Norwich Cathedral

Coordinates: 52°37′55″N 01°18′04″E / 52.63194°N 1.30111°E / 52.63194; 1.30111
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For the Roman Catholic cathedral in Norwich, see St John the Baptist Cathedral, Norwich.

Norwich Cathedral
Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity
Norwich (since 1094)
Clergy
Bishop(s)Graham Usher
DeanAndrew Braddock
Laity
Director of musicAshley Grote
Organist(s)David Dunnett
Listed Building – Grade I
Official nameThe Cathedral of the Holy and Undivided Trinity
Designated26 February 1954
Reference no.1051330

Norwich Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Norwich, Norfolk, England. The cathedral is the seat of the bishop of Norwich and the mother church of the diocese of Norwich. It is administered by its dean and chapter, and there are daily Church of England services. It is a Grade I listed building.[2]

Construction of the building was begun in 1096 at the behest of the first bishop of Norwich, Herbert de Losinga. When the crossing tower was the last piece of the Norman cathedral to be completed; measuring 461 ft (141 m) and 177 ft (54 m) wide, the cathedral was the largest building in East Anglia. The cathedral close occupied a tenth of the total area of the medieval city.

The present structure of Norwich Cathedral is primarily

cloisters in England. The present spire—the second tallest in England at 315 ft (96 m)—is a stone structure built in 1480, that replaced one made of wood. In about 1830, the south transept was remodelled by the architect Anthony Salvin. A new hospitality and education facility by Hopkins Architects was opened by Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh
 in 2010.

Norwich Cathedral once had the earliest astronomical clock in England. The cathedral's bosses are one of the world's greatest mediaeval sculptural treasures, having survived the iconoclasm of the Tudor and English Civil War periods.

History

Origins

In the year 672, the

Benedictine monks.[5]

Norman period

The structure of the cathedral is primarily in the

Anglo-Saxon settlement and two churches were demolished to make room for the buildings and a canal cut to allow access for the boats bringing the stone and building materials which were taken up the River Wensum and unloaded.[6]

Later Medieval period

The cathedral was damaged after riots in 1272,

Edward I of England on Advent Sunday, in 1278.[4]

The Norman spire was blown down in 1362. Its fall damaged the east end of the building.[4][7] In 1463 the spire was struck by lightning, causing a fire to rage through the nave which was so intense it turned some of the cream-coloured Caen limestone a pink colour.[6][dead link] In 1480 the bishop, James Goldwell, ordered the building of a new spire which is still in place today.[7]

16th and 17th centuries

The composer and 'singing man' Osbert Parsley worked at Norwich Cathedral for 50 years, until his death in 1585.[8]

The cathedral was partially in ruins when

Roman Catholic symbols. The building, abandoned the following year, lay in ruins for two decades. Norwich bishop Joseph Hall provides a graphic description from his book Hard Measure:[9]

It is tragical to relate the furious sacrilege committed under the authority of Linsey, Tofts the sheriff, and Greenwood: what clattering of glasses, what beating down of walls, what tearing down of monuments, what pulling down of seats, and wresting out of irons and brass from the windows and graves; what defacing of arms, what demolishing of curious stone-work, that had not any representation in the world but of the cost of the founder and skill of the mason; what piping on the destroyed organ-pipes; vestments, both copes and surplices, together with the leaden cross which had been newly sawed down from over the greenyard pulpit, and the singing-books and service-books, were carried to the fire in the public market-place; a lewd wretch walking before the train in his cope trailing in the dirt, with a service-book in his hand, imitating in an impious scorn the tune, and usurping the words of the litany. The ordnance being discharged on the guild-day, the cathedral was filled with musketeers, drinking and tobacconing as freely as if it had turned ale-house.

The mob also fired their

Restoration
in 1660 would the cathedral be restored.

19th and 20th centuries

The pulpitum

In the 1830s the south transept was remodelled by the English architect

Lady Chapel, designed by Charles Nicholson, was built at the east end, on the site of its 13th-century predecessor, which had been demolished during the late 16th century.[10]

The cathedral is included as one of the "Norwich 12", a list of the city's most iconic buildings produced as part of an initiative launched in 2008 by the Norwich Heritage Economic and Regeneration Trust.[11][12]

Modern works

In 2004 the new refectory (winner, National Wood Awards 2004),[13] by Hopkins Architects and Buro Happold, opened on the site of the original refectory on the south side of the cloisters. Work on the new hostry, also by Hopkins Architects, started in April 2007 after the 'Cathedral Inspiration for the Future Campaign' had reached its target of £10 million. It was opened by the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh on 4 May 2010. The new hostry has become the main entrance to the cathedral. Space has been provided within the hostry for temporary art exhibitions.

