably connected
with the building of the present Salisbury Cathedral,
and after his removal to Durham he conceived the idea of,
and made preparations for, commencing the eastern transept
of the Cathedral, which is a special feature of Durham, now
known as the Chapel of the Nine Altars. He was not,
however, destined to live to see his idea carried out.

The eastern termination of Carileph’s choir had been apsidal;
it was found to be in a very unsafe condition, cracks and
fissures appearing in the walls. Various bishops and priors
14
sent aid towards “the new work,” but actual building did not
commence until after the death of Bishop Poore in 1237. The
erection was commenced by Prior Melsanby and, of course,
necessitated the taking down of Carileph’s apses. The
revaulting of the choir was undertaken at this time, doubtless,
for artistic reasons, to bring the new work into harmony
with the old. The Chapel of the Nine Altars is a rare and
valuable specimen of Early English Gothic architecture of
remarkable and graceful design. Below each of its nine
lancet windows was originally an altar, dedicated to different
saints. Its great height was obtained by lowering the floor, so
that the unity of the whole exterior should not be destroyed.
Prior Melsanby is also said to have put a new roof on the
church.

Prior Hugh de Derlington, who was at the head of affairs
from 1258 to 1272, and later from 1285 to 1289, added a belfry
to the central tower.

John Fossor, made prior of Durham in 1342, inserted the
large window in the north transept and the west windows of
the nave.

Bishop Thomas de Hatfield (1346 to 1381) seems to have
done no architectural work beyond the erection of his own
throne and tomb (in which he was afterwards buried) on the
south side of the choir. This is an elaborate and sumptuous
piece of work, and shows remains of rich colouring and gilding.
About this time, also, the beautiful altar screen known
as the Neville screen was erected. Its cost was principally
borne by Lord John Neville, though the Priors Fossor and
Berrington and the subordinate cells of Jarrow and Monkwearmouth
were also contributors. The screen is of stone—very
light and graceful, and originally contained in the niches
107 figures, which have unfortunately been destroyed.

Bishop Walter de Skirlaw, who occupied the episcopal throne
from 1388 to 1405, was a great builder. To him mainly we
owe the present cloisters, though they were completed by his
successor, Cardinal Langley, in 1418.

The monks’ dormitory on the western side of the cloister
is also of this time. On the southern side was the refectory.
This portion was rebuilt by Dean Sudbury between 1661 and
1684 and converted into a library, and such it remains to-day.

Near the refectory is the kitchen, built by Prior Fossor. It
15
is octagonal in plan, and possesses a fine groined roof. It is
now attached to the deanery, and known as the dean’s
kitchen.

We must now turn our attention to the erection of the
present central tower. The belfry added by Hugh de
Derlington was in 1429 struck by lightning and set on fire.
It must after this have been repaired in some way, but in
1456 it was in a very unsafe and dangerous condition, as the
following letter written by the prior, William Ebchester, to
Bishop Neville testifies:—

“The Belfry of your church, both in its masonry and
timber, in consequence of winds and storms is so enfeebled
and shaken, that doubts are entertained of its
standing for any length of time. We have called in
workmen in both capacities, and they have reported to us
that three of its sides are out of perpendicular, that many
of the Key and cornerstones of its windows have fallen
out, that in other respects it is defective, and that besides,
its woodwork is in a state of great decay so that it cannot
be expected to stand for any length of time. Some are of
opinion that the belfry should be totally removed as it
cannot stand longer; others on the contrary, wish it to
be perfectly restored; a thing which exceeds our means,
unless we have the advantage of charitable aid. In this
state of doubt and hesitation, we have recourse to you, as
members to their head, presuming not to engage in any
such great and stupendous alteration with reference to your
church, without your advice.

“If, which God forbid, the tower should fall, the solemn
fabric of our choir, and the shrine of our most holy patron,
would without doubt, be broken down and irrevocably laid
flat on the ground, for that is the direction in which it leans.
We confess that whenever winds and storms are high, and
we are standing at our duty in that part of the church we
tremble for our fate, having positive danger before our eyes.”

Shortly afterwards, the rebuilding of all the upper part of
the central tower was commenced and continued for some
years. It was not complete in 1474 when Richard Bell was
prior, as in a letter written at the time he mentions the
“reedificacion of our steeple, begun but nogt fynyshed, in
defaulte of goods, as God knoweth.” It is therefore most
16
probable that the upper portion was not completed until
towards the close of the fifteenth century.

We have now reached a period when the glories of Gothic
architecture were fading, during which many of our finest
churches suffered considerably. Durham is no exception to the
rule, and we find during the next two centuries a long record
of destruction and so-called improvement. This, perhaps,
reached its worst stage during the time of Wyatt, who in 1796
pulled down the magnificent Norman chapter-house. During
the last decade, however, this has been completely rebuilt
from as nearly as possible the original design. Wyatt also
rebuilt the turrets on the eastern transept or Nine Altar Chapel
from his own design, and removed the great Early English
rose window in the east end and replaced it by the present
one. The original stained glass was taken out of all the
windows of the east end, and Raine, in his history, tells us
that it “lay for a long time afterwards in baskets upon the
floor, and when the greater part of it had been purloined,
the remainder was locked up in the Galilee…. At a still
later period, about fifteen years ago, portions of it were
placed in the great round window, and the rest still remains
unappropriated.” This was written in 1833. It is also on
record that Wyatt formed a scheme to re-open the great
western doorway of the cathedral by the pulling down of the
Galilee Chapel, from which he intended constructing a carriage-drive
to the castle. This abomination was actually commenced
when Dean Cornwallis arrived, and he, with the assistance
of John Carter, and the Society of Antiquaries, was fortunately
able to put a stop to it. Thus was this beautiful and unique
specimen of Transitional Norman architecture preserved to us.

Wyatt contemplated several other “improvements” of a
similar character, one of which was the surmounting of the
central tower by a spire, but fortunately he was not allowed
to carry them out.

During the present century many restorations have been
made, of which we will mention only the most notable:—The
central tower was restored by Sir Gilbert Scott in
1859.17

18
During 1870 to 1876 extensive internal alterations were
made. A new choir screen and pulpit were erected, the floor
of the choir laid in marble mosaic, the choir stalls returned to
their original positions, and the walls of the church scraped in
order to clear them from the many coats of lime and distemper
which lay on them.

The Norman chapter-house has lately been restored and in
great part rebuilt as a memorial to the late Bishop Lightfoot.

20

Table of
Contents
21

CHAPTER II
Description of the Exterior

Approaching the Cathedral Church of Durham from the north
by the large open space between it and the Castle, known as
the Palace Green, we obtain a complete elevation of the whole
structure. There is little room to doubt, though the details
naturally vary with the date of erection, that the original plan
of Carileph’s church has been carried out in its entirety,
with two exceptions. These are the addition of the eastern
transept or nine altar chapel at the east, and the Galilee or
Lady Chapel at the west end. The entire length of the building,
not including the Galilee chapel, is 431 feet, which is made up
as follows:—Nine altar chapel 51 feet, the choir 120 feet, the
transept 57 feet, and the nave 203 feet.

The Western Towers are square and solid, and were
evidently included in Carileph’s own scheme, as the wall
arcades on both the interior and exterior are carried round
them. The Norman work is continued as far as the nave roof,
and it is extremely probable that they were originally terminated
at this height, in accordance with the Norman custom, with low
pyramidal spires, probably of wood. Exactly at what date they
were raised is not on record, but the style of architecture of
the upper portion suggests the early part of the thirteenth.
century. The added portion, namely that above the clerestory,
consists of four stages, and is beautifully varied by moulded
arcading, with blind and open arches. The first and third
stages have pointed arches, while those of the second and
fourth are round. Above this again were tall wooden spires
covered with lead. These were removed about the year 1657,
and towards the close of the eighteenth century the present
pinnacles and open parapets were added. At this time, also,
much of the surface of the towers was renewed.

The Central Tower.—The present central tower is noble
22
in proportion, and forms a fitting and harmonious summit to
the whole group. It must needs be of a very different character
from the old Norman tower, of which no trace now remains;
and was most probably of the usual type, low and square, and
surmounted by a short pyramidal spire. The existing structure
may be attributed to Bishop Booth and Prior Richard Bell,
about 1474, when the letter previously quoted was written.
Externally the tower is divided into two storeys. The lower
portion contains, on each side, a pair of two-light windows,
glazed, each divided by a transom, and their heads having an
ogee label crocketed and finished with a tall finial also
crocketed. Between and on either side of these windows are
panelled pilasters and brackets carrying figures. The lower
and upper stages are divided by a narrow external gallery
running round the tower, and protected by a pierced, embattled
parapet. This is known as the Bell Ringers’ Gallery, and
certainly adds greatly to the effect of the tower as a whole.
The upper stage, which is much less lofty, has also two two-light
windows on each face, surmounted by crocketed ogee
label mouldings and finials. These lights are louvred. The
whole is surmounted by a deep open-work parapet. On each
angle of the tower are two buttresses, which are decorated with
panelling and canopied and crocketed niches containing figures.
The interior of the tower or lantern is remarkable for the gallery
which runs round it, which is reached from the roofs of the nave
and choir transepts by doors. It rests on corbels, each alternate
one being carved with grotesque heads, and is protected by a
parapet pierced in quatrefoils. The four doorways are ogee-headed,
with crockets and finials. There is strong evidence in
the construction of the present tower that it was the original
intention to surmount it by some other erection, probably a spire.
Each interior angle contains strong and massive squinches
which are of no constructive use at present, and must have
been originally inserted to carry some superstructure. The
buttresses at the angles are also carried up to the parapet,
which would seem to point to the same conclusion. Why this
project was never carried out cannot be said, but probably it
would not have added to the artistic effect of the tower.
The belfry contains a peal of eight bells.23

The East Front.—The circumstances which led to the
removal of Carileph’s apses and the erection of the eastern
25
transept have already been referred to. The present east end
is divided into three bays by massive buttresses, each of which
contains three lofty lancet windows separated by smaller
buttresses. Over all, and in the gable, is the famous large
rose window. The north and south ends of the transept are
finished with the tall pyramidal pinnacles erected by Wyatt.

The West Front of Durham has, curiously enough, also
lost its original character. The western doorway of the
cathedral is hidden on the exterior by the Galilee or Lady
Chapel, which was added by Pudsey in 1175. Above the
Galilee roof is the large window inserted about the year 1346,
while John Fossor was prior. The pointed arch of this window
has over it, on the exterior, the original great semi-circular arch.
Above this again, and between the two flanking western towers,
is a small gable. The west end of the cathedral, when seen
from the opposite side of the river, is extremely picturesque.
The projecting mass of the Galilee, the western towers, the
foreshortened nave roof, and the majestic central tower behind
and above, form a group of high and rare excellence.

The North Door is now the principal entrance to the
cathedral. Externally the present porch is the work of Wyatt.
The first porch was Norman, of four orders depth, with detached
shafts in the recesses. Above this was a high-pitched gable
and roof, the front being ornamented with a semi-circular-headed
wall arcading. The inner side of the doorway is of two orders
only, and is probably the only remaining portion of the original.
The outer shaft is left plain, while the inner one, in each case,
is most elaborately carved. The capitals are all carved, and
the arch moulds richly ornamented with chevrons, foliage, and
lozenges, as well as many curious figure subjects.
While examining this doorway, notice should be taken of the ironwork
of the door itself, and particularly of the sanctuary knocker.
In mediæval times all churches afforded sanctuary to wrong-doers,
but at places where the shrines of saints existed the
sanctuary privileges were much greater. Durham being one of
these, there are many curious cases on record of persons claiming
the privilege, and protection from the secular law. The
earliest instance, of which any record has been kept, of
sanctuary being claimed at the shrine of S. Cuthbert is during
the episcopate of Cynewulf, who was bishop from 740 to 748,
and the last recorded was in 1524. Criminals claiming
26
sanctuary were admitted by two janitors, who occupied two
small chambers over the doorway, traces of which may still
be observed. The knocker itself, as may be seen from the
illustration, is a great grotesque head, made of bronze, and
hanging from its grinning mouth is
a ring. Originally, there is no doubt,
the eyes were filled with crystals or
enamel, as small claw-like pieces of
bronze remain by which the filling
was attached. The age of this piece
of work is probably the same as that
of the doorway itself.27

The South Doorways.—There
are two doorways into the south aisle,
one, known as the Monks’ Door,
opening from the western portion of
the cloisters and immediately opposite
the north porch just described. On
the cloister side this shows a Norman
arch resting on double shafts, which
are enriched with a lozenge pattern.
28
On the inner or aisle side there are two orders, with
shafts in the recesses, which are also decorated with the
lozenge. The inner arch is carved with chevrons, and
the outer with conventional foliage and medallions. The
capitals are richly carved with foliage and grotesques. On the
abacus and arch of this doorway occurs a leaf pattern strongly
suggesting the Byzantine influence which at one time was found
in Norman decoration. Here again, on the door itself, we have
a fine specimen of very elaborate and characteristic Norman
iron-work. The second, known as the Priors’ Door, opens into
the south aisle from the eastern alley of the cloister, is also
Norman. The outer or cloister side is of the time of Bishop
Pudsey, and has an arch of four orders, with three shafts in the
recesses on either side. Its once elaborate sculpture is now
much decayed, not enough remaining to suggest that in its
original state this doorway must have been a noble specimen
of the architectural design of its period. On the inner side it
exhibits work of Carileph’s time, with an early arch, cushion
capitals, and shafts.

