—Si iinr irn ON THE ARCHITECTURAL HISTORY OF ELY CATHEDRAL. LONDON : PRINTED BY WOODFALL AND KINDER, M1LFORD LANE, STRAND, W.C. ELY CATHEDRAL. [London : John Van Voorst, Paternoster Row. 1868.] ON THE ARCHITECTURAL HISTORY OP ELY CATHEDRAL. By the Eev. D. J. STEWABT, M.A., FORMERLY SACRIST OF THE CATHEDRAL. LONDON : JOHN VAN VOORST, PATERNOSTER ROW. M.DCCC.LXVIII. Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2014 http://archive.org/details/onarchitecturalhOOstew CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. DOCUMENTARY HISTORY OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE MONASTERY OF ELY. PAGE The Birthplace of Etheldreda— Her Marriage — Her Flight to Coldingham — Etheldreda becomes Abbess of Ely — Wilfrith's Appeal to Rome — Ethel- dreda's Death, Burial, and first Translation — The Incorruptibility of Ethel- dreda's Body— Ely is Sacked by the Danes— Dismissal of the Secular Clergy from Ely— Ethelwold purchases the Isle from the King — Wiht- burga's Body is brought to Ely — Hereward's Defence of the Isle of Ely — The King is Repulsed — The Treachery of the Monks — The King obtains Possession of the Isle — Abbot Simeon begins a New Church — Abbot Richard is nominated by Henry I. — Abbot Richard finishes the Presbytery and moves Etheldreda's Body to it 1 CHAPTER II. ACCOUNT OF THE REMAINS OF THE FIRST NORMAN CHURCH. Changes of Plan introduced by Abbot Richard — Interpretation of the Remains of the Original Church — Early Changes in Plan of East Transept — Triforium, etc., later than Pier Arches — Late Changes in the East Transept — Fall of the North-west Angle — The Extent of Simeon's Work unknown — Architectural Features of Nave Pier Arches — Slight Changes in the Triforium Arch Molds — Clerestory of the Nave and East Transept —Present Church on Site of Older one — The Church was struck by Lightning— Alterations in Outer Wall of Nave Triforium — Site of the Church of S. Cross — Site of the Norman Choir Screen — Original Norman Windows in Clerestory . . . . . . . . .24 CHAPTER III. HISTORY OF THE WESTERN ARM OF THE CATHEDRAL. Probable Date of West Cross Aile and Tower — Nigel's Misappropriation of Monks' Revenues — Completion of West Cross Aile — Bishop Ridel's Work in West Tower and Transept — The West Front not finished by Bishop Ridel— Bishop Eustace built a New Galilee — Probable Site of the New Galilee — Eustace did not build the West Porch — State of the West Porch in 1757 — Mr. Essex recommended its Removal— Description of the West Porch — History of the West Tower imperfect — Statements by Mr. Ben- tham and Mr. Millers respecting Date of Construction of West Octagon —The West Tower Piers Cased by Bishop Grey — Entries in the Rolls of Senescallus Terrarum— Theories of Mr. Bentham and Mr. Essex respecting Changes made in the West Tower — Possible Objections to the Theory of Mr. Essex— State of the West Octagon in 1757— The Repairs carried on in Later Times 45 VI CONTENTS. CHAPTER IV. HISTORY OF THE EASTERN ARM OP THE CATHEDRAL. PAGE Documents relating to the Building of the Early English Presbytery— Re- mains of the Norman Presbytery — The Presbytery inclines to the South — The Original Roof of the Early English Presbytery — Changes made in the Early English Presbytery 67 CHAPTER V. HISTORY OP THE LANTERN. The Fall of the Central Campanile, while John de Hotham was Bishop — The Priorate of John de Crawden — Burial-Place of De Hotham and Crawden — Bishop John de Hotham rebuilds Three Arches — The Foundations of the Campanile Piers — Account of the New Work printed in the Anglia Sacra — The Date of the New Choir — The Bridges in and near Ely are Repaired — A Crane is put up at the Water-side — Hides, Ropes, and Scaffolding are bought — Twenty Oak Trees are felled at Chikissand — Timber is bought at the neighbouring Fairs — An Architect is summoned from London — Addi- tions are made to the Priory — Great Angle Posts of Timber Octagon fixed — The Death of Bishop John de Hotham — Changes in North and South Side Ailes of Presbytery — The Prior tries to become Bishop of Ely — De Montacute translated from Worcester — Marble Steps at Etheldreda's Shrine — Dispute with Executors of John de Hotham — The Progress of the New Building — Carving of Chief Key of Wooden Lantern — The Wooden Lantern is Glazed— The Lantern is Painted — The Erection of John de Hotham's Tomb — Mr. Bentham's Disposition of it — Disposition of Choir Altar and Bishop's Tomb — Relics preserved in North Wall of Old Choir — State of John de Hotham's Tomb in 18th Century — The Church of S. Cross built — Four New Bells hung in the West Tower — Expense of Casting them — West Tower got ready for New Bells— Two Belfrys in the Church — Two New Windows "ad Tria Altaria " — Thomas Eumech works the Tracery — Bishop Gray's Windows in Presbytery Side Ailes — Site of the Black Rood not known — The Last Year of " the New Work " — Report on the Lantern by Mr. Essex — Respect for Old Work shown by Mr. Essex — The Tabernacles of the Lantern Piers — Portraits of Sacrist and Bishop — Rearrangement of Shrines in 15th Century — Remains of Bishop Gray's Tomb— The Chapel of Bishop Alcock — The Spinulse found in Arch- bishop Wlstan's Grave— Site of the Altar of Relics, &c. — Burial-Places of the Bishops 82 CHAPTER VI. THE HISTORY OP THE LADY CHAPEL. The Lady Chapel began a.d. 1321 — Alan de Walsingham laid the First Stone— John of Wisbech found a Pot of Money — Bishop Barnet builds the East Window — Probable Date of the Reredos — Tabernacles in Ex- ternal Angle Buttresses — Description of Tabernacles in Lady Chapel — Remains of Pavement in S.E. Transept— Burial-Places of Montacute and Fordham — Offerings at Fordham's Tomb, &c. 136 CONTENTS. Vll CHAPTER VII. THE MONASTERY. — THE