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THE 


HISTORY  AND  ANTIQUITIES 

OF 

THE   CATHEDRAL   CHURCH 

OF 

maim 

ILLUSTRATED  EV 

A  SERIES  OF  ENGRAVINGS, 

OF 

VIEWS,  ELEVATIONS,   PLANS,  AND  DETAILS 

OF  THE 

Rvcfyitettnve  of  ttwt  <£irtff<* ; 

INCLUDING 

BIOGRAPHICAL  ANECDOTES  OF  THE  BISHOPS 

OF  THE 

SEE    OF    BATH   AND    WELLS. 


BY  JOHN   BRITTON,    F.  S.  A. 

ETC. 


Itontron : 

PRINTED   FOR   LONGMAN,   HURST,   REES,   ORME,   BROWN,   AND.  GREEN,   PATERNOSTER    ROW 
THE  AUTHOR.  BURTON  COTTAGE,  BURTON  STREET;  AND  J.  TAYLOR,  59,  HIGH  HOLBORN. 

1824. 


J 


I*,  and  C.  Wliitiiugluin,  College  Houe,  Cbbwtclc. 


TO  THE 

RIGHT  REVEREND  GEORGE  HENRY  LAW,  LL.D. 
EorDf  Btatjop  of  atatt)  an&  &mtll&; 

TO  THE 

HON.  AND  RIGHT  REV.  HENRY  RIDER,  D.D. 

LORD  BISHOP  OF  LICHFIELD  AND  COVENTRY; 

AS 

Bean  of  Shells ; 

AND  TO  THE 

RIGHT  REVEREND  WALKER  KING,  D.D.  Lord  Bishop  of  Rochester; 

HENRY  GOULD,  Clerk,  M.A. 

GEORGE  TREVELYAN,  Clerk,  LL.D.  Archdeacon  of  Taunton; 

ROGER  FRANKLAND,  Clerk,  M.A. 

FREDERICK  BEADON,  Clerk,  M.A.  Chancellor  of  the  Cathedral; 

AND  TO 

THOMAS  WODEHOUSE,  Clerk,  M.A. 

AS 

©anons  3&esf&cnttarg  of  QBtUs  ©atfjctrral; 
THIS  VOLUME 

IS,  BY  PERMISSION,  INSCRIBED,  WITH  EVERY  SENTIMENT  OF  RESPECT, 


BY  THE  AUTHOR. 

London,  Nov.  1824. 


PREFACE. 


Considering  the  variety  of  dispositions  and  pursuits  of  the  many  persons 
whom  I  must  necessarily  consult,  or  come  in  contact  with,  during  the  progress 
of  such  a  work  as  "  The  Cathedral  Antiquities  of  England,"  it  cannot  excite 
surprise  that  some  of  them  should  be  of  the  "  crabbed  genus ;"  for  neither 
education,  profession,  nor  even  extensive  intercourse  with  mankind,  will 
entirely  subdue  or  counteract  constitutional  moroseness.  Though  I  have 
met  with  a  few  of  this  class,  and  have  consequently  experienced  vexation  and 
inconvenience,  it  has  been  my  fortunate  lot  to  encounter  but  few;  whereas 
my  researches  have  often  been  facilitated  by  prompt  and  unreserved  com- 
munications ;  and  far  more  civilities  and  assistance  have  been  tendered  than  I 
could  either  accept  or  profit  by.  Thus,  though  my  path  has  been  occasionally 
impeded  by  the  briars  of  ill-nature  and  envy,  it  has  more  generally  been 
smoothed  with  courtesy,  and  strewn  with  the  fragrant  flowers  of  kindness. 
It  is  this  courtesy  and  kindness,  from  the  principal  dignitaries  of  the  church, 
from  some  of  the  nobles  of  the  country,  and  from  many  antiquarian  and 
professional  friends,  which  jointly  cooperate  to  impel  me  onward  in  the 
apparently  long  journey  that  I  have  undertaken;  and  whilst  thus  favoured, 
and  life  and  health  are  awarded  to  me,  I  hope  to  continue  in  the  same  track 
to  the  end.  More  than  half  of  this  journey  may  be  said  to  be  performed;  as 
the  most  interesting  of  the  English  Cathedrals  have  already  been  illustrated  in 
this  work '.  It  is  true,  that  the  majority,  in  number,  remain  to  be  described ; 
and  it  is  equally  true,  that  some  of  them  are  highly  curious  and  important  as 
objects  of  Architecture,  Antiquity,  and  History.  But  as  the  Cathedrals  of 
Wales  and  London  are  not  intended  to  be  comprised  in  the  proposed  Series, 
we  have  the  following  only  to  bring  under  review,  \iz.  Exeter,  Peterbo- 
rough2, Bristol,  Gloucester,  Hereford,  Rochester,  Lincoln,   Durham,  Chi- 

1  The  names  of  these,  with  the  sizes,  prices,  and  number  of  engravings  to  each  Cathedral  are 
enumerated  in  a  list  at  the  end  of  this  volume. 

'  The  drawings  for  Exeter  and  Peterborough  Cathedrals  are  prepared  and  in  progress,  and 
some  of  the  plates  are  engraved.  It  is  proposed  to  complete  the  History  of  Exeter  Cathedral 
about  Michaelmas  next,  and  that  of  Peterborough  by  January,  1826. 


vi  PREFACE. 

Chester,  Chester,  Worcester,  Carlisle,  and  Ely  ;  and  some  of  them,  like 
that  at  Oxford,  may  be  displayed  in  a  series  of  eleven  or  twelve  engravings. 
My  present  calculation  is  to  complete  the  work  in  sixty  numbers,  or  six 
volumes;  the  price  of  which  will  be  £3G.  small  paper;  and  the  embellish- 
ments of  which  will  amount  to,  at  least,  three  hundred  and  thirty.  Consider- 
ing the  number  and  variety  of  subjects,  facts,  and  evidence  which  will  thus  be 
brought  into  one  focus — the  styles  of  execution  which  the  engravings  will  col- 
lectively display  of  the  respective  talents  of  draftsmen  and  engravers — the  mass 
of  information  thus  concentrated  respecting  every  class  and  variety  of  Eccle- 
siastical Architecture  in  this  country — and  the  antiquarian,  historical,  and 
biographical  elucidations  that  will  be  collected,  and  rendered  subservient  to 
the  purposes  of  genius  and  the  uses  of  science,  it  cannot  be  denied  that  a 
publication  in  which  so  many  requisites  are  combined  will  form  a  most 
important,  as  well  as  valuable  feature  in  the  embellished  literature  of  Great 
Britain. 

In  the  execution  of  a  work  like  the  present,  the  author  is,  or  ought  to  be, 
divested  of  all  personal  and  private  feeling;  for  he  is  performing  a  public 
task,  and  is  amenable  to  the  public  tribunal.  It  is  his  duty  to  seek  every 
opportunity  to  obtain  correct  and  judicious  information— to  impart  that  to 
his  readers  with  fidelity — and  in  every  way  to  render  his  undertaking  as 
nearly  perfect  as  possible.  It  is,  also,  the  duty  of  the  dignitaries  and  other 
temporary  officers  of  Cathedrals  (for  each  one  is  only  a  life  trustee  on  the 
Establishment),  to  render  every  facility  to  the  artist  and  the  author,  whose 
integrity  is  unimpeached,  and  whose  abilities  are  equal  to  his  integrity. 
When  this  be  done,  the  labours  of  the  latter  are  made  comparatively  easy, 
and  he  pursues  his  inquiries  with  cheerfulness  to  himself,  and  with  senti- 
ments of  respect  and  gratitude  towards  those  who  have  forwarded  his  pur- 
suits. On  the  other  hand,  when  he  is  obliged  to  petition,  and  to  entreat,  to 
brook  "  the  insolence  of  office,"  and  to  put  up  with  "  the  proud  man's  con- 
tumely," he  is  naturally  irritated,  and  may  be  excited  to  speak  in  unpleasant 
and  unpolite  terms. — It  is  not  my  intention,  however,  to  pen  personal  cen- 
sures for  the  present  work.  My  feelings  incline  me  rather  to  use  the  language 
of  commendation,  in  recording  instances  of  condescension  and  urbanity;  and 
it  is  with  sincere  pleasure  that  I  name  the  following  Prelates  and  officers  of 
Cathedrals  as  demanding  my  own  esteem,  and  as  entitled  to  the  thanks  of 


PREFACE.  Vll 


every  admirer  of  this  work :— the  present  Bishops  of  Salisbury,  Norwich, 
Peterborough,  Wells,  and  Lichfield ;  the  Deans  of  Winchester,  Norwich, 
Lichfield,  Oxford,  Wells,  Bristol,  York,  Ripon,  Westminster,  and  Canter- 
bury ;  and  the  various  Prebendaries  and  Canons  Residentiary  of  the  Cathedrals 
already  illustrated,  and  whose  names  will  be  found  in  the  Prefaces  respectively 
devoted  to  each  Cathedral. 

It  gives  me  much  pleasure  to  learn  that  many  of  the  amateur  subscribers 
to  this  work,  who  formerly  disregarded  the  engravings  of  plans,  sections,  &c. 
which  it  contains,  are  not  only  reconciled  to  their  adoption,  but  even 
consider  them  as  essential  illustrations.  The  architect  and  scientific  anti- 
quary have  long  known  and  appreciated  their  utility ;  they  also  know  that 
such  prints  are  the  only  authentic  and  satisfactory  evidence  to  elucidate  the 
true  forms  of  arches,  mouldings,  and  architectural  details.  Had  the  anti- 
quaries of  the  past  century,  Gough,  Grose,  King,  Whitaker,  &c.  studied 
and  understood  this  species  of  elucidation,  they  would  have  shortened  and 
simplified  their  own  writings,  and  furnished  more  accurate  and  satisfactory 
information  to  their  readers,  than  is  now  to  be  found  in  their  respective 
publications.  Plans  and  sections  have  been  systematically  introduced  into 
this  work  from  principle;  and  from  a  conviction  that  they  are  the  only 
evidences  to  be  confided  in,  when  illustrating  the  history  and  characteristics 
of  architecture.  Had  I  modelled  the  work  to  amuse  the  eye,  at  the  expense 
of  the  judgment,  the  engravings  would  have  been  made  pretty  and  shewy 
rather  than  elaborate  and  accurate ;  but  I  have  preferred  the  useful  to  the 
agreeable,  although  without  disregarding  the  latter  whenever  the  two  classes 
could  be  properly  associated. 

It  is  well  known  to  the  antiquary  that  neither  the  Architectural  excellencies 
nor  the  History  of  the  Cathedral  Church  of  Wells  have  ever  been  duly 
investigated:  both  are  attempted  in  the  present  work,  and  it  is  hoped 
that  both  will  be  satisfactory  to  those  who  are  best  qualified  to  appreciate 
the  execution.  The  sources  for  the  literary  part  have  been  numerous,  but 
sometimes  contradictory,  and  often  very  imperfect.  They  were  mostly  our 
old  Chronicles  and  Histories ;  for  I  am  informed  that  there  are  scarcely 
any  original  documents  or  evidence  among  the  Cathedral  archives.  In  the 
execution  of  this  department  I  am  much  indebted  to  Mr.  Brayley,  who 
has  scrupulously  investigated  every  statement  of  other  writers,  and  has  not 


\iil  PREFACE. 

mule  any  himself  without  reference  to  all  accessible  authorities.  This  will 
appear  by  the  numerous  notes  to  every  page,  and  by  the  list  of  publications 
at  the  end  of  the  volume. 

In  the  original  prospectus  relating  to  Wells  Cathedral,  I  engaged  to  give 
twenty-two  en g ravings,  but  have  actually  given  twenty-four;  and  hence  in 
this,  as  in  some  former  instances,  have  exceeded  my  pledge.  By  the  list  at 
the  end  it  will  be  seen,  at  one  view,  that  nearly  all  these  engravings  manifest 
the  skilful  and  tasteful  execution  of  an  artist  whose  works  have  conferred 
honour  on  his  name,  and  have  tended  in  a  powerful  manner  to  give  interest  and 
fascination  to  this  branch  of  art.  The  plate  of  the  interior,  under  the  tower, 
is  of  the  same  class  and  character;  and  I  cannot  allude  to  its  merit  without 
thanking  the  engraver  for  the  care  and  skill  he  has  bestowed  on  it.  If  I  do 
not  specify  other  artists  individually,  it  is  not  from  disrespect  or  indifference; 
for  I  believe  that  each  has  exerted  his  best  powers,  and  is  therefore  entitled 
to  my  acknowledgments.  But  all  persons  cannot  excel ;  for  in  the  arduous 
race  of  fame,  only  a  few  of  the  distinguished  sons  of  genius  can  hope  to  win 
the  golden  prize.  Whilst  merit  thus  secures  applause,  it  also  awakens 
emulation; — laudable  and  zealous  competition,  whilst  it  rouses  all  the  latent 
energies  of  the  soul,  improves  the  public  taste,  the  public  morals,  and  the 
public  welfare  of  a  nation. 

In  the  progress  of  the  volume  I  have  experienced  assistance  or  personal 
civilities  from  the  following  gentlemen,  relating  to  this  Cathedral ;  to  each 
and  to  all  of  whom  I  beg  to  tender,  in  this  place,  my  sincere  thanks: — The 
present  Bishop  of  Bath  and  Wells,  the  Dean  of  Wells,  the  Rev.  Roger 
Frankland,  the  Rev.  R.  Foster,  the  Rev.  Frederick  Beadon,  the  Rev.  Win. 
Phelps,  Wm.  Parfitt,  Esq.  and  Edward  Tuson,  Esq. 


^t0torp  anti  Stnttgutttes 


THE  CATHEDRAL  CHURCH  OF  WELLS. 


Cfjap*  fo 


UNCERTAINTY  OF  THE  REMOTE  HISTORY  OF  THIS   SEE  : REPUTED   INTRODUCTION  OF 

CHRISTIANITY  INTO  BRITAIN  fiY  JOSEPH  OF  ARIMATHEA  : — DUBIOUSNESS  OF  THE 
STORY  OF  KING  LUCIUS  : ECCLESIASTICAL  DIYISION  OF  THE  WEST  SAXON  KING- 
DOM J    AND   SUCCESSIVE   INSTITUTION   OF   THE  SEES  OF  DORCHESTER,  WINCHESTER, 

SHERBORNE,    AND    WELLS: HISTORICAL     PARTICULARS     OF     THE    BISHOPRIC    OF 

WELLS,  FROM  THE  PERIOD  OF  ITS  ORIGIN  UNTIL  THE  TIME  OF  ITS  REMOVAL  TO 
BATH  IN  THE  REIGN  OF  WILLIAM  RUFUS. 


The  remote  history  of  almost  all  our  episcopal  establishments  is  so  involved 
in  inconsistency  and  fable  that  a  satisfactory  account  of  their  origin  can 
seldom  be  obtained,  and  the  obscurity  increases  as  it  recedes  from  our  own 
times.  This  is  peculiarly  the  case  in  respect  to  the  See  of  Wells,  the  notices 
of  which  in  our  early  writers  are  both  confused  and  meagre ;  and  the  diffi- 
culty of  determining  at  what  period  a  religious  foundation  was  established 
in  this  district,  is  much  augmented  by  the  questionable  authenticity  of  dif- 
ferent charters  which  are  said  to  have  been  granted  by  the  West  Saxon 
Kings,  Ina  and  Kenulph,  or  Cynewulph.    There  cannot,  perhaps,  be  a  greater 

B 


2  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

proof  of  the  uncertainty  that  attends  an  inquiry  into  the  precise  era  of  the 
foundation  of  our  episcopal  sees  than  what  arises  from  the  conduct  of 
William  of  Malmesbury,  who,  throughout  his  five  books  "  De  Gestis  Pontifi- 
cum  Anglorum,"  has  uniformly  omitted  dates ;  and  although  in  some  cases 
he  specifies  the  number  of  years  during  which  the  prelates  held  their  seats, 
he  never  gives  the  date  either  of  their  appointment,  death,  or  removal. 

It  has  been  inferred  that  the  Christian  religion  was  introduced  into  this 
City  from  the  neighbouring  town  of  Glaston,  or  Glastonbury ;  where,  if  the 
monkish  legends  may  be  credited,  it  had  been  originally  settled  about  the 
year  G3,  by  St.  Joseph,  of  Arimathea,  who  buried  the  body  of  our  Saviour, 
and  had  himself  been  the  friend  and  companion  of  St.  Philip,  by  whom  he 
had  been  despatched  into  Britain  with  eleven  other  disciples  of  that  Apostle1. 
These  missionaries,  according  to  the  Ashmolean  Manuscript,  obtained,  from 
the  British  King,  Arviragus,  permission  to  settle  at  Ynswylryn,  or  the  Glassy 
Island,  as  it  was  called  from  the  colour  of  the  surrounding  water;  and  to 
each  person  he  gave  for  his  support  a  hide  of  land ' ;  the  whole  comprising  a 
district  which  thenceforward  was  denominated  the  Twelve  Hides  of  Glaston, 
aud  has  been  so  called  even  to  the  present  time3.  The  island,  itself,  after- 
wards received  the  name  of  Avallon,  either  from  Aval,  an  apple,  in  which 
fruit  it  abounded ;  or  from  a  British  chief  of  that  name,  to  whom  it  had 
belonged.  Here,  St.  Joseph,  whom  the  monkish  historians  consider  as  the 
first  abbot,  is  reputed  to  have  erected  a  chapel  of  wreathed  twigs,  or  twisted 
rods,  in  honour  of  the  Virgin  Mary,  which  thus  became  the  first  Christian 
oratory  in  England  '. 

Bishop  Stillingfleet  regards  the  tradition  concerning  Joseph  of  Arimathea 
as  an  invention  of  the  monks  of  Glastonbury  to  serve  the  interests  of  their 

1  Johannie  Glaston.  "  Hist."  cd.  Hearne,  vol.  i.  p.  1  et48.  Gul.  Malm.  "  Gcst.  Pont."  ed. 
Hearne,  p.  3.     Glastonbury  is  about  six  miles  from  Wells  to  the  south-west. 

■  Dngdale's  "  Monasticon  Anglicanum,"  vol.  i.  p.  22;  new  edit,  ex  "  Hist.  Eccl.  Glas- 
tonieusis,"  MS.  in  Museo  Ashmoliano,  Num.  790.  3  Dugd.  "  Mon."  Ibid.  p.  1. 

*  Johan.  Glaston.  llearne's  edit.  p.  10.  Gul.  Malm.  "Gest.  Tont."  p.  12.  Polyd.  Vcrgilius, 
"  Hist."  fol.  Basilese,  1557,  lib.  iv.  p.  89. 


REPUTED  ORIGIN  OF  THIS  SEE.  d 

monastery r' ;  and  there  can  be  little  doubt  of  the  correctness  of  his  opinion. 
Admitting,  however,  for  the  sake  of  argument,  that  a  religious  establishment 
actually  existed  at  Glastonbury  at  the  early  period  assigned,  we  have  not  the 
least  evidence  that  its  influence  was  extended  beyond  its  original  seat.  But 
about  a  century  afterwards,  in  the  reign  of  King  Lucius,  to  Avhoin  the  monkish 
fabulists  have  given  such  wide-spreading  domination  in  Britain,  and  that, 
too,  at  a  time  when  the  Romans  are  known  to  have  been  in  full  possession  of 
the  country,  the  Saints,  Fagauus  and  Deruvianus  are  said  to  have  rebuilt  the 
oratory  and  added  another  of  stone,  and  to  have  extended,  by  their  preach- 
ing, and  by  the  influence  of  the  king  and  his  family,  whom  they  had  baptized, 
a  knowledge  of  Christianity  over  the  greatest  part  of  Britain.  The  story  of 
Lucius,  however,  is  fraught  with  so  many  inconsistencies,  both  in  respect  to 
the  state  of  the  times,  and  to  all  we  know  of  the  principles  which  the  Romans 
pursued  in  the  government  of  their  colonies,  that  the  whole  is  rendered  incre- 
dible ;  nor  does  it  appear  from  any  Roman  author,  that  ever  a  prince  so 
named  was,  at  any  time,  in  alliance  with  them,  or  was  suffered  to  govern  a 
subordinate  kingdom  under  their  prefects.  The  total  silence,  also,  of  the 
Roman  historians  as  to  any  Christian  hierarchy  being  established  in  this 
country  during  the  three  first  centuries  of  the  Roman  dominion  here  (since 
it  appears  from  Ignatius,  that  there  could  have  been  no  church  without  a 
succession  of  bishops)  affords  a  strong  presumption  that,  in  the  above 
period,  the  diffusion  of  Christianity,  in  this  island,  was  extremely  limited; 
and  that  it  arose  more  from  accidental  circumstances  than  from  a  settled 
plan  of  conversion a. 

In  the  "  Glastonbury  Chronicle,"  quoted  by  Wharton,  and  referred  to  in 
the  "  Primordia"  of  Archbishop  Usher,  it  is  stated  that  the  Bishopric  of 

s  "  Origines  Britaunicae,"  &c.  p.  6.  None  of  our  more  antient  historians  take  the  least 
notice  of  the  monkish  tale  which  attributes  the  foundation  of  Glastonbury  to  "  Joseph  of 
Arimathea.'' 

6  Vide,  "  Hist,  and  Antiquities  of  the  Cathedral  Church  of  Winchester,"  chap.  i.  in  which  is 
given  an  extended  inquiry  into  the  history  of  Lucius,  and  of  the  first  introduction  of  Christianity 
into  this  island;  together  with  various  particulars  respecting  the  progress  of  the  Christian  faith 
in  the  West-Saxon  kingdom. 


4  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

Somersetshire  was  first  instituted  by  the  Saints  Fagan  and  Deruvian,  in  the 
year  1(>7,  at  Kungresbury,  or  Congersbury  (which  is  about  two  miles  to  the 
west  of  Wrington,  and  eighteen  miles  from  Wells);  and  that  it  continued 
there  for  six  hundred  years  and  upwards,  even  to  the  time  of  King  lna  of 
the  West  Saxons ;  when  Bishop  Daniel,  with  the  consent  of  that  sovereign, 
translated  it  to  the  village  of  Tethiscine,  now  called  Wells7.  Neither 
Wharton  nor  Bishop  Tanner,  however,  give  the  least  credit  to  this  account; 
and  when  we  find  it  admitted  by  the  chronicler  himself,  that  of  the  many  suc- 
cessive bishops  who  sat  at  Congersbury,  nothing  had  been  discovered  either 
of  their  actions  or  of  the  times  when  they  lived,  we  may  naturally  infer  that 
it  is  altogether  undeserving  of  belief8. 

Wells,  says  Bishop  Godwin,  "  which  was  so  called  from  its  abundant 
springs0,  and  is  named  Tidington,  in  a  charter  of  King  Edward  the  Con- 
fessor l0,  was  not  a  place  of  any  extraordinary  note  before  the  time  of  lna, 
King  of  the  West  Saxons,  who  built  a  Church  there,  and  dedicated  it  in 
honour  of  St.  Andrew,  A.  D.  704."  In  this  account  most  writers  agree ;  but 
with  the  addition,  that  Ina's  church  was  Collegiate  only,  and  that  the  Bishopric 

"  Anno  Domini  CLXVII.  Episcopatus  Somersetia?  per  SS.  Faganum  ot  Deruvianuni 
snmpsit  exordium,  et  in  Kungresburia  per  multum  tempus  Sedes  Episcopalis  fuit. — In  tempore 
autem  praedicti  Regis,  [lna]  Daniel,  qui  in  Cathedra  de  Kungresburia  sedebat  ultimas,  Sedem 
illam,  quae  illic  per  DC.  annos  vel  amplius  remanserat,  ad  villain  quae  tune  Tethiaeine,  nunc  veru 
Wcl/es  nominator,  lna  Regc  donante  et  ei  consentiente,  traustulit."  "  Angl.  Sacr."  pars  i.  p. 
").">3. — Camden  says,  that  Congersbury  was  so  called  from  Congarus,  a  man  of  exemplary  pietv, 
(said  by  Capgrave  to  have  been  the  son  of  an  Emperor  of  Constantinople)  who  lived  a  hermit 
there.  "  Britannia,"'  vol.  i.  edit.  1789.  Capgrave  says,  in  "  Vita  S.  Cungari,''  that  Congersbury 
was  a  very  solitary  place,  and  had  its  name  and  renown  from  a  religious  hermit  called  Cungar, 
who,  by  the  gift  of  King  lna,  had  the  adjacent  territory:  and  here,  about  the  year  711  (see 
Cressy's  *'  Church  History"'),  founded  a  Collegiate  church  for  twelve  canons,  to  the  honour  of  the 
Holy  Trinity.  There  is  an  important  chronological  error  in  the  account  of  Cungar,  who  is  said 
to  have  received  the  blessing  of  St.  Dubritius,  Bishop  of  Llandalr",  though  the  latter  quitted  that 
See  in  the  year  612.     Vide  "  Notitia  Monastica,"  in  Somersetshire. 

1  — "  Sederunt  itaquc  in  eftdem  Sede  plurimi  Pontifices  successive  usque  ad  tempus  lna:  Regis 
West-Saxonum  ;  quorum  numerum,  gesta  et  tempora  nusquaiii  reperimus  descripta." — "  Angl. 
Sacr."  pars  i.  p.  553. 

"  "  Villa  a  copia  fonticulorum  sic  dicta."'     "  De  Prtesulibus  Anglite,"  p.  303.  edit.  1743. 
1     Vide,  Dugdale's  "  Monasticon,"  vol.  ii.  Num.  II.  p.  28G.  edit.  1819. 


CHARTER  OF  KING  INA  TO  GLASTONBURY. 


of  Wells  was  not  founded  till  the  reign  of  Edward  the  Elder,  in  the  beginning 
of  the  tenth  century.  There  is  extant,  however,  in  William  of  Malmesbury's 
"  De  Antiquitate  Glastoniensis  Ecclesiae,"  and  in  some  copies  of  his  "  De 
Gestis  Regum  Anglorutn,"  a  very  full  charter  of  privileges,  which  King  Ina 
is  affirmed  to  have  granted  to  the  monastery  of  Glastonbury  in  the  year 
725 ;  and  from  which,  if  the  charter  be  not  a  forgery,  the  existence  of  an 
Episcopal  See  at  Wells,  prior  to  that  date,  may  be  distinctly  inferred, 
although  it  is  not  directly  asserted. 

As  the  subject  is  curious  in  itself,  and  as  Dugdale  and  his  recent  editors 
have  given  the  charter  at  length,  but  without  any  remark  as  to  its  style  or 
presumed  spuriousness,  or  connecting  it  in  any  way  with  the  institution  of 
this  See,  the  most  material  parts  of  it,  including  those  which  particularly 
refer  to  Wells  will  be  here  inserted,  and  the  question  as  to  its  authenticity 
will  be  afterwards  examined  ;  the  early  history  of  this  Church  being  particu- 
larly involved  in  the  decision  of  that  question. 

After  stating,  among  other  circumstances,  that  the  ancient  Church  of  the 
eternal  Virgin  at  Glastonbury  was  sanctified  by  Christ  and  his  Angels,  by 
many  and  unheard-of  miracles — "  multis  et  inauditis  miracxdis'''' — the  charter 
proceeds  to  confirm  to  that  Church  in  the  fullest  manner  all  former  grants  of 
lands  and  privileges,  and  to  exempt  both  it  and  its  dependent  chapels  from 
all  secular  and  ecclesiastical  services,  and  all  visitations  whatsoever,  but 
those  which  the  abbot  and  his  brethren  should  agree  to  : — "  And  whatsoever 
questions,"  it  continues,  "  shall  arise,  whether  of  homicide,  sacrilege,  poison, 
theft,  rapine,  the  disposal  and  limits  of  churches,  the  ordiuation  of  clerks, 
ecclesiastical  synods,  and  all  judical  inquiries,  they  shall  be  determined  by 
the  decision  of  the  Abbot  and  Convent,  without  the  interference  of  any  person 
whatsoever.  Moreover,  I  command  all  my  sub-kings,  archbishops,  bishops, 
dukes,  and  governors,  as  they  tender  my  honour  and  regard,  and  all  de- 
pendants, mine  as  well  as  theirs,  as  they  value  their  personal  safety, never  to 
dare  enter  the  Island  of  our  Loi'd  Jesus  Christ,  and  of  the  eternal  Virgin, 
at  Glastonbury,  nor  the  possessions  of  the  said  Church,  for  the  purpose  of 
holding  courts,  making  inquiry,  or  seizing,  or  doing  any  thing  whatever  to 
the  offence  of  the  servants  of  God  there  residing:  moreover,  I  particularly 


WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 


inhibit,  by  the  curse  of  Akoightj  Cod,  of  the  eternal  Virgin  Mary,  and  of  the 
holy  apostles  Peter  and  Paul,  and  of  the  rest  of  the  saints,  any  bishop,  on 
any  account  whatever,  from  presuming  to  take  his  episcopal  seat,  or  cele- 
brate divine  service,  or  consecrate  altars,  or  dedicate  churches,  or  ordain,  or 
do  any  thing  whatever,  either  in  the  Church  of  Glastonbury  itself  or  in  its 
dependent  churches,  that  is  to  say  Sowy,  Brente,  Merlinch,  Sapewic. 
Stret,  Sbudecalech,  Pilton,  or  in  their  chapels,  or  islands,  unless  he  be  spe- 
cially invited  by  the  abbot  or  brethren  of  that  place.  But  if  he  come  upon 
such  invitation,  he  shall  take  nothing  to  himself  of  the  things  of  the  Church, 
nor  of  the  offerings;  knowing  that  he  has  two  mansions  appointed  him  out  of 
this  Church's  possessions,  one  in  Poelt,  the  other  in  the  village  called  Pilton, 
that,  when  coming  and  going,  he  may  have  a  place  of  entertainment :  nor 
even  shall  it  be  lawful  for  him  to  pass  the  night  in  this  place,  unless  he  be 
detained  by  stress  of  weather,  or  bodily  sickness,  or  be  invited  by  the  abbot 
and  his  brethren ;  and  then  with  not  more  than  three  or  four  clerks.  More- 
over, let  the  aforesaid  bishop  be  mindful  every  year,  with  his  clerks  that  are 
at  Wells,  to  acknowledge  his  mother  church  of  Glastonbury  with  Litanies, 
on  the  second  day  after  our  Lord's  Ascension.  But  should  he,  inflated  with 
pride,  defer  it,  or  prevaricate  in  the  things  which  are  above  recited  and 
confirmed,  he  shall  forfeit  the  mansions  above  mentioned ;  and  the  abbot  and 
his  monks  shall  direct  whatever  bishop  they  please,  who  celebrates  Easter 
canonically,  to  perform  service  in  the  Church  of  Glastonbury,  its  dependent 
churches,  and  in  their  chapels.  Whosoever  shall  hereafter,  on  any  occasion 
whatsoever,  attempt  to  pervert  or  nullify  this  the  testament  of  my  munifi- 
cence and  liberality,  let  him  know  that  with  the  traitor  Judas,  to  his  eternal 
confusion,  he  shall  perish  in  the  devouring  flames  of  unspeakable  torments. 
The  charter  of  this  donation  and  privilege  was  written  in  the  vear  of  our 
Lord's  Incarnation  725,  the  4th  of  the  Indiction:  in  the  presence  of  King 
Ina,  and  of  Beorthwald,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  the  venerable  prelates 
Daniel  and  Fordred,  and  others  whose  names  are  underneath.  I,  Ina,  King, 
with  my  own  hand  subscribe  this  donation  and  liberty;  and  ratify  it  uuder 
the  seal  of  the  Holy  Cross.  I,  Edelburg,  Queen,  consent  to  it.  I,  Baldred, 
King,  confirm  it.     I,  Adelard,  brother  to  the  Queen,  consent.     I,  Beorth- 


CHARTER  OF  KING  INA  TO  GLASTONBURY.  7 

wald,  Archbishop  of  the  church  of  Canterbury,  King  Ina's  donation  and 
liberty,  under  the  seal  of  the  Holy  Cross,  corroborate.  I,  Daniel,  Inspector 
of  God's  People,  acquiesce.  I,  Fordred,  Bishop,  with  the  mark  of  the 
Cross  impress  it.  Waldhere,  Prefect ;  Brutus,  Prefect ;  Ethelheard ;  Um- 
ming,  Prefect;  Winchelin,  Earl,with  all  the  people  present,  consent  to  and 
confirm  it1'." 

From  the  mention  of  the  "  Bishop,"  in  this  record,  so  immediately  in  con- 
nection with  that  of  "  his  clerks  who  are  at  Wells  l2,"  it  may  fairly  be  argued 
that  his  Episcopal  Seat  was  there  likewise ;  and  particularly  so  from  the  cir- 
cumstance that  both  Poelt  and  Pilton  (assuming  the  former  place  to  have 
been  afterwards  called  Poelt's-ham  and  now  Polesham)  are  situated  on  the 
two  roads  which  communicate  between  Wells  and  Glastonbury  I3.  But  this 
inference,  though  it  accords  with  the  chronicle  before  quoted,  in  regard  to  the 
existence  of  a  Bishop's  See  at  Wells,  in  King  Ina's  time,  cannot  be  deemed 
valid,  if  the  charter  itself  be  spurious ;  which,  from  the  following  considera- 
tions, it  unquestionably  appears  to  be. 

It  must  be  evident  that  the  decided  intention  of  the  charter  was  to  exempt 
the  possessions  of  the  Church  of  Glastonbury  from  every  kind  of  subjection 
and  service  whatever,  whether  due  to  the  prelacy  or  to  the  crown  ;  and  more 
particularly,  so  far  as  words  could  secure  them,  from  the  visitations  and 
control  of  the  Bishops  of  the  diocess  wherein  the  monastic  estates  lay ;  and 
which  estates,  as  named  in  this  instrument,  were  all  in  Somersetshire.  This 
total  freedom  from  Episcopal  jurisdiction  was  an  object  which  the  Glaston- 
bury monks  had  always  at  heart ;  yet  notwithstanding  the  full  and  express 
terms  by  which  the  dependent  Churches  of  Glastonbury  are  exempted  in  the 
charter,  we  learn  from  Collinson,  that  the  jurisdiction  over  those  very 
parishes  was  the  subject  of  a  four  hundred  and  fifty  years  controversy  be- 

"  Vide,  the  original  Latin  in  Dugdale's  "  Monasticon,"  vol.  i.  Num.  VII.  p.  25. 

12  "  Hoc  etiam  provideat  idem  Episcopus,  lit  singulis  annis  cum  Clericis  suis  qui  Fontanetum 
sunt," — &c. 

13  Wells,  Glastonbury,  and  Pilton,  may  be  described  as  situated  at  the  angles  of  a  triangle; 
"Wells  being  towards  the  north,  Glastonbury  to  the  south-west,  and  Pilton  to  the  south-east. 


8  WELLS    CATHEDRAL. 

tween  the  Monks  of  that  monastery  and  the  Bishops  of  the  diocess  ".  It  may 
be  concluded,  therefore,  either  that  the  alleged  charter  was  not  in  existence 
at  the  time  of  the  dispute,  or  that  the  prelates  who  were  contending  for 
supremacy,  gave  no  credit  to  its  genuineness. 

That  the  monks  of  different  establishments  were  occasionally,  at  least, 
employed  in  fabricating  charters,  to  free  their  possessions  both  from  secular 
claims  and  ecclesiastical  authority,  is  most  certain.  Dugdale,  speaking  of 
these  antient  deeds,  expressly  states,  in  the  preface  to  his  "  Monasticon," 
that  "  the  older  they  pretend  to  be,  the  more  they  are  to  be  suspected;"  and 
although  Mabillon  controverts  this,  as  creating  too  general  a  suspicion  of 
the  validity  of  monastic  records,  he  is  obliged,  at  the  conclusion  of  his  dis- 
course, to  rest  his  vindication  of  the  monks,  on  "  the  commonness  of  the  fault 
in  elder  times  'V' 

But  the  charter,  attributed  to  Ina,  presents  other  marks  of  forgery  than 
those  merely  of  suspicion.  He  addresses  his  sub-kings,  archbishops,  bishops, 
dukes,  and  others,  as  familiarly  as  though  the  whole  kingdom  was  already 
subjected  to  Wessex ;  and  which  we  know  was  not  the  case  till  more  than 
a  century  afterwards.  The  East-Angles,  it  is  true,  had  submitted  to  Ina's 
power,  and  the  Kentish  people  had  purchased  a  peace  at  the  expense  of 
30,000  marks  of  gold  ;  but  this  was  far  from  giving  him  that  extensive  pre- 
dominancy which  the  charter  implies.  Not  a  single  archbishop  was  included 
in  his  dominions;  and  as  for  Baldred,  the  king  whose  signature  is  affixed  to 
the  document  in  question,  the  only  sovereign  of  that  name  mentioned  by 
our  antient  historians,  was  that  "abortion  of  royal  dignity,"  as  Malmesburv 
calls  him,  who  was  expelled  from  Kent  by  Egbert  in  823;  nearly  one  hun- 
dred years  after  Ina's  decease.  The  general  style  and  phraseology  of  the 
charter  arc  also  far  more  diffuse  than  the  authenticated  grants  of  the  period  ; 
and  what  is  still  more  conclusive  of  forgery,  the  years  of  the  Indictiou  and 
Incarnation  do  not  agree,  the  former  in  A.  D.  725,  being  eight,  and  not  four, 
as  stated  in  this  fabricated  record.    We  have,  therefore,  no  certain  testimony 

14  "  History  of  Somersetshire,-'  vol.  ii.  p.  241.  IS  "  De  Re  Diplomat."  lib.  iii.  c.  vi.  n.  10. 


CONVERSION  OP  THE  WEST  SAXONS.  9 

of  the  establishment  of  a  Bishop's  See  at  Wells  in  Ina's  time;  nor  is  there, 
indeed,  any  other  evidence  of  that  monarch  having  actually  founded  a  Colle- 
giate Church  in  this  city,  than  what  arises  from  the  general  current  of  tradi- 
tion and  probability,  unsupported,  however,  by  any  contemporary  document. 
The  endowments  of  Ina's  establishment,  which  is  said  to  have  originally 
included  only  four  canons,  were,  according  to  a  charter  given  as  authentic 
by  Bishop  Godwin  10,  considerably  augmented  by  King  Kenulph  in  766 ;  but 
Wharton  and  Tanner  regard  it  as  spurious,  and  the  latter  refers  to 
Dr.  Hickes's  "  Thesaurus,"  in  proof  of  that  learned  inquirer  being  of  the 
same  opinion u.  Wharton  says,  that  if  Godwin  had  "  considered  the 
Bishops  subscribing  to  it,  and  compared  the  years  of  the  Incarnation  and 
Indiction,  he  might  have  easily  perceived  it  to  be  a  forgery  I8."  Both  Leland 
and  Camden,  however,  have  noticed  it  without  questioning  its  authenticity; 
although  there  can  be  no  doubt  of  the  correctness  of  Wharton's  opinion.  By 
that  charter,  eleven  manses  or  farms,  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Wells,  near 
the  river  of  Welwe,  are  granted  to  increase  the  monastery  situated  by  the 
great  spring  called  Wielea. 

Having  thus  far  traced  the  presumed  origin  of  this  See,  and  endeavoured 
to  investigate  the  truth  of  the  early  traditions  concerning  it,  we  arrive  at 
more  sure  ground ;  and  are  enabled  by  the  general  testimony  of  antient 
authors  to  pursue  its  more  certain  history  through  the  Saxon  period,  and  till 
the  time  of  its  removal  to  Bath  after  the  Norman  conquest. 

This  diocess  formed  a  part  of  the  West  Saxon  kingdom,  which  was  con- 
verted to  Christianity  by  an  Italian  bishop  named  Birimis,  who,  according  to 
that  most  valuable  of  all  our  ancient  records,  the  "Saxon  Chronicle,"  first 
preached  baptism  to  the  West  Saxons  in  634  »  He  was  advised  to  visit 
Britain  by  Pope  Honorius,  to  whom  he  had  promised,  says  Bede20,  to  «  sow 

16  "  De  Praesulibus  Angliae,"  p.  363.  edit.  1743. 

»  «  Notitia  Monastic*,''  under  Wells,  note  t.      The  reference  given  to  the  preface  of  the 

Thesaurus    is,  however,  incorrect,  for  no  mention  of  Keuulph's  charter  is  therein  made. 

Angl.  Sacr."  pars  i.  p.  553.  a.  „  «  Saxon  chronicle,-  p.  35,  Ingram's  edit. 

"  Hist.  Ecclesiasticae,"  lib.  iii.  c.  vii. 


IS    « 


10  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

the  seed  of  the  Holy  Faith,  in  the  inner  parts,  beyond  the  dominions  of  the 
English,  where  no  other  teacher  had  been  before  him. — But  coming  into 
Britain,  and  first  entering  the  nation  of  the  Gevisseans  [West  Saxons],  and 
finding  all  there  most  confirmed  Pagans,  he  thought  it  more  beneficial  to 
preach  the  word  of  God  among  them,  than  to  proceed  further  in  search  of 
others."  In  the  following  year,  Cynegils,  who,  with  Cwichelm  his  son, 
reigned  jointly  over  the  West  Saxons,  was  baptized  at  Dorchester,  in  Ox- 
fordshire, where  Cwichelm  appears  to  have  kept  his  court. 

Cynegils,  and  Oswald  his  sponsor,  the  pious  king  of  the  Northumbrians, 
gave  Dorchester  to  Birinus,  "  there  to  settle  his  Episcopal  See 2I ;  but  this 
seems  to  have  been  only  a  provisional  arrangement  until  a  Cathedral  church, 
of  which  Cynegils  had  laid  the  foundations,  was  completed  at  Venta  Bel- 
garum,  or  Winchester,  where  the  royal  palace  was  situated.  Birinus  was 
succeeded  by  Agclbert,  or  Egilbert,  in  650,  a  native  of  France,  who  had 
long  studied  in  the  distinguished  schools  of  Ireland ;  but  his  foreign  accents 
proving  obnoxious  to  Kenwal,  or  Kenwalsh,  the  son  and  successor  of  Cyne- 
gils, that  king,  anno  660,  divided  his  province  into  two  diocesses ;  assigning 
to  the  See  of  Dorchester  the  jurisdiction  over  the  northern  part  of  Wessex, 
and  establishing  a  new  See,  for  the  southern  part,  at  Winchester,  of  which  he 
appointed  Winn,  a  Saxon,  who  had  received  ordination  in  France,  the  first 
Bishop.  Egilbert  being  highly  offended  at  this  division,  quitted  the  kingdom, 
and  Wina  became  bishop  of  both  Sees ;  but  about  three  years  afterwards, 
he  was  expelled  by  the  king,  who  kept  the  episcopacy  vacant  for  several 
years:  at  length,  alarmed  by  defeats  in  battle,  and  other  adversities,  which 
he  attributed  to  his  neglect  of  religion,  he  sent  messengers  to  request  the 
return  of  Egilbert,  who  was  at  that  time  bishop  of  Paris.  Egilbert  declined 
the  invitation,  but  recommended  the  appointment  of  Lotliere",ov Leuthcrius, 
his  nephew  ;  who  was  accordingly  consecrated  Bishop  of  the  West  Saxons, 
by  Archbishop  Theodore,  in  the  year  (>70"3.  He  was  succeeded,  in  676,  by 
Headda,  or  Hedda,  by  whom  the  episcopal  seat  was  formally  translated  to 

:I  Bede's  "  Hist.  Keel."  lib.  iii.  c.  vii.  "  Vide  "Saxon  Chronicle,"  sub.  auno  G70. 

13  In  the  grant  of  Malmesbury  to  AMhelni,  the  Priest,  afterwards  Bishop  of  Sherborne,  Leutlie- 
rius  styles  himself,  '  Supreme  Bishop  of  the  Saxon  Sec.'     Vide,  Gul.  Malm,  in  "  De  Gest.  Reg." 


INSTITUTION  OF  THE  SEE  OF  SHERBORNE.  11 

Winchester:  at  the  same  time  he  removed  to  the  latter  city  the  sainted 
remains  of  Biriuus,  which  had  been  interred  in  his  original  church  at  Dor- 
chester34. Hedda  died  in  the  year  703,  according  to  the  "  Saxon  Chronicle," 
though  Matthew  of  Westminster  places  his  decease  in  704,  and  Bede  in  705  ; 
but  the  first  date  is  most  probably  the  correct  one,  as  the  above  record  adds, 
that  he  had  held  the  see  "  twenty-seven  winters,"  which  agrees  with  the  time 
of  his  appointment. 

After  Hedda's  decease,  king  Ina  again  divided  the  West  Saxon  diocess 
into  two  distinct  Sees :  this,  according  to  Bishop  Godwin,  was  effected  by 
his  own  authority,  but  William  of  Malmesbury  states  it  to  have  been  done  by 
an  episcopal  synod25.  The  new  See  was  fixed  at  Sherborne,  in  Dorsetshire, 
near  the  southern  verge  of  Somersetshire ;  which  county,  together  with  those 
of  Berks,  Dorset,  Wilts,  Devon,  and  Cornwall,  were  assigned  to  its  juris- 
diction. This  division,  according  to  the  "Saxon  Chronicle,"  was  made  in 
the  "first  days"  of  Bishop  Daniel,  who  succeeded  Hedda  in  the  See  of 
Winchester;  he  had  been  a  monk  in  the  celebrated  scholastic  foundation  at 
Malmesbury,  and  was  a  fellow  student  with  the  learned  Aldhelm,  who  was 
appointed  the  first  bishop  of  Sherborne.  This  prelate  is  spoken  of  in  the 
most  exalted  terms  both  by  Bede  and  Malmesbury ;  the  former  characterizes 
him  as  "wonderful  for  ecclesiastical  and  liberal  erudition26;"  and  the  latter 
states,  that  he  had  "  a  mind  clear,  and  almost  divinely  inspired 27."  He  is  said 
to  have  been  nearly  related  to  king  Ina;  but  Malmesbury  argues  against  the 
asserted  opinion  of  his  being  the  nephew  of  that  sovereign 2S.     He  died  in 

24  Some  particulars  of  this  very  curious  edifice  will  be  found  in  the  "  History  of  Winchester 
Cathedral,"  p.  24.  n.  37.  "  "  Angl.  Sacr.''  pars  ii.  p.  20. 

26  "  Hist.  Ecclesiastica;,"  b.  v.  c.  xix.  27  "  De  Gest.  Reg."  b.  i.  c.  ii. 

28  Ibid.  See  also,  "  Vita  S.  Aldhelmi :"  in  "  Angl.  Sacr."  pars  ii.  p.  2.  In  the  new  edition  of 
Dugdale,  Vol.  I.  p.  330.  note  h.it  is  erroneously  said,  that  Malmesbury  calls  Aldhelm  the  son  of 
Kerned,  brother  of  king  Ina.  On  the  contrary,  he  expressly  states,  on  the  authority  of  the  "  Saxon 
Chronicle,"  that  "  Ina  had  no  other  brother  than  Inigild,  who  died  some  years  before  him."  Ald- 
helm is  reputed  to  be  the  first  Englishman  who  wrote  in  Latin;  and  he  himself  acquaints  us,  in 
one  of  his  Treatises  on  Music,  that  he  was  the  first  who  introduced  poetry  into  England.  Several 
manuscripts  of  his  much  vaunted  Treatise,  "  De  Laude  Virginitatis,''  as  ancient  as  the  eighth 
century,  are  extant  in  our  Public  Libraries. 


12  WELLS    CATHEDRAL. 

the  year  709,  and  was  succeeded  by  Fort  here,  or  Fordhere;  in  whose  time, 
as  stated  by  Bede,  it  was  decreed  in  a  synod,  that  the  province  of  the  Soutli 
Saxons,  which  had  been  overrun  by  the  kings  of  Wessex,  should  have  "  a 
bishop  of  its  own:"  and  accordingly  an  episcopal  See  was  instituted  at 
Selsey,  or  Seolsey,  on  the  coast  of  Sussex;  which  was  eventually  transferred 
to  Chichester.  In  737,  Bishop  Forthere  accompanied  Queen  Frithogitha  to 
Rome,  where  he  is  supposed  to  have  terminated  his  earthly  pilgrimage. 

But  little  is  known  of  the  four  immediate  successors  of  Forthere,  viz. 
Hcrcicald,  Ethvbnod,  Dencfrith,  and  Wilbert,  or  Wigberl,  the  latter  of  whom, 
in  the  "  Saxon  Chronicle,"  under  the  date  812,  is  styled  Bishop  of  Wessex : 
in  that  year  he  accompanied  Wulfred,  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  on  a  journey 
to  Rome.  Ealhstan,  who  was  the  next  bishop  of  Sherborne,  was  a  famous 
wrarrior19.  In  823,  he  accompanied  the  army  which  was  sent  by  Ecgbryht, 
or  Egbert,  against  Baldred,  king  of  Kent,  who  was  driven  from  his  dominions, 
and  both  Kent  and  Essex  submitted  to  the  West  Saxons.  He  was  also 
engaged  in  many  successful  battles  against  the  Danes,  one  of  the  most  con- 
siderable of  which  was  fought  in  the  year  845,  when  "  Alderman  Eanwulf, 
with  the  men  of  Somersetshire,  and  Bishop  Ealhstan  and  Alderman  Osric, 
with  the  men  of  Dorsetshire,  fought  at  the  mouth  of  the  Parret  with  the 
Danish  army ;  and  there,  after  making  a  great  slaughter,  obtained  the  vic- 
tory30." Malmesbury  says,  that  on  Ethelwulf's  going  to  Rome,  in  854,  this 
bishop  set  up  his  son  Ethelbald  against  him ;  and  the  king,  on  his  return,  to 
avoid  the  shedding  of  human  blood,  consented  to  divide  the  kingdom  with 
his  rebellious  son 31.  Ealhstan  died  in  867,  having  possessed  his  see  during 
"  fiftv  winters32."  Edmund,  or  Headmund,  his  successor,  was  slain  in  battle 
by  the  Danes  at  Men  dune,  probably  Merdon,  in  Wiltshire,  in  the  year  871. 
Of  his  successors,  Etheleage  and  Al/sy,  or  Alfsius,  nothing  is  recorded. 
The  next  bishop  was  the  celebrated  Asserius  Menevensis,  who  was  advanced 

59  "  Ealhstanus  bellator  fuit  strenuissimus."     Vide  Godwin,  "  De  Praesul.  Aug."  p.  331. 

30  *'  Saxon  Chronicle,"  p.  92.  Ingram's  edit. 

"  "  De  Gest.  Pont."  c.  ii.  and  "  Do  Gest.  Reg."  b.  ii.  c.  ii. 

11  "  Saxou  Chronicle,"  sub  anno  8G7. 


BISHOPS  OF  SHERBORNE.  13 

from  Exeter  to  Sherborne  by  the  great  Alfred,  with  whom  he  lived  on  the 
most  friendly  and  familiar  terms 33.  He  was  a  native  of  South  Wales,  and  was 
brought  up  in  the  monastery  of  St.  David's ;  Novis,  the  archbishop,  being 
his  near  relation.  His  tutor  was  the  famous  Johannes  Patricius,  one  of  the 
most  accomplished  scholars  of  that  age.  From  the  reputation  of  his  great 
learning,  king  Alfred  invited  him  to  his  court ;  and  he  became  an  instructor 
both  to  that  sovereign  and  to  his  children.  Godwin  says,  that  Alfred  gave 
him  the  manors  of  Wellington,  Buckland,  and  Lidyard,  in  Somersetshire, 
which  afterwards  came  into  the  possession  of  the  bishops  of  Wells34:  that 
king  also  bestowed  on  him  two  monasteries,  viz.  Banwell,  in  Somersetshire ; 
aud  another,  said  to  be  Amesbury,  in  Wiltshire,  but  supposed  by  Tanner 
to  have  been  Congresbury,  in  this  district35.  Godwin  places  his  death  in 
883,  but  the  "  Saxon  Chronicle"  expressly  states,  that  Asser,  who  "  was  at 
Sherborne  bishop,  died  in  910 3G."  The  principal  writings  attributed  to  him 
are  a  Chronicle  of  St.  Neot's,  a  Life  of  King  Alfred,  Annals  of  Britain,  and 
an  Enchiridion:  all  which  are  in  Latin.  King  Alfred,  by  his  will,  gave  100 
mancuses  to  the  Bishop  of  Sherborne,  but  makes  no  mention  of  his  name. 

Asser  was  succeeded  by  Sicithehn,  or  Sighelm,  but  at  what  date  is  uncer- 
tain ;  the  years  883,  884,  885,  and  889  having  all  been  assigned  as  the  time. 
This  prelate  was  sent  to  India  by  king  Alfred,  for  the  purpose  of  conveying 
to  the  shrine  of  St.  Thomas  the  alms  and  oblations  which  that  monarch  had 
vowed  to  present  whilst  engaged  in  hostilities  with  the  Danes  at  London. 
Dr.  Vincent,  when  speaking  of  Sighelm's  journey,  in  his  "  Voyage  of  Near- 
chus,"  says,  "  I  wish  I  had  more  authority  for  this  than  the  tradition  of 
Sherborne ;  for  Alfred  deserves  any  honour  that  can  be  added  to  his  name." 
The  bishop's  embassy,  however,  is  attested  by  so  many  of  our  ancient  Chro- 
niclers that  there  is  very  little  reason  to  question  the  fact,  however  extraor- 
dinary such  a  journey  in  that  early  age  may  appear.    The  "  Saxon  Chronicle," 

3>  Vide  Wise's  "  Ann.  Iter.  Gest.  iElfredi  Magni,"  auct.  Asser.  Menevens. 

3+  <<  j)e  Pnesul.  Anglire."  p.  33-2.  3S  "  Notitia  Mouastica ;"  under  Ambresbury. 

36  "  An.  DCCCCX. — an1©  Hrref  bij-cop-sepori  ^am.  re  paer  a?t  Scipe-bupnan  bircop.-'  Whitaker,  vide 
"  Life  of  St.  Neot,"  p.  2*22,  et  seq.,  concludes  that  Asser,  bishop  of  Sherborne,  and  Asser,  the 
monk  of  St.  David's  aud  friend  of  Alfred,  were  different  persons. 


14  W  ILLS    CATHEDRAL. 

Florence  of  Worcester,  Radulph  de  Diceto,  Brompton,  Henry  of  Hunting- 
don, Alured  of  Beverley,  Matthew  of  Westminster,  and  William  ofMalmes- 
bury,  all  agree  in  their  notice  of  the  fact.  Malmesbury,  whose  account  is  the 
fullest,  thus  speaks  of  the  journey. — "Ever  intent  on  almsgiving,  Alfred  con- 
tinued the  privileges  of  the  churches,  as  appointed  by  his  father ;  and  sent 
many  presents  over  sea  to  Rome,  and  to  St.  Thomas  in  India.  Sighelm, 
bishop  of  Sherborne,  was  his  ambassador,  who  with  great  success  penetrated 
to  India,  to  the  admiration  even  of  the  present  age.  Returning  thence,  he 
brought  back  many  brilliant  exotic  gems  and  aromatic  juices,  with  which  that 
country  abounds  ;  and  also  a  present  far  more  precious  than  the  finest  gold, 
part  of  our  Saviour's  cross,  sent  by  Pope  Marinus  to  the  king37."  In  another 
place  he  says,  that  some  of  those  gems  were  to  be  seen,  in  his  days,  in  the 
monuments  of  the  church  at  Sherborne38.  The  "  Saxon  Chronicle"  although 
it  mentions  nothing  of  the  jewels  and  aromatics  brought  back  from  India,  is 
decisive  as  to  the  fact  of  the  embassy 39.  Nothing  further  is  known  of  Sig- 
helm, nor  has  the  period  of  his  decease  been  ascertained.  He  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Ethelwold,  or  Ethelward,  who  is  said,  by  Godwin,  to  have  been 
a  younger  son  of  king  Alfred,  educated  at  Oxford  :  he  died  in  898.  After 
his  decease  the  see  continued  vacant  for  several  years. 

We  are  now  arrived  at  the  period  when,  according  to  the  general  current 
of  history,  the  See  of  Wells  was  actually  instituted :  this  was  in  the  reign 
of  Edward  the  Elder,  the  son  and  successor  of  the  great  Alfred ;  but  the 
year  is  doubtful,  some  writers  fixing  it  in  905,  and  others  in  909,  and  910. 
The  immediate  cause  of  this  new  division  of  the  West  Saxon  states,  in  res- 
pect to  ecclesiastical  affairs,  is  attributed  to  an  interdict  which  had  been 
issued  by  Pope  Formosus  against  the  king  and  his  subjects,  for  neglecting 

37  "  Dc  Gcst.  Reg."  p.  44.  3S  "  De  Gest.  Pont."  p.  -24!!. 