The Western Doorway.—The exterior of this great doorway
is now within the Galilee chapel. It was built by Flambard
(1099-1128), and is comparatively plain. On the Galilee side it
consists of an arch of four orders ornamented with chevrons.
The inner face is very similar to the outer, but is shallower,
having only two orders. The shafts and capitals are without
decoration, and the arch ornamented with chevron and a leaf
pattern with medallions carved with grotesque animals. In
29
order to reopen this doorway and make a carriage road up to
it, Wyatt proposed pulling down the Galilee chapel.

The Cloister occupies a large open space, bounded on the
south, east, and west by the various monastic buildings, and
on the north by the cathedral itself. The existing cloister was
commenced during the time of Bishop Skirlaw (1388 to 1406),
and was completed by Cardinal Langley (who held the see
from 1406 till 1438), probably in the earlier part of his episcopate.
The contracts (the first dated 1398) for building the
cloister are still preserved in the treasury. We are indebted
to Bishop Skirlaw for their very existence, as it is recorded that
he contributed sums of money for this purpose, both during his
life and by his will. The cloister, as seen to-day, has been
very much altered and restored, and probably the only original
30feature
remaining is the fine oaken ceiling. This is panelled,
and moulded, and decorated with shields, upon which are painted
and gilded various coats of arms. In the centre of the cloister
garth are the remains of what was the monks’ lavatory. It was
erected in the years 1432 and 1433, and was of octagonal shape.
Some of the stone for its construction was brought from
Egglestone-on-Tees, on payment of rent to the abbot of that place
to quarry it. It is said to have had twenty-four brass spouts,
seven windows, and in its upper storey a dovecote, the roof of
which was covered with lead.

There is no doubt that there was a cloister attached to the
monastery in its early days, but of this no trace remains. It is
also probable that one was erected by Bishop Pudsey, though
this also has entirely vanished, unless (as suggested by Canon
Greenwell) some marks of a lean-to roof on the north and east
walls may be traces of its presence. In the western alley of the
cloister is the old treasury, rich in records, and the vestries for
canons, king’s scholars, and choristers. The alley opens at the
end into what is now called the crypt (see p. 85). This was undoubtedly
the common hall of the monks. It is a spacious stone-vaulted
chamber. The columns are low and massive, with simple
moulded caps, from which the chamfered vaulting ribs diverge.
Over the hall or crypt is the dormitory, which for a long time
formed part of a residence attached to one of the stalls. It is
now, however, used as a library. It occupies the whole of the
western side of the cloister, and is 194 feet long. It was
originally subdivided, by wooden partitions, into separate
sleeping-rooms for each monk. Its massive roof of oak is
worthy of attention, the tree trunks being merely roughly
squared with an axe (see p. 99).

In the south alley was the refectory and the monks’
common dining-hall. The original building is now entirely
altered, though there remains beneath it a very early crypt,
with plain, short square piers, and a simple quadripartite vault
without ribs. Another portion is covered by a wagon-head
vault. Whether the original refectory was of similar architectural
character it is now impossible to say, as, whatever it
may have been, it was removed early in the sixteenth century
and rebuilt, and after the dissolution of the monastery was used
by the Minor Canons of the church as a common hall. It
seems to have fallen into a bad state of repair, and was again31
entirely reconstructed by Dean Sudbury (1661-1684), who was
elected to that office immediately after the Restoration. He
converted it into a library, to which use it is still put. The
account of this building, given in the “Antiquities of Durham,”
is of sufficient interest to bear quotation.

“In the South Alley of the Cloysters,” says our authority, “is
a large Hall, called the Frater-house, finely wainscotted on
the North and South sides; and in the West and
nether Part thereof, is a long Bench of Stone in Mason-work, from the
Cellar Door to the Pantry or Cove Door: Above the Bench
is Wainscot Work two Yards and a Half high, finely carved,
and set with imboss’d Work in Wainscot, and gilded under
the carved Work. Above the Wainscot was a large Picture of
our Saviour Christ, the blessed Virgin Mary, and S. John, in
fine gilt Work, and most excellent Colours; which Pictures
having been washed over with Lime did long appear through it.
This Wainscot had engraven on the Top of it, Thomas Castell,
Prior, Anno Domini, 1518 Mensis Julij. Whence it is manifest
that Prior Castell wainscotted the Frater-house round
about.

“Within the Frater-house Door, on the Left Hand at entering,
is a strong Almery in the Wall, wherein a great Mazer,
called the Grace Cup, stood, which every day served the
Monks after Grace, to drink out of round the Table; which
cup was finely edged about with Silver, and double Gilt. In
the same place were kept many large and great Mazers of the
same sort…. Every Monk had his Mazer severally by
himself to drink in, and had all other Things that served the
whole Convent, and the Frater-house in their daily Service,
at their Diet, and at their Table…. At these Times (at
meals) the Master observed these wholesom and godly Orders,
for the continual instruction of their Youth in Virtue and
Learning; that is, one of the Novices appointed by the
Master, read some Part of the Old and New Testament in
Latin, during Dinner, having a convenient place at the South
End of the High Table, within a beautiful Glass Window,
encompass’d with Iron, and certain Stone Steps, with Iron
Rails to go up to an Iron Desk, whereon lay the Holy
Bible….

“This Fabrick retained the Name of the Petty Canons’ Hall
till Dr Sudbury, Dean of the Cathedral, generously erected a
32
beautiful Library in its Place; but he not living to finish it
compleatly, did by (a clause) in his Last Will, bind his Heir,
Sir John Sudbury, to the due Execution thereof.”

The contents of the library are both numerous and interesting.
There are several thousands of volumes, many of them being rare
and valuable. Numerous ancient illuminated MSS., among
which is a copy of the Gospels of S. Mark, S. Luke, and S.
John, written before the year 700; and several books given by
Bishops Carileph and Pudsey. Among the latter is a Bible, in
four volumes, in its original stamped leather binding. A collection
of ancient copes belonging to the cathedral, and the
remains of the robes of S. Cuthbert, and other relics taken
from his coffin when it was exhumed, in 1827, may also be seen
here. Numerous specimens of Roman altars, tablets, and
sculptured stones, from various Roman stations in Durham
and Northumberland, notably from Hexham, are preserved in
this library, which is open to the public on Tuesday and
Friday in each week from eleven to one. The room is finely
proportioned, and has a magnificent open timber roof.33

The Chapter-House opens upon the eastern alley of the
cloister. The present building is a very recent restoration of
the original, which is acknowledged to have been the finest
existing Norman chapter-house remaining in England. It was
erected, or more probably completed, during the time of
Bishop Galfrid Rufus (1133-1140), and was in existence until
1796, during the episcopate of Bishop Barrington. At that
time it was almost totally destroyed, on the advice of Wyatt,
who reported to the chapter that it was in a ruinous state. The
truth of this report is doubtful, but the partial demolition
of the building was ordered in November 1795, and also the
construction of a new room on the site. The work of destruction
was begun by knocking out the keystones of the vaulting and
34
allowing the roof to fall in. The eastern half of the building
was then altogether removed, and the remaining portion enclosed
by a wall. Its interior was faced with lath and plaster,
a plaster ceiling and a boarded floor being added. Fortunately
authentic records of its original appearance, both exterior and
interior, are in existence. They are the drawings made for the
Society of Antiquaries by John Carter in 1795. Its dimensions
were 78 by 35 feet; the east end being apsidal and the
roof a vault of one span. Round the wall of the interior ran
a stone bench raised on two steps, which was surmounted,
except at the west end, by a wall arcade, of round-headed
intersecting arches, similar to that in the aisles of the
cathedral, but with single instead of double shafts. Above
the arcade was a string course carved with zig-zag ornament.
The entrance was from the west end, and the east end was
occupied by two seats, one for the bishop and one for the
prior. In the apse were five three-light windows of the
Decorated period, and above the western door a five-light
Perpendicular window, which contained coloured glass,
illustrating the “Root of Jesse.” On either side of this
was a window of two lights, divided by a shaft and enclosed
under one arch, carved with chevron ornament.
There was also a round-headed Norman window in each
of the north and south walls. A doorway in the south wall
led to three chambers, one larger, and two smaller, which
are stated in the “Rites of Durham” to have been used
as a prison for the monks. The chapter-house was used
in early times as a burial-place for the bishops, and many
of their graves with inscriptions were in existence previous
to the demolition of 1796. During excavations in 1874,
the graves of Bishops Flambard, Galfrid Rufus, S. Barbara,
de Insula, and Kellaw were opened, when various rings and
the head of a crozier were discovered and removed to the
dean and chapter library.

The chapter-house has now been entirely restored as a
memorial to the late Bishop Lightfoot.

The Northern Alley of the Cloister, running along the
south wall of the church, contains little of interest, except
the two doorways previously described.

The effect of the cloister as a whole, in its original condition,
with the windows glazed, many containing fine stained glass,
35
the oak roof with its heraldry and colour, and the lavatory
in the centre of the garth, must have been exceptionally fine.

A sculptured panel on the north-west turret of the Nine
Altar Chapel is now known as the Dun Cow. The original
sculpture was replaced in the last century by the existing
panel, but the legend connected with it is interesting. After
their flight from Chester-le-Street, the monks, bearing the body
of S. Cuthbert, remained some time at Ripon. While trying
to return to Chester-le-Street, at a place called Wardlaw, the
coffin stuck fast, and remained absolutely fixed. A fast of
three days was proclaimed and kept, when it was revealed to
them that they were to carry their saint to Dunholme. Still
they were in difficulties, not knowing where Dunholme was,
but fortune, or Providence, again favoured them. A woman,
who had lost a cow, passed, calling to a companion to inquire
if she had seen the animal. The reply was that her cow was
in Dunholme; and, to the relief of the monks, they and their
precious charge soon safely arrived there. In grateful
36
commemoration of the incident Flambard erected this monument
of a milkmaid and her cow. (See p. 9.)

The exterior of Durham Cathedral as a whole may at first
sight be disappointing to the visitor. Seen from a near view
there is a certain flatness of effect and want of light and shade
which is, perhaps, slightly unpleasant. This is, however, largely
attributable to the scaling and scraping process to which the
building was subjected during the last century, when some
inches of the outer surface of the stone, and with it much
architectural detail, were removed. The result is the flatness
previously alluded to, and a general newness of appearance
pervades the structure. Seen, however, from a distance, where
only the finely-grouped and proportioned masses of masonry,
towers, and turrets stand against the sky, the result is magnificent,
giving an impression of grandeur and dignity unsurpassed
by any other English cathedral.

38

Table of
Contents
39

CHAPTER III
Description of the Interior

If the exterior of Durham is in any way disappointing, the
interior more than compensates for its shortcomings. The
general impression on entering the church is one of simple
dignity and solemnity. The great massiveness of the structure
and absence of elaborate ornament no doubt contribute to
this feeling. The pious builders of old have certainly contrived
to stamp on their work their own feeling of awe in the
presence of the All-Powerful and Eternal God. Whatever has
been lost through vandalism and the restorer, this remains
unaltered. The general design of the church, exclusive of
detail, which, of course, changed and developed with the
progress of Gothic art, has undoubtedly been carried out on
the plan intended by Bishop Carileph, the only important
variation being the addition of the transept at the east end,
known as the Nine Altars Chapel. The original plan consists
of a nave and aisles, transepts with aisles on their eastern side,
a choir also with aisles, and the three apses of the east end,
with a central tower over the junction of transepts, nave, and
choir, and towers flanking the west end.

Each bay of the Nave is divided into two sub-bays. The
main bays have massive piers with engaged shafts on the
recessed faces. The bases of these are cruciform in plan,
though the arms of the cross are very short. At the height of
the springing of the arch the shafts are surmounted by plain
cushion capitals. The division into sub-bays is effected by
the introduction midway of a massive round column on a
square base. These columns are ornamented in various ways,
by channels cut on the face. Some take the form of a zig-zag,
some a spiral, others a spiral in two directions, forming a trellis-like
pattern, and others again are reeded vertically. Their
capitals are octagonal cushions. The arches of the sub-bays
40
are recessed square, with the usual Norman roll moulding,
decorated with chevrons, and on the wall face a square billet.
The chevron ornament is absent in the earlier work in the
choir and transepts. The triforium is almost uniform
throughout the whole church. In each sub-bay it consists
of two small arches under one larger one, with the tympanum
solid. Here also the capitals are cushions and perfectly plain.

