7 RECOLLECTIONS A. N. WELBY PUGIN Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2014 http://archive.org/details/recollectionsofaOOferr RECOLLECTIONS OF A. N. AVE LB Y PUGIN, AND HIS FATHER, AUGUSTUS PUGIN; «itfe lottos of tlm Matte, BY BENJAMIN FERRET, Architect, F.R.I.B.A. WITH AN APPENDIX BY E. SHERIDAN PURCELL, ESQ. LONDON: EDWARD STANFORD, 6, CHARING CROSS. S.W. 1861. LONDON: PRINTED BY W. CLOWES AND SONS, STAMFORD STREET AND CHARING-CROSS. TO A. J. BERESFOKD HOPE, D.C.L., &c. My dear Sir, The well-known interest which you take in all matters relating to the study of Media? val Art renders any apology from me unnecessary in commending to your notice a Memoir of the great Bevivalist, Welby Pugin. You have encouraged, both by precept and example, the noble cause of " True Principles " of Art, which Pugin so earnestly and ably advocated. I feel therefore much pleasure in being permitted to dedicate to you the following pages, and subscribe myself, Your very obedient faithful Servant, BENJAMIN FEEBEY. PEE FACE. No man of the present generation has distinguished himself more signally in his own peculiar line than Augustus Welby Pugin ; anything, therefore, relating to his history and career, may prove interesting to those who take an interest in the revival of Medieval Architecture. His original genius and varied acquirements are acknowledged by all who enjoyed the privilege of his acquaintance ; while his Publications, by their forcible style and their free utterance of stubborn truths, have made no little stir in the artistic world, and are quoted as affording the best axioms in the branch of Art to which he devoted his pursuits. Without exaggeration, it may be fairly said that Pugin ranked among the most eminent Architects of the present or former days. Cut off before he reached his prime, more import- vi PREFACE. ance is attached to the early period in which Pugin's talents were developed ; and the Writer's intimacy with him commencing from boyhood he had peculiar oppor- tunities of watching his whole career. He has, there- fore, been induced to place upon record such leading incidents of his life as, he trusts, will not be found devoid of interest. These have naturally led to some notices of the elder Pugin and others his eminent contemporaries during the rise of a school of art, the progress of which from a very low ebb may be traced, however imperfectly, in the following pages. The step now taken has been deferred from time to time under the impression that a more competent person might undertake the task ; but at the desire of many friends he no longer hesitates, and the moment seems well-timed when a Public Memorial in honour of Pugin is under consideration. Anxious also that this Memoir should be faithful, as well as acceptable to the members of Pugin's family, and feeling that he could not describe Pugin's character from a Eoman Catholic point of view, the Author has, at the request of Pugin's widow, admitted an Appendix written by a friend of the family. In some of the sentiments therein ex- pressed he cannot agree ; but their insertion seemed due to the wishes of Pugin's relatives, who desired that certain opinions attributed to him on controversial points connected with the Roman Catholic Church, PREFACE. vii respecting which he had been misunderstood, might be explained. Beyond these remarks, the Writer has only to beg the reader's indulgence for defects in a wort compiled during such moments of leisure as his profes- sional engagements afforded, and to offer his thanks to the many friends who have so readily placed at his disposal whatever information respecting Pugin they possessed. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. Pack The elder Pugin's arrival in England — Introduction to Mr. Nash — Acquaintance with Sir M. Shee and Hilton — Nash's Town and Country Residences — Marriage of Mr. G. Repton and Lady E. Scott — Intention to publish a work on Gothic Architecture — In- troduction to Miss Catherine Welby — Origin of the Society of Painters in Water Colours — Becomes a Member of the Society — Anecdote of George the Fourth and Nash — His early history 1 CHAPTER II. Pugin travels to obtain sketches for his Works — Goes to Normandy — Messrs. Langlois and De Caumont — Discountenances the practice of despoiling ancient ruins — Meets distinguished travel- lers — Lord Elgin at Kenilworth Castle — Unsatisfactory character of the pervading style of Architecture .. ..16 CHAPTER III. Early Instruction — Domestic regulations in Pugin's establishment — Mrs. Pugin's peculiarities — Pugin's intimacy with Mathews, the Comedian — Studies the theory of Mediceval Architecture — Napoleon as First Consul — Isabey, David, and Lafitte, the artists — Mr. Pugin's antecedents .. .. ..26 CHAPTER IV. Birth of Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin — His education — Amusements in his father's office — Sketches and measures Eochester Castle— Searches the Well — Narrow Escapes — Goes to Oxfordshire, Norfolk, &c. — Travels in France — Attends Irving's Chapel in Cross Street, Hatton Garden — Mrs. Pugin's Literary Powers — Defence of Lord Melville — Her Adventures in Lincoln Cathedral .. .. .. .. .. ..32 X CONTENTS. CHAPTER V. Page Effect of Calvinistic teaching — Brunei and the first public Ceme- tery — Pugin's connection with Public Improvements — Practice of Pugin's Office — Introduction at the British Museum to Messrs. Rundell and Bridge — Appointed to design the Furniture for Windsor Castle — Sir J. Wyattville and the King . . . . 48 CHAPTER VI. Welby Pugin's first connection with Theatres — Employment in the designs of Scenery for the Opera of Kenilworth at Her Majesty's Theatre — Construction of a Model Theatre in his father's house — Bad effects from associating with low society — Establishes an Art Manufactory — Improved condition of Art-Workmen — Failure of the Scheme .. .. .. .. ..57 CHAPTER VII. Temporary Embarrassments — Pugin's Marriage, and his Wife's Death — Buries her at Christchurch Priory Church — Intention of building a House at Christchurch — Abandoned through his Father's interference — Seeks another Neighbourhood, and builds St. Marie's Grange, near Salisbury — Intimacy with Mr. Osmond — Indignation at the modern alterations in Salisbury Cathedral — Commences Correspondence with Mr. Osmond by a Letter from Wells .. .. .. .. .. .. 67 CHAPTER VIII. His Second Marriage — Industry in copying Illustrations in the Cathedral Library — Success in his Profession — Proposes to sell St. Marie's Grange — Designs for altering Longford Castle — Eccentric Habits — Amusing Anecdote — Improves the Vestments at the Roman Catholic Chapel — Readiness to give Professional Advice — Death of his Father and Mother .. .. ..93 CHAPTER IX. Article in the ' Times ' — Publishes his work entitled ' Contrasts,' &c. — Remarks on the character of the Book — Strictures upon the practices of the Roman Catholic Church — Anecdote referring to Vestments — Erroneous Notions, limiting Art to those in con- nection with the Roman Catholic Church — Public Opinion upon the ' Contrasts' — Humorous Song in reference to the work .. 102 CONTENTS. xi CHAPTER X. Page Pugin's introduction to the Earl of Shrewsbury — Letters addressed to his Lordship on various occasions — Letter from the Rev. Dr. Rock— Memorials to Pugin from Maynooth and other places — Letter from Count de Montalembert — Letter to the Lords of the Committee of Trade .. .. .. .. .. 117 CHAPTER XI. Publishes 'True Principles of Gothic Architecture' — Cruises at Sea — Facility of drawing and etching while in the boat — Sound prin- ciples of design — Tact requisite to carry them into execution — Exposure of unrealities, and censure of wrong Roman practices — Publishes his great work, i A Glossary of Ecclesiastical Orna- ment and Costume' — Its effect .. .. .. .. 142 CHAPTER XII. Publishes ' A Treatise on Chancel Screens ' — Severity of his Re- marks upon a section of the Roman Catholic Church, when disregarding proper Church Arrangements — Precedents taken from Lombardic Churches — ' Modern Ambonoclast ' — ' Calvinist Ambonoclast' — Anecdotes .. .. .. .. 150 CHAPTER XIII. Ruskin's severe Criticism upon Pugin's Buildings — Inconsistencies pointed out — Strong religious Bias — Troublesome Interference of Committees — Incidents relating to the Foundation of St. George's Church and Conventual Establishment, Lambeth — Remonstrates against unusual Expectations, and exposes their Fallacies — Defects in the Design from want of due study . . 162 CHAPTER XIV. Quits Salisbury and comes to London — At the same time com- mences building a House and Church at his own expense at West Cliff, Ramsgate — Description of the Church of St. Augus- tine — Loses his second Wife — His presentiment of her approach- ing Death — Buries her at St. Chad's Cathedral, Birmingham — His great Patron and Employer, the Earl of Shrewsbury — His Lordship's remarks upon Pugin's Works — Much assisted in his Buildings by Mr. Myers — His first Meeting with Myers — Designs Alterations for Balliol College .. .. .. ..173 xii CONTENTS. CHAPTER XV. Pagb Consulted by the late Lord Stuart de Rothesay at High Cliff— Leaves the place hastily — Contemplates a third Marriage, but meets with a disappointment — Publishes a Pamphlet in vindication of his conduct entitled, 'Statement of Facts' — Extracts from Pam- phlet .. .. .. .. .. 190 CHAPTER XVI. Remarks on Jewels prepared for the intended Wedding — Pugin makes a Tour in Italy — Reception by the Pope — Expresses his annoyance that many of the Priesthood disregard his theories upon Christian Art — Contrasts their apathy with the earnest- ness of many in the Anglican Church, who readily adopt his ' True Principles ' .. .. .. .. .. 224 CHAPTER XVII. Pugin's third marriage — Lord Shrewsbury's congratulation — Account of Roman Catholic Buildings in course of erection — Assumed completion of Structures partially built — Strictures upon Pugin's Buildings in the 1 Ecclesiologist ' — Insufficient record of his negotiations with employers and others to make a full Biography — Addresses a Letter to M. Didron, giving an account of all that he is doing in England towards the revival of Ancient Art 230 CHAPTER XVIII. Destruction of the old Houses of Parliament— -Pugin assists in pre- paring Designs for the new Palace — His subsequent employment, under Sir C. Barry, to superintend certain details — Sir C. Barry's Testimony to Pugin's Genius — Pugin's readiness to accord merit wherever due . . . . . . . . . . . . 240 CHAPTER XIX. Intimacy with Mr. Herbert Minton, of Stoke-upon-Trent — Labours with him to revive and re-introduce the use of Encaustic Tiles — First complains of failing health — Writes again, referring to his impaired health and shattered nerves — Addresses an angry letter to Mr. Minton, and withdraws all confidence in him — Upon Mr. Minton's explanation, expresses deep sorrow at having written so harshly .. .. .. .. .. .. 250 CONTENTS. xm CHAPTER XX. Page Pugin's opinion of the Great Exhibition Building in Hyde Park, 1851 — Exhibits largely in the Mediaeval Court— Praise given him by Professor Waagen — Consulted, in 1852, upon the formation of the Architectural Museum — His opinion upon Art-Workmen — Power of persuasion in Argument— A work on Sculptured Or- nament contemplated but never carried into execution — Desire to see a Mediaeval Club established . . .. .. 257 CHAPTER XXI. Writes to Mr. Minton that he is engaged on a work to produce Mutual Charity amongst Members of different Religious Commu- nions — The work never published — Pre monitory symptoms of dis- turbed intellect — Public sympathy and intended Subscription for his support — Letter of Lord John Russell — Mr. E. W. Pugin. his son, discountenances the proposed public Appeal as unnecessary — Rumoured change in his Religious Views — No sufficient foun- dation for the report . . . . . . . . . . 265 CHAPTER XXII. General Retrospect of the progress of Modern Architecture — Pecu- liarities of Lombardo-Gothic — Pugin's treatment of Mediaeval Architecture — Recognition of the Labours of Architectural Authors preceding Pugin's time .. .. .. ..278 CHAPTER XXIII. Further Illustrations of Pugin's Character— Appeal to his Co- religionists on the subject of the Papal Hierarchy in England- Neglect in the recognition of his great services by the leading Roman Catholics — A Memorial in honour of his Memory, founded by Protestants, to perpetuate the great services he rendered to Architecture .. .. .. .. 293 xiv CONTENTS. APPENDIX. Page Introduction .. .. .. .. .. .. 307 CHAPTER I, Pugin's principles as manifested in his writings — The ' Times ' on the ' truthfulness ' of Pugin's principles — His chief u works con- sidered — ' Contrasts ; or, a Parallel between the noble Edifices of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries and corresponding Build- ings of the present day' — Causes of the decline of Gothic archi- tecture — The revival of letters in the sixteenth century — Paganism in art and literature — The neglect and decay of the English Cathedrals a quarter of a century ago— Pugin's hatred of shams and unrealities — His severe criticisms on modern church builders — ' The True Principles of Pointed or Christian Architecture considered ' — Pugin's principles generally adopted as fundamental axioms in Medieval architecture — His criticisms on the Grecian style — Pointed Architecture best suited for Christian purposes— Its symbolism, strength, and beauty — Ap- propriateness the principle of ornamentation — ' An Apology for the Revival of Christian Architecture ' — A defence of his own principles — Their antiquity — The Gothic revival and its results. 311 CHAPTER II. Pugin on Rood Screens — Tractarian criticism — ' Reverence ' ver- sus the ' All- seeing Principle ' of modern church builders — His controversy with the ' Rambler,' the organ of debased Italianised principles in art and architecture — Dr. Newman's tribute to Gothic architecture — Pugin's denial that he would like to destroy St. Peter's, Rome — Moorfields Chapel — Musical mass in Cologne Cathedral — Ecclesiastical taste in France — His severe criticisms on the operative music in English Catholic chapels — ' Church- CONTENTS. xv openings and religious performances ' — Pugin's letter on the Catholic Church, Hereford — Legacy-hunting — A last ' scene ' de- scribed — Pugin on the English Catholic hierarchy and its purely spiritual character — On Church government — He is accused of advancing heretical views — Eefutation of his accusers — Epis- copal opinions — Letters — Anglican orders — His advocacy of the voluntary principle — And of the complete separation of Church and State — The abuses resulting from large endowments — State tyranny and corruption, and consequent spread of infidelity in Europe during the last three centuries . . . . . . 361 CHAPTER III. Pugin's character as exhibited in his Writings — His originality — His thoroughness — His honesty of purpose — His strong love of the national character — His habits of activity — Pugin's incom- plete and unpublished Work, entitled 'An Apology for the Separated Church of England since the reign of Henry VIII.,' showing the general decay of the Ecclesiastical spirit and the corruptions of the Fifteenth Century — The system of endow- ments and large monastic possessions, and their abuses con- sidered — The Work interrupted by death. .. .. .. 419 Conclusion .. .. .. .. .. .. 454 LIST OF ILLUSTBATIONS. Page Portrait of A. Welby Northmore Pugin, from recollection, by Joseph Nash .. .. .. .. Frontispiece Portrait of A. Pugin, Sen., from recollection, by Joseph Nash . . 26 Fac-simile of a Sketch of the Priory Church, and ruins of the Castellan's House, Christchurch, Hants, taken by Welby Pugin when 13 years old .. .. .. ..GO View of St. Marie's Grange, Pugin's residence, near Salisbury .. 72 Illuminated Heading to one of his letters .. .. 76 Sketches of the Towers of Newcastle-on-Tyne, Boston, and Taunton, forming marginal illustratioDs to one of his letters .. ..77 Sketches of Traceried Window Heads from Bristol Cathedral and Tintern Abbey, illustrating another of his letters . . ..78,79 View of Alton Towers, forming tail-piece .. .. ..116 Pugin's Yacht and other boats .. .. .. .. 149 North-west View of St. George's Roman Catholic Cathedral, as originally designed by Pugin .. .. .. ..170 Interior View of St. George's Roman Catholic Cathedral, as origi- nally proposed by Pugin .. .. .. .. ..170 The Church of St. Augustin, West Cliff, Ramsgate, founded by Pugin, together with Pugin's Residence — The Grange .. .. 175 Catholic Charities .. .. .. .. .. ..189 Pugin's Wedding Card . . . . . . . . . . 230 RECOLLECTIONS OF A. WELBY PUGIN. CHAPTER I. The elder Pugin's arrival in England — Introduction to Mr. Nash — Ac- quaintance with Sir M. Shee and Hilton — Nash's Town and Country , ^Residences — Marriage of Mr. G. Repton and Lady E. Scott — Inten- tion to publish a work on Gothic Architecture — Introduction to Miss Catherine Welby — Origin of the Society of Painters in Water Co- lours — Becomes a Member of the Society — Anecdote of George IV. and Nash — His early history. Before entering upon a narrative of the incidents belonging to the life of Augustus Welby Pugin, it is desirable to give some account of his parents, particu- larly of his father, whose memory is cherished by many now living, who respected him for his generous nature and amiable disposition. The elder Pngin was born in France, in the year 1762 ; his birthplace is unknown, but he was descended from a family of dis- tinction, his ancestor being a nobleman who raised a hundred soldiers for the service of Fribourg, the Sena- tors augmenting his arms 4 d'un oiseau sable,' for his valour in having defeated a hundred cavalry at Morat, B 2 RECOLLECTIONS OF when besieged by Charles Duke of Burgundy, in 1477. Pugin witnessed many of the fearful scenes in the French Ee volution, and it is said that he fell fighting for the king, and was thrown with some hundred bodies into a pit near the Place de la Bastille, whence he managed to escape by swimming across the Seine, flying to Eouen, and embarking from that place to England. As a total stranger, almost entirely ignorant of the English language, his position was one of great difficulty. He now eagerly read all the adver- tising columns of the newspapers, and at last his atten- tion was arrested by an advertisement in which the assistance of a draughtsman was required in the office of Mr. Nash, the celebrated architect, with a further intimation that the services of a foreigner would be preferred. Pugin therefore hastened to Mr. Nash's residence, and when shown into the waiting-room was astonished to find a French nobleman, whom he had known in Paris, a candidate for the same appoint- ment. Mr. Nash, after considering the respective qualifica- tions of the two candidates, gave the preference to Pugin. Little indeed did he know whether his abilities were equal to the requirements that might be expected, but he resolved to exert himself most strenuously, and endeavour to please Mr. Nash, who was at this time in the full tide of his prosperity, and could find occu- pation for artists of all kinds. Perceiving that Pugin had taste and skill in the use of colours, he employed him on perspective views of buildings in the Gothic A. WELBY PUG1N. 3 style then erecting under liis superintendence in Wales, and also on drawings of the Waterloo Monument, for which Mr. Nash had made a drawing, though it was never carried into effect. These designs Pugin exe- cuted on a large scale in body colour, in a bold and effective manner, working with unceasing energy, and availing himself of any leisure time for studying draw- ing, to render efficient assistance to Mr. Nash. To advance this object he also entered himself as a stu- dent at the Royal Academy, and became intimate with the late Sir Martin Archer Shee and Hilton, who were then studying in the same school of Art. Eemembering that a drawing master to his fathers family in France was now living somewhere in London, he made a search and discovered him. This person was Merigot, the aqua-tint engraver : under this artist Pugin made great progress in his art. He often related the many difficulties experienced at this early period of his residence in England, owing to his im- perfect pronunciation of the few words of English which he had learnt. Pugin, according to the fashion of that day, wore a three-cornered hat, carried his muff and gold-headed cane, and made frequent applications at the post-office for letters. To his repeated inquiries, he constantly received the same petulant answer, 4 1 tell you there are no letters for Monsieur Augustus Pugin, but plenty for Monsieur Puggen.' The mention of this incident to his friend Mathews in after times, induced that clever comedian to found upon it the well-known character of Monsieur Malet, which he b 2 4 RECOLLECTIONS OF personated with so much feeling. 'Ah ! ' Pugin would often say, ' people little know that Monsieur Malet should be Monsieur Pugin.' Perhaps no professional man ever attained greater success in his pursuits than the late John Nash. He Avas, as is well known, the especial favourite of George the Fourth, being his private architect, and engaged by the King to make the alterations and additions at Buck- ingham Palace ; he also built the Pavilion at Brighton.* Possessed of a large professional income, Nash lived in a style of some splendour at his house in Begent Street, receiving his employers in a spacious and beau- tiful gallery adorned with the choicest sculpture and pictures ; f and possessing East Cowes Castle, in the Isle of Wight, where he was visited by many of the leading families of the aristocracy. Nash's treatment of his pupils was of the most gene- rous kind, and when staying in the Isle of Wight, he permitted the gentlemen of his office to join the distinguished company who visited him. Amongst them was George Stanley Bepton, a son of the famous landscape gardener, and brother of the late respected Canon of Westminster. This gentleman won the heart of no less a person than the daughter of the then * The Government business, executed under the control of the Board of Works, was then divided between three architects, each of whom received a retaining fee of five hundred pounds per annum, with a commission of three per cent, upon the expenditure. The three architects were Nash, Sir R. Smirke, and Sir J. Soane. t The apartment referred to as Mr. Nash's reception-room is now completely transformed, and become familiar to the public by the name of the 1 Gallery of Illustration.' A. WELBY PUGIN. 