39  "  A.  D.  883. — The  same  year  led  Sighelm  and  Athelstau  to  Rome,  the  alms  which  king 
Alfred  ordered  thither,  and  also  in  India  to  St.  Thomas  and  to  St.  Bartholomew."  Ingram's 
edit.  Gibbon  says,  "  When  the  Portuguese  first  opened  the  navigation  of  India,  the  Christians 
of  St.  Thomas  had  been  seated  for  ages  on  the  coast  of  Malabar."  "  Hist.  <X:c.  Rom.  Emp.''  vol. 
iv.  p.  599.  4to.  An  interesting  discussion  as  to  the  reality  of  Sighclm's  journey  will  be  found 
in  Turner's  "  History  of  the  Anglo  Saxons"  vol.  i.  b.  5.  edit.  1807. 


INSTITUTION  OF  THE  SEE  OF  WELLS. 


15 


to  supply  the  episcopal  vacancies  which  had  taken  place  in  his  dominions. 
The  account  of  this  transaction,  as  given  by  William  of  Malmesbury,  is  as 
follows : 

"  In  the  year  of  our  Lord's  Nativity  904,  Pope  Formosus  sent  letters  into 
England,  by  which  he  denounced  excommunication  and  malediction  to  King 
Edward  and  all  his  subjects,  instead  of  the  benediction  which  St.  Gregory 
had  given  to  the  English  nation  from  the  seat  of  St.  Peter;  because  for  seven 
whole  years,  the  entire  district  of  the  Gevisi,  that  is,  of  the  West  Saxons, 
had  been  destitute  of  bishops.  On  hearing  this,  King  Edward  assembled  a 
council  of  the  senators  of  the  English,  over  which  presided  Plegmund,  Arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury,  interpreting  carefully  the  words  of  the  apostolic  lega- 
tion. Then  the  king  and  the  bishops  chose  for  themselves  and  their  followers 
a  salutary  council ;  and,  according  to  our  Saviour's  words,  '  The  harvest  truly 
is  plenteous,  but  the  labourers  are  few,'  they  elected  and  appointed  one 
bishop  to  every  province  of  the  Gevisi,  and  that  district  which  two  formerly 
possessed  they  divided  into  five.  The  council  being  dissolved,  the  arch- 
bishop went  to  Rome  with  splendid  presents ;  appeased  the  Pope  with  much 
humility,  and  related  the  king's  ordinance,  which  gave  the  pontiff  great  satis- 
faction. Returning  home,  in  one  day  he  ordained,  in  the  city  of  Canterbury, 
seven  Bishops  to  seven  churches ;  Fridstan  to  the  church  of  Winchester, 
Adelstan  to  Cornwall,  Wirstan  to  Shireburn,  Athelelm  to  Wells,  Aidulf  to 
Crediton  in  Devonshire  :  also  to  other  provinces  he  appointed  two  bishops; 
to  the  South  Saxons,  Bernegus,  a  very  proper  person,  and  to  the  Mercians, 
Cenulph,  whose  see  was  at  Dorchester  in  Oxfordshire.  All  this  the  Pope 
established,  in  such  wise,  that  he  who  should  invalidate  this  decree  should  be 
damned  everlastingly 40." 

40  Malm.  "  De  Gest.  Reg."  Sharpe's  translation,  p.  14G,  147.  Malmesbury  introduces  his 
relation  in  the  following  manner,  but  he  does  not  refer  to  the  particular  source  of  his  information  : — ■ 
"  But  to  return  to  our  Edward  :  I  think  it  will  be  pleasing  to  relate  what  in  his  time  Pope  For- 
mosus commanded  to  be  done  with  respect  to  filling  up  the  bishoprics,  which  I  shall  insert  in  the 
very  words  I  found  it."  Mr.  Sharpe,  in  a  note  on  Malmesbury,  remarks  : — "  This  story  of  Pope 
Formosus  and  the  seven  Bishops  is  to  be  found,  nearly  verbatim,  in  a  MS.  (Bodley,  579)  which 
was  given  to  the  Cathedral  of  Exeter  by  Bishop  Leofric,  who  died  A.  D.  1073.     Its  difficulties 


1G  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

The  Pope's  missive  is  inserted  at  length  in  Wilkins'  u  Concilia 41,"  from 
Baronius,  collated  with  the  Canterbury  Manuscript,  A.  fol.  3;  but  it  makes 
no  mention  of  the  West  Saxon  kingdom  having  been  without  a  Bishop  during 
seven  years ;  and  even  Lingard,  though  contending  for  the  genuineness  of 
the  epistle,  admits  that  story  to  have  been  "  a  fiction,  invented  probably  to 
explain  the  origin  of  the  complaint  contained  in  the  letter  of  Fonnosus42;" 
which  in  substance  was  this,  that,  "by  the  negligence  of  the  prelates,  the 
superstitions  of  paganism  had  been  permitted  to  revive,  and  several  diocesses 
been  left,  for  a  considerable  period,  destitute  of  pastors43." 

It  is  a  very  singular  fact,  that  no  account  of  the  consecration  by  Plegmund, 
of  seven  Bishops  in  one  day,  can  be  found  in  the  "  Saxon  Chronicle ;"  nor 
has  any  place  been  assigned  for  the  meeting  of  the  council  or  synod,  in  which 
the  king  and  the  archbishop  are  stated  to  have  determined  on  the  important 
act  of  creating  three  new  Bishoprics.    The  causes  generally  assigned  for  this 

therefore  are  not  to  be  imputed  to  our  author.  But,  though  it  be  not  easy  to  assign  a  rational 
motive  Cor  the  invention  of  such  an  instrument,  it  is  decidedly  a  forgery,  and  all  the  ecclesiastical 
writers  from  Baronius  to  Wilkins  (see  Concilia,  vol.  i.  p.  201)  have  utterly  failed  in  their  conjec- 
tural attempts  to  uphold  it:  even  the  temperate,  the  acute,  the  learned  Henry  'Wharton  (Angl. 
Sacr.  vol.  i.  pp.  554-5),  who  rejects  decidedly  the  epistle,  gives  but  an  unsatisfactory  solution  of 
the  seven  vacant  sees.  Its  repugnancies  will  be  seen  at  a  glance,  when  it  is  recollected  that 
Fonnosus  died  A.  D.  89(i :  Edward  did  not  reign  till  A.  D.  901 ;  and  Frithstan  did  not  become 
Bishop  of  Winchester  before  A.  D.  910." 

41   Vide,  vol.  i.  pp.  200,  201. 

41  "  Antiquities  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  Church,"  p.  1G8.  ed.  1810.  "  I  ascribe  the  epistle  to  Fonno- 
sus," says  this  writer,  "  not  merely  on  the  authority  of  Malmsbury  and  the  Register  of  Canterbury, 
but  principally  on  that  of  Eadmer,  who,  during  the  dispute  respecting  the  precedency  of  Canter- 
bury in  the  commencement  of  the  twelfth  century,  appears  to  have  consulted  the  ancient  records 
of  that  church,  and  to  have  discovered  this  letter  and  some  others  among  a  greater  number  which 
age  had  rendered  illegible.     F.adm.  Nov.  1.  v.  pp.  128,  129." 

41  "  A.  D.  DCCCCI.  Edwardus  cognomento  Senior,"  &c.  "  ciijus  anno  iv.  sc.  A.  d.  dccccv. 
Forraosus  Papa  propter  magnam  carentiam  Episcoporum  in  Anglia  per  literas  suas  Apostolicas 
Regi  et  populo  Anglorum  directas  maledictionem  suani  transmisit  loco  benedictionis,  quam  olim 
sanctus  Papa  Gregorius  illuc  transmiserat ;  eo  quod  in  pluribus  locis  Ecclesise  Cathedrales  in 
Anglia  vii.  annis  fuerunt  Kpiscoporum  solatio  destitutre."  See  "  Angl.  Sacr."  pars.  i.  p.  554.  ex 
Canon.  Wellensis  de  Epis.  Bathon.  et  Wellens.  It  is  clear  that  this  account  was  wholly  derived 
fiom  Will,  of  Malmesbury  ;  the  Canon  of  Wells  had  never  seen  the  epistle  ascribed  to  Formosus. 


BISHOPS  OF  SHERBORNE.  17 

measure  are  decidedly  fanciful;  for  the  swineherd  Denulf,  or  Denewulf44, 
whom  Alfred  had  made  Bishop  of  Winchester  in  879,  did  not  die  until  909 4S, 
nor  Asser  of  Sherborne  until  the  following  year 4a.  Florence  of  Worcester 
and  many  of  our  best  historians  are  silent  respecting  the  letter  of  Formosus, 
which  in  itself,  however,  does  not  contain  those  chronological  discordances 
which  Malmesbury  and  others,  by  describing  it  as  sent  to  Plegmund  in  the  reign 
of  Edward  the  Elder,  and  by  confining  a  general  complaint  to  the  province  of 
the  Gevisi,  have  contributed  to  involve  it  in.  The  only  names  mentioned  in 
it,  are  those  of  Formosus  and  Plegmund;  nor  is  there  any  date  either  of  the 
Incarnation  or  Indiction,  to  enable  us  to  determine  the  year  in  which  it  was 
transmitted47.  The  discriminating  Johnson,  in  his  "  Collection  of  Ecclesias- 
tical Laws,"  allows  it  to  be  genuine ;  though,  with  a  departure  from  his  usual 
acumen,  he  recommends  the  substitution  of  the  name  of  Sergius  for  Foi*- 
mosus,  remarking  that  it  could  be  no  wonder  if  the  monks  chose  to  report 
this  papal  act  as  done  by  Formosus,  who  was  a  popular  Pope,  rather  "  than 
by  such  a  Monster  of  a  Man,  and  Pope,  as  Sergius  proved 4S."  The  only 
way,  perhaps,  to  reconcile  the  contradictory  inferences,  which  this  epistle 
has  given  rise  to,  is  by  concluding  that  it  was  actually  written  by  Formosus, 
but  in  consequence  of  the  distractions  of  the  State,  from  the  repeated  inva- 
sions of  the  Danish  hordes,  not  acted  on  till  the  year  909  or  910. 

The  Canon  of  Wells 49,  who  falls  into  the  general  error  of  the  seven 
years  destitution  of  episcopacy  in  Wessex,  mentions  the  appointment,  by 
King  Edward  and  Plegmund,  of  four  Bishops  to  the  Sees  of  Dorchester, 
Selsey,  Winchester,  and  Sherborne.  He  next  states,  that  the  said  king  and 
bishop  also   converted   the   three  Collegiate   churches    of  St.  German,   in 

«  Godwin  '*  De  Praesul.  Angliae,"  p.  207.     45  Vide,  Ingram's  "  Sax.  Cliron."  p.  127.     46  Ibid. 
47  In  the  introduction  to  the  Formosian  Epistle,  in  the  Canterbury  Register  referred  to  by 
Wilkius  ("  Concilia,"  vol.  i.  p.  200),  the  date  stated  is  905. 

43  Vide  "  Ecclesiastical  Laws,"  vol.  i.  sub.  A.  D.  900.  On  that  principle,  however,  all  credit 
in  antient  ecclesiastical  monuments  would  be  destroyed  ;  for  if  we  admit  that  the  monks  would 
insert  the  name  of  one  Pontiff  for  another,  who  might  be  held  in  greater  repute,  it  becomes  obvi- 
ously impossible  to  determine  the  limits  to  which  their  falsifications  might  be  extended. 

49  Vide  "  Angl.  Sacr."  pars  i.  p.  555. 

D 


18  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

Cornwall,  of  the  Holy  Cross  at  Crediton,  in  Devonshire,  and  of  St.  Andrew, 
at  Wells,  into  Cathedrals ;  and  that  they  made  Athehn,  Abbot  of  Glas- 
tonbury, the  first  Bishop  of  Wells,  assigning  to  him  all  Somersetshire  for  his 
diocess ;  the  time  of  these  transactions  he  fixes  in  905. 

In  the  list  of  the  Abbots  of  Glastonbury  inserted  in  Dugdale's  "  Monas- 
ticon,"  the  name  of  Athehn,  Athehnus,  or  Adelm,  thus  variously  written  by 
di liferent  authors,  does  not  occur;  and  Brompton  positively  affirms  that  at 
the  period  assigned,  there  was  no  such  monk  on  that  establishment 50.  After 
the  decease  of  Plegmund  in  923,  Athehn  was  advanced  to  the  See  of 
Canterbury,  and  he  died  in  the  following-  year.  Wulfhelm,  his  successor 
both  at  Wells  and  Canterbury,  is  represented  as  a  man  of  great  sanctity  and 
learning,  and  his  presiding  at  several  synods  after  his  promotion  to  the 
archiepiscopal  dignity  in  925 5I,  in  which  a  code  of  civil  and  ecclesiastical 
laws  was  framed  by  King  Athelstan  and  his  council52,  seems  to  confirm 
that  character.  He  went  to  Rome  in  927  ",  and  died  in  938,  having  held 
the  archbishopric  thirteen  years54.  Of  his  successor  Elphege,  ElJ'ege,  or 
JElJ'heah,  as  he  is  called  in  the  "  Textus  Roflfensis,"  nothing  is  recorded  but 
the  name ;  nor  is  Wulfhelm,  the  next  bishop,  better  known,  though  his  sub- 
scription has  been  forged  to  a  pretended  charter  of  King  Athelstan's  to  the 
monastery  at  Malmesbury.  Br  it  helm  or  Brihtelm,  the  fifth  bishop,  a  monk 
of  Glastonbury  according  to  Godwin,  was  raised  to  this  See  in  958.  In 
the  following  year  he  was  promoted  to  Canterbury ;  but  although  a  good  and 
prudent  man,  his  temper  was  too  mild  for  government 55,  and  he  was  prevailed 
on  by  King  Edgar  to  relinquish  his  archiepiscopal  see  in  favour  of  the 
celebrated  Dunstan.  He  then  returned  to  Wells,  where  he  continued  to 
preside  till  his  decease,  on  the  15th  of  May,  973.     He  appears  to  have  been 

s°  Vide,  "  Dec.  Scrip."  col.  838.  51  "  Saxon  Chronicle." 

sl  Johnson's  "  Eccl.  Laws,"  sub  an.  925  et  926.     Wilkins's  "  Concilia,"  vol.  i.  p.  20. 

53  "  Saxon  Chronicle." 

s*  Malm.  "  De  Gest.  Pont."  Wharton  in  his  remarks  on  the  entry  of  this  prelate's  death  in 
the  "  Dies  obituales  Archiepis.  Cantuar."  says  that  Athclinus  and  Wlfelmus  are  frequently  con- 
founded by  historians.     "  Angl.  Sacr."  pars  i.  p.  53. 

55  Godwin  "  De  Pncsul.  Anglix,"  p.  51. 


BISHOPS  OF  WELLS.  19 

the  first  prelate  that  was  buried  iu  this  Cathedral.  His  memory  is  chiefly- 
remarkable  from  his  having  made  Glastonbury  an  archdeaconry 06,  to  be 
governed  by  a  monk  who  should  be  chosen  annually  by  the  convent. 

Kyneward,  Abbot  of  Milton,  became  Bishop  of  Wells  in  the  year  suc- 
ceeding Brithelm's  decease.  According  to  the  "  Saxon  Chronicle,"  which 
calls  him  u  Cyneward,  the  good  prelate,  of  manners  mild;"  he  died  on  the 
18th  of  July,  anno  975,  ten  days  after  the  death  of  King  Edgar:  by  other 
writers  his  decease  has  been  incorrectly  assigned  to  the  year  985.  Sigar> 
the  next  bishop,  was  Abbot  of  Glastonbury,  to  which  he  had  been  appointed 
in  972,  and  which  he  continued  to  hold,  together  with  his  See  57,  till  his 
decease  on  June  the  18th,  997  :  in  995,  as  appears  from  the  "  Textus 
Roflensis,"  he  subscribed  to  a  charter  granted  by  King  Ethelred.  Ahcyn, 
Adelwyn,  or  Ealwyn,  the  next  bishop,  died  about  the  year  1000 5S.  His  suc- 
cessor Buruold  is  wholly  unnoticed  by  William  of  Malmesbury  ;  but  he  is 
found  commemorated  in  the  Martyrology  of  this  Church,  and  his  name  is 
said,  by  the  Canon  of  Wells,  to  be  inscribed  on  a  tomb  here  M.  He  could 
have  possessed  the  See  but  a  short  time;  the  name  of  Livingus  or  Leo- 
vinous,  who  is  also  called  Elstan  or  Elstanus,  his  successor,  being  affixed  to 
two  charters  of  King  Ethelred,  dated  in  1001  and  1002.  He  was  promoted 
by  that  sovereign  to  the  See  of  Canterbury  in  1013,  after  the  cruel  murder 
of  Archbishop  Elphege  by  the  Danes,  at  Greenwich,  in  the  preceding  year; 
he  died  in  1019,  according  to  the  "  Saxon  Chronicle,"  which  characterizes 
him  as  "a  very  upright  man  before  God  and  before  the  world."  Elheluyn 
or  Agehvinus,  Abbot  of  Evesham,  was  the  next  bishop,  and  his  name  is 
affixed  to  a  charter  granted  by  King  Cuute  to  the  Cathedral  at  Exeter  in 
1019 co.  He  was  supplanted  by  Brithicyn,  who,  in  1023,  assisted  in  removing 
the  remains  of  Archbishop  Elphege,  who  was  eventually  canonized,  from  the 
church  of  St.  Paul,  London,  to  Canterbury G1.  Brithwyn  was  ejected,  in  his 
turn,  by  Ethelwyn,  but  they  both  died  soon  afterwards,  in  1026;  the  former 

56  "  Angl.  Sacr."  pars  i.  p.  557.  «  Ibid,  uote  b.  ss  Ibid,  note  h.  59  Ibid. 

60  Dugdale's  "  Monasticon,"  vol.  ii.  p.  536.  edit.  1819. 

6"   "  Saxon  Chronicle,"  p.  -203,  204.     Ingram's  edit.     King  Cnute  was  present  at  the  removal, 
with  the  Queen  and  most  of  his  court. 


20  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

surviving  his  brother  prelate  only  thirteen  days02:  they  are  reputed  to  have 
been  buried  in  this  Church.  Merehwit  or  Mcreic hit,  Abbot  of  Glastonbury, 
who  is  said  to  have  been  also  called  Brithwin*3,  was  next  promoted  to  this 
See  in  1027.  He  was  a  native  of  Loraine,  and  dying'  in  1033,  according  to 
the  "  Saxon  Chronicle,"  but  Mabnesbury  says  in  1034,  was  interred  at  Glas- 
tonbury. Dtidoc,  or  Dudocus,  another  native  of  Loraine,  according  to  some 
writers,  but  others,  including  the  Canon  of  Wells,  say  of  Saxony  in  Ger- 
many, succeeded  to  the  vacant  bishopric,  which  he  held  during  twenty-seven 
years  seven  months  and  seven  days04,  and  then  dying,  anno  10G0,  was  buried 
in  his  own  Church.  This  prelate,  together  with  Wlfric,  Abbot  of  St.  Au- 
gustin's,  and  Elfwin,  Abbot  of  Ramsey,  was  sent  by  King  Edward  the 
Confessor  to  the  great  Synod  which  Pope  Leo  had  convened  at  St.  Reiny,  or 
Rheims,  in  1049;  "with  the  intent  that  they  should  report  to  the  king 
what  was  determined  there  concerning  Christendom  C5."  He  is  said  to  have 
obtained  from  that  sovereign  the  manor  of  Cougresbury  for  himself  and  for 
his  successors. 

After  the  death  of  Dudoc,  it  is  stated  in  the  "  Saxon  Chronicle,"  that 
"  Gisa,  the  priest,  was  appointed  in  his  stead."  This  prelate,  who  is  more 
generally  called  Giso,  was  a  native  of  St.  Trudo,  a  village  in  the  district  of 
Hasban,  in  Loraine.  At  the  time  of  his  appointment  he  was  chaplain  to 
King  Edward  the  Confessor,  by  whom  he  had  been  sent,  with  other  pre- 
lates, on  a  mission  to  Rome,  for  the  purpose  of  having  certain  doubts  re- 
solved on  the  subject  of  religion.  He  was  consecrated  in  that  city  on 
Easter  day,  viz.  the  17th  of  the  kal.  of  May,  10G0CC,  together  with  Walter, 
Bishop  of  Hereford ;  "  they  being  men,"  says  William  of  Malmesburv,  "  not 
only  learned,  but  of  good  conversation,  and  not  guilty  of  simoniacal  prac- 
tices07."   This  praise  is  given  to  distinguish  their  conduct  from  that  of  Arch- 

6i  "  Angl.  Sacr.  pars  i.  p.  558.  63  Dugd.  "  Monasticon,"  vol.  ii.  p.  275. 

64  "  Angl.  Sacr."  pars  i.  p.  558.  6S  "  Saxon  Chronicle,"  sub  anno  1049. 

<■*  "  Angl.  Sacr."  pars  i.  p.  559.  Rail,  tie  Diceto,  "  Dec.  Scrip."  col.  478,  says  1001.  The 
"  Sas.  Chron."  Gibsou's  edit,  assigns  the  decease  of  Dudoc  to  the  year  10G0;  and  with  this  the 
Museum  MS.  "  Tiberius,  B.  iv."  agrees.     Godwin  states  that  Giso  was  consecrated  in  1059. 

»  "  De  Gest.  Pont."  lib.  iii.  Scrip,  post  Bedam,  p.  271. 


ARCHBISHOP  ALDRED.  '21 

bishop  Aldred,  who  had  been  advanced  to  the  See  of  Canterbury,  through 
the  purchased  influence  of  Earl  Tosti,  and  was  permitted  by  King  Edward  to 
hold  the  Bishopric  of  Worcester  in  commendam,  by  alleging  the  example  of 
his  predecessors.  The  Pope,  however,  had  refused  him  consecration ;  and 
he  was  returning  home,  in  great  dudgeon,  in  company  with  the  Earl  and  the 
other  Bishops,  when,  on  crossing  the  Alps,  they  were  despoiled  by  banditti, 
"  who  left  them  neither  horse  nor  money,  nor  any  thing  money-worth  but  their 
apparel r,s."  This  occurrence  constrained  them  to  go  back  to  Rome  "  to 
furnish  them  anew  for  their  journey."  When  there,  the  indignant  Tosti, 
"  with  open  mouth  exclaimed  against  the  Pope,  saying — '  there  was  no  reason 
that  farre  remote  nations  should  so  greatly  stand  in  awe  of  his  excommunica- 
tions, which  theeves  and  robbers  cared  not  a  halfpenny  for ;  but  contemned 
openly  and  derided  even  under  his  nose,  that  among  poor  priests  he  would 
play  Rex,  but  let  rebellious  varlets  do  what  they  list."  He  also  threatened 
that,  if  their  losses  were  not  made  good  by  the  Pope's  means,  daily  to  impor- 
tune the  king,  on  his  return,  to  grant  them  recompense  "  out  of  the  tribute 
the  Pope  hath  of  England ;"  and  added,  "  except  he  deserve  it  better,  why 
hee  should  have  any  at  all,  I  see  not09."  Through  this  bold  language,  and 
other  importunities,  he  succeeded  iu  obtaining  the  Archiepiscopal  pall  for 
Aldred,  on  the  condition,  however,  that  the  latter  should  relinquish  his 
Bishopric  70. 

68  Godwin's  "  Catalogue  of  the  Bishops  of  England,"  p.  571. 

69  Ibid.  p.  572.  Malmesbury's  words  are  as  follow — "  Tosliiuis  quippe  gravibus  verborum  con- 
tuuieliis  Apostolicuni  aggressus  iu  sententiaiu  sibi  placitam  reduxit,  parum  metuendam  a  longin- 
quis  gentibus  ejus  exconimunicationeni,  quam  propinqui  latrunculi  deriderent.  In  supplices  enim 
furere,  in  rebelles  parum  valere ;  aut  sua  sibi  per  ejus  authoritatem  reddenda  qua:  per  ejus 
fraudulentiam  constaret  amissa:  aut  futurum  ut  haec  rex  Auglorum  audiens  tributum  sancti  Petri 
nierito  Nicolao  subtraheret,  se  non  defuturum  rerum  veritati  exaggerenda'.''  Godwin  "  De 
Praesul.  Angliae,"  ex  "  De  Gest.  Pont."  lib.  iii.  Scrip,  post  Bedam,  p.  271. 

70  It  is  not  impossible  but  that  the  free  and  open  remarks  in  which  Earl  Tosti  indulged  on  this 
occasion,  aud  which  partook  of  the  high  spirit  that  distinguished  the  male  branches  of  his  family, 
was  a  leading  cause  of  the  decided  support  given  by  the  Papal  See  to  the  projected  invasion  of 
England  by  William  the  Norman. 


22  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

It  is  said  by  the  Canon  of  Wells  ",  that  when  Giso  entered  upon  his  See, 
he  found  here  but  ten  canons,  or,  as  in  another  manuscript,  only  five  ",  who 
were  reduced  to  beggary  in  consequence  of  the  spoliations  of  Harold,  Earl  of 
Kent,  by  whom  this  Church  had  been  deprived  both  of  its  ornaments  and  pos- 
sessions. Godwin  adds,  but  without  referring-  to  his  authority,  that  the 
bishop  "  complaining  unto  the  king  of  this  outragious  havocke,  found  cold 
comfort  at  his  hands ;  for  whether  it  were  for  fear  of  Harold's  power,  or  his 
wives  displeasure,  he  caused  no  restitution  to  be  made ;  onely  the  cpieene  was 
content  to  give  of  her  owne  Marke  and  Modesly  unto  the  Church."  He  further 
states  that,  after  the  death  of  King  Edward,  "  Giso  was  faine  to  flye  the  land 
till  such  time  as  Harold  the  sacrilegious  usurper  being  vanquished  and  slaine, 
William  the  Conqueror  was  a  meane  to  restore,  not  onely  him  to  his  place  and 
country,  but  his  Church  also,  to  all  that  the  other  had  violently  taken  from  it; 
except  some  small  parcels  that  (I  know  not  by  what  meanes)  had  been  con- 
veighed  unto  the  monastery  of  Gloucester"."  The  Canon  of  Wells,  from 
whom  Godwin  has  derived  the  latter  part  of  this  account,  mentions  nothing  of 
the  flight  of  Giso,  but  states  that  William,  soon  after  his  coronation,  restored 
to  him  all  the  possessions  which  Harold  had  taken  away,  except  what  had 
been  given  to  St.  Peter's  at  Gloucester,  and  except  Congresbury,  Banwell, 
and  Kilinington,  and  some  others74.  Collinson,  who  has  blended  the  state- 
ments, both  of  Godwin  and  the  Canon,  with  assumptions  of  his  own,  says  that 
when  Harold  was  banished  by  King  Edward,  all  his  estates  in  Somersetshire 
were  given  by  that  monarch  to  the  Church  of  Wells ;  but,  that  on  recovering 
the  king's  favour,  Harold  "  in  his  turn,  procured  the  banishment  of  Giso,  and 
when  he  came  to  the  crown,  resumed  most  of  those  estates  of  which  he  had 
been  deprived  n. 

'•  "  Angl.  Sacr."  pats  i.  p.  501).  '■"-  Ibid,  marginal  note. 

T!  "  Catalogue  of  English  Bishops,"  p.  301.  7+  "  Angl.  Sacr."  pais  i.  p.  559. 

'5  "  History  of  Somersetshire,"  vol.  iii.  p.  37».  In  another  part,  this  author  says  ; — "  When 
Harold  came  to  the  throne,  he  could  not  patiently  observe  his  legal  inheritance  in  the  possession 
of  others,  nor  allow  the  church  the  prerogative  of  retaining  unfairly  the  revenues  of  the  crown  ; 


BISHOP  GISO.  23 

Notwithstanding  the  seeming  particularity  of  these  triplicated  statements, 
they  do  not  appear  to  have  been  founded  upon  any  valid  authority ;  and  the 
annexation  of  Harold's  estates  to  this  See  is  equally  as  doubtful  as  Giso's 
banishment,  and  the  Conqueror's  restitution.  Speaking  of  the  origin  of  the 
account  as  inserted  in  the  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  the  editors  of  the  new  edition  of 
the  "Monasticon"  remark  that  "there  seems  considerable  reason  to  doubt  its 
accuracy :"  they  observe,  further,  that  at  the  time  of  the  Domesday  Survey, 
"  the  Church  of  Wells  possessed  but  one  manor  which  had  belonged  to 
Harold  ;  and  in  proof  that  Harold  confirmed  to  Giso  all  the  privileges  of  the 
bishopric  in  their  fullest  tenure,  we  have  the  evidence  of  his  own  charter76." 

Bishop  Giso  was  at  the  consecration  of  Archbishop  Lanfranc,  in  August 
1070,  together  with  seven  other  Bishops;  and  in  1075,  he  was  present  at  the 
great  council,  or  synod,  assembled  in  London  by  that  prelate77.  He  pro- 
cured the  restoration  of  several  manors  of  which  this  Church  had  been  dis- 
possessed after  the  conquest.  In  his  time,  also,  King  William,  in  his  eleventh 
year,  restored  Banwell  to  this  See;  and  he  afterwards  granted  the  manor  and 


he  therefore,  having  first  condemned  the  Bishop  to  perpetual  exile,  retook  his  estates  into  his  own 
hands,  and  held  them  till  his  death  at  the  battle  of  Hastings."     Ibid.  p.  392. 

76  Dugdale's  "  Monasticon,"  vol.  ii.  p.  275;  andXum.  viii.  p.  287.  Edit.  1819.  In  this  valuable 
work  is  given  the  transcript  of  a  charter  from  the  Cottonian  MS.  "  Tiberius,''  E.  viii.  fol.  250, 
attributed  to  Edward  the  Confessor,  and  bearing  date  on  the  20th  of  May,  A.  D.  10GS ;  Ind.  3. 
In  that  instrument  various  places  are  mentioned  as  belonging  to  this  church,  the  names  of  which 
do  not  occur  in  the  list  of  its  manors  in  the  Domesday  Book.  Collinson,  who  has  inserted  a  copy 
in  his  Account  of  Wells,  introduces  it  thus: — "The  ancient  territories  and  predial  possessions  of 
this  See  appear  in  the  subsequent  charter  of  King  Edward  the  Confessor  to  Bishop  Giso  ("  Hist. 
of  Soru."  vol.  iii.  p.  393)  ; — and  he  afterwards  states,  that  most  of  the  lands  named  in  it  had  been 
taken  from  Earl  Harold  by  King  Edward,  and  given  to  that  Bishop."  The  obvious  inconsistency 
of  these  accounts  requires  no  comment ;  but  it  may  be  remarked  in  illustration,  that  if  the  charter 
be  authentic,  its  date,  viz.  10G5,  precludes  the  possibility  of  the  estates  mentioned  being  Harold's 
property;  as,  at  that  very  period,  he  was  in  full  possession  of  Edward's  favour,  and  the  chief 
depository  of  his  power. 

77  Johnson's  "  Eccl.  Laws,"  P.  ii.  anno  1075.  Giso  "  was  a  great  favourite  of  William  the 
Conqueror  as  well  as  Edward  the  Confessor."  Ibid.  Note  h.  It  is  singular  that  Malmesbury 
does  not  notice  Giso  in  his  Account  of  the  Bishops  of  this  See;  although  he  mentions  his  name 
in  two  or  three  other  places. 


24  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

church  of  Yatton  to  the  bishop  and  his  successors78;  but  he  bereaved  the 
See  of  that  part  of  Milverton  which  Queen  Editha  had  bestowed79. 

This  prelate  augmented  the  Dumber  of  the  canons  of  Wells,  and  appointed 
a  provost  to  rule  over  them :  he  also  erected  for  their  accommodation,  a 
cloister,  dormitory,  and  refectory.  He  died  in  the  year  1088;  and  was 
buried  here,  on  the  north  side  of  the  altar. 

Wheu  the  Domesday  Survey  was  made  towards  the  close  of  Giso's  ponti- 
ficate, viz.  in  the  years  1085  and  1086,  the  possessions  of  this  See  were  found 
to  be  wholly  in  Somersetshire,  and  to  have  amounted  to  280§  hides ;  the 
total  rental  of  which  appears  to  have  been  rather  more  than  £315.  The 
Bishop  held  Wells  itself,  called  Welle  in  the  record,  and  was  assessed  there 
in  King  Edward's  time  for  fifty  hides;  besides  two  others  which  had  not  been 
taxed,  and  were  worth  thirty  shillings:  of  these,  fourteen  hides,  worth  £1'2, 
wire  tenanted  by  the  Canons  of  his  church;  twenty-two  hides,  worth  £17. 
10s.,  by  other  persons;  and  the  remainder,  worth  £30,  was  retained  by  the 
Bishop.  Of  arable  land,  there  were  sixty  carucates;  of  meadow,  three  hun- 
dred acres;  of  pasture,  three  leucoe  (that  is,  miles)  in  length,  and  one  in 
breadth ;  of  wood,  two  leucas  in  length,  and  two  quarentenes  (furlongs)  in 
breadth  ;  and  of  more-land,  three  leucae.  To  the  Bishop's  part  appertained 
six  servants,  twenty  villains,  fourteen  borderers,  or  cottagers,  fifteen  ploughs, 
and  four  mills  ; — to  that  of  the  Canons,  eight  servants,  sixteen  villains,  twelve 
cottagers,  eight  ploughs,  and  two  mills ; — and  to  the  other  Tenants,  thirteen 
servants,  twenty-two  villains,  twenty-one  cottagers,  twelve  ploughs,  and 
three  mills. 

Besides  the  above,  the  Bishop  held  twenty  hides  at  Combe  St.  Nicholas, 
twenty  at  Kingsbury,  eight  at  Chard,  two  at  Leighlaud,  fifteen  at  Wivelis- 
combe,  fourteen  at  Wellington,  ten,  all  but  a  virgate,  at  Bishop's  Lydiard, 
thirty  at  Banwell,  twenty  at  Evercreech,  six  at  Westbury,  ten  at  Winsham, 
thirty  at  Chew-Magna,  twenty  at  Yatton80,  including  a  pasture  called  Wai- 
mora,  which  had  belonged  to  King  Edward  the  Confessor's  manor  of  Con- 

78  "  Angl.  Sacr."  pars  i.  p.  559.  79  Collinson's  "  Hist,  of  Somersetshire,"  vol.  iii.  p.  14. 

3  Yatton,  called  Lalvnc  in  the  Domesday  Book,  is  the  only  manor  belonging  to  the  See  of 
Wells  under  which  a  Church  is  noticed  in  that  record. 


BISHOP  JOHN  DE  VILLULA.  25 

gresbury,  and  eleven  at  Wedmore.  The  record  states,  also,  that  the  manor 
of  Milverton,  which  was  then  in  the  king's  possession,  was,  in  the  Confessor's 
time,  held  by  Bishop  Giso,  who  was  assessed  for  it  at  a  virgate,  only.  Aissa, 
afterwards  called  Ash-Priors,  from  having  been  granted  to  the  Priory  at 
Taunton,  had  been  likewise  held  by  Giso  (as  a  part  of  Bishop's  Lydiard), 
who  was  assessed  at  three  hides  and  a  virgate;  but  at  the  period  of  the 
Survey  it  was  held  by  Roger  de  Arundel  "  de  rege  injuste." 

Soon  after  the  accession  of  King  William  Rufus  a  great  change  was  made 
in  the  state  of  this  See  by  John  de  Villula,  who  had  succeeded  Giso  in  its 
episcopal  government.  This  prelate  had  been  originally  a  priest  at  Tours,  in 
France,  of  which  place  he  was  likewise  a  native ;  but  having  practised  at  Bath 
as  a  Physician,  he  obtained  affluence,  and  is  conjectured  by  Wharton  to  have 
purchased  the  See  of  Wells,  with  the  profits  of  his  profession,  from  Rufus, 
who  was  accustomed  to  dispose  of  ecclesiastical  preferments81;  but  Malmes- 
bury  and  other  writers  state  that  he  was  invested  with  this  Bishopric  in  the 
time  of  the  Conqueror.  He  destroyed  the  cloister  and  other  edifices  which 
Giso  had  built  at  Wells  for  the  canons  (who  were  forced  to  seek  dwellings 
in  the  town),  and  in  their  place  constructed  a  Palace  for  himself  and  his 
successors 82.  This,  most  probably,  was  in  the  very  early  part  of  his  prelacy ; 
as,  either  in  1091  or  109283  he  transferred  the  episcopal  seat  from  Wells  to 
Bath,  which,  with  all  its  appurtenances  and  privileges,  he  had  purchased 
of  the  king.  It  would  appear  that  his  success  at  Bath,  in  his  medical 
profession,  had  given  him  a  predilection  for  that  place,  for  he  had  likewise 
procured  a  grant  of  Bath  Abbey,  from  Rufus,  previously  to  his  removal  of 

81  "  Angl.  Sacr."  pars  i.  p.  559,  note  r.  "  Johannes  de  Villula,  Turonensis  Ecclesiae  Presbyter 
(sic  enim  in  professione  autogr.  Lanfranco  data  appellatur)  postquam  niaximos  ex  Medicina 
qurestus  fecisset,  Episcopatum  Wellensem  obtinuit,  vereor  ne  nummis  ex  Medicina  conflatis 
emerit."  &c. 

"'  Ibid,  p.  560. 

83  Ralph  de  Diceto  says  in  1091 ;  but  Rudborne  and  Matthew  Paris  assign  the  removal  to 
the  year  1092. 


26  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

the  Sees4,  for  which  removal  lie  obtained  the  King's  consent;  Rudborne  says 
"  by  bribery  ;"  but  Matthew  Paris,  more  covertly,  though  with  similar  impli- 
cation, by  "  anoint  inu;  his  hand  with  white  ointment 85." 

Soon  alter  the  removal  of  the  episcopal  seat  to  Bath,  Bishop  Villula  com- 
menced the  erection  of  a  Cathedral  in  that  city  (on  the  site  of  the  old  church 
belonging  to  the  abbey),  which  he  completed  from  the  foundations,  and 
Malmesbury  adds,  "  with  a  great  and  elaborate  circuit  of  walls80."  The  same 
writer  states,  that  the  Bishop  at  first  treated  the  monks  of  Bath  very  harshly, 
on  account  of  their  excessive  ignorance,  but  that  he  afterwards  behaved  with 
more  kindness,  and  filled  the  abbey  with  men  eminent  for  literature  and  the 
discharge  of  their  duties u.  The  Canon  of  Wells  says  that  he  transferred 
the  revenues  of  the  abbatial  table  to  his  own,  and  dismissing  the  appellation 
of  Bishop  of  Wells,  caused  himself  to  be  called  the  first  Bishop  of  Bath**. 
He  died  in  1123,  having  possessed  this  See  nearly  thirty-six  years,  and  was 
interred  in  his  new  Cathedral.  In  the  "  Decern  Scriptores"  (col.  '247),  he  is 
said  to  have  expired,  suddenly,  on  the  day  after  Christmas  day,  of  a  pain  in 
the  heart ;  but  in  the  '"'  Anglia  Sacra"  he  is  stated  to  have  died  very  old,  on 
the  29th  of  December,  in  the  above  year.  He  was  a  man  of  considerable 
munificence ;   and  whatever  may  have  been  his  conduct  to  the  monks  in  the 

84  The  charter,  by  which  St.  Peter's  Abbey  at  Bath  was  granted  to  Bishop  Villula,  expressly 
states  that  it  was  given  to  him,  with  all  its  appendages,  in  augmentation  of  the  Bishopric  of 
Somersetshire,  and  that  he  might  fix  his  episcopal  seat  there.  The  following  is  an  extract: 
"  Quocirca  ego  Willelrnus  Willelmi  regis  (ilius,  Dei  dispositione  monarches  Britannia;,  pro 
me;e  meique  patris  remedio  anima>,  et  regni  prosperitate,  et  populi  a  Domino  mihi  collati  salute, 
accessi  Johanni  episcopo  Abbatiam  sancti  Petri  Bathonia;,  cum  omnibus  appendiciis,  tarn  in 
villis  quam  in  civitate  et  in  consuetudinibus,  illis  videlicet  quibus  saisita  erat  ea  die  qua  regnum 
suscepi.  Dedi  inquam  ad  Sumersetensis  episcopatus  augmentationem  eatenus  praesertim  ut 
inibi  instituat  praesuleam  sedem."  Dugdale's  "  Monasticon,"  vol.  ii.  Num.  ix.  p.  2G0.  This 
charter  bears  date,  on  the  Gth  of  the  kal.  of  Feb.  A.  D.  1000;  In.  13 :  but  some  writers  suppose 
it  to  have  been  only  a  confirmation  or  enlargement  of  a  former  grant,  it  appearing  from  the 
"  Register  of  Wells,"  quoted  by  Wharton,  that  the  gift,  or  rather  purchase,  of  Bath  Abbey  was 
first  made  in  1088. 

85  "  Hist.  Angl."  p.  17,  edit,  a  Watts. 

'6  "  De  Gest.  Pont."  lib.  ii.  Scrip,  post  Bedam  ;  p.  23  t.  "  Ibid. 

KS  "  Angl.  Sacr."  pars  i.  p.  oGO. 


BISHOP  JOHN  DE  VILLULA.  27 

early  part  of  his  prelacy,  he  made  them  full  amends  long  before  his  decease ; 
for  in  a  deed89,  granted  in  1106,  he  not  only  restored  their  former  lands,  but 
gave  them  others  which  "  he  had  acquired  by  his  own  travail,  or  bought  with 
his  own  money:  he  also,  by  the  same  instrument,  appropriated  the  entire 
rental  of  the  city  of  Bath  to  the  completion  of  his  church,  and  gave  all  his 
moveable  property,  of  whatever  description,  to  the  monastery  there.  Leland, 
who  has  erroneously  stated  that  it  was  from  Henry  the  First  that  this  prelate 
obtained  permission  to  «  sette  his  Se"  at  Bath,  thus  speaks  of  his  tomb :  "  This 
John  pullid  doun  the  old  Church  of  S.  Peter  at  Bath,  and  erectid  a  new, 
much  fairer;  and  was  buried  in  the  midle  of  the  Presbyteri  thereof,  whos 
Image  I  saw  lying  there  an  9  Yere  sins,  at  the  which  tyme  al  the  Chirch  that 
he  made  lay  to  wast,  and  was  onrofid,  and  wedes  grew  about  this  John  of 
Tours  Sepulchre90." 

89  See  the  Deed  (translated)  at  length,  in  the  «  History  and  Antiquities  of  Bath  Abbey  Church," 
4to.  p.  20.  Some  other  particulars  of  Bishop  de  Villula,  which  more  immediately  relate  to  that 
foundation,  are  given  in  the  same  work. 

90  "  Itinerary,"  vol.  ii.  p.  39;  edit.  1744. 


28  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 


Cfjap*  ££♦ 


HISTORICAL    NOTICES    OF   THE    SEE    AND    BISHOPS    OF  BATH  AND   WELLS,   FROM   THE 
REIGN  OF  HENRY  THE  FIRST  TILL  THE  PERIOD  OF  THE  REFORMATION. 


About  the  time  of  Easter,  1123-4,  Henry  the  First  bestowed  the  See  of  Bath 
on  Godfrey,  a  Belgian,  who  was  chaplain  to  the  Queen  (Adeliza),  but  not 
chancellor  to  the  king-,  as  Bishop  Godwin  erroneously  affirms1 :  he  was  con- 
secrated on  the  26th  of  August  following,  in  the  Cathedral  of  St.  Paul  at 
London.  This  prelate  endeavoured  to  recover  the  lands  and  provostship  of 
the  Canons  of  Wells,  which  had  been  usurped  by  John  the  archdeacon,  in 
the  time  of  Bishop  de  Villula ;  but  the  archdeacon  being  aided  by  King  Henry 
and  Boger,  Bishop  of  Sarum,  he  proved  unsuccessful 2.  He  died  on  the  16th 
of  August,  1135,  and  was  buried  in  his  Cathedral  at  Bath.  In  his  time  the 
valuable  manor  of  Dogmersfield,  in  Hampshire,  which  afterwards  became  a 
summer  residence  of  the  Bishops  of  Bath  and  Wells,  was  granted  to  this 
See  by  the  king. 

Robert,  a  native  of  Normandy,  and  a  monk  of  Lewes,  whom  Henry, 
Bishop  of  Winchester,  had  appointed  to  the  temporary  government  of 
St.  Swithin's,  in  that  city,  and  afterwards  deputed  to  regulate  the  affairs  of 
Glastonbury  Abbey,  was  next  promoted  to  this  See  by  the  influence  of  the 
same  prelate.  During  the  contentions  between  the  Empress  Maud  and  King- 
Stephen,  this  Bishop  was  unexpectedly  seized,  at  Bath,  by  a  party  of  the 
townsmen  of  Bristol,  and  imprisoned  in  Bristol  Castle  till  the  King  had  given 

1  Vide  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  560.  '  Ibid. 


BISHOP  ROBERT.- — UNION  OF  BATH  AND  WELLS.  29 

his  reluctant  assent  to  his  being  exchanged  for  Geoffery  Talbot,  one  of  the 
Empress's  most  zealous  partisans,  whom  the  Bishop  had  previously  arrested 
as  a  spy,  and  then  held  in  durance. 

After  the  removal  of  the  episcopal  seat  from  Wells  to  Bath,  great  dissen- 
sions arose  between  the  canons  of  the  former  city  and  the  monks  of  the  latter, 
respecting  this  change  of  residence  and  the  right  of  election  ;  the  canons 
affirming  that  the  translation  of  the  See  by  John  de  Villula  "  could  not  be 
held  good,  because  it  was  made  against  their  consent,  with  disregard  of 
right,  and  without  any  necessity  or  legitimate  cause3."  Eventually,  the 
dispute  was  referred  to  Bishop  Robert,  who,  in  a  composition  or  decree 
(made  ante  anno  1139)  still  extant  "  in  Registro  Drokensford,"  enjoined 
"  that  the  Bishops  should  neither  derive  their  title  from  Wells,  as  in  old,  nor 
from  Bath,  as  in  modern  times,  but  that  in  future  they  should  take  their 
names  from  both  churches,  and  be  called  Bishops  of  Bath  and  Wells  ;  that 
the  monks  of  Bath  and  the  canons  of  Wells  should,  on  a  vacancy  of  the  See, 
appoint  an  equal  number  of  delegates,  by  whose  united  votes  the  Bishop 
should  be  chosen,  (the  Dean  of  Wells  being  the  returning  officer) ;  that  the 
Bishop  elect  should  be  enthroned  in  both  churches,  but  first  at  Bath;  that 
both  their  communities  should  form  the  Bishop's  Chapter,  and  that  all  grants, 
&c.  should  be  confirmed  under  their  respective  seals." 

Some  time  afterwards  this  prelate,  with  the  consent  and  by  the  aid  of 
King  Stephen4,  made  new  regulations  for  the  government  of  Wells  Church, 
which  he  placed  under  the  supremacy  of  a  Dean,  &c.  instead  of  the  Propo- 
situs, or  Provost,  instituted  by  Giso  :  of  this  transaction  Bishop  Godwin  gives 
the  following  account,  from  the  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  and  other  authorities. 

"  Whereas  a  kinsman  [John,  the  Archdeacon]  of  John  de  Villula  being 
appointed  by  him  Provost,  by  vertue  of  that  office  had  withdrawn  and  con- 
verted vnto  his  owne  vse,  in  a  manner,  all  the  reuenues  of  old  belonging  to 
the  canons  ;  with  great  labour  and  cost,  at  last,  he  [Bishop  Robert]  procured 
that  all  that  had  appertained  vnto  them  to  bee  restored  againe.  And  to  take 
away  all  occasion  of  the  like  vsurpation,  he  thought  good  to  divide  the  lands 

3  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  pp.  555,  556.  «  Ibid.  p.  561. 


30  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

of  the  Church  into  two  parts  ;  whereof  the  one  he  assigned  vnto  the  Chapter 
in  common,  and  out  of  the  rest  he  allotted  to  every  cannon  a  portion,  by 
the  name  of  a  Prebend.  He  also  it  was  that  first  constituted  a  Deane  to  be 
the  President  of  the  Chapter,  and  a  Subdeane  to  supply  his  place  in  absense; 
a  Chaunter  to  govern  the  quier,  and  aSubchaunter  under  him;  a  Chancellour 
to  instruct  the  younger  sort  of  Canons ;  and  lastly,  a  Treasurer,  to  looke  to 
the  ornaments  of  the  Church5." 

During  Robert's  episcopacy,  the  city  of  Bath  was  destroyed  by  fire  (July 
the  29th,  1137),  together,  according  to  Stow's  "  Chronicle,"  with  St.  Peter's 
Church  there;  but  the  Canon  of  Wells,  without  adverting  to  the  latter 
circumstance,  merely  states  that  Bishop  Robert  completed  the  building  of 
Bath  Church,  which  John  of  Tours  had  begun0.  From  the  same  authority 
we  learn  that  he  substantially  repaired  the  Church  at  Wells,  the  ruins  of 
which,  in  many  places,  threatened  destruction7;  and  that  lie  dedicated  it 
anew,  in  the  presence  of  the  Bishops  of  Sarum,  Worcester,  and  Hereford. 
He  likewise  founded  the  two  prebends  of  Jatton,  or  Yatton,  and  Huish- 
Episcopi.  Having  filled  the  see  about  thirty  years,  he  died  either  in  the 
year  1165  or  1166,  and  was  buried  with  his  immediate  predecessors  in 
the  Cathedral  at  Bath. 

After  his  decease,  Henry  the  Second  retained  possession  of  this  See  for 
more  than  eight  years,  when  he  bestowed  it  on  Reginald  Fitz-Joceline,  Arch- 
deacon of  Salisbury ;  who,  though  an  Englishman  by  birth,  was  from  educa- 
tion and  surname  regarded  as  a  Lombard8.  His  father  was  Bishop  of  Sarum, 
and  is  said  to  have  had  this  son  before  he  was  ordained.  Reginald,  at  first, 
supported  the  claims  of  the  arrogant  Thomas  a  Becket,  but  afterwards 
changing  to  the  King's  side,  he  was  sent  ambassador  to  the  Pope,  in  1171, 

s  "  Catalogue  of  the  Bishops  of  England,"  p.  3C3.  Godwin  adds,  "The  Subchauntership, 
together  with  the  Provostship,  an.  1547,  were  taken  away  and  suppressed  by  act  of  Parliament 
to  patch  up  a  [new]  Deanry;  the  lands  and  reuenewes  of  the  Deanry  being  deuoured  by  sacri- 
legious cormorants." 

6  "  Anglia  Sacra,''  pars  i.  561. 

'  "  Multas  ruinas  ejusdem  Ecclesia:  destructionem  ejus  in  locis  pluribus  comminantes  egregie 
reparavit." — Ibid.  8  Ibid. 


BISHOP  REGINALD  FITZ-JOCELINE. 


31 


to  remove  the  suspicion  of  Henry  being  concerned  in  Becket's  assassination. 
He  was  consecrated  to  this  See  on  his  return  from  Rome,  by  Richard,  Arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury,  in  the  church  of  St.  John,  in  the  vallies  of  Moriana 
(Savoy),  on  the  23d  of  June,  1374,  and  was  enthroned  on  the  24th  of  Novem- 
ber following9.  This  prelate,  who  is  described  as  a  man  of  ability,  and  of 
many  excellent  qualities,  was  much  addicted  to  hunting  and  hawking,  and  he 
obtained  from  Richard  Cceur  de  Lion  the  confirmation  of  an  alleged  right 
of  the  Bishops  of  this  See  to  keep  dogs  for  sporting  throughout  all  Somer- 
setshire10. From  the  same  King,  previously  to  his  departure  for  the  Holy 
Land,  he  received  the  manors  of  North  Curry,  Wrantage,  and  West  Hatch, 
which  he  gave  to  the  Chapter  of  Wells,  for  their  common  emoluments.  He 
also  founded  various  new  Prebends  in  the  church  of  Wells  ;  and  having 
constituted  the  town  of  Wells  a  free  borough,  he  exonerated  the  burgesses 
from  all  servile  offices.  In  consequence  of  some  services  rendered  to  the  monks 
of  Canterbury,  they  were  induced  to  elect  him  as  their  Archbishop,  on  the 
27th  of  November,  1191 ;  and  he  being  present,  they  seated  him  by  violence 
in  the  archiepiscopal  throne  ;  at  first  he  strenuously,  and  with  tears,  refused  to 
accept  the  proffered  dignity ;  but  on  the  following  day,  being  asked  whether 
he  assented  to  the  election,  he  answered  "  that  so  far  was  he  from  ambitious 
desire  of  that  place,  that  it  was  a  great  griefe  vnto  him  to  bee  chosen,  and 
that  he  would  bee  very  glad  they  would  take  some  other  in  his  roome :  how- 
beit  (quoth  hee)  if  they  will  needs  stand  to  their  election,  though  with  greefe 
and  hearts  sorrow,  I  must  and  will  accept  of  the  same  "."    The  Pope's  assent 


9  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  pp.  501,  562,  and  note  w. 

10  "  Ricardus,"  &c. — "  Sciatis  nos  concessisse  et  praesenti  carta  nostra  confirmasse  Rain. 
Dei  gratia  Bathon.  Episcopo  et  ejus  successoribus  in  perpetuum  Canes  suos  ad  Fugandum 
per  totam  Suruerset,  sicut  ipse  vel  aliquis  antecessorum  suorum  eos  unquam  liberius  habuit,  vide- 
licet ad  capiendum  bestias  praster  cervum  et  cervara,  et  damum  et  damam.  Volumus  etiam  et 
coucedimus  quod  ipse,  et  onines  successores  sui,  de  omnibus  bestiis  in  parcis  suis  fugatis  si 
exierint,  libere  et  quiete  suum  habeant  percursum.  Et  idcirco  prohibemus  ne  quis  pradictum 
Episcopum  vel  successores  suos  super  hoec  in  aliquo  disturbet,  super  decern  libras  forisfactura?. 
Hiis  testibus,"  &o.     Vide  Harl.  MSS.  No.  83.  C.  10. 

"  Godwin's  "  Catalogue  of  the  English  Bishops,"  p.  100. 


32  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

being  afterwards  obtained,  Reginald  prepared  to  take  possession  of  his  new 
See,  but  he  was  suddenly  taken  ill  at  his  residence  at  Dogmerstield,  and, 
putting  on  a  monk's  cowl,  he  died  there  on  the  26th  of  December  following. 
Three  days  after  he  was  interred  near  the  high  altar  in  Bath  Cathedral  '2. 

Savaric,  the  son  of  Goldwine,  archdeacon  of  Northampton,  and  treasurer 
of  Sarum,  being  elected  to  succeed  Reginald  by  the  monks  of  Bath,  though 
without  the  consent  or  knowledge  of  the  canons  of  Wells,  he  was  ordained 
Priest  on  the  19th  of  September,  1192;  and,  as  Wharton  supposes,  conse- 
crated Bishop  on  the  following  day  ".  He  was  related  to  Henry  the  Sixth, 
Emperor  of  Germany,  who,  to  oblige  his  kinsman,  made  it  one  of  the  con- 
ditions of  the  release  of  King  Richard  (who  had  been  basely  imprisoned  by 
Leopold,  Duke  of  Austria,  on  his  way  from  the  Holy  Land),  that  the  wealthy 
abbey  of  Glastonbury  should  be  annexed  to  the  diocess  of  Bath  and  Wells 
for  its  aggrandizement  and  advantage  '*.  Henry  de  Solis,  who  was  of  the 
blood  royal,  and  abbot  of  Glastonbury,  was  induced  to  consent  to  this 
arrangement  on  being  promoted  to  the  bishopric  of  Worcester;  but  the 
monks  strenuously  opposed  it,  though  in  vain.  Stow  affirms,  on  the  authority 
of  a  record  of  Henry  the  Third's  time,  that  Savaric  procured  the  imprison- 
ment of  Richard,  in  order  to  annex  Glastonbury  to  his  See  15 ;  and  the  King  is 
reported  to  have  declared  that  the  annexation  of  the  abbey  was  extorted  from 
him  by  force  and  terror10:  but  whatever  the  truth  may  be,  in  those  respects, 
it  appears  that  Richard  employed  the  opportunity  to  induce  this  Bishop  to 
surrender  to  him  the  city  of  Bath,  which  was  then  valued  at  £  100.  per  ami. 
in  exchange  for  Glastonbury.  Having  obtained  his  desire,  Savaric,  accord- 
ing to  the  Canon  of  Wells,  transferred  his  episcopal  seat  to  Glastonbury, 
and  caused  himself  to  be  styled  Bishop  of  that  place  " ;  but  others  state  that 

"  Hoveden  says  he  was  buried  at  Ba ;   for  so  Bath  is  denominated  (vide  Scriptores  post 
Bedara,  p.  40.3;  B.)  probably  from  some  presumed  analogy  to  the  lloman  Sake. 
"  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  56"2. 