STATE OP THE ISLE OP ELY BEFORE THE DRAINAGE OF THE FENS. PAGE The Monastery, &c. — Old Boundaries of the Isle— Abbotsdelf cut by Leo — First Attempt to Drain the Fens— Soham Causeway part of an old one — Its Importance to the Monks — The Entrance to the Isle at Aldreth — Old Entrances to the Isle— Original Course of the Ouse — Bede's Description of the Isle— The Monks travelled by Water— " Story found in the Isle of Elie "— Balsar's Hills the Remains of a British Fort— The Isle a strong Military Position— Ely garrisoned by Bishop Gray— Monks claim Exemp- tion from Military Service — Forty Soldiers quartered on the Celerer — The Soldiers interfere with the Monks— William Rufus seizes the Abbey Estates — The Library of the Abbey is carried off— Ranulf is sent into Exile— Hervey, Bishop of Bangor, is sent to Ely— The Bishopric of Ely is created by Charter — Hervey is made the First Bishop of Ely — The Bishopric is endowed with Abbey Estates — The Monks are dissatisfied — The Encroachments on the Abbey— Bishop Nigel fortifies Ely— King Stephen seizes the Isle of Ely .146 CHAPTER VIII. SURVEY OF ELY OUTSIDE THE WALLS OP THE PRIORY IN THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY. Survey of Ely — The Bridge Reeve's Meadow — Liveries of Bread— Liveries of Beer — Pittance Days — The Entrance to Ely from Soham — The Probable Site of Castelhithe — The Construction of a New Bridge — The Bridge at Aldreth — Tolls taken at the Bridges— The Site of the Duffhousyerd — The Site of the Prior's Vineyard— The Monk's Wharf and Stone- Yard — Brod- hithe the Old Name for the Quay— The History of Lile's Close— Necklaces called Etheldreda's Chains — Merchants had Stalls in the Church — Shops let at Stepilgate during Ely Fair— The Site of the Bishop's Vineyard — The Site of the Butchery — The Red Cross in Akyrman Street — Ancient Roads through Ely — The Ten Palaces of the Bishops of Ely — Le Stone at Mepsale's Corner — The Hospitals of S. Mary Magdalen and S. John — The Site of the Sextry Barn — The History of Ketenes Place — Probable Site of the Stepilgate— Remains of old Houses in Stepil Row — The Site of the old Market Place 175 CHAPTER IX. THE PRIORY. The Monastery intended for Seventy Monks — The Monastery was seldom full — The Discipline not easily maintained — The Influence of Secular Brethren — The Income of the Monastery — The Hire of Players — Ex- penses of Visitations — Bribes given by the Prior — Physicians' Fees — Prices of Food in the Fifteenth Century — The Duties of the Subprior — The Duties of the Sacrist — The Sacrist's Household Expenses — Expenditure of Peas, Barley, Oats, kc. — Name of the London Wine Merchant— The Monks' Gardens in Holborn — The Refectory Bill of Vlll CONTENTS. Fare— Pittance Days at Ely — Mandata at Ely — Gracise at Ely — Food provided in Lent — The different Kinds of Bread in use — The different Kinds of Beer brewed — Household Expenses of a Bishop of Ely — Duties of the Chamberlain — The Outfit of a Novice — Contents of a Novice's Pouch — The Wardrobe of a Professed Monk — Prices paid for Embroidery — Clothes issued annually to Monks — Gifts for the Bishops' Pages — Walpol's Gatehouse is built — Expenses of Prior Bukton's Funeral — Expenses of Prior Walpol's Election— The Gallery— The Free School— The Scholars' Dining Hall — The Prior's Chapel — Valuation of Chapel in Seventeenth Century — The Chapel used as a Dwelling-House — Modern Repairs of the Chapel — The Hall built by John de Craudene — Award of the Royal Com- missioners — Buildings ordered to be pulled down — Changes proposed by the Surveyors — Surveyors' Account of the Deanery — Proposal to sell the Deane's Lodginge — The Site of the Monks' and Prior's Kitchens — Table of the Priory Buildings — The Registrar's House once the Deanery — The Long Matted Gallery— The Priory Guest Hall— The Monks' Kitchen— The Refectory— The Old Hall— The Prior's Kitchen— The Knights' Chamber— The Dormitory — The Dormitory thatched — The New Roof of the Dormi- tory — The Dark Cloister — The School for Children — The Infirmary — Infirmary Chapel built by Bishop Ridel — Endowments of the Hostelry — Oyster Lane — Aula Minutionum — The Painted Chamber — Alan de Wal- syngham's Hall — The Chapter House— The Cloister— Chapel of S. Kathe- rine — Duties of the Precentor — The Keeper of the Clock— The Site of the Sacristy — The Hundred Acres— Two Entrances to the Lady Chapel — The Almes Men's Roomes — Old Houses in the Hundred Acres— The Mill- Hill 205 Description of Plates 289 ON THE ARCHITECTURAL HISTORY OF ELY CATHEDRAL. CHAPTER I. DOCUMENTARY HISTORY OF THE FOUNDATION OF THE MONASTERY OF ELY. The first church built in the Isle of Ely is said to have An |- Sacr - L been erected through the influence of iEthelberht of l. e. i. De Kent, and consecrated by Augustin ; but the date of [Luteals. 8 this event is not very precisely stated.* This building was destroyed in the course of the wars between the Anglians and the Mercians. Penda, a king of Mercia, invaded the marsh-land and gained a great victory, in which two East- Anglian princes, Sige- 63 ?- L - E - berht and Ecgric, perished. The lineage of these princes is not well known, but Sigeberht is said to have Bede, h. e. h. been both a learned and religious man whose greatest object was to spread Christianity throughout his king- dom. While an exile in France, he became a Christian, and on succeeding to his throne brought to England a Burgundian, Eelix, who was consecrated bishop of Dum- moc, or Dunwich, in East Anglia, and assisted him in Bede, h. e. m. founding a school, or schools, like those he had seen in Matt. Westm. Erance, in which his subjects might be educated. ad ann ' 636 ' About the year 633, a monk, Eurseus, came to East ^ de? H - K m - Anglia as a missionary, and laboured with Bishop Eelix Acta ss - Ja ;. to christianize the kingdom over which Sigeberht' s pp. 35, 36. authority extended. * " In primitiva etenim ecclesia — L. E. i. De situ, nascentis fidei et Christianitatis." 