5 Lord Chancellor Eldon, who was a frequent visitor at East Cowes Castle. Mr. Repton was privately married to Lady Elizabeth Scott in March 1817 ; Lord Eldon was at first much displeased with this marriage, but in course of time he not only became reconciled both to his daughter and son-in-law, but evidenced the sincerity of his regard by appointing the latter one of his executors. But to return to our subject: About this period there was a mania for building gentlemen's houses in imitation of castellated and monastic structures. Mr. Nash being largely engaged in this way, and feeling the want of practical works upon Gothic architecture (for although beautiful pictorial illustrations of our cathedrals were in course of publication by Britton, no book yet existed in which the details were so drawn as to enable the practical architect to make working drawings from them), suggested to Pugin that by applying himself to this particular purpose he would do the profession a great service and secure a profitable occupation. Acting upon the advice of Mr. Nash he shortly set to work collecting materials for a publication which would meet the wants of the profession. Pugin was now in a position enabling him to earn a fair income ; and while occupied in making sketches for a picturesque work on Islington he became acquainted with Miss Catherine Welby, the daughter of a distinguished barrister, and a relative of Sir William Welby, Bart., of Denton Hall, Lincolnshire. Pugin's position was 6 RECOLLECTIONS OF hardly such as to make him a desirable candidate for the hand of this lady, yet, by his gentlemanly de- meanour and persevering suit he overcame all the ob- jections of her friends, and they were eventually married at St. Mary's Church, Islington. Of this lady more will be said hereafter. She was possessed of no ordi- nary charms, and known as ' The Belle of Islington/ Islington, be it remembered, was at that day the head- quarters of the Royalist Emigration. In proof of her good looks she was accustomed to relate the circum- stance that once at a dinner party, a gentleman sitting next to her, with whom she had been in close conver- sation, availing himself of one of those mysterious pauses which sometimes occur at the table, and looking her earnestly in the face, suddenly exclaimed, with animated gesture, ' Madam, how exceedingly like you are to the devil.' This expression caused no small surprise amongst the company 5 but far from discom- posing Mrs. Pugin, she gracefully bowed her thanks, and accepted the remark as a compliment to her personal appearance. Familiar with the works of Milton, and especially Paradise Lost, she recognized in the seemingly rude observation an allusion to the fascinating form of Satan as there described by the great poet. Pugin now came into repute as an architectural draughtsman, and his drawings were deservedly ad- mired for their truthfulness of form and colour. At this period there was a marked improvement percep- tible in the works of artists who had previously A. WELBY PUGIN. 7 worked in water-colours. The earlier practice in the art had been carried out with remarkable simplicity ; broad tints of monotone, possessing something resem- bling a local tint, formed the groundwork, the objects being drawn freely with a reed pen, either in dark brown colour or Indian ink. So far this mode of working in water-colour had hitherto prevailed, but a change in the process now took place ; the old method of pre- paring the drawing in uniform tint was given up, and efforts were made to represent objects with their local colours and varied effects of light and shade. Many of the most eminent artists felt that the time had arrived when a popular annual exhibition of their pro- ductions could be successfully established. With this view, they associated themselves in the foundation of the Old Water Colour Society. Their first exhibition took place on the 22nd of April, 1805, at the rooms built by Vandergucht the engraver, in Lower Brook Street, Grosvenor Square. Eventually they moved to Pall Mall East, where the annual exhibition continues to be held. Of this body Pugin was elected an asso- ciate in 1808, in the room of Richard Ramsay Reinagle. He frequently exhibited in their gallery, and his beau- tiful drawings of the interior of the Hall of Christ- church, Oxford, of Westminster Abbey, and St. Paul's, with many views of Lincoln, were well known as creditable pictures of the earlier exhibitors of this distinguished society. Pugin always spoke in terms of the greatest regard for many of his associates in 8 RECOLLECTIONS OF this body, particularly of Copley, Fielding, and George Robson, men whose friendship he enjoyed. Although Pugin had for some time ceased to give his exclusive attention to Mr. Nash's works, yet his intimacy with that great architect continued for many years afterwards. Pugin entertained much respect for him, and delighted to relate anecdotes to his pupils characteristic of Nash's generous nature and indomi- table spirit. Some of these may fitly be recorded here. It was in the year 1824, while Nash was engaged in building the Pavilion at Brighton, that he received the King's commands to prepare a work illustrating that extraordinary Hindu structure. Mr. Nash natu- rally requested Pugin to take sketches, make the drawings, and superintend the engravings ; and even- tually a beautiful work was produced, at great cost, con- sisting of perspective views etched in outline, printed in colour, and finished by hand. The King's object was to have an elegant book which he might give as a souvenir to those who were honoured by invitations to Brighton. The strictest precautions were therefore taken to prevent the possibility of any impressions of the plates becoming public 5 but it was hardly to be supposed that in the passage of the copper-plates and proofs through the hands of the engravers, printers, colourists, and others, some stray prints might not be dispersed. This indeed proved to be the case ; and in the sale of the effects of one of the engravers who had become bankrupt a few prints of the intended work A. WELBY PUGIN". 9 were publicly exposed for auction. A most respectable bookseller, who by chance attended the sale, knowing Mr. Pugin's anxiety that no impressions of the work should get into circulation, at once purchased them to prevent such a result. On this becoming known to Mr. Nash, he rather hastily, and without waiting to be made acquainted with the circumstances under which the prints were obtained, communicated the fact to the King, and the well-intentioned purchase of the book- seller had nearly made him the victim of a prosecution as a receiver of stolen goods. Fortunately, however, a timely explanation saved him from this annoyance. This fact shows with what vigilance Mr. Nash carried out the King's command in connection with the pre- paration of the book, proof impressions of which were submitted to His Majesty and revised by the King's own hands. Pugin relates an amusing incident which occurred while he was making the sketches for this work. He was engaged in one of the galleries of the Pavilion colouring a view. Deeply intent upon his drawing, he did not observe that some one had entered the apartment, but on looking round, to his surprise, saw the King, who was then advancing to the spot where he was sitting. Pugin had scarcely time to rise when the King, passing by him and not perceiving a stool on which a colour-box was placed, accidentally overthrew it. The King stooped, and instantly picking up the box, gave it to Pugin with an expression of apology. It may easily be imagined how fully Pugin appreciated this act of condescension, which he never 10 RECOLLECTIONS OF failed to mention whenever he had opportunity. The kindly act is quite in keeping with many others which could be related by those whose privilege it was to be brought into frequent intercourse with George IV.; and no one received more proofs of the King's generous nature than Mr. Nash, owing to the confidential rela- tion in which he stood to him as his private architect. Pugin was also engaged in a very costly work by Sir George Nayler, Garter King-at-Arms, upon the cere- monies attending the coronation of George the Fourth, and contributed many illustrations to Ackerman's Microcosm of London; he was also occupied with Turner in the production of a work on Cassiobury for the Earl of Essex. In order to animate his pupils to perseverance and industry, Pugin frequently set before them the ex- ample of Mr. Nash's early career, who when a pupil in Sir Robert Taylor's office, had an early oppor- tunity of bringing himself into notice. Sir Robert, on one occasion, putting before his clerks some plans to which certain alterations were needed in an unusually short space of time, was annoyed at being told that it was impossible to do what he required. This being overheard by young Nash, he ventured to ask if he might undertake the task which had been declined by his superiors. Sir Robert, struck by the earnest manner of the boy, granted his request. Nash immediately went to his room, procured paper and candles, and, sitting up all night, laboured incessantly at the draw- ings, and by the time appointed appeared before Sir A. WELBY PUGTN. 11 Robert with the plans completed. This unexpected achievement convinced Sir Robert that Nash would succeed in after life — a prediction which had complete fulfilment. Amongst the pupils in the office with Nash were Cockerell, the father of the present 0. R. Cockerell, the accomplished President of the Institute of British Architects, and J. Leach, who, after study- ing architecture, left the profession for that of the law, which he followed with such success that he rose to the high position of Master of the Rolls, which office he filled for many years. As another illustration of Nash's perseverance in after life, and his determination never to be overcome by seeming difficulties, it is told that on one occasion, having to go to some out-of-the- way place in Wales, he disdained the accustomed road, which was circuitous, and resolved to seek a more direct path to his object. Setting out on foot he en- countered many hedges, ditches, and fences, most of which he passed, though not without difficulty. At last, meeting with a locked gate, awkwardly framed and inconvenient to mount, he was seen to retrace his steps several hundred yards, make a sudden run, and attempt to vault over the gate. Failing in this, again and again he put forth his strength, and nearly accom- plished his aim ; at last, stripping himself of his coat and waistcoat, by a longer run and a desperate spring he succeeded in clearing the barrier. He was then seen to climb deliberately over the gate, retrace his course, put on his clothes and proceed quietly on his way. On being told that this performance had been 12 RECOLLECTIONS OF witnessed at a distance, he observed that it was his rule never to be deterred by seeming difficulties from accomplishing anything which he knew to be practicable. Those who recollect the accent and impassioned manner of Pugin's recitals, and the amusing way in which he repeated these anecdotes before his pupils to stimulate their industry and perseverance, can fully appreciate the mixture of gravity and drollery ex- hibited in their repetition. These traits of Nash's character are mentioned because, whatever may have been the misfortunes which befel him after death had removed his patron George the Fourth, when the ideas of the Court and the public underwent a signal change, there never could be any just reason for denying the great merit due to him for the important metropolitan improve- ments effected under his directions. The formation of Eegent Street and the skilful arrangement of the terraces and grounds of the Regent's Park are alone sufficient to attest his genius ; and although his build- ings are deficient in the vigour of outline shown in the best antique examples of architecture, still his combination of plan and fertility of contrivance are deserving of great praise. As concerns the works at Buckingham House he can scarcely be held responsible for their defects. The original structure was capable of moderate addi- tions, and if only those first contemplated had been carried into effect a consistent design might have been A. WELBY PUGIN. 13 the result. By the King's command, however, a mansion suited only for the moderate requirements of a junior branch or a Queen Dowager had to be meta- morphosed into a huge metropolitan palace for the reigning Sovereign 5 hence all the additions are want- ing in congruity of design, and numerous defects in arrangement perceptible. Besides the difficulties in the arrangement of the building, which Nash had to meet in order to please the King, he had also to contend with the vigilant authorities at the Board of Works, and was frequently brought into collision with them. At one time, when he had disputes with the Commis- sioners, the King requested Sir Jeffrey Wyattville to examine Buckingham House, which was then nearly completed by Nash, and report on such works as he might think would be necessary to render it suitable for his Majesty's residence. On this Wyattville, to his great credit, wrote to the Keeper of the Privy Purse, requesting him to state to the King that, although he felt flattered by His Majesty's commands, he hoped to be permitted to decline advising on Buck- ingham Palace, as long as there remained any possi- bility of Mr. Nash removing the difficulties between himself and the Commissioners, which he trusted he would be able to do. Here it may not be out of place to correct some erroneous impressions concerning Nash's origin. In the autobiography of John Britton, he remarks, when speaking of J. Nash and Humphrey Eepton : " Both were born in the same year, 1752 ; the first in 14 RECOLLECTIONS OF Wales, the second in Suffolk ; the one of humble, obscure parentage, the other of a respectable family classing with the gentry of Bury St. Edmunds. Whilst Nash had to contend with difficulties and struggles in early life, Eepton was benefited by a good education and exciting associations, and was destined to succeed his father as an English merchant. Our first news of Mr. Nash is of his being a miniature painter ; next we find him scene-painter to a company of itinerant players in Wales, where my old friend Mr. Pugin joined him. We afterwards hear of him in London, living with a Mr. Edwards, a relation, in Bloomsbury Square ; and of some adventures after his residence there. His daring and important schemes in Eegent Street and the Park, in Buckingham Palace and other parts of London are well known to all persons in the metropolis, and have been more cen- sured than praised by the periodical press." He then proceeds to speak in strong condemnation of George the Fourth, and makes severe reflections upon Mr. Nash's proceedings whilst connected with that mo- narch, which it would have been far wiser to have with- held. His statements regarding Mr. Nash's entrance into public life are entirely wrong. He had patrons in Wales, and acquired property there; and being fond of theatrical representations built a private theatre, in which Mathews, Pugin, and other friends acted for their own amusement, sometimes inviting the surrounding gentry to witness their performances. Mr. Nash was born in London; his parents being A. WELBY PUGIN. 15 possessed of some private fortune were able to place their son with Sir Robert Taylor, the leading architect of that day. Nor was he an uneducated person, as implied by the unfavourable manner in which he is described in contrast to Mr. Repton. 1G RECOLLECTIONS OF CHAPTER II. Pugin travels to obtain Sketches for his Works — Goes" to Normandy — Messrs. Langlois and De Caumont — Discountenances the practice of despoiling Ancient Ruins — Meets distinguished Travellers — Lord Elgin at Kenilworth Castle — Unsatisfactory character of the per- vading style of Architecture. Pugin now began in good earnest to carry into effect his promise to Mr. Nash, but it was impossible that he conld collect the materials for so important a work single-handed. He therefore sought pupils and readily obtained them, Mr. Nash and other architects being glad to recommend his office as the best school for obtaining a knowledge of Gothic architecture and other elementary branches of art. Accompanied by his pupils he visited different towns for the purpose of sketching and measuring such details of mediaeval buildings as appeared to him desirable; but the expense of travelling led him to select those speci- mens which were most easy of access; and to this cause may be attributed the want of classification ob- servable in the work, an error he carefully corrected in his later publications. But though the examples chosen by him might not be the best, they were so carefully drawn and practically studied as to be of A. WELBY PUGIN. 17 material use to persons engaged in building, and no other publication had ever given details in so desirable a form. In carrying on this work he was assisted by Mr. Willson of Lincoln, who contributed the literary portion ; and this gentleman's well-known antiquarian knowledge gave additional interest to the book. The first volume, entitled 6 Specimens of Gothic Architec- ture,' was published in 1821, and dedicated to Mr. Nash as the private architect to the King. The second volume soon followed, and the work met with a most extensive sale, fully justifying the hopes of its pro- moters. Encouraged by success, and really animated with a love for mediaeval art, Pugin, to whom the magnifi- cent buildings of Normandy were familiar, determined to illustrate some of the French structures with the precision shown in the works he had just published. Foreseeing the great cost which must attend this new publication, he obtained partners in the under- taking, and Mr. Britton, the Messrs, Le-Keux, and Mr. Josiah Taylor the publisher, were associated with him in the speculation. Although interesting illustra- tions of Normandy had been previously given by Ducarel, Cotman, and Turner, yet those works were wanting in the qualities which made Pugin's books useful to the practising architect, and his proposed work was still a desideratum. It was in the month of August, 1825, that, accom- panied by some of his pupils, he set out for Normandy, and crossing from Brighton to Dieppe, proceeded to c 18 RECOLLECTIONS OF Rouen, where he commenced the execution of his design. In this ancient and interesting city he found abun- dant objects for his pencil. The churches of St. Ouen, St. Maclou, the Palais de Justice, the convent of St. Amand, the Hotel Bourgtheroulde and other buildings furnished excellent details, all of which were measured and rendered in a practical manner. A new and distinctive feature tended to make this work more popular than its predecessor, — the introduction of perspective views, which though not originally contemplated, have certainly imparted an additional interest to the book. In the course of his tour Pugin became acquainted with many of the most distinguished antiquaries and artists of Normandy, to whom he owed much for pointing out to him the buildings most in- teresting for the purpose of illustration. Two of these friendly assistants deserve a passing notice, being eminent in their peculiar walks. In M. Langlois, a member of the Society of Antiquaries of France, Pugin met with a remarkable artist. He was the type of a class of men who rank high in French estimation. Well versed in ancient literature, an able professor in science and art, this man of genius occupied with his family a second floor in an obscure street of Rouen. His apartments were meanly furnished, and all his arrangements characterized by economy ; but still in everything about him there was an evidence of taste and a cultivated mind. In his person M. Langlois was extremely plain, and his manners were unpretending ; but in social position, A. WELBY PUGIN. 19 notwithstanding his humble mode of living, he visited and ranked with people moving in the highest circles. In this country things are rather different ; it must be admitted that, in general, a man of talent unfortu- nately placed in M. Langlois' circumstances could not mix in society on equal terms. In France a man is estimated by his mind and accomplishments, and treated accordingly, without reference to the size of his dwelling, or the style of his establishment. The family of M. Langlois was devoted to the arts, and his eldest daughter had become a most accom- plished artist. She not only exercised her pencil well, but engraved beautifully, and her etchings maybe met with in some of the best illustrated French works upon architecture. To M. De Caumont, the learned antiquary, Pugin was also much indebted ; and a better guide could not have directed him in his researches. At the period of which we are now speaking the grand monastic ruins and desecrated churches in France were not regarded with much reverence either by their custodians or by tourists ; and to such an extent had the sin of sacrilegious pilfering reached, that by bribing those who had the charge of these precious remains, persons were allowed to detach and carry away any ornamental fragment they desired, and thus much of the interest attached to the buildings was lost. Pugin discountenanced this practice most strongly, and ad- monished his pupils to respect architectural remains, c 2 20 RECOLLECTIONS OF and to preserve rather than injure them by removing any of their ornaments. This injunction was so far followed that only in one instance was Pugin unwit- tingly made privy to a spoliation of this kind ; it occurred in the following manner. Within a few miles of Rouen, upon the banks of the Seine, are situated the beautiful ruins of the once famous Abbey of Jumieges. These Pugin determined to visit, having been especially invited by the mayor of the commune. The passage from Rouen to Jumieges, by the river Seine, had been made in a market-boat, which leaving Rouen at an early hour in the morning returned again late at night. On the arrival of this boat with Mr. Pugin, accompanied by four of his pupils, he was warmly greeted by the mayor, who politely accompanied him to the abbey, anxious to hear his remarks upon the peculiarities of its architecture. In the course of their examination the pupils found a beautifully carved capital in a position which offered such facilities for removal, that they determined, in spite of previous warnings, to attempt the enterprise ; but to accomplish the deed it was necessary to divert Mr. Pugin's attention elsewhere. This was done by one of the pupils who, being in the secret, remained at Pugin's elbow, constantly suggesting fresh points for discussion between him and the mayor, and adroitly keeping them away from the spot where a mason was engaged in breaking away the useless and unnecessary stone from the capital to be removed. The noise of the chipping often roused the suspicions of the mayor, A. WELBY PUG1N. 21 who was repeatedly on the point of rushing to the spot from whence the sound came, but whose attention was immediately drawn by some remark of the watchful pupil to an opposite portion of the ruins. At length the bulk of the stone being cut away, and the capital made portable, it was concealed under a camlet cloak and stealthily hurried clown to the banks of the river just as the Amazonian boatwoman blew a tremendous blast from the cow-horn, to summon the passengers on board, this being the signal for departure.