Helter-skelter

In July 2019, a 17 m (56 ft) high helter-skelter was constructed inside the cathedral, partly for the purpose of attracting more visitors and also giving people a better vantage point for viewing the roof bosses. Reaction to the installation of the slide was mixed, Gavin Ashenden, former chaplain to the Queen, described it as "poisoning the medicine" a church offered.[14] In August 2019, Jonathan Meyrick, the Bishop of Lynn, gave a sermon and sang Words by the Bee Gees from halfway down.[15]

Ministry

Dean and chapter

As of 3 February 2023:[16]

  • Dean of Norwich – Andrew Braddock (since 28 January 2023 institution)[17]
  • Canon Librarian & Vice-Dean – Peter Doll (canon since 14 March 2009 installation)[18]
  • Canon Precentor – Aidan Platten (since 24 September 2017 installation)[19]
  • Canon for Mission & Pastoral Care – Andy Bryant (since 29 March 2015 installation)[20][21]

Architecture

Dates, styles and architects

Plan of Norwich Cathedral:[note 1]
  1. West front
  2. Nave
  3. Choir
  4. Central tower
  5. Chancel
  6. North Aisle
  7. South Aisle
  8. North Transept
  9. South Transept
  10. Cloister

Building of the cathedral started from the east end in 1096, with the nave being completed by around 1120.

Caen limestone.[6]

The present spire, a stone structure that replaced one made of wood and covered with lead, was added in 1480.[7]

Following the riots of 1272, repairs to the building were completed in 1278.[4] Some of the windows were replaced with ones in the Gothic style during the 13th century.[23]

The

cloisters was begun in 1297 and finally finished in 1430 after the Black Death had plagued the city. The system of building remained the same over this period, though the details, in particular the tracery of the openings facing the cloister garth, did change.[25]

Following the destruction caused by the collapse of the spire, the

Perpendicular style.[4][7]

In the 15th century, the cathedral's flat timber ceilings began to be replaced with stone vaults;[23] the nave was vaulted under Walter Hart (bishop, 1446–1472), the choir and the Bauchun Chapel (on the east side of the south transept) under James Goldwell (bishop, 1472–1499) and the transepts after 1520.[26][27] The system of vaulting is of a tierceron vault with Lierne ribs forming patterns of lozenges and stars along the ridge. The vaulting was carried out in a spectacular manner with hundreds of ornately carved, painted and gilded bosses studding the liernes.[28]

Plan

Measuring 461 ft (141 m) and 177 ft (54 m) wide at completion, Norwich Cathedral was the largest building in East Anglia.[29] The ground plan remains entirely as it was in Norman times, except for that of the easternmost chapel. The cathedral has an unusually long nave of 14 bays. The transepts are without aisles and the east end terminates in an apse with an ambulatory. From the ambulatory there is access to two chapels of unusual shape, the plan of each being based on two intersecting circles.[7] This allows more correct orientation of the altars than in the more normal kind of radial chapel.

Exterior

Norwich Cathedral tower (detail)

The tower, the most ambitious of all the Norman towers to have survived in England,

geometrical circles, lozenges and interlaced arcading.[7]

The spire is of brick faced with stone, supported on brick squinches built into the Norman tower.[7] At 315 ft (96 m) high, the spire is the second tallest in England; only that of Salisbury is taller at 404 ft (123 m).

Norwich Cathedral has the second largest cloisters in England, only exceeded by those at Salisbury Cathedral.[30] It has two-storeys, the only example of its kind in England and nearly 400 carved stone ceiling bosses.

Interior

The eastern end of the cathedral, near to the sanctuary, is in the form of an apse The tribune (the vaulted area within the apse) is unusually tall, and contains piers with large capitals.[31]

Norwich no longer has its rood screen, which would have been used to support the great crucifix. It was located one bay west of the pulpitum (the screen that separated the nave from the choir).[32] The aisles are vaulted in stone, but lack ribs.[33]

The Anglican cathedrals at Norwich, Salisbury, and Ely are the only ones that have no ring of bells.[34] The astronomical clock at Norwich Cathedral was one of the earliest mechanical timekeepers made in England.[29]

aaa
The east end and apse
bbb
The south aisle, looking west
bbb
The nave

Art works and treasures

Stained glass

The medieval stained glass windows in the cathedral, which was largely destroyed during the English Reformation,[35] sustained further damage during the English Civil War.[36]

The glass in the west window was designed by George Hedgeland, and was installed in 1854.[35]

Bosses

Foliate Man. Boss in the east walk of the cloister, 1310–1314

The

M.R. James (1911),[38]
with drawings of the bosses of the north walk.