"   Vide  Dugdale's  "  Monasticon,"  edit.  1819,  vol.  i.  p.  5,  from  Joban.  Glast. 
"s  See  Stove's  "  Chronicle,"  p.  61.  I6  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  578. 

"   "  Et  se  fecit  Glastoniensem  Episcopum  publice  appeUari."      Ibid,  p.  503. 


BISHOPS  SAVARIC  AND  DE  WELLES.  33 

he  assumed  the  title  of  Bishop  of  Bath  and  Glastonbury I8.  He  gave  the 
archdeaconry  of  Bath  to  the  prior  and  convent  there,  and  having  founded  the 
Prebends  of  Ilminster  and  Long  Sutton  in  the  church  of  Wells,  he  died  at 
Scienes,  on  the  8th  of  August,  1205,  and  was  interred  at  Bath.  The  follow- 
ing monkish  rhymes,  expressive  of  the  rambling  inquietude  of  his  disposition, 
are  said  to  have  formed  his     ntaph  ID : — 

Hospes  erat  mundo,— per  mundum  semper  eundo, 
Sic  suprema  dies — fit  sibi  prima  quies. 

Immediately  after  the  decease  of  Savaric,  the  prior  and  convent  of  Glas- 
tonbury petitioned  the  Pope  to  restore  them  to  their  former  state  of  indepen- 
dency of  episcopal  rule;  but  he  refused  their  petition,  on  the  ground  that  the 
See  of  Bath  had,  during  its  vacancy,  no  legal  defenders  of  its  rights. 

In  1206,  Joceline  tie  Welles,  called  Joceline  Troteman  in  the  "  Annales 
de  Margan,"  who  had  been  made  a  Justice  of  the  Common  Pleas  in  1204, 
was  elected  Bishop  by  the  joint  suffrages  of  the  chapters  of  Bath  and  Wells, 
and  he  was  consecrated  in  St.  Mary's  Chapel,  at  Reading,  on  the  28th  of 
May,  in  the  same  year.  During  his  episcopacy,  the  monks  of  Glastonbury, 
after  great  exertions  and  a  strong  opposition  of  twelve  years  continuance  on 
the  part  of  Joceline,  obtained,  by  appeal  to  the  court  of  Rome,  and  the  influ- 
ence of  the  King,  a  dissolution  of  their  enforced  union  with  this  See ;  yet  not 
till  they  had  agreed  to  surrender  to  the  Bishop  the  valuable  manors  of 
Winescombe,  Pucklechurch,  Blackford,  and  Cranmore,  together  with  the 
advowsons  of  several  churches.  This  arrangement  was  confirmed  by  a  bull 
of  Pope  Honorius  the  Third,  dated  at  Rome,  on  the  16th  of  the  kalends  of 
June,  1218 ao;  and  Joceline  afterwards  resumed  the  title  of  Bishop  of  Bath 
and  Wells,  which  has  ever  since  been  used  by  the  successive  Prelates  of 
this  See. 

Bishop  Joceline  having  incurred  the  high  displeasure  of  King  John,  by 
interdicting  the  nation,  pursuant  to  the  Pope's  command,  in  1208,  was  soon 

13  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  562,  note*.  "  Camden's  "  Remains,"  p.  373. 

-°  See  Dugdale's  "  Monasticon,"  vol.  ii.  p.  '2G9;  Num.  xix. 

F 


34  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

alter  forced  into  exile,  and  the  King-,  during  his  absence,  retained  the  tempo- 
ralities of  the  Bishopric  ;  the  nett  profits  of  which,  in  the  fourteenth  of  his 
reign,  anno  1212,  when  they  were  accounted  for  by  his  escheator,  Thomas 
Peverel,  amounted  to  £214.  14*.  6d.~l 

On  the  Bishop's  return,  after  an  exile  of  five  years,  he  applied  himself 
particularly  to  the  improvement  of  the  church  of  Wells.  He  obtained  from 
Hugh,  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  the  valuable  manors  of  Congresbury,  Chedder,  and 
Axbridge  (to  be  held  of  the  king  for  ever  in  fee  farm),  and  annexed  them 
to  his  See:  in  conjunction  with  that  prelate  he  likewise  founded  the  hospital 
of  St.  John,  at  Wells.  He  also  established  many  new  Prebends  in  this 
Cathedral ;  augmented  the  stipends  of  the  chanters  (whom  he  first  styled 
Vicars-choral),  and  more  equally  distributed  the  revenues  of  the  establishment 
among  its  various  dignities  and  officers.  But  his  principal  work  was  the 
repair,  or  rather  restoration  of  the  Cathedral  itself;  which,  according  to  the 
Canon  of  Wells,  being  "  deformed  with  ruins,  and  almost  level  with  the 
ground22,"  he  rebuilt,  and  dedicated  anew  on  the  23d  of  October,  1239.  He 
likewise  erected  a  chapel  in  the  bishop's  palace  at  Wells,  and  another  at 
Wokey,  as  well  as  other  edifices.  Having  possessed  his  See  nearly  thirty- 
seven  years,  he  died  on  the  19th  of  November,  1242,  and  was  buried  in  the 
middle  of  the  choir  in  Wells  Cathedral.  "  No  one,"  says  the  Canon  of 
Wells,  u  had  ever  been  like  this  man,  aud  we  have  never  seen  a  successor 
equal  to  him23."  It  appears  that  the  church  of  Bath  became  subordinate  to 
Wells  in  episcopal  authority  and  regard,  either  in  the  time  of  this  prelate  or 
in  that  of  his  successor ;  and  the  Bishops  henceforth  seem  to  have  fixed  their 
resideuce,  principally,  at  Wells. 


"  Vide  "  Comp.  Epis.  Batou,"  Jo  anno  integro.  Mag.  Rot.  14.  John,  Rot.  i.  G.  By  that 
instrument  it  appears  that  Bishop  Joceline's  establishment  comprised  a  train  of  huntsmen,  a 
noble  pack  of  harriers,  and  thirteen  other  dogs  of  different  descriptions ;  besides  other  articles  of 
luxury,  &c.  According  to  Matthew  Paris,  Joceline  dictated  the  oath  taken  by  Henry  the  Third 
at  his  coronation  at  Gloucester;  and,  with  Peter,  Bishop  of  Winchester,  crowned  him. 

"  "  Jocelinus,"  &c. — "  ipsamcpie  Wellensem  Ecclesiam  vetustatis  minis  enormiter  dcformatam 
prostravit,  et  a  pavimentis  erexit  dedicavitque  :" — "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  5G4. 

■■'  Ibid. 


BISHOPS  ROGER  AND  BUTTON. 


35 


Roger,  precentor  of  Sarum,  was  next  elected  by  the  monks  of  Bath,  but 
this  being  done  without  the  approbation  of  the  canons  of  Wells,  an  appeal  was 
made  to  the  court  of  Rome ;  previously  however  to  any  decision  the  Bishop 
elect  obtained  the  consent  of  the  Pope  to  his  consecration,  on  the  plea  that 
the  church  might  otherwise  suffer  from  remaining  vacant.  He  was  con- 
secrated at  Readiug,  on  the  11th  of  September,  1244;  and  after  a  long  suit 
the  Pope  determined  that  the  right  of  choice  was  jointly  in  the  two  Chapters. 
The  monks  of  Bath  promising  a  stricter  observance  of  the  compact  in  future, 
Roger  was  permitted  to  retain  his  seat  without  more  opposition.  Having 
augmented  the  income  both  of  the  archdeacons  and  the  canons  of  Wells,  by 
certain  appropriations  during  vacancies,  he  died  on  the  21st  of  December, 
1247:  or  as  others  write,  in  January,  1248 24.  According  to  the  Annals  of 
Worcester,  the  Pope  appointed  him  Bishop  of  this  See,  on  account  of  the 
dissensions  between  the  two  chapters  of  Bath  and  Wells 23.  He  was  the  last 
of  the  Bishops  interred  at  Bath  prior  to  the  Reformation. 

William  Button2",  or  Bitton  (the  first  of  that  name),  archdeacon  of  Wells, 
was  next  advanced  to  this  See,  by  the  mutual  concurrence  of  the  monks  and 
canons,  and  he  was  consecrated  at  Rome  on  the  14th  of  July,  1248.  In 
1253,  he  was  sent  by  Henry  the  Third  into  Spain,  to  negotiate  a  marriage 
between  Eleanor,  daughter  of  King  Ferdinand,  and  Edward,  Prince  of  Wales : 
he  was  also  much  employed  by  the  King  in  other  affairs.  This  prelate  was 
engaged  in  a  long  dispute  with  his  canons,  in  regard  to  the  allotments  from 
vacancies  made  to  them  by  his  predecessors,  Joceline  and  Roger;  but  the 
parties  being  reconciled  by  the  mediation  of  the  metropolitan,  the  Bishop 
relinquished  his  claims.  In  the  41st  of  Henry  the  Third  he  procured  from 
the  King  a  charter  of  free  warren  for  his  manor  of  Wells.  He  died  on  the  3d 
of  April,  1264,  and  was  buried  in  this  Cathedral,  in  the  new  chapel  of  the 
Virgin  Mary27. 

•*  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars.  i.  p.  565.  !i  Ibid,  p.  492. 

26  In  Adam  de  Doraershani,  this  prelate  is  called  William  de  Bncton. — *'  Anglia  Sacra," 
pars  i.  p.  584. 

•»  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  566.  This  Bishop  was  particularly  attentive  to  the  interests  of  his 
family  and  kinsfolk,  whom  he  appears  to  have  advanced  to  the  principal  offices  of  his  church. 
William   Button,  his  brother's  son  (afterwards  Bishop)  was  Archdeacon  of  Wells ;    Richard 


36  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

Walter  Gijfard,  his  successor,  who  was  a  canon  of  Wells  and  chaplain  to 
the  Pope,  was  elected  on  the  22d  of  May,  1264,  and  was  consecrated  by 
the  Bishop  of  Paris,  in  the  absence  of  Archbishop  Boniface.  In  the  same 
year  (viz.  49th  of  Henry  III.)  he  was  Chancellor  of  England ;  and  on  the 
15th  of  October,  1265,  be  was  advanced  to  the  archiepiscopal  see  of  York2*, 
which  he  retained  till  his  decease  on  the  25th  of  April,  1279 29. 

William  "Button,  or  Bitton,  the  second  Bishop  of  that  name  (who  was 
nephew  to  the  former)  was  elected  on  the  10th  of  February,  1267,  and  had 
his  temporalities  restored  on  the  fourth  of  the  month  following-.  He  was  so 
much  esteemed  for  his  superior  sanctity,  that,  as  we  are  informed  by  Matthew 
Paris,  he  was  chosen  by  Bobert  Kilwardby  to  consecrate  him  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury,  in  preference  to  all  others  M.  He  established  some  good  statutes 
for  the  government  of  his  diocess,  and  gave  the  manor  of  Bicknoller  to  the 
church  of  Wells.  On  his  decease,  December  the  4th,  1274,  he  was  buried 
in  the  southern  part  of  Wells  Cathedral ;  "  ubi,"  says  the  Canon  of  Wells, 
"  ad  preesens  multis  fidget  miraculis31*"  His  tomb  has  been  since  removed 
into  the  Lady  Chapel ;  but  it  continued  to  be  visited,  even  till  after  the 
Beformation,  by  many  superstitious  devotees,  and  particularly  by  those  who 
were  troubled  with  the  toothach. 

On  the  23d  of  February,  1275,  Robert  Burnell,  of  the  baronial  family  of 
that  name,  archdeacon  of  York,  and  a  canon  of  Wells,  was  elected  to  the 
vacant  See;  and  was  consecrated  at  Merton,  by  the  Archbishop  of  Can- 
terbury, on  the  7th  of  April  following.  He  was  a  man  of  eminent  abilities; 
aud  being  first  treasurer  and  afterwards  chancellor  of  England,  was  much 


Button,  precentor;  Nicholas  Button  (the  bishop's  brother)  treasurer;  John  Button  (another  bro- 
ther) provost  of  Coomb  ami  parson  of  Ashbury;  and  he  was  succeeded  by  a  Thomas  Button. 
There  was  also  a  Thomas  Button,  but  whether  the  same  or  not  is  uncertain,  who  succeeded  the 
above  William  in  the  archdeaconry ;   and  afterwards  became  Bishop  of  Exeter. 

11  On  this  occasion  the  Bishop  wrote,  as  follows,  to  the  prior  and  convent  of  Bath: — "  We 
give  you  notice  that,  from  the  day  of  the  blessed  apostle  Thomas,  we  have  ceased,  and  have 
taken  upon  us  the  care  of  the  church  of  York." — Vide  "  Cartul.  Bathon.  in  Bibl.  Uospit. 
Line."  p.  DC. 

'»  He  was  buried  in  York  Cathedral.  *°  Vide  Malt.  Paris  a  Watts,  p.  1008. 

3'  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  5GG. 


BISHOPS  BURNELL  AND  DE  MARCHIA.  37 

employed  by  Edward  the  First  in  Welsh  affairs.  His  public  offices  enabled 
him  both  to  enrich  his  family  and  to  benefit  the  Church  of  Wells  by  various 
privileges,  and  confirmatory  charters  of  former  grants 32.  He  also  erected, 
on  the  west  side  of  the  episcopal  palace,  a  great  Hall,  which  was  demolished 
in  the  reign  of  Edward  the  Sixth  by  Sir  John  Gates;  who,  as  "  a  just  reward 
for  his  sacriledge,"  says  Bishop  Godwin,  "  soone  after  lost  his  head 33."  Dying 
at  Berwick  upon  Tweed,  on  the  25th  of  October,  1292,  he  was  buried  in  the 
nave  of  Wells  Cathedral  about  a  month  afterwards.  Wharton  says  that  he 
surrendered  to  the  King-  tlie  patronage  of  Glastonbury  Abbey,  receiving  in 
return  additional  privileges  for  the  city  of  Bath. 

William  de  Marchia,  or  De  la  March,  who  possessed  the  treasurership  of 
England  from  the  year  1290  to  1295,  and  was  held  in  high  favour  by  Edward 
the  First,  was  next  elected  to  this  See,  on  the  30th  of  January,  1293;  and 
consecrated  on  the  17th  of  May.  He  died  on  the  11th  of  June,  1302,  and 
was  interred  here,  in  the  south  transept,  between  the  door  of  the  cloisters  and 
the  altar  of  St.  Martin.  At  his  tomb,  says  the  Canon  of  Wells,  many 
miracles  were  performed 34.  Godwin  states  that  the  Chapter  house,  a  "  stately 
and  sumptuous  worke,"  was  built  in  the  time  of  this  prelate,  "  by  the  contri- 
bution of  well  disposed  people." 

Walter  Haselshawe,  or  Hestelshagh,  Dean  of  Wells,  was  advanced  to  this 

31  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  567.  n  "  Catalogue  of  English  Bishops,"  p.  369. 

34  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  567.  Bishop  Godwin,  in  his  "Catalogue  of  English  Bishops," 
p.  369,  has  this  passage: — "  I  have  seene,  amongst  the  records  of  our  Church  of  Welles,  the 
copies  of  divers  letters  vnto  the  Pope  and  Cardinals  from  the  King,  from  divers  of  the  nobility 
and  the  cleargy  of  that  Church,  commending  this  man  so  far  foorth  for  his  holines,  testified  (as  they 
write)  by  many  miracles;  as  they  intreated  very  earnestly  for  his  Canonisation.  I  marvell  much 
at  it;  for  Matthew  of  Westminster  and  Polidor  Virgil  complain  grievously  of  him,  as  the  author 
of  a  hainous  sacriledge,  in  causing  the  King  to  spoile  all  the  Churches  and  Monasteries  of  Eng- 
land, of  such  plate  and  mony  as  lay  hoorded  up  in  them,  for  the  paiment  of  his  souldiers.  It 
was  Edward  the  First,  a  prince  that  wanted  neither  wit  to  deuise,  nor  courage  to  execute  such 
an  exploit,  and  to  lay  the  fault  vpon  another  at  last.  Yet  likely  enough  it  is,  that  such  a  fault 
stamped  vpon  him  (how  vndeservedly  soever)  might  bar  him  out  of  the  Pope's  Calender,  who 
otherwise  was  not  wont  to  be  over  dainty  in  affoording  that  kind  of  honour  where  fees  might  be 
readily  paid  for  it."— Vide  also  MS.  Harl.  No.  6968,  pp.  112  and  113,  among  the  excerps  from 
the  Registers  of  Wells. 


38  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

See  on  the  7th  of  August,  1302,  and  consecrated  on  the  following  4th  of 
November33.  He  made  various  useful  statutes  for  this  Cathedral ;  and  dying 
on  the  11th  of  December,  1308,  was  buried  in  the  nave,  near  the  altar  for  the 
celebration  of  matins,  or  morning  service 3C. 

John  Drokensford,  the  next  bishop,  was  elected  on  the  5th  of  February, 
1309,  at  which  time  he  was  keeper  of  the  King's  wardrobe  and  privy  seal, 
and  under-treasurer  of  the  exchequer :  he  was  consecrated  on  the  9th  of 
November  following,  at  Canterbury.  The  Canon  of  Wells  states  that  he 
improved  his  Bishopric  with  many  splendid  buildings,  and  renewed  and 
amplified  the  privileges  of  his  Church " ;  but  Bishop  Godwin,  on  the  con- 
trary, says  that  if  he  bestowed  somewhat  in  increasing  the  buildings  and 
liberties  of  his  See,  he  lavished  much  more  upon  his  kindred;  and  that  he 
had  much  contention  with  his  chapter38.  In  his  time,  on  the  2d  of  the 
kalends  of  February,  1325,  an  indulgence  of  forty  days  was  granted  to  the 
contributors  to  the  new  works  of  this  Church.  He  died  at  Dogmersfield,  on 
the  13th  of  May,  1329,  and  was  buried  in  St.  Catherine's  Chapel  in  this 
Cathedral. 

Italph  de  Salopia,  or  Shrewsbury,  the  succeeding  Bishop,  who  was  keeper 
of  the  King's  wardrobe,  and  chancellor  of  the  University  of  Oxford,  was 
elected  by  the  two  chapters  of  Bath  and  Wells  on  the  2d  of  June,  1329:  he 
was  consecrated  on  the  3d  of  December  following,  by  the  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury;  but  this  having  been  done  prior  to  obtaining  the  Pope's  ap- 
proval, it  cost  him,  as  stated  by  Walsingham,  "a  huge  sum  of  money"  before 
he  could  procure  a  full  confirmation  from  the  court  of  Rome.  He  was  a 
munificent  benefactor  to  his  Church  and  diocess.  "  By  great  labour,  and 
not  a  little  expense,  he  procured  from  the  King  an  exemption  from  the  forest 
laws  for  the  manors  of  Cheekier  and  Axbridge.  He  destroyed  by  hunting, 
with  the  King's  consent,  all  the  wild  beasts  of  Mendip  forest ;  he  surrounded 

35  Bishop  Haselshawe  was  enthroned  at  Wells  on  Christmas  Day,  1302  ;  but  not  at  Bath 
till  the  Epiphany  following:  which  proves  that  the  former  Church  had  obtained  the  precedency. 
Vide  Wharton's  note,  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  567,  notey. 

36  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  567.  3;  Ibid.  p.  068. 
38  Godwin,  "  De  Prxsulibus  Anglia;,"  p.  375;  edit.  1743. 


BISHOPS  DE  SALOPIA  AND  DE  HAREWELL.  39 

the  episcopal  palace  at  Wells  with  a  strong  stone  wall  and  a  moat;  he  built 
[or  rather  founded]  the  Vicar's  close  at  Wells,  and  vested  it  for  ever  in  the 
Vicars-choral  and  their  successors,  to  whom  also  he  granted  the  manor  of 
Welsleigh,  and  a  yearly  rent  of  twenty  nobles  out  of  the  vicarage  of  Chew; 
he  erected  a  house  for  the  choristers  and  their  master  on  the  west  side  of  the 
cloister;  he  rebuilt  the  church  of  Winscombe  from  the  foundations;  and  he 
constructed  the  court-house  at  Claverton,  together  with  a  great  chamber  at 
Evercreech,  and  many  other  edifices  upon  the  episcopal  estates.  He  also 
procured,  '  with  great  cost,'  the  disafforestation  of  the  forest  of  Mendip,  and 
gave  many  rich  ecclesiastical  vestments  to  his  churches  of  Bath  and  Wells39." 
He  died  at  Wiveliscombe,  on  the  14th  of  August,  1363;  and  was  buried 
before  the  high  altar  in  the  presbytery  at  Wells:  but  his  tomb  has  been 
removed  to  the  north  side  of  the  choir.  The  Harleian  MS.  (No.  6968)  states 
that  this  prelate,  in  1361,  was  excused  from  attending  Parliament  on  account 
of  his  great  age. 

After  the  decease  of  Bishop  Ralph,  the  monks  of  Bath  elected  Walter  de 
Monyngton,  abbot  of  Glastonbury,  to  this  See ;  but  as  the  chapter  of  Wells 
had  not  been  consulted,  his  election  was  made  void;  and  John  Barnet, 
treasurer  of  England,  was  translated  hither,  from  the  See  of  Worcester,  by 
a  bull  of  Pope  Urban  the  Fifth,  on  the  24th  of  November,  1363:  his  spiri- 
tualities were  restored  on  the  7th  of  April  in  the  following  year.  On  the 
15th  of  December,  1366,  by  another  bull  of  the  same  Pope,  he  was  removed 
to  Ely ;  where  he  was  buried,  after  his  decease,  at  Bishop's  Hatfield,  on  the 
7th  of  June,  1373. 

John  de  Harewell,  LL.  B.  chancellor  of  Gascoigne  and  chaplain  to  Edward 
the  Black  Prince,  was  next  raised  to  this  See  by  papal  authority;  and  he 
was  consecrated  at  Bordeaux,  by  the  archbishop  there,  on  the  7th  of  March, 
1366.     He  contributed  two-thirds  of  the  expense  of  erecting  the  south-west 


39  Vide  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  pp.  568-9;  and  Godwin  "  De  Prwsulibus  Anglire,"  p.  377. 
Godwin  says  that,  of  the  many  things  he  gave  to  this  Church,  he  believes  that  nothing  remains 
but  a  great  chest,  bound  with  iron,  in  which  the  chapter  seal  is  kept. 


40  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

tower  of  the  Church40,  the  Chapter  bearing-  the  rest  of  the  charge;  gave  the 
two  great  bells  in  the  said  tower,  and  paid  one  hundred  marks  towards 
the  glazing  of  the  west  window.  He  likewise  furnished  the  Church  with  a 
missal  of  twenty  pounds  value,  and  divers  rich  vestments.  His  will,  dated 
June  the  '29th,  138G,  was  proved  on  the  20th  of  August  following.  He  was 
buried  before  the  altar  of  St.  Calixtus  in  this  Cathedral. 

After  the  death  of  Harewell,  a  license  to  elect  was  issued,  bearing  date 
July  the  lGth,  1386  (10th  of  Rich.  IL),  and  Richard  Medeford,  canon  and 
prebendary  of  Wells  being  chosen,  the  King  restored  his  temporalities 41 ;  but 
in  the  meantime  the  Pope,  Urban  the  Sixth,  having  by  his  bull,  dated  August 
the  18th,  in  the  above  year,  translated  Walter  Skirlawe,  LL.  D.  from  Lich- 
field to  this  See,  Medeford  was  obliged  to  resign  his  new  honours.  Within 
two  years  after,  viz.  April  the  3d,  1388,  Bishop  Skirlawe  was  translated  to 
Durham,  where  he  died;  and  was  buried  in  the  beginning  of  1406.  His 
executors,  under  the  provisions  of  his  will,  presented  vestments  to  this 
Church  to  the  value  of  £150.  for  the  celebration  of  his  obit42. 

On  the  same  day  that  Pope  Urban  removed  Skirlawe  to  Durham,  by 
another  bull  he  translated  Ralph  Erghum,  or  Argum,  LL.D.  Bishop  of 
Salisbury,  to  this  See;  and  his  temporalities  were  restored  on  the  13th  of 
September  following,  anno  1388.  In  the  following  year,  as  appears  from  the 
Patent  Rolls  of  Richard  II.  he  obtained  a  grant  of  all  the  lead  mines  within 
his  diocess,  which  included  the  rich  veins  of  the  Mendip  hills.  Among 
his  benefactions  to  the  dean  and  chapter  of  Wells  was  a  missal  value 
twenty-two  pounds;  gold  and  silver  plate  to  the  value  of  eighty-two  pounds; 
and  a  messuage  in  Wells  called  the  George.  He  also  founded  a  chantry  in 
this  Church  for  the  souls  of  his  parents  and  sister;  and  by  his  will  directed 

«°  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  570.  Godwin  says,  "  the  third  penny,"  partem  tertium. — 
Speaking  of  the  bells  given  by  Harewell,  the  same  writer  states  that  the  largest,  which  was  tour 
times  re-cast  since  he  was  of  this  Church,  "  now  at  last  serveth  for  the  greatest  of  a  ring,  the 
goodliest  for  that  number  (beeing  but  five)  (I  thinke)  in  England." — "  De  Praisulibus,"  &c. 
p.  377  ;  and  "  Catalogue  of  English  Bishops,"  p.  372. 

41  Godwin,  "  De  Prasulibus,"  &c.  378;  note  i.  **  "  Anglia  Sacra,  pars  i.  p.  570. 


BISHOPS  DE  HAREWELL,  CLIFFORD,  AND  BOWET.  41 

his  executors  to  build  in  the  way,  or  road,  then  called  La  Mounterye,  but  now 
College  Lane,  in  Wells,  a  house,  or  college,  for  fourteen  priests.  He  died 
on  the  10th  of  April,  1400;  and  was  buried  near  St.  Edmund's  Chapel,  in  the 
nave  of  this  Church. 

Collinson  states,  that  "  This  Bishop  Erghum  fortified  the  episcopal  palace, 
surrounding  it  with  a  deep  moat  and  an  embattled  wall,  flanked  by  semicircular 
towers,  as  it  stands  to  this  day 43."  He  quotes,  for  his  authority,  the  MS. 
"  Lib.  Rub.  Haikon?  then  in  the  possession  of  Viscount  Weymouth,  re- 
marking, that  Bishop  Godwin,  in  his  Commentary  de  Prcesulibus,  ascribes 
it,  erroneously,  to  Ralph  de  Salopia.  Whatever  the  truth  may  be,  in  respect 
to  the  real  builder  of  the  palace  wall,  Godwin  is  fully  supported  by  the  Canon 
of  Wells  in  ascribing  it  to  the  latter  prelate,  as  may  be  seen  in  the  pre- 
ceding account  of  Bishop  Ralph44. 

Richard  Clifford,  archdeacon  of  Canterbury,  and  keeper  of  the  privy  seal, 
was,  after  Erghum's  death,  advanced  to  this  See  by  Pope  Boniface  the 
Ninth;  but  Henry  the  Fourth,  wishing  to  bestow  the  diocess  on  a  more 
favoured  adherent,  refused  his  assent,  and  Clifford  renounced  his  claims; 
for  which  prudential  act  he  was  made  Bishop  of  Worcester  in  the  following 
year. 

Henry  Boivet,  LL.D.  Canon  of  Wells,  and  Archdeacon  of  Lincoln,  was  then 
promoted  to  this  Bishopric,  in  reward  for  his  fidelity  to  the  King,  when  Earl 
of  Hereford;  for  which,  in  1398,  he  was  sentenced  to  perpetual  banishment, 
after  having  been  condemned  to  die,  by  Richard  the  Second.  He  returned 
to  England  with  Henry,  when  he  landed  at  Ravenspur,  in  October,  1399. 


43  "  History  of  Somersetshire,"  vol.  iii.  p.  333. 

4+  The  Ruber  Codex  Bathoniw,  during  some  part  of  the  seventeenth  century,  was  in  the  pos- 
session of  Mr.  John  Packer,  an  alderman  of  Bath ;  and  afterwards  in  that  of  Dr.  Thos.  Guidott, 
who,  in  1703,  gave  it  to  Thomas,  Viscount  Weymouth  ;  from  whom  it  has  descended  to  the 
present  Marquis  of  Bath.  It  is  fairly  written  on  vellum,  and  contains  sixty-nine  leaves;  the 
covers  being  of  thick  wood,  coated  with  leather:  in  many  instances  the  initial  letters  are 
elaborately  ornamented.  The  contents  are  extremely  various,  viz.  historical,  legendary,  medicinal, 
juridical,  statistical,  &c.  It  was  written  previously  to  the  year  1428,  with  the  exception  of  a  few 
sentences  of  more  recent  insertion. 


42  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

His  temporalities,  as  Bishop  of  Bath  and  Wells,  were  restored  on  the  21st 
of  September,  1401 ;  and  on  the  20th  of  November  following-,  he  was  conse- 
crated in  St.  Paul's  Cathedral,  in  the  presence  of  the  King-  himself,  and  most 
of  the  Lancastrian  nobility.  In  1402,  he  was  made  treasurer  of  England; 
and  in  the  middle  of  the  year  1406,  he  conducted  Henry's  daughter,  Philippa, 
into  Denmark,  to  be  married  to  the  Danish  king.  On  the  7th  of  October, 
1407,  he  was  preferred  by  Gregory  the  Twelfth,  with  the  King's  consent,  to 
the  archiepiscopal  See  of  York.  He  died  at  Cawood  on  the  20th  of  October, 
1423;  and  was  interred  in  York  minster45. 

On  the  same  day  that  Bowet  was  translated  to  York,  Nicholas  Buhcith, 
bishop  of  Sarum  and  treasurer  of  England,  was  advanced  by  the  Pope  to 
this  See,  viz.  on  October  the  7th,  1407;  and  his  temporalities  were  restored 
on  the  1st  of  April  in  the  following  year.  He  was  a  circumspect  and  provi- 
dent man,  and,  it  may  be  presumed,  of  much  talent,  as  he  was  one  of  the 
thirty  ecclesiastics  who  were  associated  with  the  cardinals  in  the  election  of 
Pope  Martin  the  Fifth.  He  contributed  considerably  towards  the  erection 
of  the  north-west  tower  of  this  Church,  built  the  library  over  the  eastern 
cloisters,  and  constructed  a  small  chantry  and  monumental  chapel  within  the 
Cathedral  itself;  wherein,  after  his  decease,  on  the  27th  of  October,  1424, 
he  was  buried,  having  appointed  three  priests  to  celebrate  a  daily  mass  there 
for  the  good  of  his  soul.  He  also  founded  an  almshouse  near  the  north  side 
of  St.  Cuthbert's  church,  in  Wells;  and  erected  a  small  chapel  in  the  church 
at  Bath46. 

The  succeeding  Bishop  was  the  erudite  John  Stafford,  LL.  D.  dean  of 
Wells,  the  ninth  son  of  Humphrey,  Earl  of  Stafford,  and  afterwards  Duke 
of  Buckingham.  He  was  greatly  esteemed  by  Henry  the  Fifth,  who  made 
him  keeper  of  his  privy  seal  and  one  of  his  council.  In  December,  1422,  he 
was  appointed  treasurer  of  England;  and  in  December,  1424,  he  was  elected 
Bishop  of  this  See :  he  was  consecrated  on  the  27th  of  May,  in  the  church 


"s  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  571.     Ex  Itegistris  Arundcll  ct  Boicit.     See  "  History,"  &c.  of 
York  Cathedral,  for  a  view  and  an  account  of  Bowet's  tomb. 
46  Vide,  Harlcian  MS.  No.  69G0,  p.  38,  44;  and  Godwin  "  De  Prscsulibus,"  p.  379. 


BISHOPS  STAFFORD  AND  BECKINGTON.  43 

of  the  Fryers-Preachers,  at  London.  In  February,  1431-32,  he  was  made 
chancellor  of  England,  which  high  office  he  enjoyed  for  eighteen  years,  and 
then  voluntarily  resigned  it  from  approaching  infirmities.  Previously,  how- 
ever, he  had  been  translated  from  this  See  to  Canterbury,  by  the  "  absolute 
authority,"  as  Godwin  states,  of  Pope  Eugenius  the  Fourth;  whose  bull, 
bearing  date  on  the  13th  of  May,  1443,  was  admitted  by  the  King  on  the  6th  of 
the  following  August47.  He  died  at  Maidstone,  on  the  6th  of  July,  1452,  and 
was  interred  at  Canterbury. 

Thomas  of  Beckinglon,  or  Bekyngton,  LL.D.  a  man  eminently  learned 
himself,  and  a  liberal  patron  of  erudition  in  others,  was  next  advanced  to 
this  See  by  the  favour  of  Henry  the  Sixth ;  to  whom  he  had  been  tutor,  and 
who  held  him  in  great  estimation.  He  took  his  surname  (as  was  common 
with  the  clergy  of  that  period)  from  Beckington,  the  place  of  his  birth,  a 
village  near  Frome,  in  Somersetshire.  When  a  mere  boy  he  was  sent  to 
Winchester  to  be  instructed  in  grammar ;  and  whilst  there  was  noticed  for 
his  abilities  and  the  comeliness  of  his  person  by  the  celebrated  William  of 
Wickham,  who  placed  him  in  the  college  which  he,  Wickham,  -had  founded 
in  that  city.  Having  highly  distinguished  himself  in  rhetoric  and  logic,  he 
was  removed  to  Wickham's  new  College,  at  Oxford;  of  which  he  became  a 
fellow  in  1408;  and,  having  taken  the  degree  of  doctor  of  laws,  he  was, 
eventually,  advanced,  in  1442,  to  the  chancellorship  of  that  University48. 

Beckington  obtained  such  high  repute  for  his  learning  that  he  was  em- 
ployed at  court  to  superintend  the  education  of  the  young  King,  Henry  the 
Sixth,  by  whose  favour  he  obtained  numerous  preferments.  Becoming- 
dean  of  the  arches,  in  1430,  he  composed  an  elaborate  Treatise  in  confu- 
tation of  the  Salique  Law  of  France,  and  proving  the  right  of  the  English 
sovereign  to  that  crown49;  which  was  so  well  received  by  the  government, 

47  «  Anglia  Sacra,  pars  i.  p.  572.    See,  also,  the  "  History,"  &c.  of  Canterbury  Cathedral. 

*s  Vide  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  573;  and  pars  ii.  p.  358.  In  the  List  of  Chancellors  of 
Oxford,  given  by  Le  Neve  ("  Fasti  Ecclesise  Anglican^")  he  occurs  by  the  name  of  Thomas 
Gascoigue. 

«'  Vide  MS.  Cotton.  Tib.  B.  sii.  "  Opus  collectum  et  compilatuni  per  Veil.  Patrem.  Thoruam 
Bathon.  et  Welleus.  episcopum  et  Uteris,  allegationibus,  conclusionibus,  conventionibus,  et  trac- 


44  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

that  it  greatly  contributed  to  his  subsequent  promotion.  He  was  appointed 
chancellor  to  Humphrey,  duke  of  Gloucester;  archdeacon  of  Buckingham; 
canon  of  York,  in  1435 ;  and,  in  1439,  canon  of  Wells :  he  was  also  made 
principal  secretary  of  state,  and  keeper  of  the  privy  seal.  In  1442,  he  was 
chosen  one  of  the  ambassadors  who  were  sent  to  negotiate  the  marriage  of 
Henry  with  Margaret,  the  daughter  of  Rene,  titular  king  of  Sicily,  Naples, 
and  Jerusalem; — and  after  the  translation  of  Bishop  Stafford  to  Canterbury, 
he  was  nominated  to  this  See ;  to  which  he  was  consecrated  on  the  13th  of 
October,  1443,  in  the  old  collegiate  church  at  Eaton,  near  Windsor. 

Many  munificent  acts  were  performed  by  this  prelate  both  at  Wells  and 
other  places  with  which  he  had  been  connected.  He  gave  two  hundred 
pouuds  towards  the  building  of  Lincoln  College,  at  Oxford50;  and  "  as  him- 
self professeth  in  his  wil,"  expended  six  thousand  marks  "upon  the  repayring 
and  beautifying"  of  the  Episcopal  houses  of  his  own  cliocess51;  on  most  of 
which  he  caused  his  Rebus,  or  device,  to  be  sculptured,  viz.  a  Beacon  upon 
a  large  cask,  or  Tun.  He  also  erected  the  western  walk  of  the  cloisters  of 
Wells  Cathedral;  and  built  a  monumental  and  chantry  chapel  for  himself  on 
the  south  side  of  the  choir,  in  which  he  lies  buried;  his  decease  occurring 
on  the  14th  of  January,  14G4-G5.  By  his  will,  bearing  date  on  the  3d  of 
November  in  the  preceding  year,  he  bequeathed  to  this  Church  twenty 


tatibus,  nonnullisque  alliis  negotiis  et  materiis  concernentibus  jus  et  titulum  regis  Anglia;  ad 
regnum  et  coronam  Francia;;  cum  aliis  ruultis  qua;  ea  occasione  secuta  sint."  Folio.  Another 
of  liis  Manuscripts,  formerly  in  the  same  library,  was  destroyed  by  the  fire  at  Ashburnham 
House,  in  1731.  In  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury's  palace,  is  a  Collection  of  his  Letters  on 
State  Affairs.  Vide  Cod.  MSS.  Lambeth.  No.  211.  And,  in  the  same  library,  Cod.  MS. 
Wharton.  No.  085,  p.  311,  is  an  expostulatory  Letter  from  this  prelate  to  the  Duke  of  Somerset. 
See  also  "  Anglia  Sacra/'  pars  i.  p.  573. 

J  With  this  benefaction  the  rector's  lodgings,  on  the  south  side  of  the  great  quadrangle,  were 
raised;  and  Thomas  of  llotheiham,  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  the  second  founder  of  Lincoln  College, 
from  motives  of  gratitude,  instituted  and  eudowed  a  fellowship  there  for  persons  born  in  the 
Diocess  of  AVells,  investing  it  with  all  collegiate  privileges,  except  eligibility  to  the  rectorship 
and  sub-rectorship.  It  is  at  present  held  by  the  Rev.  F.  Scurray,  a  native  of  Beckington,  and 
author  of  a  descriptive  poem  on  "  Bidcombe  Hill,"  &c.  a  distinguished  eminence  in  Wiltshire. 

5'  Godwin's  "  Catalogue,"  &c.  p.  375. 


BISHOP  BECKINGTON.  45 

pounds  for  repairs;  four  very  costly  vessels;  four  hundred  pounds  to  pur- 
chase copes ;  a  vessel  of  silver,  weighing  ten  pounds,  for  holy  water ;  a  silver 
cross,  "  parcel  gilt,"  of  similar  weight ;  a  chair  (of  stone)  for  the  bishop's  use 
in  the  church,  which  yet  remains;  cushions,  and  other  ornaments.  He  like- 
wise gave  other  legacies  to  the  church  at  Bath ;  to  New  College,  Oxford ; 
Winchester  College ;  St.  Katharine's  Hospital,  at  London ;  and  various  other 
places;  and  to  his  successor  in  the  bishopric  he  left  one  hundred  pounds,  on 
condition  that  he  should  accept  it  in  lieu  of  all  dilapidations  ;  but  otherwise 
directing  that  his  executors  should  expend  it  in  law.  All  his  unappropriated 
property  he  left  to  be  employed  in  "  good  uses,"  at  the  discretion  of  his 
executors,  who  bestowed  it  chiefly  in  completing  the  Vicar's  close,  which  had 
been  commenced  by  Ralph  de  Salopia. 

Among  Beckington's  other  benefactions  to  Wells  was  the  building  of  a 
row  of  houses  called  the  Nova  Opera,  on  the  north  side  of  the  market-place, 
and  two  large  gate-houses  at  the  east  end.  He  also  granted  to  the  corpora- 
tion and  citizens  permission  to  have  a  reservoir,  or  conduit52,  near  the  high 

51  The  Bishop's  grant  is  to  this  effect: — "  To  all  faithful  people  in  Christ,  to  whom  this  present 
writing  indented  shall  come,  Thomas,  by  Divine  permission,  Bishop  of  Bath  and  Wells,  greeting, 
in  him  who  for  the  gift  of  a  cup  of  cold  water  hath  promised  eternal  life,  Forasmuch  as  we  know 
that  some  of  ye  faithful  doubt  but  that  those  things  which  we  sow  on  earth,  with  regard  to 
eternity,  we  shall  be  certain  to  gather  in  heaven  with  multiplied  increase  ;  and,  as  we  may 
express  ourselves  by  copious  handfulls,  We,  therefore,  Thomas  de  Beckington,  by  Divine  per- 
mission, the  undeserving  minister  of  the  churches  of  Bath  and  Wells,  most  earnestly  desiring, 
while  time  is  allowed  us  upon  earth,  to  labour  for  all  people,  but  more  especially  for  our  nearest 
and  most  dear  sons  William  Vowel],  master,  and  the  brethren  and  fellow  citizens  and  burgesses 
of  our  city  or  borough  of  Wells,  do  grant  to  the  said,  &c.  to  have  and  to  hold,  for  ever,  of  the 
Bishop  and  his  successors,  one  Head  for  a  water-conduit,  with  troughs,  pipes,  and  other  neces- 
sary engines  above  and  under  ground,  to  be  supplied  from  a  certain  water  within  the  precincts 
of  our  Palace,  called  St.  Andrew's  Well,  by  pipes  of  lead  twelve  inches  in  circumference,  &c. 
the  overplus,  or  waste  water,  to  run  night  and  day  for  the  supply  of  the  Bishop's  mills:" — The 
said  Vowell,  the  citizens  and  burgesses  binding  themselves  in  return  "  to  visit,  once  every  year, 
the  spot  in  Wells  Cathedral  where  Bishop  Thomas  should  be  interred,  and  there  pray  for  his 
soul  and  the  souls  of  all  the  faithful  deceased  :" — for  which  service  the  same  Prelate  granted 
them  an  indulgence  of  forty  days. 

In  the  "  Anglia  Sacra"  are  some  particulars  of  the  life  of  Bishop  Beckington,  chiefly  taken 
from  the  "  Panegyrick"  of  Thomas  Chaundler  (who  was  Chancellor  of  Oxford  in  1157  and  1472) 
on  William  of  YVickham.     They  are  given  dialogue-wise,  in  florid  language,  but  not  altogether 


46  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

cross  there,  to  be  supplied  by  pipes  from  St.  Andrew's  Well,  within  the 
precincts  of  the  episcopal  palace;  and  the  grant  was  confirmed  by  the  respec- 
tive chapters  of  Bath  and  Wells,  on  September  the  20th,  1451. 

Beckington's  successor  was  John  Phrcas,  or  Free,  who  was  master  of 
Baliol  College  in  the  year  1462.     According  to  Bale,  he  was  born  in  Lon- 


inelegant.  The  principal  parts  are  here  translated :  it  will  be  seen  that  they  relate  to  the 
Cathedral  establishment  of  Wells  as  well  as  to  the  Bishop.  Chauudler  ascribes  the  buildiug  of 
the  episcopal  palace  to  BeckiDgton,  with  whom  he  was  a  contemporary,  and  most  probably  on 
terms  of  friendship  ;  yet  that  is  not  entirely  correct :  the  palace  was  repaired,  not  rebuilt  by  him, 
and  a  new  tower  or  gatehouse  added,  together  with  a  cloister  leading  to  the  great  hall;  but 
those  hare  long  since  been  destroyed.     The  speakers  are  Ferrandus  and  Panestius. 

Ferrandus.  "  Having  wandered  over  the  hills,  and  through  valleys,  where  the  dirt  and  mire  are 
plentiful,  from  the  beautiful  and  sublime  University  of  Oxford,  we  have  entered  into  this  little 
village,  O  most  delightful  companion,  Panestius.  After  so  long  a  journey,  I  wish  to  rest  a 
little :  these  limbs  are  so  weary  that,  doubtless,  if  I  had  not  supported  myself  with  a  staff,  I 
should  have  fallen  to  the  ground." 

Panestius.  "  You  should  call  it  a  city  rather  than  a  village,  which  would  be  more  evident  to 
you,  could  you  see  all  the  beauty  and  neatness  that  is  within  it.  That  most  beautiful  Church, 
which  we  discern  at  a  distance,  consecrated  to  Andrew,  the  most  pious  apostle  of  the  immortal 
God,  contains  the  episcopal  chair  of  a  worthy  priest.  It  has  also,  adjoining  to  it,  an  extensive 
Palace,  adorned  with  wonderful  splendour,  surrounded  with  flowing  waters,  and  crowned  with  a 
fine  row  of  turreted  walls,  in  which  dwells  the  most  dignified  and  learned  prelate,  Thomas,  the 
first  of  that  name.  This  man,  by  his  sole  industry  and  disbursements,  raised  this  city  to  its 
present  state  of  splendour: — fortifying  the  church  in  the  strongest  manner  with  gates,  towers,  and 
walls,  and  building  the  palace  in  which  he  lives,  with  other  edifices,  in  the  most  sumptuous  style ; 
so  that  he  not  only  merits  to  be  called  the  founder,  but  more  deservedly  the  grace  and  ornament 
of  the  church. 

"  That  the  clergymen  here  are  religious  in  their  manners,  honest  in  their  lives,  noble  in 
hospitality,  affable  and  agreeble  to  strangers,  and  to  all  benevolent,  you  will  first  discover  from 
observation,  and  then  learn  from  experience;  for  they  are  accustomed  to  wait  on  strangers  and 
travellers  with  every  office  of  humanity,  and  they  seem  to  contend  who  shall  first  invite  any  one, 
and  prevail  on  him  to  partake  of  their  hospitality.  The  urbanity  of  the  inferior  clerks,  whom 
they  call  vicars,  the  order  and  concord  of  the  citizens,  the  just  laws,  the  excellent  polity,  the 
delightful  situation  of  the  place,  the  neatness  of  the  dwellings,  the  intrinsic  prudence  of  the 
people,  and  the  adornment,  honour,  and  pleasantness  of  the  whole,  both  make  and  ornament  this 
city;  the  name  of  which  is  Wells  (Fontana)  so  called  by  its  autient  inhabitants  from  the  fountains 
gushing  out  in  every  part." 

Ferrandus.  "  You  said  just  now  that  Thomas,  a  very  worthy  and  learned  man,  presided  over 
the  church, — in  what  learning  is  he  skilled?" 


BISHOP  PHREAS  OR  FREE.  47 

don,  and  educated  at  Oxford,  where  he  acquired  great  skill  in  the  Greek  and 
Latin  languages,  after  which  he  visited  various  continental  universities53. 
During  his  journey  he  practised  physic  at  Ferrara,  Florence,  and  Passan ; 
and  arriving  at  Rome,  he  became  acquainted  with  the  most  eminent  literati  of 
that  city,  and  was  introduced  to  Pope  Pius  the  Second,  who  advanced  him  to 

Panestius.  "  When  he  was  in  his  tender  years,  a  boy  of  good  natural  parts,  he  was  sent  to 
Winchester  to  be  instructed  in  grammar;  and,  at  his  very  outset,  he  had  so  much  eloquence  in 
discourse,  elegance  of  person,  perspicacity  of  intellect,  and  gravity  of  manners,  that  all  who 
beheld  him  foretold  that  he  would  become  a  bishop.  But  when,  at  length,  that  most  pious  and 
prudent  manager,  William  of  Wyckham,  the  founder  of  the  leading  clergy,  turned  his  eyes  upon 
him,  perceiving,  by  the  wonderful  dispensation  of  God,  to  what  dignity  the  boy  would  attain,  and 
of  what  utility  the  same  would  be  to  his  Colleges  (nothing  important  intervening)  by  his  mere 
motion  and  sole  mandate  had  him  taken  to  Winchester  College ;  where,  studying  grammar  and 
rhetoric,  he  in  a  short  time  surpassed  both  equals  and  superiors  ;  and  for  his  merit  was  translated 
thence  to  Oxford  College.  In  the  flower  of  his  youth  he  surpassed  his  elders ;  and  he  was 
created  the  most  eloquent  doctor  of  laws  in  the  kingdom  of  England.  He  might  be  considered 
an  old  man  in  understanding ;  and  his  memory  was  strong.  He  held  the  principles  of  logic 
(which  a  young  man  should  learn  before  the  civil  laws  and  philosophy,  and  which  he  had 
acquired  by  hearing  and  reading)  so  strongly  in  his  remembrance,  that  if  you  were  to  hear  him 
discourse,  you  would  suppose  him  to  be  one  of  the  most  learned  of  the  philosophers  in  scholastic 
learning.  Thus  was  he  planted,  and  thus  watered  by  the  showers  of  the  liberal  arts  and  laws; 
and  he  was  so  skilled  in  the  Divine  Scriptures,  that  whatever  difficulty  might  seem  to  oppose, 
either  by  the  wonderful  perspicuity  of  his  intellect,  or  by  the  industry  of  his  scientific  erudition, 
he  would  easily  solve  it.  Should  you  hear  him  speak  either  in  public  or  private,  you  will  be 
delighted  to  find  what  eloquence  is  mingled  with  his  discourse.  Never  did  I  know  any  one 
weary  of  his  eloquence,  so  sweetly  and  so  artfully  he  concludes  all  things.  O,  this  is  a  happy 
country,  over  which  such  a  worthy  priest  presides !  Born  and  educated  in  the  same,  he  chose 
his  surname  from  the  village  from  whence  he  sprung,  that  he  might  be  called  Thomas  of 
Beckington  in  common.  Of  the  poor  and  the  clergy,  a  lover;  and  always  carrying  bowels  of 
compassion  for  the  miserable.  Happy  priest!  who  dries  the  tears  of  many  whom  he  never  saw. 
He  also  has  the  greatest  friendship  for  learned  men  and  philosophers.  Now  let  us  go  down  to 
his  house,  for  I  experienced  his  kindness  four  years,  when  he  was  chancellor  of  Oxford. — He 
was  so  strenuous  in  carrying  on  affairs  that,  at  the  first  look,  by  his  nod  alone  he  could  quiet 
abominable  outrages.  He  was  affable  to  all;  and  it  was  his  continual  study  to  be  loved  by  all : 
just  as  much  as  other  men  desire  riches  and  honour,  so  did  he  desire  to  engage  the  affections. 
Thus  he,  a  wise  and  prudent  man,  and  a  lover  of  peace,  endeavoured  to  enrich  other  men."— 
"  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  ii.  pp.  357,  358. 

53  *'  Illustiium  Magna;  Britannia  Scriptorum,"  &c.  Cent.  8.  c.  38. 


48  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

this  Bishopric;  but  be  died  at  Rome,  within  a  month  after  his  appointment, 
not  without  suspicion  of  poison54. 

Richard  Slillington,  LL.D.  archdeacon  of  Taunton,  dean  of  the  chapel 
royal,  and  keeper  of  the  privy  seal,  was  next  promoted  to  this  See  by  Edward 
the  Fourth,  with  whom  he  was  greatly  in  favour,  and  "  under  whom  he 
flourished  in  great  authority."  He  was  consecrated  by  the  Archbishop  of 
York,  at  York  House,  Westminster,  on  the  16th  of  March,  14GG.  On  the 
8th  of  June,  1468,  he  was  made  chancellor  of  England,  which  office  he  held 
till  the  year  1473.  He  was  a  faithful  adherent  of  the  house  of  York,  and 
much  engaged  in  the  tumultuary  proceedings  of  his  time.  Edward  employed 
him  in  several  embassies,  and  particularly  in  that  to  the  Duke  of  Bretaigne  to 
prevail  on  him  to  deliver  up  the  person  of  the  Earl  of  Richmond,  afterwards 
Henry  the  Seventh  ;  "  in  which  business,"  says  Godwin,  though  unsuccessful, 
"  bee  so  bestirred  himself,  as  that  his  double  diligence  therein  proved  after- 
wards his  overthrow55."  The  same  writer  states  that  he  temporized  with 
Richard  the  Third,  and  "  was  a  man  specially  imployed  in  his  coronation." 
On  the  exaltation  of  Henry  the  Seventh,  in  1485,  he  was  forbidden  the 
court,  and,  about  two  years  afterwards,  was  accused  of  treason  for  his  real  or 
supposed  concern  in  the  conspiracy  of  Lambert  Simnel.  The  Bishop  took 
refuge  at  Oxford,  seeking  protection  from  the  privileges  of  the  university ; 
but  the  King  caused  him  to  be  arrested  in  October,  1487,  with  the  consent 
and  connivance  of  the  Chancellor50,  and  he  was  committed  prisoner  to 
Windsor  Castle,  where  he  remained  till  his  decease,  about  Midsummer, 
1491.  He  was  buried  at  Wells,  in  a  small  chapel  dedicated  to  the  Virgin 
Mary,  which  had  been  built  by  himself,  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  cloisters. 

s+  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  j).  574.  5S  "  Catalogue,"  &c.  p.  377. 

56  "  The  then  Chancellor  was  John  Russell,  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  who  was  the  first  that 
possessed  the  Chancellorship  for  life. — Thomas  Cornish,  whom  Le  Neve  calls  **  titular  Bishop 
of  Tyne,"  was  constituted  Suffragan  Bishop  of  Wells  by  Bishop  Beckington,  in  1459;  and  he 
held  that  appointment  for  fifty-four  years,  till  his  death  in  July,  1513.  Me  had  been  elected 
master  of  Oriel  College,  Oxford,  in  February,  1492-3;  and  chancellor  of  Wells,  in  April,  1499. 
Vide  Le  Neve's  "  Fasti  Ecclesia;,"  <S:c.  p.  480  ;  and  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  575. 


BISHOP  FOX.  49 

"  In  that  Chappell,"  says  Godwin,  "his  body  rested  but  a  short  time:  for  it 
is  reported  that  divers  olde  men,  who  in  their  youth  had  not  ouely  scene  the 
celebration  of  his  funerals,  but  also  the  building-  of  his  toombe,  chappell, 
and  all,  did  also  see  toombe  and  chappell  destroyed,  and  the  bones  of  the 
Bishop  that  built  them  turned  out  of  the  lead  in  which  they  were  interred." 
The  Chapel  was  destroyed  by  Sir  John  Gates,  in  the  time  of  Edward  the 
Sixth57. 

Richard  Fox,  LL.  D.  the  succeeding  Bishop,  was  translated  froin  Exeter 
on  the  8th  of  February,  1491-2,  by  a  bull  of  Pope  Innocent  the  Eighth,  and 
his  temporalities  were  restored  on  the  4th  of  May  following.  He  was  a 
great  and  deserved  favourite  of  Henry  the  Seventh,  whose  interests  he  had 
zealously  maintained,  and  with  whom  he  had  been  an  exile  on  the  continent. 
His  abilities  for  state  affairs  were  of  the  highest  order,  and  he  was  employed 
in  several  foreign  embassies  of  great  importance.  He  was  made  keeper  of 
the  privy  seal,  secretary,  and  one  of  the  council,  immediately  on  Henry's 
attaining  the  crown;  and  shortly  after  his  return  from  Scotland,  whither  he 
had  been  sent  to  negotiate  a  peace,  in  the  second  year  of  that  King,  he  was 
advanced  to  the  See  of  Exeter,  in  April,  1487.  Godwin  intimates  that  he 
was  born  at  Grantham,  in  Lincolnshire ;  in  which  place,  and  also  at  Taunton, 
in  Devon,  he  founded  a  free  school.  He  was  educated  at  Pembroke  Hall, 
Cambridge  ;  of  which  he  was  elected  master  in  1507;  but  he  had  previously 
taken  his  degree  of  Doctor  of  Laws  at  Oxford58.  About  the  end  of  the  year 
1494,  he  was  translated  from  Bath  and  Wells  to  the  bishopric  of  Durham, 
and  thence,  in  1502,  to  Winchester,  where  he  continued  till  his  decease  in 
extreme  age,  in  1528;  after  having  been  blind  several  years.  He  was  buried 
in  Winchester  Cathedral,  the  eastern  part  of  which  fabric  was  repaired  and 
partly  rebuilt  by  him 5U  in  an  elegant  style,  probably  from  his  own  designs  ; 

57  It  appears  from  the  Tower  Records,  that  in  the  18th  of  Edward  the  Fourth,  the  Parliament 
passed  an  act  absolving  Bishop  Stillington  from  all  treasons  he  might  have  incurred  during  the 
contest  between  the  rival  Houses  of  York  and  Lancaster. 