* On Pugin's discovering the manoeuvre which had been practised in order to obtain this ornamental fragment, he was exceedingly indignant, and no future attempt of a similar kind was ever ventured upon by his pupils. A reference to Pugin's work on Normandy will show with what judgment he selected the portions of the most remarkable structures in Eouen for illus- * The despoiled condition of many of the magnificent monuments of our kings and others in Westminster Abbey may be traced to the wicked practices of antiquarian collectors in carrying off any ornament which could be detached from these beautiful tombs. However little the authorities may have valued and appreciated the works of art con- fided to their care, and been indifferent to their safe custody — yet nothing would justify the wholesale spoliation carried on by educated men under the pretext of forming museums, &c. Since the jealous care of Mr. Scott, who now has the charge of the restorations at the Abbey, much has been done to recover fragments of the royal tombs known to be in private hands ; and he has been enabled, in the case of Queen Philippa of Hainault's tomb, to replace an entire canopy, with its tabernacle work on the south side of the tomb, the place from which it must have been torn many years since. The fragment having found its way into the Museum of a well-known collector was purchased at the sale of his effects after his decease, and laudably restored. The iron-work and the gates of Henry V.'s chauntry have also been thus restored. 22 RECOLLECTIONS OF tration. Having completed his mission in that ancient city he next proceeded to Caen. Here also he found subjects of the highest interest for his work ; and after making the necessary sketches and measurements, he extended his journey to Bayeux, the extreme point of his tour. In the course of this excursion many re- markable people were met. In the steam-packet from Harfleur to Havre an acquaintance was formed with Mr. R. Lalor Sheil, the brilliant Irish orator, who was accompanied by several young barristers; and at Bayeux Pugin fell in with Major Todd, who took a deep interest in architecture, that officer himself being then engaged in producing a costly work on the anti- quities of India. Nor must we omit the hapless Beau Brummel, whose conversation enlivened the table d'hote at Calais. In some of his professional journeys Pugin was accompanied by his wife, and this lady having an only sister, Miss Selina Welby, whom she loved with a de- gree of affection hardly to be exceeded, it was her practice to correspond regularly with her, giving minute accounts of all she saw, and the various inci- dents which occurred in the course of their travels. These letters are still preserved, and are in the highest degree interesting. Her descriptions, observations, and reflections are admirably expressed, and show with how much ability she could exercise her pen. There are occasional references in these letters to her boy. Their first visit to France was in 1824 ; writing to Miss Welby, she says : — ' Sept. 24. My dear boy bears up tolerably ; he A. WELBY PUGIN. 23 dislikes Paris altogether, and rejoices to think we are to set off for Fontainebleau on Saturday next week, to walk in the Forest, take sketches, and eat the finest grapes in the world ; but of the latter / must be very cautious. I bless the kind Providence which gave me the means of obtaining them ; and in this manner it seems to me we should think of all our departed joys and pleasures, not so much passing our time in regret- ting their loss as in gratitude and thanksgiving, that we have been indulged in the course of our lives with the possession of them ; for seeing that ourselves, and all things around us, are intended to be continually changing, this mode of reasoning can alone produce that sincere resignation which is so much our duty, and is, in fact, that peace surpassing all understand- ing. It is thus I have reasoned with my sister Lafitte, who, from shutting herself up to uninterrupted sorrow and regret, began to think there were no pleasures left for her ; but I got her, the other day, to go with us to dine in the country, and she seemed really to enjoy it, and the next morning, when I called to see how she was, I found her, both in health and spirits, another creature ! To-morrow, if please God I am well enough, I take her to see my niece and my new little great nephew.' Of Pugin's other works — the 6 Edifices of London,' 2 vols., the 1 Examples of Gothic Architecture,' 4 Orna- mental Timber Gables, ' &c. — it is sufficient to say that they are all useful in their degree ; more especially the 4 Examples,' as the selection there given is chiefly from 21 RECOLLECTIONS OF secular buildings. While engaged in collecting ma terials for these volumes, Kenilworth Castle, amongst other buildings, was inspected. These far-famed ruins were visited daily during the summer by large parties of tourists. Some, as usual, merely gazed at the pic- turesque features of the buildings and quickly de- parted ; but occasionally persons would be found to take deeper interest in the architectural details. It was in the month of September 1830, while Pugin's pupils were occupied in sketching parts of the Great Banquetting Hall, that two strangers addressed one of them and offered assistance in taking dimensions of the hall. They appeared to be father and son ; the remarks of the elder gentleman were acute and showed much intelligence. He particularly lamented the rank growth of the ivy, and pointing to the huge mantel of the fireplace in the great hall, being a stone of enor- mous size, 8 ft. 6 in. long by 2 ft. deep, remarked that it was actually thrown out of its position by a large stem of ivy which having insinuated itself between the joints of the masonry, caused great disturbance to the whole structure of the chimney breast. Conversing freely upon art with Pugin, among other inquiries he asked if he had ever seen the original drawings of the Elgin marbles deposited in the British Museum. On his replying in the negative — ' Then on your next visit to the Museum,' said he, ' present this card and request to see them.' Upon looking at it Pugin was not a little surprised and gratified to find that the inquiring stranger was no other than the Earl of Elgin himself, A. WELBY PUGIN. 25 accompanied by his son Lord Bruce, who having suc- ceeded to the earldom has been recently distinguished by his able diplomacy in China. The great service which Pugin' s labours have ren- dered to architects is now admitted beyond dispute ; indeed till his time the only practical attempts in Gothic architecture, though unfortunately made on a large scale, were imitations of conventual or cas- tellated buildings, exhibiting every kind of incongruity perpetrated in extensive masses of cement or terra cotta. Although therefore Augustus Welby Pugin, the son, by the successful adaptation of Gothic architecture to modern uses, has shown how applicable the genius of mediaeval architecture is to all ages, and their various requirements, still, his father merits the tribute of being considered the great pioneer in this branch of art ; for without the aid afforded by his books it is doubtful whether this style of architecture would have ever obtained the hold which it now has upon the public taste. The professional career of Augustus Welby Pugin is so interesting that it may seem unnecessary to dwell further upon the less striking events of his parents' life, but to the characteristic talents of both his parents may be traced some of the peculiarities observable in the genius of their son. 2G RECOLLECTIONS OF CHAPTER III. Early Instruction — Domestic regulations in Pugin's establishment — Mrs. Pugin's peculiarities — Pugin's intimacy with Mathews, the Comedian — Studies the theory of Mediaeval Architecture — Napoleon as First Consul — Isabey, David, and Lafitte, the artists — Mr. Pugin's antecedents. Impressions upon the mind at a tender age through the fond teaching of a beloved parent are easily made ; but however implicitly this guidance may be followed in youth, as manhood approaches and the mind acquires vigour any extreme bias of early teach- ing is detected, and results too frequently in a revul- sion of feeling and causes opposition to opinions formed in early life. The effects of the system under which Welby Pugin received his boyish inspirations were so observable in after life that some more particular ac- count must now be given of his mother and the do- mestic rule. It has been already stated that the elder Pugin, when preparing his published works, received articled pupils for instruction in the elements of their profession. Some were inmates of his house, and a dis- cipline was enforced in the social system of the establish- ment which owed its origin to Mrs. Pugin. It was severe arid restrictive in the extreme, unrelieved by any of those relaxations essential to the healthy education of A. WELBY PUGIK 27 youth, and the smallest want of punctuality or in- fringement of domestic rules excited the marked dis- pleasure of the lady. Mrs. Pugin usually retired to rest at nine o'clock, and rose in the morning at four ; she therefore thought it salutary that the pupils should commence their studies at six o'clock in winter as well as in summer ; indeed, from the moment the mistress of the house awoke no one was ever permitted to get any rest. First came the loud ringing of the bell to rouse the maids, then in quick succession the bell to summon the pupils from their beds, and the final peal requiring their presence in the office by six o'clock. A pitiable sight indeed it was to see the shiver- ing youths reluctantly creeping down in the midst of winter to waste their time by a sleepy attempt to work before breakfast. At half-past eight they were sum- moned to breakfast, and on entering the room Madame was seen already seated at the head of the table : on approaching it each youth made a profound bow, the neglect of which would quickly have been visited with reproof. A short prayer was then said, and breakfast despatched in constrained silence, after which each re- tired as he entered, making the same obeisance to the head of the table. During dinner the like silent system was enforced, similar obsequious respect paid, and then retiring, the pupils continued to work incessantly at the desk till eight o'clock. The only leisure afforded them was from that hour till ten, when they retired to rest. Nothing could exceed the stern manner in which this routine was carried out ; and excellent as was the 28 RECOLLECTIONS OF course of studies pursued in the office, the cold, cheer- less, and unvarying round of duty, though enlivened by the cheerful manner and kind attention of the elder Pugin, was wretched and discouraging. It was hardly to be expected that amongst a number of young men of various temperaments there should not be some who either resented or disregarded these do- mestic rules, and violent were the disputes which ensued when the transgressions of some unhappy youth brought upon him Mrs. Pugin's wrath in no measured terms. On such occasions the good offices of her husband were frequently exerted to calm the raging storm and mediate between the belligerent parties. Nevertheless, in spite of these drawbacks, Pugin's office was in great repute and always filled with pupils. It is remarkable, however, that of the many youths who were articled to him very few followed the profession of architects in after life. Some died, others changed their pursuits or succeed- ed to independent property ; but to use one of Pugin's quaint expressions, none 6 sunk into filth or perished on the scaffold^ a prediction which he was wont to make when much irritated by idleness or want of skill in any of his pupils.* It may cause some surprise to know that among Pugin's earliest pupils was Charles Mathews, the distinguished comedian, who, after com- * Of those still living, who were either articled to the elder Pugin, or acquired their knowledge of art in his office may be mentioned Lake Price and Joseph Nash, distinguished members of the old Water Colour Society ; Grantham, the Civil Engineer ; G. B. Moore ; James Penne- thornc, the architect to the Board of Works ; Talbot Bury, B. Ferrey, F. T. Dolman, architects; J. D. Egville, J. Amos, F. Whitaker, T. Cramer, W. Shoubridge, and many others. A. WELBY PUGIN. 29 pleting his articles with Pugin, proceeded to Italy for the further prosecution of his studies. There he resided for some years, and on his return Mathews succeeded in obtaining from the Middlesex magistrates the appoint- ment to a district survey orship under the Metropolitan Buildings Act, a post which he filled even after he had made his appearance on the stage. He was soon, how- ever, relieved from the duties of his office, the magistrates declining to recognize the district surveyor and acting comedian in the same person. Mathews's father and Pugin were intimate friends, and the Jatter was a frequent guest at old Mathews's table when he lived at High gate, where he surrounded himself by men of eminence in literature and art. Pugin was in the habit of relating many amusing stories of this celebrated comedian, and invariably asserted that it was from him- self Mathews acquired the humorous facility of persona- tion and mimicry for which he became so renowned through his performances known as 'Mathews at Home.' Their first acquaintance took place in "Wales. Mathews, while returning from a professional engage- ment in Ireland in 1796, was nearly wrecked on the coast of Wales, and while at Carmarthen fell in with Nash and Pugin, whose love of theatrical representa- tions has been already mentioned. These gentlemen acted in the comedy of 4 The School for Scandal,' which was performed at the Carmarthen theatre, and the playbill is now extant in which the part of Sir Peter Teazle is personated by Mr. Nash. It may be gathered from what has been already stated 30 RECOLLECTIONS OF that the elder Pugin's labours were devoted more to the theory of architecture than to its practical application. A few country villas and the Diorama in the Eegent's Park were the only buildings actually erected under his superintendence, his time being chiefly occupied in the direction of useful publications. Enough has been said to show the character of his office : other incidents relating to him will appear in connection with the account of his son's career. In person he was re- markably good-looking, and in manner displayed over- whelming politeness. His foreign shrug and strong accent often astonished the country people with whom he was brought in contact. Many of his favourite sayings, though quaint, were full of meaning, and the drollest scenes might be described if it were possible to impart to them his humorous accent. When a young man in France he appears to have associated with distinguished artists ; he knew David the historical painter intimately, and probably belonged to the same political club. Isabey, the favourite miniature painter to Napoleon the First, was another of his companions. This man boasted of his familiar acquaintance with the Emperor when First Consul. That he was at all events a very presuming person may be inferred from the following practical joke told by Pugin. Napoleon, when First Consul, resided at Malmaison, delighting in the retirement which it afforded him in his mo- ments of leisure from state affairs. There it was his custom to take solitary walks in the avenues, wrapt in contemplation, with his arms folded across his breast. A. WELBY PUG1N. 31 Isabey one clay bragging of his great intimacy with Napoleon, boas tingly laid a wager that he would (as boys do in playing at leapfrog) follow the First Consul in his solitary promenade, run behind him and jump over his head. The challenge being accepted, and the oppor- tunity watched, the artist attempted his practical joke, which in fact he accomplished, but at a cost he little expected. Isabey running and planting his hands on the First Consul's shoulder sprung clean over his head, and being recognized, and instantly chased, would have paid dearly for his frolic had Napoleon caught him. Fortunately the artist outran the Consul, who, how- ever, resented the gross liberty by ever afterwards ex- cluding Isabey from his presence. Another artist from whom the elder Pugin derived much instruction was his brother-in-law, Monsieur Lafitte, a member of the Legion of Honour, and one of the household of the Emperor Napoleon I. This gentleman was most skilful in the composition of historical subjects for sculpture, and designed among other works the panel decorations of the 'Arc de Triomphe ' in the Place de Carrousel, representing the victorious career of the Emperor and the various striking incidents in his life. 32 RECOLLECTIONS OF CHAPTER IV. Birth of Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin — His education — Amuse- ments in his father's office — Sketches and measures Rochester Castle — Searches the Well— Narrow Escapes — Goes to Oxfordshire, Norfolk, &c. — Travels in France — Attends Irving's Chapel in Cross Street, Hatton Garden — Mrs. Pugin's Literary Powers — Defence of Lord Melville — Her Adventures in Lincoln Cathedral. Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin was born 1st of March 1812, at Store Street, Bedford Square, where his father then resided. He was of somewhat delicate health as an infant, and needed the anxious care which was bestowed on him by his mother. At an early age, after receiving from her some preliminary instruction at home, he was entered as a day boy at Christ's Hospital, Newgate Street, better known as the Blue Coat School. The selection of this place for his education was probably made from its then being the nearest public school to which he could easily go and return daily without excessive fatigue, and thus be kept under parental care. The Eev. Dr. Trollope was then head master of the school. Augustus soon began to show that aptitude for ac- quiring knowledge which was so strikingly displayed in after life. It was remarked of him by one of the masters that whether in Greek, Latin, mathematics, A. WELBY PUGIN. 33 or any other branch of education, he would learn in twenty-four hours what it took other boys many weeks to acquire. Thus, as a mere child, he was quick in all that he attempted, and fluent in speech, ex- pressing his opinions in the most dogmatic manner with volubility and vehemence. It is not surprising, therefore, that in after years he should have offended at times by the roughness of his manner ; indeed such rudeness would not have been tolerated in a man of less genius. Barely is any one endowed by nature with such abilities, unaccompanied by some drawback ; and Pugin, who as a child, in addition to his other nobler qualities, was gentle and refined, gradually permitted a habit of slovenliness in person to grow upon him, amounting at last to eccentricity. It was observed that w 7 hile at school he mixed very little with other children of his own age, always preferring the company of those who were his seniors. After completing the ordinary course of education at Christ's Hospital, he did not proceed to either of the Universi- ties, but shortly afterwards entered his father's office. He had an almost intuitive talent for drawing, and as soon as he could handle a pencil, commenced sketching. At first his inclination was towards cari- cature, and many were the incidents occurring in the office to give him the opportunity of indulging in this fancy. Being quick and observant he remarked that amongst his father's pupils were some w 7 ho excelled in their artistic efforts, wdiile others were sluggish and unsuccessful. The former were always naturally in D 34 RECOLLECTIONS OF favour, and his father never failed to express ap- proval or displeasure in a very decided and graphic manner to each youth according to his merits. Au- gustus (for that was the Christian name by which he preferred to be called) created great amusement by illustrating the ups and downs of the pupils on a wheel of fortune. Every week the rotatory machine was sketched with great spirit, each pupil being repre- sented standing upon a projecting bracket attached to the wheel. The favourite was always at the top, caper- ing and laughing with pencil in hand, while the one least fortunate was seen hurled to the ground by the revolu- tion of the wheel. Others were planted on the ascent or descent, according to the degree of favour in which they stood with their master, their doleful or joyous faces being cleverly expressed by a few spirited touches. Great amusement was produced by this humorous device ; and the publication of a new wheel of fortune every week was eagerly looked for by his fellow pupils. Though this was a favourite amusement with him he was not less successful by the droll manner in which he illustrated any passing event wherein he could find sub- ject for fun. Soon, however, his love for architecture showed itself in a decided manner. After passing through the usual elementary courses, and making himself master of perspective, he delighted in taking sketches from Nature, and was scarcely ever seen without a pencil in his hand ; more particularly he re- joiced in all opportunities of drawing in Westminster Abbey. Notwithstanding his great power of delinea- A. WELBY PUGIN. 