Above the triforium is the clerestory, which contains one
light to each sub-bay, and surmounting all is the vaulting,
which springs from the piers and from grotesquely carved
corbels between the triforium arches. The vaulting ribs are
ornamented with chevrons on either side of a bold semi-circular
moulding. So much for the general arrangement of the bays.
Some idea of the massiveness of the structures may be gathered
when it is known that each group of the clustered pillars separating
the bays covers an area of two hundred and twenty-five
square feet at its base, while those of the cylindrical columns of
the sub-bays are twelve feet square, and the columns themselves
have a circumference of over twenty-three feet. There is little
room to doubt that the effect obtained by the old builders of
Durham was intentional. The masterly way in which great
masses of solid masonry, greater than was constructively
necessary, are handled, and the reticence and delicacy of the
ornament combine to prove this. There is in the whole
scheme a delightful union of great power and vigour in the
masses, and of tenderness and loving care in the detail.

The Choir is the earliest part of the church. Its two
western bays show Carileph’s work, but the eastern piers have
been considerably altered owing to the addition at a later
period of the eastern transept, when Carileph’s apses were
taken down. This bay contains some very rich and beautiful
detail. The piers on either side of the choir are decorated
with arcades, the lower stage having six arches, and the upper
three, all richly carved with foliage in the caps and hood
moulds, and with heads and half figures. There is also a
square aumbry on each pier. Above the upper arcade, which
breaks through the level of the triforium string course, which is
also carried round it, there is on each pier a figure of an angel
beneath a canopy. These are the only two figures remaining
of many which formerly added to the beauty of the interior of
the church. The vaulting of the choir is thirteenth-century
work, quadripartite, the ribs decorated with dog-tooth ornament
and square leaves, and has fine bosses at the intersections
of the diagonal ribs. The choir of Durham is especially interesting
to the student of architecture, showing as it does the
Early Norman work of Carileph, combined with the Early
English and Early Decorated work of the newer eastern
portion.41

43
On the south side of the choir stands the monument of
Bishop Hatfield, who directed the see of Durham from 1345
until 1381. This monument is beneath the Episcopal Throne,
which was erected by Bishop Hatfield himself. It consists of
an altar tomb surmounted by a recumbent effigy of the bishop,
in richly-worked robes, beneath a canopy, richly groined, with
foliated bosses at the intersections of the ribs. On the walls
at the east and west ends may still be seen the remains of
fresco painting, representing in each case two angels. Beneath
the staircase leading up to the throne is a very fine decorated
arcade, containing several shields bearing the bishop’s and
other arms. The whole structure was originally richly coloured
and gilded, and remains of this work can still be made out.
It is a noble specimen of the work of its date.

Immediately opposite the tomb of Bishop Hatfield, on the
north side of the choir, the visitor will notice the recently-erected
memorial to the late Bishop Lightfoot. This is an
altar tomb of black and coloured marble. The sides are ornamented
with panels of Perpendicular tracery containing shields.
Round the upper mouldings runs a Latin inscription in brass.
The whole is surmounted by a recumbent figure of the bishop
in white marble, his hands on his breast, and his feet resting
against three books. Originally designed by Sir Edgar
Boehm, R.A., at his death the monument was completed by
Alfred Gilbert, R.A.

The beautiful altar screen is usually known as the
Neville Screen, and was erected about the year 1380,
mainly from moneys supplied by John, Lord Neville of Raby.
It spans the whole of the choir, and is continued along the
sides of the sacrarium, forming sedilia of four seats on either
side. It is pierced by two doors, which lead to the shrine of
S. Cuthbert, immediately behind the screen. Though very
light and graceful in appearance, the screen, as it is at present,
can give the beholder little idea of what its appearance must
44
have been when each of its canopied niches contained a figure
aglow with gold and colour. There were originally 107 of
these statues, the centre one representing Our Lady, supported
on either side by S. Cuthbert and S. Oswald. Unfortunately
none of the figures remain in situ.

Immediately in front of the steps of the high altar will be
seen the matrix of a large brass. It covers the grave of
Ludovick de Bellomonte, Bishop of Durham from 1318 to
1333. The slab, which is in two pieces, measures fifteen feet
ten inches by nine feet seven inches, and an examination will
show the brass to have been an elaborate and sumptuous
composition. Unfortunately all the metal work has disappeared.

The Stalls, as they originally existed, were destroyed in
1650 by the Scottish prisoners, who were kept in the cathedral
after the battle of Dunbar. The present stalls we owe to
Bishop Cosin (1660 to 1672), and they are remarkable pieces
of carving for that date. In general character they imitate
Perpendicular work, though the details do not adhere altogether
to that style.

Before leaving this part of the church a note may be devoted
to the alterations and additions made during the years 1870 to
1876. A new screen between the nave and choir was then
erected; the choir floor relaid with marble mosaic; the stalls
replaced in their old positions, and new portions made to
replace those destroyed in 1846. A new organ, pulpit, and
lectern were also added.

The new Choir Screen is very much open to criticism.
Though no doubt beautiful in detail, and of excellent workmanship,
its effect, as a whole, is not pleasant, when seen
from the west end silhouetted against the light of the choir.
A screen previously existed in this position erected by Bishop
Cosin. This was removed in 1846, with the idea of improving
the appearance of the church from the west end by
obtaining a “vista” through to the Neville screen and rose
window of the eastern transept. The effect seems, however,
to have been disappointing, hence the erection of the present
screen, which may or may not have improved matters. In
the two western piers of the choir holes may be seen cut in
the stonework. These received the rood-beam from which,
during Lent, the Lenten curtain was suspended.45

47

49
The North Aisle of the Choir, again, shows the joining
and harmonising of the “new work” of the eastern transept
with the earlier Norman work. Inside the church the most
easterly bay appears to be altogether of Early English date;
but on the exterior it will be seen that the Norman wall runs
right up to the western wall of the eastern transept. The
interior of the bay, however, is enriched with a wall arcade
similar to that in the Nine Altars Chapel, and the arch and
vault are decorated with foliage and dog-tooth ornament.

Along the side wall of this aisle runs a stone bench bearing
the arms of Bishop Walter de Skirlaw (1388 to 1405), near
which he was buried, but his monument and brass, erected by
himself, have disappeared.

Slightly westward of the bench is a doorway which at
one time opened into the Sacrist’s Exchequer, erected by
Prior Wessington, but it has long ago been destroyed.

The piers of the west end of this aisle bear marks which
were originally holes cut in the stone. These served to support
a porch, having a rood and altar, which is thus described in the
“Rites of Durham”:

“Right over the Entrance of this North
Alleye, going to the Songe Scoole (the Exchequer mentioned
above) there was a porch adjoyninge to the quire on the
South, and S. Benedick’s altar on the North, the porch having
in it an altar, and the roode or picture of our Saviour, which
altar and roode was much frequented in devotion by Docteur
Swalwell, sometime monk of Durham, the said roode havinge
marveilous sumptuous furniture for festivall dayes belonginge
to it.”

The South Aisle Of the Choir is similar architecturally
to the north aisle. Here may be seen a doorway, of late
thirteenth-century work, which originally led to the revestry,
now destroyed.

Here again the eastern piers bear marks left by holes in the
stonework, which originally earned the supports of a screen, in
front of which the Black Rood of Scotland, which was taken
from King David at the battle of Neville’s Cross (1346), was
placed. The rood is described as having been brought from
Holyrood by David Bruce, and was made of silver, with effigies
of our Saviour, S. John, and Our Lady, having crowns of gold
on their heads. The Black Rood was restored to its original
possessors at the close of the war.

50
The windows of both the choir aisles originally contained
very fine old stained glass, representing various saints, and
scenes in the life of S. Cuthbert.

The Transepts.—Leaving the choir by its western end
the visitor at once enters the transepts. A large portion of
these, including the great piers and arches which carry the
central tower, are, without doubt, of the time of Carileph. The
eastern side of both is certainly his work, while the western is
probably the building which was carried on by the monks in
the interval between Carileph’s death, in 1096, and the appointment
of Flambard to the see in 1099. The work on the
eastern sides differs little from that of the choir, while that of
the western sides, being plainer, has been thought by some to
indicate a want of means on the part of the monks, while
carrying on the work in the interval just alluded to. Each
transept consists of two bays, with an aisle on the eastern side,
access to which is gained by the ascent of three steps.

Each of the three sub-bays nearest the north and south
extremities originally contained an altar, those in the north
transept being dedicated to S. Nicholas and S. Giles, S.
Gregory and S. Benedict. Over the site of the latter may still
be seen remains of fresco painting. The altars in the south
transept were dedicated—one to S. Faith and S. Thomas the
Apostle, one to our Lady of Bolton and the other to our Lady
of Houghall. The north transept is closed by a large window,
which is the work of Prior Fossor, probably about the year
1362. The window is of six lights, and the head contains late
geometrical tracery. The architectural feature of this window,
especially for its date, is the transom which crosses the mullions,
and which is not visible from the exterior. Below the
transom is a second inner set of mullions supporting a small
gallery, by means of which access may be had to the triforium.
In the year 1512 the window was repaired by Prior Castell,
who filled it with stained glass containing large figures, among
others of S. Augustine, S. Ambrose, S. Gregory, and S. Jerome.
From this circumstance the window became known as the
window of the Four Doctors of the Church. Prior Castell also
contrived to introduce a figure of himself kneeling at the feet
of the Virgin. The large window at the end of the south
transept, also named from the glass it contained, the Te Deum
window, is in the Perpendicular style, and is of six lights. It
may possibly have been the work of Prior Wessington, 1416 to
1446. Along the sill of this window also access may be had
to the triforium.51

53
Both the north-west and south-west corners of the transepts
contain stairways, opening at their various levels on to the
triforium, clerestory, and the space between the vaulting and
the roof. That in the south transept also gives access to the
central tower and belfry, an ascent of which, if the day be
clear, will repay the visitor for his fatiguing climb of three
hundred and forty steps by the magnificent view spread at
his feet. The transepts were no doubt the earliest part of
the building to be vaulted; that of the northern arm being
plain is probably the earlier, while that of the south arm,
though of similar character, has zig-zag ornaments. Several
of the priors of Durham were buried in the transepts, the first,
Prior Fossor, 1364, and the last, Robert Ebchester, who died
in 1484.

On the piers of the transepts projecting brackets may be
noticed. These are of Perpendicular date, and originally
carried statues.

The crossing, or space between the four piers supporting
the central tower, gives us a fine view of the interior of the
lantern.

The Tower is carried on four large clustered Norman piers
with semi-circular arches. Over the arches, and seventy-seven
feet above the floor of the church, is the lower stage of the
lantern, round which is a gallery with an open pierced parapet.
It rests on corbels, each alternate one being carved with a
grotesque head. The walls are panelled up to the base of
the great windows,—each panel having two cinquefoiled
arches under a crocketed canopy and final; while between
them are small buttresses, also panelled, and ending in a
finial which reaches the same height as the canopy. Over
the panelling is a string course ornamented with that characteristic
ornament of the Perpendicular period, the Tudor
flower, and above this on each face two tall windows near
together. Each window has two lights, and is divided by a
transom. The roof of the lantern is groined, with fine bosses
at the intersections of the ribs. The whole seen from below
has a very fine effect, and must be very different in appearance
from the original Norman structure. The whole of the
54
lantern was refaced, and the statues which had been removed
from their niches were replaced, some thirty years ago, by the
Dean and Chapter of Durham.

The Norman East End.—The original form of the
Norman east end has long been the subject of discussion and
conjecture. It was practically safe to assume that the choir
ended in an apse, though whether the aisles were also apsidal,
or continued round a great apse as an ambulatory, was a
debatable point. This question has now been finally settled.55

57
During some operations necessitating the opening of the floor,
in January 1895, certain indications were found which led
the diocesan architect, Mr C.H. Fowler, and Canon Greenwell
to continue the excavation. The result was the discovery
that Carileph’s church certainly possessed three apses—a large
one terminating the choir, and smaller ones the aisles. The
apses of the aisles were square externally, and apsidal internally.
The great apse consisted of five bays, one on either side
next to the choir, forming an oblong between the choir and
the springing line of the curve of the apse, over which would
be the great sanctuary arch. The remainder, or apse proper,
was divided into three bays by engaged clustered shafts, similar
to those of the choir and nave. It was surrounded by a wall
arcade of the same character as that of the rest of the church.
The base of one of the shafts of the arcade was found in
position. An extremely interesting point in this discovery is
the fact that the levels are the same as those of the nave and
choir. The foundations are on the rock at the same depth,
and the aisle walls and apse walls are in the same line. The
external square line of the aisle apses is in line with the springing
of the choir apse. The foundations of the apse to the north aisle
have been thoroughly excavated, and there is every reason to
believe that that on the south side of the church entirely corresponds.
The width of the north aisle apse from north to south
is nine feet eight inches. There can be little doubt, judging
from the remainder of Carileph’s work, that all three apses
were covered with stone vaults, though of precisely what
character can only be a matter of conjecture. The cracking,
previously spoken of, which led to this part of the church
being taken down and the new eastern transept being erected,
cannot have arisen from any subsidence of the foundations.
It, in all probability, was the result of the thrust of the apse
vaults on to walls which were insufficiently buttressed. The
marks on some of the stones found during this excavation, and
the shape of others, seem to point to the conclusion that here
we have the earliest part of the church, and that Carileph used
up in his foundations much of the stone of Aldhun’s White
Church.