2 THE BIRTHPLACE OF ETHELDUEDA. L E . i. 6< Felix founded a monastery at Soham, on the borders of the Isle of Ely, and the king established two others, one at Betrichesworthe, now St. Edmondsbury, and the Bede, H. e. iii. other at Cnobheresburg, at the junction of the Rivers Camden's Yare and Waveney, in Suffolk, the Grarianonum of the n^Toughl! 1 ' Romans, now Burgh Castle. The monastery at Burgh 157 - Castle is said to have been built under the direction of Eurseus, who was Abbot there about the year 650, but Actass. Jan. the events of his life are not well known, and by some Bed* H.\ 8 iii. writers it is supposed that he retired to France about 19 - 648, and died at Mazieres in Poitou two years later. l. e. i. l. After Sigeberht's death in 637, the King of East is. e ' ' ' m " Anglia was Anna, a son of JEne, the only brother of the Bretwalda Rcedwald. Anna was baptized by Bishop Felix while Sigeberht was King, and, before he came to l. E. i. 2. the crown, married Hereswitha, daughter of Hereric, grandson of Edwin the Great, King of Northumberland. According to the Liber Eliensis, he had two sons, Aldul- phus who was afterwards king of East Anglia, and l. e. i. 7. Jurminus who perished with his father in an attempt Bede, h. e. iii. to defend their kingdom against the attacks of Penda 18 in the year 654. The names of four of his daughters are also preserved ; Sexburh, who married Earconberht, King of Kent, and Bede, h. e. iii. became afterwards Abbess of Ely ; iEthelburh (fdia Acta ss. naturalis), who was Abbess of Faremoustier, in France ; fom^if P . 387. Wihtburh, or Wihtgyth, who was a nun at Ely, and tv^v 365 - st ' foundress of a nunnery at East Dereham ; and iEthel- l. e. i. 2.' thryth, who married first Tunberht, ealdorman of the South Gyrvii, then Ecgfrith, King of Northumberland, founded the abbey of Ely, and died there on the 23rd June, 679. iEthelthryth, or, as she is more commonly called Etheldreda, the foundress of the religious house at Ely, was born at Exning in Suffolk, and was remarkable for personal beauty and gentleness of character. In the / HER MARRIAGE. 3 year 652, she was married to Tunberht a prince, or ^.e. ^ ealdormari, of the South Gyrwas or Gyrvii. The district 19. occupied by these South Gyrvii, or Fenmen, extended over the marsh-lands of Cambridge and Huntingdon, and Tunberht presented the Isle of Ely to his wife as a dowry.* Two years after the marriage of his daughter Ethel- dreda, Anna was killed while fighting against the Mer- cians, and at the end of the following year Tunberht died. Etheldreda spent four years in retirement upon l. e. i s. her estate in the fens, and then married her second hus- band, Ecgfrith, a son of Oswiu, the King of Bernicia. Her nuptials were celebrated at York with great splen- dour, and large estates in Hexhamshire were presented to the bride by her husband, who could have been little more than fifteen years oldo In the year 670 Ecgfrith is supposed to have suc- ceeded to his father's kingdom, and for twelve years nothing is known to have disturbed the harmony exist- ing between him and his Queen ; but it was soon after broken up, and she fled from her husband's court never to return. Very shortly after Ecgfrith's accession to his father's throne, Wilfrith, the Bishop of York, obtained from Ethel- dreda a grant of her estates in Northumberland, and founded at Hexham a church and monastery dedicated to St. Andrew. It is very probable that Etheldreda L - & 8 - then contemplated devoting her property in the eastern counties to similar uses, and that the Bishop strengthened her determination by his advice, and by the influence over her which he evidently possessed. * " North and South Gyrwa is therefore supposed to have ex- were probably in the Mark be- tended over a part of Cambridge- tweenEast Anglia and Mercia: as shire and the Isle of Ely." — Kem- Peterborough was in North Gyrwa ble's Anglo-Saxons, i. 83. land, this must have comprised a " Girvii sunt omnes anstrales part of Northamptonslnre : and Angli in magna palude habitantes JEtSerSryS derived her right to Ely in qua est insula de Ely." — L. E. i. from her first husband, a prince of De situ Eliensis insula? . the South Gyrwians : this district B 2 4 HER FLIGHT TO COLDINGHAM. Wilfrith was by birth a Northumbrian, and had been brought up by Ecgfrith's mother, iEanflsed, in the monas- tery of Lindisfarne. He was the travelling companion of Benedict, the founder of the monastery at Wearmouth, he visited Rome, studied there, became familiar with its ecclesiastical system, spent some years at Lyons, as a student, with his intimate friend Dalnnus, Archbishop of Lyons, and returned to England to exercise a very important influence on the Church. When the estrangement between Ecgfrith and his Queen was become notorious, the King appealed to Wilfrith, offered him bribes of money and lands, and urged him to exert his spiritual authority, and heal the differences which disturbed their domestic life. Ecgfrith appealed in vain. The Bishop took the Queen's part, and thus made the King his foe for life. " Dissimulavit autem provide atque prudenter tanquam regi favens, et l. e. i. 9. desiderii sui efRcaciam reginse persuadendum pollicens." Bede, h. e. iv. Acting under the guidance of Wilfrith, Etheldreda l 9 e i. 10. sought to be divorced from her husband, and when the King hesitated to consent to such an arrangement, she fled from her home to Coldingham, where the king's aunt, Ebba, was Abbess, and took the veil at the hands of the Bishop of York. As soon as Etheldreda's flight became known, the King started in pursuit, with the hope of counteracting Wilfrith's influence, and of prevailing on the Queen to return to his court. But his aunt, Ebba, got intelligence of Ecgfrith's intentions, and urged his wife to seek at once a safer retreat than Coldingham could afford. Etheldreda started immediately, taking with her two of her women, Sewenna and Sewara, and made all speed to reach her own marsh-land country, where pursuit would be difficult. Ecgfrith followed closely, and would have caught his runaway Queen, had not a sudden in- undation rendered the roads impassable, and compelled HER FLIGHT CONTINUED. 