35 tion he rendered but little assistance to his father in the prosecution of his architectural works, as the labour of drawing out the details of building in a strictly geo- metrical manner from given measurements little suited his active habits or mental energy. Sedentary occu- pations were distasteful to him, and his imagination sought pursuits more congenial to its natural instincts. As in literature, tales of chivalry and romance de- lighted him, so in art, the idea of ancient castles and feudal mansions gave him pleasure, and this led him, early in the year 1826, to turn his attention very closely to the study of castellated buildings. Prior to this, however, it should be stated that he went with his parents and some of the pupils to Paris, the elder Pugin being engaged in obtaining sketches for a work upon that city. He was soon very active with his pencil, full of fun, and a great favourite with his father's pupils. Mrs. Pugin, writing from Paris to her sister, observes : — • 'If he understood how to dress himself I should consider him an universal genius ; and a most orderly good creature, if he had not had the skin of his nose twice torn off by a battle of pillows in the suite of rooms they have above, quite out of my observation ; however, the second time it happened, I brought him clown to a room near me. He does not dislike a little play, but he works infinitely more than he plays, while the rest play infinitely more than they work. His father calls this work of Paris " Augustus's work," and well he may, for he has done more than three parts d 2 36 RECOLLECTIONS OF of it, and made sketches and coloured them for the first time from Nature, and written some very good descrip- tions. Nevertheless the fellow cannot dress himself. When he heard that you left Beverley without seeing the churches, he declared, had he been with you, you would have found him the most restive animal you ever posted with 5 nor whip, nor spurs, nor anything else would have got him on before seeing those churches.' The stately Tower of London was very familiar to Welby Pugin, but the other great work of Gundulph, the Castle of Rochester, was little known and had been most inadequately illustrated. He therefore deter- mined that this castle should be the first subject of a strict examination; having, upon application to the Earl of Jersey, the proprietor of the estate on which the Castle stands, obtained full permission to excavate the ground and make all needful investigations. It was in the month of July, 1826, that he set out for Rochester, accompanied by the writer of these pages, then an articled pupil with his father. On reaching the precincts of the Castle, its commanding situation and grandeur of design at once riveted his attention. He therefore sta} r ed at Rochester some days, taking sketches of every part of the Castle, and measuring carefully its several apartments; he then prepared accurate drawings, showing it in a state of complete restoration. At that time little was known concerning the foundations of these enormous structures ; Pugin there- A. WELBY PUGIN. 37 fore determined to make excavations, and by forming huge trenches at the base of the walls, he ascertained the mode of their construction, which proved to be of a solidity and depth fully in keeping with the superincum- bent masonry. There are always amusing traditions connected with these old buildings, and amongst others belonging to this Castle it was supposed that treasures or plate might in emergency have been thrown down the well constructed in the inner wall of the Keep. The bare reference to this as a probability only was sufficient, and Pugin at once resolved to make a careful search. He immediately obtained the necessary appa- ratus, and having hired men to descend the well, fearlessly placed himself in the bucket to be lowered by the windlass, so that he might direct the operations at the bottom. It had been previously ascertained that the well was considerably choked up by quantities of rubbish ; and in the removal of this accumulation very little was discovered, his zeal being only rewarded by the acquisition of a few pieces of pottery and glass of Queen Elizabeth's period. Doubtless if any treasures were secreted there in troublous times, they had long since been found and appropriated. It is very likely that this well might have been the depository of trea- sures when the Castle was closely besieged, as it com- municated with every floor of the building, from the summit to its base, and the water in it being under the tidal influence of the river Medway, would conceal for a considerable time the objects remaining at the bottom. 38 RECOLLECTIONS OF It was only through the most providential escapes that Pugin' s career was not cut short while he was occupied in these examinations. One day he had de- scended the deep trench before alluded to as having been sunk to ascertain the materials of which the foundations were composed; remaining there a few minutes, he again ascended the ladder, and had scarcely reached the solid ground when the planks and struts by which the sides of the trench were secured snapped with a sharp crash, and masses of heavy earth filled the trench. Had this happened a few moments sooner Pugin must have been buried alive. At another time, while straining to take a measurement by cling- ing to a large beam resting on the set-off to a wall, the timber, which was insufficiently fastened, slipped away, throwing him suddenly backwards from some height. Fortunately the beam on striking the ground on its rebound, missed his head, or the result would have been fatal. Pugin intended that the series of careful drawings which he took of this Castle should form the com- mencement of a publication to be exclusively devoted to the illustration of castles; but other occupations interfered, and he never realized the scheme. Al- though his disappointment was considerable at the small extent of discoveries made in the well, yet the vessels and remains of pottery formed the beginning of his collection which gradually increased, and eventually became a museum comprising a considerable number of interesting objects of antiquity. Like other collectors, A. WELBY PUGIN. 39 he was not over-scrupulous as to the means by which he became possessed of these relics, and the oppor- tunities afforded him in the professional excursions which he made were numerous. During the year 1827 he again accompanied his father on a professional tour in France, and was of great assistance to him, for he sketched well aud could speak French fluently. He seems even at this time to have overworked himself, as we find Mrs. Pugin writ- ing to her sister thus : ' My poor Augustus has latterly been very unwell, and on Thursday last alarmed us much; he went before breakfast to draw in Notre Dame, when suddenly (as he describes his sensation) the whole building on every side seemed breaking and tumbling to pieces, and the pavement so agitated he could not stand ; fortunately Mr. Nash was drawing with him, and got him into a coach and brought him home pale as death.' Two other passages occur in the same letter which, though referring to family affairs, are remarkable, and ought to be mentioned. Speaking of the customs in France she observes : 6 No sooner is a child born here of good family than they immediately are thinking of a proper alliance. Mad e Lafitte told her brother and me, she had mentioned to her daughter that a marriage between Clara and Augustus would be a very proper union, and hinted she would have a very good fortune ; whether this was said as a matter of politeness, or more seriously, it is impossible to say, for Mad e Lafitte is very polite. I laughed with my son about it, when 40 RECOLLECTIONS OF he was quite indignant; " What! many a Catholic? that surely tvill never happen'' But who can read the book of fate, fast closed, except the page that time doth hourly turn ?' Who indeed could have foreseen that the boy, so indignantly repudiating the idea of marrying a Catholic, should in after years not only form such an alliance, but become one of the stoutest champions of the Roman Catholic Church. Alluding elsewhere to the Pugin arms, she remarks : ' You may remember that the family arms which Mr. Pugin's mother burnt in the Revolution, in terror of their being discovered, because of their being of the noblesse of Switzerland, are again restored in the family ; they are very handsome in themselves, and very handsomely emblazoned, framed, and glazed. In the account pasted at the back of the frame (which account is given by the Herald's Office), they are said to have been assumed in the fourteenth century. Augustus is delighted with them, but cannot help at the same time observing that Roger de Welby died fighting at the battle of Hastings, which clearly proves the family Saxon, and carries it up at once to William the Conqueror.' It is not surprising that his quick eye and excellent judgment should lead Welby to admire the wondrous buildings of Normandy ; and the surpassing grandeur of many of the continental churches seems to have thrown him quite into raptures. He had then no leaning whatever towards the Roman Catholic creed, and was loud in his denunciations of the men who, A. WELBY PUGIN. 41 wanting in appreciation of the exquisite beauty of mediaeval art, could mutilate their buildings by inter- polations of incongruous character, fill their churches with altars and decorations of debased Italian design, and permit the very precincts of their sacred buildings to be defiled. Nor was he less severe in his criticisms upon the vestments and all modern ecclesiastical ornaments connected with their ritual. There were causes, however, in operation even now, at home, which, though long in taking effect, stealthily made their impressions upon his mind, and to which in some degree may be traced his after change in religious faith. His mother, who might be designated a woman of extraordinary intellect, though educated and brought up in warm attachment to the Church of England, was not always satisfied with the abilities of the clergy in the parish where she resided, and frequently wandered to neighbouring churches to hear strange preachers. A moderately eloquent sermon would not satisfy her : she needed strong stimu- lants. In justice it must be stated that she was pos- sessed of considerable literary accomplishments, and frequently contributed articles to the leading pe- riodicals. She took a lively interest in the- political questions of the day, and as a partisan was active and even useful. During the trial of Lord Viscount Melville — who was impeached by the House of Commons in 1805 for alleged malversation in his office of Treasurer of the Navy, and, after a trial by his peers in Westminster 42 RECOLLECTIONS OF Hall, adjudged not guilty — a pamphlet appeared which, showing no inconsiderable power of advocacy, and written in a very vigorous style, was attributed to Mrs. Pugin. It was entitled 6 An Address to the Public, containing a Eeview of the Charges exhibited against Lord Viscount Melville, which led to the Re- solutions of the House of Commons, on the 8th of April, 1805.' The opening paragraph will give some notion of Mrs. Pugin's power of language, and is worthy of insertion here : — 4 It is a little singular that in the representations of the drama our sympathy is always called forth in favour of suffering rank, and we feel a desire to soften the misery of afflicted greatness. But in real life we appear to act on the reverse of this policy, and are for the most part inclined to accelerate the fall of human power, and to exult in the condition of a man degraded from high state and put down from the seat of authority. The obscure and feeble pri- soner asks our compassion and receives it ; he solicits our aid to testify his innocence, and we lend our prompt exertion to his cause. But when crime is imputed to a man high in power we withdraw our- selves, with something like a feeling of congratulation, to a distance, that we may behold him grappling with the foe ; and however undeserved the attacks, we please ourselves with thinking that at least the pride of his stature will be humbled, and the ermine of his fame be spotted in the wrath and bitterness of the encounter.' A. WELBY PUGIN. 43 Again, in the middle of her argument, the writer apostrophises Justice in the following strain : — ' Eternal Justice ! whose sway is on earth — whose source is in heaven — whose altar asks no sacrifice — whose shrine demands no victim — whose dominion ruled before the world was— whose empire will re- main when worlds shall be no more — let not thy sceptre depart from our land ; give us to regard every individual, whether highest in power or lowest in rank, as a member of that commonwealth which links the interests of all : then shall the British Constitu- tion—the reward of the blood of our martyred fathers — be the blessed inheritance of our children. Let not the zeal of party or of prejudice withdraw us from thy worship, but, in the seat of judgment, let us keep our eye on Him who ruleth over all, and who gave thy laws for our guidance, and for our government here and hereafter.' Just about this period Edward Irving, subsequently the well-known founder of the modern Holy Catholic Apostolic Church, was the popular pulpit orator of the day. People rushed to his meeting-house as to a theatre ; royal dukes, members of both Houses of Parliament thronged the doors of the miserably ugly building in Cross Street, Hatton Garden, where he preached, and hundreds were weekly turned away from want of room. It was to this place Mrs. Pugin resorted, always accompanied by her son, and perhaps by one of the resident pupils. The Sunday morning breakfast was hurriedly despatched that she might be 44 RECOLLECTIONS OF early at the door to gain admission. Wet or dry, no matter what might be the state of the weather, the ex- pedition to Hatton Garden was never abandoned. Such cold and tedious services as those belonging to the Presbyterian Scotch Church were by no means suited to young Welby's taste, and the long-spun orations of the preacher, though able and eloquent, failed to keep his attention awake. The Sunday, therefore, instead of being a day to which he looked forward with pleasure, became to him a day of ennui, for his mother never went to this place of worship un- accompanied by her son, so that he had no escape from attending a service wholly uncongenial to his feelings. Often on a fine morning, when he would have hastened with delight to Westminster Abbey, his desire was overruled by his mother, who compelled him to accompany her to Hatton Garden. It was rather remarkable that Mrs. Pugin should not have better understood her son's turn of mind and thus spared him this weekly infliction. No one ought to have known him better ; she witnessed his habitual enthusiasm in other matters ; she even seconded him in the exciting projects in which he embarked, and fed his lively imagination by the relation of mar- vellous hair-breadth escapes and far-fetched tales. It never could have been expected that such a youth would submit to be pent up for hours together without any relief, in a pew like a cattle-pen when so magni- ficent a building as Westminster Abbey, with its beautiful and solemn services, was within reach. A. WELBY 1'UGIN. 45 However, such was the effect of his mother's want of judgment that it helped forward the change in his religious views which subsequently took place. Pugin always expressed his unmitigated disgust at the cold and sterile forms of the Scotch Church ; and the mo- ment he broke loose from the trammels imposed upon him by his mother, he rushed into the arms of a Church which pompous by its ceremonies was attractive to his imaginative mind. Allusion has been made to the exciting stories which Mrs. Pugin was in the habit of relating, and there was one well calculated to create timidity in the minds of her son and the pupils, who were often left by themselves, while sketching and measuring in churches. It was as follows : — When staying with a friend at Lincoln whose house adjoined the cathedral, she frequently visited a prebendary who lived in the Close. The nearest way between their houses was easily effected, when the cathedral was open, by passing through the church and cloisters. The verger also, by way of accommodation, when he knew that it was required, left the cathedral doors unlocked, so that the preben- dary and his friends might use this short road of an evening, instead of making a long detour outside the precincts. It happened one summer evening that Mrs. Pugin had been dining at the house of her clerical friend, and on parting at night declined an escort, and took her usual path through the cathedral. Entering the door, she closed it and passed to the opposite portal, which to her surprise was locked. The door by 46 RECOLLECTIONS OF which she entered being fitted with a spring lock, she suddenly found herself a prisoner in the cathedral. She made every effort to arouse attention by shouting through the keyhole and shaking the door, but without effect, for at that late hour everybody had gone to rest. It was a fine moonlight night ; thus she was not left in darkness, and concluding that her absence from home would soon cause a search to be made and save her from a cold night's lodging in the cathedral, she easily composed herself, and seated upon a bench, was contemplating the beautiful effects of the light and shade upon the pillars of the nave, when suddenly there appeared through the silvery light the figure of a man looking down upon her from one of the open- ings of the triforium, which as suddenly disappeared. For the moment she was willing to believe that the apparition was only a phantom created by her ima- gination, and having a large amount of courage and self-possession, thought nothing more of it. A few minutes afterwards, however, she again saw the appear- ance of a man looking over the gallery front, nodding his head and beckoning to her with his hand, who then again vanished. Her alarm was now really excited, for it was difficult to suppose that this nocturnal visitor could be in the cathedral for any good purpose. Im- pelled by fear, she moved from her position and entered the choir, seating herself in one of the stalls. Every minute now seemed hours to her, and, taking a prayer- book, she sought by the aid of the moonlight to read ; but fancying she heard the unlocking of the outer A. WELBY rUGIN. 47 door, looked up, when to her horror she saw, staring in the opposite gallery front just above the book-board, a grizzly head, with the face directed towards her nodding and grinning most fearfully. Her courage now forsook her, but happily at this moment the cathedral door was really heard to open, and rushing away she was met by her friend and a servant. Un- easy at her not coming home, they had repaired to the Close, and the clergyman at once concluded that by some accident she might be locked up in the cathedral. The cause of her alarm was soon explained. A poor idiotic youth who had escaped from the care of his friends, was, like persons thus afflicted, fond of prowling about and prying into odd places. The cathedral was his favourite haunt, and finding the door unlocked he entered and amused himself by run- ning from place to place ; it was his erratic movements and awful grimaces which had well nigh bereft Mrs. Pugin of her senses. 48 RECOLLECTIONS OF * CHAPTER V. Effect of Calvinistic teaching— Brunei and the first public Cemetery — Pugin's connection with Public Improvements — Practice of Pugin's Office — Introduction at the British Museum to Messrs. Rundell and Bridge — Appointed to design the Furniture for Windsor Castle- Sir J. Wyattville and the King. The elder Pugin bad never been very strict in his reli- gious observances; occasionally he attended the services of the English Church, which he preferred to those of any other communion. The son was therefore left to the care of his mother, through whom all his religious impressions were obtained. That the strictness and character of this early training influenced his after life there can be no doubt, for he was often heard to inveigh against the Calvinistic tone of his early reli- gious education. . The period had now arrived when from his acquire- ments Augustus could become useful to his father in his professional pursuits. It was in the year 1827 that the scheme for establish- ing a public cemetery beyond the suburbs of London, in place of the parish churchyards, was first agitated. One of the chief promoters of this project was the late Sir Isambard, then Mr. Brunei. This gentleman united with his friend and fellow-countryman Pugin A. WELBY PUGIN. 49 in preparing plans for laying out the ground, and in designing the several mortuary chapels and gateways for the cemetery ; and it was mainly through their joint instrumentality that a company was formed, amongst whom were Lord Ingestre, the late Sir J. Dean Paul, and W. Carden, Esq., for the purpose of applying to Parliament for an Act authorizing the establishment of a public cemetery. It is somewhat remarkable that we should be in- debted to a Frenchman for first calling attention to this subject ; and no one but a man of such vigorous mind and strong determination as Brunei would have persevered till he overcame the natural repugnance to separating the burial places of English Churchmen from the sacred precincts in which they and their forefathers had worshipped for many generations. The public, therefore, were by no means eager to avail themselves of this new scheme, and as a com- mercial speculation it held out no tempting prospect. The project in consequence languished, and could not then be realized ; but a few years later a Company was formed, under the title of the ' General Cemetery Company,' which entirely succeeded, and resulted in the large and well-regulated public cemetery at Kensal Green. From that time, as is well known, numerous other cemeteries have been established in the neigh- bourhood of London and in the provinces. The subject is here mentioned because it was in the prepara- tion of the preliminary drawings for this cemetery that Augustus began to make himself useful ; though it E 50 RECOLLECTIONS OF may be added that it would have been well if the original plan by Brunei and Pugin had been carried into effect, as it was far more consistent with the ideas of Christian sepulture than the heterogeneous collection of monuments, crowded together at Kensal Green. Another great project, which unfortunately was never carried into execution, also occupied much of the senior Pugin s attention. Great efforts were made by Sir Frederick Trench to effectuate plans for embank- ing the Middlesex side of the Thames, and form ex- tensive quays with handsome ranges of buildings. Many designs for this purpose were prepared, under the suggestion of Sir F. Trench, by Mr. Pugin in 1824. At a later period he was likewise engaged in the design for terraces and a bridge of communication between Carlton Terrace Gardens, so as to admit of a drive into St. James's Park in a straight line with Kegent Street. This project also fell to the ground. But a still more important scheme than either of these was proposed by the late Samuel Eogers, Esq. and Pugin, having for its object the formation of an addi- tional park on the Bishop of London's estate, to unite Hyde Park and the Regent's Park, thus to have all the London parks together. This project was of course agitated when nothing but green fields were to be seen west of Tyburn Gate, where now countless houses are built. The superior knowledge of Gothic architecture which the elder Pugin was known to possess, led many architects whose acquaintance with mediaeval art was A. WELBY PUGIN. 