58  Vide  "  De  Prasulibus,"  &c.  p.  235. 

59  For  the  particulars  of  his  works  there,  see  "  The  History  and  Antiquities  of  the  See  of 
Winchester,"  p.  68,  94,  and  96. 

H 


50  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

as  his  skill  and  taste  in  Pointed  architecture  are  said  to  have  been  very 
eminent.  Among  other  examples  of  his  munificence  was  the  foundation  of 
Corpus  Christi  College,  at  Oxford,  in  1516,  which  he  did  by  the  advice  of 
Bishop  Oldam,  of  Exeter,  who  persuaded  him  rather  to  erect  a  college  than 
to  endow  a  monastery,  as  was  his  first  purpose. 

The  successor  of  Bishop  Fox  was  Oliver  King,  LL.D.  who  was  translated 
from  Exeter  to  this  See  on  the  Gth  of  November,  1495,  and  he  was  enthroned 
at  Wells  on  the  12th  of  March  in  the  following  year.  Very  little  is  recorded 
of  his  early  life ;  but  Godwin  says  that  he  was  brought  up  in  King's  College, 
Cambridge,  of  which  he  afterwards  became  a  fellow.  He  was  eminent  both 
as  a  divine  and  a  politician  ;  and,  according  to  the  inscription  on  an  oaken 
screen  near  the  monumental  and  chantry  Chapel,  which  he  erected  for  his  own 
burial  place,  in  St.  George's  Chapel  at  Windsor,  he  was  principal  Secretary 
to  Prince  Edward  (son  of  Henry  the  Sixth),  the  Kings  Edward  the  Fourth  and 
Fifth,  and  King  Henry  the  Seventh :  he  was  also  Registrar  of  the  Order  of 
the  Garter.  This  prelate  founded  a  new  Abbey  Church  at  Bath,  and  he  is 
reported  to  have  been  induced  to  that  munificent  undertaking  by  a  dream,  or 
vision40.  He  died,  however,  before  the  completion  of  the  building;  and 
from  the  occurrence  of  the  Reformation,  and  other  circumstances,  it  was  not 
finished  till  the  reign  of  James  the  First.  His  decease  occurred  on  the  29th 
of  August,  1503;  but  the  place  of  his  interment,  whether  at  Bath  or  at 
Windsor,  has  not  been  satisfactorily  ascertained  M. 

Adrian,  or  Hadrian  de  Castel/o,  a  native  of  Corneto,  "  a  poore  fisher 
towne"  in  Tuscany,  whom  Pope  Innocent  the  Eighth  had  sent  on  a  legantine 
mission  to  James  the  Third,  King  of  Scotland,  in  1488,  succeeded  Bishop 
King  in  this  diocess.  Godwin  states  that  he  was  of  mean,  "  or  rather  very 
base"  parentage;  but  by  his  attention  to  study,  and  through  his  virtue  and 
good  deserts,  he  rose,  u  by  many  degrees,"  to  his  eventual  eminence.  On  his 
arrival  in  London,  he  was  informed  that  the  Scottish  King  had  been  killed 

'=  For  a  full  account  of  Bishop  King's  new  Building  see  "  The  History  and  Antiquities  of  Bath 
Abbey  Church,"  in  which  its  principal  architectural  features  are  illustrated  by  views,  elevations, 
and  details. 

61  Further  particulars  of  the  life  of  Bishop  King  are  given  in  the  work  just  referred  to;  as  well 
as  an  inquiry  into  the  place  of  his  burial. 


BISHOP  ADRIAN. 


51 


in  battle;  he  therefore  refrained  from  pursuing  his  journey.  Becoming- 
acquainted  with  Archbishop  Morton,  that  prelate,  from  admiration  of  his 
talents  and  discreet  carriage,  recommended  him  to  the  King,  Henry  the 
Seventh,  who  constituted  him  his  Proctor,  for  the  dispatch  of  all  his  causes  at 
the  court  of  Rome;  and  afterwards,  in  1502,  he  advanced  him  to  the  See  of 
Hereford,  in  reward  for  his  fidelity  and  good  conduct.  About  the  same  time, 
Pope  Alexander  the  Sixth  promoted  him  to  the  rank  of  Cardinal,  by  the  title 
of  St.  Chrisogonus,  he  having  before  been  appointed  the  Pope's  general 
Treasurer  in  England,  and  principal  Secretary.  In  these  stations  he  amassed 
considerable  riches,  which  exciting  the  avarice  of  that  monster  of  iniquity, 
Cassar  Borgia,  Alexander's  son,  he  devised  a  scheme  to  poison  him  with 
medicated  Falernian  wine ;  but,  from  an  accidental  circumstance,  both  Borgia 
and  his  father  partook  of  the  deadly  draught  (August  the  18th,  1503)  instead 
of  the  destined  victim62.  In  August,  1504,  Cardinal  Adrian,  with  the  King's 
consent,  was  translated  from  Hereford  to  this  See,  by  Pope  Julius  the 
Second ;  and  he  was  enthroned  at  Wells,  by  proxy,  on  the  20th  of  October, 
Polydore  Virgil,  the  Sub-collector  of  the  Papal  revenues,  acting  as  his 
substitute  on  that  occasion.     It  does  not  appear  that  the  Cardinal  was  in 

61  The  circumstances  of  this  event  are  thus  related  by  Godwin,  "  Caesar  Borgia,  the  Pope's 
sonne,  hoping  to  make  a  prey  of  the  same  [his  riches],  determined  to  poyson  him,  and  accordingly 
provided  certaine  flagons  of  poysoned  wine  to  bee  brought  vnto  the  Cardinal's  vineyard,  where 
the  Pope  had  appointed  to  sup,  giving  great  charge  vnto  the  messenger,  that  no  body  should 
meddle  with  the  wine  before  himselfe  came.  Howbeit  the  Pope  comming  in  very  hote  and  weary, 
sooner  than  he  was  expected,  and  calling  for  drinke,  when  as  yet  no  provision  was  brought  to  the 
place  ;  the  messenger  thinking  the  wine  brought  by  him  to  bee  some  excellent  and  choice  stuft'e 
reserved  for  the  Pope's  own  cup,  filled  out  the  same  vnto  him.  While  he  was  yet  drinking,  in 
came  his  sonne,  who,  not  perceiving  the  error,  pledged  his  father.  The  Pope  (as  being  thirsty) 
tooke  a  great  draught,  and  moreover  being  very  aged,  died  the  next  day.  His  sonne  being 
yong,  aud  happily  not  taking  so  much,  applying  also  convenient  remedies,  recovered,  but  lay 
sicke  very  long,  which  was  the  cause  of  his  utter  overthrow  at  the  last.  Thus  died  that  monster 
of  his  age,  Alexander  the  Sixth.  And  thus  by  his  owne  divelish  device  came  this  Borgia  to  his 
destruction,  whom  Machiavel  in  his  workes  so  much  magnified].  Guicciardini  (that  writeth  this 
story)  sayeth,  that  by  the  like  practise  he  and  his  father  had  made  away  divers  other  before  that 
time,  as  namely,  the  Cardinals  of  Capua  aud  Mutina,  men  very  loving  and  faithfull  vnto  them. 
At  last  it  pleased  God  in  this  sort  to  serve  them  of  their  owne  sauce,  and  to  bring  them  into  the 
pitte  they  had  digged  for  others."  Vide  "  Catalogue,"  &c.  p.  380.  This  account  of  the  death  of 
Pope  Alexander  has  been  disputed  by  some  writers,  but,  apparently,  without  sufficient  cause,  as 


52  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

England  after  this  promotion,  but  on  the  contrary,  he  let  out  the  profits  of  his 
diocess  to  farm;  till  at  length,  in  July,  1518,  he  was  excommunicated,  and 
deprived  of  all  his  dignities,  in  consequence  of  engaging  in  the  conspiracy  of 
Alfonso  Petruccio,  and  other  Cardinals,  against  the  life  of  Leo  the  Tenth. 
He  is  said  to  have  been  induced  to  join  the  conspirators  by  the  prediction  of 
a  Witch,  who  prophesied  that  after  Leo's  death  Adrian  should  be  Pope  H  ; 
but  the  "  word  of  promise,"  if  kept  "  to  his  ear,"  was  "  broken  to  his  hope," 
the  Adrian  that  succeeded  Leo  being  a  Dutchman.  Petruccio  was  put  to 
death,  but  the  other  Cardinals  were  spared  on  acknowledging  their  guilt. 
On  Adrian  a  fine  of  12,500  ducats  was  imposed,  which  being  unable  to  pav, 
he  withdrew  from  Rome  ;  and,  according  to  Godwin,  was  "  never  evther 
seene  or  heard  of  afterwards01:"  but  other  writers  have  stated  that  he  took 
refuge  among  the  Turks,  in  Asia.  Polydore  Virgil  extols  his  talents  and 
learning,  and  says  that  he  was  the  first  since  the  age  of  Cicero  who  revived 
the  purity  of  the  Latin  language,  and  taught  men  to  draw  their  knowledge 
from  the  best  and  most  learned  authors. 

During  the  latter  part  of  Adrian's  time,  the  revenues  of  this  See  were 
rented  by  the  famous  Cardinal  Thomas  Wolsev,  whose  splendid  and  pre- 
eminent talents  had  advanced  him  from  the  humblest  ranks  of  society  to  the 
highest  offices  both  of  church  and  state.  To  enter  into  any  particular  detail 
of  his  history  would  be  to  abstract  from  the  annals  of  the  realm  a  consider- 
ble  portion  of  its  most  important  materials  for  a  long  and  eventful  period 

other  reputable  historians  have  attested  it,  besides  Guicciardini.  The  insatiable  avarice  of  Pope 
Alexander  gave  rise  to  the  following  pointed  epigram  : — 

Veudit  Alexander  claves,  altaria,  Christum, 
Vendere  jure  potest;  emerat  ille  prius. 

Christ's  altars,  keys,  and  Christ  himself, 
Were  barter'd  by  this  Pope  for  pelf! 
And  who  shall  say  he  did  not  well? — 
That  which  he  bought  he  sure  might  sell. 

3  P.  Jovius,  in  "  Vita  Leonis,"  1.  4,  p.  77.  See  also,  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars.  i.  p.  o77;  and 
Godwin,  "  De  Prwsulibus,"  p.  387. 

-  Godwin's  *'  Catalogue,"  &c.  p.  382;  and  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  vl  supra.  Adrian  is  said  to 
have  erected  a  magnificent  Palace  at  Rome,  bequeathing  it  to  Henry  the  Seventh  (whose  name 
was  inscribed  upon  the  front  of  it)  and  his  successors.     Vide  "  Biographia  Britannica." 


CARDINAL  WOLSEV.  53 

preceding  the  Reformation:  a  brief  sketch  of  his  life  mast,  therefore,  suffice 
in  this  place,  and  which  is  now  given  from  a  consideration  of  the  conspicuous 
part  that  Wolsey  acted  on  the  public  stage,  and  to  compensate  for  the  short 
notice  that  was  taken  of  him  in  the  History  and  Antiquities  of  York  Cathedral65. 
He  was  the  son  of  a  butcher,  and  born  at  Ipswich,  in  Suffolk,  in  the  year  1471. 
Being  educated  in  Magdalen  College,  Oxford,  he  proceeded  Master  of  Arts, 
and  was  elected  a  Fellow  of  that  society.  In  1500,  the  Marquis  of  Dorset, 
to  whose  sons  he  had  been  tutor,  preferred  him  to  the  benefice  of  Limington, 
in  Somersetshire.  Whilst  there,  his  conduct  is  reported  to  have  been  so 
irregular,  that  Sir  Amias  Pawlet  caused  him  to  be  "  set  in  the  stocks,"  for  a 
breach  of  the  peace;  but  Godwin  adds,  "  upon  little  or  no  occasion66."  On 
the  death  of  his  patron,  Wolsey  quitted  his  living,  and  went  to  Calais,  where 
he  was  hospitably  entertained  by  an  aged  knight,  named  Sir  John  Naphaunt, 
who  made  him  his  chaplain ;  and  by  whose  interest  he  was  subsequently 
appointed  Chaplain  to  the  King,  Henry  the  Seventh.  "  Now  was  he,"  says 
Godwin,  "  where  he  would  be.  Many  times  he  was  wont  to  say  (as  I  have 
heard)  that  if  he  could  once  set  but  one  foote  in  the  Court,  he  would  not 
doubt  but  attaine  what  he  list.  And  to  speak  but  the  truth,  it  was  not  onely 
his  good  fortune  that  exalted  him  in  that  wonderfull  greatnesse,  but  much 
deale  his  owne  industrie,  and  mauy  extraordinary  parts  in  him.  He  was 
marvellous  wittie,  well  learned,  faire  spoken,  and  passing  cunning  in  winning 
the  hearts  of  those  whose  favor  hee  aflected 6\"  With  those  qualities  there 
can  be  no  surprise  that  he  should  so  soon  have  advanced  himself  in  the 
King's  esteem ;   and  his   vast    dispatch,    in  successfully   negotiating  some 

cs  Few  public  characters  have  been  so  much  the  subject  of  biographical  and  critical  comment 
as  Cardinal  Wolsey.  Exclusive  of  the  ample  details  in  our  general  English  historians,  his  "  Life 
and  Times"  have  been  separately  narrated  by — 1.  Thomas  Storer,  in  verse,  in  a  quarto  volume, 
1599; — 2.  Another  quarto  volume,  by  Sir  William  Cavendish,  in  1641  ; — 3.  An  octavo  volume,  in 
1708,  by  William  Cavendish,  Duke  of  Newcastle ; — 4.  A  folio  volume,  in  1724,  by  Dr.  Fiddes ; — 
5.  Joseph  Grove  published  four  volumes,  octavo,  1742; — 6.  An  octavo  volume,  by  George 
Cavendish,  in  1707 ; — 7.  In  1812  a  quarto  volume  appeared,  by  J.  Gait,  which  has  been  since 
printed  in  octavo; — 8.  An  inquiry,  "Who  wrote  Cavendish's  Life  of  Wolsey?"  appeared  in 
quarto,  1818  [by  the  Rev.  Joseph  Hunter]; — 9.  In  1824  appeared  an  octavo  volume,  by  George 
Howard,  on  the  Cardinal  and  his  Times. 

66  "  Catalogue  of  English  Bishops,"  p.  G18.  67  Ibid,  p.  G19. 


54 


WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 


business  with  the  Emperor  Charles  the  Fifth,  in  the  Low  Countries  (which, 
"  winde  and  weather  favouring-  him,"  he  is  reported  to  have  done,  and  to 
have  returned  to  Court  within  tour  days  after  receiving-  his  instructions),  so 
effectually  won  Henry's  favour,  that  he  was  shortly  afterwards  made  Dean  of 
Lincoln,  and  appointed  the  King's  Almoner.  The  accession  of  Henry  the 
Eighth  proved  the  means  of  his  exaltation  to  further  dignities  :  "  he  soone 
crept  so  farre"  into  the  good  graces  of  the  young  King,  "  by  applying-  himself 
to  his  humour,  as  he  possessed  him  altogether,  and  in  a  manner  at  the  first 
dash  was  made  one  of  his  Privy  Counsell 68."  His  celerity  in  the  dispatch  of 
business,  his  vast  abilities,  and  the  magnificence  of  his  living,  which  com- 
pletely accorded  with  Henry's  own  disposition,  secured  to  him  an  accumula- 
tion of  honours  and  of  power  that  has  but  few  parallels.  His  elevation  was 
so  rapid  and  so  great,  and  his  mode  of  living  so  princely,  that  the  most 
ancient  and  honourable  families  were  eclipsed  by  his  state  and  influence. 
For  many  years  the  direction  of  public  affairs  was  wholly  intrusted  to  his 
guidance,  and  until  the  agitation  of  the  great  question  of  the  King's  divorce 
awakened  all  the  evil  passions  of  Henry's  mind  and  heart,  he  governed  with 
almost  regal  ascendency.  In  respect  to  preferments,  he  was,  as  the  immortal 
Shakspeare  has  truly  represented,  "  a  man  of  an  unbounded  stomach  ,•"  but 
he  expended  his  immense  revenues  with  profuse  generosity,  and  the  extent 
and  grandeur  of  his  establishments  evinced  both  the  greatness  of  his  spirit 
and  the  towering  reach  of  his  ambition.  In  1512,  the  King  conferred  on  him 
the  proceeds  of  the  Bishopric  of  Tournay,  in  Flanders  ;  early  in  the  ensuing- 
year,  viz.  on  the  8th  of  the  ides  of  February,  1512-13,  he  was  promoted  to 
the  See  of  Lincoln ;  and  the  17th  of  the  kalends  of  October  following  he  was 
raised  to  the  metropolitical  See  of  York.  About  the  same  time,  Pope  Leo 
the  Tenth  appointed  him  his  Legate  a  latere ;  and  shortly  afterwards,  Sep- 
tember the  7th,  1515,  he  made  him  a  Cardinal.  This  was  quickly  followed 
by  his  promotion  to  the  Chancellorship  of  England;  and  "  then,"  says  God- 
win, "  as  though  the  Archbishopricke  of  Yorke,  and  the  Chauncellorship, 
were  not  sufficient  for  maintenance  of  a  Cardinally  he  tooke  also  unto  him  the 
Bishopricke  at  Bathe,  holding  it  and  the  Abbey  of  St.  Albon's,  with  divers 

6s  "  Catalogue  of  English  Bishops,-'  p.  C19. 


CARDINAL  WOLSEY.  55 

other  ecclesiastical  livings,  in  commendam."  His  appointment  to  this  See 
took  place  on  the  30th  of  July,  1518;  and  the  temporalities  were  restored  to 
him  by  the  King  on  the  ensuing  28th  of  August.  The  great  honours  which 
Wolsey  had  now  obtained  only  increased  his  desire  for  further  distinctions, 
and  on  the  decease  of  Pope  Leo,  in  December,  1521,  he  became  a  candidate 
for  the  supreme  tiara.  Being  disappointed  in  his  hopes,  he  received  as  a 
compensation  from  the  Emperor  a  pension  of  nine  thousand  crowns  of  gold ; 
and  his  own  sovereign  conferred  upon  him  the  rich  Bishopric  of  Durham,  to 
accept  which,  in  April,  1523,  he  resigned  the  See  of  Bath  and  Wells.  After 
the  death  of  Adrian  the  Sixth,  in  December  the  same  year,  he  made  a  second 
attempt  to  obtain  the  Papacy,  but  without  success.  In  1529,  he  exchanged 
Durham  for  Winchester,  which  was  the  last  of  his  promotions,  for  he  soon 
afterwards  lost  the  favour  of  the  King;  who,  being  dissatisfied  with  his 
conduct  respecting  the  divorce  from  Queen  Katharine,  caused  an  indict- 
ment to  be  preferred  against  him  in  the  King's  Bench,  on  the  Statute  of 
Provisors ;  and  but  for  the  grateful  offices  of  Cromwell,  afterwards  Earl  of 
Essex,  he  would  have  suffered  an  attaint  in  Parliament.  His  fall  proved  yet 
more  rapid  than  his  elevation;  and,  notwithstanding  the  abjectness  of  his 
submission  to  his  implacable  master,  he  was  reduced  to  such  extreme  penury 
that  "  he  had  scarce  a  cuppe  to  drinke  in,  or  a  bed  to  lye  in,  but  what  was 
lent  him ;  for  his  moueables  and  housholcl  stuffe  of  inestimable  valew  were 
all  taken  away  to  the  King's  use."  After  a  lapse  of  some  months,  Henry 
appeared  to  regard  him  with  a  gleam  of  returning  favour;  but  whilst  he  was 
endeavouring  to  reconcile  himself  to  his  reduced  fortunes  in  his  castellated 
palace  at  Cawood,  in  Yorkshire,  his  capricious  sovereign  caused  him  to  be 
arrested,  and  he  was  hurried  towards  London.  Falling  ill,  however,  on  the 
road,  of  a  flux  and  fever  (which  are  supposed  to  have  sprung  from  the  agita- 
tion of  his  mind),  he  was  permitted  to  stop  at  Leicester  Abbey,  where  he 
died,  within  eight  days,  on  the  29th  of  November,  1530;  and  he  was 
there  buried.  His  last  words  are  reputed  to  have  been  these : — "  If  I  had 
served  God  as  diligently  as  I  have  done  the  King,  he  would  not  have  given 
me  over  in  my  gray  hairs  ;  but  this  is  the  just  reward  that  I  must  receive  for 
the  pains  and  study  that  I  have  had  to  do  him  service,  not  regarding  my 
service  to  God,  so  much  as  the  satisfying  of  his  pleasure." — This  munificent, 


56  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

but,  in  many  instances,  too  haughty  Prelate,  commenced  the  foundation  of  two 
noble  Colleges,  the  one  at  Ipswich,  his  birth-place  (which  was  afterwards 
suppressed),  and  the  other  that  of  Christ  Church,  Oxford,  which  still 
flourishes.  For  the  endowments  of  these  Colleges,  independently  of  what  he 
bestowed  from  his  own  stores,  he  obtained  the  Pope's  licence  to  dissolve 
forty  small  monasteries,  "  which  opened  a  gap  withall,"  says  Bishop  Godwin, 
"  to  King  Henry  to  destroy  all  the  reste;  as  soon  after  he  did69." 

The  successor  of  Wolsey  was  John  Clarke,  D.  D.  who  had  been  educated 
in  the  University  of  Cambridge,  and  was  the  King's  Proctor  and  Orator  at 
the  Court  of  Rome.  He  had  been  made  Dean  of  Windsor  in  1519,  and  was 
admitted  into  the  Privy  Council  either  in  that  or  the  following  year.  On  the 
20th  of  October,  1522,  he  was  made  Master  of  the  Rolls;  and  in  the  spring 
of  the  following  year  he  was  advanced  to  this  See,  the  temporalities  of  which 
were  restored  to  him  on  the  2d  of  May.  He  was  a  prelate  of  great  learning 
and  considerable  diplomatic  talents,  which  occasioned  Henry  the  Eighth 
frequently  to  employ  him  in  foreign  embassies.  In  the  year  1540,  he  was 
sent  ambassador  to  the  Duke  of  Cleves,  "  to  tender  a  reason  of  the  King's 
divorce  from  the  Lady  Anne  of  Cleves,  his  sister;"  but  whilst  in  his  court  he 
was  taken  ill  (from  the  effects  of  poison,  as  supposed),  and  returned  with 
difficulty  to  his  native  land.  On  his  decease,  shortly  afterwards,  viz.  January 
the  3d,  1540-1,  he  was  buried,  according  to  Weever  and  Godwin,  in  the 
Church  of  the  Friars'  Minors,  near  Aldgate ;  but  Bishop  Kennet,  in  his  MS. 
Diptycha,  says  that  he  was  interred  in  the  Church  of  St.  Botolph,  Aldgate. 
In  his  time  the  Reformation  took  place  :  all  the  Monasteries  were  suppressed  ; 
Papal  predominancy  was  abrogated,  and  the  King  declared  to  be  the  Supreme 
Head  of  the  English  Church. 

">  "  Catalogue  of  English  Bishops,"  p.  6:22.  "  Surely,"  says  the  same  author,  "  it  were  a 
wonder  that  any  private  man  should  take  two  such  peeces  of  worke  in  hand  at  one  time  (whereof 
any  one  might  seeme  a  great  matter  for  a  Prince  to  finish),  had  not  his  receits  beene  infinite,  and 
his  helps  otherwise  very  great.  I  thinke  verily  (and  am  able  to  yeeld  good  reason  of  my  surmise) 
that  if  one  man  had  now  in  his  hands  the  reuenues  of  all  the  Bishopricks  and  Deaneries  also  in 
England,  his  rents  would  not  arise  to  so  high  a  reckoning  as  the  yeerely  receits  of  this  Cardinall.'' 


57 


<£K)ap*  JBBE* 


HISTORICAL    NOTICES    OF   THE    SEE   AND    BISHOPS    OF  BATH  AND   WELLS,   FROM   THE 
PERIOD  OF  THE  REFORMATION  TO  THE  YEAR  1824. 


Within  a  few  months  after  the  decease  of  Bishop  Knight,  William  Bar- 
low, D.D.  was  translated  from  St.  David's  to  this  See,  through  the  influence 
of  the  Protector,  Edward  Seymour,  Duke  of  Somerset,  and  by  the  Letters 
Patent  of  Edward  the  Sixth,  dated  February  the  3d,  1548 '.  He  had  pre- 
viously been  a  Canon  of  St.  Osyth,  Prior  of  Bisham,  and  Bishop  of  St.  Asaph ; 
from  which  latter  diocess  he  was  promoted  to  St.  David's  in  April,  1536. 
Like  many  of  his  predecessors,  this  prelate  was  eminent  for  his  talents  and 
learning;  but  he  has  been  accused  of  unwarrantably  alienating  the  possessions 
of  his  See,  and  of  dismantling  the  ecclesiastical  buildings  both  at  Wells  and  at 
St.  David's,  from  motives  of  personal  aggrandisement  and  rapacity.  There  is 
not,  however,  any  sufficient  foundation  for  this  harsh  charge ;  nor  was  Barlow 
a  whit  more  guilty  than  many  of  his  episcopal  brethren,  who,  from  the 
peculiar  circumstances  of  the  times,  were  constrained  to  submit  to  spoliations 
which  they  dared  not  resist  without  endangering  both  their  own  safety  and 
the  loss  of  the  whole  of  their  diocesan  revenues2. 

1  "  Rymer's  Fcedera,"  torn.  xv.  p.  159,  1st  edit. 

1  Bentham,  the  late  historian  of  Ely,  speaking  of  a  period  only  a  few  years  subsequent  to 
Barlow's  episcopacy  at  Wells,  makes  the  following  judicious  remarks  in  extenuation  of  what 
Browne  Willis  had  styled  "  sacrilegious  alienations:" — "  Had  these  alienations  been  the  volun- 
tary acts  of  the  Bishops,  the  censure  had  been  justly  laid ;  but,  as  the  law  then  stood,  the 
Queen  [Elizabeth]  had  it  wholly  in  her  power  to  make  those  exchanges ;  and  might,  I  conceive, 

I 


58  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

Collinson  states  that,  when  the  Protector  returned  victorious  from  the 
Scottish  wars,  the  King  bestowed  on  him  a  large  gratuity  for  his  services 
out  of  the  lands  and  possessions  of  this  Bishopric ;  "  insomuch  that  the 
liberty,  borough,  and  manor  of  Wells,  the  hundred  of  Wells-Forum,  the 
manors  of  Wookey,  Banwell,  Chew-Magna,  Blackford,  Wellington,  Cran- 
more,  and  Evercreech;  the  borough  of  Wellington,  the  hundreds  of  Winter- 
stoke  and  Chew ;  as  also  the  parks  of  Wells,  Banwell,  and  Evercreech,  with 
all  their  appurtenances,  were  at  one  stroke  alienated  from  the  Bishopric  to 
the  said  Duke  of  Somerset,  his  heirs,  and  assigns :  Barlow,  then  Bishop  of 
the  See,  acquiescing  in  the  disposal  of  them,  upon  the  duke's  promise  of  two 
thousand  pounds,  and  the  Dean  and  Chapter  confirming  the  Bishop's  deed3." 
Shortly  after  the  above  alienation,  namely,  on  the  20th  of  May,  1548,  this 
Prelate  consigned,  by  license,  to  the  King  a  further  and  very  considerable 
portion  of  the  demesnes  and  manors  of  his  See,  together  with  "  his  messuage 
called  Bathe  Place,  formerly  the  3Iynerycs,  w  ithout  Aldgate,  London ;"  the 

have  taken  to  herself,  had  she  so  pleased,  all  the  estates  of  all  the  Bishoprics  in  England,  by 
way  of  exchange,  without  asking  the  consent  of  the  Bishops."  See  "  History,"  &c.  "  of  the 
Cathedral  Church  of  Ely,"  edition  1800,  p.  196. — Now  the  law,  as  it  regarded  the  power  of  the 
Sovereign  or  his  Council,  to  make  alienations,  was  equally  as  strong  in  Edward  the  Sixth's  time 
as  in  Queen  Elizabeth's;  and  Barlow  could  no  more  have  resisted  the  will  of  the  Protector 
Somerset,  than  many  other  Prelates  could  that  of  the  Queen;  for,  as  Bentham  has  truly  said, 
"  there  was  not  a  Bishopric  in  the  kingdom  (except  perhaps  Bristol,  Gloucester,  Oxford,  and 
Peterborough,  which  had  nothing  to  spare,)  from  which  she  did  not  at  some  time  take  to  herself 
a  considerable  part,  and,  generally  speaking,  the  best  and  most  valuable  part  of  their  posses- 
sions; giving  them  in  exchange,  as  she  might  legally  do,  either  the  tenths  of  the  clergy,  or 
rectories  impropriate."- — But  Barlow's  character  may  be  still  more  directly  vindicated  than  by 
inferential  deduction  ;  for  in  the  very  first  year  of  Elizabeth's-  reign,  and  whilst  he  was  yet  only 
Bishop  elect  of  Chichester,  he  united  with  four  others,  who  were  in  similar  situations,  viz. 
Parker,  of  Canterbury  ;  Grindall,  of  London  ;  Cox,  of  Ely;  and  Scory,  of  Hereford,  in  a  strong 
petition  to  the  Queen,  praying  her,  among  other  grievances,  to  "  remitte"  the  "  alterations  and 
exchange,"  which  was  then  taking  place  in  respect  to  tenths  and  impropriate  rectories,  and 
offering  "  an  annual  pension  of  one  thousand  marks"  for  the  required  exoneration.  It  may, 
therefore,  be  fairly  argued  that  Barlow  did  not  willingly  cousent  to  the  alienations  for  which  he 
has  been  so  much  abused ;  nor  yet  promote  the  ravages  and  dilapidations  which,  iu  his  time, 
befell  the  Cathedral  establishment  at  Wells. 

3  "  History  of  Somersetshire,"  vol.  iii.  p.  39j.     In  his  account  of  Wellington,  vide  lb.  vol.  ii. 
p.  482,  Collinson  refers  the  "  License  to  alienate;"  to  the  2d  of  Edward  VI. 


BISHOP  BARLOW.  59 

site  of  the  Hospital  of  St.  John,  at  Wells ;  and  various  farms,  advowsons, 
hereditaments,  and  other  possessions  of  his  See,  in  exchange  for  certain 
rectories,  churches,  &c.  which  had  previously  belonged  to  the  Abbeys  of 
Glastonbury  and  Bath ;  but  all  of  which  are  said  to  have  been  "  a  very 
insufficient  consideration  for  the  lands  thus  shamefully  dismembered  from 
the  Bishopric4." 

It  appears  from  a  "  Latin  relation,"  quoted  by  Sir  John  Harington,  but 
without  sufficient  distinctness  to  enable  us  to  refer  to  the  work  itself,  that 
Bishop  Barlow  was  married,  and  had  a  numerous  offspring;  that  one  of 
his  sons  had  a  Prebend  in  Wells  Cathedral ;  and  that  "  he  bestowed  his  five 
daughters  on  five  most  worthie  men,  of  which  three  are  Bishops  at  this 
houre ;  and  the  other,  for  their  merit,  are  in  men's  expectation  designed  to 
the  like  dignitie  hereafter5."  From  the  same  work  Harington  says,  that 
Barlow  was  deprived  for  his  marriage,  u  and  lyved  as  a  man  banished  in 
Germany6."  That  deprivation  took  place  on  the  accession  of  Queen  Mary; 
but,  on  her  decease,  November  the  17th,  1558,  he  returned  to  England,  and 
was  nominated  Bishop  of  Chichester ;  the  See  of  Bath  and  Wells  having, 
during  his  exile,  been  given  by  Mary  to  Gilbert  Bourne.    He  died,  according 

4  "  History  of  Somersetshire,"  vol.  iii.  p.  395,  396. 

5  Vide  "  Nugae  Antiquae,"  vol.  ii.  p.  144,  Park's  edition;  in  which  it  is  stated  in  a  note  that, 
in  1608,  all  the  rive  persons  on  whom  Bishop  Barlow  had  bestowed  his  daughters,  had  been 
made  Bishops.  The  Latin  work  alluded  to  by  Sir  John  Harington  was  not  Godwin  "  De 
Praesulibus,"  as  supposed  by  Park;  there  being  no  information  of  the  kind  in  that  publication. 
Could  it  have  been  Godwin's  "  Nuncius  Inanimatus  in  Utophia;  et  Catalogus  Episcoporum 
Bathoniensium  et  Wellensium ;"  which  was  published  in  8vo.  1629,  and  afterwards  translated 
into  English,  anno  1657,  by  the  learned  Dr.  Thomas  Smith?  It  appears  from  Wood,  that  the 
name  of  Barlow's  wife  was  Agatha  Wellesbourne;  and  that  his  daughters  were  married  to  the 
following  Prelates: — 1.  Anne,  to  Herbert  Westphaling,  Bishop  of  Hereford;  2.  Elizabeth,  to 
William  Day,  Bishop  of  Winchester;  3.  Margaret,  to  William  Overton,  Bishop  of  Lichfield 
and  Coventry;  4.  Frances,  to  Tobie  Matthew,  Archbishop  of  York;  5.  Antonia,  to  William 
Wykeham,  Bishop  of  Winchester.     "  Athena;  Oxonienses,"  edit,  by  Bliss,  vol.  i.  col.  365. 

6  Wood  states  that,  upon  Queen  Mary's  coming  to  the  crown,  in  1553,  Barlow  "  was 
deprived  of  his  Bishopric  for  being  married,  and  committed  for  some  time  to  the  Fleet;  whence, 
escaping,  he  retired  with  many  others  into  Germany,  under  pretence  of  religion,  and  lived  there 
in  a  poor  and  exiled  condition."     Ibid. 


00  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

to  Le  Neve,  in  August,  1508,  and  was  interred  in  his  own  Cathedral:  but 
Godwin  assigns  his  decease  to  the  year  1509. 

The  spoliations  that  were  committed  here  during  the  episcopacy  of  Barlow- 
are  thus  related  and  descanted  on  by  Harington  : — "  Scarce  were  five  years 
past  after  Bathes  ruins,  but  as  fast  went  the  axes  and  hammers  to  work  at 
Wells.  The  goodly  hall,  covered  with  lead  (because  the  roofe  might  seeme 
too  low  for  so  large  a  roome)  was  uncovered;  and  now  this  roofe  reaches  to 
the  sky.  The  Chappell  of  our  Lady,  late  repayred  by  Stillington,  a  place 
of  great  reverence  and  antiquitie,  was  likewise  defaced ;  and  such  was  their 
thirst  after  lead  (I  would  they  had  drunke  it  scalding)  that  they  tooke  the 
dead  bodies  of  Bishops  out  of  their  leaden  coffins,  and  cast  abroad  the 
carkases  skarce  throughly  putrified.  The  statues  of  brass,  and  all  the 
auncient  monuments  of  Kings,  benefactors  to  that  goodly  Cathedrall  Church, 
went  all  the  same  way,  sold  (as  my  author  wrytes)  to  an  alderman  of  London, 
who,  being  then  rich,  and,  by  this  great  bargaine,  thinking  to  have  increast 
it,  found  it  like  aurum  Tholosanum;  for  he  so  decay d  after,  no  man  knew 
how,  that  he  brake  in  his  mayoraltie.  The  statues  of  Kings  were  shipt  from 
Bristoll ;  but,  disdayning  to  be  banisht  out  of  their  own  countrie,  chose 
rather  to  lie  in  St.  George  his  Channell,  where  the  ship  was  drown'd. — 
Theise  things  were,  I  will  not  say  clone,  I  will  say,  at  least,  suffered  by  this 
Bishop ;  but  I  doubt  not  but  he  repented  hereof,  and  did  pennance  also  in  his 
banishment,  in  sacco  et  cinere7." — This  Prelate  was  the  author  of  several 
Tracts  against  the  abuses  and  rites  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Religion. 


»  "  Nugae  Antiquae,"  vol.  ii.  p.  147.  In  the  following  page  the  author  says—"  There  remayne 
yet  in  the  bodie  of  Wells  Church,  about  thirty  foote  high,  two  eminent  images  of  stone,  set  there 
(as  is  thought)  by  Bishop  Burnell,  that  built  the  great  hall  there  in  the  raigne  of  Edw.  I.;  but 
most  certainly  long  before  the  raigne  of  Hen.  VIII.  One  of  theise  images  is  of  a  king  crowned, 
the  other  is  of  a  bishop  myterd.  This  king,  in  all  proportions  resembling  Hen.  VIII.  holdeth  in 
his  hande  a  childe  falling;  the  bishop  hath  a  woman  and  children  about  him.  Now  the  old  men 
of  Wells  had  a  tradition,  that  when  there  should  be  such  a  king  and  such  a  bishop,  then  the 
Church  should  be  in  daunger  of  ruine.  This  falling  childe  they  said  was  King  Edward;  the 
fruitful  bishop  they  affirmed  was  Dr.  Barlow,  the  first  maryed  Bishop  of  Wells,  and  perhaps  of 
England.  This  talke  being  rife  in  Wells,  in  Queen  Marye's  time,  made  him  rather  affect 
Chichester  at  his  return,  that  Wells,  where  not  only  the  things  that  were  ruind,  but  those  that 


BISHOP  BOURNE.  61 

Gilbert  Bourne,  or  Bourn,  D.D.  was,  by  the  appointment  of  Queen  Mary, 
elected  to  this  See  on  the  28th  of  March,  1554;  and,  having  been  conse- 
crated on  the  first  of  April,  in  St.  Saviour's  Church,  Southwark,  he  had  his 
temporalities  restored  on  the  twentieth  of  the  same  month.  He  was  a  native 
of  Worcestershire,  and  either  nephew  or  brother  to  Sir  John  Bourne,  who 
became  principal  Secretary  of  State  to  Queen  Mary.  He  was  entered  a  stu- 
dent at  Oxford  in  1524;  and,  in  1531,  he  was  elected  a  fellow  of  All  Souls 
College  in  that  University.  He  had  the  reputation  of  being  a  good  orator  and 
disputant.  In  1541,  33d  of  Henry  VIII.  he  was  appointed  one  of  the  first 
Prebendaries  of  Worcester ;  and  two  years  afterwards  was  admitted  to  the 
degree  of  Bachelor  of  Divinity;  about  the  same  time  he  became  Chaplain 
to  Bishop  Bonner,  "  and  a  preacher  against  the  heretics  of  the  times s."  On 
the  7th  of  July,  1549,  he  was  installed  Archdeacon  of  Bedford;  at  which 
time  he  appears  to  have  favoured  the  tenets  of  the  Reformation ;  but  "  in 
the  beginning  of  Queen  Mary's  reign  he  turned  about,  and  became  so  zealous 
for  the  Roman  Catholic  cause  that,  preaching  at  Paul's-Cross  in  behalf  of 
the  said  Bonner,  then  present,  against  his  late  unjust  sufferings,  and  against 
the  unhappy  times  of  King  Edward  VI.,  as  he  called  them,  he  had  a  dagger 
thrown  at  him  by  one  of  the  auditors;  whereupon,  Bourn  withdrawing 
himself  to  prevent  farther  danger,  the  work  was  carried  on  by  another 9." 

remayned,  served  for  records  and  remembrances  of  his  sacriledge."  The  images  alluded  to  in  this 
passage  are  not  statues,  but  busts :  they  are  attached  to  the  wall  of  the  nave,  between  the  arches 
and  the  triforium ;  and  are  represented  in  the  engraved  title-page  to  this  Work ;  figures  4  and  5, 

8  "  Atheme  Oxonienses,"  by  Bliss,  vol.  ii.  col.  805. 

9  Ibid.  According  to  Holinshed,  the  above  event  occurred  on  the  13th  of  August,  1553, 
when  Bourne,  "  taking  occasion  of  the  gospell  of  that  daie,  spake  somewhat  largelie  in  the 
iustifieing  of  Bishop  Bonner,  being  present  at  the  sermon,  which  bishop  (as  the  said  preacher 
then  opeulie  said)  for  a  sermon  made  upon  the  same  text,  and  in  the  same  place,  the  same  daie 
foure  yeeres  afore  passed,  was  most  vniustlie  cast  into  the  vile  dungeon  of  the  Marshalsea  among 
theeves,  and  there  kept  during  the  time  of  King  Edward's  reigne.  This  matter  being  set  foorth 
with  great  vehemencie,  so  much  offended  the  eares  of  part  of  the  audience,  that  they  brake 
silence,  and  began  to  murmur  and  throng  together  in  such  sort,  as  the  ruaior  and  aldermen,  with 
other  of  the  wiser  sort  then  present,  feared  much  an  vprore.  During  which  muttering,  one  more 
feruent  than  his  fellowes  threw  a  dagger  at  the  preacher  ;  but  who  it  was,  came  not  to  knowlege. 
By  reason  of  which  outrage  the  preacher  withdrew  himselfe  from  the  pulpit;  and  one  maister 


G2  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

Soon  after  his  appointment  to  tliis  Diocess,  Bishop  Bourne  was  constituted 
President  of  Wales,  and  Queen  Mary  regarded  him  with  great  favour;  but 
after  the  accession  of  Elizabeth  he  was  deprived  of  his  Bishopric  for  refusing 
to  acknowledge  the  supremacy  of  that  Princess,  and  committed  to  the  "  free 
custody"  of  "  Master  Carey,"  or  Carew,  Dean  of  her  Majesty's  Chapel,  and 
afterwards  of  Exeter.  He  then  u  gave  himself  up  wholly  to  reading  and 
devotion10;"  till  his  decease,  at  Silverton,  in  Devonshire,  on  the  10th  of 
September,  15G9.     He  was  buried  near  the  altar  in  Silverton  Church. 

The  "  nonage,"  says  Godwin,  "  of  that  good  King  Edward  the  Sixth, 
giuing  opportunity  to  those  horrible  sacriledges  that  robbed  the  Cathedrall 
Churches  of  England  of  (I  dare  say)  the  one  halfe  of  that  they  possessed, 
had  beene  an  occasion  of  the  vtter  ruine  and  destruction  of  this  See,  if 
Bishop  Barlow,  taking  advantage  of  the  death  of  some  men  in  the  latter  end 
of  King  Edward,  and  Bishop  Bourne,  making  vse  of  the  zeale  of  Queen 
Mary,  in  tendring  the  state  of  the  Church,  had  not  beene  the  means  of 
recouering  what  is  now  left  vnto  the  same,  even  the  lands  of  the  Bishopricke, 
in  a  manner  euery  whit;  all  the  land  belonging  to  the  Archdeacon  of  Wells, 
and  some  land  of  the  Chapter,  to  wit,  the  parsonages  of  Dulverton  and 
Longsutton  "." 

According  to  Collinson,  the  annual  value  of  the  lands  recovered  by  Bishop 
Bourne  was  three  hundred  and  thirty-two  pounds,  eighteen  shillings,  and 
elevenpence.  They  included  the  manors  of  Wells,  Chard,  Huish  Episcopi, 
Wookey,  Evercreech,  Cranmore,  Combe,  Banwell,  Chew,  Chedder,  &c.; 
but  the  Bishop  could  not  obtain  this  restitution  till  he  had  consented  to 
alienate  to  the  crown  the  manors  of  Congresbury  and  Yatton. 


Bradford,  at  the  request  of  tbe  preacher's  brother  and  others  standing  there,  tooke  the  place,  and 
spake  so  mildlie  to  the  people,  that  with  few  words  he  appeased  their  furie  :  and  after  the  said 
maister  Bradford  and  maister  Rogers,  although  men  of  contrarie  religion,  conueied  the  said 
preacher  into  Paulcs  Schoole,  and  there  left  him  safelie." — "  Chronicles,"  vol.  iv.  p.  3,  edit.  1808. 
It  is  a  curious  fact  that  both  Bradford  and  Rogers,  who  thus  quelled  an  incipient  riot  which 
might  have  shaken  Mary's  throne  from  its  basis,  were  afterwards  burnt  at  the  stake  for  their 
religion  in  the  sanguinary  reign  of  that  bigoted  Sovereign. 

10  "  Atheiiae  Oxonienses,"  vol.  ii.  col.  COG.  "   "  Catalogue  of  English  Bishops,"  p  384. 


BISHOPS  BERKELEY  AND  GODWIN.  63 

After  the  deprivation  of  Bourne,  Queen  Elizabeth  caused  Gilbert  Berke- 
ley, S.  T.  P.  a  descendant  of  the  noble  family  of  the  Berkeley's,  in  Gloucester- 
shire, but  a  native  of  Norfolk,  to  be  elected  to  this  See  on  the  29th  of 
January,  1559-60.  He  was  consecrated  at  Lambeth  on  the  24th  of  March 
following;  and  had  his  temporalities  restored  on  the  10th  of  July,  1560. 
Scarcely  any  thing  is  known  of  this  Prelate,  although  he  governed  this 
Diocess  nearly  two  and  twenty  years.  Sir  John  Harington,  speaking  from 
the  Latin  treatise  already  noticed,  says,  "  I  can  add  of  this  Gilbert  but  a 
worde,  that  he  was  a  good  justicer  (as  saith  the  same  author,  '  nisi  qaatenus 
homo  u.rorius  conjugis  importnnitate  impulsus  a  veri  etc  recti  tramite  aber- 
rarit),  saving  that  sometimes  being  ruled  by  his  wife,  by  her  importunitie, 
he  swerved  from  the  rule  of  justice  and  sincerities  especially  in  persecuting 
the  kindred  of  Bourne,  his  predecessor.  The  fame  went  that  he  dyed  very 
rich ;  but  the  same  importunate  woman  caryed  it  all  away,  that  neither 
Church  nor  the  poore  were  the  better  for  it I2."  Bishop  Berkeley  died  on  the 
2d  of  November,  1581 ;  and  was  buried  on  the  north  side  of  the  altar,  in  his 
own  Cathedral. 

After  his  decease  the  Bishopric  remained  vacant  almost  three  years,  when 
the  Queen  bestowed  it  on  Thomas  Godwin,  D.  D.  Dean  of  Canterbury,  who 
was  then  in  the  sixty-seventh  year  of  his  age,  he  having  been  born  in  1517, 
at  Okingham,  in  Berkshire.  His  parentage  was  humble,  and  he  was  taught 
the  rudiments  of  education  at  the  grammar-school  in  his  native  place,  where 
his  talents  attracted  the  attention  of  Dr.  Richard  Layton,  Archdeacon  of 
Bucks,  and  afterwards  Dean  of  York,  who,  having  in  his  own  house  instructed 
him  in  classical  learning,  had  him  entered  a  student  of  Magdalen  College, 
Oxford,  about  the  year  1538,  and  supported  him  there  till  his  own  decease, 
in  1544.  In  the  following  year  Godwin,  being  then  B.  A.,  was  elected  a 
fellow  in  the  above  College,  and,  in  1547,  he  proceeded  M.  A. ;  but  about 
two  years  afterwards  he  exchanged  his  fellowship  for  the  rectory  of  the  free- 
school  of  Brackley,  in  Northamptonshire;  his  brother  collegians,  who  were 
mostly  papists,  having  rendered  his  situation  unpleasant.  Whilst  at  Brackley 

"  "  Nugae  Antiquae,"  vol.  ii.  p.  150. 


04  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

he  studied  both  divinity  and  physic ;  in  which  latter  faculty  he  obtained  the 
degree  of  M.  B.  in  1555,  having-  been  forced  to  quit  his  school,  and  resort  to 
the  practice  of  medicine  for  support,  by  the  religions  persecutions  of  Queen 
.Mary's  reign.  Wood  states  that  when  Mary  came  to  the  crown,  "  he  was 
silenced,  and  in  a  manner  put  to  his  shifts13;"  and  Fuller  says,  "  Bonner 
threatened  him  with  fire  and  faggot,  which  caused  him  often  to  obscure  him- 
self, and  remove  his  habitation  'V  In  the  beginning  of  Elizabeth's  reign  he 
received  both  holy  orders  and  his  first  ecclesiastical  preferment  from  Dr.  Bul- 
lyngham,  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  who  made  him  his  chaplain,  "and  being  a  chief 
instrument  of  his  preaching  before  the  Queen,  she  approved  him  and  his  per- 
son so  well,  that  she  thereupon  made  him  Dean  of  Ch.  Ch.  in  Oxon,  in  Jane, 
1 505  :  so  that  taking  the  degrees  of  divinity  the  same  year,  and  being  esteemed 
much  by  all  for  his  learning  and  piety,  he  was  made  Dean  of  Canterbury,  in 
the  place  of  Dr.  Nich.  Wotton,  deceased,  an.  1500 ,5."  The  Queen  also 
appointed  him  one  of  her  Lent  preachers ;  and  was  so  much  pleased  by  his 
discourses  that,  during  eighteen  years,  she  continued  him  in  that  office.  In 
1575  he  was  made  one  of  the  ecclesiastical  Commissioners  for  the  due  regu- 
lation of  the  Church.  On  the  10th  of  August,  1584,  he  was  elected  to  this 
See,  and  consecrated  on  the  ensuing  13th  of  September.  Harington  says, 
"  He  came  to  the  place  as  well  qualified  for  a  Bishop  as  mought  be ;  unre- 
provely  without  symonie,  given  to  good  hospitallity,  quyet,  kynde,  affable,  a 
widower,  and  in  the  Queene's  very  good  opinion,  non  minor  est  virtus  quom 
qiuerere  porta  tueri  'V'  But  he  unfortunately  lost  her  Majesty's  favour  by  a 
second  marriage  with  a  widow ;  which  was  bruited  in  her  ears  as  "a  match 
of  the  devil's  making,"  being  done  "  for  covetousness  and  not  for  comfort." 
Yet,  "himself  protested  to  me,"  Harington  affirms,  ':  with  teares  in  his  eyes, 
he  tooke  her  but  for  a  guide  of  his  house;  and  for  the  rest  (they  were  his 

15  "  Athenae  Oxonienses,"  vol.  iii.  col.  827.  "4  "  Worthies,"  vol.  i.  p.  00;  edit.  1811. 

"  "Athens  Oxonienses,"  ut  sup.  Fullersays,  "  He  was  an  eloquent  preacher,  tall  and  com,  I,, 
in  person;  qualities  which  much  endeared  him  to  Queen  Elizabeth,  who  loved  good  parts  well, 
but  better  when  in  a  goodly  person."     "  "Worthies  ;"  ttt  tup. 

'    "  Nnga;  Antique,"  vol.  ii.  p.  151. 


BISHOP  GODWIN.  65 

own  words)  he  lyved  with  her  as  Josephe  did  with  Mary,  our  lady17." 
Fuller  says—"  Being  infirm  with  age,  and  diseased  with  the  gout,  he  was 
necessitated,  for  a  nurse,  to  marry  a  second  wife,  a  matron  of  years  propor- 
tionable to  himself:  but  this  was  by  his  court  enemies  (which  no  Bishop 
wanted  in  that  age)  represented  to  the  Queen  to  his  great  disgrace ;  yea, 
they  traduced  him  to  have  married  a  girl  of  tiventy  years  of  age,  until  the 
good  Earl  of  Bedford,  casually  present  at  such  discourse — '  Madam,'  said 
he  to  her  Majesty,  '  I  know  not  how  much  the  woman  is  above  twenty ;  but 
I  know  a  son  of  hers  is  but  a  little  under  forty18.' "  This  marriage  occasioned 
the  Bishop  so  much  inquietude  that,  to  save  the  manor  of  Banwell,  which  he 
had  been  greatly  importuned  to  part  with  by  "  my  Lord  of  Leicester"  and 
"  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,"  he  consented  to  lease  out  that  of  Wivelscombe  for 
ninety-nine  years.  In  his  latter  days  he  was  afflicted  with  a  quartan  ague, 
and,  retiring  to  Okingham,  the  place  of  his  birth,  he  died  there  on  the  19th 
of  November,  1590;  and  was  buried  in  the  Church,  where  a  monument  was 
erected  to  his  memory  by  his  son,  Francis  Godwin,  Sub-dean  of  Exeter,  and 
afterwards  Bishop  of  Llandaff  and  Hereford,  the  learned  author  of  "  De 
Prcesulibus  Anglice  Commentarim"  and  other  works. 

After  a  vacancy  of  upwards  of  two  years,  the  very  erudite  John  Still,  D.D. 
a  native  of  Grantham,  in  Lincolnshire,  was  made  Bishop  of  this  See.  He 
was  born  in  the  year  1543,  and  educated  at  Christ's  College,  Cambridge,  of 
which  he  became  a  fellow  in  1560.  In  1570,  he  was  appointed  Lady  Margaret's 
Professor  at  Cambridge ;  and  after  several  intermediate  preferments  he  was 
elected  Master  of  St.  John's  College,  in  1574;  which  he  voided  for  that  of 
Trinity  College,  in  1577,  on  the  advancement  of  John  Whitgift  to  the 
Diocess  of  Worcester.  He  was  held  in  great  estimation  both  by  Arch- 
bishop Parker  and  Dean  Nowell;  and,  on  the  recommendation  of  the  latter, 


"  "  Nugae  Antiquae,"  vol.  ii.  p.  156.—"  Setting  this  one  disgrace  of  his  aside,  he  was  a  man  very 
well  esteemed  in  the  countrie,  beloved  of  all  men  for  his  great  housekeeping;  of  the  better  sorte 
for  his  kinde  entertainment  and  pleasing  discourse  at  his  table.  His  reading  had  bene  much,  his 
judgment  and  doctrine  sound,  his  government  mylde  and  not  violent,  his  mynde  charitable  ;  and 
therefore  I  doubt  not  but  when  he  lost  this  life,  he  wonne  Heaven  according  to  his  word,  win  God 
win  all."     Ibid.  '8  «  Worthies,"  vol.  i.  p.  90. 


66  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

he  was  chosen,  in  1588,  Prolocutor  of  the  Convocation,  and  preached  the 
Latin  sermon.  In  1592-93,  being  then  for  the  second  time  Vice-chancellor 
of  Cambridge,  he  was  promoted  by  Queen  Elizabeth  to  this  See,  to  which 
he  was  elected  on  the  3d  of  January,  and  consecrated  on  the  11th  of  the 
following  month 19.  He  retained  this  Bishopric  till  his  decease,  on  the  2Gth  of 
February,  1607  ;  and  he  was  interred,  on  the  4th  of  April,  on  the  south  side 
of  the  altar  in  Wells  Cathedral ;  where  a  monument  was  erected  to  his 
memory  by  Nathaniel,  his  eldest  son  by  his  first  marriage2".  The  epitaph 
was  written  by  the  learned  Camden. 

Some  amusing  particulars  of  this  Prelate  are  inserted  in  the  "  Nugse 
Antiquae81."  Sir  John  Harington,  with  whom  he  appears  to  have  lived  in 
much  friendship,  says  that  his  tutor,  Dr.  Fleming,  stiled  him  "  Divine  Still." 
u  His  breeding,"  he  continues,  "  was  from  his  childhood  in  good  litterature, 
and  partly  in  musique,  which  was  counted  in  those  dayes  a  preparative  to 
divinitie;  neither  could  any  be  admitted  to  primam  lonsuram,  except  he 
could  first  bene  le,  bene  con,  bene  can  (as  they  call  it),  which  is  to  reade  well, 
to  conster  well,  and  to  sing  well. — In  his  full  time,  more  full  of  learniug,  he 
became  bachelor  of  divinitie,  and  after  doctor,  and  so  famous  a  preacher, 
and  speacially  a  disputer,  that  the  learned'st  were  even  afleard  to  dispute 
with  him ;  and  he,  finding  his  owne  strength,  would  not  sticke  to  warne 
them  in  their  arguments  to  take  heede  to  their  answers ;  like  a  perfect  fencer 
that  will  tell  aforehand  in  which  button  he  will  give  the  venew. — And,  not  to 
insist  long  in  a  matter  so  notorious,  it  may  suffice  that,  about  twenty  yeare 
since,  when  the  great  Dyet,  or  meeting,  should  have  bene  in  Germanie,  for 

19  In  the  Register  of  Trinity  College  is  the  following  entry  and  encomium  on  Bishop  Still : — 
"  Religionis,  doctrinae  gravitatis,  prndentise  nomine  conspicuus,  promotus  est  ad  gubernationem 
Coll.  D.  Jo.  ubi  et  in  placido  et  turbato  aequore  guberuatorem  egit  scitum  et  cordatum.  In  col- 
legium hoc  assumptus  1577,  per  annos  plus  minus  sesdecim  patrem  familias  se  ferebat,  providum, 
dyadov  Kuporpofyov,  nee  collcgio  onerosum,  nee  suis  gravem,  ex  solicitudine  et  frugalitate  magis 
quam  suniptu  et  auctoritate  pnefectum  dignoscere." — 

10  In  the  pedigree  of  the  family  of  Still,  given  in  Hutchius's  '*  History  of  Dorsetshire,"  and 
copied,  with  additions,  in  Sir  Rich.  C.  Hoare's  "  Modern  Wilts,"  Hundred  of  Mere,  the  above 
Nathaniel  is  described  as  the  Bishop's  eldest  son  by  his  second  wife,  which  must  be  altogether 
erroneous.  **  Vol.  ii.  p.  158. 