Misericords

During the

monasteries fitted stalls with ledges for the monk to lean against. The so-called 'misericords' were literally an act of mercy. Most of the misericords are carved with a central subject and two supporters positioned on either side. [39]

There were likely to have once been 70 choir-stalls at Norwich, which were allotted to the bishop and his senior clerics, and 60 monks. There are 64 surviving choir-stalls, of which all but four have misericords dating from the early 15th century onwards; it is possible that the more senior clergymen were able to choose the theme for the carving on their own misericord. The elbow rests were also intricately carved. Many of the supporters in Norwich's choir-stalls are connected with their central subject, as in the case of the misericord for Bishop Richard Courtenay, which is a seated monk who supporters are a bishop tending sheep, and by a representation of the bishop as Chancellor of Oxford. The fire of 1463 at Norwich damaged many of the stalls, whose replacements were given new misericords.[40]

The misericords in Norwich Cathedral can be categorised by their designs. A group known as Wakering's have ledges that are curved and ribbed,

Biblical) being carved.[42]

Misericords
aaa
A foliate mask
bbb
A schoolmaster beating a boy
bbb
An owl mobbed by small birds
bbb
A monk and supporting scenes, representing Bishop Richard Courtenay

Despenser Reredos

The medieval Despenser Reredos

In St Luke's Chapel, behind the altar, is a late 14th century altarpiece, known as the Despenser Retable or

Shields in the border of the painting are associated with others who led the defence against the peasants. The reredos was rediscovered in a damaged state in 1847, having been reversed and used as part of a table.[43]

Other features

The copper baptismal font, standing on a moveable base in the nave, was fashioned from bowls previously used for making chocolate in the Norwich Rowntree's factory, and was given to the cathedral after the factory closed in 1994.

Since 2013, the Norfolk Medieval Graffiti Survey (NMGS) has recorded a large amount of medieval graffiti, including organ music inscribed on two four-line staves, on the interior stone surfaces of the cathedral.[44]

Music

Organ and organists

See also: List of musicians at English cathedrals § Norwich Cathedral

Norwich Cathedral's organ is one the largest in the UK. It was built by local builder Norman and Beard in 1899, but was later damaged in a fire in April 1938. A Cymbelstern with six bells and a rotating star was added to the organ in 1969.[45] In 2017 the dean, the Very Rev Dr Jane Hedges, revealed that the cathedral was planning to spend £2 million on rebuilding the organ and supporting its existing choirs.[46] In 2022–23 the Durham-based company of Harrison & Harrison carried out a major rebuild of the organ, which was inaugurated in November 2023.[47]

Most of the records of the organists at Norwich Cathedral have survived.[48] The earliest organist recorded is Adam the Organist, who was employed in 1333.[49] Notable organists have included the composers Thomas Morley,[50] and Heathcote Dicken Statham.[51]

Cathedral choirs

The cathedral choir in 2004

Norwich Cathedral's choirs are directed by the Master of the Music,

Lower School, with at least half of their school fees being paid by the Norwich Cathedral Endowment Fund.[53]

Girls were introduced to the choir in 1995. There are places for 24 girls, aged from 11 to 18, who are drawn from across Norfolk. They sing evensong once a week (alternately on their own and with the men) and at least one Sunday Eucharist a term.[54]

The choir has 12 men, six of whom are choral scholars; the others are professional singers.[53] The men sing with the boy choristers at five services a week, and often more at special times of year such as Easter and Christmas.[53]

Bells

Audio recording of Norwich Cathedral bells at 11am
merchant mark

The cathedral church's five bells are hung in the central tower;

merchant mark of Brasyers of Norwich.[56] The bells, which are tuned to a minor key,[57] were used for the regular services, whilst an additional group of five so-called 'greater' bells were hung in a detached bell tower; these were used to celebrate important religious festivals.[55] They were heavier than those hung in the cathedral church.[58]

As with similar large churches, the tower was close to the entrance of the lay citizens' cemetery, and was surrounded by craft shops.

water main.[62]

The cathedral's mediaeval records state that one of the central tower bells was named 'Blessed Mary', and that.the largest bell in the tower was called 'Lakenham'. The locations of two other named bells, called 'Stratton' and 'Stockton', are unknown.[55]