51 superficial, to apply to him for aid. This he was always ready to afford, and through the help of his son and his pupils he assisted others in carrying out their works. Many buildings might in strictness claim him as their author instead of the architect to whom they are publicly ascribed. It is to be feared that the system of working by other people's hands and wits is not now wholly aban- doned ; but there is a meanness in the practice which cannot be too much reprobated, and he is unworthy the name of a conscientious architect who condescends to such surreptitious proceedings. This remark does not apply to those who, in the conception and execu- tion of large works, find it necessary to have their ideas carried out by secondary agency, subordinate to their own direction, but to the system of those who are in the habit of throwing upon others the labour and study of design, and then unworthily claim the merit of the performance. His first employment, in- dependent of his father, seems to have been given to young Pugin by the celebrated goldsmiths, Messrs. Eundell and Bridge. One of their firm, while engaged in an examination of some ancient designs for plate in the Print Room of the British Museum, chanced to notice that he was employed in copying the prints of Albert Durer and Israel Silvester. Struck by his skill in drawing the goldsmith accosted him, and soon found that he possessed just the genius his firm was seeking. His complete knowledge of mediaeval art fitted him admirably for designing plate in the old e 2 52 RECOLLECTIONS OE maimer ; his services were immediately secured, and much beautiful plate was executed by them from Pugin's designs. This introduction very soon led to another commission of a still more important character. The great works which had been for some years in progress at Windsor Castle, under the professional direction of Sir Jeffrey Wyattville, were now drawing to a close, and the important question of fitting the apartments with furniture of suitable design was under consideration. The King took a lively interest in this matter, and resolved that those portions of the interior which retained a mediaeval character should be fur- nished with objects designed in a corresponding style. There was at that time a French upholsterer, Mr. Morel, whom the King had in earlier days patronized by employment at Carlton House ; and it was to this gentleman that His Majesty entrusted the great un- dertaking of suitably furnishing the new apartments, galleries, and corridors of Windsor Castle. In ancient times this task would have been confided to the architect of the Castle, and it would not have been thought beneath his dignity to design and adapt any detail which might conduce to the artistic effect of the building. This most excellent rule appears to have fallen into desuetude, and was not acted on in the present instance. Sir Jeffrey Wyattville had more than sufficient occupation, and did not desire the additional labour which the management of this branch of business would have entailed upon him. According to the usual routine, the King's orders passed through A. WELBY PUGIN. 53 the Lord Chamberlain's office direct to Messrs. Morel and Seddon. Mr. Morel, feeling the great responsi- bility of the task thrown upon the firm, applied to the elder Pugin to aid them in the execution of their commission. This was just the opportunity calculated to draw forth the abilities of his son, to whom his father immediately transferred the business. All at- tempts hitherto made to design furniture in the medi- aeval style had been feeble and unsuccessful ; here was then a good chance for showing what really could be done when the task was confided to proper hands, and where the want of money formed no bar to the pro- duction of the best thing which art workmen could produce. Without asserting that this work, when completed, was wholly successful, it may fairly be said, that the furniture was remarkable for great variety of form and detail, producing an expression of fitness not to be found in any other modern attempts ; and it may be reasonably doubted whether any person but Pugin could have designed such a multitude of objects with equally happy results. Among other schemes suggested for enhancing the grandeur of the Castle, the King at one time proposed that the splendid great roof of the Banqueting Hall, forming part of the remains of Eltham Palace built by Edward the Fourth, should be removed from thence to Windsor Castle ; and Sir J. Wyattville made a care- ful examination of the ancient structure in October, 1827, to ascertain if its condition was sufficiently sound 54 RECOLLECTIONS OF to admit of its being transferred as a roof to St. George's Hall. It was, however, found to be in so decayed a state as to render this proceeding undesi- rable. Previous to the time of this examination the building, which had been, and still is, used as a barn or lumber-room, had been sadly neglected, but it is now carefully protected from the effects of weather. Upon archaeological grounds it may be considered fortunate that circumstances prevented the removal of this beau- tiful timber roof from its legitimate position.* It would have been very advantageous if the great works at Windsor Castle had been deferred till the practice of Gothic architecture was better understood. Still it must be conceded, in justice to Sir Jeffrey Wyattville, that, whatever may be the defects in detail, he has succeeded in raising a most effective and picturesque group of buildings ; and though we may blush for our other palaces, England can justly boast of Windsor Castle as a residence fit for the sovereign of a mighty empire. The personal interest which George the Fourth took in the progress of the additions to the Castle is well known, and his constant interference was a matter of much annoyance to the architect. Wyattville was not by habit a courtier, or disposed to give up his own well-grounded opinions to meet at all times the King's * The custom of stripping one palace to furnish and adorn another ought to be especially deprecated, as it deprives places of their well- acquired ancient associations, and produces much confusion in record- ing their histories. Hampton Court has already suffered much by these means. A. WELBY PUGIN. 55 fancies ; lie was plain and honest in his remarks, but the independence with which he insisted upon his own views never offended the King. When Sir Jeffrey was about to begin the erection of the corridor or long gallery on the south and east sides of the court of the upper ward, about 500 feet in length, in order to form a handsome feature in the interior, as well as a commodious access to all the private apartments on the principal story, he proposed that it should be 15 feet wide, but the King would not listen to its being made more than 10 feet for fear of spoiling the effect of the court. As soon as the parapet was finished the King came to see it, and was so surprised at finding that instead of injuring, the corridor actually added greatly to the effect of the court, that he expressed to Wyattville his regret that he did not allow him to make it 15 feet wide instead of 10 ; on which Wyatt- ville replied that he had presumed to anticipate his Majesty's feeling on the subject, and had actually built it 15 feet wide. Wyattville did not live to see the termination of the works at the Castle. The stables and riding house built since his death, were designed and carried out under the superintendence of his friend and assistant, Mr. Henry Ashton. This gentleman also prepared the drawings and edited a beautiful work on the Castle, published by Mr. Weale. Probably but one opinion prevails now as to the questionable taste shown by George the Fourth in connection with public works executed by his command, yet the credit of encou- 56 RECOLLECTIONS OF raging art according to the best of his knowledge must not be denied him. That his taste was not pure is to be regretted, but he was nevertheless a real patron of art, in spite of the obloquy heaped upon his memory by eminent popular writers of the present day. The erection of the Pavilion in so singular a style, and the placing of artificial ruins about Virginia Waters, do not show sound judgment, yet the King sought to impart artistic effect wherever he thought it possible 5 he even sent Monsieur Yilmet, his chef de cuisine, to the elder Pugin, that he might instruct him in the art of drawing and design — wishing his table to be decked with taste, and the confectionary, &c, built up in artistic forms. A. WELBY PUGIN. 57 CHAPTER VI. Welby Pugin's first connection with Theatres — Employment in the designs of Scenery for the Opera of Kenilworth at Her Majesty's Theatre — Construction of a Model Theatre in his father's house — Bad effects from associating with low society — Establishes an Art Manufactory — Improved condition of Art-Workmen — Failure of the Scheme. We now arrive at a period in Welby Pugin's life when, through mere accident, a totally new direction was given to his tastes. During his engagement on the works in connection with Windsor Castle he formed an acquaintance with a person of inferior position, who, amongst other occupations, was employed at night in a subordinate station in the management of the stage scenery at Covent Garden Theatre. This man's de- scription of the scenery, property, and machinery of the stage filled Pugin's youthful imagination with a longing to see the concealed mechanism used for stage effects.* It must be borne in mind that, although entrusted with the important business just mentioned, he was yet but a boy of fifteen years or little more, and never till * In a diary which Pugin now began to keep is the following entry : 'June 26, 1827. Designed furniture for Windsor Castle. While at Mr. Morel's I became acquainted with a person called George Dayes, son of the celebrated artist of that name, and it was through him that I first imbibed the taste for stage machinery and scenic representations, to which I afterwards applied myself so closely.' 58 RECOLLECTIONS OF this time had entered a theatre or witnessed any dra- matic representations, — the strictness of his mother's principles and domestic regulations being a bar to his attendance at any theatrical performances. Pugin's first admission behind the stage seems to have filled him with wonder. The complicated and interesting mechanical contrivances were things of which he had not the slightest previous notion ; but his quick perception soon assured him that these admitted of great improvement and might be made to produce far more magical results than had yet been seen. He saw defective design adopted in scene painting, and immediately determined to effect some reform in the scenic department. An introduction being obtained to Messrs. Grieve, the well known scene-painters, he obtained, through them, some knowledge of the art of distemper painting on canvas, and the peculiar colours used; and thus he became enabled to paint scenery, designed by himself in the mediaeval style.* * The author of 4 Self-help, with Illustrations of Character and Con- duct,' gives an account of Pugin's connection with theatres which is founded upon a mistake. He was attracted to the pursuit of theatrical mechanism by accident ; it occurred at the time that he was engaged in designing the furniture for Windsor Castle. The man who cleaned his drawing-boards, rubbed up Indian ink, and did other duties in the office, happened to be a scene-shifter at Covent Garden Theatre ; this fellow was sharp, had a good memory, and could imitate cleverly the voices and mannerism of comic actors. When Pugin required him to do anything, he invariably replied in a droll manner, adding gesture, and imitating the voice of some well-known actor. This amused Pugin amazingly, and he was persuaded to accompany this man one evening behind the scenes ; once there, it was not difficult to foresee what would happen, and in order that he might repeat his visits, it is not improbable that he made himself useful ; for otherwise he would not A. WELBY PUGIN. 59 There was certainly a wide opening for any one possessed of talents to improve all the accessories of the stage ; for though the Messrs. Grieve and others produced beautiful landscapes, yet whenever archi- tecture was depicted a total absence of knowledge was shown. The most absurd incongruities were called Gothic, and compositions full of the grossest anachro- nisms presented to the public as genuine forms of architecture. Young Pugin was just the man to cor- rect these errors in judgment, and he no sooner set about it than he achieved great success. Historical operas were then most popular, and they afforded a wide scope for the introduction of beautiful scenery and costume. The manager of the Italian Opera, hearing of Welby Pugin's known skill in medieval art, sought his assistance, and commissioned him to design all the scenery for the new opera of Kenilworth brought out in the season of 1831. A better subject for the exercise of his genius could scarcely have been found ; he designed, and had executed under his own control, have been permitted on the stage through the mere introduction of a menial. He soon made acquaintance with Bartley the stage-manager, the Messrs. Grieve, and others, all of whom he aided in some degree by his natural genius. So again his purchase of a sailing ship was not with a view to making a profitable trade — it was a youthful frolic ; neither of these pursuits were chosen with the intention of improvement, through ' the discipline of labour.' He was fond of the sea, and it was most natural that he should use his pencil when on landing at any place he saw interesting buildings, which might furnish illustrations for his publications. That he carried on a little commerce while cruis- ing about is quite true, and would often burst into a fit of laughter when accosted as an egg merchant by some of his friends, in allusion to his freight. GO RECOLLECTIONS OF all the scenery for this interesting historical opera. Its production created a great sensation, presenting as it did in all its features one of the most gorgeous and correct representations which had hitherto been wit- nessed. The architectural portion of this spectacle, which was considerable, showed great originality of treatment, being in striking contrast with the old and ill-painted scenes, wings, and sky-pieces which formed the staple for all scenery no matter in what age or country the story of the opera might be laid. The great success which attended the performance of this opera was almost entirely due to the attractiveness of the scenery and costume. So completely did the mania for theatrical representations enthral him that he was for ever making experiments in order to pro- duce startling and novel mechanical changes, and he made himself acquainted with all that had been written and published on the subject; but little was to be obtained either from the designs of Peruzzi or any more modern artist. The only man in comparatively recent times who devoted attention to the subject was Inigo Jones, who displayed great fancy and talent not merely as a scene painter, but in producing pageants and masques, and planning the decorations and ma- chinery for them. Perhaps Pugin might claim to have done as much in his way for producing correct re- presentations of the pageants of the middle ages. With a view to help him in this pursuit his parents allowed him to convert the upper floor of their house in Great Russell Street into a model theatre. This he A. WELBY TUGLN. 61 did at much expense, removing the attic ceiling, cutting away the roof, constructing cisterns, and adapting everything necessary to his object. On this model stage he designed the most exquisite scenery, with fountains, tricks, traps, drop-scenes, wings, sofhtes, hilly scenes, flats, open flats, and every magic change of which stage mechanism is capable. Large parties were invited to witness his performances, and probably a more skilfully made model theatre had never been seen. It was not a toy in any sense of the word, but a piece of construction sufficiently large to enable Pugin to exhibit experiments and study compositions before they were adopted on the actual stage. The intricacy of the mechanism was surprising, but every part was so admirably adjusted that the changes in the scenes, wings, and sky-pieces were effected with marvel- lous rapidity, for it was provided with lines, pulleys, grooves, balance weights, machines for ascents and de. scents, &c. His connection with the theatrical world was not of long duration ; it served to gratify his taste for a while, but his impulsive mind could not rest satisfied with mere fictitious representations of build- ings. His desire was to carry into reality some of the designs which he so skilfully indicated upon a small scale. The gradual steps by which he succeeded in ac- complishing his wish will appear in the sequel ; but as earlier in life the duties of his father's office became utterly insupportable to the active mind of Welby Pugin, so now his scene-painting and other theatrical engagements had no longer any attractions. 62 RECOLLECTIONS OF At this time he conceived an ardent desire for a maritime life, and regardless of the eminent position which laid within his reach, he made up his mind to go to sea. First, owner of a small boat which he kept for his own pleasure, he successively commanded a smack, and afterwards a schooner, in which amongst other merchandize he generally managed to bring over many interesting carvings and other antiquities purchased in the old stores of Holland and Flanders. Thus he used these excursions as subservient to the object of forming a museum, which later in life afforded him the greatest pleasure, and became one of the chief attractions in his residence at Ramsgate. During one of these voyages he was wrecked on the Scotch coast, some distance below Leith, where he and his men all but perished ; this event led to his friendship with Mr. Gillespie Graham, the well-known architect, of Edinburgh, which he always prized most highly. Having lost everything, he arrived in Edinburgh in a destitute condition. Knowing Mr. Graham by fame he applied to him, and was received with the greatest kindness ; this gentleman, to use his own expression, completely 'rigged him out, provided him with money, and what was more to the point gave him sound advice. Foreseeing the talent of the architect cropping out in every word of his interesting conversation, he conjured him to give up his mode of life, and to pursue the career for which nature had so brilliantly prepared him. Before taking leave Mr. Graham gave him his A. WELBY PUGIN. 63 own pocket compasses as a reminder of his advice, (these were the famed instruments which he used through life, which appear in Herbert's portrait of him. Upon them is engraved James Gillespie Graham, architect, Edinburgh, 1830.) It may be naturally inferred that from the refined boy and polished gentleman, which were Welby Pugin's characteristics while under his parents' care, his present life had led him to assume the dress and habits of a sailor, with the exception of his innate horror of tobacco and beer. As before remarked, Welby Pugin was extremely delicate in youth, but his present mode of life had certainly one good effect, by giving him Herculean strength, which doubtlessly enabled him so effectually to carry out the work which he so gloriously accom- plished. The life he had hitherto led was, as may be imagined, a source of much pain and anguish to his parents and friends, more especially to the refined tastes of his father, who on meeting a friend, ex- claimed with much grief, ' God bless my soul, it was but this morning I met my boy Auguste in the dis- guise of a common sailor, carrying on his shoulder a tub of water which he had took from the pompe of St. Dunstan.' Few things probably could have so severely shocked the finely poised susceptibilities of the elder Pugin. Welby Pugin's name had now acquired celebrity in various ways connected with art, in consequence of his well known intimate acquaintance with Gothic archi- 64 KEC0LLEGT10NS OF tecture. His power of rapid delineation was likewise appreciated. The elder Pugin, although well versed in the history of architecture, had devoted himself to its theory rather than to its practice, and, with the assistance of pupils, was largely engaged as an architectural draughtsman. At this time his son was still living with him, and all who were engaged in building in the Gothic style resorted to young Pugin as the great authority in his special department. Many leading architects placed their rough sketches in his hands in order to have the detail drawings accurately prepared. In those days great difficulty was felt in finding artificers and carvers capable of doing justice to the execution of designs in the mediaeval style. The long prevalence of classic architecture had resulted in fostering a school of art-workmen well versed in Grecian and Italian detail, but who were ignorant of the correct forms and expressions of Gothic detail; their notions of ornament being gathered from terra cotta casts and plaster of Paris models, instead of being taken from authentic ancient examples. Very few carvers could execute a foliated string-course or span- dril with correct feeling, and the general notion amongst workmen was that anything grotesque would do for Gothic decorations, as grace and beauty were supposed by them to be alien to the style. As young Pugin now proposed not only to undertake the delinea- tion of working drawings, but also to superintend the execution of the w T ork which he designed, he felt that A. WELBY PUGIN. 