An informal look at the history of the Christian church from an English perspective.
| Scout & Guide HQ | |
| 4th Tuesday of the month | |
| 2.00 - 4.00 | |
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Here is an Anglo Saxon Timeline.
The interrupted and re-jigged 2020-2021 programme can be viewed here.
The talks are at Scout & Guide HQ, and the entrance cost is £2.00 including refreshments.
The visits will be by coach as usual, and arrangements and costs will be announced in January.
Last Updated on January 4, 2022
As you know, from looking at the 2020 programme, things did not go as planned last season. At present (3rd February 2021) it is still impossible to say when meetings in the usual venue will be able to resume. As soon as there is any clear news of when we can resume, there will be a notification via Beacon.
Of the planned sessions for 2020 only the presentations for Canterbury and Rochester actually took place. Assuming we can start again some time this Summer it is planned that we continue from where we left off, with the presentations on Chichester Cathedral, St Alban’s, St Paul’s and finally Westminster Abbey. We don’t expect that the two planned visits, to Lancaster and to Beverley, will take place in 2021, but should be able to proceed in 2022, if there is still continuing interest by that point!
After these four presentations all the major medieval English cathedrals will have been covered. However, all the Peters have been discussing possible subjects for 2022 and beyond, for example there are other cathedrals, more-recent foundations in England as well as ancient cathedrals in Wales and Scotland. Another possible route would be the great store of remains of medieval abbeys and other religious houses, or surviving large medieval churches and minsters, no decisions are yet made.
In the meantime we look forward to seeing you all again for the Chichester Cathedral presentation, whenever that may be, and hope that you are staying safe and well.
Peter, Peter and Pete
Last Updated on February 4, 2021
The Cathedral Church of Saint Alban, Saint Alban’s, Hertfordshire, 23 November 2021
Although we are not currently meeting for talks by the three Peters, we can see a taster of what is to come once lock-down is over.
In 731, the Venerable Bede had this to say: ‘A beautiful church worthy of Alban’s martyrdom was built, where sick folk are healed and frequent miracles take place to this day’
Nothing remains of the chapel built where Alban was martyred in 209, but he was executed for sheltering the Christian priest Amphibalus, so Christian worship was taking place in and around the city of Verulamium by that time. The earliest church was destroyed by Saxons in 586. Offa is said to have founded a double Benedictine monastery in 793, replacing the building of Bede’s time. This later building was, in turn, sacked by Danes around 890, after which the monastery hit hard times and there was no abbot between 920 and the 970s. However, Abbot Ealdred began to rebuild in 1005, but this work stalled under the pressure of Viking raids from 1016 onwards.
In 1077 when Paul of Caen was appointed the first Norman abbot, by his uncle Lanfranc Archbishop of Canterbury, he set about building a new church straight away, starting with the crossing tower. There was no good building stone near the site, only flints, so some stone was imported from Caen but the major part of the building was constructed from Roman tiles, found in abundance in the nearby ruins of Verulamium.
Today, the crossing tower, two western bays of the chancel and the transepts survive from the late 11th century. Eastern parts of the nave and much of the north arcade and aisle are also Norman work, of the 12th century, and four Western bays of the nave are Early English from the early 13th century, the presbytery, and retro-choir date from a mid-13th century rebuild and the Lady Chapel from the late 13th and early 14th century. The south arcade and aisle of the nave were rebuilt in the mid-14th century, documented 15th century work has been mainly replaced under later (Victorian) restorations.
After the dissolution of the abbey in 1539, practically all the claustral buildings were demolished for their building materials and the main church abandoned and neglected. In 1553 the citizens of St Albans bought the old abbey to use as their parish church, but repair and maintenance of such a large ancient building was beyond the means of the parishioners and by 1832 the main building was reported to be in a sad state of disrepair. But from 1871 remedial work was done under Sir G.G. Scott: to the nave clerestorey, the South aisle roof, stonework of the Lady Chapel and the structure of the crossing tower, but funds ran out after his death in 1878. This laid the way open for a local lawyer, Lord Grimthorpe, also an amateur theologian and an amateur architect to step in. He was a wealthy man and overall spent £130.000 of his fortune on his own ‘improvements’ and repairs to the structure, mainly in a version of Victorian Gothic. The whole West front was replaced by him and the roof heightened to a steeper pitch and well as other restorations throughout the structure. There is a carved portrait of him, represented as St Matthew, in the West porch.