BISHOP  STILL.  67 

composing  matters  in  religion,  Doctor  Still  was  chosen  for  Cambridge,  and 
Doctor  Humphrey  for  Oxford,  to  oppose  all  commers  for  defence  of  the 
English  Church." 

The  same  writer  informs  us  that,  during  the  vacancy  of  this  See,  "  there 
was  great  enquyring  who  should  have  it ;  and,  as  if  all  Bishops  should  now 
be  sworne  to  follow  usum  Sarum™,  every  man  made  reckoning  that  the  manor- 
house  and  park  of  Banwell  should  be  made  a  reward  of  some  courtier;  and 
it  increast  this  suspicion,  that  Thomas  Henneage  [Vice-chamberlain  to  the 
Queen,  and  Chancellor  of  the  Duchy  of  Lancaster],  an  old  courtier,  and 
zealous  puritan,  was  said  to  have  an  eare  in  the  matter;  whose  conscience, 
if  it  were  such  in  the  cleargie  as  it  was  found  in  the  Duchy,  might  well  have 
digested  a  better  booty  than  Banwell." — Not  any  alienation,  however,  or 
sacrifice  of  church  property  was  made  by  this  Prelate ;  and,  as  Fuller 
remarks,  on  his  promotion  to  this  See,  "  he  defeated  all  causelesse  suspicion 
of  symoniacal  compliance,  coming  clearly  thereunto,  without  the  least  scandal 
to  his  person  or  losse  to  the  place 2J." 


"  The  above  passage  alludes  to  the  alienation,  by  Bishop  Coldwell,  of  Salisbury,  of  the  Castle, 
park,  and  manor  of  Sherborne,  in  Dorsetshire,  to  Sir  Walter  Raleigh. 

13  "  Worthies,"  vol.  ii.  p.  12.— Soon  after  his  attaining  this  Diocess,  Bishop  Still,  who  was 
then  a  widower,  gave  considerable  offence  to  Queen  Elizabeth,  by  his  second  marriage.  This 
was  with  Jane,  the  daughter  of  Sir  John  Horner,  Knt.  of  Cloford,  in  Somersetshire,  who  "  drew 
with  her  a  kynde  of  alliance  with  Judge  Popham,  that  swayd  all  the  temporall  government  of  the 
countrie."  "  As  this  connection,"  Harington  remarks,  "was  much  more  justifiable,"  than  that  of 
Bishop  Godwin,  "  so  the  Queene's  displeasure  (the  times  being  somewhat  more  propitious  and 
favourable  to  Bishoppricks  since  Bishop  Wickham's  sermon)  was  the  easier  pacified  without 
so  costly  a  sacrifice  as  a  whole  mannor;  and  she  contented  her  selfe  only  to  breake  a  jeast  upon 
the  name  of  the  Bishop's  wyfe,  saying  to  Sir  Henry  Barkley,  '  it  was  a  daungerous  name  for  a 
Bishop  to  match  with  a  Horner.'  Since  which  time  he  hath  preached  before  her  more  than  once, 
and  hath  receaved  good  testimonies  of  her  good  opinion ;  and  God  hath  also  blest  him  many  wayes 
very  greatly,  to  see  his  children  well  brought  up,  well  bestowed,  and  to  have  an  unexpected 
revenew  out  of  the  entrails  of  the  earth,  I  mean  the  lead  mines  of  Mendip,  greater  than  his  prede- 
cessor had  above  ground.  So  as  this  Bishop  seemes  to  be  blest  with  Joseph's  blessing,  Gen.  c. 
49,  v.  25.  With  blessings  from  heaven  above,  blessings  from  the  deepe  that  lycth  beneath,  blessings 
of  the  breasts  and  of  the  wombe." 

Bishop  Warburton,  in  the  fourth  volume  of  his  Works,  p.  438,  relates  the  following  singular 
anecdote  of  Bishop  Still,  which  he  says  he  had  from  the  learned  Casaubon. 


G8  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

There  is  yet  one  circumstance  relating  to  Bishop  Still,  to  which  it  is 
necessary  to  advert;  and  particularly  so,  as  it  fornis  a  rather  important  point 
in  the  History  of  the  Drama.  This  Prelate  has  long  been  reputed  to  be  the 
author  of  "  Gammer  Gur  ton's  Needle,"  which,  as  Warton  says,  "  is  held  to 
be  the  first  Comedy  in  our  language;  that  is,  the  first  play  which  was  neither 
Mystery  nor  Morality,  and  which  handled  a  comic  story  with  some  disposi- 
tion of  plot,  and  some  discrimination  of  character." — The  earliest  authority 
for  attributing  that  piece  to  Bishop  Still  was  Baker,  the  editor  of  the  "  Bio- 
graphia  Dramatica,"  who  founded  his  opinion  on  the  title-page,  which  states 
it  to  have  been  played  "  on  the  stage,  not  long  ago,  in  Christ's  College, 
in  Cambridge,"  and  "  made  by  Mr.  S.  Master  of  Art."  Hence,  he  not 
only  inferred  that  it  was  written  by  a  member  of  Christ's  College,  but  that 
Still  was  the  person ;  there  being  "  no  other  Master  of  Arts  at  Christ's 
College"  than  himself,  whose  name  "  began  with  the  letter  S,"  in  the  year 
1566;  '•  when  xxd,"  as  appears  from  '  the  Bursar's  Books,'  was  paid  for  the 
carpenter's  setting  up  the  scaffold  for  the  plaie." — This  is  all  the  evidence  on 
the  affirmative  side;  but,  independently  of  the  silence  of  Sir  J.  Harington, 
who  was  well  acquainted  with  the  Bishop,  there  is  strong  reason  to  doubt  the 

"  This  day  the  Lord  Bishop  of  Ely  (Andrews)  a  Prelate  of  great  piety  and  holiiiesse,  related 
to  me  a  wonderful  thing.  He  said  he  had  received  the  account  from  many  hands,  but  chiefly 
from  the  Lord  Bishop  of  Wells  (Still)  lately  dead.  That  in  the  city  of  "Wells  about  fifteen  years 
ago  [1590],  one  summer's  day,  while  the  people  were  at  divine  service  in  the  Cathedral  Church, 
they  heard,  as  it  thundered,  two  or  three  claps  above  measure  dreadful,  so  that  the  whole  con- 
gregation, affected  alike,  threw  themselves  on  their  knees  at  this  terrifying  sound.  It  appeared 
the  lightning  fell  at  the  same  time,  but  without  harm  to  any  one.  So  far  then  there  was  nothing 
but  what  is  common  in  the  like  cases.  The  wonderful  part  was  this,  which  afterwards  was 
taken  notice  of  by  many :— that  the  marks  of  a  Cross  were  found  to  have  been  imprinted  on  the 
bodies  of  those  who  were  then  at  divine  service  in  the  Cathedral. 

"  The  Bishop  of  Wells  (Still)  told  my  Lord  of  Ely,  that  his  wife  (a  woman  of  uncommon 
probity)  came  to  him,  and  informed  him,  as  of  a  great  miracle,  that  she  had  then  the  mark  of  a 
Cross  imprinted  on  her  body  :  which  tale,  when  the  Bishop  treated  it  as  absurd,  his  wife- 
exposed  the  part,  and  gave  him  occular  proof.  He  afterwards  observed  that  he  had  upon 
himself,  on  his  arm  (as  I  take  it)  the  plainest  mark  of  a  Cross.  Others  had  it  on  the  shoulder, 
the  breast,  the  back,  and  other  parts.  This  account  that  great  man,  my  Lord  of  Ely,  gave  me  in 
such  a  manner  as  forbade  even  to  doubt  its  truth." — Ex  adver.  Is.  Casuubon.  upiul  Man-. 
Casaubon,  in  tract,  intit.     "  Of  Credulity  and  Incredulity,"  p.  110. 


BISHOP  MONTAGUE.  69 

fact  of  his  having  been  the  writer  of  the  above  piece.  Warton,  in  the  second 
volume  of  his  "History  of  English  Poetry,"  p.  378,  says  that  "  Gammer  Gurton's 
Needle"  was  acted  at  Christ's  College  "  about  the  year  1552;"  and  in  his 
third  volume,  p.  208,  he  acquaints  us,  on  the  authority  of  Oldys's  MSS.  that 
it  was  "written  and  printed  in  1551."  Now,  assuming  these  dates  to  be 
correct,  there  is  evidently  a  moral  impossibility  of  its  having  been  written  by 
Still;  for  as  the  inscription  on  his  monument  fixes  his  decease  in  1607,  at 
the  age  of  sixty-four,  he  could  not  have  been  more  than  eight  years  old,  and 
consequently  no  Master  of  Arts,  when  this  Comedy  was  first  made  public. 

James  Montague,  S.  T.  P.  a  lineal  descendant  of  the  Montacutes,  Earls  of 
Salisbury,  and  the  son  of  Sir  Edward  Montague,  Knt.  was  the  next  Bishop 
of  this  See.  This  Prelate,  who  was  elected  on  the  29th  of  March,  1608,  and 
consecrated  on  the  17th  of  the  following  month,  was  born  at  Bough  ton,  in 
Northamptonshire,  the  seat  of  his  father.  Having  received  his  education  at 
Christ's  College,  Cambridge,  he  was  appointed,  in  1598,  the  first  master  of 
Sidney-Sussex  College,  in  that  University,  by  the  executors  of  Lady  Anne 
Sidney,  the  noble  foundress.  Whilst  in  that  situation  he  greatly  exerted 
himself  to  improve  the  buildings  of  his  College24,  and  to  employ  the  quaint 
phraseology  of  Fuller,  he  became  its  "  nursing-father,  for  he  found  it  in  bonds 
to  pay  twenty  marks  per  annum  to  Trinity  College,  for  the  ground  whereon 
it  was  built,  and  left  it  free,  assigning  it  a  rent  for  the  discharge  thereof25." 
His  talents  and  learning  proved  the  means  of  his  obtaining  various  promo- 
tions. Being  held  in  much  favour  by  James  the  First,  that  monarch,  "  who 
did  ken  a  man  of  merit  as  well  as  any  Prince  in  Christendome 26,"  made  him 
Dean  of  Worcester,  in  December,  1604;  and  in  1608  advanced  him  to  this 
Diocess.  On  his  primary  visitation  at  Bath,  his  attention  was  particularly 
directed  by  Sir  John  Harington  to  the  ruinous  state  of  the  Abbey  Church 
in  that  city,  which  had  been  subjected  to  almost  every  kind  of  devastation 

14  Godwin,  speaking  of  this  College  and  of  the  Bishop,  says—"  in  cujus  structura  multum  ab 
eo  laboris  ac  solicitudinis  susceptum  est,  quodque  plurimum  et  auxit  et  ornavit." — "  De  Praesu- 
libus,"  p.  390,  edit.  1743. 

15  "  Worthies,"  vol.  ii.  p.  164.  26  Ibid. 


70  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

from  the  times  of  Bishop  King-  and  Prior  Birde.  Influenced  by  a  generous 
disposition,  he  immediately  contributed  one  thousand  pounds  towards  the  due 
completion  of  the  building ;  and  under  his  auspices  it  was  eventually  finished, 
about  the  period  at  which  he  was  translated  to  the  See  of  Winchester,  viz. 
Oct.  the  4th,  1616.  Prior  to  his  removal  he  had  also  expended  considerable 
sums  in  repairing  the  episcopal  palaces  of  Wells  and  Banwell ;  and  particu- 
larly in  renovating  the  palatial  Chapel  at  Wells,  which  had  been  erected  by 
Bishop  Joceline.  He  died  at  Winchester,  on  the  2d  of  July,  1618;  and, 
agreeably  to  his  own  desire,  was  interred  in  Bath  Abbey  Church,  where  his 
memory  is  preserved  by  a  costly  monument  erected  at  the  expense  of  his 
four  brothers27.  Bishop  Montague  is  known  to  the  literary  world  as  the 
translator  of  the  Works  of  King  James  the  First  into  Latin ;  a  copy  of  which, 
published  in  1616,  and  splendidly  bound  in  velvet  and  gold,  having  the  royal 
arms  embossed  on  the  cover,  was  given  to  the  University  of  Cambridge  by 
the  King  himself,  and  is  still  preserved  in  the  Public  Library  there. 

Montague's  successor  was  that  exemplary  divine  Arthur  Lake,  S.  T.  P. 
who  was  born  in  the  year  1567,  in  St.  Michael's  parish,  Southampton.  He 
was  the  son  of  Almeric  Lake,  or  Du  Lake,  and  brother  of  Sir  Thomas  Lake, 
principal  Secretary  of  State  to  King  James  the  First.  Having  been  taught 
the  rudiments  of  learning  at  the  free  school  in  his  native  town,  he  was 
removed  to  Wykeham's  College,  at  Winchester;  whence  he  was  elected 
probationary  fellow  of  New  College,  Oxford;  and  two  years  afterwards, 
in  1589,  he  was  made  a  perpetual  fellow  of  the  same  college.  About  1594, 
he  proceeded  in  arts,  and  entered  into  holy  orders  :  in  1600,  he  became 
fellow  of  Wykeham's  College ;  and  in  1603  was  appointed  Master  of  the 
Hospital  of  St.  Cross,  near  Winchester.  In  1605  he  took  his  degrees  in 
divinity,  and  in  the  same  year  was  installed  Archdeacon  of  Surrey.  In 
April,  1608,  he  succeeded  Bishop  Montague  as  Dean  of  Worcester;  and  on 
the    17th   of  June,   1613,   he  was  preferred  to   the  Wardenship  of  New 

27  For  the  Inscriptions  on  his  monument,  and  other  particulars  relating  to  his  labours  at  Bath, 
see  the  '*  History  and  Antiquities  of  Bath  Abbey  Church." 


BISHOP  LAUD.  71 

College,  "  by  the  conspiring  votes  of  a  numerous  society,  even  before  he 
thought  of  it28."  On  October  the  17th,  1616,  being  then  Vice  Chancellor  of 
the  University  of  Oxford,  he  was  elected  Bishop  of  this  See,  and  was  conse- 
crated on  the  8th  of  the  following  December.  "  In  all  these  places  of  honour 
and  employment,"  says  Wood,  "  he  carried  himself  the  same  in  mind  and 
person,  shewing  by  his  constancy  that  his  virtues  were  virtues  indeed ;  in  all 
kinds  of  which,  whether  natural,  moral,  theological,  personal,  or  pastoral,  he 
was  eminent,  and  indeed  one  of  the  examples  of  his  time.  He  always  lived 
a  single  man,  exemplary  in  his  life  and  conversation,  and  very  hospitable. 
He  was  also  well  read  in  the  fathers  and  schoolmen,  and  had  such  a  com- 
mand of  the  Scripture,  which  made  him  one  of  the  best  preachers,  that  few 
went  beyond  him  in  his  time89."  This  high  character  of  Bishop  Lake  is  con- 
firmed by  Walton,  who  particularly  extols  him  for  his  humility,  charity,  and 
all  other  Christian  excellencies.  Dying  on  the  4th  of  May,  1626,  he  was 
interred  in  the  north  aile  of  the  choir  in  this  Cathedral ;  where  a  plain 
stone,  merely  inscribed  with  his  name,  quality,  and  date  of  his  decease,  was 
soon  afterwards  laid  over  his  grave. 

The  next  Bishop  was  the  celebrated  William  Land,  D.  D.  who  was  trans- 
lated from  St.  David's,  which  See  he  had  held  in  commenclam  with  the 
Deanery  of  Gloucester.  This  prelate,  whose  arbitrary  principles  and  un- 
conciliatory  disposition  had  such  a  great  influence  in  widening  the  breach 
between  Charles  the  First  and  the  Parliament,  was  born  at  Reading,  in 
Berkshire,  on  the  7th  of  October,  1573.     He  was  the  son  of  a  clothier30;  and 

18  See  a  "  Short  Review  of  the  Life  of  Bishop  Lake,"  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  J.  Harris,  attached  to 
the  folio  volume  of  the  Bishop's  "  Sermons,"  &c.  published  in  1G29.  Another  volume  of  "  Ten 
Sermons,  preached  at  St.  Paul's  Cross  and  elsewhere,"  by  this  prelate,  was  published  in  quarto, 
in  1641. 

19  "  Athense  Oxonienses,"  vol.  ii.  col.  399.  Fuller  says  that  Bishop  Lake  "  lived  a  pattern  of 
piety,"and  "a  real  comment  upon  Saint  Paul's  character  of  a  Bishop." — "Worthies,  "vol.  i.  p.  407. 

30  Bishop  Kennet  gives  the  following  "  libel"  upon  Laud  from  the  "  Scots  Scouts  Discoveries," 
Loud.  1642: — "  His  father  was  a  clothier,  his  mother  a  spinster ;  he  was  from  his  cradle  ordained 
to  be  a  punisher  of  poor  people,  for  he  was  born  between  the  stocks  and  the  cage,  which  a 
courtier  one  day  chanced  to  speak  of,  whereupon  his  grace  removed  from  thence,  and  pulled 
down  his  father's  thatched  house,  and  built  a  fair  one  in  the  place."     Fuller  says  that  Laud  was 


72  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

having  been  educated  at  the  grammar  school  in  his  native  town,  he  became 
a  student  of  St.  John's,  Oxford,  of  which  College  he  was  elected  a  fellow 
about  three  years  afterwards.  His  talents  were  of  the  first  order,  and  his 
acquirements  proportionate;  but  his  pertinacity  of  temper  began  early  to 
display  itself,  and  he  was  generally  regarded  as  an  assuming  and  arrogant 
young  man.  In  1601  he  entered  into  holy  orders,  and  shortly  after  excited 
the  displeasure  of  Dr.  Abbot,  the  Vice  Chancellor,  by  his  opposition  to  the 
tenets  of  the  Puritans,  which  about  that  period  began  to  have  many  sup- 
porters in  the  University.  In  1607  he  was  preferred  to  the  living  of  St.  Mar- 
tin's Stamford,  in  Northamptonshire  ;  and  in  the  following  year  he  obtained 
the  advowson  of  North  Kilworth,  in  Leicestershire.  He  was  no  sooner 
invested  with  these  livings  than  he  had  the  parsonage  houses  repaired,  and 
gave  a  regular  allowance  to  twelve  poor  persons ;  and  he  is  said  to  have 
pursued  a  similar  line  of  conduct  in  all  his  subsequent  preferments.  In 
August,  1608,  being  then  Doctor  in  Divinity,  he  was  appointed  Chaplain  to 
Dr.  Richard  Neile,  Bishop  of  Rochester,  who  much  patronized  him,  and  by 
whose  influence  he  was  admitted  to  preach  before  King  James  at  Theobald's, 
on  the  17th  of  September,  1609;  and  in  1617  he  accompanied  that  monarch 
into  Scotland,  on  his  ill  timed  expedition  for  the  purpose  of  uniting  the  two 
Kingdoms  into  one  religious  community.  After  various  intermediate  pro- 
motions, he  was  elected  to  this  Diocess  on  the  16th  of  August,  1626,  and 
having  been  consecrated  on  the  19th  of  September,  his  temporalities  were 
restored  on  the  following  day.  In  October  he  was  made  Dean  of  the  Chapel 
Royal;  and  on  April  the  29th,  1627,  a  Privy  Counsellor.  In  the  same  year 
the  King  promised  him  the  Bishopric  of  London,  and  he  was  translated  to 
that  See  on  the  16th  of  July,  1628.  In  the  December  following,  the  Statutes 
"  wbicb  he  had  drawn  for  the  reducing  of  the  factious  and  tumultuous 
elections  of  the  Proctors,  in  Oxon,  to  several  Colleges  by  course,  and  so  to 
continue,  was  passed  in  a  convocation  of  Masters  and  Doctors  there,  no 

of  "  honest  parentage;"  and  Wood  states  that  he  was  "the  son  of  a  father  of  both  his  names,  by 
Lucie  his  wife,  the  widow  of  John  Robinson."  The  house  which  he  is  said  to  have  built  on  the 
site  of  his  father's  cottage  was  in  Broad  Street,  Reading;  it  was  pulled  down  in  the  year  1811. 
One  of  the  chambers  retained  the  name  of  Laud's  Study. 


BISHOPS  LAUD  AND  MA  WE.  73 

voice  dissenting31."  Speaking  of  the  proceedings  of  Laud  about  this  period, 
"Judge  Whitlock,  his  ancient  acquaintance,"  was  accustomed  to  say,  with 
almost  prophetical  judgment,  that  "  he  was  too  full  of  fire,  though  a  good  and 
just  man;  and  that  his  want  of  experience  in  state  matters,  and  his  too 
much  zeal  for  the  Church,  and  heat,  if  he  proceeded  in  the  way  he  was  then 
in,  would  set  this  nation  on  fire32."  On  the  12th  of  April,  1630,  Bishop 
Laud  was  elected  to  the  Chancellorship  of  Oxford  ;  and  besides  founding 
an  Arabic  lecture,  he  presented  the  University  with  a  large  collection  of 
coins  and  manuscripts.  In  August,  1633,  he  was  translated  from  London 
to  the  See  of  Canterbury ;  and  he  was  no  sooner  in  possession  of  the 
archiepiscopal  chair  than  he  commenced  his  strenuous  but  impolitic  and 
disastrous  attempt  at  establishing  an  uniformity  in  religious  worship.  On 
the  breaking  out  of  the  disturbances  which  preceded  the  Civil  war,  his 
palace  at  Lambeth  was  assaulted  by  the  London  apprentices  ;  but  he  himself 
escaped  their  fury  by  retiring  to  Whitehall.  In  1640,  he  was  impeached  of 
high  treason,  and  committed  to  the  Tower,  where  he  was  imprisoned  upwards 
of  three  years.  His  enemies  then  brought  him  to  public  trial ;  but  finding  that 
the  Lords  were  unwilling  to  pronounce  him  guilty,  they  proceeded  against 
him  by  a  bill  of  attainder,  and  he  was,  in  consequence,  beheaded  on  Tower 
Hill,  January  the  10th,  1644.  He  was  then  in  the  seventy-first  year  of  his 
age  ;  and  the  firm  and  dignified  composure  with  which  he  resigned  himself 
to  his  fate  evinced  a  perfect  consciousness  in  the  rectitude  of  his  own  princi- 
ples, however  they  had  been  arbitrarily  exercised,  or  however  contrary  they 
really  were  to  the  true  interests  of  mankind33.  His  remains  were  interred  in 
the  Church  of  Allhallows,  Barking;  but  after  the  Restoration  they  were 
removed  to  the  Chapel  of  St.  John's  College,  Oxford. 

Leonard  Mmve,  S.  T.  P.  a  native  of  Rendlesham,  in  Suffolk,  who  had 
been  educated  in  Peter  House  College,  Cambridge,  of  which  he  was  elected 
Fellow  in  July,  1598,  and  Master  in  November,  1617,  was  the  next  Bishop 

31  "  Athens  Oxonienses,"  vol.  iii.  col.  124.  3*  "  Memorials  of  English  Affairs,"  p.  32. 

33  For  a  summary  view  of  the  character  of  Archbishop  Laud,  see  the  "  History,"  &c.  "  of  the 
Metropolitical  Church  of  Canterbury,"  pp.  89,  90. 


WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 


of  this  See.  He  was  a  Prebendary  of  Wells,  and  had  been  Chaplain  to 
Prince  Charles,  whom  he  accompanied  into  Spain,  on  his  ill  advised  and 
romantic  visit  to  the  Infanta.  In  June,  1625,  he  was  chosen  Master  of 
Trinity  College,  Cambridge ;  "  whereby,"  saith  Fuller,  "  he  deserved  well, 
shewing-  what  might  be  done  in  five  years  by  good  husbandry,  to  disengage 
that  foundation  from  a  great  debt34."  He  was  elected  to  this  Diocess  on 
July  the  24th,  1628,  and  consecrated  on  the  7th  of  September  following,  at 
Croydon.  Death  bereaved  him  of  his  new  honours  within  twelve  months, 
September  the  3d,  1629 ;  and  he  was  buried  at  Chiswick,  where  he  expired. 
'•  He  had  the  reputation  of  a  good  scholar,  a  grave  preacher,  a  mild  man,  and 
one  of  gentil  deportment35." 

Walter  Curie,  or  Curll,  D.  D.  the  next  Bishop,  was  a  native  of  Hatfield, 
in  Hertfordshire,  and  probably  the  son  of  William  Curll,  Esq.  Auditor  of  the 
Court  of  Wards  to  Queen  Elizabeth,  who  has  a  monument  in  Hatfield 
Church.  He  was  admitted  a  student  at  Peter  House,  Cambridge,  in  1592: 
he  afterwards  travelled  four  years,  and  in  1602  entered  into  holy  orders ; 
about  the  same  time  he  was  elected  Fellow  of  his  College.  In  1606  he  pro- 
ceeded B.  D.  and  in  1612,  Doctor  of  Divinity.  Being  patronized  by  the 
Cecils,  he  was  promoted  in  the  Church,  and  became  Chaplain  to  James  the 
First,  who  advanced  him  to  the  Deanery  of  Lichfield  in  June  1621.  He  was 
made  Bishop  of  Rochester  in  September,  1628,  and  in  the  following  year 
was  translated  to  this  See;  being  elected  on  the  29th  of  September,  and 
confirmed  on  December  the  4th,  1629.  Three  years  afterwards  he  was 
translated  to  Winchester,  and  he  was  also  appointed  Lord  Almoner  to  Hit 
King,  Charles  the  First.  He  afterwards  suffered  considerably  in  the  King's 
cause,  and  was  among  the  royalists  who  were  besieged  at  Winchester;  on 
the  surrender  of  which  city  he  retired  to  Soberton,  in  Hampshire,  where  he 
lies  buried.  Wood  states  that  his  decease  happened  either  in  the  spring  or 
summer  time  of  1647;  but  Dr.  Richardson,  in  his  additions  to  Godwin,  says 
about  1650.  He  also  affirms  that  he  was  not  only  deprived  of  his  episcopal 
revenues,  but  also  of  his  patrimonial  inheritance 30. 

,+  "  Worthies,"  vol.  ii.  p.  333.  3S  Ibid. 

~'6  "  De  Prtesulibus,"  p.  242,  edit.  1743. 


BISHOP  PIERS,  OR  PIERCE.  /  9 

On  the  translation  of  Curll  to  Winchester,  William  Piers  or  Pierce,  D.  D. 
was  raised  to  this  See.  Wood  states  that  he  was  born  in  August,  1580,  in 
the  parish  of  All  Saints,  Oxford,  being  the  son  of  William  Piers,  "  a  haber- 
dasher of  hats,  nephew  or  near  of  kin  to  Archbishop  Piers,  who  was  a 
native  of  South  Hinxsey,  in  Berkshire 37.  At  the  age  of  sixteen  young  Piers 
became  student  of  Christ  Church,  and  having  proceeded  in  Divinity,  he  was 
in  1618,  made  Canon  of  that  College.  "  In  1621,  22,  23,  he  did  undergo 
the  office  of  Vice  Chancellor  of  Oxford,  wherein  behaving  himself  very  for- 
ward and  too  officious  against  such  that  were  then  called  Anti-ar'minians,  he 
gained  the  good  will  of  Dr.  Laud,  then  a  rising  star  in  the  Court,  and  so, 
consequently,  preferment38."  On  the  9th  of  June,  1622,  he  was  installed 
Dean  of  Peterborough ;  and  he  was  enthroned  Bishop  of  that  See  on  the 
14th  of  November,  1630.  In  November,  1632,  he  was  elected  to  this 
Diocess,  and  being  confirmed  on  December  the  13th,  had  his  temporalities 
restored  on  the  20th  of  the  same  mouth.  On  the  abolition  of  episcopacy 
by  the  Parliament,  he  was  deprived  and  committed,  with  other  Bishops,  to 
the  Tower.  After  his  release  he  retired  to  Cuddesden,  near  Oxford,  where 
he  continued  to  reside  on  his  own  estate,  and  married  a  second  wife.  After 
the  Restoration  he  returned  to  his  See,  "  and  by  the  great  fines  and  renew- 
ings,"  says  Wood,  "  that  then  came  in,  he  was  rewarded  in  some  degree  for 
his  sufferings ;  but  his  said  second  wife,  too  young  and  cunning  for  him,  got 
what  she  could  from  the  children  he  had  by  his  first  wife,  and  wheedling  him 
to  Walthamstow,  in  Essex,  got  thousands  of  pounds  and  his  plate  from  him, 
(as  the  common  report  at  Wells  is),  which  of  right  should  have  gone  to  his 
said  children30."     He  died  and  was  buried  in  April,  1670,  in  his  seventy-first 

37  "  Athenae  Oxonienses,"  vol.  iv.  col.  839.  38  Ibid. 

39  Ibid.  "  As  for  his  actions,"  says  Wood,  "  done  in  his  Diocess  of  Bath  and  Wells  before 
the  grand  rebellion  broke  out,  which  were  very  offensive  to  the  puritanical  party  (who  often 
protested  that  he  brought  innovations  therein,  and  into  his  Church,  suppressed  preaching, 
lectures,  and  persecuted  such  who  refused  to  rail  in  the  Lordes  table,  &c.  in  his  diocess),  let  one 
of  them,  named  William  Prynne,  speak ;  yet  the  reader  may  be  pleased  to  suspend  his  judgment, 
and  not  to  believe  all  which  that  partial,  crop-eared,  and  stigmatized  person  saith." — He  then 
contradicts  a  passage  in  Prynne's  "  Canterbury's  Doom,"  relating  to  Bishop  Piers's  application 


70 


WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 


year,  at  Walthamstow,  where  a  monument  was  erected  for  him  in  the 
chancel  of  the  parish  Church. 

Robert  Creyghton,  or  Crichton,  S.  T.  P.  who  was  born  in  the  northern 
part  of  Scotland,  and  by  his  mother's  side  collaterally  related  to  the  Stuarts, 
succeeded  Bishop  Piers.  He  was  educated  at  Westminster  School,  and 
elected  thence  to  Trinity  College,  Cambridge,  in  1613,  where  he  proceeded 
M.  A.  in  1628,  in  which  year  he  was  appointed  both  Public  Orator  and 
Greek  Professor  of  that  University.  During  the  short  vacancy  of  this  See, 
in  1632,  on  the  translation  of  Curll  to  Winchester,  he  was  appointed 
Treasurer  of  Wells  by  Archbishop  Abbot.  In  1637  he  was  advanced  to 
the  Deanery  of  St.  Burian's,  in  Cornwall ;  but  he  was  bereaved  of  his  prefer- 
ments on  the  eve  of  the  Civil  war,  during  which,  according  to  Wood,  he 
suffered  very  much  for  the  royal  cause,  and  retiring  with  his  Majesty  to 
Oxford,  became  one  of  his  Chaplains  40.  He  was  afterwards  an  exile  with 
Charles  the  Second,  before  whom,  "  being  Chaplain  at  the  Hague,  he 
preached  very  liberally  against  the  Presbyterians  and  the  murderers  of  King 
Charles  I.41"     In  1646  he  had  a  grant,  or  promise,  of  the  Deanery  of  Wells, 

to  a  certain  knight  of  his  acquaintance  at  Westminster,  "  intreating  his  favour  to  procure  any 
Iect.  or  curate's  place  for  him,  though  never  so  mean,  to  keep  him  from  starving.  Whereupon 
the  knight  minded  him  of  his  former  speeches  and  cruelty  towards  other  lecturers  and  ministers, 
whom  (as  he  added)  he  reduced  to  extreme  poverty,  wishing  him  to  take  special  notice  how  God 
had  justly  requited  him  in  his  own  kind;"  &C. 

In  a  petition  (quoted  by  Bliss,  ibid.  col.  841,  from  Bishop  Kennet)  from  Dr.  Bastwick, 
Mr.  Burton,  and  Mr.  Prynne,  to  Charles  I.  complaining  of  the  many  innovations  of  the  clergy, 
they  say  that  Bishop  Piers  "  within  three  years  last  past  hath  most  unjustly,  several  times,  one 
after  another,  excommunicated  the  churchwardens  of  the  parish  of  Beckington,  within  the  county 
of  Somerset,  and  Diocess  of  Bath  and  Wells,  for  refusing  to  remove  the  communion  table  in  the 
parish  church  there,  from  the  place  where  it  antiently  stood,  decently  rayled  in  with  wainscot,  to 
rayle  it  altar-wise  against  the  east  end  of  the  chancel;  and  likewise  threatened  to  excommunicate 
the  churchwardens  of  the  parish  of  Batcombe,  in  the  said  county,  for  not  blotting  out  of  their 
church  wall,  upon  his  commande,  this  sacred  Scripture  thereon  written  : — '  Isaiah  lviii.  13,  14. 
Tf  thai  turn  away  thy  foot  from  the  Sabbath,'  &c.  calling  it,  most  blasphemously,  '  a  Jewish 
place  [?  piece]  of  Scripture,  not  tit  to  be  suffered  in  the  church  ;'  and  upon  their  refusal  to  oblite- 
rate it,  he  sent  his  chaplain,  with  a  plaisterer,  to  see  it  wiped  out,  who  executed  this  his 
command." 

♦°  "  Athenac  Oxonienses,"  vol.  ii.  Pasti,  col.  444.  41  Ibid. 


BISHOPS  CREYGHTON  AND  MEWS.  77 

and  on  the  Restoration,  in  1660,  he  obtained  possession.  About  ten  years 
afterwards  he  was  elected  to  this  See,  viz.  on  the  25th  of  May,  1670;  and 
he  was  consecrated,  at  Lambeth,  on  the  19th  of  the  following  month.  He 
died  on  the  21st  of  November,  1672,  being  then  in  his  seventy-ninth  year, 
and  he  was  buried  in  this  Cathedral.  Whilst  residing  at  the  Hague  he 
published  a  Latin  translation,  from  the  Greek,  of  Sylvester  Suguropolis's 
"History  of  the  Council  of  Florence." 

Peter  Mews,  LL.  D.  the  successor  of  Creyghton,  was  a  native  of  Dorset- 
shire, probably  of  Purse  Caundell,  the  residence  of  his  father.  Having  been 
taught  the  rudiments  of  language  at  Merchant  Taylors'  School,  in  London ; 
he  was  elected  thence  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  in  1637,  to  St.  John's  College, 
Oxford,  of  which  he,  eventually,  became  Fellow  and  President.  In  1641  he 
was  elected  B.  A.,  and  in  the  following  year,  on  the  breaking  out  of  the  Civil 
war,  he  took  up  arms  for  the  royal  cause.  He  proceeded  in  Arts  in  1645, 
but  was  ejected  from  the  University  by  the  Parliamentary  Visitors  in  1648 ; 
after  which  he  joined  the  royalists  in  Scotland.  When  the  King's  affairs 
became  desperate  he  went  abroad,  and  "  did  undergo  many  troubles  and 
dangers42."  After  the  Restoration,  viz.  in  July,  1660,  he  was  made  Arch- 
deacon of  Huntingdon,  and  in  December  following  created  Doctor  of  Laws; 
about  the  same  time  he  was  appointed  one  of  the  King's  Chaplains.  Besides 
several  intermediate  promotions,  he  had  the  "  golden  Prebendship,"  as 
Wood  calls  it,  of  St.  David's  bestowed  upon  him  in  1667 ;   and  in  1669, 

1670,  (in  which  year  he  was  advanced  to  the  Deanery  of  Rochester),  and 

1671,  he  filled,  "  with  great  credit  to  himself,"  the  office  of  Vice  Chancellor 
of  Oxford.  In  December,  1672,  he  was  elected  to  this  See,  and  he  was  con- 
secrated, at  Lambeth,  on  the  following  Shrove  Sunday,  February  the  9th, 
1672-3.  During  the  twelve  years  of  his  episcopacy  here  "  he  was  much 
beloved  and  admired  for  his  hospitality,  generosity,  justice,  and  frequent 
preaching43."  On  the  22d  of  November,  1684,  he  was  translated  to  Win- 
chester; and  in  June,  1685,  although  sixty-four  years  of  age,  he  "appeared 
in  actual  service  for  his  Majesty  King  James  II.  against  the  rebels,  conducted 
by  James,  Duke  of  Monmouth ;  which  being  very  signal,  his  Majesty  was 

**  "  Athens  Oxonienses,"  vol.  iv.  col.  888.  43  Ibid,  col.  889. 


78  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

graciously  pleased  to  reward  him  with  a  rich  medal44."  On  the  abdication, 
however,  of  his  bigoted  master,  this  Prelate  took  the  oaths  to  King-  William, 
and  thus  retained  his  Bishopric  till  his  decease,  on  the  9th  of  November, 
17(H) :  he  was  interred  in  Winchester  Cathedral. 

The  next  Bishop  was  Thomas  Ken,  or  Kenn,  D.  D.  the  son  of  a  London 
attorney,  who  was  descended  from  a  collateral  branch  of  an  ancient  family  of 
that  name,  which  had  been  seated  for  several  centuries  at  Kenn  Place,  in 
Somersetshire.  He  was  born  at  Little  Berkhampstead,  in  Hertfordshire, 
in  July,  1637,  and  received  his  early  education  at  Wykeham's  school  at 
Winchester.  Thence  removing  to  New  College,  Oxford,  he  became  Pro- 
bationary Fellow  on  that  foundation  in  1657.  In  1661  he  proceeded  B.  A. 
and  in  1666,  being  then  M.  A.,  was  chosen  Fellow  of  Winchester  College. 
In  1674  he  travelled  to  Rome,  in  company  with  his  nephew,  Isaac  Walton 
the  younger,  (afterwards  Chaplain  to  Bishop  Seth  Ward),  and  after  his  return 
proceeded  in  divinity,  becoming  B.  D.  in  1678,  and  D.  D.  in  the  following 
year.  Soon  afterwards  he  was  appointed  Chaplain  to  Mary,  Princess  of 
Orange,  whom  he  accompanied  to  Holland;  but  having  lost  the  favour  of 
her  consort  by  insisting  on  the  marriage  of  one  of  his  officers  with  a  young 
lady  of  the  Princess's  train,  whom  he  had  seduced  under  that  promise,  he 
returned  to  England.  He  was  subsequently  appointed  to  accompany  Lord 
Dartmouth  to  Tangier,  in  the  quality  of  Chaplain ;  and  on  his  return,  in 
April,  1684,  was  immediately  made  Chaplain  to  his  Majesty,  Charles  the 
Second,  by  an  order  of  the  Kiug  himself.  In  the  November  following  he 
was  nominated  to  this  Bishopric,  and  he  was  consecrated,  at  Lambeth,  on  the 
25th  of  January,  1684-5;  but  the  King's  illness  intervening,  he  did  not 
receive  his  temporalities  till  after  the  accession  of  James  the  Second.  Pre- 
viously to  Charles's  decease,  Bishop  Kenn  constantly  attended  him,  and  did 
his  utmost  to  "  awaken  his  conscience ;"  speaking,  as  Bishop  Burnet  states, 
"  with  great  elevation  of  thought  and  expression,  and  like  a  man  inspired." 
During  James's  reign,  some  attempts  were  made  to  seduce  him  to  the  popish 

**  "  Athens  Oxonienses,"  vol.  iv.  col.  889.  Bishop  Mews  is  said  to  have  commanded  the 
artillery  in  the  battle  of  Sedgemoor,  which  proved  so  disastrous  to  the  Duke  of  Monmouth  and 
his  ill-fated  partisans. 


BISHOPS  KENN  AND  KIDDER.  79 

party,  but  fruitlessly  ;  and  he  was  one  of  the  seven  Bishops  who  were  com- 
mitted to  the  Tower  for  opposing  the  public  reading  of  the  King's  celebrated 
Declaration  of  Indulgence,  in  June,  1688.  Though  thus  averse,  however, 
to  papistical  ascendancy,  he  could  not  be  induced  to  take  the  new  oaths 
of  allegiance  to  King  William,  and  was,  in  consequence  deprived  of  his 
Bishopric  on  the  1st  of  February,  1690-91.  He  afterwards  retired  to  Long- 
leat,  in  Wiltshire,  the  seat  of  his  friend  and  patron,  Lord  Viscount  Wey- 
mouth, where  he  died  on  the  19th  of  March,  1710-11.  It  is  said  that  he  had 
for  many  years,  when  travelling,  carried  his  shroud  in  his  portmanteau; 
and  that  he  put  it  on  a  few  days  before  his  decease,  to  prevent  the  stripping 
of  his  body.  He  was  interred  in  the  church  at  Frome,  near  Longleat.  His 
works  were  published  in  four  volumes,  in  1721 :  they  chiefly  consist  of 
Sermons  and  Devotional  Pieces,  in  verse  and  prose.  Notwithstanding  the 
steady  refusal  of  Bishop  Kenn  to  take  the  required  oaths,  the  Queen  enter- 
tained so  much  respect  for  his  character,  that  she  granted  him  au  annual 
pension  of  two  hundred  pounds. 

On  the  deprivation  of  Bishop  Kenn,  King  William  nominated  Dr.  Wil- 
liam Beveridge,  afterwards  Bishop  of  St.  Asaph,  to  this  See;  but  on  his 
refusing  to  accept  it,  possibly  from  some  conscientious  scruple  in  regard  to 
the  late  Bishop,  the  Queen,  on  the  13th  of  June,  1691,  nominated  Richard 
Kidder,  S.  T.  P.  Dean  of  Peterborough,  who  was  accordingly  consecrated 
on  the  30th  of  August  following,  at  the  Church  of  St.  Mary-le-Bow,  in 
London.  He  was  born,  according  to  one  account,  at  Brighthelmston,  in 
Sussex  ;  and  to  others,  at  East  Grinsted,  in  the  same  county.  In  June,  1649, 
he  was  admitted  sizar  in  Emanuel  College,  Cambridge,  of  which  he  became 
Fellow  in  1655  ;  and  proceeded  A.  M.  in  the  following  year.  After  several 
intermediate  preferments,  (from  one  of  which,  Stanground,  in  Huntingdon- 
shire, he  was  ejected  for  non-conformity,  in  1662,  under  the  St.  Bartholomew 
Act,)  he  was  promoted  to  the  Deanery  of  Peterborough,  in  October,  1689; 
on  the  7th  of  which  month  he  had  taken  his  degree  as  D.D.  In  1691,  as 
mentioned  above,  he  was  advanced  to  this  Diocess,  which  he  continued  to 
govern  till  his  melancholy  death ;  he  being  killed  in  his  bed,  with  his  lady, 
in  the  episcopal  Palace  of  Wells,  by  the  fall  of  a  stack  of  chimneys  that  was 


80 


WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 


blown  down  by  the  wind,  in  the  great  storm  which  produced  such  extensive 
devastation  in  the  night  of  the  26th  and  27th  of  November,  1703.  He  was 
author  of  various  works ;  the  principal  of  which  was  a  "  Demonstration  of 
the  Messias,"  printed  first  in  three  volumes,  8vo.  and  afterwards  in  folio ; 
and  a  "  Commentary  on  the  Pentateuch,"  in  two  volumes,  8vo.  In  the  brief 
notice  which  Todd  has  given  of  this  Prelate,  he  says — "  The  world  has  been 
greatly  benefited  by  his  excellent  writings  °." 

George  Hooper,  D.  D.  a  native  of  Grimlev,  in  Worcestershire,  succeeded 
Bishop  Kidder.  He  was  born  November  the  18th,  1640;  and  having  been 
first  admitted  at  St.  Paul's  School,  was  afterwards  removed  to  Westminster, 
whence  he  was  elected  to  Christ  Church,  Oxford.  He  distinguished  himself 
in  the  University  as  a  most  accomplished  scholar;  "directing  his  studies 
with  success  not  only  to  Philosophy,  Mathematics,  the  Greek  and  Roman 
Antiquity,  but  to  the  more  difficult  attainments  of  Eastern  Learning;  in  the 
pursuit  of  which  he  was  assisted  by  that  eminent  Orientalist,  Dr.  Pocock46." 
In  1672  he  became  Chaplain  to  Dr.  Morley,  Bishop  of  Winchester;  and  in 
the  following  year  proceeded  B.  D. ;  shortly  after  which,  Archbishop  Shel- 
don, with  the  assent  of  the  former  Prelate,  appointed  him  his  Chaplain,  and 
collated  him  to  the  rectory  of  Lambeth.  In  1677  he  took  the  degree  of  D.D. 
and  in  the  same  year  was  advanced  to  the  Precentorship  of  Exeter;  in 
which  Cathedral  he  also  became  a  Canon  Residentiary.  About  1680  he  was 
appointed  Chaplain  to  Charles  the  Second ;  and  by  the  command  of  his 
successor,  James,  he  attended,  in  1685,  the  ill  fated  Duke  of  Monmouth  both 
on  the  evening  before  his  execution,  and  on  the  scaffold.  After  the  glorious 
Revolution,  in  1688,  he  was  appointed  Chaplain  to  William  and  Mary ;  the 
latter,  to  whom  he  had  been  Almoner,  when  Princess  of  Orange,  during 
some  part  of  her  residence  in  Holland,  promoted  him  to  the  Deanery  of 
Canterbury,  in  July,  1691,  on  the  translation  of  Dr.  Sharp  to  the  Arch- 
bishopric of  York.  In  February,  1700-1,  he  was  chosen  Prolocutor  of  the 
Lower  House  of  Convocation,  the  independence  of  which  he  strongly  de- 

is  Vide  "  Some  Account  of  the  Deans  of  Canterbury,"  p.  170  ;  note  k.     A  manuscript  Memoir 
of  Bishop  Kidder,  written  by  himself,  is  in  the  possession  of  some  gentleman  at  Wells. 
*°  Todd's  "  Account,"  p.  169. 


BISHOPS  HOOPER,  WYNNE,  AND  WILLES.  81 

fended  during  the  famous  dispute  respecting  the  Rights  of  Convocation. 
In  the  same  year  he  was  offered,  but  refused  to  accept,  the  Primacy  of 
Ireland.  Queen  Anne,  although  against  his  inclination,  preferred  him  to 
the  See  of  St.  Asaph,  in  1703;  but  in  the  following  year  he  was  translated 
to  this  Diocess,  in  which  he  was  confirmed  on  the  14th  of  March,  1703-4. 
He  presided  here  upwards  of  twenty-three  years ;  but,  having  attained  the 
great  age  of  eighty-seven,  he  died  at  Barkley,  in  Somersetshire,  on  the  6th 
of  September,  1727;  and  was  buried  in  this  Cathedral.  Dr.  Coney,  who 
was  Prebendary  of  Wells  and  Rector  of  Bath,  has  recorded  a  remark  of  the 
celebrated  Dr.  Busby,  in  his  account  of  Bishop  Hooper,  annexed  to  an 
edition  of  his  own  Sermons,  which  he  published  in  1730,  namely — "  That  he 
was  the  best  scholar  and  the  finest  gentleman,  and  would  make  the  completest 
Bishop  that  ever  was  educated  at  Westminster  School."  He  was  greatly 
beloved  by  his  clergy;  and  his  biographer,  Todd,  who  has  successfully 
rescued  his  memory  from  the  charges  of  craft,  ambition,  and  rapaciousness, 
too  hastily  brought  against  him  by  Bishops  Burnet  and  Atterbury,  affirms 
that,  "  His  character  will  continue  to  command  respect  and  reverence  till 
the  value  of  learning  and  religion  is  forgotten  or  despised."  His  works, 
which  exhibit  "  splendid  proofs"  of  his  extensive  erudition,  were  collected 
and  published  at  Oxford,  in  1757,  in  one  volume,  folio. 

John  Wynne,  S.  T.  P.  who  had  been  created  Bishop  of  St.  Asaph  in  1714, 
was  translated  to  this  See  on  the  demise  of  Bishop  Hooper,  in  1727.  He 
was  much  respected  for  his  virtues;  and,  after  governing  his  Diocess  for 
sixteen  years,  died  at  Soughton  (his  patrimonial  seat),  in  Flintshire,  on  the 
15th  of  July,  1743,  in  the  seventy-sixth  year  of  his  age.  He  was  buried  in 
the  Church  at  Northop,  or  Llan  Eurgain,  in  the  above  county. 

Edward  Willes,  S.T.P.  the  brother  of  the  Lord  Chief  Justice  Willes, 
was  translated  to  this  See  in  September,  1743,  from  St.  David's ;  to  which 
he  had  been  advanced,  in  the  preceding  year,  from  the  Deanery  of  Lincoln. 
He  held  the  office  of  Joint  Decypherer  to  the  King,  with  his  son  Edward 
Willes,  Esq.  He  died  at  his  residence,  in  Hill  Street,  Berkeley  Scpiare,  on 
the  24th  of  November,  1773,  in  his  eightieth  year;  and  was  interred  in 
South  Audley  Street  Chapel. 

M 


82  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

Charles  Moss,  S.  T.  P.  and  F.  R.  S.  was  next,  like  his  predecessor  Willes, 
translated  from  St.  David's  to  this  See.  He  was  of  a  Norfolk  family,  and 
nephew  of  Dr.  Robert  Moss,  Dean  of  Ely,  who,  dying  in  March,  1729, 
bequeathed  him  the  bulk  of  his  fortune ;  at  which  time  he  was  a  student  of 
Cains  College,  Cambridge,  and  was  afterwards  elected  a  fellow  there.  He 
took  the  degree  of  B.  A.  in  1731 ;  proceeded  M.  A.  in  1735,  and  S.T.  P. 
in  1747.  His  preferments  were  numerous:  he  became  Archdeacon  of  Col- 
chester, in  1750,  Prebendary  of  Salisbury,  and  Rector  of  St.  James's.  In 
1759  he  was  instituted  Rector  of  St.  George's,  Hanover  Square;  and  from 
that  year  till  17G2,  he  preached  the  Boyle's  Lecture.  He  was  consecrated 
Bishop  of  St.  David's,  at  Lambeth,  on  the  30th  of  April,  1766;  and  trans- 
lated in  the  beginning  of  the  year  1774  to  this  See,  which  he  continued  to 
govern  till  his  decease,  on  April  the  13th,  1802,  in  the  ninety-second  year  of 
his  age.  He  was  the  oldest  spiritual  peer  in  the  House  of  Lords,  having 
sat  on  the  bench  of  Bishops  nearly  thirty-six  years.  From  his  general 
urbanity,  and  the  simplicity  of  his  manners,  he  was  much  esteemed  through- 
out his  Diocess ;  and  his  piety  and  learning  secured  to  him  the  veneration 
of  the  Christian  and  the  scholar.  He  had  amassed  a  private  fortune  amount- 
ing to  one  hundred  and  forty  thousand  pounds;  of  which  he  bequeathed 
twenty  thousand  pounds  to  his  only  daughter,  the  wife  of  Dr.  King,  after- 
wards Bishop  of  Oxford;  and  the  residue,  independently  of  a  few  charitable 
legacies,  to  his  son  Dr.  Moss,  who  preceded  Dr.  King  in  the  See  just 
named.  Bishop  Moss  was  the  author  of  a  few  Sermons ;  and  also  of  the 
"  Sequel  of  the  Trial  of  the  Witnesses ;"  in  answer  to  Chubb's  tract  on  the 
Resurrection,  in  reply  to  Bishop  Sherlock's  "  Tryal  of  Witnesses,"  which 
had  been  written  in  refutation  of  Woolston,  in  1729.  The  Sequel  was  first 
published  under  the  title  of  "The  Evidence  of  the  Resurrection  cleared,"  &c. 
in  1744;  at  which  time  Dr.  Moss  was  Sherlock's  Chaplain.  He  was  buried 
in  South  Audley  Street  Chapel,  in  London 4f'. 

Richard  Beadon,  D.  D.  and  F.  A.  S.  was  translated  from  Gloucester  to 
this  See  on  the  decease  of  Bishop  Moss.     He  was  born  in  the  year  1737; 

46  It  is  remarkable  that  in  three  different  accounts,  now  before  the  writer,  of  the  death  of  this 
Prelate,  the  place  of  his  decease  is  stated  differently ;  one  fixing  it  in  Great  George  Street, 
W  estminster ;  another  in  Grosvenor  Square;  and  the  third  in  Grosvenor  Place. 


BISHOPS  BEADON  AND  LAW.  83 

and,  having  received  his  early  education  at  the  grammar  school  in  Tiverton, 
was  removed  thence  to  St.  John's  College,  Cambridge ;  of  which  he  became 
a  fellow,  having  previously  taken  the  degree  of  B.  A.  in  1758,  and  M.  A.  in 
1761.  He  was  also,  in  1768,  appointed  Orator  of  his  University.  In  1769 
he  proceeded  B.  D. ;  and  in  1775  was  advanced  to  the  Archdeaconry  of 
London.  In  1780  he  became  Doctor  in  Divinity;  and  in  the  following  year 
was  elected  Master  of  Jesus  College.  The  present  Duke  of  Gloucester 
was  entrusted  to  Dr.  Beadon's  peculiar  care  at  Cambridge ;  and  his  judicious 
conduct,  whilst  tutor  to  that  Prince,  "  secured  the  royal  favour,  and  paved 
the  way  to  his  subsequent  high  eminence  in  the  Church."  In  1789  he  was 
promoted  to  the  See  of  Gloucester,  which  he  continued  to  govern  till  his 
translation  to  Bath  and  Wells,  in  1802.  He  died  at  Bath,  on  the  21st  of 
April,  1824 ;  and  was  buried  in  this  Cathedral  on  the  30th  of  the  same  month. 

The  present  Bishop  of  this  See  is  George  Henry  Law,  LL.  D.  who,  in 
June,  1 824,  was  translated  hither  from  Chester ;  to  which  Diocess  he  had 
been  promoted  in  1812,  on  the  translation  of  Dr.  Sparke  to  the  Bishopric  of 
Ely.  This  Prelate  was  the  thirteenth  and  youngest  son  of  the  late  learned 
Dr.  Edmund  Law,  Bishop  of  Carlisle,  and  brother  of  the  late  John  Law, 
Bishop  of  Elphin,  Ireland;  and  of  Edward  Law,  Lord  Chief  Justice  of  the 
King's  Bench;  by  the  powerful  interest  of  the  latter  of  whom  he  was 
advanced  to  the  episcopal  chair.  He  was  educated  at  Queen's  College, 
Cambridge;  and  becoming  B.  A.  in  1781,  proceeded  M.  A.  in  1784,  and 
some  years  afterwards  D.  D.  His  father  advanced  him  to  a  prebendal  stall 
in  the  Cathedral  of  Carlisle.  His  published  works  are  principally  Sermons 
on  the  Evidences  and  Doctrine  of  Christianity.  The  great  estimation  with 
which  his  persuasive  eloquence  is  regarded,  may  be  inferred  from  his 
numerous  Discourses  for  the  benefit  of  the  Public  Charities  of  London. 
Considering  the  long  continued  illness  of  the  late  Prelate,  and  consequent 
relaxation  of  authority  in  this  Diocess,  it  will  require  all  the  zeal  and  active 
exertions  of  the  present  worthy  Diocesan  to  restore  the  established  discipline 
to  its  proper  powers  and  authority.  Lukewarmness  and  inattention  in  the 
higher  orders  of  the  clergy  are  calculated  to  give  the  "  vantage  ground"  to 
the  diligent  agents  of  Catholicism  and  Sectarianism. 


84  WELLS  CATHEDRAL, 


HISTORICAL  NOTICES  OF  THE  FABRIC;    ITS  FOUNDATION,  SUCCESSIVE  ADDITIONS, 
ALTERATIONS,  AND  PRESENT  CONDITION. 


