On April 16th this year, I suddenly realised that those eternal behemoths of days gone by might not be there forever, waiting for me to get around to visiting them and so Project #BeforeTheyBurnDown began. The very next morning I booked flights to visit the Sistine Chapel; that very weekend I went off to Winchester, Salisbury came as soon as my required visit to get my MOT done, I’m going to York in December (it’s not that easy to find an entire weekend to go up north) and this weekend I went to Canterbury.
Now, the thing about Canterbury is… I used to live there? I was a student at the University of Kent and I graduated in that cathedral. But that was the only time in three years I actually set foot in it and the only thing I remember was marching through uneven cloisters in heels. Besides, 2003-2007 me had no interest in cathedrals or architecture. That’s come about thanks to Iceland, oddly enough (Iceland -> Vikings -> Olaf Tryggvason -> Aethelred the Unready -> Cnut -> Cnut’s bones -> Winchester Cathedral -> Norman/Gothic architecture, if you’re interested in that little interest progression).
Canterbury’s cathedral has a long and illustrious history but it took a while for it to catch me. What I spotted and later read about is that it’s a mix of Norman and Gothic architecture, like Winchester. When the Normans invaded they promptly instituted a programme of building cathedrals – fairly squat but large, incredible structures for the day, all rounded arches, three levels. Then along came Gothic Perpendicular and the English went “Ooh, shiny. Can we have that for our cathedrals instead?!” In Winchester’s case, they started at the west end and rebuilt arch by arch. You can see where the money runs out because it very abruptly stops being Gothic Perpendicular and goes back to fairly rough-hewn Norman style right at the transepts. The craftsmen of the day weren’t used to such structures or such big projects and the stonework is noticeably rougher.
Canterbury had a different story. Basically, bits of it kept catching fire and every time they had to rebuild a bit, they just rebuilt it in Gothic. The Nave is Gothic and the quire is Gothic but the crypt is still Norman and so are the aisles that run down the side of the quire up to the Trinity and Corona chapels.
I take a particular interest in the west towers. The southern one, the one closest to you as you walk through the gate, was rebuilt in 1458 in the Gothic style that survives to today but the northern one, the further one, lived on as a lower squatter Norman-style until the Victorians demolished it 1834 (due to structural concerns) and built a new one that matched the southern one. The cathedral spent four hundred years with mismatched towers at the front and no one even mentioned it.
To this day, the outside of the cathedral is mismatched, though. From the west end it’s all Gothic Perpendicular, all spikes and decoration and pointed arches and flying buttresses and then when you reach the transepts, it suddenly turns Norman again. Thanks to Winchester, I kind of love a hybrid mess of the two styles. Salisbury doesn’t have it; the entire Norman cathedral was replaced by the current Gothic one.
But enough raving about the architecture, because I didn’t think I’m the sort of person who even recognised architecture, let alone had a beloved hybrid style. (the crypt is kind of awesome – it’s all dark and quiet and Norman).
Canterbury Cathedral has two non-architectural reasons to take an interest in it. Number one – Thomas Becket. He was an archbishop who was murdered in 1077 in the cathedral, in the north-west transept now called the Martyrdom – one of five archbishops of Canterbury to be murdered but the only one anyone cares about. Henry II allegedly exclaimed “Will no one rid me of this turbulent priest!” and four knights took him at his word, travelled to Canterbury, tried to order him to come with them and on his refusal, put him to the sword.
He was canonised two years later and his tomb, in the crypt of Canterbury Cathedral became a place of pilgrimage. The tomb was later moved up into the Trinity Chapel directly above, at the east end of the cathedral. But then Henry VIII came along. He sued the dead archbishop and then declared him guilty when he didn’t turn up, having been dead for 368 years, and took all the goods from the shrine, destroying it and the bones. The whereabouts of the remnants are still a mystery and Becket’s shrine today is a lit candle standing in the middle of the Trinity Chapel. The transept called the Martydom contains a chapel and a sculpture of four swords on the wall (two of them are the shadows of the two metal swords – if I’d commissioned a sculpture of four swords and got half of them in the form of shadows, I’d be paying them with some shadow money) and a handful of cathedral staff lurk there to tell the story if asked.
I can’t believe I don’t have a photo of the Martydom or the swords.
The other interesting thing is the body of Henry IV which is entombed in the Trinity Chapel. I see claims that he’s the only English monarch to be buried in a cathedral. We’ll leave the question of British vs English and worry about the dates. Maybe he’s the only post-1066 monarch to be buried in a cathedral because Winchester has five or six kings of England plus four kings of Wessex plus another of each that used to be here but has since been moved. My knowledge of Henry IV is very limited – he’s Tom Hiddleston’s dad, son of John of Gaunt, and that’s about it. First post-1066 king to speak English as a first language, apparently. Edward the Black Prince, Henry’s uncle and father of Richard II who abdicated very reluctantly to his cousin, is also buried there.
Canterbury Cathedral is currently undergoing major renovation work. It’s a very elderly building and it’s not in great condition, even by cathedral standards. When I went there, a huge part of the outside was covered in scaffolding and there’s a wooden ceiling in the nave with work going on above it so you can’t properly see those Perpendicular Gothic columns soaring up to heaven. But it’s been going on for quite a few years now and isn’t scheduled to finish until at least 2021 so there’s no better time to go there either, not if I want to get in #BeforeItBurnsDown (we all remember that Notre Dame was also undergoing major renovations on April 16th, right?). But I’ve seen it and appreciated it, learned some of its history and when it’s fully open, I’ll go back again and see it as it’s meant to be seen.
I’ve written my blog about Ekaterinburg and about my feelings concerning the Russian Orthodox Church (short story: not a fan) but you probably haven’t read it yet. This post wasn’t in my schedule so I have no idea when I’m posting it. The Ekaterinburg post says that I have not found the Russian Orthodox Church welcoming in any way. Wandering around Canterbury, the Church of England is. There was a man in the robes and the dog collar greeting all the visitors and tourists most cheerfully: “Good morning! Welcome! How nice to see you!” etc to all and sundry and while I’m not, and will never be, a believer or a worshipper or an attender, I like that the Church is so open and so warm to people who wander in. I don’t know how it treats its members and its congregation so I can’t speak for that but it’s happy to be casually lovely to people and I appreciate that. Russia, come and spend a while in our cathedrals. Try to learn some of that attitude.
My one major criticism of Canterbury Cathedral is that you have to pay before you can even enter the cathedral grounds. I can’t think of a single other cathedral that you have to pay just to look at. I understand that it has walls and a gate (it’s a pretty spectacular gate) but I resent not being allowed to feast my eyes on crumbling Gothic western towers without handing over money. On the other hand, like Winchester, once you’ve paid you get to return for free for a year. Salisbury doesn’t offer that. I probably won’t be returning in the next year because I’ve got plans for 2020 and it’s not as if enough of the scaffolding will have been removed to make it worth the effort for at least another two years. But keep watching. I’ll go back and have a proper look one day.
And God save al this faire compaignye!