65 some step was necessary on his part to educate the workmen, or his acquired reputation would suffer by the bungling way in which objects said to be taken from his drawings would be executed. To obviate this difficulty he determined to have all carved work, whenever it was possible, executed under his own eye. On making known this intention to some leading practical architects they were only too glad to avail themselves of his services in this new capacity, and the promises of business which were quickly given justified him in putting his scheme into action. For this purpose he took the lease of extensive premises in Hart Street, Covent Garden, as he had still a linger- ing affection for his old haunts ; and having secured the assistance of one or two clever carvers whom he had himself already taught, he made it known gene- rally amongst his friends that he w T ould undertake to supply all the ornamental portions of buildings which could by possibility be executed apart from the struc- ture and be fixed afterwards. At first his success was considerable, and he obtained extensive com- missions from Scotland and Ireland ; for in those countries the want of skilled artificers was even greater than in England, and in the progress of any large and important building the difficulty experienced in se- curing the proper finish of details was only to be overcome by obtaining carvers from England. In the hands of such a master as Pugin, therefore, a great de- sideratum was supplied ; for by the mere transmission of drawings showing the intended decorations, he at F 66 KECOLLECTIONS OF once understood what was required, had all duly executed, and sent off to the buildings under con- struction. But not being brought up as a man of business he was incapable of estimating the suf- ficient profit to be attached to labour and materials in order to secure a proper return for his invested capital; nor could he exercise sufficient check over the art-workmen in his employ. This speculation was therefore soon brought to an end, after the sacrifice of a great deal of money which had been sunk in the undertaking ; still during the time in which it was in operation a vast amount of excellent detail, both in wood and stone, was prepared under his immediate directions. A. WELBY PUGTN. 67 CHAPTER VII. Temporary Embarrassments — Pugin's Marriage, and his Wife's Death — Buries her at Christchurch Priory Church — Intention of building a House at Christchurch — Abandoned through his Father's inter- ference — Seeks another Neighbourhood, and builds St. Marie's Grange, near Salisbury — Intimacy with Mr. Osmond — Indignation at the modern alterations in Salisbury Cathedral — Commences Cor- respondence with Mr. Osmond by a Letter from Wells. While carrying on the business which terminated in the failure just mentioned he suffered much anxiety, for his pecuniary resources were inadequate to meet many of his engagements ; and at one time he was seized for the nonpayment of rent, and placed in a sponging house near Chancery Lane. It was late one summer evening in the year 1831 that his father rushed in an excited state to Mr. Weale and Mr. Hogarth, the well-known architectural publishers, begging that they would go with him to Cursitor Street and become security in a bond for the payment of his son's debts, so that he might be released from confinement. Fortunately their interference was suc- cessful, and young Pugin was spared the misery of a night's lodging in durance vile. This occurrence was particularly distressing to his father, and he always referred to his son's embarrassments with horror : for in all probability he must have become bankrupt but f 2 68 RECOLLECTIONS OF for the final discharge of his liabilities by Miss Welby, his aunt. The failure in this business scheme fully determined Pugin henceforward to stick closely to the exercise of his profession in a regular manner, for he had sense enough to see that he was not fitted for commercial enterprise. Although his time and attention were necessarily much occupied during this brief but unlucky period, he still found opportunities for occasionally visiting Covent Garden Theatre to see how matters were going on, and to enjoy a little conversation with the Messrs. Grieve, with whom he still kept up an acquaintance. It was about this time that he met Miss Garnet, a grand- niece of Dayes the artist. After a very short court- ship he was married to her in 1831. His choice was not pleasing to his father and mother, but they did not withhold their sanction to the match, fearing to thwart him in a matter of such delicate nature ; but it is due to her memory to add that for the short time she was his wife, she showed a most affectionate regard, and exercised a beneficial influence over him. Augustus was yet a minor, and for a considerable time after their marriage he and his wife resided with his parents in Great Russell Street ; and here in May, 1832, she became the mother of her first and only child. Unhappily she died in her confinement, but her infant daughter survived. This melancholy event was a fearful blow to his sensitive mind.* It might have been * In an extract from one of his mother's letters to her sister she says : ' I feel somewhat desolate to-day, for I am without either father A. WELBY PUGIN. 69 supposed that as his wife was a native of London he would have chosen some metropolitan churchyard for her last resting-place, but, as stated by his mother, he selected the ancient Priory Church, at Christchurch, Hants, for her burial-place. A vault was there formed in the north aisle of the choir, and on the 15th of J une she was buried. The spot is now marked by a black marble slab, inlaid with a beautiful brass cross, and bearing an inscription copied in the note to this page.* or son. My son travelled by the night coach for Christchurch, and my husband went this morning; the funeral, which will be merely placing my poor Anne in the vault, will, I suppose, take place on Friday. It was my intention, as a consolation to Augustus, to have attended myself, but I feel the journey would be beyond my strength. He is to sleep in a double-bedded room with his father, so he will not be left alone at night, that is the dread hour. I have never left his bedside since the death of his wife, nor known what an unbroken night's rest was before last night. Wretched he will be, grieved to the soul, but in this world, where fortitude is so necessary, he must strive to obtain it ; and may Almighty God, of His infinite mercy, sanctify unto him all his sorrows ! I frequently think how often he used (before he was fourteen years ot age) to say, " My own dear mother, how happy I am ! nobody can be happier than I." Alas, alas ! look over the six years which have passed since that period, and we find a whole life of woe, such as is rarely experienced by the generality of men, huddled into it. From his works and his woes he has already experienced a long life, and when he dies he will not die without some dignity, and have his name perpetuated.' Scratched on his watch is found the following beautiful inscription : 1 This day, May 27th, 1832, my dearest Anne died unto this world, but lived unto God.' * This slab was laid down in the year after his conversion to Eoman Catholicism, and the inscription concludes with the pious aspiration common to such Catholic memorials. It is the only instance in which he adopted his triple Christian name, Augustus Welby Northmore, and there may be observed also the French prefix of de to his surname. The inscription runs thus : ' Here lieth the body of the first and beloved wife 70 RECOLLECTIONS OF Pugin also presented to the church, at a subsequent time, a finely carved oak altar-table. Of course any- thing designed by him excited much remark, and this table was the subject of criticism ; for, though admi- rable as a piece of carving, it was wanting in eccle- siastical expression, and too much resembled the richly- carved cabinets of the 16th century. The peculiarity apparent in the selection of so distant and retired a spot for the burial-place of his wife, may probably be best explained when it is stated that a year or two previously to his marriage, he had a severe illness, and upon his recovery a change of air became needful. Accompanied by his mother he went to the south-west coast, and selected the neighbourhood of Christchurch as his temporary residence. Here he was truly delighted with the magnificent Priory church, the ruins of the castle and castellan's house, as well as the beautiful marine scenery of the town and neighbourhood. The natural quietude was also very congenial to him in his then enfeebled state of health ; and the spot struck him as being particu- larly well calculated for his retreat when desiring to study apart from the turmoil of business in London. of Augustus Welby Northmore de Pugin, Architect, who departed this life at London on the twenty-seventh day of May, one thousand eight hundred and thirty-two. R. I. P. Amen.' The funeral was remark- able. The interment did not take place till the 15th of June at 8 o'clock p.m., the remains being brought to the church on the 8th of June, and deposited during the interval in Prior Draper's Chapel. The service was read in the choir, the coffin being placed in the centre, an unusual practice. A. WELBY PUG1N. 71 Pugin consequently cherished the idea of obtaining a piece of ground and building a house, in which he might indulge his own taste and show the manner in which a domestic residence should be arranged fitted up in strict accordance with mediaeval examples. The hope of accomplishing this was ever foremost in his mind, and the precise part of the country in which it might be realized was immaterial to him, provided there was some great castle or church, of architectural interest, near. Upon hearing that the site for a house in a retired situation near the town of Christchurch, called Holfleet, commanding a view of all the objects he admired, backed by the hills of St. Catherine stretching up the valleys of the Stour and Avon, was to be obtained, a negotiation for its purchase was at once set on foot. Pugin, however, being still a minor, it was necessary for the owner of the land to consult his father upon the propriety of the step his son was medi- tating, and also on the means for carrying the project into effect. The father, remembering and disapproving his conduct in connexion with the theatrical world, refused to become guarantee, or to give consent. Thus for a while the project fell to the ground, but he never relinquished the hope that at a future day he should carry his favourite scheme into effect ; and it was no doubt the operation of this feeling which led him to determine upon burying his wife at Christchurch. The grief which he suffered through the sad loss of his partner indisposed him from pursuing his favourite idea for some months ; but he was too much occupied 72 RECOLLECTIONS OF in business to suffer any depressing feelings to take lasting effect upon him, and soon after we find him again reverting to the project of building. But instead of renewing his application for the land at Christ- church, he had selected another site for his dwelling, though still in the valley of the Avon.* Here he set boldly to work, and designed and built a house for himself exhibiting all the peculiar arrange- ments common to domestic dwellings of the 15th Hi IIIftB IS. century. The structure was principally of brick. It was quaint and odd, and much noticed by people of * It was in 1835 that he purchased half an acre of ground, about a mile and a half from Salisbury, from Mr. Staples, on the road to Southampton. A. WELBY PUGIN. 73 the neighbourhood who took an interest in such matters. It can scarcely be said that he was successful in this work ; there was nothing very inviting in the exterior design, and a great absence of modern comfort in the interior arrangement The building tended rather to show the eccentricity of its owner than his superior skill in design ; still it was not without merit, and undoubtedly formed a striking contrast to the class of modern suburban houses generally erected. The place was called St. Marie's Grange. Here he frequently resided, collecting old books, prints, manuscripts, pictures, &c. ; and now was first manifested his in- dignation at the wanton havoc which had been made in Salisbury Cathedral, where, under the plausible guise of improvements or restorations, most reprehensible changes were effected. Pugin's fiery spirit was strongly roused by the contemplation of these sad doings, now brought so prominently to his notice. Out of the catalogue of spoliation it will be sufficient to enumerate the fol- lowing : — The destruction of the Hungerford and Beau- champ Chapels, and the removal of the porch of the north transept; the demolition of the screen which separated the Lady Chapel from the choir, and the elevation of the pavement so as to alter all the propor- tions of the former; the destruction of the Saints' Chapels in the western transept, and of the rood- loft before the choir ; the removal of the monuments from their appropriate places transported in order to line the arcades of the Nave ; and the destruction of 74 RECOLLECTIONS OF the detached belfry tower. Unhappily, what was done scarcely deserves less censure than what was left undone. How far the effect of these enormities upon his ardent spirit may have led to the religious change which shortly came over him, it is difficult to say. Judging, however, by his writings it cannot be doubted he was indulging a notion that these acts of spolia- tion, as well as others of a like nature at Durham, Lichfield, and elsewhere, were due entirely to indif- ference on the part of the Church of England Chapters ; and he believed that these mighty fabrics would, under the care of Roman Catholic authorities, have been spared such disastrous changes. Pugin, however, lived long enough to see the delusion dissipated ; but at this moment his feelings of indignation were directed against the Cathedral dignitaries. It was during his residence at St. Marie's Grange that he made a tour for the purpose of examining several Cathedrals yet unknown to him ; and, having formed a close intimacy with Mr. Osmond, senior, of Salisbury, whom he found desirous of acquiring a knowledge of mediaeval architecture, he from time to time communicated to him in a series of letters his impressions of the various buildings he saw, illus- trating his meaning by the most admirable marginal pen-and-ink sketches. The correspondence abounds in the strongest expressions of disgust at the mutila- tions which he observed in operation, and he never restrained his pen, but boldly gave vent to his feelings when writing to his friend. A. WELBY PUGIN. 75 The first letter is dated from Wells in Somersetshire, and is headed by a clever sketch, contrasting a modern marble tablet stuck against a wall with a beautiful canopied tomb and recumbent figure. He writes as follows : — ' My dear Sir, ' If you want to be delighted, if you want to be astonished, if you want to be half mad, as I at present am, for God's sake come over to Wells. The most magnificent things for detail that can be seen, splendid remains of every style, and every description of Gothic architecture. You have no conception of the magni- ficence of the cathedra], &c. One day would suffice. I am well acquainted with everything here, and have got introductions to all the most secret corners ; and I declare I would not leave you till you had seen every interesting object in the place. Pray come, I entreat of you. I leave here either at the end of the week— that is the beginning of next, about Tuesday or Wednesday. * * I would not think of wishing you so much to come down were I not certain you would be delighted. No artists indeed ! The figures of the west front are magnificent — splendid specimens of sculpture. Tell that to Mr. Lucas ; and tell him that the antique fades away before the ancient. Gothic for ever ! Mr. Gaunter, one of the vicars here, is most anxious to see you, so pray come down and don't be ruled by your wife, for without you make a pilgrimage to this shrine you will never obtain absolution for the 76 'RECOLLECTIONS OF number of blisters you have been the instrument of fixing and polluting against ancient arts. Give my kind remembrances to Mrs. Osmond and all my good friends at Salisbury, and believe me your most sincere friend and fellow labourer, 'A. PuGIN, ' Freemason, though not a member of the man-milliner's lodge. ' Send a line to me by post : direct Mr. Pugin, at Mr. Hatch's, Vicar's Close, Wells.' The next letter, written from Eamsgate, is so sin- gularly beautiful in its illustrations that the heading is here given as a wood cut, being a fac simile of the original. 'Saint Laurence, Oct. xxvii., Anno Dom. mdcccxxxiii. ' Dear Osmond, 4 I fear you will by this time have thought me neglectful in not acknowledging the receipt of a most acceptable and kind present from you in the shape of an enormous Cheddar cheese, which although not strictly Gothic in its present shape may be daily ren- dered more so by cutting it into 4, which will make it a quatrefoil. But I fear me much in the course of a short time its style will be scarcely perceptible, as it will have gone through such a variety of form, owing to the extreme partiality of all at home to do full justice to its merits. It is, in truth, excellent, and the only drawback on the enjoyment of it is that we have A. WELBY PUGIN. 77 not the kind donor to partake of it with us, which was the case the last time I had the pleasure of tasting such cheese. I should have sent a letter off directly on our receiving your present, had I not been absent on a journey when it came, not in search of the beau- tiful but the needful, which is not so easily obtained ; from which I am only just returned. I have long had it in contemplation to send you an account of my proceedings after I left you at Exeter, and as nothing is like the present time I will proceed, with the help of my memory and memorandum book, to give you a full, particular, and true account of my adventures. After leaving you at Exeter I had a most delightful day's ride to Bristol through Taunton, where I had a sight of the magnificent tower whose fame you have no doubt heard of. It is without exception the finest tower of the kind in England, though I must say we are deficient in this country of those magnificent masses which are to be seen in the towns of France, Flanders, and Germany ; for beautiful as the Tower of Taunton is it still seems to want something to carry it off at the top. The towers of Boston and St. Ni- cholas at Newcastle are in this respect far preferable. (See sketch.) 4 While at Bristol I paid particular attention to the Cathedral, where I find many things Reserving most 78 RECOLLECTIONS OF particular attention. This Cathedral has been generally overlooked as undeserving of notice, but the fact is that there are parts about it equal to anything in the country. The groining of the aisles, the carving in parts of the stalls, the vestry, the tombs in the aisles round the choir, the great west window, the Norman entrance to the Chapter House from the cloisters, all are most interesting, and to real Gothic men, like you and me, it affords a great treat. The east window is so truly beautiful that I have just marked out the tracery of it for you; the original glass is still in it, and the effect is wonderfully rich and varied. I then steamed from Bristol to Chepstow in Monmouthshire ; here is, I may say, one of the most perfect castles 1 have ever seen. The parts about it are magnificent, and the extent of mouldings immense. To give you some idea of its preservation, the wooden gates are all remaining ; they are composed of three pieces of oak halved together crossways, then two thicknesses of one and a-half oak plank with a sheeting of iron, and bound with iron bars bolted through all. It is to be re- membered that the tide from the Severn rises higher here than at any other part of the world, the rise and fall being at spring tides upwards of seventy feet. Leaving this interesting spot, I walked by the side of the Eiver Wye to Tintern Abbey, distant about eight miles. Although I can manage to give you an idea of A. WELBY rUGTN. 79 a Gothic building, it is quite impossible to convey by writing any conception of the beautiful scenery of the banks of the River Wye. The richest foliage and loftiest trees arise up amid overhanging masses of rock, and the terrific and beautiful are everywhere blended. I ascended a place called the Wyndcliff, where I had the sight of four cathedrals and fourteen counties. The day was remarkably fine, and those views you and I saw on the Exeter road faded to nothing before it. A heavy thunder-storm coming on, I was glad to push on for the quiet inn at Tintern, where I rested for the night, and next morning proceeded to view the far- famed abbey. The situation is beautiful; as a ruin the building is also ; but dare I oppose the torrent of popular opinion and not admire Tintern Abbey as a building ? yes I dare, and I say that, as a building, it is anything but admirable. Were I to express this opinion to the tourist and the general observer I should be set down either for an ignorant brute or an opinion- ated upstart ; but I am sure if you and I were to go over it together you would agree with me. The only thing really worthy of admiration is the west window, which is very beautiful, and of which I send you a sketch ; but the rest of the building is by no means equal, and the plan, mouldings, windows, &c, are very common-place ; I therefore mounted the Here- ford coach with four horses, and a very pleasant ride 80 RECOLLECTIONS OF brought me to that city, — an old fashioned but not ancient looking town, common brick houses, dull shops and empty streets being the features of Hereford. Maddened by the sight I rushed to the cathedral ; but horror! dismay! the villain Wyatt had been there, the west front was his. Need I say more ? No ! All that is vile, cunning, and rascally is included in the term Wyatt, and I could hardly summon sufficient fortitude to enter and examine the interior. In this church there is much to admire, a good deal to learn, much to deplore. 1st, Much to admire : — the Saxon parts of the nave, the stalls, the bishop's throne, the tombs, the Lady Chapel, the vicar's cloisters, are all most beautiful and interesting, of which you may be sure I took complete sketches. 2nd. A great deal to learn : — there are portions of the Lady Chapel and the Bishop's throne that are perfectly unique and truly extraordinary. 3rd. Most to deplore : — what do you think of a regular Eoman altar-screen, a modern window over it, with the Last Sapper from West, like a great transparency ? " What do you think of it ?" said a canon, triumphantly, when he showed it me. " Think of it !" said I ; " why I think it is yet more execrable than the window of New College Chapel." The canon was dumb. Then, only conceive the fine Saxon ornaments imitated in plaster in the most wretched style ; a plain ceiling to the nave ; the Lady Chapel filled with bookcases, and the end towards the church plastered up ; the building ruinous in many parts, and the cloisters absolutely left to fall. All these A WELBY PUGIN. 