Although  it  is  evident,  from  the  information  detailed  in  the  preceding 
chapters,  that  the  Cathedral  establishment  at  Wells,  both  in  the  Saxon  and 
the  Norman  times,  must  have  been  very  considerable,  and  the  buildings  pro- 
portionably  extensive,  yet  there  is  no  part  of  the  architecture  at  the  present 
time  that  can  be  assigned  to  an  earlier  period  than  the  twelfth  century.  Of 
the  Collegiate  Church,  reputed  to  have  been  founded  by  King  Ina,  in  704,  we 
know  nothing;  nor  yet  of  the  Cathedral,  immediately  succeeding  it  (said  to 
have  been  founded  in  Bishop  Wlfelm's  time),  the  earliest  certain  account 
of  the  erection  of  any  buildings  here  being  of  those  attributed  to  Bishop 
Giso,  in  the  reign  of  the  Norman  William.  "  He  thought  good,"  says 
Bishop  Godwin,  on  the  authority  of  the  Canon  of  Wells,  "  to  augment  the 
number  of  his  Canons;  and,  for  their  better  intertainement,  built  them  a 
cloyster,  a  hall,  and  a  dorter,  or  place  for  their  lodging '."  Those  edifices 
were  destroyed  by  the  next  Bishop,  John  de  Villula,  who  raised  a  palace  in 
their  place;  but,  having  transferred  the  seat  of  his  episcopacy  to  Bath,  he 
suffered  the  Cathedral  at  Wells  to  go  to  ruin ;  and  it  seems  to  have  become 
still  more   progressively  deteriorated  till  after  the  composition  made,   in 

1  "  Catalogue  of  English  Bishops,"  p.  361. — "  Auxit  numcrum  Canonicorum  in  Ecclesia  Wel- 
jensi ;  fecitque  eis  Claustrum,  Dortuitorium  et  Refectorium,  et  uuum  de  eis  nomine  Isaac  fecit 
eis  Prajpositum." — "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  559. 


PROGRESS  OF  ITS  ERECTION.  85 

King  Stephen's  reign,  between  the  two  Chapters  by  Bishop  Robert,  who 
substantially  repaired,  or  rather  rebuilt,  the  falling  fabric;  and  dedicated  it 
anew  in  the  presence  of  the  Bishops  of  Sarum,  Worcester,  and  Hereford 2. 
The  present  Church,  however,  has  been  stated  to  derive  its  origin  from  the 
munificence  of  Bishop  Joceline  de  Welles,  in  the  early  part  of  the  reign  of 
King  Henry  the  Third.  That  Prelate,  indeed,  whatever  be  the  fact  in  this 
respect,  may  be  regarded  as  fully  deserving  of  the  character  given  of  him 
by  the  Canon  of  Wells  ;  namely,  "  Hie  sibi  similem  anteriorem  non  habuit, 
nee  hue  usque  visus  est  habere  sequentem3." 

Godwin's  words,  in  speaking  of  this  Bishop,  are  remarkable.  After  men- 
tioning his  enlargement  of  the  Cathedral  establishment  and  revenues,  by  the 
founding  of  new  prebends,  annexation  of  manors,  &c.  he  says — "  Moreover, 
in  building,  hee  bestowed  inestimable  sums  of  money.  He  built  a  stately 
chapel  in  his  Pallace  at  Wels,  and  an  other  at  Owky  [Wokey],  as  also 
many  other  edifices  in  the  same  houses.  And  lastly,  the  Church  of  Welles 
itselfe,  being  now  ready  to  fall  to  the  ground,  notwithstanding  the  great  cost 
bestowed  upon  it  by  Bishop  Robert,  he  pulled  down  the  greatest  part  of  it, 
to  witte,  al  the  West  end,  built  it  a  new  from  the  very  foundation,  and 
hallowed  or  dedicated  it  October  23,  1239  V  In  his  Latin  work,  this 
writer  further  says,  that  Joceline  took  down  the  greatest  part  of  the  Church 
from  the  presbytery  westward,  and  rebuilt  it  on  a  more  spacious  and 
beautiful  plan,  with  hewn  stone  curiously  sculptured,  so  as  to  produce  a 
very  noble  and  admirable  effect ". 

N 

At  what  period  Bishop  Joceline  commenced  his  work  is  uncertain ;  but 


*  Vide  Chap.  II.  p.  30.       3  "  Ang.  Sacr."  pars  i.  p.  564.       4  Godwin's  "  Catalogue,"  p.  366. 

s  "  Ecclesiam  deinde  ipsaru  Wellensem  jamjam  collapsurara  (quamvis  in  ejus  reparatione 
iugentes  non  ita  pridem  sumptus  fecerat  Robertus  Episcopus)  egregie  refecit  ac  restituit,  vel 
potius  novam  condidit.  Nam  partem  multo  maximum,  quicquid  nimirum  presbyterio  est  ab 
Occidente,  demolitus  est,  ut  cum  ampliorem  turn  pulchriorew  redderet,  structure  excitata  ex 
polito  lapide  aftabre  insculpto,  augustissima  et  spectatu  dedicavit  Octobris  vicesimo  tertio, 
1239." — "  De  Praesulibus,"  p.  371,  edit.  1743.  It  should  be  remembered  that  our  author's 
father  was  Bishop  of  this  See  from  1584  to  1590 ;  and,  consequently,  that  his  son  had  an  oppor- 
tunity to  obtain  his  information  from  the  archives  of  the  Cathedral. 


86  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

most  probably  it  was  not  till  his  return  from  exile0,  about  the  year  1213  or 
1214;  after  which  "  he  gave  himself  altogether  to  adorning  and  increasing 
the  state  of  his  Church7."  The  whole  of  the  building  from  the  west  end, 
except  the  upper  parts  of  the  western  towers,  to  the  middle  of  the  present 
choir  is,  from  its  similarity  of  style  and  general  architectural  character,  re- 
puted to  have  been  erected  by  this  Prelate,  who  dying  in  November,  1242, 
"in  medio  Chori  honorifice  sepelitur8."  Between  that  period  and  the  year 
1264,  the  whole  of  the  more  eastern  part,  together  with  the  Chapel  of  our 
Lady,  was  completed,  or  nearly  so ;  as  may  be  inferred  both  from  the  style  of 
the  workmanship  and  the  incidental  notice  of  the  Canon  of  Wells,  who  states 
that  Bishop  Bitton,  or  Bvitton,  the  first  of  that  name,  whose  decease  occurred 
on  the  3d  of  April,  1264,  was  entombed,  "  in  nova  Capelhi  B.  Maria? 
Virginis 9."  The  Chapter-house  appears  to  have  been  the  next  portion  that 
was  erected ;  for  Godwin,  in  his  English  work,  informs  us  that  it  was  built 
by  the  contribution  of  well  disposed  people,  in  the  time  of  Bishop  William 
de  Marchia ,0,  whose  episcopacy  began  in  January,  1293,  and  terminated  in 
June,  1302;  but  it  is  remarkable  that,  in  his  "  De  Pwsulibus,"  he  has  left 
the  Chapter-house  altogether  unmentioned,  in  his  account  of  the  same  Pre- 
late. In  1325,  on  the  2d  of  the  kalends  of  February,  according  to  the 
Harleian  MS.  No.  6964  (which  contains  excerpts  from  the  Registers  of 
Wells),  an  indulgence  of  forty  days  was  granted  to  those  who  contributed 
towards  the  new  work  (ad  novum  opus)  of  this  Cathedral ;  yet  we  have  no 
precise  accouut  of  what  work  was  then  in  progress.  The  South-west  tower, 
or,  to  speak  more  discriminatively,  the  upper  part  of  it,  from  the  height  of 
the  water-table,  above  the  third  row  of  statues,  was  built  in  the  reign  of 
Richard  the  Second,  ante  anno  1386,  at  the  expense  of  Bishop  John  de 
Harewell  and  the  Dean  and  Chapter  of  Wells  :  that  Prelate  also  gave  one 
hundred  marks  towards  glazing  the  great  west  window.  The  corresponding 
part  of  the  North-west  tower  is  supposed  to  have  been  principally  erected 

6  Vide  Chapter  II.  pp.  33,  34.  '  Godwin's  "  Catalogue,"  p.  30G. 

"  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  564.  «  Ibid,  pars  i.  p.  OGG.  10  "  Catalogue,"  p.  370. 


PROGRESS  OF  ITS  ERECTION.  87 

at  the  expense  of  Bishop  Bubwith,  "  which  his  armes,  fixed  vpon  clivers 
places  of  the  same,  do  partly  shew "."  The  same  Prelate,  according  to 
Leland,  "  made  the  Est  part  of  the  Cloyster,  with  the  little  Chapel  beneth, 
and  the  great  Librarie  over  it,  having  25  windowes  on  eche  side 12." 
Godwin  mentions  his  erection  of  the  library  over  the  cloister,  but  says  no- 
thing of  his  building  the  chapel.  The  West  side  of  the  cloisters  was  erected 
by  that  munificent  Prelate,  Beckington,  together  "  with  the  volte  and  a 
goodly  Schoole,  with  the  Schole  master  Logging,  and  an  Escheker  over  it, 
having  25  wyndowes  toward  the  area  side l3."  He  also  began  the  South 
side  of  the  cloisters ;  "  but  one  Thomas  Henry,  Treasorer  of  Welles  and 
Archdiacon  of  Cornewaull,  made  an  ende  of  it,  in  homiuum  memoriau.n 
On  the  north  the  cloister  green  is  bounded  by  the  Church  itself;  and  there 
is  no  other  building  on  that  side. 

Having  thus  consecutively  narrated  all  the  historical  evidence  that  can  be 
obtained  in  regard  to  the  foundation  and  progress  of  this  truly  magnificent 
building,  it  becomes  necessary  to  enter  into  an  examination  of  its  principal 
constituent  parts,  in  order  to  discover  how  far  the  style  and  character  of  the 
architecture  agree  with  the  dates  and  eras  above  specified. 

Although  the  whole  of  this  Cathedral  is  designed  and  built  in  the  Pointed 
style  of  Architecture,  yet  it  will  readily  be  seen,  by  inspecting  the  Ground 
Plan,  that  from  the  west  end  to  the  third  column  on  each  side  of  the  choir, 
there  is  a  regular  and  nearly  symmetrical  correspondency  in  the  thickness  of 
the  walls  and  the  forms  of  the  buttresses;  and  that  in  both  respects  they 
partake  far  more  of  the  massive  solidity  and  heaviness  of  the  Norman 


11  Ibid.  p.  374. — It  is  not  a  little  curious  that,  in  his  "  De  Prresulibus,"  pp.  377,  379,  Bishop 
Godwin  has  assigned  the  south-west  tower,  "  campanilis  quod  Occasum  spectat  testivum,"  to 
Bubwith;  and  the  north-west  tower,  "  Occasum  spectat  hibernum,"  to  Harewell;  although  he 
has  stated  expressly  the  contrary  in  his  English  work.  We  have  the  additional  authority,  how- 
ever, of  the  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  pars  i.  p.  570,  for  referring  the  South-west  tower  to  Bishop  Hare- 
well;  and  that  the  North-west  tower  was  the  work  of  Bubwith  is  testified  by  the  insertion  of  his 
arms  beneath  a  statue  on  the  western  face  of  the  said  tower.  Those  arms  also  correspond  with 
another  shield,  within  his  Chantry  Chapel,  on  the  north  side  of  the  Nave. 

a  "  Itinerary,"  vol.  iii.  p.  103,  edit.  1744.  '3  Ibid.  ,+  Ibid. 


88  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

character,  than  we  are  accustomed  to  meet  with  in  Churches  constructed  in 
the  Pointed  system.  The  buttresses,  comparatively,  are  but  of  small  pro- 
jection; there  are  no  arched  buttresses;  and  the  members  and  ornaments  of 
the  windows,  which  are  of  contracted  dimensions,  are  much  more  simple 
than  in  any  other  of  our  Cathedrals,  where  the  same  style  is  prevalent. 
All  the  side  windows,  indeed,  both  of  the  nave  and  transept,  except  two 
windows  in  the  latter,  which  have  evidently  been  altered,  consist  only  of 
two  principal  lights,  separated  by  a  single  mullion;  and  the  tracery  is 
extremely  plain.  It  is  remarkable  also  that  the  great  west  window,  as  it  is 
denominated,  is  in  fact  composed  of  three  distinct  lancet-shaped  divisions, 
of  considerable  elevation,  separated  not  by  mullions,  but  by  piers  of  ma- 
sonry, which  are  nearly  equal  in  breadth  to  the  apertures  themselves. 
There  is,  in  fact,  such  great  simplicity  in  all  the  more  antient  parts  of  this 
fabric  (which  include  the  nave  and  transept,  and  the  walls  of  the  west 
part  of  the  choir)  that,  had  not  the  Canon  of  Wells  so  particularly  men- 
tioned the  restoration  of  the  Cathedral  by  Joceline  de  Welles,  and  Bishop 
Godwin  so  strongly  corroborated  his  testimony  by  expressly  stating  that 
Joceline,  after  pulling  down  the  old  church  from  the  presbytery  westward, 
built  it  anew  from  the  very  foundations,  there  could  be  little  hesitation  in 
ascribing  it  to  Bishop  Robert,  and  assigning  them  to  the  reign  of  Henry 
the  Second. 

The  north  porch  might  still  more  decidedly  be  referred  to  the  same 
period;  for  it  possesses  so  many  characteristics  of  Norman  architecture, 
that  there  can  be  no  doubt  of  its  having  been  erected  before  the  Pointed 
style  had  obtained  its  full  ascendancy.  The  supporting  buttresses  are  flat 
and  plain ;  and  their  pinnacles  are  almost  devoid  of  ornament.  The  outward 
arch,  though  highly  pointed,  exhibits  amidst  its  deeply-recessed  mouldings 
a  two-fold  series  of  zigzag  or  diagonal  sculpture,  intermixed  with  Norman 
foliage ;  and  the  capitals  of  its  banded  shafts  partake,  in  their  grotesque 
figures,  and  flowing  leaves,  of  the  same  character.  The  panelled  front  of 
the  surmounting  gable  also,  which  consists  of  six  lancet-headed  blank  arches, 
of  different  heights,  rising  to  the  weatherings,  bespeaks  an  early  age ;  and 
even  the  piercing  (to  admit  light  into  the  roof)  of  the  lower  part  of  the 


AGE  OF  THE  BUILDING.  89 

middle  panels  into  three  lancet-shaped  apertures  corresponds   with  other 
specimens  of  the  date  above  assumed. 

There  is  yet  another  circumstance  in  which  this  building  assimilates  with 
the  Norman  character;  namely,  in  the  ponderous  solidity  of  its  western 
towers,  as  compared  with  the  limited  extent  of  their  interior  areas.  In  this 
respect  they  differ  greatly  from  those  of  a  later  age,  constructed  when  the 
principles  of  resisting  the  outward  thrust  of  internal  arches  by  boldly  pro- 
jecting and  flying  buttresses  became  better  understood.  During-  whichever 
episcopacy,  however,  the  earlier  parts  of  this  edifice  were  raised,  it  is 
evident  that  the  design  was  formed  at  that  very  point  of  time  when  the 
Pointed  style  of  Architecture  was  first  attaining  its  supremacy  over  the 
massive  compositions  of  the  Norman  builders.  Though  not  entirely  free 
from  prior  trammels,  we  trace  in  it  the  vigorous  dawn  of  that  superior  light- 
ness and  elegance  which  shortly  afterwards  were  carried  to  such  high  perfec- 
tion in  the  eastern  parts  of  the  choir,  in  the  lady  chapel,  in  the  chapter- 
house, and  in  the  superstructure  of  the  central  tower.  The  simplicity  and 
plainness  of  the  groining  in  the  nave  and  transept  furnish  another  character 
of  remote  age;  and  the  general  style  of  sculpture  in  the  ornamental  parts  is 
an  additional  evidence. 

On  entering  the  choir  we  immediately  perceive  a  distinct  change  in  the 
architectural  characteristics  and  style  of  the  building;  and  the  change 
becomes  the  more  striking  as  we  advance,  the  east  end  or  altar  part  of  the 
choir  being  the  most  florid  in  its  design,  and  the  most  elegant  in  its  enrich- 
ments. The  windows  are  larger,  and  their  tracery  is  more  elaborate  and 
diversified ;  the  arches  are  more  expansive,  the  panelling  and  ornaments  more 
complex,  and  the  groining  is  more  intricate  and  adorned  than  in  any  part  of 
the  nave  and  transept.  As  we  proceed  eastward,  the  scene  becomes  still  more 
decorated  and  elaborate ;  and  the  light  and  airy  elegance  of  the  Lady  Chapel 
at  once  arrests  our  admiration,  and  demands  our  praise.  Here  the  windows 
are  still  more  capacious  than  those  of  the  choir  and  its  ailes ;  and  the  rami- 
fications of  the  tracery  more  extended  and  beautiful  that  in  any  other 
division  of  the  Cathedral. 

If  it  be  recollected  that  at  the  period  when  Bishop  Joceline  is  stated  to 


90  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

have  rebuilt  this  fabric,  the  Bishops  Richard  Poore  and  Robert  de  Bingham 
were  erecting  the  beautiful  Cathedral  of  Salisbury,  in  the  adjoining  county 
of  Wilts,  and  an  inference  be  drawn  from  the  comparative  solid  aud  sub- 
stantial character  of  the  work  assigned  to  Joceline,  compared  with  that  of 
his  contemporary  Bishops,  we  shall  find  great  reason  to  question  the  credi- 
bility of  those  accounts  which  refer  the  western  parts  of  this  edifice  to  him : 
for  it  is  scarcely  possible  to  believe  that  a  munificent  and  affluent  Prelate 
would  have  contented   himself  with  raising  so  plain  a  structure,  and  one 
partaking  so  much  of  the  massive  heaviness  of  Norman  architecture,  in  the 
immediate  neighbourhood  of  a  building  wherein  the  light,  airy,  and  elegant 
character  of  the  Pointed  style  was  so  strikingly  apparent.     Could  we  sup- 
pose that  Godwin,  from  some  inadvertency,  had  mistaken  the  meaning  of 
the  record  from  which  it  is  presumed  his  information  was  derived  (for  he  has 
not  referred  to  any),  the  difficulty  would  be  partly  solved ;  as,  instead  of 
assigning  the  nave  and  transept  of  the  Cathedral  to  Bishop  Joceline,  we 
should  regard  him  as  the  rebuilder  of  the  eastern  part  of  the  choir,  wherein 
he  was  interred,  which  possesses  the  characteristics  of  his  time  and  era.    On 
the  contrary,  the  western  part,  as  already  shewn,  approaches  so  nearly  to 
the  Norman  style  that  we  cannot,  without  departing  from  every  principle  of 
comparison  and   analogy,    avoid  ascribing  it  to  Bishop  Robert.     By  this 
conclusion,  also,  another  difficulty  is  solved : — for  if  Joceline  did  not  erect 
the  eastern  part,  it  may  be  inquired  by  whom  then  was  it  erected  ?    And 
there  are  no  documents  known  to  be  extant  which  have  any  direct  bearing 
upon  the  question.     With  respect  to  the  New  works,  for  which  forty  days 
indulgence  were  granted  to  contributors  in  Bishop  Drokensford's  time,  we 
may  rationally  assume  that  they  refer  to  the  superstructure  of  the  central 
tower,  which   displays  the   general   characteristic   decorations  of  Edward 
the  Third's  reign. 


ITS  SITUATION  AND  ASPECT.  91 


DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  CHURCH. 

There  is  not,  perhaps,  a  Cathedral  in  England  more  interesting  to  the  artist 
and  architectural  antiquary  than  that  of  Wells.  It  abounds  in  fine  and 
curious  features,  is  connected  with  several  antient  monastic  edifices,  and  is 
surrounded  by  bold  and  even  grand  scenery.  The  design,  construction,  and 
execution  of  the  Church  itself  are  alike  objects  of  study  and  admiration ; 
and  are  worthy  of  the  most  careful  examination  by  the  professional  architect. 
Seated  in  a  valley,  at  the  immediate  source  of  a  river  formed  by  the  con- 
fluence of  several  springs,  with  bold,  rugged,  wooded,  and  bare  hills  rising 
around,  and  thus  apparently  guarding  its  sacred  precincts,  it  constitutes  a 
fine  artificial  feature  in  the  landscape,  from  different  points,  as  the  stranger 
approaches  the  city.  From  various  stations  on  the  roads  to  Frome,  Shepton 
Mallet,  Bath,  Bristol,  Cheekier,  and  Glastonbury,  it  presents  different  and 
diversified  aspects  and  combinations ;  but  all  are  highly  picturesque,  and 
consequently  adapted  to  gratify  the  artist.  In  descending  the  hill  from  the 
east,  on  the  road  from  Bath,  its  three  towers,  and  numerous  pinnacles,  the 
chapter-house,  and  lady  chapel,  the  bishop's  palace,  and  other  buildings  of 
Wells  form  a  fine  group  in  the  centre,  whilst  steep  wooded  hills  constitute 
the  side  screens  ;  a  lofty  conical  hill  the  middle  distance ;  and  Glastonbury 
Tor,  with  its  connected  ridges,  terminate  the  prospect.  To  the  west  it 
presents  a  very  different  aspect  and  character:  there  its  highly  enriched 
facade,  its  surmounting  towers,  parts  of  the  deanery  in  front,  and  the  palace 
on  the  right,  with  the  parish  tower  of  St.  Cuthbert's  rising  high  above  the 
neighbouring  houses,  one  hill  finely  robed  with  woods,  and  another  present- 
ing bare  rocks  on  the  summit  for  the  back  ground,  are  features  and  objects 
calculated  to  gratify  every  intelligent  spectator,  and  to  afford  particular 
delight  to  the  enthusiastic  artist  and  antiquary. 

To  point  out  the  different  stations  from  which  this  venerable  fabric  may 
be  seen  advantageously,  with  its  neighbouring  scenery,  distant  stretches  of 


92  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

country,  and  numerous  combinations  would  occupy  an  extended  essay,  and 
be  irrelevant  to  the  nature  of  the  present  volume :  but  to  be  insensible  of 
such  picturesque  beauties  and  advantages  of  situation  and  accompaniments 
would  betray  an  apathy  of  heart,  and  a  blindness  of  intellectual  vision, 
degrading  to  a  literary  character,  and  incompatible  with  the  name  either 
of  artist  or  amateur. 

Gilpin,  who  viewed  all  objects  in  nature  and  art  with  an  eye  to  the 
picturesque,  in  his  "  Observations  on  the  Western  Parts  of  England,"  says, 
"  Our  approach  to  Wells,  from  the  natural  and  incidental  beauties  of  the 
scene,  was  uncommonly  picturesque.  It  was  a  hazy  evening,  and  the  sun 
declining  low  was  hid  behind  a  deep  purple  cloud,  which  covered  half  the 
hemisphere,  but  did  not  reach  the  western  horizon  :  its  lower  skirts  were  gilt 
with  dazzling  splendour,  which  spreading  downwards,  not  in  diverging  rays, 
but  in  one  uniform  ruddy  glow,  and  uniting  at  the  bottom  with  the  mistiness 
of  the  air,  formed  a  rich  yet  modest  tint ;  with  which  Durcote  Hill,  projecting 
boldly  on  the  left,  the  towers  of  Wells  beyond  it,  and  all  the  objects  of  the 
distance  were  tinged ;  whilst  the  foreground,  seen  against  so  bright  a  piece 
of  scenery,  was  overspread  with  the  darkest  shades  of  evening.  The  whole 
together  invited  the  pencil  without  soliciting  the  imagination :  but  it  was  a 
transitory  scene.  As  we  stood  gazing  on  it,  the  sun  sunk  below  the  cloud, 
and,  being  stripped  of  all  its  splendour  by  the  haziness  of  the  atmosphere, 
fell  like  a  ball  of  fire  into  the  horizon;  and  the  whole  radiant  vision  faded 
away." 

This  Cathedral,  though  partly  connected  with  houses  and  walls,  and 
obscured  by  plantations  in  the  gardens  to  the  south  and  east,  may  be  readily 
seen  and  examined  from  various  stations.  Its  western  facade,  northern 
porch  and  transept,  the  chapter-house,  and  nearly  the  whole  of  the  north 
side  and  part  of  the  east  end  are  open  to  public  view.  The  south  side  of 
the  nave  and  south-western  tower  are  fully  displayed  to  the  cloister;  but 
the  southern  part  of  the  choir  abuts  on  a  private  garden,  and  can  only  be 
seen  from  a  distance.  The  eastern  end  and  northern  side  of  the  choir  are 
also  in  private  gardens  ;  but  their  chief  features  are  beheld  from  the  public 
road.     The  architectural  antiquary,  who  has  not  been  gratified  by  a  personal 


DESCRIPTION  OP  THE  WEST  FRONT. 


93 


examination  of  this  fine  edifice,  will  understand  its  general  arrangement 
from  the  annexed  Ground  Plan;  and  will  also  be  enabled  to  compare  it 
with  other  cathedrals  by  this  evidence  in  combination  with  the  accompanying 
engravings.  The  professional  architect  and  experienced  antiquary  will 
require  scarcely  any  other  aid  to  comprehend  and  understand  all  the  charac- 
teristic members  and  features  of  the  building.  They  will  perceive  its  design, 
general  and  particular  proportions,  construction,  varied  styles  of  execution, 
and  modes  in  which  the  separate  portions  are  or  have  been  finished. 
To  such  persons  description  is  almost  superfluous ;  for  they  read  and 
understand  more  readily  and  clearly  the  language  of  geometrical  delineation 
than  that  of  words.  The  less  experienced  readers  may  require  descriptive 
elucidations  :  and  to  such  the  following  particulars  are  addressed. 

The  western  facade  is  open  and  unobscured.  A  large  flat  lawn,  or  cemetery, 
extends  to  a  considerable  distance  westward,  and  returns  round  the  northern 
flank  to  the  eastern  angle  of  the  transept.  From  this  point  a  building- 
extends  directly  north  to  a  series  of  dwellings  called  the  Vicar's  College;  and 
in  consequence  of  a  public  road  of  approach  to  the  city,  passing  between 
this  College  and  the  Cathedral,  the  architect  has  contrived  a  novel  and  very 
convenient  communication  from  the  one  to  the  other  by  constructing  an 
enclosed  and  glazed  gallery,  supported  by  three  arches,  and  crossing  the 
highway.  A  wall  extends  from  this  point  eastward,  and  incloses  the 
chapter-house  and  northern  part  of  the  choir,  &c.  within  the  area  of  a 
private  garden  belonging  to  one  of  the  Canon's  houses. 

The  West  Front  claims  the  first  and  principal  attention  and  admiration  of 
every  class  of  visitors ;  for  all  must  be  impressed  with  its  gorgeous  display 
of  sculpture,  conopied  niches,  and  varied  ornaments.  It  seems  to  have  been 
the  intention  of  the  architect  to  surpass  all  preceding  works  of  the  kind, — to 
have  rendered  this  architectural  title-page  full  of  sculptural  and  allegoric 
information, — to  have  produced  a  sort  of  miracle  in  art,  and  thus  to  excite 
wonder  and  awful  devotion.  From  its  present  mutilated  and  unfinished 
state  some  idea  may  be  formed  of  its  original  splendour;  and  it  may  be 
fairly  concluded  that  the  upper  portions  of  the  lateral  towers  were  to  have 
been  finished  in  a  corresponding  style  of  decoration  to  the  other  parts  of 


94  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

this  facade.  The  annexed  prints,  Plates  iv.  i\\*  v.  v.*  and  xix.  will  illustrate 
the  general  and  particular  design  as  well  as  the  decorative  ornaments  of 
this  front  and  its  towers. 

In  Plate  iv.  is  represented  the  whole  western  front,  as  beheld  from  a 
distance.  This  point  of  view  was  chosen  to  shew  the  symmetrical  design, 
correspondency  of  parts,  proportions,  and  decorations.  In  elevation  it  may 
be  described  as  consisting  of  three  nearly  equal  portions;  namely,  two 
lateral  towers  and  a  central  division:  each  of  these  includes  two  boldly 
projecting  buttresses,  with  intermediate  walls.  Horizontally  the  elevation 
is  divided  into  four  distinct  tiers  or  ranges ;  viz.  the  base,  dado,  and  surbase 
all  of  plain  ashler  work,  with  bold  string  course  mouldings  :  a  central  double 
doorway,  with  small  lateral  doorways  opening  respectively  to  the  nave  and 
ailes,  are  seen  here,  and  must  appear  to  every  person  who  views  the  print, 
as  well  as  to  those  who  examine  the  building,  to  be  very  diminutive  :  they  have 
been  compared  to  rabbit  holes  in  the  side  of  a  mountain.  Above  the  sur- 
base string  course  is  a  continued  series  of  duplicated  niches,  with  pedestals 
and  pedimental  labels  over  double  pointed  arches.  Nearly  the  whole  of 
these  niches  are  deprived  of  their  respective  effigies,  or  statues.  Between 
every  two  pediments  is  a  quatrefoil  deeply  sunk  panel,  occupied  by  a  sculp- 
tured figure,  or  group  of  figures.  Two  windows  of  double  lights  to  each, 
corresponding  with  the  panels,  are  opened  to  the  towers  and  to  the  north 
and  south  ailes.  The  next,  or  third  tier  from  the  base,  presents  a  more 
enriched  style  of  design  in  its  niches,  canopies,  and  sculpture  than  the  lower 
part.  The  height  of  this  division  was  probably  regulated  by  the  three  cen- 
tral windows,  which  were  designed  to  enlighten  this  end  of  the  nave.  These 
windows  are  separated  by  two  piers  nearly  of  equal  width  to  the  openings ; 
and  their  faces,  as  well  as  the  sides,  are  covered  with  sculpture,  &c.  The 
face  of  each  buttress,  as  well  as  the  returns  or  flanks  of  each,  are  profusely 
embellished  with  sculptured  effigies  standing  or  sitting  on  rich  pedestals,  and 
surmounted  by  canopies.  A  continued  series  of  lancet-shaped  arches,  but  all 
blank,  occupies  the  face  between  the  buttresses  ;  and  the  upper  portions  of 
nearly  all  of  these  arches  are  charged  with  sculptured  scrolls,  foliage,  &c. ; 
some  specimens  of  which  are  given  at  large  in  Plate  xix.    Above  these  arches 


DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  WEST  FRONT.  95 

is  a  series  of  niches  continued  along  the  whole  of  the  front,  and  extending 
round  each  side  of  the  towers.  These  are  occupied  by  sculptured  groups  of 
human  figures,  represented  in  various  positions  of  emerging  from  the  tomb 
and  grave.  Whatever  may  have  been  the  object  and  motive  of  the  architect, 
in  this  part  of  his  design,  he  appears  to  have  erred  most  completely  in 
principle ;  by  introducing  a  multiplicity  of  small  and  unpleasing  parts  at  such 
a  distance  from  the  eye  of  the  spectator,  that  their  express  meaning  and 
execution  cannot  be  descried.  It  is  evident,  however,  that  they  represent 
numerous  naked  human  figures,  rising  in  varied  attitudes  from  the  sepulchre, 
(see  Plate  v*.)  and  we  may  thence  conclude  that  the  subject  of  the  whole  is 
the  General  Resurrection.  A  bold  string  course  separates  the  third  from  the 
fourth  or  upper  division  of  this  elevation.  The  latter  portion  consists  of 
three  distinct  parts,  the  centre  gable,  and  two  lateral  towers.  In  the  first 
we  perceive  the  same  style  of  decoration,  in  sculpture  and  niches,  as  in  the 
lower  poi-tion  of  this  front,  and  we  may  therefore  conclude  that  it  is  part  of 
the  original  design.  Two  handsome  columnar  pinnacles,  with  small  columns 
attached,  crown  the  lateral  buttresses ;  and  another,  with  niches,  crockets,  and 
finial,  the  centre.  Beneath  the  latter  is  an  elliptical  niche,  containing  a  broken 
statue,  which  was  probably  meant  to  personate  the  Deity :  in  another 
division  below,  is  a  series  of  twelve  statues,  all  nearly  perfect,  and  in  a  fine, 
broad,  simple  style  of  execution,  most  likely  intended  to  represent  the  twelve 
apostles.  The  emblematic  cross  of  St.  Andrew  sufficiently  indicates  that 
saint;  but  the  others  are  not  so  clearly  defined.  A  row  of  nine  figures,  with 
wings,  and  in  various  positions,  occupy  as  many  niches  beneath,  and  were 
probably  intended  as  symbolical  of  the  Heavenly  Hierarchy.  The  towers  are 
so  much  alike  that  we  should  conclude  they  were  erected  at  the  same  time, 
and  from  the  same  design,  if  the  history  of  them,  as  already  detailed,  was 
not  so  specific :  the  only  variation  being  in  the  niches  and  statues  attached 
to  the  northern  tower.  An  attempt  to  designate  and  describe  all  the  statues 
and  sculptured  figures  of  this  front  would  require  a  long  dissertation,  and 
would  necessarily  be  occupied  by  much  conjectural  reasoning.  It  must  there- 
fore suffice  to  remark,  that  the  statues  of  the  size  of  life,  and  larger,  amount  to 
one  hundred  and  fifty-three  in  number ;  whilst  the  smaller  figures  may  be 


96  WELLS  CATHEDRAL, 

calculated  at  double  that  amount.  Mr.  Carter,  in  his  work  on  "Antient 
Sculpture  and  Painting,"  has  published  slight  etchings  of  the  statues,  by 
which  their  general  forms,  positions,  and  costumes  may  be  understood  ;  but 
they  are  too  slight  in  drawing,  and  too  roughly  executed  to  satisfy  and 
inform  the  critical  antiquary.  Mr.  Gough's  "  Attempt  to  explain  these 
several  Statues,"  published  in  the  same  work,  leaves  them  unexplained  and 
undefined.  The  statues,  "  siding  the  great  west  door,"  he  remarks,  "  are 
chiefly  Kings  and  Bishops  who  were  benefactors  to  or  filled  this  See."  The 
Sovereigns  of  Wessex,  from  Ina  to  Ethelbcrt,  were  eight  in  number;  and 
we  find  seven  kings  and  one  queen  (Sexburga)  near  the  western  entrance. 
The  two  other  figures  of  queens  may  be,  he  continues,  the  two  consorts  of  Ina, 
Ethelburga  and  Desburgia.  Twenty-one  mitred  figures,  on  the  west  face,  he 
conjectures  were  meant  to  represent  the  successive  Prelates  of  this  See  from 
Adelm  to  Joceline,  and  six  others  on  the  northern  return,  he  thinks,  were 
successors  of  Joceline;  but  as  he  includes  Harewell's  statue  among  the  above, 
we  cannot  place  much  reliance  on  the  conjecture.  The  former  series  repre- 
sents kings,  queens,  knights  in  armour,  and  ecclesiastics;  whilst  the  latter 
are  mostly  historical,  typifying  some  event  or  personage  of  Holy  Writ.  As 
evidences  in  the  history  of  art  and  illustrative  of  antient  costume  these  sculp- 
tures are  peculiarly  interesting,  and  would  form  a  very  curious  subject  for  a 
distinct  publication.  Mr.  Flaxman,  in  his  Lectures  delivered  at  the  Royal 
Academy,  has  noticed  them  in  terms  of  commendation. 

The  subjects  of  Plates  iv.  and  v*.  have  been  amply  described  in  the  pre- 
ceding pages,  but  there  are  three  other  Plates  connected  with  the  west  front 
to  be  noticed,  in  order  to  render  them  familiar  to  the  general  reader,  and 
make  the  text  and  prints  illustrative  of  each  other. 

Plate  iv*.  is  a  view  of  two  divisions  of  the  buttresses  and  tower,  at  the 
north-east  angle,  showing  their  junction  with  the  aile,  and  the  rich  effect  of 
this  part  of  the  building.  Here  we  have  a  splendid  collection  and  display  of 
ancient  statues,  placed  in  their  canopied  housings,  with  other  decorative 
sculpture,  enriched  capitals,  slender  columns,  angular  crockets,  and  numerous 
mouldings.  Some  of  the  statues,  in  this  part  of  the  edifice,  are  more  perfect 
and    in   a  better  style  than  those  in  the  western  facade.     It  is  a  singular 


"MjUniBS. 


Drawn  bl 


TOWER. 

TO  the  'KEY?  WILL*  COiNYKEAILE,  OF  BXZXi 


■ 


■ 


■ 

I 


JOHN   C»I  H1PPESIEY  M.  Dc  LI11.,  AS.  an  atoe,  S-  pam„  „f  ^i^^  ; 


J.Le  K 


..  ■ 


.LILILS     (SAflBlEi.: 

r,F    THE    ILLVE  &e.    ENTER!  OK    &-  EXTER] 


... 


WEST  FRONT  AND  NORTH  PORCH. 


97 


circumstance  that  the  superabundant  sculpture  of  this  front  should  have 
escaped  the  battering  iconoclasts  of  the  early  part  of  the  sixteenth  century, 
when  such  devastating  havock  was  made  with  the  religious  statues,  bassi- 
relievi,  and  paintings  of  other  cathedrals  and  monasteries.  Was  Cromwell, 
the  then  Dean  of  this  Church,  and  prime  minister  to  the  tyrannic  Henry,  the 
cause  of  this  preservation? 

Plate  v.  Section  of  the  nave  and  ailes  and  northern  tower,  with  elevation 
of  the  east  side  of  the  southern  tower,  looking  west.  The  ground  plan  of 
the  same  part  of  the  building  is  engraved  beneath,  to  the  same  scale.  The 
Line  a  b,  on  the  plan,  indicates  the  direction  and  situation  of  the  section. 
The  principal  dimensions  are  figured,  both  in  the  plan  and  section.  No.  1,  is 
the  exterior  eastern  face  of  the  south  tower ;  2,  section  of  the  north  tower, 
with  elevation  of  the  eastern  face  of  the  north-west  buttress  at  it ;  3,  central 
compartment,  or  elevation  of  the  nave,  with  the  roof  and  timber  work ;  4, 
arched  ceiling;  5,  three  western  windows,  with  their  clustered  columns  and 
bands,  double  doorway,  and  blank  arches  on  each  side  ;  the  western  ends  of  the 
ailes  are  at  7,  and  9.    The  rear  of  the  wall  of  the  west  front  is  marked  6,  6. 

Plate  xix.  consists  of  delineations  of  fourteen  different  ornamental  parts 
of  the  west  front,  the  relative  situations  of  which  may  be  traced  by  referring 
to  Plates  iv.  and  v*. 

In  Plates  in.  vi.  vn.  xv.  and  xxi.  various  other  exterior  features  of  the 
church  are  displayed. 

Plate  hi.  shews  the  fine  and  interesting  north  porch,  part  of  the  clerestory 
of  the  nave,  two  sides  of  the  great  central  tower,  the  north  transept  branch- 
ing from  the  tower,  part  of  the  staircase  to  the  chapter  house,  and  a  small 
portion  of  that  building.  The  north  Porch  is  a  lofty,  oblong  vestibule,  vaulted 
and  groined,  and  divided  into  two  equal  portions  by  clustered  columns  at  the 
sides,  as  indicated  in  the  ground  plan,  at  s.  Each  side  is  divided  horizontally 
into  three  tiers  by  two  string  courses,  and  each  story  is  ornamented  with 
blank  arches,  springing  from  insulated  and  attached  columns,  &c.  A  lofty 
double  doorway,  with  a  central  column,  forms  the  opening  to  the  church, 
whilst  the  opposite  entrance  to  the  porch  is  by  a  tall  and  deep  open  arch. 
This  consists  of  several  bold  mouldings,  three  of  which  are  sculptured  with 
diagonal  and  foliated  ornaments.     On  each  side  of  the  archway  are  insulated 

o 


98  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

columns,  with  bold  enriched  capitals,  among  the  foliage  of  which,  on  the 
eastern  side,  are  several  human  figures ;  one  of  them  is  fastened  to  a  tree, 
and  apparently  pierced  with  arrows :  other  figures  are  provided  with  bows ; 
in  another  group  is  a  headless  man  and  two  other  men ;  and  in  a  third,  a 
man  in  the  act  of  seizing  the  head  from  the  jaws  of  some  animal.  This 
sculpture  is  supposed  to  represent  three  events  in  the  life  and  death  of 
St.  Edmund,  King,  and  Martyr,  who  was  shot  by  the  Danes  with  arrows 
'•  on  all  sides,"  and  afterwards  decapitated,  Nov.  20th,  anno  870.  It  may 
be  remarked,  in  this  place,  that  an  uniform  parapet,  with  corbel  table  and 
block  cornice,  continues  all  round  the  Church,  both  on  the  clerestory  and 
the  ailes;  and  it  may  be  further  noticed  that  the  masonry  of  the  whole 
building,  excepting  the  western  front,  is  good,  sound,  and  skilfully  executed. 
Perhaps  there  is  not  a  church  in  the  kingdom,  of  the  same  age,  where  the 
stone  has  been  so  well  chosen,  better  put  together,  and  where  it  remains 
in  so  perfect  a  state.  This  deserves  the  particular  notice  and  study  of 
architects.  The  style  and  architectural  finishings  of  the  central  tower,  with 
its  parapet  and  clustered  pinnacles,  are  shewn  perspectively  in  this  view,  and 
are  also  displayed  in  elevation,  in  Plate  v*.  and  both  in  elevation  and 
section  in  Plate  xvi.  The  latter  marks  the  height  to  which  the  old  part  of 
the  tower  was  carried  up  both  internally  and  externally. 

Plate  vi.  is  a  view  of  the  church  from  the  south  east,  takeu  from  a  garden, 
where  two  or  three  of  the  principal  springs  of  Wells  emerge  from  the  earth. 
In  finishing  this  drawing  the  artist  has  taken  the  liberty  of  planting,  grouping, 
and  disposing  the  trees  in  the  foreground  rather  to  please  the  eye  than  to 
accord  with  the  present  state  of  the  place.  Where  the  scenery  is  so  liable 
to  annual  change  this  is  not  of  much  consequence,  and  is  very  allowable  : 
the  view  of  the  building  is  accurately  and  skilfully  represented,  both  by  the 
draftsman  and  the  engraver.  It  displays  the  east  and  southern  sides  of  the 
Lady  Chapel,  end  and  side  of  the  south  aile,  with  its  small  transept  or 
chapel ;  the  east  end  over  the  altar,  the  south  transept,  centre  tower,  &c. 

In  Plates  vii.  xv.  and  xvi.  are  representations  of  the  leading  architectural 
features  of  the  exterior  of  the  building,  in  addition  to  the  western  front. 
Plate  vi.  shews  one  compartment  of  the  outside  of  the  nave  and  its  aile ; 
i.  e.  the  forms,  proportions,  and  dressings  of  the  parapets,  corbel  tables,  and 


SOUTH  TRANSEPT,  PRESBYTERY,  CHAPTER  HOUSE. 


99 


blocking  cornices,  the  flat  buttresses,   and  intermediate  windows   of  two 
lights  each,  with  simple  tracery,  &c.     In  Plate  xvi.  we  find  that  the  same 
style  prevails  in  all  those  parts  in  the  south  transept;  and  in  this  plate  we 
observe  that  the  architect  has  employed  the  flying  buttress  from  the  clerestory 
of  the  nave  to  the  wall  of  the  aile,  but  has  concealed  it  beneath  the  lead  roof 
of  the  aile.     All  the  nave  and  transept  is  of  this  style,  and  is  most  probably 
of  the  same  date.     The  number  of  divisions  or  compartments  may  be  seen 
by  the  Ground  Plan.     East  of  the  choir  we  see,  by  the  plan,  a  different  style 
in  proportion  and  forms;  and  we  perceive  this  more  palpably  by  an  exami- 
nation of  Plates  vi.  xiv.  xv.  and  xvn. ;   all  of  which  serve  to  illustrate  this 
portion  of  the  Church.     Plate  xv.  b,  shews  one  compartment  externally  of 
the  south  aile  and  clerestory  of  the  presbytery.     The  windows,  flying  but- 
tresses, and  dressings,  are  very  different  from  those  of  the  nave  and  transept, 
and  are  evidently  of  later  date.     The  buttress  on  the  west  side  of  the  window 
is  much  broader  than  the  other,  and  indeed  of  any  in  the  building :    it  is 
immediately  behind  or  south  of  the  Bishop's  throne,  and  seems  to  mark  some 
distinguishing  event,  or  era,  in  the  erection  or  construction  of  the  church.    As 
already  noticed  (p.  88—90,)  we  see  by  this  Plate  of  the  interior  and  exterior 
compartments,  also  by  Plate  vi.,  and  by  the  Plan,  that  all  the  work  eastward 
of  the  choir  is  of  a  later,  more  ornamental,  and  lighter  style  of  architecture 
than  that  to  the  west. 

As  our  illustrations  do  not  display  the  exterior  features  of  the  cloister, 
south  transept,  south  side  of  the  nave,  and  the  chapter  house,  it  will  be 
expedient  to  remark  that  the  transept  is  very  similar  in  its  form  and  ornaments 
to  that  of  the  north.  The  elevation  of  the  nave  presents  a  series  of  windows, 
buttresses,  parapets,  &c.  precisely  corresponding  to  the  one  shewn  in  Plate 
vii.  The  Cloister  bounds  three  sides  of  an  open  quadrangle,  with  a  series 
of  graduated  buttresses,  between  every  two  of  which  is  an  open  window 
with  mullions  and  tracery.  Over  this  cloister,  adjoining  the  transept,  and 
communicating  with  it  by  a  staircase  in  the  south-west  buttress,  is  a  long- 
room  appropriated  as  a  library.  Over  the  opposite  cloister  are  other  rooms, 
used  as  the  registry.  At  28,  in  the  ground  plan,  is  a  doorway  of  communica- 
tion to  the  Bishop's  palace ;  30  is  the  site  of  a  chapel,  built  by  Bubwith,  to 
which    there  was   an   entrance  from  the  cloister;    but  this  is  now  wholly 


100  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

levelled  to  the  ground ;  29,  an  antient  porch  or  entrance  from  the  western 
cemetery,  and  communicating  with  the  part  finished  by  Beckington,  as  his 
monogram,  and  other  distinguishing  marks  are  conspicuous  among  the  bosses 
of  the  groined  roof.     At  v.  is  an  ancient  lavatory. 

As  shewn  in  the  plan,  Plate  i.  at  q  and  r,  the  Chapter-House  is  an  octan- 
gular building,  with  one  side  attached  to  a  staircase ;  and  each  of  the  seven 
other  sides  occupied  by  two  small  windows  in  the  lower  story,  opeuing  to 
the  crypt,  or  rather  apartment  on  the  ground  floor,  and  one  large  window 
above  communicating  to  the  chapter-room.  These  windows  are  bounded  by 
buttresses,  of  unusual  form,  at  the  outer  face;  i.  e.  they  finish  with  an  angle 
at  the  extremity,  instead  of  being  square.  The  buttresses  are  surmounted 
with  crocketed  pinnacles,  and  are  perforated  with  water-spouts,  finished 
externally  with  monsters'  heads.  Over  the  windows  and  between  each  two 
buttresses  are  several  small  apertures  to  the  space  between  the  lead  and 
groined  roof.  A  perforated  parapet  surrounds  the  upper  part  of  this  build- 
ing, as  represented  in  Plate  ix. 

Before  we  proceed  to  examine  the  interior  of  the  Cathedral,  it  will  be 
advisable  to  name  and  point  out  its  various  parts,  and  the  chief  objects  it 
contains.     This  will  be  best  done  by  an  examination  of  the 

Ground  Plan,  PI.  i.  and  references  to  the  letters  and  figures  engraved  on  it. 
a,  central  division  and  entrance  doorway  to  the  nave ;  b  b,  doorways  to  the 
ailes  ;  c  c,  north  and  south  towers;  d  d,  nave,  with  a  series  of  nine  clustered 
columns  on  each  side,  and  ten  arches  opening  to  the  ailes;  e  e,  transept 
north  and  south  of  the  tower;  g,  west  aile  of  the  northern  transept,  used  as 
a  clock  room  and  vestry ;  h,  entrance  to  the  choir  under  the  organ  screen ; 
k,  choir;  ll,  its  north  and  south  ailes;  m,  centre  of  a  sexagonal  compart- 
ment between  the  altar-screen  and  lady  chapel,  forming  a  kind  of  open 
portico  to  the  latter;  n,  south  end  of  a  small  transept,  with  a  corresponding 
part  or  chapel  to  the  north ;  o,  altar  end  of  the  lady  chapel ;  p,  vestibule  to 
a  chapel,  called  the  crypt  (q)  beneath  the  chapter-room,  a  plan  of  which  is 
given  at  r;  the  north  porch  is  pointed  out  at  s;  t  is  an  enriched  doorway 
from  the  south  tower  to  the  cloister. — The  small  letters  refer  to  parts  of  the 
building: — a,  plan  of  south  side  of  the  centre  western  doorway;  b,  plan  of 
clustered  column  behind  the  altar;  c,  ditto  of  an  adjoining  column;  d,  cen- 


!  jJSLAIi    .jtBTRJUlLTilK 


jl»v!.y    i     f    f    ^"'    r t"-    f  . ! 


Dtr-wd.  &  i£ea-sured.'fcre"G--CaXteTOLole- 


.Enp-a-vpd.  ~bv  J.Xe  Eeiax. 


■BSOUUD   JPJjAK.—  IL1HS     OF  TARTS-,  fcc  , 


Zcrul?n,,J'u2'b.<he<L  JtUy -l,  i  Say ,  by  Zowman  k   C-'.Taternefter  Jlw 


MONUMENTS  :    NAVE. 


101 


tral  column  of  the  chapter-house ;  e,  east  end  of  chapter-house ;  f,  f,  staircase 
to  the  same;  g,  plan  of  column  in  the  presbytery,  three  on  each  side  of  which 
correspond;  h,  column  in  the  nave;  i,  column  near  the  lady  chapel. 

The   series  of  numerals  refer  to  the  sites  of  monuments,  6,c.—\,  font; 
2,  monument  of  Joan,  Viscountess  Lisle ;  3,  John  Storthwait,  Chancellor ; 
4'  Dean  Husee;    5,   Bishop  Harewell;    7,  8,9,  antient  mutilated  effigies, 
said  to  be  those  of  Bishops  Burwold,  Ethelwyn,  and  Brithwyn;    10,  11,  12, 
ditto,  said  to  be  those  of  Bishops  Brithelm,  Kineward,  and  Alwyn;    13, 14, 
two  plain  altar  tombs,  covered  with  slabs  of  black  marble,  containing  the 
remains  of  the  u  Bishops'  officers;"   15,  Dean  Cornish  (see  title-page);    16, 
entrance  to  cloisters  from  the  south  transept;    17,  Bishop  Kidder;  18,  the 
Bishop's  throne ;  19,  the  altar ;  20,  Bishop  Berkeley  ;  near  which  is  an  antient 
effigy  of  Friar  Milton;  21,  Bishop  Creighton;  22,  Dean  Forest;  23,  Dean 
Gunthorpe;  24,  Bishop  Bittou,  the  first ;  25,  Bishop  Drokensford;  26,  altar 
in  the  lady  chapel ;  27,  staircase  from  the  lower  apartment  of  the  chapter-house 
to  the  roof;  28,  entrance  from  the  Bishop's  palace  to  the  cloisters ;  29,  entrance 
to  the  registry ;  30,  site  of  a  chapel  built  by  Bishop  Bubwith;  31,  Bishop  de 
Marchia;    32,  an  antient  piscina  in  the  chapter-house;    33,  Bishop  Still; 
34,  Bishop  Beckington's  chantry  chapel  and  monument;   35,  Bishop  Bitton, 
the  second;    36,  Bishop  de  Salopia;    37,  burial  place  of  Bishop  Joceline  de 
Wells;  38,  antient  effigy,  said  to  be  Bishop  Giso;  39,  a  small  apartment  in 
the  staircase  of  the  chapter-house,  supposed  to  have  been  a  cell  or  prison 
for  refractory  ecclesiastics  ;  40,  chantry  chapel,  built  by  Dr.  Hugh  Sugar,  one 
of  Bishop  Beckington's  three  executors,  who  are  iutombed  beneath  three 
large  slabs  in  the  nave,  near  the  chantry;  41,  Bishop  Bubwith's  monumental 

chapel. 

The  Interior  architectural  features  of  the  Church  are  characterised  and 
delineated  in  Plates  ii.  v.  mi.  viii.  ix.  x.  xi.  xii.  xiii.  xiv.  xv.  xvi.  xvn.  xvm.  xxi. 
and  xxii.  The  Nave  presents  an  uniform  series  of  columns,  arches,  triforium, 
clerestory,  and  vaulting;  and  the  windows,  vaulting,  and  columns  of  the 
ailes  are  of  the  same  style  and  date.  A  solid  and  substantial  character 
pervades  the  whole,  whilst  the  capitals  and  other  decorative  parts  are  sculp- 
tured in  a  free,  fanciful,  and  masterly  style.  Plate  vn.  shews  an  elevation 
of  one  compartment  from  the  floor  to  the  roof.     Plate  vm.  is  a  view  from 


102  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

under  the  tower  at  the  north-west,  displaying  two  columns  of  the  nave,  with 
an  arch  of  many  mouldings,  and  two  clusters  of  columns  with  highly  wrought 
capitals.  Plate  xn.  is  a  view  of  the  nave  from  under  the  central  tower, 
looking  west,  in  which  the  two  splendid  monumental  chantries  on  the  north 
and  south  sides  of  the  nave  are  represented.  Other  sculptural  portions  of 
this  division  of  the  Church  are  displayed  in  Plate  11.  figures  1,  3,  4,  5,  G,  7, 
and  from  9  to  17;  also  in  Plates  xm.  and  xxu. 

Advancing  eastward  we  view  with  astonishment  the  singular  series  of 
abutments  of  double  arches  raised  between  the  four  piers  under  the  centre 
tower  (See  Plates  xvi.  and  xxi.),  and  naturally  wish  to  ascertain  the  time 
and  cause  of  their  erection.  That  the  architect  who  designed  the  original 
central  tower  intended  to  carry  it  nearly  or  quite  as  high  as  the  present 
building  we  can  scarcely  doubt;  and  we  cannot  easily  question  his  com- 
petency to  the  task,  after  minutely  examining  other  parts  of  the  edifice:  vet 
the  architect  who  raised  the  two  upper  divisions  of  that  structure  must  have 
considered  the  piers  incompetent  to  sustain  the  additional  superstructure, 
and  therefore  adopted  this  novel  mode  to  give  security  and  stability  to  his 
new  work.  As  the  walls  of  the  choir,  transept,  and  nave  formed  substantial 
buttresses  to  the  exterior  of  the  tower  piers,  these  double  arches,  with  open 
spandrils,  were  calculated  to  form  a  counterpoise  to  the  lateral  pressure. 
At  Salisbury  we  find  a  similar  principle  adopted,  but  different  in  design.  (See 
Plate  xn.  in  the  "  History,"  &c.  of  that  Cathedral).  At  Wells,  the  abutment  is 
continued  from  the  bottom  to  the  top  of  the  pier:  but  at  Salisbury  it  appears 
to  act  only  on  a  small  part  of  it.  The  accompanying  view  (Plate  xxi.)  shews 
these  double  arched  buttresses,  also  the  interior  of  the  north  transept,  &c. ; 
and  the  connoisseur,  whilst  examining  the  ingenuity  and  science  of  the 
architect,  cannot  fail  of  being  much  delighted  with  the  skilful  execution  mani- 
fested by  the  engraver. 

An  organ  screen,  of  stone,  separates  the  choir  from  the  centre  aile  of  the 
transept.  It  will  not,  however,  detain  us  by  its  richness  or  beauty :  nor 
shall  we  find  much  to  excite  admiration  in  its  ponderous  organ  case  \     The 


'  The  Organ  was  raised  by  the  direction  of  Dean  Creighton,  in  1(K>4;  and  was  completely 
repaired,  &C.  by  Mr.  S.  Green,  of  London,  io  178G,  at  the  expense  of  the  then  Dean  and  chapter. 


CHOIR  :    CHAPTER  HOUSE. 