5 St. Matthew x. 23. him and his companions to give up the chase. After meeting with this check he gave up all hopes of over- coming his wife's determination. He went back to York, and afterwards married Eormenburh, sister of the wife of Cent wine, King of Wessex. L - Kl ' ' The three women continued to travel southward, obedient, as Monk Thomas says, to the divine rule, " When they persecute you in this city, flee ye into an- other!' Crossing the Humber at Winteringham, a parish in the county of Lincoln, about seven miles from Barton, they turned aside to a small village called Alft- ham, where it was possible for them to obtain rest without the fear of being further molested by Ecgfrith's followers. They remained there for a few days, and before leaving this place of refuge Etheldreda ordered a church to be built at her expense. Their journey took l. e. i. 13. place in the summer-time, and the heat of the weather made the progress of the Queen and her attendants extremely slow : they were worn out with fatigue, and incapable of any further exertion, when they fortunately reached a retired spot, clothed with green turf and capable of affording secure rest to their weary limbs. They anxiously sought repose, and when Etheldreda and her companions awoke from sleep, it was found that a notable miracle had been wrought. The Queen's walking-staff had taken root in the ground, and was become a pliant sapling, with fresh bark and budding leaves. L - E - 1 13 - About a year after Etheldreda had taken the veil at Coldingham, she reached Ely, and commenced the work which Wilfrith had marked out for her. Her brother l. e. i. is. Aldulphus was then King of East Anglia, according to the Ely Chronicle, and he favoured her wish to build and endow an abbey within his dominions. It was then very easy for laymen to found monasteries for themselves and their wives, to which extensive privi- G ETHELDREDA BECOMES ABBESS OF ELY. leges were secured by royal charters. The teachers and disciples of the new faith required a place of shelter, wealthy converts sought for retirement and protection from pagan persecution, and Christian rulers were wisely ready to encourage the formation of institutions which were expected to be beneficial to the country. The Danish counties, as they have been called, on the east coast of England, were in such an unsettled state that it has been doubted whether there ever was such a The Four Roman thing as a really independent kingdom of East Anglia. GuS,D y aL., Even at the close of the ninth century, Cambridge, Lcnioi P iourn Huntingdon, and Bedford were burghs in the hands of No. 54. the Northmen. Ely, therefore, surrounded and pro- tected by its swamps, was a safe refuge, to which Ethel- dreda thankfully retreated. l. e. i. 15, 16, Her relatives, Sexburh, Queen of Kent, and her 17 18 daughter Eormenilda, Queen of Mercia, with her child Werburga, soon followed her example. The old church which had been ruined by Penda was repaired and fitted a.d. 673. for divine service ; new buildings were erected to accom- modate those who were eager to join the new society, and Etheldreda was formally consecrated Abbess of Ely Bede, iv. 19. by her friend and adviser, Wilfrith.* All her East- Anglian estates were settled upon her abbey under the direction of Wilfrith, who reserved to himself all episco- l. e. i. is. pal authority over the society. It was at the same time decreed, in a general witan, that, forasmuch as the pious Queen had devoted to sacred uses the estate re- ceived as dower from her first husband, no infringe- ment of the liberties of the isle, either by King or Bishop, would be allowed. This decree was afterwards l. e. ii. 93. confirmed by Pope Victor. The religious institution, founded by Etheldreda, * "In cronicis vero Anglicis et Eli fabricas inceperit atque in brevi Latinis liabetm* quod anno ab in- tempore caelum utriusque sexus carnatione Domini sexcentesimo Deum timentium sub tramite vitse septuagesimo tertio Etheldretha in regularis collegit," &c. — L. E. i. 15. WILFRITH'S APPEAL TO ROME. 7 admitted both men and women, married* and single, who lived together nnder a very simple rnle : — " Omnibus ibi una eadem regula est, praecipua virtus, et prima eis obedientia, amor divini cultus, et decorem domus Dei tota observantia custodire." l. e. i. 15. Whether any established usages distinguished it from other societies it is impossible to determine ; but as it was exempt from the jurisdiction of the Bishops of East Anglia, and under the direction of Bishop Wilfrith, it probably rested with him to introduce whatever regula- tions were thought necessary. When the Bishop was banished from the dominions of Ecgfrith he made Ely his home, exercised there his episcopal functions, and acted as the Queen's adviser and confessor. While he was thus in exile, Theodore, who then held the see of Canterbury and looked with jealousy on the growing in- fluence of the northern see, persuaded Ecgfrith and