Of the two usual eastern endings to Norman churches—viz.
those with three apses, and those having the aisle carried
round as an ambulatory—the latter is far more common in
58
England, and the former on the Continent. There are two
other notable instances of the three apsidal arrangement in
England: S. Albans, 1077, which is earlier than Durham;
and Peterboro’, 1117, which is later than, and was probably
modelled on, Durham. There are many examples of ambulatories—the
White Tower Church (London), Winchester,
Gloucester, Worcester, and Norwich being among them.

The apses of Durham are of considerable depth from east to
west, the oblong bay previously mentioned, which is fourteen
feet wide in that direction, adding greatly to this effect. The
width of the foundations is fourteen feet, and the width of the
wall has been seven feet. The diameter of the choir apse
from north to south was about thirty-two feet.

These discoveries are specially interesting, completing as
they do the whole chain, and leading us with very little
imagination to see in its original condition what must have
been, and may even now claim to be, the most noble example
of Norman architecture in our country.

59

61
The Nine Altars Chapel.—Leaving the consideration of
what once occupied the site of the east end of Durham, we
will turn our attention to the beautiful erection which now
stands there, the eastern transept, or, as it is named from the
altars of the saints it once contained beneath its windows, the
Chapel of the Nine Altars.
It is approached from the
aisles by steps, the floor level
being lower than that of the
church proper. It is altogether
a remarkable and interesting
structure. With its lightness
and loftiness contrasting
grandly with the massive
Norman nave and choir, its
clustered columns of polished
marble alternating with stone,
its fine bold sculpture, its
splendid vaulted roof and rich
arcading, it forms a perfect
example of the Early English
style. Though regular and symmetrical in general design, the
detail shows great variety, and even irregularity, a quality so
often present in old work, and so much to its advantage. In
62
general character it may be compared with that at Fountains
Abbey, which was built during the same time.

The circumstances leading to its erection have been already
referred to. The Norman apses having
been partly removed, owing to their
dangerous condition, the “New Work,”
as it was always called, was commenced
in the year 1242. The eastern wall,
with its rose and nine lancet windows,
is the earliest part of the chapel, the
north and south walls being later.
The joining and blending of the work
with the Norman of Carileph’s choir
had evidently been accomplished when
the chapel was almost completed.
The eastern wall is of three bays, each
bay having three lofty lancet windows.
The bays are not of equal width, the
centre one being regulated by the width of the nave of the
church, and narrower than the north and south bays.

A very beautiful arcade
runs completely
round the walls. It is
of trefoil arches, deeply
and richly moulded,
supported on marble
columns carved with
foliage. Over the arches
is a hood mould terminating
with heads. In
the spandrels are a series
of deeply-sunk and
moulded quatrefoils,
two of which contain
sculpture. The bases
of the columns rest on
a plinth. Surmounting
this arcade is a moulded
string, from the level of
which rise the windows, and above the windows another string
course and a second range of windows. In the centre bay,
however, is the large rose window, which is over thirty feet in
diameter.63

65
The division of the chapel into three bays is effected by
two main vaulting arches, which spring on the western side
from the piers of the east end of the choir, and on the eastern
side from responds of clustered shafts alternately of marble
and stone, banded at intervals and having richly carved
capitals. The arches themselves are deeply moulded and
ornamented with dog-tooth ornament and foliage. The vault
of the central bay has eight ribs—two springing from each
of the clusters just described, and two from each of the choir
piers. The vaulting of the remaining bays is quadripartite, but
has peculiarities which are worthy of notice, arising from
inequality of width. We must not omit to call attention to
the exquisite sculpture of the vaulting. The centre has figures
of the Four Evangelists, while in the north is a beautifully
executed carving of vine and grapes, and in the south, figure
subjects. Among the sculptured heads on the wall arcade at
the south end, at the western side of the two bays into which
the south wall is divided, are two which are portraits of the
men to whom we owe the design and execution of the beautiful
sculpture of this chapel. One is an elderly man, the other
much younger, and both wear linen dust-caps over their heads.

The nine lancet windows were originally filled with ancient
stained glass, which, as the reader will remember, was removed,
Below each window was an altar. They were dedicated a
follows, beginning at the south end of the chapel:—

The rose window over the lancets of the middle bay is
Wyatt’s “restoration” of the original one. It consists of an
outer circle of twenty-four and an inner circle of twelve
radiating lights, the mullions of which are received on a
foliated circle in the centre.

66
In the north wall of the chapel is a very fine window, known
as the Joseph window, on account of the stained glass it originally
contained, which illustrated the life-history of Joseph. It is a
beautiful example of Early Decorated or geometrical Gothic,
and is of six lights. There is an inner plane of tracery resting
on clustered shafts, which is connected to the mullions of the
window proper by through stones. The window occupies the
complete width of the north end of the chapel. The painted
glass which it once contained is
thus described in the “Rites of
Durham”:

This window deserves the attention
of the architectural student,
as it is an exceedingly fine specimen
of the tracery of its date.

The south wall of the chapel
contains two windows, each divided
by a central mullion, and having
an inner mullion connected by
through stones. They are widely
splayed inwards, and separated by
a group of vaulting shafts. One or both of these windows
contained stained glass, with the history of the life and
miracles of S. Cuthbert. As seen at present, they contain
tracery of the Perpendicular period, a restoration of
that inserted by Prior Wessington. Each window is of
two lights, crossed by a transom. Entry to the nine altars
was provided for, as well as from the choir and aisles, by
two doors on the western side of its north and south walls.
The northern doorway is now walled up. They enter through
the wall arcade. The writer of the “Rites of Durham” says
the north door was made in order to bring in the body of
Bishop Anthony Bek, who is buried in the chapel. The architectural
features of the doorway would, however, seem to contradict
this theory, and there is little room to doubt that both
north and south doorways formed part of the original design of
the structure.67

69
Before leaving this interesting portion of the building we
must direct our attention to its most important contents, the
Tomb of S. Cuthbert. This, as at present to be seen, is a
great oblong platform, thirty-seven feet long by twenty-three
feet wide, and its upper surface or floor six feet above the floor
of the chapel. Beneath a slab in the centre the bones of
the patron saint rest. The shrine of S. Cuthbert at
one time stood upon this platform, but of that no vestige
remains.

The floor of the platform is reached by two doors through
the Neville screen in the choir, and by a small stairway from
the south aisle. The wanderings of the monks of Lindisfarne
with the body of their saint, their many difficulties and trials,
and their ultimate settlement at Dunholme or Durham, have
already been described. The shrine was eventually set up in
its present position by Bishop Carileph, in 1104, when he
brought it from the cloister garth from the tomb he had there
set up for its temporary reception, until his church was sufficiently
advanced to permit of its removal thither. It was visited
by large numbers of pilgrims, and many important personages
were among them. Of these may be mentioned William the
Conqueror, Henry III. (1255), Edward II. (1322), and Henry
VI. (1448). The shrine was destroyed soon after the surrender
of the monastery to the Crown, in 1540, when the body was
buried beneath the place where its former receptacle had stood.
There have since this time been traditions that the exact place of
the burial was secret, and known only, according to one account,
to three Benedictine monks, who each handed the secret down
to a successor. The other tradition places the knowledge of
the place of burial in the hands of the Roman Catholic bishops
of the Northern Province. One of these traditions was made
public in the year 1867, and gave the place of interment as
being under the second and third steps leading to the tower
from the south transept. This place was excavated and
examined, but no trace of any burial could be found there. It
70
is to these traditions that Scott refers, in Marmion, in the
following lines:—

In May 1827 the grave in the Nine Altars Chapel was
opened in the presence of two of the church dignitaries and
other persons. Dr Raine, who was also present, has left a
careful account of the discoveries then
made.3
The outer coffin, that made in 1542, was first removed, revealing a second and
much decayed coffin and many bones. After the removal
of these relics the lid of a third oak coffin was revealed, in
a very advanced state of decay. This innermost coffin was
covered over its entire surface with carvings of human figures,
the heads surrounded by a nimbus. When this coffin was
removed the skeleton was exposed to view, wrapped in coverings,
the outer of which had been of linen. The robes beneath
were much decayed, and only portions of them could be preserved.
On the breast of the body, among the robes, a comb
was found, answering exactly to that described by Reginald
in 1104. Among the most interesting of the finds were a stole
and maniple.

The stole is of very early date, and is of needlework in
colours and gold. The centre design is a quatrefoil, inside
which is a lamb with nimbus, and the letters AGNV DI.
On either side are figures of Old Testament prophets, with
their names. Near the ends the embroidery occurs on both
sides of the stole, on the back of one of which among foliage
is the inscription ÆLFFLAED FIERI PRECEPIT, which is
continued on the back of the opposite end, thus—PIO
EPISCOPO FRIDESTANO. The translation of this inscription
71
is to the effect that Aelfled commanded the stole to be
made for the pious Bishop Frithestan. The maniple is of a
similar character, and also bears ornament, figures, and
inscriptions.4
Frithestan was made Bishop of Winchester in 905.
Aelfled, who was Queen of Eadward, the son and successor of
Alfred, died in 916. It was therefore during these ten years
that she caused this stole and maniple to be made for the
Bishop Frithestan. It is recorded that the son and successor
of Eadward, by name Athelstan, when on a journey in the
north visited Chester-le-Street and the shrine of S. Cuthbert,
which was then at that place. Among other presents he left
as offerings a stole and maniple, and a girdle and two bracelets
of gold. It is a curious fact that a girdle and two gold bracelets
were found along with the stole and maniple in the grave,
in 1827, and leaves very little doubt that they are the ones
mentioned above. The bones of the saint were quite intact,
and none were missing. They were, with the other relics,
placed in a new coffin, and the grave re-covered. Some portions
of the inner coffin, with the stole, two maniples, the girdle
and bracelets and fragments of the robes are now carefully preserved
in the Dean and Chapter Library. A large gold cross
found among the robes, decorated with garnets, and of workmanship
of the time of S. Cuthbert is also preserved in the
library. These discoveries seem to speak for themselves, and
to leave very little room for doubt that the body exhumed and
examined in 1827 was really that of the patron saint of the
church.

There were also found in the grave bones of infants,
supposed to be relics of the Holy Innocents, and a skull, most
probably that of S. Oswald, which was known to have been
placed in the coffin of S. Cuthbert.

Two smooth grooves may be observed on the platform,
which are said to have been worn into the stone by the knees
or feet of generations of pilgrims visiting the shrine.

There are several other tombs and monuments in this
chapel, chiefly wall tablets of not exceptional interest. At the
north end, however, is a colossal statue of the last of the prince
bishops, Bishop van Mildert, who died in 1836. The
monument is of white marble, the figure seated on a throne
72
and holding a book. It was erected by public subscription,
the sculptor being John Gibson, R.A. Near this monument
is a blue slab covering the remains of Bishop Anthony Bek,
patriarch of Jerusalem, who died in 1310. It was to bring in
the body of this bishop that some writers have thought the
north doorway of the Nine Altars Chapel was constructed.
This is, as we have seen already, extremely improbable.

The student of architecture will find very much to interest.
him in this Chapel of the Nine Altars. The beautiful sculpture
and variety in the capitals of the shafts of wall arcading, not to
mention the rich carving of the vaulting bosses and capitals of
the vaulting shafts, will well repay his earnest study.

The Galilee or Lady Chapel is situated at the west
end of the nave. It is well known that for some reason
women were not allowed to enter any church where S.
Cuthbert’s shrine stood, nor even any church dedicated to him.
At Lindisfarne a separate church was provided for them, and
at Durham the Galilee Chapel was added for the same purpose.
It was alleged that S. Cuthbert himself had made this rule,
but there is no proof that he ever issued such a command.
73
The Venerable Bede makes no mention of any special feeling
of antipathy to women on the part of the saint. Bede was
contemporary with, and survived S. Cuthbert forty-eight years.
Whatever may have been the origin of the practice, it is
certain that in later times women were jealously excluded from
the churches of S. Cuthbert, and to this circumstance we owe,
in the chapel under our consideration, the most beautiful and
perfect example of Transitional Norman architecture existing
in England.