81 things raise emotions in the breast of the real antiquarian not easily subdued. I next shaped my course to Mal- vern, to see the abbey there and the celebrated Hills. Here is a church in which the stained glass has not fallen a victim to Protestant zeal. It is truly magnificent, and the drawing of the figures is correct and beautiful, the colouring rich and varied. These windows may be rated among the finest specimens of English glass of the 15th century. The paving-tiles are likewise de- cidedly the finest in the kingdom ; such a variety of patterns and such a quantity of tiles I never saw any- where. A few years ago a meeting of the fashionables of Malvern was called to subscribe towards the repairs of the dilapidated building, and by the help of raffles, &c, a few pounds were collected. Two hodfulls of mortar were got to repair the church, and the re- mainder of the money expended in putting in a window of the aisle the arms of the subscribers in stained glass, with their names in full, a monument of their folly and arrogance. The very mullions in which the glass is placed are rotten and falling. The church itself is in dreadful repair ; fall it must, and all that is to be hoped is, that in its fall it may annihilate those whose duty it was to have restored it ; but of this we may be sure, that if it falls while there is a congregation within its walls, it will clear some away that ought to be got rid of, for such a set of lounging idlers as the fashionables of Malvern are only to be matched at Brighton or Cheltenham. I must now for the present conclude, leaving the rest of my journey, which is too 82 RECOLLECTIONS OF extensive for one letter ; and if you have the patience to permit it, I will send you soon the second part of my travels in search of the beautiful. And now, with kindest remembrance to your wife and family, believe me now and ever your most sincere friend and fellow- mason, 6 A. W. Pugin.' The graphic description given in this letter of the various objects he saw is very interesting, and his independent opinion upon the merits of Tintern Abbey quite worthy of remark. There can be little doubt that his criticisms are correct. The public are so ac- customed to estimate the architectural character of buildings by the description of local guides, without scanning the details for themselves, and to be fascinated by the luxuriant masses of ivy and foliage, that it is quite refreshing to find Pugin assailing so fearlessly the weak points in the design of this structure. There certainly is a poverty in the detail which is truthfully described by him. But if these criticisms are correct, not less true are his strictures upon the motives of the so-called church- restorers at Malvern, whose feeble efforts at restoration could only be stimulated by the vanity of seeing their heraldic bearings perpetuated in stained glass. For- tunately there is now a more correct feeling on those matters than existed thirty years ago. In January, 1834, Pugin redeemed his promise, and again wrote to his friend Osmond. Unfortunately he A. WELBY PUGIN. 83 did not invest this letter with the same interest as his former one ; for though written, as it will be seen, with all the piquancy of his style, there is wanting the skilful embellishment which belonged to the first communication. However, the contents are most amusing and instructive. ' Island of Ely ! ! ! January, Thursday, 1834. ' Dear Osmond, ' I fear by this time you have thought that I did not mean to fulfil my promise of sending you another long letter, containing the second part of my travels in search of the picturesque and beautiful, but I can assure you I have not forgotten it, as this epistle feebly showeth. I left off my last account at Malvern, from thence I proceeded to Worcester. Here I was much disappointed ; with the exception of Prince Arthur's Chantry the church does not contain a mo- nument of any consequence, and the building itself was dreadfully battered about in the Civil Wars, when Worcester was a stronghold of the Cavaliers, and it has been very badly repaired in several places. The cloisters are rather curious, as they contain the ancient lavatories for the monks to wash at. The spirit of the clergy here towards the building is detestable ; but in order to give you an idea of it I will recapitulate an anecdote as I had it from the person who is nominally clerk of works to the Cathedral. The western gable having become ruinous, the upper part was required to be taken down. The gable terminates in a rich g 2 84 RECOLLECTIONS OF cross, part of which remained and was very similar to some at Sarum. Accordingly the mason having re- ceived orders to restore the gable., caused a rich cross to be cut, together with a base to it, forming the top stone of the gable. All was complete, the cross was finished, attached to the tackle ready for hoisting. A canon appears, and the following conversation ensues. Persons : Canon, a Mason. The scene the west end of Cathedral. 4 Canon. Hollo, mason ! what is all this ? what d'ye call it ? what is it for ? 4 Mason. It is the stone cross, sir, to terminate the western gable. 4 Canon. Who ordered it ? who is to pay for it ? who gave directions for such a thing ? 4 Mason. The Chapter, sir, directed me to restore the gable, and as the cross was there — 4 Canon. Don't talk about the cross being there ; it is impossible the Chapter intended going to this expense. Why it is perfectly useless ; the funds will not permit of such things. (The Dean appears.) Mr. Dean, I was saying it was impossible you could sanc- tion such n useless expenditure as the cross for the west end. 4 Dean. Cross ! what cross ? I ordered the gable to be plainly restored ; I had no idea of all this. 6 Mason. The expense of this cross is inconsider- able, and the effect — 4 Dean. Don't talk to me of effect, sir. I will not suffer the cross to be erected ; things must not be done in this manner, or we never shall know where we are. A, WELBY PUGIN. 85 ' The result is plain. The cross I saw lying in his stone-yard, and the gable ends thus, /\. As it was the preparation for the music meeting, the church was turned into a carpenter's shop for seven weeks pre- vious and three after. Divine service is suspended during the week. If there were no other, is not this a decided objection to allowing such a performance ? You know my opinion well on this subject, and the more I have an opportunity of judging, the more I am strengthened in it. Excepting the Cathedral, Wor- cester does not contain anything of interest. Dis- gusted, I was glad to turn my way to Lichfield, where [ duly arrived, but late in the evening and dripping with wet.* 4 On proceeding to the Cathedral, which from its distant appearance promised great things, what was my horror and astonishment on perceiving the west front to have been restored with brown cement, cracked in every direction, with heads worked with the trowel, devoid of all expression or feeling, crockets as bad, and a mixture of all styles. My surprise, however, ceased on the verger's informing me that the whole church was improved and beautified about thirty years ago by the late Mr. Wyatt. Yes, this monster of architectural depravity — this pest of cathedral ar- chitecture — has been here; need I say more? I wound myself up to the pitch to bear the sight of * He here relates an amusing incident somewhat of a Pickwickian character, through a mistake in entering the wrong bed-room, but it is hardly worth recording. 86 RECOLLECTIONS OF the havoc he had committed. Of course here his old trick of throwing the Lady Chapel into the choir by pulling down the altar-screen ; then he has pewecl the choir and walled up the arches of the choir, making the aisles nothing but dark passages. The man, I am sorry to say, who executes the repairs of the building was a pupil of the wretch himself, and has imbibed all the vicious propensities of his accursed tutor, without one spark of even practical ability to atone for his misdeeds. The repairs of the Cathedral are conducted in a most puerile manner. What think you of replacing finials and crockets upon the pinna- cles, &c. ? while flying buttresses themselves threaten to fall daily. But, notwithstanding all these defects, there are points in Lichfield Cathedral that render it extremely interesting. First, the stained glass brought from a convent in the Netherlands, and which now fills the east window of the choir, is without exception the most beautiful I have ever seen for richness of colours and beauty of design. Then the nave is truly beautiful, and the chapter house, with library over, is exceedingly interesting. Lichfield is a dull place, without anything remarkable ; and I can assure you in all my travels I have never seen a pleasanter city than Salisbury. From here I then proceeded to Oxford, through that most detestable of all detest- able places — Birmingham, where Greek buildings and smoking chimneys, Radicals and Dissenters are blended together. At Oxford I was much delighted with the restoration of Magdalen College Chapel by Mr. Cot- A. WELBY PUGIN. 87 tinghani, which I can truly say is one of the most beautiful specimens of modern design that I have ever seen, and executed both in wood and stone in the best manner. It is impossible for me to give you an adequate idea of the interest of the city of Oxford, where at every turning you meet a buttress and face an oriel window. With what pleasure could I walk through the place with you, and point out the various places of interest it contains ! Indeed I fondly cherish the hope of some day taking a long journey with you in pursuit of our favourite object; for believe me there is no person existing with whom it would afford me so much pleasure to travel as yourself. I fully hope and expect to join you for a few days in the spring on my way by Havre de Grace for a nine months' journey in Normandy and the Low Countries to collect originals and sketches. What a time to look forward to ! — what a treat ! I have already com- pleted three new books, and have another in hand to be completed when I return to Eamsgate, as I am at present on another tour, and am now at Ely, where I have arrived to-night. I have as yet seen but little of the Cathedral, but shall be up with the lark to examine it to-morrow. ' I have been at the Cathedral all the morning. How I am delighted ! how I am pained ! Here is a church, magnificent in every respect, falling into decay through gross neglect. Would you believe it possible ? there is no person appointed to attend to the repairs of the building, and the only person who has been employed 88 KECOLLECTIONS OF during the last sixty years is a bricklayer. Not even common precautions are taken to keep the building dry. The lantern never was completed, and I fear never will be ;* but its effect is truly magnificent as it is, and makes one long to see it as originally intended by its great architect.* The fine western tower is falling into great decay, and alarming fissures have taken place and are become menacing to various portions of the western end which receive the pressure of the tower. I truly regret to say that in my travels I am daily witnessing fresh instances of the disgraceful conduct of the greater portion of the established clergy. At a place in Lincolnshire called the , the Rev. goes to perform the service in top boots and white cord breeches. Then I have seen the of Lincoln Cathedral, the Eev. Mr. , son of the late Bishop (who refused to subscribe to the erection of his throne in Cathedral), lost £7000 at the last Lincoln races. I can assure you that, after a most close and impartial investigation, I feel perfectly con- vinced the Roman Catholic Church is the only true one, and the only one in which the grand and sublime style of church architecture can ever be restored. A very good chapel is now building in the North, and when it is complete I certainly think I shall recant. I know you will blame me, but I am internally con- * Were Pugin now alive what a ' Contrast ' he might draw between the condition of Ely Cathedral in 1834 and its present state ! — so beautifully has it been restored by G. Scott (a Protestant architect), and even the Lantern is proposed to be constructed according to its ancient form A. WELBY PUGIN. 89 vinced that it is right. But of this subject I beg you will make no mention in your letter to me till I see you, for then I can more fully explain my ideas. I do most truly long to hear from you. I shall be back at Eamsgate in less than a couple of weeks, and must beg you to let me hear from you before long, as it will be a great pleasure to me. I am very happy to inform you that the fourth and last number of my work will be shortly published, and that it is meeting with the greatest success. I shall have several new books to show you when I come down, for I work without ceasing, and trust I continue to improve. Eemember me kindly to all my friends at Sarum, and last but not least to your wife ; tell her I fear my wife will imitate her example, for a few weeks will, I expect, bring a little Gothic boy or girl, I don't know which yet. God bless you. I trust to find you and yours well in the summer, till then I am, believe me, your most sincere friend and fellow craft, 'A. W. Pugin/ This letter contains some very severe strictures, but probably not more than the facts warranted; how- ever, it is to be hoped that the sad state of things here described has now passed away. Had Pugin lived to this day he would have seen reason to speak in terms of approbation of the works now carrying on at Lichfield, which are conceived and executed in a manner worthy of ancient times, and in a way far 90 RECOLLECTIONS OF superior to the works at Magdalen College, of which he speaks so favourably. But at the period these letters were written the spirit of correct restoration had hardly been awakened, and a really good work of renovation had seldom been accomplished. During the tour he took for the examination of ancient buildings he seems to have been somewhat shocked by the apathy, not to say misconduct, of a few of the clergy with whom he came in contact, and he here gives the first intimation of his intention to leave the Anglican Church. But there is no sufficient reason assigned for the change ; and though he reflects with severity upon the failings which he had observed in some of the clergy, this could not, to a man of Pugin's discrimination, have been a sufficient ground for his abandoning the faith in which he had been educated. Other causes must have operated, and it is not difficult to suppose that his enthusiastic love of ancient art, of which he had seen so much in his recent tour through France and Belgium, mainly influenced his desire to be reconciled to a Church which gave in former days such encouragement to his darling taste. Nothing could exceed his enthusiasm when prosecu- ting antiquarian projects. In another letter, without date, to his friend at Salisbury, he says : ' I expect to sail next Thursday for France, and if the wind proves fair I shall soon be up to my ears in dilapi- dated chateaux, ruined abbeys, ancient libraries, vene- rable cathedrals, ancient towers, and splendid remains of every description of the middle ages. Leave your A. WELBY PUGTN. 91 blisters* leave your Doric porticoes, leave all and follow me. When I return I will unfold such a tale as will eventually seduce you from home and lethargy to con- tinental beauties and glory ; but I must tear myself from all sublime ideas, and return to common-place matters of fact.' To this letter there is the following P.S. ' Please to relate the following fact to Mr. Fisher. 'Not long since during divine service at a small church that has been lately disguised by some modern repairs, a person was struck blind by a flash of light- ning, which was attracted by an iron head of tracery placed in a wood panel immediately behind him. The electric fluid then descended on the top of the seat, where it left the following extraordinary marks ! QxV^A/^xX During the same storm the house and shops of the founder himself were struck, and 200 tons of one sort of tracery shivered to atoms. ' Yours most truly, < A. W. PuginV About this time Pugin's mind appears to have been much impressed by the doctrines of the Roman Catholic faith, but we do not hear of any actual change in his religion taking place until after the death of his * This term, frequently employed by Pugin, referred to the numerous tablets which Mr. Osmond was in the habit of affixing to the walls oi churches as memorials. * 92 RECOLLECTIONS OF mother. She was in many ways a remarkable woman, shrewd and caustic in her observations, and with an eye which in a rapid glance summoned up all that came under her notice. She impressed the casual stranger by the readiness of her wit and knowledge of the world. Her letters are full of interest : minute, and graphic in detail : spirited in their tone : and, when alluding to her son and his occupations, most tender. Her influence on his mind was visible, and to her suggestive imagina- tion may be traced the plan which was afterwards so ably developed by her son in the ' Contrasts.' A. WELBY PUGIN. 93 CHAPTER VIII. His Second Marriage — Industry in copying Illustrations in the Cathe- dral Library — Success in his Profession — Proposes to sell St. Marie's Grange — Designs for altering Longford Castle — Eccentric Habits — Amusing Anecdote — Improves the Vestments at the Koman Catholic Chapel — Readiness to give Professional Advice — Death of his Father and Mother. In 1833 Pugin married Miss Louisa Burton, and went to reside at Salisbury, a city he greatly admired, having visited it with his mother, and stayed some days there, on his way to Christchurch in 18 28. Mrs. Pugin being a friend of the Eeverend Mr. Greenly, the librarian of the Cathedral, this gentleman gave Pugin free access to the valuable volumes under his charge, a privilege of which he was not slow to avail himself. For many hours toge ther he was in the habit of shutting himself up copying the beautiful illuminations of the ancient missals and service books. There was not a page of any interest from which he failed to glean something ; and he made a surprising number of draw- ings in an incredibly short space of time. His sketches also of the Cathedral fill a quarto volume, illustrating in practice the precepts which he afterwards laid down in his famous 'Apologjr for the Revival of Christian Architecture in England/ ' whose glorious 94 RECOLLECTIONS OF cathedrals are volumes of ancient art which lie open for all inquirers.' While residing at Salisbury he became intimate with the Reverend Mr. Greenly, Lord Radnor, and Messrs Lambert, Reed, and Fisher ; and although his secession from the Church of England grieved some of his friends, the circumstance occasioned no inter- ruption in their friendship. On his first visit finding the house in an unfinished state, excepting the room which Puginused as his study ; Lord R r, omitting to remove his hat at once entered into conversation, the only reply he met with was a look of astonishment. Pugin rang the bell and ordered his hat ; placing it on his head, he said, ' Now, my lord, I am ready.' In this well-merited rebuke Pugin resembled his father, who was very susceptible of affront, and sometimes even threatened to show people the door if proper courtesy was not shown him in conversation. The erection of his house on so novel a plan, and the publication of the ' Contrasts,' were the main causes of his success. His business soon greatly in- creased, and led him in so many various directions, that he found Salisbury hardly central enough for a fixed residence ; — and his wife not liking the place, he determined if possible to let the house and grounds. In his letters to Mr. Fisher at this time, he refers to the overwhelming amount of business pressing upon him, and indicates the class of buildings on which he was engaged. Writing from Alton Towers in June 1839, he says : 'lam full of business, and long to talk A. WELBY PUGIN. 95 over my operations with you. My church at Bir- mingham will be a truly grand affair, filled with rich carving and decoration. I have several large churches to do in Ireland, and five near Birmingham, so that I am almost worked to death, and all my business, excepting Downside Priory, lies quite wide of Salis- bury. I do not see the probability of my being able to reside there for years. I must do something re- garding my house ; it cannot go on in this manner, and I am most anxious to have your advice about it. My whole prospects are entirely changed since I built it. I was then almost without architectural business, and I have now more than I can well do ; indeed every moment of my time is occupied. I wish to let my house at a moderate rent. I do not like the idea of selling it, because I have no occasion for so doing, but I do not like so much money sunk without any return whatever.' In another letter he says : 4 1 have now an immense deal of business, and if I live on two or three years shall have done something worth looking at. Some of my buildings in Derby, Wexford, &c, will be completed early this summer. I have got the great church at Liverpool, with a crypt 150 feet long by 60 wide, well vaulted.' Again in the next communi- cation he says : ' I have twice as much as I can do, though I work early and late. Were I not driven at this moment beyond my strength, you should not wait a moment.' After a lapse of some time, he writes once more : ' I shall come down to Salisbury, when I 96 RECOLLECTIONS OF shall want the deeds of my house, as it is most impro- bable I shall ever be able to live there, and I have quite determined on disposing of it.' This he even- tually did in 1841, the property being put up to public auction and purchased for £500 by Mr. Staples, the gentleman from whom he had originally bought the ground. This was a great sacrifice of money, for Pugin had expended upwards of £2000 on the building alone, and never thought, when erecting it according to his own fancy, (the rooms communicating without any com- mon passage,) that the house would be unsuited to other people's requirements in the event of his wishing to sell it. To build a house according to Pugin's early notions was no easy matter, so many modern usages had to be given up ; and several humorous disputes arose with the builder during its progress. He would have enormously thick walls and deep splays to the windows, strong oak bars for fastenings, and not a scrap of plaster or battening where such materials were usually put. There was attached to the house a small oratory, with a window opening to his bed-room, so that in case of illness he might participate in the service going on at the altar ; he also spoke of pro- viding an endowment for a Priest to celebrate the services, but he never carried his intention into effect, probably seeing the impossibility of retaining St. Marie's Grange as his fixed residence. It does not appear that Pugin obtained much business in the south-western counties. Additions and alterations at A. WELBY PUGIN. 