103 


doorways  to  the  ailes  (see  Plate  xvi.)  are  in  a  much  better  style,  and  are 
worthy  of  delineation.     The  Choir  is  fitted  up  with  twenty  stalls  on  each 
side,  and  ten  at  the  west  end,  with  bishop's  throne,  pulpit,  pews,  &c.     The 
three  first  arches,  east  of  the  tower,  with  the  columns,  &c.  are  similar  to  those 
of  the  nave ;  but  the  three  on  each  side  of  the  presbytery  are  more  lofty, 
lighter  in  character,  and  more  elegant  in  proportions.   They  are  displayed  in 
Plate  xv.,  in  which  the  character  of  the  stalls,  the  design  of  the  bishop's 
throne,  the  doorway  to  the  south  aile,  the  highly  wrought  and  elaborate 
screen  work  in  front  of  the   triforium,  the  tracery,  with  the  interior  and 
exterior  of  three  different  windows,  as  well  as  the  groining  of  the  roof,  are 
all  accurately  delineated.     In  Plate  xiv.,  the  eastern  end  of  the  presbytery, 
with  the  altar,  three  arches  above,  opening  to  the  lady  chapel,  the  painted 
window  filling  up  the  apex  of  the  arch,  with  the  series  of  niches,  &c.  are 
clearly  defined.     On  the  south  side  is  a  view  of  part  of  Beckington's  once 
sumptuous  monumental  chapel,  which  is  now  most  lamentably  broken  and 
defaced.     Beyond  it  is  Bishop  Still's  monument. 

Passing  from  the  choir,  through  the  south  aile,  and  turning  eastward,  the 
stranger  is  conducted  to  the  Lady  Chapel,  and  views  it  as  displayed  in  Plate 
xvn.  Among  the  rich,  the  picturesque,  and  fanciful  combinations  of  ecclesi- 
astical architecture,  there  is  not  one,  perhaps,  in  England  to  compare  with 
that  now  alluded  to :  here  we  see  different  groups  of  clustered  columns, 
with  many  reed-like  shafts,  crowned  by  richly-foliated  capitals,  and  branching 
off  into  numerous  ribbed  ramifications ;  at  the  intersections  of  which  are 
several  bosses,  sculptured  into  elegant  wreaths  and  clusters  of  foliage. 
Tombs,  with  episcopal  effigies,  &c.  a  sumptuous  shrine,  large  windows  filled 
with  tracery  mouldings  and  deeply-toned  stained  glass,  are  the  varied  and 
combining  objects  of  this  fascinating  scene.  The  small  scale  of  the  accom- 
panying print  precludes  all  possibility  of  defining  either  the  minute  details 
or  the  effect  of  such  a  view ;  it  was  therefore  thought  more  advisable  to 
attempt  the  former  than  the  latter. 

Branching  from  the  north  aile  of  the  choir,  and  passing  through  a  vaulted 
vestibule,  we  enter  the  octangular  Chapel  or  Room  beneath  the  Chapter 
House ;  for  being  on  the  same  floor  as  the  church,  and  above  ground,  it 


104  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

cannot  properly  be  called  a  crypt.  Its  form,  dimensions,  and  plan  are  shewn 
in  Plate  i.  q,  and  its  architectural  character  and  effect  in  Plate  xi.  Its  vaulted 
roof  is  sustained  by  a  central  clustered  column,  and  by  eight  other  columns 
of  single  shafts  ranged  round  the  other  concentrically.  It  will  be  observed 
that  the  capitals  are  very  large,  for  the  purpose  of  sustaining  the  six  broad 
ribs  which  rest  on  each.  Suspended  from  one  of  the  arches  is  a  wooden 
lantern,  and  near  the  door  is  a  large  and  curious  piscina,  having  the  sculp- 
tured figure  of  a  dog  with  a  bone  lying  in  the  basin.  This  room  is  now 
merely  a  place  for  timber;  outside  of  the  door,  in  the  vestibule,  is  a  fixed 
stone  lantern,  and  in  the  same  place  are  some  antient  stone  coffins,  &c. 

Among  the  novelties  and  singularities  of  Wells  Cathedral  is  the  Chapter 
House,  the  floor  of  which  is  about  twenty  feet  above  that  of  the  church  :  it  is 
therefore  approached  by  a  staircase,  branching  off*  from  the  eastern  aile  of 
the  north  transept,  as  drawn  in  the  plan  at  r.  A  flight  of  forty-eight  steps, 
f,  f,  leads  to  the  chapter  room,  and  to  a  passage  or  gallery  still  higher  up, 
which,  passing  over  three  archways  across  the  public  road,  conducts  to  the 
court  called  the  Vicar's  close.  The  architectural  character  and  decorations  of 
the  chapter  room  are  clearly  and  fully  depicted  in  Plates  ix.  and  x.  and  these 
cannot  fail  of  impressing  every  person  with  an  idea  of  the  beauty,  symmetry, 
and  scientific  construction  of  this  member  of  the  fabric.  Around  the  seat 
and  under  the  windows  there  are  fifty-one  stalls ;  and,  including  the  Bishop's 
throne,  there  is  the  same  number  in  the  choir. 

By  examining  Plate  ix.  the  reader  will  readily  understand  the  design, 
construction,  and  arrangements  of  the  Chapter  house ;  a,  a,  buttresses ;  b,  cen- 
tral pier  of  clustered  columns ;  c,  c,  small  columns  to  support  the  vaulting  and 
floor;  n,  centre  column  in  chapter  room;  e,  e,  roof  and  parapet;  f,  upper 
surface  of  vaulting  of  roof,  and  k,  k,  section  through  the  same;  h,  section 
through  the  vaulting  and  ribs  of  the  substructure. 

Plate  xmii.  is  a  view  of  the  stairs  to  the  chapter  house,  and  arched 
passage,  as  above  described. 


VCBOSS   TH_F.   5XVE  &  A] 

Somerset  CaUirdrr, 

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CATHEDRAL    ANTKJ  "PITIES. 


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.1  ANTIQUITIES. 


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VIEW  or   THE  NXrE.LOOKHIG  WEST. 

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SEXS     (CATKL3EBI&AJL     CIHIISJIECH, 

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CATHTEE'IiAIL    ANTIQUITIES 


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.URAL  ANTIQnTIES 


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105 


ACCOUNT  OF  MONUMENTS  OF  THE  BISHOPS  OF  BATH  AND  WELLS : 

ARRANGED  IN  CHRONOLOGICAL  ORDER. 

At  this  distance  of  time,  and  after  the  removals  which  must  have  taken 
place  during  the  successive  restorations  of  the  Cathedral,  it  is  impossible, 
perhaps,  to  affix  to  the  antient  mutilated  Effigies  which  still  remain  here  the 
true  names  of  the  Prelates  whom  they  were  intended  to  represent.    Tradition 
is  a  very  imperfect  guide,  and  though  useful  on  many  occasions  to  corro- 
borate written  documents,  it  must  not  be  suffered  to  influence  the  belief  at 
the  expense  of  the  judgment.     Names  have  been  assigned  to  several  of 
these  figures,  yet  certainly  without  either  considering  the  character  of  the 
sculpture,  or  the  era  to  which  they  refer.     Thus,  three  in  the  north  aile  of 
the  choir,  on  the  stone  seat  at  the  back  of  the  stalls,  are  said  to  be  those  of 
Brithelm,  Kinewald,  and  Ahvyn;  the  first  of  whom  died  in  973;  the  second 
in  975;    and  the  last  in   1000:   yet  from  the  style  of  costume,  and  other 
circumstances,  it  may  be  inferred  that  scarcely  one  of  them  is  anterior  to  the 
Norman  times.     Leland  says,  "  In  boreali  insula  juxta  Chorum.     Quatuor 
tumuli  et  imagines  Episcoporum  Wellen.  quse  referunt  magnam  vetustatem ' :" 
but  he  has  not  attempted  to  name  them.     The  fourth,  on  the  same  side    is 
said  to  be  Bishop  Giso,  who  died  in  1088;   and  Bishop  Godwin  inclines  to 
that  opinion  :  yet  there  is  reason  to  doubt  its  correctness,  for  the  effigy  has 
only  a  priest's  cap,  and  no  mitre ;  the  right  hand  is  upraised,  as  in  the  act  of 
giving  the  benediction.     One  of  the  other  figures  also  wears  a  cap,  and  is 
similarly  represented.      The  remaining  Effigies,  both  which  have  mitres  and 
wreathed  staffs,  or  crosiers,  are  habited  in  jmitificalibus,  and  have  their 
hands  crossed. 

In  the  south  aile  of  the  choir,  in  nearly  similar  situations  to  the  above, 
there  are  three  other  Episcopal  effigies  of  remote  date  :  these  also  have  been 

'  "  Itinerary,"  vol.  iii.  p.  107:  edit.  1744. 

P 


106  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

mentioned  by  Leland,  but  without  any  appropriation,  except  the  one  towards 
the  west ;  on  which,  he  says,  the  word  Surwoldus  is  inscribed.  That 
Prelate  died  about  the  year  1000.  The  figure  thus  referred  to,  is  repre- 
sented with  his  hands  lying  flat  across  his  body,  a  plain  staff  knobbed  at 
top,  but  not  crooked,  and  the  strings  of  his  mitre  spread  over  his  shoulders, 
so  as  to  form  a  kind  of  arch  or  pediment.  The  two  other  figures  are  said 
to  be  those  of  the  rival  Bishops,  Etkelivyn  and  Brithuyn,  both  of  whom 
died  in  the  year  1026.  Gough,  alluding,  as  it  appears,  to  all  the  above 
effigies,  states,  that  they  are  said  to  have  come  from  Glastonbury2;  but  the 
correctness  of  such  a  report  is  very  questionable ;  for  we  know  only  of  one 
Bishop  of  this  See  who  was  buried  at  Glastonbury,  viz.  Merehwit,  in  1033: 
and  Leland,  expressly  referring  to  these  effigies,  calls  them  Bishops  of 
Wells.  The  easternmost,  or  that  of  Brithwyn,  as  commonly  designated,  is  a 
very  boldly  sculptured  figure,  of  Purbeck  marble,  upon  a  plain  tomb,  thickly 
coated  with  a  yellow  wash.  His  arms  are  placed  across  his  body;  his 
crosier  is  surmounted  by  rich  scroll-like  foliage ;  and  foliage,  similarly  rich, 
ornaments  the  recess  in  which  his  head  appears  to  repose. 

Bishop  Joceline  (ob.  1242)  was  buried  in  the  middle  of  the  choir,  under  a 
marble  tomb  inlaid  with  his  figure  in  brass3;  but  the  latter  had  been  torn 
away  in  Godwin's  time,  and  the  tomb  "  shamefully  defaced."  So  little 
respect,  indeed,  have  the  successive  conservators  of  this  fabric  shewn  to  the 
memory  of  one  to  whom  they  are  so  much  indebted,  that  they  have  suffered 
his  monument  to  be  utterly  destroyed. 

It  has  been  already  stated,  on  the  authority  of  the  Canon  of  Wells,  that 
Bishop  Bit  ton,  or  Button,  the  first  of  that  name  (ob.  1264)  was  interred  in  the 
Lady  Chapel ;  and  Bishop  Godwin  says,  "  He  lieth  buried  in  the  middle"  of 
that  chapel  "  under  a  marble  tombe 4."     Leland  says,  "  Guil.  Bitton,  primus 

1  "  Sepulchral  Monuments,"  vol.  i.  part  ii.  p.  197. 

J  Leland  says,  "  Jocelinus  sepultus  in  medio  Chori  Eccl.  Wellen.  tumba  alta  cum  imag. 
aerea." — "  Itinerary,"  vol.  iii.  p.  107. 

"  "  Catalogue  of  English  Bishops,"  p.  368. 


MONUMENTS  OF  BISHOPS  BITTON  AND  MARCHIA.  107 

episcopus,"  &c.  "jacetcum  imagine  serea  in  capella  D.  ISIarice  ad  orientalem 
partem  ecclesias  de  Welles5."  From  this  honourable  place  of  sepulture  it 
may  be  inferred  that  Bitton  had  been  chiefly  concerned  in  the  erection  of 
the  Lady  Chapel ;  but  there  is  no  documentary  evidence  to  substantiate  the 
fact.  His  tomb  has  been  since  removed,  but  to  what  part  is  questionable. 
Had  not  Leland  stated  his  image  to  have  been  of  brass,  we  might  have 
conceived  his  tomb  to  be  now  standing  near  the  wall  on  the  north  side  of  St. 
Catherine's  Chapel ;  which,  with  the  opposite  Chapel  of  St.  John,  the  Evan- 
gelist, forms  a  kind  of  lesser  transept  to  this  Cathedral.  Each  side  of  the  tomb 
is  divided  by  small  graduated  buttresses  into  six  compartments,  displaying 
as  many  trefoil-headed  ogee  arches,  terminating  in  finials ;  and  at  each  end 
is  a  similar  arch :  in  every  spandril  is  a  shield  of  arms.  On  a  Purbeck 
slab,  covering  the  tomb,  is  a  recumbent  effigy  of  the  Bishop,  much  mutilated; 
the  hands  being  broken  off,  crosier  destroyed,  &c. :  his  head  rests  upon  a 
cushion,  diapered ;  and  his  feet  against  a  lion.  The  drapery  is  apparently 
thin;  but  the  folds  are  disposed  in  a  broad  and  simple  style.  The  whole 
figure  has  been  painted  in  colours,  as  was  customary  in  former  times B. 

The  monument  of  Bishop  Bitton,  the  second,  is  situated  at  the  back  of 
the  choir,  between  the  second  and  third  columns  from  the  west.  It  merely 
consists  of  a  coffin-shaped  marble  slab,  on  which  is  an  engraved  episcopal 
figure,  in  pontificalibus;  the  right  hand  is  in  the  act  of  giving  the  benedic- 
tion ;  small  angels,  with  censers,  are  depicted  in  the  spandrils.  Leland,  in 
describing  the  figures  in  the  south  aile  of  the  choir,  says,  "  Quartus  est 
Gulielmi  Bytton,  qui  obiit.  Novem.  1274.  2.  E.  1.  quern  vulgus  nuper  pro 
sancto  coluit."  Godwin  also  assigns  this  figure  to  the  same  Prelate;  and 
particularly  mentions  the  long  continued  resort  of  the  superstitious  to  his 
tomb  for  the  cure  of  tooth-ache. 

Bishop  William  de  Marchia,  who  died  in  June,  1302,  was  buried  in  the 

5  "  Itinerary,"  vol.  iii.  p.  108. 

6  This  tomb  is  represented  in  Plate  XVII.  on  the  right  of  the  print ;  adjoining  to  which  also  is 
represented  the  upper  end  of  another  antient  tomb,  now  standing  in  the  south  aile  of  the  choir. 


108  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

south  transept,  where  his  effigy  lies  on  a  low  pedestal,  beneath  a  recessed 
arch  in  the  south  wall.     His  head  rests  on  a  double  cushion,  supported  by 
angels;  and  at  his  feet  is  a  cropped-eared  dog:  his  right  hand  is  raised,  as 
blessing ;  and  his  left  holds  a  crosier.     On  the  wall,  above  his  head,  is  the 
mask  of  a  man,  boldly  sculptured,  with  curled  hair,  beard,  and  mustachios ; 
probably  intended  for  the  Saviour:  a  female  head,  with  similar  hair,  probably 
of  the  Virgin,  is  inserted  in  the  wall  at  his  feet.     Ornamental  groins  and 
tracery  spread  over  the  soffite  of  the  arch ;   and  at  the  back,  on  brackets  of 
foliage,  are  three  figures,  now  headless  and  otherwise  mutilated ;    two  of 
which  represent  angels,  and  the  third  a  female.     On  the  face  of  the  pedestal, 
under   the  verge   of  the  tomb,  are  six    masks    of  different  character  and 
aspect ;  four  of  them  appear  old,  and  are  bearded ;  one  represents  a  young- 
man;  and  another  a  nun.     The  front  of  the  monument  is  formed  by  open 
screen-work,   in  three    compartments,   separated  by  graduated  buttresses, 
which   stand  on  a  plain   projecting  basement.     Each   buttress  is  enriched 
with  pinnacles,  &c,  and  between  them  rise  three  pointed  arches,  having 
pendent  tracery,  and  pyramidical  heads  adorned   with  crockets   and  finials 
composed  of  rich  foliage. 

Bishop  Hasehhaue,  who  died  in  1308,  was  buried  in  the  nave,  beneath  a 
large  slab,  which  still  remains,  and  measures  sixteen  feet  in  length,  by  six 
feet  in  width.  It  lies  near  Bishop  Bubwith's  Chapel,  and  has  been  richly 
inlaid  with  brasses  ;  but  all  are  gone  :  the  episcopal  figure,  in  brass,  was  ten 
feet  in  length.  Some  indistinct  traces  of  an  inscription  are  apparent  on  the 
verge  of  the  slab. 

At  a  little  distance  from  the  last  gravestone,  in  the  middle  of  the  nave,  is 
an  antient  slab,  which  has  been  ascribed  to  King  Ina,  the  reputed  founder 
of  the  original  Church  of  Wells.  That  sovereign,  however,  having  been 
shorn  a  monk,  died  in  privacy  at  Rome,  together  with  Ethelburga,  his 
queen,  between  the  years  725  and  740;  and  we  have  no  account  of  his 
remains  ever  having  been  brought  to  England. 

Bishop  Drokensford,  says  Leland,   was  interred  at   the  south-west  end 
of  St.  John's  Chapel :    but  Godwin  states  that   he   "  lieth  buried  under  a 


TOMBS  OF  BISHOPS  DROKENSFORD  AND  DE  SALOPIA.  109 

reasonable  seemely  toorabe  of  free  stone  in  the  chappell  of  S.  Katherine  ". 
The  Canon  of  Wells  says,  "  before  the  altar  of  St.  John  the  Baptist;"  which 
was  probably  the  fact,  as  Bishop  Drokensford  had  founded  a  chantry  there. 
This  Prelate  died  in  1329;  and  is  commemorated  by  an  elegant  Monumental 
Shrine,  which  stands  near  the  south  side  of  the  Lady  Chapel.  It  consists  of 
an  altar  tomb,  surmounted  by  a  lofty  canopy,  supported  by  eight  clustered 
buttresses:  these  sustain  eight  intermediate  arched  pediments,  highly 
wrought  with  trefoils,  quatrefoils,  crockets,  finials,  and  other  ornaments.  At 
the  east  end  is  a  niche,  having  a  two-fold  canopy,  enriched  with  numerous 
fleurs  de  lis,  in  gold,  on  a  blue  ground.  There  is  no  appearance  of  either 
brass  effigy  or  inscription  on  this  monument8. 

In  the  north  aile,  close  to  the  second  column  from  the  east  at  the  back  ot 
the  choir,  is  the  tomb  of  Bishop  Ralph  de  Salopia,  who  died  in  1363.  This 
is  said  to  have  originally  stood  in  the  middle  of  the  presbytery,  before  the 
high  altar;  but  it  was  removed  to  its  present  situation  about  two  hundred 
and  seventy  or  two  hundred  and  eighty  years  ago ;  because,  says  Leland,  it 
obstructed  the  priests  in  their  ministration9.  Godwin  states,  "  that  it  lost 
its  grates  by  the  way."  He  adds  also,  from  the  records  of  the  Church,  that 
the  figure  recumbent  upon  the  tomb  (the  work  of  some  able  artist)  expressed 
in  "  a  very  lively  manner"  the  animated  countenance  of  his  person  when 
living  10.  His  effigy,  which  is  of  alabaster,  was  finely  sculptured,  but  it  is 
now  much  defaced  with  lettorial  incisions  made  by  mischievous  boys.  He  is 
pontifically  habited,  and  has  a  rich  mitre  and  gloves,  ornamented  with 
jewelery ;  his  hands  are  closed,  as  in  prayer:  the  top  of  the  crosier  is  broken 

7  "  Catalogue  of  English  Bishops,"  p.  370.  "  Postquam  annos  sedisset  novemlecim  defunctus, 
turaulo  infertur  specioso  in  Capella  saneta;  Catharina:,"  &c.  are  the  words  used  by  the  same 
writer  in  his  "  De  Praesulibus,"  p.  376. 

s  A  representation  of  the  above  monumental  shrine  is  included  in  Plate  xvu. 

9  "  Itinerary,"  vol.  iii.  ut  supra. 

10  "  Imago  tumulo  superincumbens  (egregii  alicujus  artiricis  opus)  vivos  viventis  vultus  vivi- 
dissime  exprimit,  ut  in  arehivis  Ecclesiae  scriptum  reperi." — "  De  Pra'sulibus,"  p.  377. 


110  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

oft*.  His  head  reposes  on  two  embroidered  cushions,  and  at  his  feet  are  two 
dogs,  collared.     The  verge  of  the  tomb  is  embattled. 

Bishop  Harewell,  (ob.  1386,)  was  interred  in  the  south  aile  of  the  choir. 
His  tomb,  which  is  a  plain  pedestal  on  a  basement  step,  is  let  into  the  south 
wall,  nearly  opposite  to  that  assigned  to  Burwold.  His  effigy  has  been 
richly  ornamented,  but  is  now  much  defaced  and  broken :  the  head  rests  on 
two  cushions ;  his  mitre  is  curiously  decorated,  and  his  robe  wreathed  round 
his  crosier,  the  head  of  which  is  gone.  Godwin,  who  regards  this  figure, 
which  is  of  alabaster,  as  the  performance  of  an  excellent  sculptor,  states  that 
it  represents  the  deceased  as  of  a  very  fat  and  large  form". 

Bishop  Erghum,  ob.  1400,  was  buried  in  the  nave :  his  gravestone,  which 
lies  on  the  west  side  of  the  chapel  erected  by  Bishop  Beckington's  executor, 
has  been  inlaid  with  a  brass  episcopal  figure,  and  two  shields,  as  may  be 
traced  by  the  indents. 

On  the  north  side  of  the  nave,  beneath  the  second  arch  from  the  transept, 
is  the  monumental  chapel  of  Bishop  Bubwith,  who  was  interred  there  in 
1424.  This  elegant  little  structure  was  erected  by  himself,  and  endowed  for 
the  support  of  a  chantry  priest  to  pray  for  his  soul.  In  the  upright  it  con- 
sists of  two  divisions  of  panelled  arches,  surmounted  by  a  cornice  ornamented 
with  trailing  vine  branches,  and  other  sculpture.  The  tracery  of  the  upper 
division  is  divided  into  many  parts;  and  on  each  side,  and  over  the  two 
doorways,  which  open  to  the  north  and  south,  it  is  finely  pierced.  At  the 
east  end,  in  the  inside,  are  various  niches  with  rich  canopies,  now  greatly 
mutilated ;  and  at  the  west  end  is  a  shield  of  arms,  viz.  that  of  the  See, 
impaling  Bubivith,  the  latter  a  fess,  engrailed,  between  three  groups  of  con- 
joined holly  leaves,  four  in  each. 

On  the  south  side  of  the  choir,  contiguous  to  the  steps  leading  to  the  altar, 
is  the  monumental  chapel  erected  by  Bishop  Beckingtoii,  who  died  in  1465, 
and  near  which  he  lies  buried.  This  is  designed  in  the  most  florid  style  of 
decorated  architecture  ;  and  although  partly  of  wood,  excites  great  interest 

"  "De  Praesulibus,"  p.  377. 


BISHOP  BECKINGTON'S  TOMB.  Ill 

from  the  excellence  of  its  execution  and  the  elaborate  manner  in  which  it  is 
wrought.  The  western  side  is  entirely  open,  with  the  exception  of  a  com- 
partment of  rich  screen-work  near  the  top  ;  which,  among  other  ornaments, 
exhibits  two  demi-angels  displaying  shields  of  the  five  wounds,  and  having 
large  expanded  wings,  the  feathers  of  which  are  so  profusely  spread  as  to 
fill  the  spandrils  below  the  cornice.  AH  the  canopy,  or  roof,  is  underwrought 
with  elaborate  tracery,  including  pendants,  quatrefoils,  panelled  arches,  &c. 
On  the  south  side  is  a  small  piscina,  and  over  the  eastern  end  is  an  enriched 
canopy.  Small  graduated  buttresses,  having  rich  pinnacles,  sustain  the  sides 
of  the  chapel ;  and  the  mouldings  of  the  cornice  are  ornamented  with  rosettes 
and  fructed  vine  branches. 

The  tomb  of  Bishop  Beckington,  which,  like  the  chapel,  is  partly  of  wood, 
is  extremely  curious.     It  is  raised  on  a  basement  step,  and  consists  of  two 
divisions  ;  viz.  1st,  a  table  slab,  whereon  is  a  recumbent  figure  of  the  Bishop, 
in  alabaster,  habited  in  the  same  way  as  he  had  appointed  to  be  buried  ,2 ; 
and  2d,  a  low  pedestal  beneath  the  former,  on  which  is  another  effigy  of  the 
deceased,  in  freestone,  represented  as  an  emaciated  corpse  extended  on  a 
winding-sheet.     This   kind  of  contrasted  exhibition  of  the  human  figure, 
intended  to  denote  the  awful  change  which  disease  and  death  occasions,  and 
thus  convey  a  moral  lesson  to  human  vanity,  was  not  uncommon  in  our 
cathedrals  about  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century.     The  Bishop's  gar- 
ments, mitre,  maniple,  &c.  have  been  richly  gilt  and  painted;  and  the  bor- 
derings,  and  other  parts,  have  been  depicted  as  inlaid,  or  set  with  precious 
stones  :    his  head  is  reposing  on  two  cushions,  tasseled.     The  slab  is  sup- 
ported by  six  small  columns,  three  on  each  side,  having  low  trefoil-headed 
arches  between  them,  forming  a  sort  of  canopy  over  the  emaciated  figure ; 
and  the  spandrils  of  which  are  almost  wholly  filled  by  the  luxuriant  plumage 
of  demi-angels,  which  rest  with  outspreading  wings  on  the  shafts  of  the 
columns  :   these  shafts  were  originally  adorned  with   panelled   arches   and 
pinnacles,  but  much  of  the  old  work  has  been  broken  away,  and  its  place 
supplied  by  plain  wood. 

11  Godwin,  "  De  Prsesulibus,"  p.  382,  note/. 


112  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

On  the  south  side  of  the  nave,  immediately  opposite  to  Bishop  Bubwith'fi 
chapel,  is  another  very  beautiful  chantry  chapel,  by  some  called  Bishop 
Beckington's,  and  by  others  Bishop  Knight's,  but  inaccurate  as  to  both  ;  for 
Godwin  expressly  states  that  it  was  erected  by  Hugh  Sugar,  LL.D.  Trea- 
surer of  Wells  (who  was  one  of  Beckington's  executors),  entirely  of  free- 
stone, in  place  of  a  chapel  of  wood  that  previously  stood  there  13.  This,  like 
Bubwith's,  is  a  sexangular  structure,  and  not  dissimilar  in  its  general  design  ; 
but  the  tracery  of  the  upper  division  is  more  elaborate,  and  the  frieze  and 
crowning  ornaments  more  richly  sculptured :  the  east  end,  or  altar  part  of 
the  interior,  is  likewise  far  more  sumptuously  profuse  in  its  sculptural  deco- 
rations than  that  chapel.  Attached  to  the  frieze,  both  on  the  north  and 
south,  are  six  demi-angels  sustaining  shields,  charged,  among  other  bearings, 
with  the  symbols  of  the  five  wounds,  a  cypher  or  monogram  of  the  builder's 
initials,  viz.  H.  S.,  his  arms,  viz.  three  sugar-loaves,  surmounted  by  a 
doctor's  cap.  The  same  cypher  and  arms  are  repeated  on  shields,  within 
(;!iatrefoils  and  circles,  under  the  canopy  in  the  interior.  The  eastern  facade, 
above  where  the  altar  stood,  displays  a  most  elegant  series  of  five  niches, 
separated  by  clustered  buttresses,  and  crowned  by  highly  enriched  turreted 
canopies,  the  soffites  of  which  are  elegantly  groined  in  divers  forms :  the 
pedestals,  which  are  wrought  in  a  corresponding  manner,  are  adorned  with 
foliage.  All  the  eastern  part  from  the  doorways  is  surmounted  by  a  most 
splendid  canopy,  or  vault,  of  stone,  overspread  with  fanlike  tracery,  a  rich 
central  pendant,  quatrefoils  in  circles,  and  a  profusion  of  other  forms  and 
ornaments. 

Adjoining  to  the  above  chapel,  against  the  great  column  on  the  western 
side,  is  a  Sto7te  pulpit,  erected  in  Henry  the  Eighth's  reign  by  Bishop  Kuig/tt, 
who  died  in  1547;  and  which,  says  Godwin,  "  hee  caused  to  be  built  for 
his  tombe."  It  consists  of  a  basement,  and  a  superstructure  fronted  with 
pilasters,  panelled,  surmounted  by  an  entablature ;    on  the  frieze  of  which  is 

13  Hugo  Sugar,  &C.  "  leguni  Doctor,  qui  Capellam  elegantera  ex  polito  lapide  suis  sumptions 
construxit,  magno  pulpito  coutiguam,  ubi  loci  lignea  jam  olirn  fuerat  posita.'' — "  De  Praesulibus," 
p.  381.  Tbe  great  pulpit  here  mentioned  was  built  by  Bishop  Knight  seventy  or  eighty  years 
subsequently  to  the  erection  of  the  chapel. 


MONUMENTS  OF  BISHOPS  STILL,  LAKE,  CREIGHTON,  AND  KIDDER.  113 

the  following  inscription   in  Roman  capitals : — preache   thou   the    worde. 

BE  FERVENT  IN  SEASON  AND  OVT  OF  SEASON.       REPROVE,  REBVKE,  EXHORT,   IN  ALL 

longe  svfferyng  6j-  doctryne.  2  timo.     In  front  are  the  Bishop's  arms. 

Bishop  Berkeley,  ob.  1581,  is  commemorated  by  an  altar  tomb  on  the 
north  side  of  St.  John's  Chapel ;  to  which  place  it  was  removed  from  the 
choir  to  make  room  for  the  monument  of  Bishop  Kidder.  In  front  are  three 
panels,  in  which,  on  octo-foils,  are  shields  of  arms  displaying  those  of  the 
See  impaled  with  Berkeley's. 

On  the  south  side  of  the  choir,  between  the  two  easternmost  columns,  is 
the  monument  of  Bishop  Still,  ob.  1607;  which  exhibits  all  the  ponderous 
heaviness  of  James  the  First's  time.  The  deceased  is  represented  by  a 
recumbent  figure,  in  parliamentary  robes,  on  a  large  sarcophagus,  beneath  an 
entablature  and  semicircular-arched  canopy,  which  is  supported  by  two 
Corinthian  columns.  His  head  reposes  on  two  embroidered  cushions, 
tasseled ;  and  his  hands  are  raised  as  in  prayer :  he  has  a  long  beard,  and  a 
large  ruff,  plaited.  At  the  back  of  the  arch  is  an  inscription  to  the  Bishop's 
memory ;  and  in  the  spandrils  are  the  arms  of  his  See  and  family,  on 
separate  shields.  The  same  arms,  impaled  in  one  shield,  surmount  the 
central  part  of  the  entablature. 

Bishop  Lake  was  buried  in  the  south  aile  of  the  choir,  near  the  back  of 
the  Bishop's  throne;  where  his  memory  is  recorded  by  his  arms,  sculptured 
in  stone,  and  a  brief  inscription  on  a  brass  plate.     He  died  in  1626. 

In  St.  John's  Chapel,  on  the  eastern  side,  is  the  ponderous  marble  tomb 
and  effigy  of  Bishop  Creighton,  who  died  in  1672.  In  front  of  the  pedestal 
are  three  shields,  displaying  the  arms  of  the  deceased,  of  the  See  of  Wells, 
and  of  the  latter  combined  with  those  of  Bath  Abbey.  An  inscribed  tablet 
(principally  relating  to  his  exile),  and  an  elliptical  pediment,  fronted  by  a 
shield  of  the  arms  of  the  See  impaling  Creighton,  surmounted  by  a  mitre, 
completes  the  design. 

Between  the  easternmost  columns,  on  the  north  side  of  the  choir,  is  the 
lofty  monument  of  Bishop  Kidder  and  his  lady,  who  were  killed  in  the  great 
storm  of  November  26, 1703.     This  was  erected  by  their  surviving  daughter, 

Q 


114 


WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 


who  is  represented,  by  an  elaborate  figure,  reclining  on  a  slab,  and  looking 
at  two  urns  supposed  to  contain  the  ashes  of  her  ill-fated  parents.  At  the 
sides  are  two  Corinthian  columns,  supporting  an  entablature  and  open  pedi- 
ment, crowned  with  flaming  lamps  and  a  lozenge  shield  of  the  family  arms. 
Beneath  the  entablature  is  expanded  drapery,  with  cherubim  in  basso- 
relievo. 

Against  the  south  wall  of  the  south  aile  is  a  lofty  monumeut  of  marble, 
with  a  long  inscription  on  a  tablet  between  two  Corinthian  columns  sup- 
porting an  entablature  and  pediment,  in  commemoration  of  Bishop  Hooper, 
who  died  in  1727.  At  the  sides,  above  the  pedestal,  are  youthful  Genii; 
and  over  the  entablature  are  the  arms  of  the  See,  impaling  Hooper. 

In  the  south  transept  is  the  dilapidated  monument  of  Joan,  Viscountess 
Lisle,  a  daughter  and  heiress  of  Thomas  Chedder,  Esq.  and  widow  of  John 
Viscount  Lisle,  who  died  on  the  13th  of  July,  14G4.  It  consists  of  a  low 
tomb,  under  an  elevated  recessed  ogee  arch,  flanked  by  buttresses,  and 
ornamented  with  rich  crockets  and  finials.  An  embattled  cornice,  with 
pierced  work  in  panels,  terminates  the  design.  At  the  back  of  the  arch  are 
three  niches,  with  enriched  pinnacles,  See.  which  were  brought  to  light  in 
1801),  by  the  taking  down  of  a  wall  with  which  the  recess  had  been  partially 
filled  up,  and  which  was  partly  formed  of  broken  fragments  of  the  effigy  of 
the  Viscountess. 

In  St.  Martin's  Chapel,  in  the  south  transept,  is  the  architectural  monu- 
ment of  John  Storthwait,  who  was  Precentor  of  Wells  in  1426,  and  Chan- 
cellor in  1439:  he  died  about  1454.  The  basement  is  ornamented  with 
panelled  arches  and  small  buttresses;  upon  which,  within  an  enriched  cano- 
pied recess,  lies  a  figure  of  the  deceased,  with  his  hands  as  in  prayer.  The 
upper  part  consists  of  a  panelling  of  trefoil-headed  arches,  pinnacles,  and 
other  sculpture. 

In  the  adjoining  Chapel,  which  is  dedicated  to  St.  Kalixtus,  and  now  used 
as  the  canons'  vestry,  is  the  elegant  though  mutilated  monument  of  Dean 
Henry  Hvsee,  who  died  in  the  year  1305.  It  is  composed  of  alabaster;  and 
consists  of  a  recumbent  figure  of  the  Dean,  on  a  basement  tomb,  beneath  a 


MONUMENTS  TO  T.  CORNISH,  ETC.  115 

recessed  arch,  surmounted  by  a  rich  but  broken  canopy.  The  front  of  the 
tomb  is  divided  by  small  buttresses  into  nine  compartments ;  five  of  which 
include  as  many  headless  figures  of  ecclesiastics,  and  the  others  shields  of 
arms :  the  verge  is  embattled.  Pendent  tracery  ornaments  the  lower  part 
of  the  arch;  in  the  spandrils  are  quatrefoils,  &c,  and  above  the  arch  is  a 
series  of  trefoil-headed  niches,  with  pinnacles,  a  cornice,  and  a  crowning 
ornament  of  trefoils. 

At  the  northern  extremity  of  the  north  transept  is  an  altar  tomb,  with  a 
canopy,  to  the  memory  of  Thomas  Cornish,  Precentor,  Chancellor  and  Canon 
Residentiary  of  this  Cathedral,  who  died  in  1513.  He  was  Suffragan  Bishop 
to  this  Cathedral  under  Fox,  and  of  Exeter  to  Hugh  Oldam.  He  was  also 
Provost  of  Oriel  College,  Oxford.  (See  Athena?  Oxon.  vol.  ii.  p.  698.)  An 
elevation  of  this  simple  but  handsome  monument  is  given  in  the  engraved 
title  page  to  this  volume. 

In  St.  John's  Chapel,  at  the  north  end  of  the  eastern  transept,  is  an  altar 
tomb,  sustaining  a  recumbent  effigy  of  a  priest,  said  to  perpetuate  Dean 
Forest,  who  died  in  March  1446.  Near  it  are  some  marble  tablets  to  the 
memory  of  different  branches  of  the  Brydges  family. 

In  the  Lady  Chapel  are  tablets  recording  the  names  and  qualifications  of 
the  Rev.  Thomas  Eyre,  Treasurer  of  this  Cathedral,  and  of  other  persons  of 
his  family. 

On  the  wall  of  the  north  aile,  near  the  entrance,  is  a  marble  slab  com- 
memorating Thomas  Linley,  Esq.  who  died  Nov.  19,  1795;  and  also  two  of 
his  daughters,  one  of  whom,  Elizabeth  Ann,  was  wife  of  R.  B.  Sheridan,  Esq. 
A  pathetic  poetical  epitaph,  by  William  Linley,  son  of  the  above  Thomas,  is 
inscribed  on  the  tablet. 

Attached  to  the  wall  behind  the  altar  is  a  tablet  raised  to  the  memory  of 
Lord  Francis  Seymour,  son  of  Edward,  Duke  of  Somerset,  who  died  in 
February,  1799,  aged  seventy-three,  after  presiding  in  this  church  as  Dean 
for  thirty-three  years. 

John  Harris,  D.  D.  Bishop  of  Landaff,  and  Dean  of  this  Church,  is  com- 
memorated by  another  marble  slab  affixed  to  the  same  wall.  He  died  in 
August,  1738. 


116 


WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 


In  St.  Catharine's  Chapel  are  monumental  memorials  of  the  Sherston 
family ;  and  also  a  curious  emblematical  brass  plate,  in  memory  of  Humphry 
Willis,  Esq.  who  died  in  1618. 

Attached  to  one  of  the  clerestory  windows  on  the  south  side  of  the  nave  is 
a  small  Minstrel  Gallery,  having  its  front  divided  into  three  panels,  with 
quatrefoil  tracery,  inclosing  blank  shields.  On  the  south  side  of  the  nave,  over 
the  arches,  are  two  large  busts  of  a  Bishop  and  a  King,  with  small  figures 
attached  to  each :  these  have  been  already  noticed,  pp.  60, 61,  note  7,  and  are 
represented  in  Plate  n.  figures  4  and  5.  In  the  north  transept  is  a  curious, 
antient,  and  complicated  Clock,  which  is  traditionally  said  to  have  been 
executed  by  Peter  Lightfoot,  a  monk  of  Glastonbury,  about  the  year  1325. 
Its  circular  dial  represents  the  hours  of  the  day  and  night,  the  phases  of  the 
moon,  and  other  astronomical  signs ;  and  at  the  summit  is  a  piece  of  machinery 
with  figures  of  knights  on  horseback,  or  cavalry,  which  revolve  round  a 
centre  at  the  time  of  striking  the  hours.  At  one  angle  of  the  transept  is  a 
statue  of  a  seated  man,  which  is  connected  with  the  clock  by  rods,  and  strikes 
the  hours  and  quarters  with  his  foot  against  a  bell.  This  figure,  without  an)r 
intention  of  punning,  is  popularly  called  Peter  Lightfoot. 

Among  the  fanciful,  amusing,  and  interesting  features  of  this  truly  inte- 
resting Church,  the  numerous  and  diversified  Capitals  to  the  columns  demand 
particular  notice.  They  abound  with  rich  and  varied  sculpture,  and  shew 
that  the  artist  who  designed  and  the  artizan  who  executed  them  worked  in 
co-operation  and  with  one  feeling.  Though  all  are  restricted  to  given  pro- 
portions and  general  forms,  and  each  is  adapted  to  its  particular  office,  yet 
they  all  vary  from  one  another,  and  each  is  distinguished  by  its  own  indi- 
vidual beauty  and  originality.  Nineteen  of  these  capitals  are  delineated  in 
Plates  xni.  and  xxn.  Those  in  the  former  are  1  and  3,  against  the  wall  on  the 
north  side  of  the  nave ;  4,  cluster  to  great  pier  on  the  south  side  of  the  nave  ; 
2  and  6,  clusters  in  vestibule  to  the  Lady  Chapel ;  5  and  7,  under  north-west 
tower.  Plate  xxn.  1,  commencing  at  the  left  hand  corner,  4,  5,  6,  7,  and 
8,  are  portions  of  capitals  from  the  south  transept ;  2  and  3,  from  the 
north  aile  of  the  nave;  10  and  12,  from  the  north  porch;  and  9  and  11,  from 
the  north  transept. 


PALACE;  DEANERY,  AND  VICAR'S  COLLEGE.  117 

Detached  from,  but  associated  in  history  and  architectural  characteristics 
with  the  Cathedral,  are  the  Palace,  the  Deanery,  the  Vicar's  Close,  or  College, 
and  some  gatehouses,  &c.  in  the  market  place.  The  Palace,  a  short  distance 
south  of  the  Cathedral,  is  a  large  irregular  pile  of  building,  surrounded  by 
an  embattled  lofty  wall,  and  that  again  guarded  by  a  wide  moat,  filled  with 
water.  Over  this,  on  the  north  side,  is  a  bridge,  with  an  embattled  gate- 
house, on  the  palace  side.  The  area  within  the  walls  is  said  to  embrace 
nearly  seven  acres  of  land,  occupied  by  a  court-yard  and  lawns,  kitchen  and 
pleasure  gardens,  the  offices  and  the  dwelling  house.  The  latter,  it  is 
reported,  contains  some  antient  specimens  of  architecture.  On  the  south 
side  of  the  outer  court,  or  ballium,  as  it  may  be  named,  are  the  walls  of  a 
grand  and  spacious  hall,  which  was  about  one  hundred  and  twenty  feet  in 
length,  by  seventy  feet  in  width,  and  was  built  by  Bishop  Burnell,  in  the 
reign  of  Edward  I.  It  was  enlightened  by  tall  and  finely  formed  windows  ; 
had  a  music  gallery  at  one  end,  and  staircase  turrets  at  the  angles.  Near 
it  are  the  remains  of  a  once  beautiful  chapel,  supposed  to  have  been  built  by 
Joceline  de  Wells.  Bishop  Erghum  fortified,  enlarged,  and  strengthened 
this  Palace  during  his  prelacy,  and  made  it  a  complete  fortress.  Within 
fifty  years  afterwards  it  was  greatly  dilapidated;  as  Bishop  Beckington 
found  it  necessary  to  repair  it  and  add  to  its  accommodations.  By  the  great 
Duke  of  Somerset  (uncle  to  Edward  VI.)  it  suffered  much  waste  and  injury; 
and  still  further  destruction  by  a  despicable  fanatic,  named  Burgess,  during 
the  Civil  War  in  Charles  the  First's  time.  These  things  considered,  and 
the  comparatively  small  income  of  the  See,  we  are  surprised  to  find  the 
Palace  possess  so  much  antiquarian  interest,  and  to  hear  that  it  affords  so 
much  domestic  comfort  and  accommodation. 

At  a  short  distance  north-west  of  the  Cathedral  is  the  Deanery  House,  a 
large  and  commodious  mansion.  The  building  is  nearly  square,  with  a 
court  yard  to  the  east,  gardens  and  offices  to  the  north,  and  abutting  on  the 
south  to  the  road.  The  oldest  part  of  the  present  building  appears  to  be  of 
Guuthorpe's  time,  who  was  elected  Dean  in  1472,  and  is  said  to  have  enter- 
tained Henry  the  Seventh  here  on  his  return  from  the  west.     In  the  hall  is 


118 


WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 


an  antient  sculptured  fire-place,  and  on  the  garden  side  are  some  fine  oriel 
windows. 

Directly  north  of  the  Cathedral  is  a  series  of  tenements,  with  chapel,  hall, 
&c.  surrounding  a  long  area,  called  the  Vicar's  College,  or  Close.  Bishop 
Salopia  appears  to  have  been  the  chief  founder  of  this  college,  and  builder  of 
the  houses,  &c.  The  collegiate  establishment  consists  of  two  principals,  five 
seniors,  and  seven  other  vicars.  The  buildings  comprise  twenty  houses  on 
each  side  of  the  court,  or  close,  a  chapel  with  a  library  in  a  ruinous  state,  at 
the  north  end,  and  a  common  hall,  with  its  appendages,  at  the  opposite  end. 
The  buildings,  as  well  as  the  funds  of  this  College,  are  under  great  obliga- 
tions to  Bishop  Beckington.  In  Plate  xx.  the  entrance  gateway  to  the 
Vicar's  Close,  including  the  archway  and  gallery  of  communication  with  the 
Cathedral,  together  with  a  beautiful  oriel  window,  and  other  contiguous 
objects,  are  distinctly  represented. 


119 


9  C&ronolo&tcal  £t£t  of  tfje  m$i)op$  of  35atfj  attti  mzU& 

WITH  THE  CONTEMPORARY  KINGS  OF  ENGLAND. 


15 


18 


19 


20 
23 


OF  WELLS. 

Athelmus,  or  Adelin 

Wulfbelm,  or  Wlfelmus... 

Elphege,  or  Elfege 

Waif  helm,  Wlfelmos,  or) 

Wolfelm J 

Brithelm,  or  Brihtelin2 .... 
Kyneward,  or  Kinewald... 

Sigar 

Alwyn,  Adelwyn,  Alfwin, ) 

or  Ealwyn $ 

Burwold 

Leovingos,    Living,    El- 

stan,  or  Elstauns 

Ethelwyn,  or  Agelwiuus. 

supplanted  by J 

Brithwyn,  who  was  eject-  ? 

ed,  in  turn,  by  the  same  £ 

Ethelwyn 

Merehwit,  or  Mere  whit 

Dudoc,  or  Dadocus 


Giso,  Gisa,  or  GIso  Hasban 

OF  BATH. 

John  de  Villula,. 


Godfrey. 

OF  BATH  AND  WELLS. 

Robert3. 


Reginald  Fitz  Jocellne  . 


OF  BATH  AND  GLAS- 
TONBURY. 

Savaric 

Joceline  de  Welles 


OF  BATH  AND  WELLS 


Roger 

Wm.  Bitton,  or  Button., 


Elected  or  Consecrated. 


Died  or  Translated. 


&nglo=§ba.xon  Bsnastw. 


Circa 905  or  900 

924 

Circa 925 

Occurs' 938 


958 

974 

Circa 975 

Circa 997 

1000 

1001 


.1013 


Circa 1021 

Circa 


1025 
1027 
1033 


To  Canterbury 923 

Ditto 925 


Died May  15,  973 

July  8,  975 

June  8,997 


..  1000 

Circa 1000 

To  Canterbury 1013 


Died 1026 

Died 1020 

Died 1033 

Died 1000 


Gorman  Bgnastg. 

Consecrated. .May  17, 1060   1088 


Died Deo.  1123 

Died Aug.  16,  1135 


1135  Died Sept.  1,  1165  or  6 

£>a.xon  Hinc  Hcstorclr. 

Cons June  23,  1174  To  Canterbury...  Nov.  1191    Batb 1191 


Cons Sept.  20,  1192 

Cons May  28,  1206 


Cons Sept.  11,1244 

Cons July  14,1248 


Kings. 


Canterbury 

Canterbury 93S 


Wells. 
Wells. 


Wells 

Wells 

Canterburv....  1019 


Wells 

Wells 

Glastonbury  . 
Wells 


Wells. 


Batb. 
Batb. 


Edward  tbe  Elder. 

Atbelstan. 

Atbelstan. 

Edmund  and  Eldred. 

Edwy  and  Edgar. 
Edgar,  &c. 
Etbelred. 

Etbelred. 

Ethelred. 

Etbelred. 

Edmund  and  Canute. 

Canute. 

Canute, 
Canute. 
Harold  I.  to  Harold  !i. 


William  I. 


William  II.  Henn  I. 
Henry  I. 


Batb Stephen. 


Aug.  8,1205  Batb. 

Died Nov.  19,  1242  Wells 


Died Dec.  1247.  Bath., 

Died April  3,  1264  Wells 


Henry  II. 


ilichard  I. 
John. 


(lenry  III. 
Henry  III. 


1  Le  Neve  says,  in  942. 

2  He  was  translated,  in  959,  to  Canterbury ;  but,  upon  tbe  pretext  of  insufficiency,  was  in  a  short  time  removed  back  to  Wells.    Jon.  Brompton,  col.  801. 

3  In  his  time  the  tirst  Dean  was  chosen. 


120 


WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 


a 

25 
26 
27 

28 

29 
30 

31 
32 


33 

34 

35 
30 

37 


lis 


39 


bishops. 


WallerGiflard 

Wni.  Billon,  or  Button.... 

Robert  Burnell 

Wm.  de  Marchia,  or  De  ) 

la  March $ 

Walter    de   Haselshawe,) 

or  Hestelshagh $ 

John  Drokensford 


Ralph  de  Salopia 

Waller  de  Moiiyngtun. 

John  Barnet 

John  Harewell,  I.I,  I.. 
Richard  Medeford 


in 
II 

42 


43 

II 
45 
II, 
47 
48 

Iti 


Walter  Skirlawe,  LL.D... 

R.  Erghum,  LL.  D , 

Richard  Clifford  

Henry  Bowet,  LL.D 

Nicholas  Bubwith 

John  Stafford,  LL.D 


Tbo.  de  Beckingtnn,  LL.D 
John  Phreas,  or  Free 


Rich.  Stillington,  LL.  D... 


Richard  Fox,  LL.D 

Oliver  King,  LL.  D 

Card.  Adrian  de  Castello. 


Card.  Thomas  Wolsey 

John  Clarke,  D.D , 

William  Knight,  LL.D.... 

William  Barlow,  D.D 

Gilbert  Bciarne,  D.D 

Gilbert  Berkelev.orBark- ) 
ley.S.T.P.i $ 

Thomas  Godwin,  D.D 


John  Still,  D.D 

James  Montague,  D.D.. 
Arthur  Lake,  D.D 


Elected  or  Consrcuited. 


Died  or  Translated. 


Elected May  22, 1204!  To  York Oct.  15,  120. 

Elect Feb.  10,1207-8  Died Dec.  4,  1271 


Cons April  7,  1274 

(Elect.  Jan. 30, 1293-94 
(  Cons..  ..May 

S  Elect Aug.  7 
Cons Nov 

<  Elect Feb.  5,  1309  ( 

?Cons Nov.  9,  1309  j 

Cons Dec.  3,  1329 


1, 1293-94  ) 
17, 1294  5 
.  7,  13025 
.4,  1302  $ 


Died Oct.  25,  1292 

Died June  11,  1302 

Died Dec.  11,  1308 

Died May  IS,  1329 

Died Ang.  14,  1303 


53|  William  Laud,  D.D... 


Elected,  but  his  Election  m;ide  void. 

From  Worcester,  >   |~ 

xr        <ji    imi)     Trans,  to  Ely. .Dec.  15, 1300 
Nov.  24,  1303  J 

Cons March  7,  13061 June  or  July,  1386 

Elected  July  1,  1386;   but  resigned  before  possession. 


Uartcastrtan  Hint. 

From  Lichf.  Aug.  18, 1386  |To  Durham.. ..April  3, 1388 

From  Sarum,  April  3,1388  |Died April  11,  1400 

Advan.  by  Papal  authority  ;  but  resign,  before  possession 


Cons. 
From  York. 


Nov.  20, 
Oct.  7. 




1107 


JElect Dec.  1424) 

I  Cons...  .May  27,  1425  J 


To  York Oct.  7,  140 

Oct.  27,  1121 


To  Canterb...Aug.23,  1443 


pjousc  of  fJorK. 


Buried  at 


York  

Wells 

1279 

Wells 

WTells 

Wells 

Wells 

Ely 

Kings. 


Durham 1406 

Wells 


.1423 


York.... 

Wells 

Canterbury 1452 


Cons Oct.  13,  1443| Jan.  14,  1464-5   Wells 

Advanced  by  Papal  authority,  in  1  400  ;  but  died  before  possession. 

Cons March  10,  1400 1  Died 1491 1  Wells 


33"nfort  of  1?oik  anlr  Hantastriart  jfainiltts. 


From  Exeter...Feb.  S,  1492 

<  FroroExet.Nov.6,1495  ) 
(  Inst...  March  12,1496$ 
(  FromIleref..Aug.l504  1 
<Inst.  byproxy,Oct.  20, > 
(  1504) 


<  To  Durham 1494  ) 

(To  Winchester. ..1502$ 

Died Aug.  29,  1503 


Deprived July  2,  1518 


Reformation. 


Aug.  28,  1518 

Temporal,  rest.  May  2, 1523 

Cons May  29,  1541 

St.  David's.. ..Feb.  3,  1547 

Cods April  1,  1554 

J  Elect Jan.  29, 1559  > 

J  Cons..  March  24,  1559$ 
Elect. ...Aug.  10,  1584; 
Cons. ...Sept.  13,  1584$ 


Resigned April,  1523 

Died Jau.  3,  1540-41 

Died Sept.  29,  1547 

Ejected 1553 

Deprived 155s 

Died Nov.  2,  1581 

Died Nov.  19,  1590 


vMnton  of  ©ngh'slj  an&  sfccotcf)  GTvofons. 


Cons Feb.  11, 1592-93  [  Died Feb.  16,1007 

Cons April  17,  1608  ToWinchester..Oct.4,1010 

Elect Oct.  17,  1016  J  Died May  4,  1626 

~ToLond..July28, 1628? 
ToCanterh..Aug.l633$ 


FromSt.Dav..Sept.l9,1020 


Winchester  ...1508 
Baih,  or  Windsor... 


Leicester 1530 

London 

Wells 

Chichester ... 

Silverton 1509 

Wells 


Okiugham 


W'ells  . 
Bath... 

Wells. 


1618 


Henry  III.  and  Edw.  I. 
HenryIII.andEdw.1. 
Edward  I. 

Edward  I. 

Edward  I.  and  II. 

Edward  II.  and  III. 
Edward  III. 

Edward  III.  Rich.  II. 
Edward  III.  Rich.  II. 


Rich.  II.  Hen.  IV. 
Rich.  II.  Hen.  IV. 

Henry  IV. 
Henry  IV.  V.  VI. 


Oxford Charles  I 


Henry  VI. 


Henry  VI.  Edw.  IV. 

J  Edw.  IV.  Rich.  III. 
(  Henry  VII. 


Henry  VII. 
Henry  VII. 

Henry  VII.  and  Mil. 


Henry  VIII. 
Henry  VIII. 
Henry  VIII.  Edw.  VI. 
Edward  VI.  and  Mary. 
Mary  and  Elizabeth. 

Elizabeth. 
Elizabeth. 


James  I. 
James  I. 
James  I.  Charles  I. 


CHRONOLOGICAL  LIST  OF  BISHOPS. 


121 


.-.  i 

5.5 

56 

57 

58 

eg 

60 

61 

62 
63 
64 
65 
66 


Leonard  Mawe,  D.D 

Walter  Carle,  D.D 

Wro.  Pierce,  or  Piers,  D.D 

Robert  Creighton,  D.D.... 

Peter  Mew,  LL.D 

Thomas  Kenn,  D.D 

Richard  Kidder,  D.D 

George  Hooper,  D.D 

John  Wynne,  S.T.P 

Edward  Willes,  D.D 

Charles  Moss,  D.D 

Richard  Beadon,  D.D 

Henry  Law,  D.D. 


Elected  or  Consecrated. 


Elect July  24,  1628 

From  Rochester,  ) 

Elect.. ..Oct.  29,  1629 S 

5  From  Peterborough...  > 

I  Nov.  26,1032$ 

Elect May  25,  1670 

Elect Dec.  19,1672 

Cons Jan.  25,  1684-5 

Cons Ang.  30,  1691 

SFrom  St.  Asaph,  ) 

March  14,  1703-4  5 

Ditto Nov.  11,  1727 

From  St.  David's 1743 

Ditto 1774 

From  Gloucester 1802 

From  Chester 1824 


Died  or  Translated. 


Died Sept.  3, 1629 

To  Winchester 1632 

Died April,  1670 

Died Nov.  21,  1672 

To  Winchest.  Nov.  22,1634 

Deprived Feb.  1,  1690 

Killed Nov.  27,  1703 

Died Sept.  6,  1727 

Died Jalv,  1743 

Died Nov.  24,  1773 

Died  1802 

Died April  20,  1824 


Chiswick 

Subberton,  Hants... 

Walthamstow  

Wells 

Winchester 

Frome 1710 

Wells 

Wells 

London 

London 

Wells 


Kings. 


Charles  I. 
Charles  I. 

Charles  II. 