74
Let us recall briefly the circumstances attending its erection.
Hugh Pudsey, who occupied the episcopal throne, 1153 to
1195, commenced to build a Lady Chapel at the east end of
the church. The work had not gone far before accidents
happened, and cracks and fissures appeared in the walls, which
the builder thought “gave manifest indication that it was not
acceptable to God and His servant
S. Cuthbert.”5
The work was therefore abandoned, and another chapel was commenced
at the west end of the church, “into which women
might lawfully enter, so that they who had not bodily access
to the secret things of the holy place, might have some solace
from the contemplation of them” (Geoffrey de Coldingham).
Pudsey caused to be moved here the marble shafts and bases
he had previously brought from “beyond the sea,” and
intended to be used in the construction of his chapel at the
east end. Entering the chapel by the steps leading from the
Norman nave, the visitor is at once impressed with the lightness
and delicacy of the work before him, as compared with the
massive grandeur of the Norman cathedral behind. Here we
have, in fact, one of the latest uses of the round arch influenced
by the rapidly developing Early English Gothic. In plan the
chapel consists of a nave with double aisles, which perhaps
might be more properly called five aisles. These are divided
by arcades, each of which is of four bays. These arches and
the columns which support them are the chief beauty and
characteristic of the chapel. The arches are semi-circular, of
one order, with three lines of chevron, one on each face, and
one on the soffit between two roll mouldings. The capitals are
light and graceful and carved with a volute, and the columns
clusters of marble and freestone shafts. The arches, however,
rest on the marble columns, which are, no doubt, those
previously alluded to. The whole seems to have been
coloured in fresco, and remains of this are still to be seen.
The stone shafts, which alternate with those of marble, do not
carry any of the weight of the arch, and are, undoubtedly, an
addition, probably in the time of Cardinal Langley, when they
75
must have been added, with a view to improving the appearance.
The dimensions of the chapel are forty-seven feet from
east to west, and seventy-six feet from north to south. The
existing roof and the three perpendicular windows on the west
end are also additions by Cardinal Langley. On the walls
above what were once the altars of the Virgin and Our Lady
of Pity, remains of fresco painting may be noticed, all that
remains of what has evidently been beautiful work. These
were only brought to light by the removal of successive coats
of whitewash with which they had been covered.

77
When the Galilee was erected, access from the church was
by the great west door of the cathedral. This was, however,
closed up by Cardinal Langley, who constructed the two
doorways at the end of the aisles by which the chapel is now
entered. Those portions of the Norman wall arcading, which
had to be removed by reason of the breaking through of the
new doorways, were used to fill up the lower part of the great
west door. The latter was again removed in 1846, when the
west doorway was re-opened. Langley’s two doorways have
four centred arches enclosed beneath a square label moulding,
with shields bearing the Cardinal’s coat-of-arms in each
spandrel. To Langley also may be attributed the five massive
buttresses on the exterior of the western wall of the chapel,
which partly cover the arcading and panelling with which it
was decorated. In adding the new roof Langley raised the
walls above the arches to carry it, giving a somewhat peculiar
effect to the interior. The original roof lines can still be made
out on the west wall. Of the contents of the chapel remaining,
perhaps the most interesting to the visitor is the grave and site
of the shrine of the Venerable Bede. The shrine, like that of
S. Cuthbert’s, is gone, and all that remains is the stone slab on
which it once stood, and which bears the inscription (placed
there in 1831):

This remarkable man was contemporary with S. Cuthbert,
whom, as we have said, he survived forty-eight years. His
holiness and piety, together with his great learning, earned for
him the title Venerable, and after his death, in 735, his bones
were enshrined. Of his parentage we know nothing, except
78
that, from his own writings, he was born in the territory of the
Abbey of Wearmouth. At the age of seven he was being
educated in that monastery, and by the time he was ten years
old he moved to the newly-founded Abbey on the Tyne, at
Jarrow. He had able and learned teachers in Benedict Bishop
and Ceolfrid, and appears to have turned his advantages to the
best account. Deacon at nineteen, and priest at twenty-nine
years of age, he led a holy and studious life. After his
ordination he wrote his “Commentaries on the Scriptures,” and
writings on all the known sciences—geography, arithmetic, and
astronomy. The greatest work of his life is, however, his
“Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation,” to which we
owe all our knowledge of the introduction of Christianity into
Great Britain, and the early history of the English Church.
It is dedicated to King Ceolwulf. His information was
collected from various sources—by letter as to Canterbury, by
communication with bishops and priors as to England
generally, and from personal knowledge and very recent
tradition as to Northumbria. He lived most of his long life
between the monasteries of Monkwearmouth and Jarrow, and
was buried at the latter. In the year 1022 his remains were
secretly removed from Jarrow by Elfrid, who was the most
unscrupulous relic-hunter of that time, who deposited a
portion of them in the same coffin with those of S. Cuthbert.
From here they were removed by Bishop Pudsey, and placed
in the newly-erected Galilee Chapel, where he caused them to
be enclosed in a magnificent shrine. “There, in a silver
casket gilt with gold, hee laid the bones of Venerable Bede,
and erected a costly and magnificent shrine over
it.”6
When the shrine was destroyed at the suppression of the monastery,
in 1542, the bones were interred beneath the place it occupied,
where they remained undisturbed till the year 1831. In that
year they were exhumed and examined, and, after being
enclosed in a lead-lined coffin, were replaced in the tomb, with
a parchment giving full details of the exhumation. Some
coins and a ring which were found at this time are preserved
in the Dean and Chapter Library. The inscription previously
quoted was then cut on the upper slab of the tomb.

In the Galilee Chapel is also the tomb of its restorer,
Cardinal Langley, which was erected by himself in front of the
79
principal altar. On its head may be seen three shields bearing
the arms of the cardinal.

Four of the western windows of the chapel originally contained
beautiful stained glass, a most careful description of
which may be found in the “Rites of Durham.”

Why this chapel has always been known as the “Galilee”
Chapel has been the subject of much discussion and conjecture,
and is still a matter of uncertainty. That it was
erected for a Lady Chapel there can, however, be no doubt.
In the nave of the church, between the piers immediately to
the west of the north and south doorways, the visitor will
notice a dark-coloured marble cross, beyond which no woman
was allowed to pass eastward.

Monuments in the Nave and Transepts.—The church
of Durham is not rich in tombs and monuments to the dead.
This is to be accounted for partly by the fact that for some
centuries the Bishops of the diocese were interred in the
chapter-house, and even most of these tombs have been lost or
destroyed. Another reason for the scarcity of monuments is
that no layman was allowed to be buried in the church until
1367, when Lord Ralph Neville obtained that distinction for
himself and his wife, the Lady Alice de Neville, who was
buried in 1374. This monument occupies the third sub-bay
from the east, on the south side of the nave. It is an altar
tomb, and though it has suffered severely from mutilation
during the unsettled times of the Reformation, sufficient
remains to enable us to see that it was once a well-designed
and noble monument. Its mouldings are bold, and there are
indications of the places where figures were once attached to
the sides. The recumbent effigies of the noble lord and his
wife, on the top of the tomb, are, however, hopelessly smashed.
It is probable that Lord Ralph Neville obtained this honour
for himself through his services and victory at the Battle of
Neville’s Cross, near Durham, in 1346. In the next bay
westward is the tomb of Lord John Neville, who died in
1386. This is also an altar tomb, and has suffered severely,
though it remains in a better state of preservation than
the one just described. Its sides each have six niches, with
elaborately ornamented canopies, and containing figures, while
the ends have three similar niches with figures. The carving
of the canopies is exceedingly beautiful. Between each of the
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niches are two square panels
with trefoiled heads, each panel
bearing a shield with the arms
of Neville and Percy. Both
above and below the niches
much delicate carving may be
noticed. Surmounting all are
the broken effigies of Lord John
and his wife, who was the
daughter of Lord Henry Percy,
the well-known Hotspur. All
the figures on this tomb, including
the recumbent figures, are
headless, but sufficient remains
to show that they were of great
excellence. Remains of colouring
and gilding can also be
distinguished in places on the
monument.

Close to this is the slab and
matrix of a brass to Robert
Neville, who was bishop of the
diocese from 1438 to 1457.
The brass has all been removed,
but the matrix shows a dignified
figure of the bishop holding a
crozier and a scroll, while an
inscription formerly existed on a
plate at his feet. Bishop Neville
was known for his generous
qualities, as well as for his high
descent.

In the western wall, on its
south side, near to the entrance
to the Galilee, is a mural tablet
to a former Prebendary in the
cathedral, and a well-known
antiquary, Sir George Wheler,
who died in the latter part of
the seventeenth century. On
the northern side is a slab to
81
the memory of Captain R.M. Hunter, who was killed while
charging a Sikh battery at Ferozeshah.

Opposite to the monument of Ralph Neville is a modern
altar tomb to a former headmaster of Durham Grammar
School, the Rev. James Britton, D.D., erected by his pupils.
It is surmounted by a reclining figure of Dr. Britton, in academic
robes, reading a book.

In the south transept is a fine monument, by Chantrey, to
the memory of Bishop Barrington, who held the see from 1791
to 1826, dying at the advanced age of 92 years, beloved
by all. He was a great prelate, and used his immense powers
as Prince Palatine with great wisdom. The kneeling figure, with
bowed head, the left hand resting on a book, in an attitude
of deep reverence, is worthy of the name of its sculptor. On
the west wall of the same transept is a tablet to the memory
of the officers, non-commissioned officers, and privates of the
Durham Light Infantry who were slain or died during the
Crimean War.

Near to this is a recently inserted brass to the memory of the
officers and men of the 2nd Durham Regiment who died in
Egypt and the Soudan.

In the north transept we may give some attention to a
monument to the Rev. John Carr, a former headmaster of
Durham School. It was erected to his memory by his pupils.
The monument was designed by Rickman, and is in the style
known as Decorated Gothic.

The Font stands at the west end of the nave. It is
a comparatively modern work, covered by a tall wooden
canopy which was erected by Bishop Cosin in 1663. The
original Norman font was destroyed by the Scottish prisoners
in 1650, and was replaced by a large marble basin by Bishop
Cosin. This font, in its turn, was removed to Pittington
Church, where it is now in use, its place being filled by the
present modern one. It is designed in the Norman style,
and is square, supported on short columns. The sides are
carved with medallions, copied from illuminated MSS., which
represent scenes from the life of S. Cuthbert. The cover
deserves attention as a specimen of the woodwork of the
seventeenth century, exhibiting a curious and characteristic
mixture of Classic and Gothic forms and details.

Table of
Contents
82

CHAPTER IV
History of the See

The earlier history of the see of Durham has already been
referred to in order to lead up to the founding of the cathedral.
We have seen how the bishop and monks of Lindisfarne fled
and wandered with the relics of their beloved S. Cuthbert,
eventually settling at Chester-le-Street, until, in the year 990,
Bishop Aldhun, in terror of the Danes, again fled southward to
Ripon. The country at this time was ruled by that weak
monarch, Ethelred the Unready, and the Danes, finding no
determined opposition, continually made piratical incursions,
and eventually, through the treachery of three chieftains, the
Castle of Bamburgh fell into their hands. After an interval of
three or four months peace was made with the invaders, and
Aldhun and his monks ventured to return towards Chester-le-Street.
It was during this journey, at a place called Wredelau,
that the car carrying the saint stuck fast, and the incidents
previously related occurred, which led to the founding of the
Bishopric of Durham.

Aldhun may therefore be called the first Bishop of Durham.
He held the see for twenty-nine years, and died in 1018.
Aldhun it was who built the first or White Church, now
destroyed. It is extremely probable that some of the stones of
this church were used in the foundations of Carileph’s choir
and apses.

After Aldhun’s death the see remained vacant for three
years, when he was succeeded by

Edmund (1020-1040). It is said that the monks could
not agree as to who should succeed Aldhun, when one
day Edmund, a presbyter, asked in a joke, “Why not
appoint me?” Being a pious and a faithful man, they
took him at his word, and, after much persuasion and
fasting and prayer, he was consecrated. The choice was a
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good one. Edmund was an energetic and beloved prelate.
He died at Gloucester in 1041. One of the most important
events during his episcopate was the invasion of Northumbria
by Duncan, King of the Scots. He besieged Durham, but
was beaten off, with great slaughter, and the heads of many of
his men were exposed in the market-place.

Egelric (1042-1056) was the next bishop. He was an
alien, and made himself obnoxious to the clergy and people.
With the intention of rebuilding, he pulled down the wooden
church at Chester-le-Street, which had been the seat of the
bishopric for one hundred and thirteen years. A large quantity
of treasure was found while digging foundations, and this
Egelric appropriated and sent to his monastery at Peterborough,
where he soon followed it. Before resigning the see
of Durham, however, he secured the appointment of his
brother to the bishopric. Some years later William the
Conqueror called him to account for his behaviour in the
matter of the treasure, and threw him into prison at Westminster,
where he died in 1072.

Egelwin (1056-1071) succeeded, through the influence of
his brother. He took part in the rebellion of Eadwin and
Morcar, and, like his predecessor, died in prison. He was the
last of the Saxon bishops.

Walcher (1071-1080). William I. found the Church in
great disorder and made many changes. He filled most of
the sees by the appointment of Norman bishops. To Durham
he elected Walcher. The latter was a man of gentle disposition,
but his chaplain, Leobwin, and Gilbert, a kinsman of his
own, to whom he entrusted most of his affairs, were hated by
the people, over whom they exercised great tyranny. At
length a noble, named Lyulph, ventured to remonstrate with
them, and in their rage they had him assassinated. The
people were furious, and the bishop vainly denied any knowledge
of the deed. He called a meeting at Gateshead. Here
a tremendous tumult arose, the mob crying, “Good rede,
short rede, slay ye the bishop,” and eventually setting
fire to the church. The bishop was eventually reduced
to a choice of facing the mob or being burnt in the
church. He chose the former, and, covering his face with
his robe, went out. He was immediately slain on the
threshold, and dreadfully mutilated. His body was removed
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by the monks to Jarrow, and afterwards to Durham, where
he was buried.