The see and bishopric of Saint Alban’s was inaugurated in 1877 and the old Abbey church became the cathedral, whilst also remaining the parish church, dedicated to St Alban.
Last Updated on May 23, 2021
Prior to starting on our exploration of medieval cathedrals of the South and South-east of England in January 2020, there will be a mid-break meeting at the Scout Hut at the usual time of 14.00 on Tuesday 26th November.
This will give the opportunity for a brief preview of the 2020 programme, including the nationally historically important Canterbury Cathedral and Westminster Abbey.
As a holiday treat we will whisk you abroad to look at eight medieval French cathedrals, although separated by relatively short distance we will be able to see some of the differences between English and French Gothic, as well as show regional differences within the large geographical extent of France itself.
Speakers: Peter Goodrich, Peter Hatfield and Peter Gateley
Last Updated on November 28, 2019
A series of six indoor meetings, looking at ‘Cathedrals of the south-western parts of England’ + two coach trips (not to SW England!).
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| 22 January – a talk about Winchester Cathedral |
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26 February – a talk about Salisbury Cathedral |
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26 March – a visit to Liverpool Anglican Cathedral |
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23 April – talks about Bath Abbey and Truro Cathedral |
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| 28th May – a visit to Selby Abbey and Sherburn Church, Yorkshire |
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25th June – a talk, about Bristol Cathedral |
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23 July – a talk, about Wells Cathedral |
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27 August – a talk, about Exeter Cathedral |
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Last Updated on September 12, 2019
Speakers: Peter Goodrich, Peter Gateley and Peter Hatfield
| 23rd January | Norwich Cathedral talk. Norwich Cathedral timeline |
| 27th March | Ely Cathedral talk. Ely Cathedral timeline |
| 24th April | Peterborough Cathedral talk. Peterborough Cathedral Timeline |
| 1st May | Visit to Manchester Cathedral and other historic buildings. Details |
| 22nd May | Gloucester Cathedral talk. Gloucester Cathedral Timeline |
| 26th June | Visit to Furness Abbey and Swarthmoor Hall by coach |
| 24th July | Oxford Christ Church Cathedral talk. Oxford Cathedral timeline |
Last Updated on October 8, 2018
English medieval cathedrals are widely admired both at home and abroad as both architectural masterpieces and touchstones of English History. Their stylistic diversity is remarkable reflecting their longevity and origins. Some cathedrals are descendants of former abbeys, others purpose built as cathedrals, all have seen major changes over the past millennium, and all continue to serve their primary purpose of providing a regional seat (cathedra is the Latin word for the Bishop’s throne) for the local Bishop or in the case of Canterbury and York, for the Archbishop. The series of talks covered their Anglo-Saxon origins, the impact of Viking raids and occupation, the Norman conquest and the English Reformation.
The introductory talk on 25th October 2016 reviewed all those cathedrals (ten in all) which are included in the monthly talks, briefly covering their differences, special features and their local impact.
Subsequent sessions explained the development of floor plans, internal and external features, the evolution of the Gothic style and the archaic terminology used to describe their key parts, all accompanied by illustrations. We visited the origins of the Christian church from Roman times and the establishment of dioceses in the Saxon period and looked at surviving examples of Saxon church architecture.
The following four meetings showcased the northern cathedrals: Durham Cathedral, York Minster, Carlisle Cathedral, Ripon Cathedral and Chester Cathedral showing their origins, history and examining in detail their magnificent architectural features, stained glass and furnishings. This was also a visit to Chester Cathedral to illustrate many of the points made during the talks.
We concluded the series with the great cathedrals in the midlands: Lincoln, Southwell, Worcester, Lichfield and Hereford, with a second cathedral visit to Lichfield.
Programme of Talks, English Medieval Cathedrals: North and Midlands |
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All talks were held at 2.00-4.00pm on the fourth Tuesday of the month in the Scout and Guide HQ (large room), with breaks for coffee and discussion. 1. Introductory Talk – October 25th 2016 North of England2. Durham Cathedral – November 22nd 2016. View the Durham Cathedral time line. Midlands6. Lincoln Cathedral – April 25th 2017. View the Lincoln Cathedral time line. |
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Last Updated on December 11, 2017