Charles  II. 
Charles  II. 
JamesII.  Williamlll. 
William  III.  and  Anne. 

S  Anne, 

{ George  I.  and  II. 
George  II. 
George  II. 
George  III. 
George  IV. 
George  IV. 


A  CHRONOLOGICAL  LIST 

OF  THE 


Utfiiftops  of  J&outft&tcr,  OSttufjestrr,  anii  ^fjertjortte; 

TO  WHICH  THE  DIOCESS  OF  WELLS  ORIGINALLY  BELONGED. 


OF  DORCHESTER. 

Birious 


Agelbert,  or  Egilbert 

Wina,    Bisbop    of   Dor-? 

cbester  &  Winchester^ 
Lotbere,  or    Leutberins 

Bp.  of  the  W.  Saxons 


■l 


OF  WINCHESTER. 

Headda,  or  Hedda 

Daniel 


OF  SHERBORNE. 

Aldhelm 

Forthere,  or  Fordhere... 

Herewald 


Elected  or  Consecrated. 


Circa . 


.035 
..650 
.661 


Died  or  Translated. 


Circa  . 


.676 
.704 


Ethelmod 

Denefrith 

Wilbert,  or  Wigbert.. 


Ealstan . 


Edmund,  or  Headmund. 

Etheleage 

Alfsy,  or  Alfsius 


Asserius  Menevensis.. 


Swithelm,  or  Siglielm 

Ethehvold,  or  Ethehvard... 
[See  vacant  several  years.] 
Werstan 


Circa 706 

709 

(  Present  at  a  council  747 

(  Confirms  a  charter 


1747) 
.766$ 


Before 812 


Circa  . 


.817 


867 

Circa 872 


From  Exeter. 


Godwin  says , 883 


Circa . 


.905 


650 

See  divid... Abdicated  ..660 

pelled 664 

d 675 


S  EM 

(  Die 

670  Died 674 


Circa 703 

J  Seeagaindiv. circa  706  ) 
fDied 745J 


Died. 709 

Died  circa 737 


.867 


Slain 871 


.Probably  resign.  Died,} 
)  accord,  to  Godwin, 883;> 
(   Sax.  Cbron.  says... 910) 


1 
Died 

Slain 


.898 
.918 


(Dorchester,after 
■(rem.  to  Winches 

Winchester 

Winchester 

Winchester 

Sherborne 

Sherborne 

R 


Saxon  Kings. 


Cynegils,  Kenwalsh. 

Keuwalsh. 

Kenwalsh. 

Kenwalsh. 


Ina. 

Ina,  Ethelard. 


Ina. 

Ina,  Ethelard. 

(Ethelard,  Cuthred. 

}Sigebert,Kinewulpb. 

Kinewulph. 

Brithric. 

Egbert. 

(Egbert,  Ethelwulph, 

'Ethelbald.Ethelbert, 

/Ethelred. 

Ethelred. 

Ethelred. 

Alfred. 

<  Alfred, 

I  Edward  the  Elder. 

Alfred. 
Alfred. 

Edward  the  Elder. 


122 


WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 


®  ©fjroitoIOQtcal  £t$t  of  tf,e  13eans  of  Wle\l0* 


No. 


8 


DEANS. 


Ivo1 

Ricliard    de    Spakeslnn, 
or  Spaxtoo 

Alexander 


Leonius. 


Ralph  de  Lecblade. 


Peter  de  Cicester2.., 
William  de  Merton  . 
John  Saracen 


Egidius  de  Bridptfrt 


10  Edward delaKnoll.orCnoll 

11  Thomas  de  Button 
1-'   William  Barnell 
13 


1  I 
IS 

It, 

17 

18 
19 

20 

21 

22 
23 
24 

25 

26 

27 
28 
20 

30 

:!1 


Walter  de  Haselshawe4 

Henry  Husee,  or  Hose.. 
John  de  Godelegh5 

Richard  de  Bury 

Wihert  de  Luttleton,  or 

Win.  deLyttleton 

Walter  de  London 

John  de  Carleton6 

William  de  Camel 


Stephen  de  Pempell,  or ) 
Pympel J 

John  Fordham7 

Thomas  de  Sudbury,  LL.D. 

Nicholas  Slake 

Henry  Beaufort8 

Thomas  Tuttebury 

Thomas  Stanley 


Richard  Courtney 

Thos.  Karneke,  or  Karneka. 
WalterMedford.orMetford 

John  Stafford,  LL.D 

John  Forrest  


Appointed  or  admitted. 


Occurs  1135  ;  and  again  1159 — Dugdale. 
(  Occurs  in  1 1G0— Godwin  ;  1164— Reg.  Dec.  et  Cap.; 
i      and  1174 — Wharton. 

(  Occurs  1 180— Cart.  Glaston.  MS.  p.  15  ;  and  1209— 
(      Reg.  Well. 

(  Noticed  1213— Reg.  Dec.  et  Cap.;    1215— Dug- 
(      dale  ;  Godwin  places  him  iu  1205. 
(Dugdale  says  he  was  elected  during  the  time  of) 
(      Bishop  Joceline S 

S  Attended  as  Dean  in  Bath  Abbey  at  Synod,  April 
4,  1220— Dugdale 

Elected  Sept.  19, 1237  ;  Godwin  says  1236. 

S  Appointed  by  the  Pope  1242 — Dugdale;    Godwin 
says  1241.     He  occurs  1252. 

Elected  1253 

Sept.  1256— Reg.  Dec.  et  Capital 

Nor.  15,  1284— Reg.  Well 

1292 


Dec.  17,  1298  . 
1302 


1305 

Elect,  by  the  Pope's  Letters,  Feb.  20, 1332— Dugdale. 

Elected  April  22, 1334 — Godwin  and  Le  Neve 

Aug.  30,  1335 

1350 

Elected,  but  refused  to  act,  1361. 


Nov.  3,  1361  . 


Feb.  22,  1378  ;  Godwin  says  1379 

1381— Godwin. 

Occurs  1396— Godwin 

1397 — Reg.  Braybroke  Episc.  Lond. 

Nov.  26,  1401.     Held  it  a  short  time 

Sept.  20, 1403— according  to  Dugdale;  but  God- 
win and  Le  Neve  say  1401 

May  26,  1410;  Godwin  says  1409 

1413  —  Le  Neve;  omitted  by  Godwin 

Nov.  8,  1413— Reg.  Bubbewith 

Sept.  9,  1423 

Nov.  19,  1425 


Died  or  removed. 


1213— Reg.  Well. 

Died  1237— Reg.  Dec.  et  Capital. 


To  Salisburv,  12563— Reg.  Dec.  et  Cap. 
Died  Sept.  16,  1284— Ibid. 

(To  See  of  Exeter,  1292— Rynier  Feed. 

(      vol.  ii.  p.  543. 
Died  1295— Reg.  Wellen. 

(  To  this  See,  1302— Reg.  Wellen.    See  List 

}      of  Bishops. 
Died  1305— Reg.  Wellen. 
Died  Feb.  4, 1332. 

(To  Durham,  1334— Reg.  Wellen.;    died 

(      before  installation. 

SNot  installed;    he   died  before  Aug.  31, 
1355 — Reg.  Rad.  de  Salop. 
Died  1350— Reg.  Wellen. 
Died  1361— Reg.  Wellen. 

("Died  Feb.  3,  1378-9;  and  was  buried  in 
<      the  Cathedral   before   the   altar  of  St. 
(      Stephen  —  Dugdale. 
To  Durham,  1381— Reg.  Wellen. 

Removed  1401. 

(Not  known  whether  he  vacated  by  death 
{      or  preferment — Dugdale. 

Died  March  11,  1409-10,  Reg.  Wellen. 

To  Norwich,  1413— Reg.  Wellen. 
Died  Sept.  1413 — Reg.  Bubbewith. 
Died  1423— Reg.  Bubbewith. 

(To  this  See.  May,  1425— Reg.  Wellen. 

(      See  previous  list. 
Died  Mar.  25, 1446,  and  bur.  iu  the  Cathedral. 


1  Constituted  Dean  by  Robert,  Bishop  of  Bath.    According  to  Le  Neve  and  Dugdale.and  in  lice.  Drokensford,  it  is  said  that  William,  Archbishop  of  Can 
terbury,  confirmed  the  urdination,  1135  or  6;  yet  Godwin  places  it  about  1150. 
-  In  10.1"  a  chantry  was  founded  for  his  soul,  iu  the  Cathedral,  before  the  altar  of  St.  Kalixtus. 

3  See  "  History,"  &c.  "of  Salisbury  Cathedral." 

4  Godwin  and  Le  Neve  place  his  election  in  l!!y5;  bot  Dugdale  says  Uie  Deanery  remained  vacant  from  the  death  of  Burnell  till  1208. 

5  He  was  ■  considerable  benefactor  to  the  fabric  of  his  Church,  insomuch  that,  in  1330,  the  chapter  of  the  Cathedral  founded  a  chantry  for  two  priests  to 
pray  for  the  good  estate  of  his  soul— Dugdale. 

6  William  de  Camel  was  elected  on  the  death  of  Carleton ;  but  refused  the  appointment-Dugdalc.    He  was  Chancellor  to  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury. 

7  He  was  elected  by  thirty-three  Canons ;  but  llobert  Skelton,  by  virtue  of  the  Tope's  Letters,  claimed  the  Deanery.  Fordham,  however,  retained  the 
office  till  be  ma  advanced  to  the  See  "I  Durham.  He  m  Prebendary  of  Lincoln,  York,  and  Chichester,  Keeper  of  the  Privy  Seal,  and  made  Lord 
Treasurer  by  King  Richard  1 1.    IK-  «  u  n  m-1  it.  d  to  Ely  by  Pope  Urban  VI.    His  remains  repose  in  St.  Mary's  Chapel,  Elj . 

8  The  Cardinal.  Godwin  omits  this  Dean.  In  Bowel's  Register  it  is  stated  that,  after  Slake,  Hie  Deanery  remained  vacant  (ill  Nov.  II,  II.';;  when  Tutte- 
bury was  appointed.    Le  Neve  quotes  Reg.  Braybroke  Episc.  Lond.  el  Keg.  Mcdeford.  Episc.  Sarum,  to  prove  lhal  Beaufort  was  Dean  in  13y7. 


CHRONOLOGICAL  LIST  OF  DEANS. 


123 


32 

33 

34 
35 
36 

37 

36 

39 
40 

41 
42 


JoliD  de  la  Bere 

Nicholas  Carent9,  LI,.  D... 

William  Wytham,  LL.D... 

John  Gunthorp,  B.D.10. ... 

Wm.  Coasyn  or  Cosyn 

Thomas  Winter" 

Richard   W^oleman,    or  ) 

Woolman,  LL.D ) 

T.Cromwell,2,Earl  of  Essex 
Wm.  Fitzjames,  or  Fitz-  } 

williams ) 

John  Goodman13 

William  Turner,  M.D."... 
John  Goodman 


William  Turner,  M.D. 


43  Robert  Weston,  LL.D.15. 
Jl 


15 
46 

47 

48 

49 

50 

51 
52 
53 
54 

55 

56 
57 

58 
59 

60 


Valentine  Dale,  B.C.L.'6. 

John  Herbert 

Benjamin  Hejdon,  D.D... 

Richard  Meredith,  B.D... 


Appointed  or  admitted. 


Died  or  removed. 


Held  it  for  a  short  time. 
U48— Godwin 

1467 


-1447— Godwin. 


Elect.  Dec.  18,  1472;  conf.  Jan.  19,1473— Reg.  Still. 
(Elect.  Dec.  25,1498;  conf.  April  15,1499;  instal.  ) 
I   by  proxy,  June  23, 1499 ;  in  person,  Jnne  8, 1502  J 

March  26, 1526— Le  Neve;   1525— Godwin 

1529— Le  Neve 

1537  ;  (prime  minister  to  Henry  VIII.) 

1540 


1548— Le  Neve. 
1550 — Le  Neve. 
Restored  1553... 

Restored  1560... 


1570. 


1574. 


Ralph  Barlow,  D.D 

George  Warbnrton,  D.D." 

Walter  Raleigh  ■",  D.D 

Robert  Creighton,  D.  D 

Ralph  Bathurst,  M.D.19... 

Wm.  Grabme,  D.D 

Math.  Brailsford,  D,D 


Isaac  Madox,  D.D 

John  Harris,  D.D.20 

Samuel  Creswick,  D.D 

Lord  Francis  Seymour21... 
Geo.  Wm.  Lnkin.LL.D.22. 

Hon.  Hen.  Rider,  D.D 


(Master  of  Requests) ; 
1602 


1589. 


Nov.  21,1607. 


Sept.  1621 

Aug.  25,  1631- 
Jan.  13,  1641. 


■Reg.  Curie. 


1660 

June  28,  1670— Le  Neve  . 

July  28,  1704. 

July  23,  1713 

1733 


1730 

Nov.  6,  1739.... 

Jan.  1766 

March  26,  1799. 

Dec.  12, 1812.., 


To  St.  David's— Godwin. 

May  3,  1467— Reg.  Wellen. 
(July  16,  1472;    buried  in  the  Cathedral, 
(      near  Bishop  Ralph  de  Salopia. 

Died  June  25,  1498. 

Died  1525— Reg.  King.  Reg.  Castell. 

Resigned  1528. 
"  Died  in  1537  ;  and  was  buried  in  the  clois- 
ters of  St.  Stephen's  Chapel,  Westm. 
Beheaded  in  1540. 
Resigned  1548— See  Wood's  "  Fasti." 

Deprived  1550 — Godwin. 
Deprived  1553— Le  Neve;  but  restored. 
Deprived  1560. 

(Died   July  7,   1568;    and  buried   in   St. 
}      Olave's,  Hart-street,  London. 
(  Died  May,  1573  ;  buried  in  the  Cathedral 
J      of  St.  Patrick,  Dublin. 
Died  Nov.  17,  1589;  buried  in  St.  Gre- 
gory's Church,  near  St. Paul's,  Lond. 


Died  1607. 

(Died  Aug.  15,  1621  ;  buried   in   the  Ca- 

J      thedral — Wood's  "  Fasti." 

(Died  July,  1631  ;    buried  in  the  Cathe- 

%      dral.     Precentor  of  Christ  Ch.  Coll. 
Dec.  1640. 

Died  Oct.  10, 1646 ;  bur.  in  the  Cathedral 
before  the  Dean's  stall,  in  the  choir. 
See  List  of  Bishops. 
Died  1704 ;  bur.  in  Trin.  Coll.  Chapel ,  Oxf. 

Died  Dec.  13,  1733. 

(To   St.  Asaph,  1736;    to   Worcester, 

I      1743— Dugdale. 

Died  Aug.  28, 1738  ;  bur.  in  this  Cathedral. 
Died  Jan.  13,  1766. 

Died  Feb.  9, 1799;  bur.  in  this  Cathedral. 
Died  Nov.  27,  1812. 

(  Advanced  to  Gloucester  1813  ;   to  Lich- 

(      field  and  Coventry  1824. 


9  Le  Neve  supposes  that  there  was  merely  a  contest  between  Bere  and  him  for  the  election;  but  Godwin  places  him  in  1448.  Carent  was  chosen  by  fifty, 
two  Canons;  but  the  Pope  in  the  meantime  had  bestowed  the  Deanery  on  La  Bere,  or  Dalvere.  The  Bishop  had  confirmed  Caient's  election  before  ttie 
arrival  of  the  Pope's  bull. 

10  Kennet,  from  the  Reg.  Wellen.  says  that,  in  1487,  be  gave  to  the  treasury  of  the  Church  a  massive  silver  image  of  the  Virgin,  weighing  one  hundred  and 
fifty-eight  ounces.    He  Was  buried  in  the  Cathedral,  near  Bishop  Drokensford. 

11  Winter  was  called  the  nephew,  but  is  supposed  to  have  been  the  son  of  Cardinal  Wolsey.    See  Wood's  "  Fasti." 

12  At  the  close  of  the  statute  of  attainder  against  him,  a  proviso  was  inserted  that  it  should  not  be  in  any  way  prejudicial  to  the  Bishop  of  Bath  and  Wells, 
the  Deanery,  or  Dean  and  Chapter  of  Wells— MS.  Hail.  7089. 

X3  Godwin  does  not  notice  the  restorations  of  Goodman  and  Turner ;  but  mentions  only  their  first  appointments;  and  places  Weston's  in  1566. 

14  A  native  of  Morpeth,  Northumberland,  and  author  of  "  An  English  Herbal,"  1552. 

15  He  was  Principal  of  Broadgate  Hall,  and  Chancellor  of  Ireland. 

16  Dale  was  of  All  Souls  College,  Oxford ;  Master  of  Requests ;  and  Ambassador  to  France. 

17  A  native  of  Cheshire ;  Dean  of  Gloucester ;  Chaplain  to  James  I.— Wood's  "  Fasti." 

18  Son  of  Sir  Carew  Raleigh,  of  Downton,  Wiltshire :  he  was  elder  brother  to  Sir  Waller  Raleigh.  He  was  taken  prisoner  on  the  surrender  of  Bridgewater, 
and  confined  in  Ilcbester  gaol ;  thence  removed  to  Bauwell  House,  and  afterwards  to  the  Deanery  at  Wells,  where  he  was  murdered  by  bis  gaoler,  who  was 
tried  for  the  same,  but  acquitted.    Sir  Simon  Patrick  published  "  Reliquiae  Raleighana","  1679-     After  Raleigh  the  Deanery  was  vacant  fourteen  years. 

19  He  was  member  of  Trinity  College,  Oxford  ;  of  which  he  wa3  choseu  President,  Sept.  1664.  Iu  1(391  he  was  nominated  to  the  See  of  Bristol ;  but  refused 
the  appointment.  The  chapel  of  his  college  he  built  "  in  an  elegant  manner,"  in  which  he  was  buried,  iu  1704,  in  the  eighty-fourth  year  of  his  age.  Bathui  si 
is  praised  by  some  authors  for  bis  poetical  talents. 

20  In  comroendam  with  the  Bishoprick  of  Landaff.  21  Son  of  the  Duke  of  Somerset. 

22  Translated  to  Worcester ;  in  the  Cathedral  of  which  city  he  is  buried,  and  where  a  long  epitaph  commemorates  his  promotion  and  virtues. 


£t$t  of  33oofes,  3Z0$a$$,  an*  ^rwtjst, 

WHICH   HAVE  HF.EN  PUBLISHED  RELATING  TO 

WELLS    CATHEDRAL; 

ALSO, 

A  CATALOGUE  OF  ENGRAVED  PORTRAITS  OF  ITS  BISHOPS  AND  DEANS. 

THIS  LIST  IS  SUBJOINED  TO  GRATIFY  THE  BIBLIOGRAPHER,  THE  CRITICAL  ANTIQUARY,  AND  THE  ILLUSTRATOR; 
AS  WELL  AS  TO  SHEW,  AT  ONE  VIEW,  THE  PRINCIPAL  SOURCES  WHENCE  THE  CONTENTS  OF  THE  PRECEDING 
PAGES  HAVE  BEEN  DERIVED,  AND  THE  FULL  TITLES  OF  THE  WORKS  REFERRED  TO  IN  THE  NOTES. 


DIOCESS,  SEE,  AND  CHURCH. 


The  History  and  Antiquities  of  Wells  Cathedral  have  been  hitherto  almost  wholly  neglected;  ant! 
there  is  no  published  account  that  manifests  either  investigation  or  discrimination.  Some  gentle- 
man, probably  connected  with  the  Church,  has  drawn  up  a  manuscript  account  of  it,  intituled, 
"  A  History  of  the  Cathedral  Church,"  &c. ;  one  copy  of  which  was  in  the  possession  of  the  late 
Bishop,  and  another  is  the  property  of  the  Rev.  W.  Phelps :  but  it  is  a  very  slight  and  imperfect 
performance.  The  principal  archives  of  the  Dean  and  Chapter  are  said  to  have  been  destroyed ; 
consequently  there  is  little  chance  or  opportunity  of  our  attaining  any  very  detailed  history  of  the 
See  and  Cathedral.  Thus  circumstanced,  the  present  work,  which  includes  a  concentration  of  the 
scattered  evidence  that  has  been  preserved  relating  to  the  See  and  Church,  may  be  regarded  as 
the  only  one  that  pretends  to  originality  of  matter,  with  independence  of  manner  and  impartiality. 
Besides  ocular  examination  and  local  information,  its  facts  and  data  are  chiefly  derived  from  the 
following  sources: — 

Wharton,  in  "  Anglia  Sacra,"  Pars  I.  has  published  five  tracts  relative  to  the  History  of  the 
See  of  Wells.  The  first  of  these  is  intituled  "  Historia  de  Episcopis  Bathoniensibus  et'lVellen- 
sibus,  a  prima  Sedis  fuudatione  ad  an.  1423.  Authore  Canonico  Wellensi."'  This  memoir  v,u^ 
edited  from  a  MS.  in  the  Cottonian  Library,  Vitell.  E.  5.  which  comprises  two  distinct  works, 
termed  by  Wharton  Historia  Major  and  Historia  Minor,  whence  he  lias  compiled  a  continued 
narrative.  He  states  that  there  are  copies  of  both  Histories  in  a  Chartulary  belonging  to  the 
Dean  and  Chapter  of  Wells.  To  this  tract  is  subjoined  a  Continuation  of  the  History  of  the 
Bishops  of  Bath  and  Wells,  from  1423  to  1540,  drawn  up  by  Wharton  from  various  authorities.— 
The  second  piece  is,  "  Adami  de  Domersham  Historia  de  contentioue  inter  Episcopos  Bathouienses 
et  Monachos  Glastonienses,  ab  an.  1 J 92  ad  1200."  This  is  taken  from  the  same  MS.  with  the 
preceding;  and  it  is  also  included  in  the  History  of  (Jlaslonbury,  MS.  Cotton.  Tiber.  A.  5.— 
Next  follow  "  Successio  Priorum  Ecc.lesiw  Bathoniensis ;"  and  "  Successio  Decanomm  Ecclesiee 
Wellensis;"  taken  principally  from  the  Registers  of  Wells.  The  second  part  of  "  Anglia  Sacra" 
contains  a  short  "  Life  of  Thomas  de  Beckmton,  Bishop  of  Bath  and  Wells,"  extracted  from  a 
MS.  in  the  Cottonian  Library,  Titus  A.  24,  intituled,  "  Collocutiones  VII.  de  Laudibus  Will,  de 
Wyckham,"  written  by  Thomas  Chaundler,  Chancellor  of  Wells,  and  afterwards  of  Vork,  who  died 
in  L488. 

In  "  Concilia  Magns  Britannia  et  Hiberni.e,  ab  an  446  ad  1717,  a  D.  Wilkins,"  are 
to  be  found  the  following  documents  relating  to  the  Bishopric  of  Bath  and  Wells: — Vol.  i.  p.  200, 
Synodus  a  R.  Edwardo  Sen.  congregata. — p  269,  Concilium  Bathoniense:  in  quo  Edgarus  in 
regent  consccratus  est.— p.  500,   Bulla  Hanoi  it  HI.  Papa  de  dissolutione  unionis  Bullion,  et 


LIST  OF  BOOKS,  ESSAYS,  AND  PRINTS.  125 

Glaston.  ecclesiar.—p.  683,  Statutum  Jocelini  Episc.  Bat /ton.  pro  reeedificanda  Ecclts.  S.  An- 
drea Well.— Vol.  ii.  p.  89,  Uteres  Archiep.  Cant.  Epi.  Bath,  et  Well,  suum  constit.  Vicarium.— 
p.  94,  Archiep.  Uteres  Synod.  Epo.  B.  et  W.  de  subsidio  terree  sondes  a  Rege  ablato.—p.  186, 
Prioris  Cant.  Commissio  de  officialitate  B.  et  W.  Dioec.  sede  ibid,  vacante.— lb.  Alia  de  eadem. — 
p.  187,  Prior.  Cant.  Litera  concessa  B.  et  W.  electo,  de  ejusd.  confirmation. — lb.  Alia  de 
eadem.— lb.  Alia  Bom.  Re%i  de  eadem.— p.  188,  Alia  Capital.  Bath,  de  eadem  confirmation 
Epi.  electi. — p.  194,  Prior,  et  Cap.  Cant.  Literce  de  citatione  Episcopor.  ad  consecrationem  Epi. 
B.  et  W. — p.  195,  Prior.  Cant.  Literee  Episcopo  London,  pro  consecratione  electi  B.  et  W  — 
lb.  Eidem  de  consecratione  Epi.  B.  et  W. — lb.  Commissio  Prior,  et  Cap.  Cant,  pro  consecratione 
Ep.  Assaven.  et  B.  et  W.—p.  196,  Literee  Prior,  et  Cap.  Cant.  Archidiacono  Cant,  pro  inthro- 
nizatione  ejusd.— lb.  Prior.  Cant.  Literee  Epo.  B.  et  W.  pro  inthtonkatione  sua.— lb.  Ejusd. 
Literee  ne.  Archidiaconus  Cant,  inthronizet  Epum.  B.  et  W.—p.  197,  Ejusd.  Literee  R.  Poucyn 
til  inthronizet  Epum.  B.  et  W.—p.  551,  Mandatum  Johan.  de  Drokenesford,  Epi.  B.  et  W.  de 
relavamine  Acetdemiee  Oxon.  paupertate  presses. — p.  578,  Statutum  Epi.  Wellens.  de  Cancellarii 
Preelectionib.  confirmat.  per  Clement.  Papain  Avin.  4  id.  Jul.  Pontif.  7. — p-  670,  Literee  Archi- 
epi.  Cant.  Epo.  B.  et  W.  de  Uteris  regiis  (Edvv.  III.)  contra  Archiep.— p.  681,  Literee  Regis 
Radulpho  Epo.  B.  et  W.—p.  711,  Ordinatio  Radulphi  de  Salopia  Epi.  B.  et  W.  de  dieb.  festis 
in  sua  Dioecesi  observand. — lb.  Ordinatio  ejusd.  de  Constitutionalists  synod.  Will,  de  Button 
Epi.  Well,  confirmand.—p.  727,  Mandatum  Rad.  de  Salopia  Epi.  Well,  ad  denunciand.  excom- 
municationes  juxta  auctoritutem  concilii  provinc. — p.  735,  Constitutiones  Rad.  de  Salopia  Epi. 
B.  et  W.— Vol.  iii.  p.  12,  Archiep.  Cant.  Mandat.  Epo.  B.  et  W.  super  itijuriis  illatis  Epo. 
Sarum.—p.  49,  Mandat.  Rad.  de  Salopia  Epi.  B.  et  W.  contra  officittm  episcopate  exercentes.— 
p.  596,  Mandat.  Thames  Epi.  B.  et  W.  ad  inquirend.  de  miraculis  /otitis  S.  Johannis. — 
Vol.  iv.  p.  414,  The  Archbishop  of  Canterbury's  Mandate  and  Commission  for  the  Visitation  of 
the  Dioeess  of  B.  and  W.—p.  415,  Articles  for  the  Cathedral  Church  of  Wells.— p.  425,  Sus- 
pensio  ab  Archiep.  Cant,  facta  contra  Decanum  Wellens. — p.  429,  Absolutio  M.  Hill  procurat. 
B.  et  W. 

The  new  edition  of  Dugdale's  "  Monasticon  Anglicanum,"  vol.  ii.  p.  274—285,  con- 
tains notices  of  the  Cathedral  and  Dioeess  of  Wells,  with  accounts  of  the  Bishops,  and  a  catalogue 
of  the  Deans,  collected  from  Wharton's  Anglia  Sacra;  Godwin  de  Praesulib.  Anglican;  Le  Neve's 
Fasti  Eccles.  Angl. ;  Gough's  Sepulchral  Monuments;  Collinson's  History  of  Somerset,  Set. — In 
the  same  work  are  the  following  charters  and  records  relating  to  Wells: — No.  I.  Carta  Cynewulfi 
Regis.  (Godwin).  No.  II.  Carta  Edwardi  Reg.  Confess,  dicti.  (MS.  Cott.  Tiber.  E.  8).  No.  HI. 
Carta  Edw.  R.  de  Hlytton.  No.  IV.  Carta  Edw.  R.  alt.  No.  V.  Carta  Edw.  R.  tut. 
No.  VI.  Carta  de  Terra  de  Wedmore.  No.  VII.  Carta  Eetdgithee  Ediv.  Conf.  relirtee  de  Terra 
de  Merke.  No.  VIII.  Carta  Haraldi  Reg.  No.  IX.  Altera  Carta  Edw.  Reg.  No.  X.  Altera 
Carta  Eadgithee  Regince.  No.  XI.  Carta  Willielmi  I.  Reg.  de  Villa  de  Wynesham.  (No.  1—11, 
MS.  Harl.  6968,  ex  Registr.  Cartar.  penes  Decan.  et  Cap.  Wellens.  desump.)  No.  XII.  Preedia 
Eccles.  Wellens.  ex  Lib.  Cens.  voc.  Domesday  Book,  in  Scaccar.  No.  XIII.  Carta  Jocelini  de 
Tresminettes.  No.  XIV.  Carta  Reg.  Stephani  de  Eccles.  de  Northcuri  et  de  Perretona. 
No.  XV.  Carta  Ricardi  Reg.  quod  Bathon.  Episcopi  habeant  Mineriam  de  Plumbo.  (No.  13— 
15,  MS.  Harl.  6963).  No.  XVI.  Carta  Ricardi  I.  Reg.  Rain.  Bathon.  Episcopo  adfugand.  per 
Com.  Sotnerset.  (MS.  Harl.  83,  c.  10).  No.  XVII.  Carta  Henrici  Abb.  Glaston.  de  Eccles.  de 
Pilton,  qua  donationem  a  Roberto  Abb.  Eccles.  Wellensi  factam,  confirmat.  No.  XVIII.  Carta 
Henrici  Abb.  qua  Eccles.  de  Pilton  Eccles.  Wellensi  concessit.  No.  XIX.  Carta  ejusd.  de  Eccks.  de 
Suthbrente  Archidiacono  Wellens.  concessa.  No.  XX.  Carta  Reginaldi  Bathon.  Epi.  qua  Dona- 
tions ab  Henrico  de  Ecclesiis  de  Pilton  et  Sulhbrent  confirmat.  No.  XXI.  Carta  Savarici  de 
Eccles.  de  Pilton  concessa  in  usum  communes  Wellens.  (No.  17 — 21,  Regist.  Wellens.  I.  vid. 
Adam,  de  Domersh.  torn.  i.  a  Hearne.)  No.  XXII.  Carta  Reg.  Johannis  de  palronatu  Eccles. 
Glaston.  Jocelino  Epo.  Bathon.  et  Glaston.  concesso.  No.  XXIII.  Confirmatio  Reg.  Johannis 
super  Unione  Eccles.  Glaston.  cum  Eccles.  Bathon.  (No.  22,  23,  Regist.  Wellens.  HI.  vid.  Ad.  de 
Domersh.  t.  i.)  No.  XXIV.  Carta  Jocelini  Bathon.  Epi.  de  Manerio  et  Ecclesia  ele  Wyniscumbe, 
concessis  in  dotem  Eccles.  Wellens.  (Regist.  Wellens.  I.)  No.  XXV.  Statula  Jocelini  Epi. 
Bathon.  acta  in  Capilulo  Wellens.  16  kal.  Nov.  1242.  (MS.  Harl.  1682,  fol.  1.)  No.  XXVI. 
Super  privatione  Adriani,  de  custodia  Temporalium  concessa.  (Rot.  Pat.  10  Hen.  8.  p.  2,  m.  26. 
Rymer.  Feed.  torn.  xiii.  p.  622.)     No.  XXVII.  Prima  Ordinatio  Decanatus  Wellens.    (MS.  Harl. 


126  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 

6964,  p.  6,  ex  Reg.  Johan.  de  Drokenesford  Epi.  B.  et  W.  fol.  24.)  No.  XXVIII.  An  Actc 
touching  the  Deane  and  Chapiter  of  Welles,  to  be  one  sole  Chapiter  of  it  selfe.  (Stat.  34,  35,  Hen. 
8.  cap.  15,  edit.  Berthelet,  Lond.  1551.  fol.)  No.  XXIX.  De  Scripto  Epi.  Bathon.  irrotulato 
pro  Dom.  Rege.  (Rymer.  Feed.  torn.  xv.  p.  171,  a  Rot.  Claus.  2  Edw.  6.  p.  4,  n.  2.) — Valor 
Ecclesiaslicus" Eccles.  Cath.  S.  Andrew  Wellens.  (Abstract  of  Return,  26  Hen.  8.  First  Fruits 
Office.) 

In  the  "  History  and  Antiquities  of  the  County  of  Somerset,"  &c.  By  the  Rev. 
John  Collinson,  F.  A.S.  Bath,  1791,  4to.  vol.  iii.  is  a  catalogue,  with  short  historical  notices  of  the 
Bishops  of  Bath  and  Wells,  from  Godwin  and  other  authorities ;  an  account  of  the  landed  pro- 
perty belonging  to  the  See;  a  list  of  the  Dignitaries  and  Clergy  of  the  Cathedral  in  1791 ;  and  a 
description  of  the  Church,  with  the  principal  monumental  inscriptions. 

"  A  concise  History  of  the  Cathedral  Church  of  St.  Andrew,  in  Wells;  to  which  is  added,  an 
Abridgement  of  the  Lives  of  the  Bishops  and  Deans  of  the  Church  ;  and  a  Catalogue  of  the  Monu- 
ments and  Antiquities  contained  in  the  same."  By  John  Davis,  Verger  of  the  Cathedral.  Shepton 
Mallet,  1814.  12mo.     A  new  edition  of  this  "  Guide,"  with  some  additions,  in  1822. 

"  History  and  Antiquities  of  the  Cathedral  Church  and  See  of  Wells  ;"  forming  the  23d  Part  of 
Storer's  "  Graphic  and  Historical  Descriptions  of  the  Cathedrals  of  Great  Britain."  1818.  8vo. 

BISHOPS. 

"  A  Catalogue  of  the  Bishops  of  England,  since  the  first  planting  of  the  Christian  Religion  in 
this  Island  ;  together  with  a  briefe  History  of  their  Lives  and  memorable  Actions,  so  neere  as  can  be 
gathered  out  of  Antiquity,"  &c.  By  Francis  Godwin.  Lond.  1615.  8vo.  (Bishops  of  Bath  and 
Wells,  p.  357-387-  List  of  Deans,  p.  387,  8.)— This  work  was  first  published  in  a  very  imperfect 
state  in  1601.  A  Latin  translation  by  the  author  appeared  in  1616:  of  which  there  is  a  much 
improved  edition,  with  a  continuation  by  Dr.  W.  Richardson.  Cantab.  1743.  Fol.  under  the 
following  title—"  De  Prasulibus  Angliae,  commentarius,"  &c.  (The  account  of  the  Bishops  of 
Bath  and  Wells,  p.  303-394.) — Among  the  MS.  authorities  used  by  Dr.  Richardson  in  preparing 
this  work  for  the  press,  he  refers  to  one  which  is  thus  described :  "  MS.  in  Bibliotheca  Coll.  S. 
Trin.  Cantabrigue ;  complect.  Episcoporum  Bathonio-Wellensium  historiam,  sive  historiae  totius 
tentamen,  nianu  ipsius  Godwini  exaratum." 

"  Fasti  Ecclesifc  Anglicance ;  or,  an  Essay  towards  deducing  a  regular  Succession  of  all  the 
principal  Dignitaries  in  each  Cathedral,  &c.  in  England  and  Wales,  from  their  first  erection  to  the 
year  1715."  By  John  Le  Neve.  1716.  Fol. — In  this  work  will  be  found  a  list  of  the  Bishops  of 
Bath  and  Wells,  of  the  Deans  of  Wells,  and  of  the  Precentors,  Treasurers,  and  Chancellors,  the 
Subdeans  and  Archdeacons  of  Wells,  and  the  Archdeacons  of  Bath  and  Taunton.   (See  p.  31-47.) 

Among  the  MSS.  in  the  Library  of  R.  Gough,  F.  A.S,  are  mentioned — *'  Extracts  relating  to 
the  Bishops  of  Dorchester  and  Wells,  and  Abbots  of  Glastonbury  ;"  folio  :  and  "  Catalogus  Epis- 
coporum Bathon.  et  Wellens.  a  F.  Godwin,  MS.  Beaupre  Bell,  A.  M."  4to. — In  "  Historia  Johannis 
de  Trokelowe"  (p.  251,  378),  published  by  Hearne,  is  an  account  of  the  canonization  of  Will,  de 
Marchia,  Bishop  of  Bath  and  Wells. 

PRINTS. 

In  "  A  Plan  of  the  City  of  Wells,  by  Wm.  Simes,"  engraved  by  Toms,  1736,  is  a  perspective 
Elevation  of  the  South  Side  of  the  Cathedral. 

A  South  West  View  of  the  Cathedral,  a  sort  of  bird's-eye  representation,  without  sky  or 
ground.     R .  Neiccourt  del. ;  D.  King  sc. 

A  larger  Print  of  nearly  the  same  View,  with  sky  and  ground;  but  without  name  or  date. 

Au  Elevation  of  the  West  Front.     R.  Newcourt  del. ;  D.  King  sc. 

In  Carter's  "  Antient  Sculpture  and  Painting"  are  six  engravings,  representing  the  Statues  of  the 
West  Front. 

A  bird's-eye  View  of  the  Cathedral,  from  the  N.  W.  T.  Ford  del.;  Toms  sc.  The  arms  of  the 
See  are  held  by  Cupids  in  the  sky ;  and  a  plan  of  the  Church  is  engraved  at  one  corner. 

A  South  View  of  the  Palace,  &c.  drawn  and  engraved  by  5.  and  2V.  Buck,  1733. 

A  N.  W.  View  of  the  Cathedral,  engraved  in  aquatint  by  F.  C.  Lewis,  1816,  from  a  drawing  by 
J.  Buckler. 


LIST  OF  BOOKS,  ESSAYS,  AND  PRINTS.  127 

The  same  View  is  etched,  in  a  reduced  scale,  by  J.  C.  Buckler,  for  a  quarto  volume  entitled 
"  Views  of  the  Cathedral  Churches,  &e."  published  by  Nichols  and  Son,  1822. 

The  same  View  is  again  etched  (small)  by  Mills,  for  Davies's  Guide. 

In  Sir  R.  Hoare's  "  History,"  &c.  "  of  Modern  Wiltshire,"  Part  I.  is  a  View  of  Bishop  SUll's 
Monument.     J.  Buckler  del.  ;  G.  Hollis  sc.  ,.««.- 

A  View  of  the  Nave  is  published  in  "  The  Beauties  of  England ;"  engraved  by  Roffe,  from  a 
drawing  by  the  Rev.  T/ios.  Streatfield.  .      ,.„,,, 

In  Gough's  "  Sepulchral  Monuments"  is  a  View  of  Lady  Lisle  s  Monument  in  this  Cathedral : 
also  two  Views  of  the  Statues  and  Tomb  of  Bishop  Beckington. 

ENGRAVED  PORTRAITS  OF  THE  BISHOPS  OF  BATH  AND  WELLS. 

1.  Richard  Fox.— 1.  Vertue  sc.  1723,  from  Johannes  Corvus;  in  Fiddes'  "Life  of  Cardinal 
Wolsey."— 2.  G.  Glover  sc— 3.  Sturt  sc— 4.  J.  Faber  sc.  large  4to.  mezz.— 5.  A  small  oval, 
for  Knight's  "  Life  of  Erasmus." 

2.  Thomas  Wolsey.— 1.  Faber  sc.  from  Holbein,  4to.  mezz.;  with  the  Label  "  Ego  et  meus 
Rex  "  4to.— 2.  Elstracke  sc.  4to.— 3.  D.  Losgan  sc— 4.  In  Holland's  "  Heroologia."  8vo.— 
5.  W.  Marshall  sc.  in  Fuller's  "  Holy  State."— 5.  P.  Fourdrinier  sc.  halt  length,  m  Fiddes' 
"  Life  of  Wolsey."— 6.  Houbrakcn  sc.  in  Birch's  "  Lives  of  Illust.  Persons."— 7.  Des  Rocker*: 
sc.  4to.— 8.  Vertue  sc.  small  oval,  inscribed  C.  W.— 9.  Be  Larmessin  sc— 10.  Sheppard  sc. 
folio— 11.   R.  White  sc.  folio. 

3.  John  Still.— J.  Jones  sc.  1789,  from  a  Portr.  at  Cambridge  University  ;  sm.  mezz. 

4.  James  Montagu.— Elstracke  sc— S.  Pass  sc  Holland  exc.  sm.  folio.— In  "  Heroologia," 
8vo.     A  Copy  in  Boissard. 

5.  Arthur  Lake.— Payne  sc.  prefixed  to  his  "  Works,"  1629,  folio.— W.  Hollar  sc.  pref.  to 
his  "  Sermons,"  1641,  4to—  A  Copy  in  Boissard,  4to. 

6.  William  Laud.— IF.  Hollar  sc.  from  Vandyck,  1640,  4to—  D.  Loggan  sc.  from  the  same. 
Large  half  sheet. — Vertue  sc.  from  the  same.  One  of  the  set  of  Loyalists. — Burghers  sc  In 
the  Frontispiece  to  the  "  Catalogue  of  the  Bodleian  Library." — W.  Marshall  sc.  12mo  — 
Id.  sc  small,  ruling,  pref.  to  Fuller's  "  Argument  against  the  Ecclesiastical  Commissioners," 
1641. — Pictcrs  sc°sm.  4to. — White  sc.  folio. — Sturt  sc. — Huybrecls  sc.  oval.  8vo. — Mon- 
comet  sc.  8vo.— Watson  sc.  from  a  Portr.  in  the  Houghton  Coll.—/?.  Dunkarton,  sc.  mezz. 

8vo. Audran  sc.  folio. — With  a  View  of  his  Execution,  folio. — Scarce  wood  cut,  representing 

Laud  and  Henry  Burton,  whole  lengths.  The  Prelate  is  represented  vomiting  up  his  own 
works,  and  Burton  holding  his  head.'  Doggrel  verses  underneath.— Rare  wood  cut,  with  Insc 
"  Only  Canonical  Prayers :  uo  Afternoon  Sermons,"  4to.— Half  length,  with  a  view  of  his 
House  in  Broad  Street,  Reading,  in  Man's  "  Hist,  of  Reading,"  1816. 

7.  Walter  Curle—  T.  Ceciil  sc.  folio.— M.  Droeshout  sc. 

8.  Peter  Mews. — D.  Loggan  sc.  folio. — Two  oval  prints,  without  engraver's  name. 

9.  Thomas  Kenn.— Vertue  sc.  8vo.—Drapentier  sc— White  sc.    Among  the  Seven  Bishops. 

10.  William  Beveridge.— Vander  Gucht  sc.  from  B.  Ferrers.  L.  folio.— Id.  sc.  pref.  to  his 
"  Sermons,"  8vo. — W.  Sherwin  sc.  mezz.  4to.  and  12mo. — J.  Simon  sc.  from  Richardson, 
mezz.— Sturt  sc  8vo.— Vertue  sc.  from  T.  Murray,  folio. 

11.  Richard  Kidder. — Clamp  sc.  8vo. 

12.  George  Hooper.— Smith  sc.  from  Kneller,  mezz.— G.  White  sc.  from  T.Hall.  Noble 
remarks,  that  the  mixture  of  mezzotinto  with  engraving  was  first  practised  in  this  print. 

13.  Edward  Willes. — Faber  sc.  from  T.  Hudson,  mezz.  folio. 

14.  Richard  Beadon. — Facius  sc.  folio. 

PORTRAITS  OF  THE  DEANS  OF  WELLS. 

1.  Thomas  Cromwell,  Earl  of  Essex.—  Filian  sc.  4to—  Hollar  sc  from  Holbein,  4to. — 
Houbraken  sc.  in  Birch's  "  Lives."—  Mainwaring  sc.  mezz.— Peacham  sc.  from  Holbein  — 
L.  Schiavonetti  sc.  in  Harding's  "  Shakspeare."— R.  White  sc.  in  Burnett's  "  Hist,  of  the  Re- 
formation."— In  "  Heroologia." 

2.  Ralph  Bathvkst.— Loggan  sc.  folio.— Walker  sc.  pref.  to  his  "  Life,"  by  Warton,  1761, 
8vo. 


2Ust  of  $rittt* 

ILLUSTRATIVE  OF  WELLS  CATHEDRAL. 


I. 
II. 

m. 

IV. 

IV* 

V. 

v.* 

VI. 
VII. 

Mil. 

IX. 

X. 

XI. 

XII. 

XIII. 

XIV. 

XV. 

WII. 

XVIII. 

XIX. 

XX. 

XXI. 

XXII. 


Subjects, 


Ground  Plan  

Title  ;   Monument,  and  Details. 


INTERIORS. 

View  of  North  Transept 

Ditto,  West  Front 

Buttresses,  N.  Tower 

Section  of  West  Front 

Centre  Compartment  at  top  

South-east  View 

Compartments,  Nave  (exterior  and  interior). 

INTERIORS,  &c. 
View  across  the  Nave 


Drawn  by 


Catlermole. 
Cattermole . 


S.  Rayner.. 

Shaw 

Shaw 

Cattermole. 

Shaw  

Martin 

Cattermole. 


Section  of  Chapter  House,  &c 

View  of  ditto 

Ditto  Crypt  of  ditto 

Nave,  View  of. 

Specimens  of  Capitals 

View  of  the  Altar  End 

Compartments  of  Choir  (exterior  and  interior) 
Sec.  of  N.  Transept,  Elevation  of  S.  Transept.. 

Lady  Chapel,  View  of 

Stairs  to  Chapter  House 

Details,  West  End 

Gateway  to  the  Close 

View  under  the  Tower 

Twelve  Capitals 


Rayner. 


Cattermole. 


Gastinean... 
Cattermole.. 
Cattermole.. 
Cattermole.. 
Cattermole., 
Cattermole., 
Cattermole. 
Cattermole. 

Gandy 

Shaw 

Gastineau .. 
Shaw,  &c. 


Engraved  by 


J.  Le  Keux 
J.   Le  Kenx 


Wallis 

Varral 

Sands 

J.  Le  Keux 
J.  Le  Keux 
J.  Le  Keux 
J.  Le  Keux 

J.  Le  Keux 

J.  Le  Keux 

J.  Le  Keux 
J.  Le  Keux 
J.  Le  Keux 
J.  Le  Keux 
J.  Le  Keux 
J.  Le  Keux 
J.  Le  Keux 
J.  Le  Keux 

Sands 

Sands 

Sands 

II.  Le  Keux 


Shaw Ij.  Le  Keu: 


Dean  of  Wells. 


Rev.  H.  T.EUicombe.... 

Rev.  R.  Foster 

Rev.  W.  Conybeare 

Geo.  Repton,Esq.  Archt, 
Sir  J.  C.  Hippesley,  Bt.. 
Rev.  H.  C.  Sumner,  &c. 


G.    A.   Underwood, 
Esq.  Archt 


$  P.  F.Robinson, Esq.  ) 
(      Archt J 

Rev.  F.  Beadon 

Rev.  Dr.  Moysey 

Rev.  W.  Phelps 


Bishop  of  Rochester . 


Rev.  R.  Frankland... 
Rev.  W.  H.  Turner.. 


Wm.  Parfitt,  Esq.1 

Rev.  Thos.  Wodehouse. 
VV.  Parfitt,  Esq 


Described. 


100,  102 
(115,00, 

<01,  ROffl 

(7,  115 


93,  97 
93,97 

111,  '.».> 
97,98 
95 
98 
98,  99 

101,  1(12 

101 

101 

103,  101 

\  102,1 10, 
(111 

110 

103,  110 
103 

98,99 

(103,107, 
(108 

104 

97 

117 

102 

116 


1  By  some  extraordinary  accident  the  writing  to  tins  Plate  has  been  erroneous :  the  Author  intended  lo  inscribe  it  to  Edward  Tuson,  Esq.  Hie 
Bishop's  Steward,  &c. 


INDEX. 


Abutments,  singular,  under  tower,  102. 
Adrian  de  Castello,  Bp.  50,  52. 
Agelbert,  West  Saxon  Bishop,  10. 
Aldhelm,  Bp.  of  Sherborne,  11. 
Alexander  VI.  (Pope),  poisoned,  51  note. 
Asser  Menevensis,  Bp.  of  Sherborne,  12. 
Athelm,  first  Bp.  of  Wells,  15,  18. 

B. 

Barlow  (Will.)  Bp.  57,  60. 

Barnet  (John),  Bp.  39. 

Bath  Abbey  granted  to  the  Bp.  of  Wells,  26. 

Beadon  (Richard),  Bp.  82. 

Beckington  (Tho.),   Bp.   43;    his  benefactions, 

44,  46;  extracts  from  Chandler's  Life  of,  46, 

47;  monumental  chapel,  110;   tomb,  111. 
Berkeley  (Gilb.),  Bp.  63;  monument,  113. 
Birinus,  first  West  Saxon  Bishop,  9. 
Bourne  (Gilb.)  Bp.  61 ;    anecdote  of,  61  note ; 

deprived,  62. 
Bowet  (Henry),  Bp.  41. 
Brithelm,  Bp.  18;  monument,  105. 
Bubwith,  Bp.  builds  N.  W.  tower,  and  part  of 

cloister,  87 ;  monumental  chapel,  110. 
Bumell  (Robt.),  Bp.  36. 
Burwoldus,  Bp.  105. 
Button  (Will.),  Bp.  35 ;  monument,  106. 
2d  Bp.  of  that  name,  36 ;  con- 

jetures  on  his  monument,  107. 


Capitals  noticed, 116;  Plates  of,  xni.  and  XXI I. 
Cathedral  Church,  inquiry  respecting  its 

foundation,  84,  5;  its  features  in  conjunction 

with  scenery, 91 ,93;  building  of  nave,  &c.  85; 

Lady  Chapel,  86;  chapter-house,  86;   S.  W. 

and  N.  W.  towers,  86;  part  of  cloister,  87; 

styles  of,  88;   west  front,  described,  93,  97; 

exterior,  93,  100;  nave  and  ailes,  section  of, 

101, 102 ;  north  porch,  88, 97, 98 ;  masonry  of, 

98;  central  tower,  98,  102. 
Chapter-house,  86, 103,  104. 
Clarke  (John),  Bp.  56. 
Clock,  curious  one,  116. 


Cloister  built,  87;  noticed,  99. 
Codex  Ruber  Bathon.,  41. 
Congresbury,  supposed  Bishopric,  4. 
Contests   between   the   canons   of  Wells  and 

monks  of  Bath,  29. 
Cornish  (Thos.)  monument,  115. 
Creighton  (Robt.),  Bp.  76;  monument,  113. 
Curie  (Walt.),  Bp.  74. 

D. 

Daniel,  Bp.  of  Winchester,  11. 
Deanery,  described,  117. 
Domesday  survey  of  the  Diocess,  24. 
Drokensford  (John),  Bp.  38  ;  monument  of,  108. 
Dudoc,  Bp.  20. 

E. 

Ealhstan,  Bp.  of  Sherborne,  12. 

Elizabeth  (Queen),  her  spoliation  of  Bishoprics, 

57. 
Erghum  (Ralph),  Bp.  40  ;  gravestone,  110. 
Eyre  (the  Rev.  Thos.),  monument,  115. 


Forest  (Dean),  monument,  115. 

Formosus  (Pope),  his  Letters  missive  relative 

to  the  West  Saxon  Sees,  15,  17. 
Forthere,  Bp.  of  Sherborne,  12. 
Fox  (Rich.),  Bp.  49. 

G. 

Gammer  Gurton's  Needle,  the  earliest  English 

Comedy,  not  written  by  Bp.  Still,  68,  69. 
Giffard  (Walter),  Bp.  36. 
Giso,  Bp.  20,  24;  monument,  105. 
Glastonbury,  foundation  of,  2,  3. 
Godfrey,  Bp.  28. 
Godwin  (Thos.)  Bp.  63,  65. 

H. 

Harewell  (John  de),  Bp.  39 ;  built  S.  W.  tower, 

86;  monument,  110. 
Harris,  Bp.  of  Landaff;  monument,  115. 
Haselshawe  (Walt.)  Bp.  37;  monument  of,  108. 
Hedda,  Bp.  of  Winchester,  10. 


130 


IXDEX. 


Hooper  (Geo.),  Bp.  80 ;  monument,  114. 
Husee  (Henry),  monument,  114. 

I. 

Ina  (King),  his  charter  to  the  monks  of  Glaston- 
bury', 5,  7  ;  probably  spurious,  7,  9;  his  pre- 
sumed gravestone,  108. 

J- 
Joceline  de  Wells,   Bp.  33;    exiled  by  King 

John,  34  ;   restored,  34  ;    his  buildings,  85  ; 

monument,  106. 
John  de  Villula,  Bp.  '25 ;    removes  the  See  to 

Bath,  25;  his  donations  to  the  monks,  27. 
Joseph  of  Arimathea,  2. 


Kenn  (Thos.),  Bp.  78;  deprived,  79. 

Kidder  (Rich.),  Bp.  79;  killed  by  accident,  79; 

Monument,  113. 
King  (Oliver),  Bp.  50 ;  founds  Bath  Abbey,  50. 


Lady  Chapel,  86,  103. 

Lake  (Arth.),  Bp.  70;  monument,  113. 

Laud  (Will.),  Bp.  71,73;  removed  to  London, 

72 ;  beheaded,  73. 
Law  (Geo.  Henry),  Bp.  83. 
Leutherius,  West  Saxon  Bishop,  10. 
Lightning,  remarkable  effect  of,  68  note. 
Linleyr  (Thos.),  mouument,  115. 
Lisle  (Viscountess),  monument,  114. 
Lucius,  a  British  king,  3. 

M. 

Marchia  (Will,  de),  Bp.  37;  monument,  107. 
Mawe  (Leon.),  Bp.  73. 

Mews  (Peter),  Bp.  77 ;  his  military  exploits,  77. 
Minstrel  Gallery,  116. 
Montague  (James),  Bp.  69. 
Monuments  and  effigies,  difficulty  of  appropri- 
ating, 105. 
Moss  (Charles),  Bp.  82. 

X. 

Nave  characterised,  98,  99.     See  Plates  vn. 
vm.  101;  xii.  102;  xni.  and  xxn.  116. 


Organ  screen,  102. 


O. 


Palace,  Bishop's,  117. 

Parapet  noticed,  100. 

Phaganus  and  Deruvianus  (St.),  3. 

Phrea's  (John),  Bp.  46. 

Piers  (Mill.)  Bp.  offends  the  Puritans,  75  note. 

Porch,  North,  character  of,  88,97,98;  PI.  in. 

R. 

Reginald,  Bp.  30. 
Richard  I.  charter  of,  31. 
Robert,  Bp.  28. 
Roger,  Bp.  35. 

S. 

Salopia  (Ralph  de)  Bp.  38;  monument,  109. 

Savaric,  Bp.  32. 

See,  early  history  of,  1,  14. 

Sherborne,  Bishopric  of,  11. 

Sheridan,  Mrs.  monument,  115. 

Sighelm,  or  Swithelm,  Bp.  of  Sherborne,  13: 
his  embassy  to  India,  14. 

Skirlawe(WaIt.),  Bp.  40. 

Stafford  (John),  Bp.  42. 

Statues  and  sculpture  of  west  front,  93,  96. 

Still  (John),  Bp.  65,  67  ;  his  pretentions  as  the 
author  of  "  Gammer  Gurton's  Needle"  con- 
sidered, 68,  69;  monument,  113. 

Stillington  (Rich.)  Bp.  48. 

Storthwait  (John),  monument,  114. 

Sugar  (Hugh),  monumental  chapel,  112. 


Tethiscine,  antient  name  of  Wells,  4. 

Tidinaton,  old  name  of  Wells,  4. 

Towers,    N.  W.  and  S.  W.  built,  86-7,    (see 

Plates  iv.  and  v.);    central  tower,  98,  102, 

(see  Plates  in.  v.*  and  xvi.) 


Vicar's  close  and  gateway,  117,  (see  PI.  xx. 
Vicar's  college,  118. 

W. 

West  Saxons,  conversion  of,  9. 

Willes  (Edward),  Bp.  81. 

Willis  (Hum.  Esq.),  116. 

Wina,  Bp.  of  Winchester,  10. 

Windows,  great  west,  86 ;  of  nave  and  choir,  88. 

Wolsey  (Cardinal),  52,  56. 

Wulflulni,  Bp.  18. 

Wynne  (John),  Bp.  81. 


FINIS. 


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