William of S. Carileph (1080-1096) was next
appointed bishop. He was a man of great attainments. To
him we owe the founding of the present cathedral. Carileph
also made an important change, by the removal from Durham
of the secular clergy, and their replacement by Benedictine
monks drawn from Jarrow and Monkwearmouth. The foundations
of the new church were laid on 29th July 1093, the
Bishop and Prior Turgot being present. He did not live to
see it very far advanced, being taken ill at Windsor. He
died about Christmas 1096.

Ranulph Flambard (1099-1128).—The see was kept
vacant for three years by William Rufus, when he appointed
Flambard, a great builder. He built the nave and aisles, the
west doorway and lower part of the western towers, and
vaulted the aisles. He also built Framwellgate Bridge over
the Wear at Durham, erected and endowed S. Giles’ Church,
Durham, and was the founder of Norham Castle on the
Tweed.

Galfrid Rufus (1133-1140) was his successor. His
episcopate was much disturbed by wars with the Scots. The
chapter-house was finished during his time of office.

William de S. Barbara (1143-1152) was next
appointed. Extraordinary events marked his election. William
Cumin, chancellor of the Scottish king, attempted to take the
bishopric for himself, and succeeded so far as to capture the
castle with the aid of the Scots. The rightful bishop was not
able to gain possession for sixteen months after his election.
Cumin submitted in 1144.85

Hugh Pudsey (1153-1195) now succeeded to the
bishopric at the age of twenty-five. He bought for life the
earldom of Northumberland and the manor of Sadberg. In
1187 the news of the capture of Jerusalem by the Saracens
spread consternation in the Church, and Pudsey prepared to
accompany King Henry to the East. He fitted out ships and
galleys in a most sumptuous manner, his own having a seat for
himself of solid silver. Neither he nor King Henry embarked
in the crusade, however. The king died, and Richard his
son undertook the expedition, leaving Bishop Pudsey and
Longchamp, Bishop of Ely, as justiciaries for the northern and
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southern portions of the kingdom respectively. These two
quarrelled, and Pudsey was decoyed to London by Longchamp,
and committed to the Tower. He soon obtained his
release, but was compelled to resign the earldom of Northumberland.
In 1195 he undertook a journey to London
to see the king, and endeavour to obtain restitution of his
honours and possessions, but was taken ill, and died on the
way, at Howden. His work in the cathedral we have seen.
He also built the great hall of the castle, most of the beautiful
Church of S. Cuthbert at Darlington, and the Elvet Bridge over
the Wear at Durham, and founded the hospital at Sherburn,
near Durham. Darlington Church, which would well repay a
visit, is a fine specimen of Early Pointed architecture, second
only to the Galilee of Durham, the two showing in a wonderful
manner the rapid development of the change which was taking
place in architectural style during Pudsey’s time.

Philip de Pictavia (1197-1208), elected at the urgent
request of the king. He was continually at loggerheads with
his clergy. He supported King John against the Pope, and
was for this excommunicated; died in 1208, and was buried
in unconsecrated ground. This bishop is said to have had the
permission of the king to coin money at Durham.

Richard de Marisco (1217-1226) was elected after an
interval of nearly ten years. The feud with the monks continued
during his episcopate, and the bishop swore the Church
of Durham should have no peace while he lived; threatened
that if a monk should show himself beyond his cloister he
should lose his head; and once, when his servants had beaten
a monk, and the man complained, he replied that it was a
pity they did not kill him. He died at Peterborough in
1226.

Richard le Poore (1229-1237), who was the next bishop,
elected after the see had been vacant two years and four
months, was translated from Salisbury, where he had commenced
building the new cathedral. He ended the dispute
between the monks and the Bishop of Durham by an agreement
known as “Le Convenit.”

Nicholas de Farnham (1241-1248) became bishop after
a three years’ dispute with the king. He resigned in 1248.

Walter de Kirkham (1249-1260), Dean of York, was
next elected.

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Robert de Stitchill (1261-1274), Prior of Finchale, succeeded
him. Dissensions again arose between the bishop and
the monks. He died on his return from France, where he
had attended a council at Lyons.
He was buried in a monastery in
France, but his heart was brought to
Durham, and buried in the chapter-house.

Robert de Insula (1274-1283),
a native of Holy Island, as his name
suggests, was then elected bishop.
His tenure of office was peaceful.

Anthony Bek (1283-1310). The
next bishop was of noble birth, the
son of Walter Bek, Baron of Eresby,
in Lincolnshire. He took part with
Edward I. in his expedition to Scotland,
and, being very wealthy, was of
great assistance to the king. His
following consisted of twenty-six
standard bearers, one hundred and
forty knights, and an army of five
thousand foot and five hundred horse.
He was employed by the king, with
success, in many important State
matters. In the year 1300 trouble
again arose with the monks. Some
of them being dissatisfied with the
Prior Hotoun, the bishop proposed
to hold a visitation. The prior refusing
to admit him unless he came
unattended, the bishop deposed and
excommunicated him. The convent
took sides, some with the bishop and
some with the prior, and it was only
on the interference of the king that a partial peace was restored.
The quarrel soon reopened. Some men made a complaint
against the bishop. He had compelled them to take arms under
him in the Scottish war, and had imprisoned some who had
returned without leave. The barons upheld the men, and it
led to them taking sides with Prior Hotoun in his dispute.
89
The bishop, calling the monks together, ordered them to elect
a new prior, which they promptly refused to do. On this the
bishop appointed Henry de Luceby of Holy Island to be prior
of Durham, and brought men from Weardale and Tynedale to
expel the old prior. They laid siege to the convent, and for
three days Prior Hotoun and forty-six monks were shut up
with only six loaves and sixteen herrings. They continued
the services however. On the third day a Tynedale man was
sent to pull the prior out of his stall, but was so awed by his
venerable appearance that he dared not touch him. A monk
on the bishop’s side, however, did the work. Prior Luceby
was installed, and Prior Richard seized and imprisoned. He
soon escaped, however, and carried his complaint before
Parliament, and afterwards to the Pope, Boniface VIII. The
Pope decided in his favour, and Hotoun returned to Durham,
and Luceby and his friends were obliged to go, though they
tried, when doing so, to carry off some silver plate and other
valuables. Bek continued in great splendour until his death
in 1310. When he died he was king of the Isle of Man,
Patriarch of Jerusalem, Bishop of Durham, and Prince
Palatine.

Richard de Kellaw (1311-1316), formerly a monk of
Durham, succeeded Bek. He was a good and learned man,
and lived in harmony with the monks.

Louis de Beaumont (1318-1333) was next appointed
bishop, after great competition and intrigue. He was chosen
in opposition to the wishes of the chapter, who had elected
Stamford, Prior of Finchale, to succeed Kellaw. On his way
to Durham for consecration and enthronement, accompanied
by two cardinals and a large retinue, he was waylaid at
Rushyford by a band of ruffians under Gilbert Middleton.
They plundered the cardinals, but carried the bishop a
prisoner to Mitford Castle. His release was only secured
on payment by the monastery of a heavy ransom. He was an
ignorant man, and so innocent of Latin that he could not read
his profession of obedience, being continually prompted.
Later, at an ordination, he stumbled over the words “in
œnigmate” and cried in French, “Par Seynt Lewis, il ne fuit
pas curtays qui cest parole ici escrit.” “By Saint Lewis he was
no gentleman who wrote this word.”

Richard de Bury (1333-1345), who succeeded, was a
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great scholar, tutor to Edward III., and author of “Philobiblon,”
a book still extant. He was a good man, and very
kind to the poor.

Thomas de Hatfield (1345-1381) was, like Bishop Bek,
a warrior ecclesiastic. Soon after his election he led eighty
archers to the siege of Calais. His episcopate was notable for
the wars with the Scots, and the great victory obtained over
them, with the capture of King David and many nobles, at
Neville’s Cross, near Durham. Fifteen thousand Scots were
slain. The victory was attributed to the presence of the
sacred banner of S. Cuthbert, which Prior John Fossor took to
a place near the battlefield, kneeling in prayer the while for
success. A hymn of thanksgiving was appointed to be sung
on the top of the cathedral tower on each anniversary of the
battle. This custom is still carried out, though the day has
been changed to the twenty-ninth of May. Hatfield was a
liberal supporter of Durham College at Oxford. He erected
his own tomb in the choir of the cathedral, in which he was
afterwards buried.

John Fordham (1381-1388), secretary to Richard II., and
Canon of York, was next elected. Suspected of giving bad
advice to the king, he was compelled to resign, but was given
the inferior bishopric of Ely, where he lived to extreme old age,
dying in 1425.

Walter de Skirlaw (1388-1405), translated from Bath
and Wells, was a munificent prelate. He built bridges at
Shincliffe, Bishop Auckland, and Yarm; a refuge tower, a
beautiful chapter-house (now in ruins) at Howden; and was a
large contributor to the expense of building the central tower
of York Cathedral. His work in the building of the cloisters
of Durham has already been referred to.

Thomas Langley (1406-1437) succeeded. He was
Chancellor of England, Dean of York, and in 1411 was made
a cardinal. He occupied the see during part of the reign of
Henry IV., the whole of that of Henry V., and fifteen years of
that of Henry VI. He founded two schools on the Palace
Green at Durham, and in his will left collections of books
to many colleges.

Robert Neville (1437-1457), son of the Earl of Westmoreland
and his wife Joan, who was a daughter of John
of Gaunt. He was therefore uncle of the Earl of Warwick,
91
the “king-maker” of Richard III. and of Edward IV. He
had a peaceful episcopate of nineteen years, and was buried in
the cathedral, in the south aisle near his ancestors.

Laurance Booth (1457-1476), Canon of York and
Lichfield, Archdeacon of Richmond, and Dean of S. Paul’s,
was the next bishop. He was a supporter of the House of
Lancaster. He was translated to the archbishopric of York
in 1476, the first of the bishops of Durham who was raised to
that dignity.

William Dudley (1476-1483), Dean of Windsor, succeeded
him.

John Sherwood (1483-1494), who was appointed next,
was a learned man, and made a large collection of Greek
manuscripts. He died in Rome in 1494.

Richard Fox (1494-1501) was translated from Bath and
Wells after the see had remained vacant for eleven months.
Nothing of particular moment occurred during his episcopate.
He was an early patron and helper of Wolsey, and lived to
regret having assisted him. He made alterations in the castle
at Durham. He was translated to the see of Winchester in
1501, and died in 1528.

William Sinews or Sever (1502-1505), translated from
Carlisle. He is said to have been the son of a sieve-maker at
Shincliffe, near Durham.

Christopher Bainbridge (1507-1508), Dean of York,
was next elected, and after an episcopate of one year was
translated to York. In 1511 he was sent to Rome as
ambassador by Henry VIII., and while there was created
cardinal. He died in Rome, poisoned by a servant whom
he had struck in anger.

Thomas Ruthall (1509-1522), Dean of Salisbury, was
the next bishop. He was immensely wealthy, and his love
of money brought him into disgrace. King Henry commanded
him to draw up an account of the lands and
revenues of the Crown. The bishop, in error, sent to the
king the wrong book, in which was set forth an account of
his own possessions. The king, though tampered with by
Wolsey, made no use of the knowledge thus obtained. But
the affair rankled in the mind of the bishop, and is said to
have hastened his death.

Thomas Wolsey (1522-1528) was appointed to succeed
92
him. The famous cardinal held the see for six years, as
well as that of York. During the whole of his episcopate
he never visited Durham, and in 1528 he resigned it for
the see of Winchester.

Cuthbert Tunstall (1530-1559) was translated from
London by a Papal Bull, the last used for this purpose.
Tunstall was a remarkable man, and he occupied the see
during an important period of Church history, the Reformation,
all the stages of which he saw. During his episcopacy,
the great privileges of the bishops of Durham as Princes
Palatine were very much curtailed. In 1526, while Tunstall
was Bishop of London, the English translation of the New
Testament by Tyndall appeared, causing great alarm among
the clergy. The part played by Tunstall in relation to this
is well known. He opposed the supremacy of King Henry
as head of the Church, but eventually gave up the struggle
and preached in its favour. The monastery of Durham was
suppressed in 1540, and a dean and twelve canons appointed.
Soon after the accession of Edward VI., Bishop Tunstall
was committed to the Tower and deprived of his see, on
a charge of having encouraged rebellion in the north. On
the accession of Mary to the throne he was released and
restored, but there would seem to be no grounds for supposing
that he took any part in the cruelties practised during
her reign. When Elizabeth became queen, Tunstall refused
to take the oath, and was again deprived of his see, and,
being now an old man, was committed to the custody of
his friend Archbishop Parker (Canterbury), with whom he
lived till his death in 1559. He was a scholarly prelate,
of a kindly nature, and was held in universal esteem.