his brother iElfwine to divide the northern diocese, and make York and Hexham the seats of two Bishops. Wilfrith made up his mind to appeal to Rome against this de- cision, and he left England for that purpose in the year 677. The journey was tedious, and full of danger: he spent the winter in Erisia, and in the following spring reached Rome. In October, 679, a synod was held there, Bede, v. 19. and Pope Agatho decreed the restoration of the petitioner chr™. offfii? to his ecclesiastical preferment. At the same time Wil- tory ' 223, frith obtained from the Pope a recognition of the rights and liberties of the abbey of Ely, which Etheldreda had b. e. i. 19. long desired. Having remained in Italy till after the festival of Easter in 680, Wilfrith returned to England fully satisfied with the success of his experiment — an * Some of the clergy who re- Bishop Wilfrith was married; tired to Ely with Etheldreda were see Vita S. Wilfridi auctore Eddio married. The wife and children Stephano. Vol. I. Scriptores xv. of an archipresbyter are men- Oxon 1691, cap. lvii. " Sanctns tioned in the Liber Eliensis, i. 49. Pontifex noster de exilio cum There is reason to believe that filio suo proprio veniens." 8 etheldreda's death, burial, appeal to Rome. Ecgfrith, however, cared very little for Pope Agatho's threats, and so far from restoring the Bishop to his temporalities, he put him in prison. While Wilfrith was absent from England, a violent epidemic visited East Anglia, and amongst its victims was the lady Abbess Ethel dreda. She suffered from a swelling in the throat which the skill of her surgeon, Kinefridus, was unable to reduce ; he lanced the tumour, and the operation afforded some relief, but on the third day the disease returned with new force, and she rallied only to bid farewell to those who, for seven years, had submitted to her spiritual sway. On the 23rd of June, Beck, ir. 19. a.d. 679, Etheldreda died in her own monastery: " Transivit a ccenolenta voragine hujus mundi ad caeles- tis gaudia regni." She had chosen, as the place of her burial, the grave- yard of the church which she had built ; and her last request was that her body should be enclosed in a plain wooden coffin,* and committed to the ground, f This wish was carefully complied with, and, in the presence l. e. i. 22. of a sorrowful company, she was laid in the earth. Huna, her faithful priest, "presbiter almae Ethel- dredae," retired to perpetual solitude in a small island in the fens, and the vacancy in the monastery caused by Etheldreda's death was filled up by the election of l. e. i. 25. ner s i s ter Sexburh, or Sexburga. The principal events which have been noticed in the above sketch of Etheldreda's life are the subjects of the sculptures on the bases of the tabernacles which deco- rate the piers of the great lantern built by Alan de Wal- singham. The decorations are intended to represent — 1. Her marriage with Ecgfrith ; 2. Her taking the veil at Coldingham ; * "Ligneoinlocello sepulta." — aut arcubus auro circumtectis, sed Bede, H. E. iv. 19; L. E. i. 21. sicut ab ipsa mandatum acceperat f " Sanctae matris celebravit exe- in cimiterio ecclesiae juxta suos quias, et earn non in lapide celato sepelivit." — L. E. i. 22. AND FIRST TRANSLATION. 9 3. Her escape from Ecgfrith; 4. Her staff budding while she slept ; 5. Her induction to the abbacy; 6. Her death and burial; 7. Her translation ; 8. A miracle wrought by her merits after she was canonized. Sexburga, or Sexburh, the second Abbess, was the widow of the King of Kent, Earconberht, by whom she had four children. She held the office for twenty years, and during her presidency the first translation of her sister's body took place. The translation of Etheldreda is among the earliest examples of the removal of a dead body from its grave in order to make it an object of worship, and the cere- mony was conducted with every circumstance of pomp likely to influence the crowd summoned to witness the proceedings. During sixteen years her remains had rested in the churchyard close to the church which she had raised, and in the midst of the religious commu- nity she had gathered round it, but Sexburga had for some time resolved to carry out a scheme which she knew to be acceptable to the feelings of those then dwelling under her rule.* l. e. i. 26. The brethren connected with the abbey were directed to find stone out of which a proper shrine could be made, but as Ely was then surrounded on all sides with water and swamps and no stone existed in the isle, they took a boat and went to a deserted spot called Grante- cester,f " civitatulam quandam tunc temporis desola- Bede, H. E. iv. tarn," to look for some. While they were walking up and down to see what was to be got, they found near * "Laudant cselibes feminse dictum quod audiunt ac prope as- tautes gratulantur ex voto." — L. E. i. 25. f It is difficult to determine the site of Granta csester. See remarks by Professor Babington in the Publications of the Cambridge Antiquarian Society, No. iii. 8vo series, 8. 18. 