Number Name Date[63] Maker[63] Inscription[64] Diameter[63]
1st One named "Blessed Mary" medieval Brasyers Fac Margareta nobis hec Munera leta 28.375 inches (720.7 mm)
2nd medieval Brasyers Andrea quesumus, famulorum suscipe Vota 30.375 inches (771.5 mm)
3rd 1635 John Brend – 33.5 inches (850 mm)
4th medieval Brasyers Subbeniat digna, donantibus hanc Katerina 37.5 inches (950 mm)
5th 1469 Brasyers Sum Rosa Pulsata Mundi, Maria bocata. Orate pro aia: Roberti Brethenham Monachi Norwici 41.5 inches (1,050 mm)

The Close

The western end of the cathedral close

The precinct, or

defensive walls. In medieval times it occupied a tenth of the total area of the city.[65]

The grounds also house many of the buildings of Norwich School,

Admiral Nelson,[67] and the grave of the British nurse Edith Cavell, who was executed for helping Allied soldiers escape from German-occupied Belgium during World War I.[68]

There are two gates leading into the cathedral grounds, both on Tombland. The Ethelbert Gate takes its name from a

Saxon church that stood nearby. The original gate was destroyed in the riot of 1272, and its replacement was built in the early 14th century. It has two storeys, the upper originally a chapel dedicated to Saint Ethelbert and decorated with flushwork.[69] In 1420 Thomas Erpingham, benefactor to the city, had the gate which bears his name built, sited opposite the west door of the cathedral and leading into the close.[70]

In the arts and popular culture

James Sillett, Norwich Cathedral (1832), Norfolk Museums Collections

Documentaries

The cathedral and other churches in the diocese were featured in the 1974 BBC documentary A Passion for Churches, presented by the English poet and writer John Betjeman.[71] In 2012, the cathedral and the adjacent Bishop's Palace were featured in the BBC Four documentary The Medieval Mind: How to Build a Cathedral.

The cathedral was featured in the 2016 BBC Four documentary The Search for the Lost Manuscript: Julian of Norwich.[72]