James Pilkington (1560-1575) left the buildings of the
see in a ruinous condition.

Richard Barnes (1575-1587), translated from Carlisle.
He is said to have been removed to Durham in order to
spy upon the correspondence and messengers of the unfortunate
Mary Queen of Scots.

Matthew Hutton (1589-1594), Dean of York, was the
next bishop. A man of great learning, and considered one
of the best preachers of his day. He was translated to York
in 1594.

Tobias Matthew (1595-1606), Dean of Durham, was his
93
successor. He was also a great preacher, and was celebrated
for his wit. He was translated to York.

William James (1606-1617), Dean of Durham, was next
elected.

Richard Neile (1617-1627) was translated from Lincoln.
He was remarkable as being the only bishop who held six
sees successively—viz. 1608, Rochester; 1610, Lichfield;
1613, Lincoln; 1617, Durham; 1627, Winchester; and 1631,
Archbishop of York. He did much to help forward men
of learning and ability by giving them preferment in his see,
and reserving apartments for their use in Durham House,
London, which became known as Durham College. He
spent large sums of money on repairs to the buildings at
Durham.

George Monteigne (1628), Bishop of London, only
held the see of Durham for three months, when he was
translated to York.

John Howson (1628-1631), Bishop of Oxford, held the
see for two years, and died in 1631.

Thomas Morton (1632-1659), translated from Lichfield.
The North of England was much disturbed in 1640 by the
invasion of the Scots, and Bishop Morton fled—first to
Stockton, afterwards to York—and never returned to his
diocese. The successful Scots levied heavy taxes on the
district for the maintenance of their troops, as much as £850 a
day being demanded. In 1646, Episcopacy was abolished, and
the estates of the bishops ordered to be sold. Thus we find
at Durham the castle sold to the Mayor of London for £1267
and Durham, Borough, and Framwellgate disposed of to
the Corporation for £200. The bishop lived a life of suffering
in London, cared for by his friends, till his death in
1659, at the age of ninety-four. During his episcopate, in
1656, Oliver Cromwell arranged for the founding of a college
in Durham, but his death prevented him carrying out his
scheme. His son, however, did so, and it flourished until
the Restoration, which, by giving back property to its rightful
owners, put an end to its existence.

John Cosin (1660-1671), Canon of Durham, was the first
bishop after the Restoration. He was a most munificent
prelate, leaving many charitable bequests. He spent large
sums in the restoration of the cathedral and castle and the
94
palace at Bishop Auckland. He built a hospital for eight
poor people, and erected a library on the palace green.

Nathaniel Crewe (1642-1722), translated from Oxford.
He was a strong supporter of King James II., but afterwards
took the oath of allegiance to William and Mary. He was
noted for his charity and munificence, and left large sums to
the poor, and in scholarships tenable by natives of Durham.

William Talbot (1722-1730), translated from Salisbury.

Edward Chandler (1730-1750), Bishop of Lichfield, was
next elected. He gave £2000 to be laid out for the benefit
of the widows of clergymen of his diocese.

Joseph Butler (1750-1752) was translated from Bristol.
He is best known as the author of “The Analogy of Religion,
Natural and Revealed.”

Richard Trevor (1752-1771), Bishop of S. David’s, a
learned, pious, and unostentatious man. He left £200 in his
will to the poor of Durham and Auckland.

John Egerton (1771-1787), Bishop of Lichfield, was next
elected. He married the daughter of Henry, Duke of Kent,
and his eldest son afterwards became Earl of Bridgewater.

Thomas Thurlow (1787-1791) was translated to Durham
from Lincoln. He was brother of the Lord Chancellor.

Shute Barrington (1791-1826) was the next bishop,
having previously held the sees of Llandaff and Salisbury. A
most beneficent prelate; his charities, especially those for the
founding of schools and augmentation of poor livings, were
magnificent. During his episcopacy, external repairs to the
cathedral having become absolutely necessary, James Wyatt,
who had already done such mischief at Salisbury, was given
charge of the work. Then it was that the paring process,
spoken of previously, was completed, the chapter-house destroyed,
and the Galilee Chapel only saved from destruction
by the intervention of Dean Cornwallis. Wyatt’s other wild
schemes, to extend the choir eastwards, to the utter ruin of the
Nine Altar Chapel, to remove the beautiful Neville screen, and
surmount the central tower of the church by a spire, were
happily checked in time, or there is no saying to what
extent the building would have been mutilated. Bishop
Barrington died in London, in his ninety-third year.

William Van Mildert (1826-1836), Bishop of Llandaff,
succeeded to the see. During his episcopate, many important
95
changes were made. The Ecclesiastical Commission, appointed
in 1833, to consider in what manner the funds of the
Church might be made more available for the purposes for
which they were intended, decided to give future bishops a
fixed yearly payment, and to reduce the number of canons
from twelve to six. On the appointment of a new bishop,
the Palatinate was to be annexed by the State. Thus Van
Mildert was the last Count Palatine. Before these changes
came into force, however, the bishop and the dean and
chapter founded and endowed the university out of the
revenues of the see, for the use of which the bishop gave up
the castle. Bishop Van Mildert was a man of great charity,
and though his income was immense, he died comparatively
poor. He died in February 1836, and was interred in the
chapel of the Nine Altars.

Edward Maltby (1836-1856), his successor, was translated
from Chichester, and held the see for twenty years, when,
owing to advanced age and increasing infirmity, he resigned
in 1856.

Charles Thomas Longley (1856-1860), first Bishop of
Ripon, was next elected. He was a popular and much-beloved
prelate. In 1860 he was created Archbishop of
York, and two years later was translated to Canterbury.

Hon. Henry Montague Villiers (1860-1861) was translated
from Carlisle. A fine preacher, his episcopate was all too
short. He died, after much suffering, in 1861.

Charles Baring (1861-1878), Bishop of Gloucester and
Bristol, succeeded him. A man of unbounded charity and
goodness, he won the affection of all who knew him personally.
He was compelled, through illness, to resign the see in 1878,
and did not long survive his retirement.

Joseph Barber Lightfoot (1879-1889) was then elected
to the see. A man of scholarly attainments, he is still too
well known and remembered to need any detailed note. He
came to Durham pledged to accomplish as soon as possible
the division of the diocese, which promise he carried out by
restoring the suppressed see of Hexham to Newcastle-on-Tyne.
A fine tomb to the memory of Dr Lightfoot has been placed
on the north side of the choir of the cathedral, and as a
memorial of his episcopate the mutilated chapter-house has
been restored.

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The present bishop is the Right Rev. Brooke Foss
Westcott, D.D.

In this place may conveniently be given the rough draft of
the settlement of the see by King Henry VIII. at the Reformation.
Although departed from in many instances, it throws
a curious light on the king’s intentions to keep up some
semblance of a conventual institution with an active educational
purpose.

And so the Cathedrale Churche for mayntenance of the said yerely
charges and paymente touchinge hospitalite lernynge divine
service almes necessarie exspences tenthes and fyrst frutes
after the Rates before mentionyd must yf the said shall lyke
the Kings majestic be indewyd with yerely Revenues of the
summe of M^lDCCxxxix^li xiii s. iiii d.

MDCCxii li. x s.

99

Table of
Contents
102

CHAPTER V
The Castle and University

No notice of Durham and its cathedral would seem complete
without some mention being made of its fortress, the growth
of which has been contemporary with, and, we might almost
say, inseparable from that of the monastery itself.

There can be little doubt that other than the miraculous
considerations assigned to them by tradition influenced the
monks and the congregation of S. Cuthbert in their final
choice of a resting-place for the bones of their beloved saint.
The almost impregnable position of the rocky promontory
upon which both Cathedral and Castle stand suggests a careful
selection on their part, with a view to the prevention of attack
and consequent further disturbance of their sacred relics.
What the first fortification was is a matter of doubt; most
probably it was merely a wall or rampart of earth, with a large
artificial mound at the weakest point. This seems to have
been the usual practice at an early date at many other places
in England, and in some cases their date is known and
corresponds to the time at which Durham was probably first
fortified. Whatever the earliest protections were, we know
that in 1072 William the Conqueror, on his way from Scotland,
passed through Durham. He quickly perceived the natural
advantages and strength of the position, and gave orders for
the erection of a castle. This was at once set about, during
the episcopacy of Bishop Walcher, and continued under
Carileph and Flambard. Of this building, which might be
styled “The Conqueror’s Castle,” not much remains. The
most important is the Chapel or Crypt, which belongs, no
doubt, to the earlier part of the period named (1080 to 1096).
In plan the chapel has a nave and two aisles. The roof
is vaulted, the ribs being plain, semi-circular, and square
recessed, and is supported by six circular columns. The
103
capitals of these columns are a somewhat interesting feature,
owing to their Lombardic character. The abaci are square and
moulded, while the caps proper carry at their angles rudely
carved volutes such as occur in the White Tower, London.
Each capital is also carved differently with curious and rude
104
devices. Of the three windows which terminated the nave
and aisle at the east end, one has been destroyed to make
way for a staircase and the other two are built up. The
original windows of the chapel were very narrow and widely
splayed. In the walls are an aumbrey and the remains of
two altars.

Other remains of this date are somewhat scattered. Two
windows in the undercroft of Bishop Bek’s, or what is now
known as Bishop Hatfield’s Hall, are examples. They
have converging jambs, the semi-circular heads being cut from
one stone and the inside very widely splayed. The wall from
the keep to the chapel, and that from the keep to the gateway
are also Norman work, as are also portions of the gateway
itself.

The next important changes in the castle were made by
Bishop Pudsey, 1153-1195, who not only repaired the existing
work but built a hall, known as Pudsey’s Hall. Although
this hall has now almost entirely disappeared, through repairs
and alterations, sufficient evidence as to its whereabouts and
general plan is forthcoming. It was of two storeys, the lower
and upper halls. Entrance to the lower hall was originally
gained by a staircase which led from the courtyard to the
splendid doorway now enclosed in Tunstall’s Gallery. This
magnificent entrance having been covered with lath and
plaster, and for long completely forgotten, was unearthed by,
and at the expense of Bishop Barrington, early in the present
century. It is in good preservation and is a splendid specimen
of rich Norman architecture. It consists of five orders, all
richly carved and moulded. Three orders rest on carved
capitals and shafts, and two are carried down the jambs of
the doorway. The stairway has entirely disappeared, but
there is little room to doubt that it would be of much the
same character as that in the close at Canterbury; and to the
protection afforded by the staircase roof, we are, no doubt,
indebted for the good preservation of the arch mouldings of
the doorway itself.

What was originally Pudsey’s Upper Hall is now styled the
Norman Gallery. The greater portion of this gallery is
at the present time divided into chambers of residence for the
students of the university. It is reached by the Black Staircase
and a doorway in the Early English Gothic style. The
105
interior of the south and west walls are enriched by arcades
in groups of three, the central bay of each of which is larger
than those flanking it, and is pierced by a window. The
arches of the arcade rest on shafts and cushion capitals, and
are carved with chevron ornament. The whole arrangement
hereabouts bears the impress of having been a portion of one
great building, which an examination of the roof, lead, and
general outline makes even more certain.

On the western side of the courtyard stands the great
Bek’s Hall, built by the bishop of that name. It is above
the Norman undercroft, previously mentioned. Much of its
original character is now lost, owing to restorations, curtailments,
and alterations. Bek’s doorway is still in existence,
though much hidden by the porch erected later by Bishop
Cosin. It has a pointed arch of two orders, with detached
shafts in the jambs. Another original relic, unrestored, is
part of the window nearest the fireplace, which is valuable
as evidence of the date of the erection of the hall. The
tracery is geometrical, and the shafts in the angles of the
splays are banded. About the year 1350 Bishop Hatfield
enlarged and altered Bek’s hall. At the west end he inserted
two light windows, which are now blocked, though the tracery
may be seen from students’ rooms inside, and partly from the
outside. The open oak roof, with the exception of some
necessary later repairs, is of Bishop Hatfield’s time. Hatfield
repaired and altered Pudsey’s upper hall by the addition of
east and west windows, and probably a new roof. He also
rebuilt the Keep, which time and war had greatly injured.
The existing keep, which was erected in 1840, is similar to
Hatfield’s, and in many places stands upon the old foundations.
It is now used entirely as apartments for students of
University College.

Bishop Fox (1494-1501) is responsible for the next important
changes. He curtailed the great hall by a partition wall
near its south end, which still exists. The wall bears his
badge in two places—a pelican feeding her young with blood
from her breast. He also adapted part of Pudsey’s buildings,
near the south-west corner of the castle, to the purposes of a
kitchen, erected three fireplaces, and windows, and the oak
buttery hatch which opens from the kitchen, and which again
has carved upon it “the pelican in her piety.”