10 THE INCORRUPTIBILITY OE ETHELDREDa's BODY. the walls of the city, at a place called iErmeswerch,* a white marble sarcophagus ready made, which was con- veyed to the boat or barge in which they had made their journey, and carried to Ely, where it was received as a divine gift, indicating the propriety of paying honour l. e. i. 26. to the remains of their foundress. On the day appointed for the translation, the inha- bitants of the abbey were arranged in two parties, the men on the one side, and the women on the other, round a tent which had been raised over Etheldreda's grave. Kinefrid, the surgeon who had attended her in her last illness, and Wilfrith, her confidential adviser, who had by this time got out of prison, and become recon- ciled to Theodore, were summoned to act as witnesses of whatever might take place in connection with the ceremony. The mound of earth indicating the spot where the body had been buried was shovelled away, l. e. i. 27. the grave was opened, and the wooden coffin lifted out. Sexburga and her assistants drew near to receive reve- rentially the bones of her sister, and entered the enclo- sure which protected the grave from general observation. But in a short time it was proclaimed to the spec- tators that a great miracle had occurred, and that the body of Etheldreda was entirely free from corruption. No trace was left of the disease under which she had Bede, h. e. iv. died, and a slight scar on the neck was the only mark left of the surgical operations by which Kinefrid had attempted to save her life. l. e. i. 28, 29. The sarcophagus in which her remains were then i9, c 20. placed at once miraculously adapted itself to her figure, the lid closed so tightly that no joint could be discovered, and a variety of miracles were wrought by the grave- clothes in which her body had been swathed. The wood of her old coffin was found to have the power of restor- * iErmeswerch means probably —See The Four Roman Ways. E. nothing more than " near the fen." Guest. Archseol. Journal, No. 54. ELY IS SACKED BY THE DANES. 11 ing sight to the blind, and a fountain burst forth from the place where her body had lain. The first translation of Etheldreda is said to have taken place October 17, Oct.i7,A.D.695. a.d. 695 * Sexburga died about four years after the removal of Etheldreda's body from her grave to the interior of the church, and she was buried, according to her own direc- tions, behind the shrine of her sister, f Her daughter Eormenilcla, widow of Wulfere, King of Mercia, then a.d. 699. became Abbess, and at her death the office was con- tinued in the family of the foundress by the appoint- ment of Werburga, Eormenilcla's only daughter. Eor- menilda was buried beside her mother. J From this time there is nothing known of the history of the abbacy till the Danish irruptions in the ninth century, when the church at Ely was burnt and many of the monks were put to the sword. When the ap- proach of the Danes was made known, the inhabitants of the district between Huntingdon and Cambridge fled for safety to Ely, trusting to the merits of Etheldreda, and to the natural difficulties to be overcome in crossing the swamps surrounding the island. But the abbeys in the Eenland all shared one and the same lot. Croyland, a.d. 870. Peterborough, and Ely were sacked and burnt. M&- L^iTi S 39." mund, the prince of East Anglia, fought a battle with the Danes at Heglesdon, in which he was beaten and put to death with great cruelty, on account of his refusal * This is the date given in the et in ecclesia beatse semper Vir- Gale MS., and by Bede, iv. ginis Marise, quam ipsa a funda- 19. In the Ely MS. the year mentis construxerat, collocatum, of her death is also that of ubi usque hodie in maxima vene- her translation. " Translatum est ratione habetur," &c. — L. E. i. 28. itaque egregium corpus pretio- f " Sepulta est in decenti loco sissimse virginis et reginse insignis post beatissimam sororem suam." Etheldrethse anno videlicet ab in- — L. E. i. 35. carnatione Domini sexcentesimo J " Juxta matrem suam requies- septuagesimo nono sub die kalen- cit condita." — L. E. i. 36. darum Novembrium sexto decimo, 12 DISMISSAL OF THE SECULAR CLERGY FROM ELY. to renounce the Christian faith. He was bound to a tree, pierced with arrows, and beheaded. His mar- tyrdom is the subject of one of the alto relievos on the tomb of Hugh de Northwold, Bishop of Ely. A few of the residents at Ely escaped from the Danes and, some years afterwards, repaired the ruined church ; but Burhred King of Mercia * had seized and appro- priated the revenues of the Isle of Ely, and the monas- tery never recovered from the spoliation it had suffered till King iEdgar made it a Benedictine foundation in the tenth century, with the advice and assistance of l. e. ii. 1. Bishop iEthelwold. iEthelwold, Abbot of Abingdon, and afterwards Bishop of Winchester, was an active supporter of Dnn- stan in establishing the Benedictine rule in this country. He dismissed the secular canons from Abingdon and Winchester, translated the rule of the new order from Latin into English ; and was rewarded by the King with a grant of the manor of Suthburn, or Sudburn, l. e. ii. 37. in Suffolk. Sygedwold, an ecclesiastic, and Thurstan, a Dane, were, at this time, competitors for a grant of the prin= l. e. ii. 2. cipality of the Isle of Ely ; but the sheriff of the county, Wolstan of Delham, reminded iEdgar that Etheldreda had founded a monastery there, and that it would be best to dismiss both the applicants, and restore the Isle to its original uses as an endowment of the Church. Although the Isle had been vested in the Crown since its seizure by Burhred, iEdgar acknowledged the justice of this proposal, and iEthelwold was commis- sioned by him to restore the church and monastic buildings, and to -build new habitations if they were necessary. * "Totairt Helyensem insulam Ingulphi. Oxonise, 1684, p. 25. fisco suo applicavit." — Historia ETHELWOLD PURCHASES THE ISLE FROM THE KING. 13 Accordingly, in the year 970, Bishop iEthelwold dis- missed the secular clergy from Ely, and introduced a body of Benedictine monks. l. e. ii. 3. He purchased from King iEdgar, for £100 and a l. e. ii. 4. golden crucifix, the whole isle and considerable estates lying near to it ; and, by a royal charter signed at L - E - 5 - Wlfamere, the new society was founded, and the first l. e. ii. 3. Abbot, Brithnoth, appointed. iEthelwold, having re- paired and enlarged the monastery, endowed it with the lands purchased from the King, and with some property I of his own. The church was re-dedicated by Dun- l. e. ii. 52. i stan, the east end to St. Peter, and the south side to the Virgin Mary ; and Etheldreda's body was left where I it had been placed by her sister Sexburga, in a shrine, above ground, near the high altar.