Use as a location

Norwich Cathedral was used as a location for the 1971 BBC Christmas ghost story The Stalls of Barchester, based on the story by M. R. James.[73] It was also used as a location for the 2013 film Jack the Giant Slayer,[74] and in the 2017 feature film Tulip Fever.[75]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Quennell 1900, p. 113.
  2. ^ "The Cathedral of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, Non Civil Parish – 1051330". Historic England. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  3. ^ "General Synod Dioceses Commission – Background and History". Church of England. Archived (PDF) from the original on 7 June 2012. Retrieved 3 March 2013.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Bumpus 1929, pp. 193–197.
  5. ^ Clifton-Taylor 1989, p. 16.
  6. ^ a b c d "Timeline of Norwich Cathedral". Norwich Cathedral. Archived from the original on 29 May 2010. Retrieved 26 July 2010.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Pevsner 2002, pp. 189–193.
  8. ^ Boyd 1962, p. 66.
  9. ^ Hall 1710, pp. 15–16.
  10. ^ Pevsner 2002, pp. 211–403.
  11. ^ "The Norwich 12". Visit Norwich. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
  12. ^ Brinkley, Katie (10 September 2008). "Heritage Open Days – Get On The Trail Of The Norwich 12". Culture24. Archived from the original on 28 July 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
  13. ^ "Norwich Cathedral Visitors' Centre". Wood Awards. Archived from the original on 2 July 2019. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
  14. ^ "Norwich Cathedral helter-skelter 'is a mistake'". BBC News. 9 August 2019. Archived from the original on 12 August 2019. Retrieved 12 August 2019.
  15. ^ "Norwich Cathedral: Bishop delivers sermon from helter-skelter". BBC News. 18 August 2019. Archived from the original on 18 August 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2019. With video
  16. ^ "Members of Chapter". Norwich Cathedral. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
  17. ^ "New Dean of Norwich installed at special service". Norwich Cathedral. 28 January 2023. Archived from the original on 3 February 2023. Retrieved 3 February 2023.
  18. ^ "Installation of Dr Peter Doll as Canon Librarian" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 April 2015. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  19. ^ Norwich Cathedral – Installation of new Canon Precentor Archived 17 January 2018 at the Wayback Machine (Accessed 16 January 2018)
  20. ^ "The Revd Canon Andy Bryant". Norwich Cathedral. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
  21. ^ "Canon Andrew to be installed at Norwich Cathedral". Network Norwich. 8 December 2014. Archived from the original on 5 May 2019. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
  22. ^ Britton 1816, pp. 28–29.
  23. ^ a b c Clifton-Taylor 1989, p. 36.
  24. ^ a b Clifton-Taylor 1989, p. 52.
  25. ^ Pevsner 2002, p. 226.
  26. ^ Pevsner 2002, pp. 216–219.
  27. ^ a b c Rose & Hedgecoe 1997.
  28. ^ Pevsner 2002, p. 217.
  29. ^ a b Atherton et al. 1996, p. 441.
  30. ^ Mottram 1948, p. 31.
  31. University of Wisconsin
    . Retrieved 18 July 2023.
  32. ^ Clifton-Taylor 1989, p. 21.
  33. ^ Clifton-Taylor 1989, pp. 36–38.
  34. ^ Johnston 1986, p. 218.
  35. ^ a b "Norwich Cathedral, the West Window". Norwich360. 2022. Retrieved 22 July 2023.
  36. ^ Woodforde 1950, p. 16.
  37. ^ Cave 1948, pp. 12–13.
  38. ^ James 1911.
  39. ^ Challis 1998, pp. 7, 9.
  40. ^ Rose 2003, pp. 4–6.
  41. ^ Rose 2003, p. 5.
  42. ^ Rose 2003, pp. 6–7.
  43. ^ "Art Treasures and Despenser Retable". Norwich Cathedral. Archived from the original on 30 May 2015. Retrieved 30 May 2015.
  44. ^ Days, Heritage Open. "Medieval graffiti at Norwich Cathedral – Heritage Open Days". heritageopendays.org.uk. Archived from the original on 23 November 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  45. ^ "The Organ". Norwich Cathedral. Diocese of Norwich. 2015. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  46. ^ Powell, Luke (11 April 2017). "Norwich Cathedral to spend £1.5m rebuilding organ as country's other religious buildings hit financial trouble". Eastern Daily Press. Archived from the original on 30 September 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  47. ^ "Norwich Cathedral".
  48. ^ West 1921, p. vii.
  49. ^ West 1921, p. 79.
  50. ^ Spink 1965.
  51. ^ "Heathcote Dicken Statham; 1889–1973; organist and conductor; Norwich, Norfolk". Norfolk Record Office. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
  52. ^ "Music at Norwich Cathedral". Norwich Cathedral. The Diocese of Norwich. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  53. ^ a b c "Norwich Cathedral Choir". Norwich Cathedral. Diocese of Norwich. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  54. ^ "Norwich Cathedral Girls' Choir". Norwich Cathedral. Diocese of Norwich. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  55. ^ a b c Atherton et al. 1996, p. 495.
  56. ^ L'Estrange 1874, pp. 10, 169.
  57. ^ Walters 1912, p. 47.
  58. ^ a b Gilchrist 2016, p. 189.
  59. ^ Gilchrist 2016, p. 250.
  60. ^ Gilchrist 2016, p. 190.
  61. ^ Stewart 1875, p. 29.
  62. ^ Gilchrist 2016, pp. 189, 219.
  63. ^ a b c Thurlow 1946, p. 93.
  64. ^ Blomefield 1806, chapter 41.
  65. ^ Pounds 2005, pp. 91–92.
  66. ^ Gilchrist 2016, p. 149.
  67. ^ "Cathedral Close (cathedral precinct)". Norfolk Heritage Explorer. Norfolk County Council. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
  68. ^ "Edith Cavell grave in Norwich to be restored". BBC News. 13 October 2014. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
  69. ^ Gilchrist 2016, p. 61.
  70. ^ Sims 2000, pp. 91–96.
  71. ^ "A Passion For Churches". BBC. Archived from the original on 25 October 2015. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
  72. ^ "Julian of Norwich, The Search for the Lost Manuscript now on DVD". Diocese of Norwich. 3 April 2019. Retrieved 30 December 2021.
  73. ^ "Film: The Stalls of Barchester Cathedral". Norwich Cathedral. Diocese of Norwich. 16 May 2019. Retrieved 30 December 2021.
  74. ^ "Norwich Cathedral used in Jack the Giant Killer movie". BBC News. 30 November 2017. Archived from the original on 30 November 2017.
  75. ^ Knights, Emma (1 May 2017). "New trailer for Tulip Fever film shot at Norwich Cathedral and Holkham". Eastern Daily Press. Retrieved 30 December 2021.

Notes

  1. ^ Adapted from a plan by R. Rorfe[22]

Sources

Further reading

External links

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