106
Bishop Tunstall (1530-1558) built Tunstall’s Gallery,
which extends from the great hall to the clock tower. It is
entered by Cosin’s staircase (erected later) and by an eastern
stair built by Tunstall himself. A curious feature of this stairway
is a port-hole which commands the main entrance to the
courtyard. The present beautiful little chapel is also the work
of Bishop Tunstall. It contains some notable carved oak stalls,
of earlier date than the chapel itself, which were brought from
the castle at Bishop Auckland. The carved devices of the
miserere seats of these stalls are curious and worthy of attention.
The doors in the gateway of the courtyard are the work
of Tunstall’s time.

Bishop Cosin (1660-1672) found the castle in a dilapidated
condition. During the Commonwealth it had been sold to the
then Lord Mayor of London, who used it badly, to say nothing
of the ruin caused by the Scots. He spent large sums in its
restoration. He added the present porch or entrance from the
courtyard to the great hall. The great staircase in the north-west
corner of the courtyard is his and bears his arms. Within
and leading to Tunstall’s Gallery is the Black Staircase, also
the work of Cosin. He enlarged the chapel, and constructed
and fitted several apartments in the castle, besides several
minor works. In his will, he says, he spent the greater part of
his temporal estate in “rebuilding and repaireing the two
episcopall Castles of Durham and Bishop Auckland.” This,
he states, cost him seventeen thousand pounds, including the
furnishing and ornamenting of the chapels, which he did “for
the use of my successors in those Chappells for ever.” Many
of the agreements between Bishop Cosin and his masons,
plasterers, carpenters, and painters, from which the exact
dates and prices paid for the work may be learned, are
preserved.

The latest important work at the castle was the rebuilding
of the keep, in 1840, which was described at that time as “a
picturesque ruin.” It was entirely rebuilt on its original plan.
The gateway to the courtyard was repaired and modernised by
Bishop Barrington, with the existing inartistic result.

Durham Castle owes its picturesque appearance to two
causes—first, its magnificent and commanding position, on a
rocky escarpment; and second, no doubt, to the many vicissitudes
through which it has passed, the alterations and additions
107
made necessary by time and constant war, and later, the
entirely different uses to which the building is put.

It is now chiefly used as a hall of residence for university men
and as lodging for the Judges of Assize.

108
The most favourable time for the architectural student to visit
the castle is during one of the university vacations, otherwise
many interesting features would be denied him. Many portions
(except students’ chambers) are, however, open to the public
every week day.

The University of Durham.—From an early date,
frequent mention is made in the history of the see of
Durham, of a college at Oxford called the Durham College.
Its origin is not exactly known, but by the liberality of
several bishops and priors its original endowment increased,
until provision was made for eight fellows and eight scholars.
This was the case at the time of the suppression of the
monasteries by King Henry VIII., when, owing to its
connection with the monastery of Durham, the college was
also dissolved. Its revenues, were, however, rescued, and
in 1541 were handed over by the king to the newly
created dean and chapter. Thus the matter stood till 1650,
when a petition was presented to the Protector, showing the
great disadvantages to the North of England arising from the
long distance of Oxford and Cambridge, and praying that
the houses of the dean and prebendaries might be converted
into a college. Cromwell took a favourable view of the idea,
and in a letter to Lenthall, the Speaker, in its support, he
says:—

Truly it seems to me a matter of great concernment
and importance, as that which (by the blessing of God)
may much conduce to the promotion of learning and piety
in these poore, rude, and ignorant parts, there being also
many concurring advantages to this place, as pleasantness,
and aptness of situation, healthfull aire, and plenty of provisions,
which seeme to favour and pleade for theire desires
therein.7

Various delays occurred, however, and it was not until 1657
that the Lord Protector issued his patent for the erection of
the proposed college, in a document consisting of twenty-three
heads.

The college thus commenced made great progress, and
would no doubt have continued to do so, but for the constant
opposition of the two great universities of Oxford and
Cambridge. Then followed the Restoration, and with [it]

109
came a reaction against all measures established during the
Protectorate. This feeling, combined with persistent petitions
from the universities, soon accomplished the downfall of
the College.

Bishop Van Mildert, who was translated to Durham in
1826, during his short episcopate saw many changes, not
the least of which was the successful revival of the scheme
for a university. Powers were obtained in 1832 for the training
of students in divinity and the conferring of degrees in
other faculties. The new foundation was endowed out of
the revenues of the cathedral, and the bishop gave up the
Castle of Durham for the use of the college, besides financial
assistance of £1000 for the first year and £2000 for the
following years until his death in 1836. The first warden
was Dr Charles Thorp, Archdeacon and Canon of Durham,
but it was provided by an order, on the recommendation of
the Ecclesiastical Commissioners that in future the office of
warden should be permanently attached to the deanery, and
that a canonry in the cathedral be annexed to each of the
professorships of Divinity and Greek.

The government of the university is in the hands of the
dean and chapter, and the affairs administered by a warden,
senate and convocation. A royal charter was obtained in
1837 making the university a corporate body with perpetual
succession and a common seal.

The university, besides its original schools of arts and
divinity, has established schools of physical science and
medicine, in connection with the Durham College of Science
at Newcastle-on-Tyne, and has recently admitted women
students to its courses and lectures.

There are many foundation scholarships and exhibitions in
arts, classics, mathematics, and theology, besides a long list
of private foundations and fellowships.

The university consists of one college and one hall. The
former, University College, occupies the Castle, and the latter,
Bishop Hatfield’s Hall.

It is well supplied with libraries. The university library
founded at the opening, to which Bishop Van Mildert
contributed a valuable collection.

The library given in 1855 by the late Dr Martin Routh,
president of Magdalen College, Oxford.

110
The library presented by the late Bishop Maltby in 1856,
which he endowed with £1000.

A library was also bequeathed to the university in 1859
by the late T.M. Winterbottom, M.D., of Westoe, South
Shields. A large collection of books was bequeathed by the
late Bishop Lightfoot.

Two other important libraries may here be mentioned,
though they do not belong to the University—viz. the
Chapter Library and Bishop Cosin’s Library.

111

CHAPTER VI
The City

Besides the Cathedral and Castle, the City of Durham possesses
several churches of decided interest to the student of architecture,
which deserve a brief notice.

The Parish Church of S. Mary in the North Bailey.—This
small church is generally known as S. Mary le Bow,
owing to the fact that in its original steeple was an arch,
through which the roadway passed. This steeple fell in 1637,
and the ancient structure was allowed to lapse into complete
ruin. The present church was built in 1685, and its most
noticeable feature is the open carved screen between the nave
and chancel erected in 1707. The site of the church is the
oldest in the city, and some writers have thought it probably
identical with that of the White Church in which the body of
S. Cuthbert was placed during the building of the cathedral.

S. Mary-the-Less is a small but picturesque church
situated in the South Bailey, and is of Norman date. Its
original architectural character is, however, almost entirely
lost, owing to extensive restorations which took place in
1846-7. The round-headed window now in the south wall
of the chancel, but formerly in the west wall of the nave, is
the only remaining original feature. The church is entered
by a porch on the south side, and consists of a nave and
chancel only. Some stones in the churchyard, which were
removed from their position when the church was restored,
are carved with chevron ornament, and would seem to show
that the date of the original structure was the earlier part of
the twelfth century.

S. Oswald.—This church stands on high ground overlooking
the river Wear, at the head of New Elvet; and is the
parish church of the ancient borough of Elvet. The first
church was erected by Bishop Carileph, though the earliest
112
parts of the existing building are of the time of Bishop Pudsey,
who also built the bridge across the river, known as the Elvet
Bridge. To this date (about 1190) belongs the eastern part
of the nave arcade, the arches of which are semi-circular and
rest upon tall round piers. Early in the fourteenth century a
new chancel was built, the aisles rebuilt and extended to the
west end, and two new arches added to the west end of the
nave arcades. In the early part of the fifteenth century a
clerestory and open parapet were added, and a new oak roof
placed over the nave. This was most probably a hammer-beam
roof, and was coloured and gilded and decorated with
angels holding shields. The only parts remaining at the
present day are the grotesque carved corbels, and the angels.
The tower was also constructed at this time. In 1834, owing
to subsidence of the ground, it became necessary to rebuild
the south aisle and a large part of the chancel, which caused
the destruction of much architectural beauty. The open
parapet was removed, the clerestory windows replaced by the
present inferior ones, and the fine oak roof destroyed. The
east end of the chancel was rebuilt in 1864. Special attention
should be directed to the fine oak stall-work in the chancel,
boldly carved in the style of the early part of the fifteenth
century. The tower, which forms a beautiful and conspicuous
landmark, is reached by a stone staircase of unusual character.
It is placed in the thickness of the wall, and is covered in
with twenty-four gravestones of thirteenth and fourteenth
century date, on which may yet be seen portions of inscriptions
and symbols. Built into the tower was part of a Saxon
cross, which has now been removed for preservation to the
dean and chapter library. This cross is interesting as evidence
of the existence on the same site of a pre-Norman church.
The tower was carefully restored in 1863. It contains a
peal of six bells, which were re-cast in 1694, and bear the
following inscriptions:—

113

115
The second bell was cast in 1885.

S. Margaret’s Parish Church is situated on the steep hill
called Crossgate. It is opposite to and across the river from
the Castle, and from its churchyard a fine western view of the
cathedral is obtained. The church was built during the early
part of the episcopate of Bishop Pudsey (1154) and was
formerly a chapel under the church of S. Oswald. Here
again alterations and restorations have obliterated much that
originally existed. The church at present consists of a
nave and aisles, a chancel with aisles, a western tower, and
north and south porches. The existing portions of the
original church are the chancel arch, and the south arcade of
four bays, together with part of the clerestory and the north
wall of the chancel. The arcade consists of low massive
circular piers, with cushion capitals and plain chamfered
abaci, which support semi-circular arches of one order also
chamfered.

The north arcade is also Norman, and very similar in
character to that of S. Oswald. No doubt it is of the
same date, and probably built by the same architect. The
chancel arch has two orders, recessed square and chamfered,
with a plain chamfered hood mould. On both north and
south sides of the arch is a squint. With the exception
of two which are Norman, the windows are nearly all of
modern date. One is in the north wall of the chancel
and is widely splayed. It is not seen on the outside owing
to the vestry which now covers it. The other, a very interesting
specimen, is situated over the western bay of the south
arcade, and is a portion of the original clerestory and the
earliest known clerestory window in the county. The roof
of the nave is of oak, and a good specimen of Perpendicular
work. The tower is of fifteenth-century date, and exceedingly
plain externally, but vaulted in the interior. It opens
on to the church by an arch which has been inserted in the
west wall. There is an interesting font of Frosterley marble,

116
which is apparently of the same date as the chancel. The
vestry which is raised above the level of the church floor is
of the fifteenth century, and has on its gable the original
gable cross.

The Parish Church of S. Giles occupies a very elevated
position at the north-east end of the city, and commands one
of the finest views of the cathedral, castle, and city, which
it is possible to obtain. It was built by Bishop Flambard
and finished as early as 1112; but the north wall of the
nave, containing two small Norman windows, widely splayed inwards,
and a walled-up doorway is all that remains of this early
church. The chancel is of later Norman of the time of Pudsey.
Both within and without a bold chamfered string course
runs round the chancel. On the south side is a semi-circular
headed window, with a carved dripstone and nook shafts, the
capitals of which bear a similar character to those in the
Galilee Chapel of the cathedral. In the north wall of the
chancel is the priests’ door, now walled up, and the corbels
and springers of the original chancel arch built by Pudsey.
The present arch was erected in 1876. In 1414 considerable
alterations were made during the episcopate of Bishop Langley,
when the walls of the nave were raised, the upper stage of the
tower built, and the west window inserted. The font is a
fine stone bowl resting on a shaft, and is undoubtedly of the
time of Flambard. The chancel contains some monuments of
the Tempest and Heath families, who were the ancestors of
the Marchioness of Londonderry, patroness of the church and
parish of S. Giles. The tower contains three bells, the first
and second of which are pre-Reformation and the third bears
the date 1646.

On the north side of Gilesgate near to the North-Eastern
goods station, are the ruins of the little Chapel of S. Mary
Magdalen, of which only a small portion remains. At the
west end of the north and south walls are two doorways, the
latter walled up. Portions of the east window are still in
position, but it would appear to have been of earlier date than
the surrounding walls, and probably had been brought from
some other building. In the interior are the remains of a
Frosterley marble font, and a gable cross of thirteenth-century
date is in the custody of the dean and chapter. The
chapel was 43 feet by 16-1/2 feet wide. It is supposed to
117
have been founded by Sir John Fitz Alexander. In 1370
it was almost entirely rebuilt, and again in 1449, on a site
near the original one. The reason for this was the moisture
of the ground, which caused the foundations to become
insecure. The government was in the hands of the almoner
of the cathedral, who distributed doles to the poor. The
chapel was used as a place of worship until nearly the end
of the seventeenth century, when, owing to its ruinous
condition, services were finally discontinued.

Table of
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FOOTNOTES

TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES

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