* The bodies "l of Sexburga and her daughter Eormenilda appear to have been left undisturbed. The body of Anna's youngest daughter, Wihtburga, had been treated like ! that of her sister Etheldreda ; it had been removed from the grave, and enshrined in the church at Dereham, where she had founded an abbey. But the Abbot and monks of Ely felt that their church, as it far sur- ! passed that of Dereham in importance, ought to contain the relics of all King Anna's daughters, and they accordingly determined to get possession of Wihtburga's body. The manor of Dereham having been given by King JEdgar to the monastery at Elv, Abbot Brithnoth held a court at Dereham, and gave a great feast, to which all the inhabitants were invited. While the feasting was in progress, the Ely monks con- trived to steal the body of Wihtburga out of the church, and to drive away with it in a cart to Brandon, where * " Corpus autem beatissimse woldus, quam certissime intenta- ! virginis reginoe iEtheldredae in ec- tarn et inconspectam, non sub terra clesia secus altare majus, in loco delitescentem, seddesuper eminen- quo transtulerat illam S. Sexburga, tern reliquit. . . ." — L. E. ii, 52. invenit venerandus pater iEthel- 14 wihtburga's body is BROUGHT TO ELY. they placed it in a boat which was waiting in readiness to take it to Ely. A star of unusual brilliancy enabled them to see their way so clearly that they had reached Brandon before the people of Dereham found out what had happened. A very vigorous pursuit was then com- menced, but to no purpose ; the monks of Ely reached the Island of Tidbrithti * in safety, and Wihtburga's body was taken thence in great state to Brithnoth's l. e. ii. 53. cathedral, and placed beside the shrine of her sister 8th Ju l y ,974. Etheldreda> Ely had now got possession of the bodies of Ethel- dreda, Wihtburga, Sexburga, and Eormenilda; and through the powerful influence of Abbot Brithnoth and Bishop iEthelwold the monks were enriched with the various estates enumerated in the second book of the Liber Eliensis. JEthelred II. gave the Abbots the dignity of chancellor in the King's court, a favour be- stowed also on the foundations at Canterbury and Glastonbury ; and, under such favourable auspices, the monastery remained undisturbed till another national convulsion threw the chief powers of the kingdom into fresh hands. l. e. ii. 101. On Christmas Day, 1066, William the Norman caused himself to be crowned at Westminster by the same Ealdred, Archbishop of York, who had anointed Harold. He swore, before the altar of St. Peter, in the presence of clerks and laics, to defend the holy churches of God and their rulers, to enact just laws, and to have them observed. This promise was very imperfectly kept. l. e. ii. ioo. Harold had bestowed the abbacy of Ely on Thurstan, a Eenman, born at Witchford, near Ely, who had been brought up in the monastery, and had acquired the rare accomplishment of reading Latin as well as English. iEgelmar was, at this time, Bishop of the East Angles, l. e. ii. 101. and Stigand Archbishop of Canterbury ; but one of * Now called Turbntsea. hereward's defence of the TSLE OF ELY. 15 William's first acts was to deprive these two ecclesias- tics of their preferment, and appoint Normans to the vacant sees. To remove Thurstan was no such easy matter. He had a grateful remembrance of the King who had advanced him to his abbacy; he dwelt in a position naturally fortified by swamps and marshes, and he deter- mined to defend it against William, and to support the claims of iEdgar iEtheling. The Isle of Ely became, in consequence, a refuge for all the English who refused submission to the arbitrary code of the foreigners. iEdwin, earl of Chester, and his brother Morcar, earl l. e. ii. 102. of Northumberland, fled from William's court to Ely, where they were joined by Hereward, a young noble distinguished for his valour and daring. Ingulphus Historia in- speaks of Hereward as a pattern of Anglo-Saxon chi- 1684, p. 67. valry, and, indeed, his gallant defence of the marsh-land would naturally excite the admiration of one who looked on the usurpation of William as a deep blow to the prosperity of his Church and country. Hereward was De gestis Her- the son of Leofric, Earl of Mercia and Chester, and chroniques 1118 Lord of Brunne, or Bourne, in South Lincolnshire, by Angio-Norman- ' 3 *> des par tran- his wife Ediva, or Godiva, and, having been concerned cisque Michel, in many acts of violence which provoked the displeasure Excerptum de of Edward the Confessor, he went as an exile into Nor- ^ a Her " thumberland, and thence wandered to Cornwall, Ireland, Publications of and Flanders. During this banishment he gained the society^isso- highest reputation as a soldier of unusual skill and great 1851 personal bravery. In every danger he was foremost, and yet escaped untouched ; in every conflict he mea- sured swords with the ablest amongst his opponents, and gained the mastery. The renown of the young exile reached England ; and the jealousy with which his old companions regarded his superiority gave way to just pride in the fame he was gaining abroad for their 16 THE DEFENCE CONTINUED. native land. He married a noble lady of St. Omer, named Turfrida, and settled in Flanders, apparently without any intention of ever returning to England ; but when the news reached him that William was sorely oppressing his countrymen, his old associations were revived, and he hastened to cross the seas and join his former brethren in arms. He arrived at Bourne in the year 1068, and found that his father was dead ; that his own inheritance had been given by the new King to one of his Norman par- tisans, Ivo de Taillebois, that his younger brother had been murdered, and that his widowed mother was sink- ing under the indignities to which she was exposed. Fired with indignation at the personal injustice with which his family was treated, and at the general distress produced by many of the Norman conqueror's enact- ments, he fell suddenly on Taillebois and his followers, drove them out of Lincolnshire, and took possession of the estates to which he was entitled by descent. The refugees at Ely, when they heard of this repulse of their common foe, sent a messenger to entreat Here- ward to take the command of all the forces they could collect ; for, notwithstanding the confidence felt in the strength of their position, a commander whose name was well known was specially needful to sustain the courage and direct the operations of the beleaguered band. Thierry. His- Hereward accepted the dangerous task, and prepared quIte^Jrln^ f° r tne struggle by thoughtfully observing a national cere- gieterre, vol. 2, m0 nial which his Norman opponents treated with scorn. Taking with him two chosen followers, Winter and Grenoch, he went to Peterborough, and besought Abbot Brand, his uncle, to give the sanction of the Church to the enterprise he had undertaken. A night was spent in prayer, and on the morrow, during the celebration of the mass, he was solemnly invested with a sword which THE KING IS REPULSED. 17 he had previously offered at the altar. He then re- ^*^ a **" ni turned to Ely and engaged himself in its defence. 1684, p. 70. In the summer of 1069, the Normans invested the Isle under the direction of the King himself, who en- camped near the Ouse, and attempted to reach his op- ponents by making a road across the morasses on the western side. Hereward destroyed the causeway as fast as it was made, cut off all stragglers, and so harassed William's troops that the King made peace by a formal treaty, and retired to Cambridge, with the loss of his provisions, his implements of war, and his time. The Normans were, for a time, depressed by the suc- cess of a combined army of Danes, Irish, and Scotch, in Yorkshire, and the fens had rest till the spring of 1070, when the King broke the treaty of peace, and executed great cruelties on every one that fell into his hands. He posted troops at Reche and Brandon, and at- tempted to construct a fresh causeway at Aldreth, which would open an easy approach to Ely ; but his works were washed away, his soldiers w r ere drowned, and his army was foiled. Ivo de Taillebois, who had lost the estates at Spalding granted to him by the King, proposed various stratagems for gaining the marsh-land ; but Hereward entered the Norman camp in disguise, became acquainted with the designs of his foes, and met them with more successful counter-schemes. The Normans built watch-towers of wood ; but l.e. ii, 102. Hereward burnt them : a witch was found, who pro- mised to overcome the Saxons by spells ; but her incan- tations were powerless : Eenmen were hired by the King's officers to bring sedge, hurdles, and timber for constructing roads ; but the Eenmen were Hereward' s soldiers in disguise, who fell upon their employers and kE. 106 > slew them. c 18 THE TREACHERY OF THE MONKS. This vigorous resistance was not limited to the island on which the monastery of Ely stood. Hereward acted offensively as well as defensively : he found his way to the sea, by the Ouse and Welland, and dispersed the Norman ships which were watching the coast, to pre- vent the landing of any reinforcements for his army, and he would have prolonged indefinitely the defence of the Isle but for the treachery of the monks. While he was strengthening the position of his little army, the Abbot and some of the monks made their way to Warewic, and had an audience of the King : " Stetit itaque abbas Elyensis Thurstanus cum suis monachis coram rege magno Willelmo orans et deprecans per l. e. ii. 109. misericordiam Dei ut averteret iram furoris sui ab eis." They dreaded William's anger, and promised entire obedience to his authority if he would spare their church and city. In the early part of the year 1071, the King's army again advanced into the fen country, and in the course of the summer, while Hereward was absent, the Nor- mans got possession of the Isle of Ely, and treated its defenders with great cruelty. Many were put to death, others had their eyes put out or their hands and feet cut off, and some were imprisoned for life. Hereward escaped, and retired to his own estates at Bourne. His uncle, the Abbot of Peterborough, died during the Marsh-land war, and was succeeded by a Norman nominee of the King's, named Torauld, whom Hereward seized and put in bonds till he had paid a heavy fine, and yielded up the properties of his pre- decessor. iEdwin, Earl of Chester, was slain during the war ; but his brother Morcar survived, and was sent l. e. ii. no. as a prisoner to Normandy. Their sister Lucia is said to have married Ivo Taillebois, who succeeded to their estates, and settled in Hoyland, the neighbour of his THE KING OBTAINS POSSESSION OF THE ISLE. 19 rival and superior, Hereward. iEgelwin, the Bishop of Durham, died in captivity at Abingdon. The first act of the King on obtaining entrance to the Isle of Ely was to garrison the monastery with Norman soldiers, and levy a heavy fine of £666 13s. 4