97 Longford Castle were under consideration, but nothing was carried into effect. There are, however, in the possession of the Reverend Mr. Greenly, of Salisbury, some beautiful drawings which he made for improving the fac,ades of that curious structure, and also for the building of a bridge of suitable character over the river near the castle. These designs are very masterly, and showed the perfect knowledge he possessed of the peculiar combination and details of the Jacobean period. He had studied buildings of this date very closely, having in 1829 made the most elaborate drawings of Hatfield House.* Unfortunately the fashion of the day was favourable to the erection of buildings in that debased style, so that Pugin's atten- tion was rather too much devoted to its details, when he would have preferred adopting the architecture of a purer type. The design for the bridge just mentioned is extremely graceful: it consists of three elliptical arches, the central arch being much the widest ; the piers are surmounted by pedestals, bearing the arms and insignia of the Radnor family, the ends and sides of the bridge flanked with massive pillars, and the pierced parapets are also ornamented with excellent devices. The only works which Pagin really executed at or near Salisbury, were the Roman Catholic church, a pleasing building in the town, and a lodge for Sir * In his diary are these entries : ' September 21. Went to Hatfield House with my friend Ferrey to make sketches.' ' October 1st. Started with Ferrey for Hurstmonccaux Castle, to make sketches for Gothic examples.' H 98 RECOLLECTIONS OF Frederick Bathurst at Clarendon Park. He was now, as will be seen by extracts from his letters, chiefly engaged on Eoman Catholic buildings. His slovenliness in dress at this time amounted to eccen- tricity. He was in the habit of wearing a sailors jacket, loose pilot trousers, jack-boots, and a wide- awake hat. In such a costume landing on one occasion from the Calais boat, he entered, as was his custom, a first-class railway carriage, and was accosted with a ' Halloa, my man, you have mistaken, I think, your carriage.' ' By Jove,' was his reply, ' I think you are right 5 I thought I was in the company of gentlemen. ' This cutting repartee at once called forth an apology. The remainder of the journey was most agreeably passed in examining his portfolio filled with sketches just taken in Normandy. His oddities clung to him through life, but they were of a harmless character, and could easily be over- looked and laughed at by those who knew what a generous nature he possessed, and how straightforward he was in all business transactions, scorning any petty or mean action in his dealings with every one. His utter contempt for dandyism and effeminacy in dress was founded upon acute observation, for he had noticed that those who indulged in such frivolities were gene- rally men of no attainments, and wasted their time in trifling pursuits. In this way he was much tormented by the frequent visits of a relative, a young man, affected in his manners, and showy in dress. Pugin abhorred him, but he was at times forced to endure A. WELBY PUGIN. 99 his society. To the ladies of his acquaintance Pugin's carelessness in appearance was very distasteful : but when remonstrated with on the subject, he never con- descended to give a patient hearing, but cut the matter short by saying : ' It's all very well, my dress will do perfectly.' A friend with whom he was at one time staying, after thus expostulating, retorted, with some amount of warmth, ' It is not all very well,' and thought that her remarks had made some impression ; and true it was, for on the following morning he presented him- self in a smart blue coat with gilt buttons, and a buff waistcoat, exclaiming, ' Well, are you satisfied now ?' His mother observes, in one of her letters, that 6 if he only knew how to dress, she would consider him an universal genius,' thus showing that this habit began early in life. Pugin's professional pursuits did not admit of his making many social visits, but he occasionally accepted an invitation. Lord R r once calling at St. Marie's Grange during its erection, and desiring to make his acquaintance, asked if he would dine with him, to which Pugin assented. 'Very well then,' said his Lordship, ' I'll expect you to-morrow at six o'clock.' Thither at the time Pugin repaired, and as he was admiring the stately rooms and objects of art and vertu with which they were enriched, his Lordship, who was well known for his simple habits and en- couragement of agricultural pursuits, observed, with perhaps generous feeling, that he would as soon live in one of the smallest cottages on his estate as in his h 2 100 RECOLLECTIONS OF large and magnificent mansion. Upon this, Pugin, jumping up and pacing the room in apparent excite- ment, exclaimed, c The d — 1 you would — the d — 1 you would, my Lord 5 then what is to become of me and all other artists ?' Whenever any work of improvement in the city of Salisbury, or suggested restorations of the churches were under consideration, Pugin was always ready to give his gratuitous advice or assistance. When the interesting ancient hall, since converted into the show- rooms of Mr. Payn, the china manufacturer (' Hall of John Hall ') was in course of restoration, Pugin with his own hands executed in colour the coat-of-arms supported by an angel in the end wall of the apart- ment, and decorated the chimney-piece and other parts of the hall. When the re-seating of the church of St. Thomas was under consideration, he offered some excellent suggestions. Unfortunately they were not adopted, and thus an opportunity for doing the right thing was missed : the present wretched arrangement of pews being substituted for open seats of appro- priate character. In reference to the Cathedral he never ceased to deplore the mutilations to which the magnificent building had been subjected ; but knowing how little chance there was of any restoration being effected, he studiously kept aloof from the dignitaries of the church, knowing that his disturbed spirit would be roused by discussions which might arise, and that he might be tempted to launch out in unmeasured terms of in- vective. A. WELBY PUGIN. 101 His finest work at this time consisted in the re- building of Scarisbrook Hall, Lancashire, for the late Charles Scarisbrook, Esq., one of the richest commoners in England. Here Pugin had money at his command, but unfortunately (as in almost every one of his later buildings) he was hampered in his ideas by the deter- mination of Mr. Scarisbrook to build upon the founda- tions of the old house. Notwithstanding this the architecture is of the highest merit, and the great hall is quite unsurpassed by any modern buildings of the kind. It is very much in the style of the present Houses of Parliament, and the clock tower bears un- deniable resemblance to the present graceful structure at Westminster. The plans fill six large folios, one of which contains exquisitely finished perspective sketches of various parts of the building. Pugin was now deprived of his father and mother ; the former died in December 1832, after a long illness, at the age of sixty-three, and Mrs. Pugin survived her husband but a short time, her decease taking place in 1833. Both were buried in the churchyard of St. Mary's, Islington, the parish where Mrs. Pugin's sister, Miss Selina Welby, had lived for many years. By the death of this lady Pugin became possessed of some property, being her nephew. 102 RECOLLECTIONS OF CHAPTEE IX. Article in the 'Times' — Publishes his work entitled 'Contrasts/ &c. — Remarks on the character of the Book — Strictures upon the practices of the Eoman Catholic Church — Anecdote referring to Vestments — Erroneous Notions, limiting Art to those in connection with the Roman Catholic Church — Public Opinion upon the 4 Contrasts' — Humorous Songs in reference to the work. During the early part of his residence at Salisbury, and before he inhabited St. Marie's Grange at Laverstoke, Pugin was still in communion with the English Church, and regularly attended divine service in the Cathedral. But after his secession, he frequented the Roman Catholic chapel of the town, — an ill-shaped room, having no pretensions whatever to an ecclesiastical character. This change in his attendance, from the glorious cathedral to the miserable chapel, was a sacri- fice of no small kind for a man of Pugin's taste to make. It was out of the question to alter the build- ing, but he did his utmost to impart dignity to the externals of public worship, which were at that time sunk to the lowest level of bad taste. Many, both in and out of the pale of the Roman Catholic Church, did not scruple to attribute Pugin's conversion solely to the love lie had for the outward splendour of the middle ages. A. WELBY PUGIN. 103 This was far from being the fact. His faith in the Catholic Church rested probably on far higher grounds than on his admiration for external magnificence. In reply to a charge of this character made in a public journal, he stated that he did not for a moment deny that the study of ancient ecclesiastical architecture was the primary cause of the change in his sentiments, by inducing him to pursue a course of study terminating in his complete conversion. ' My education,' he goes on to say, 4 certainly was not of a description to bias me towards Catholicism ; I had been taught to view it through the same distorted medium as the generality of persons in this country ; and by the time I was at all capable of thinking on the subject, I was thoroughly imbued with all the popular notions of racks, faggots, and fires, idolatry, sin-purchase, &c, with all the usual tissue of false- hoods so industriously propagated throughout the land, that by such means men may be led to detest and fear what they would receive with joy and reve- rence, could they but behold it in simple truth. c It was, I say, with such perverted feelings I first became a student in ancient art. Soon, however, I found it necessary to begin a new and different course of study to what I had hitherto pursued. The origin, intention, and use of all I beheld around was then perfectly unintelligible to me ; but, applying myself to liturgical knowledge, what a new field was open to me ! with what delight did I trace the fitness of each portion of those glorious edifices to the rites for whose 104 RECOLLECTIONS OF celebration they had been erected ! Then did I dis- cover that the service I had been accustomed to attend and admire was but a cold and heartless remnant of past glories, and that those prayers which in my igno- rance I had ascribed to reforming piety, were in reality only scraps plucked from the solemn and per- fect offices of the ancient Church. Pursuing my re- searches among the faithful pages of the old chronicles, I discovered the tyranny, apostasy, and bloodshed by which the new religion had been established, the end- less strifes, dissensions, and discord that existed among its propagators, and the devastation and ruin that at- tended its progress : opposed to all this, I considered the Catholic Church; existing with uninterrupted apostolical succession, handing down the same faith, sacraments, and ceremonies unchanged, unaltered through every clime, language, and nation. i For upwards of three years did I earnestly pursue the study of this all-important subject ; and the irre- sistible force of truth penetrating my heart, I gladly surrendered my own fallible judgment to the unerring decisions of the Church, and embracing with heart and soul its faith and discipline, became an humble, but I trust faithful member. ' I therefore hope that in Christian charity my con- version will not any longer be attributed solely to my admiration of architectural excellence : for although I have freely acknowledged that my attention was first directed through it to the subject, yet I must distinctly slate, that so important a change was not effected in A. WELBY PUGIN. 105 me, but by the most powerful reasons, and that after a long and earnest examination.' In this outspoken and characteristic letter Pugin completely vindicates the change of his religious opinions, from the light and frivolous motives so freely imputed to him at the time. Had he, however, re- mained in the Church of his birth, what a noble field would have been open to him in the restoration of those ancient churches and cathedrals with whose beauty he was so familiar ! The following letter bearing upon this subject is interesting, coming from a member of his own com- munion. The hopes so clearly expressed do not appear to have been ever realized. Greatly as the Eoman Catholics ought to feel indebted to him for all he did, they have never shown by any united public recogni- tion their sense of his invaluable services. It has been left to the members of the English Church to initiate a lasting memorial to his honour. ' My dear Sir, ' It is likely that many of your subscribers are not habitual readers of the " Times " newspaper : will you therefore allow me, for their benefit, to insert in your columns two quotations from recent numbers of that periodical, touching our late friend Mr. Pugin ? The first paragraph is from a "Leader" on the sub- ject of domestic and street architecture, wherein the writer closes some severe remarks on the prevalent taste in these matters, with the following words : 106 RECOLLECTIONS OF ' " Whether successful iu treatment or not, what we regard with so much satisfaction in this and some other late specimens of architecture is the honesty of the work ; and for this we have to thank, in the first in- stance, the late Mr. Pugin. With all his crotchets, and with an absurd attachment, not merely to the spirit, but to the letter of medievalism, he has perhaps done more for architecture than any of those w r ho run him down. He it was who first exposed the shams and concealments of modern architecture, and con- trasted it with the heartiness and sincerity of mediaeval work. He showed the fair outside of a modern build- ing, having no relation to its construction, except that of a screen to hide its clumsy makeshifts. He then showed how the first principle of mediaeval work was to expose construction, and not to hide it, but to adorn it. A modern building, for example, conceals its flying buttresses with a dead wall ; an ancient one exposes them and derives a principal charm from these contrivances being seen. It is the law of all the old architecture, — there is nothing which it fears to show ; it rather invites inspection within and without ; where- as concealment was for long the rule of modern British architecture — concealment of the real material — con- cealment of the manner of construction. Pugin is dead — died, we believe, in distress. Let us remember to his honour that, if now there seems to be the dawn of a better architecture, if our edifices seem to be more correct in taste, more genuine in material, moi e honest in construction, and more sure to last, it was A. WELBY PUGIN. 107 he who first showed us that our architecture offended not only against the laws of beauty, but also against the laws of morality." * The " crotchets," the " absurd attachment," &c, the truth of which under other circumstances might be called in question, may be allowed to pass in the face of such a compliment. On the day after the publica- tion of the above, a letter appeared in the same journal signed A. R., which echoed the sentiments of the " Leader " on our friend's merits, and concluded with these words, " I further thank you for your generous testimony to the late Mr. Pugin. No man has done a tithe of what he has done in a given time for the reformation of our national architecture, yet no one has been more reviled. It is true that a man who comes forward as a reformer and an exposer of the vices of his age, must expect his share of vituperation in return ; but he has met with injustice from those who advocated the same principles with himself, as well as those whose fallacies he has exposed." ' My object in submitting these extracts to your readers is twofold 5 1st, to invite them to join with me in a legitimate triumph in favour of our deceased friend ; and 2ndly, to use them as a text for some- thing further. ' 1st. There are surely few Catholics who will not re- joice at witnessing so unmistakeable a homage paid, however tardily, to one to whom our Church in this country is so deeply indebted. Had Mr. Pugin not been a Catholic, his services to architecture and fine arts 108 RECOLLECTIONS OF would have been acknowledged long ago ; and there- fore when they are at length recognized, and by the " leading journal " of these kingdoms in this honour- able way, we must feel doubly proud of having had in our ranks the man, who, despite of his religion, and of the intrepidity with which he invariably defended it, is now declared on such competent authority, and in the face of such persevering efforts to decry him, to have been the one successful individual to whom ' ' if now there seems to be the dawn of a better architec- ture, if our edifices seem to be more correct in taste, more genuine in materials, more honest in construction, and more sure to last," the chief if not the whole credit is due. " Let us," says the writer, "remember this to his honour." ' 2ndly. The moral which I am desirous of extracting from the above text is this : that if those who are not of the fold, begin at last to appreciate the immense benefits conferred by the subject of this memoir on architecture and the fine arts, we to whom he espe- cially belonged, and of whose faith he was ever the unflinching champion, ought certainly to aim at some- thing more. The article which I have quoted states that Mr. Pugin " died in distress." This is perhaps hardly correct ; but though the pecuniary inheritance which he bequeathed to his children was certainly not ample, he has, nevertheless, if we . may judge of all by one specimen, transmitted to them sparks of genius, and that spirit of persevering industry which must, in course of years, be a fortune to any one. But if the A. WELBY PUGIN. 100 great man whose loss we deplore did not leave large revenues behind him, to what cause must we attribute the circumstance ? To no other than his intense devo- tion to the Church of God. The beauty of God's House was his dream by night and by day, and the Royal Prophet could not say with more literal truth than he : Zelus domus tuce comedit me. His substance was eaten into, or, according to the writer in the " Times," well nigh consumed, by his insatiate zeal for the glory of the House of God. This, I presume, will not be considered by us a blot on his fair fame, but rather an honourable feature in it, and certainly his family are far from reproaching him with the result. It is not therefore to relieve any real or supposed necessi- ties of his family that I am now going to propose some suitable testimonial. Time was, when a sub- scription was projected, the proceeds of which were to be given to himself, and well do I remember the honest indignation with which he met and rejected the proposal. The same, I feel, would be the case with his family now.' The immediate fruit of Pugin's secession from the English Church was shown in the work entitled 6 Con- trasts ; or, a Parallel between the Architecture of the 16th and IWi Centuries, by A. Welby Pugin,' pub- lished at St. Marie's Grange, near Salisbury, 1836. The book was well calculated to create a sensation, its tone being severe and personal. Had he never published any other architectural work than this, his literary power would have been established, the style 110 RECOLLECTIONS OF of writing being clear and forcible, injured only by a violence in some expressions arising from his great zeal for the cause of the religion he had so recently embraced. The illustrations, drawn and etched by his own hand, are very spirited and clever, yet certainly not all selected with fairness. His desire to put everything connected with Protestantism in a bad light, led him to select objects for contrast, which, being erected under totally different circumstances, ought not to have been placed in comparison with buildings raised during the palmiest period of mediaeval times. Archi- tectural art was certainly in a miserable state when this work was penned; but the modern buildings erected for Eoman Catholic purposes by professors of that creed were equally obnoxious to criticism, and selections might have been made from them for com- parison, to show the difference in treatment between ancient and modern ecclesiastical structures, without taking every example of failure from buildings erected by members of the Anglican Church. Nor, again, was it fair to pick out, what are confessedly the worst buildings of the 19 th century, to compare with those which on all hands are acknowledged as gems of art of the 15th century. Still, admitting this defect in the plan of the book, it must be conceded that many glaring abuses are here brought to light, and the mutilations of our cathedral buildings well exposed. Yet no impartial reader can fail to see that Pugin's judgment was manifestly warped; he treated many A. WELBY PUGIN. Ill things with scornful and unmitigated censure where, if he had been so disposed, he might have found ample grounds for palliation. Moderation in most matters was unknown to him, and it was not likely that he would practise that virtue when dealing with the system of the Church, from which he had just seceded. Observe, for instance, the exaggerated cha- racter of the following passage in the ' Contrasts :' — 6 When we reflect on the horrible repairs, alterations, and demolitions that have taken place in our venera- ble edifices, ever directed by a tepid and parsimonious clergy, brutal and jobbing parochial authorities, and ignorant and tasteless operatives, I do not hesitate to say that the lover of ancient art has more to regret during the period the present Establishment has had the churches in possession, than ever during the fatal period that drove the ancient churchmen from them.' The circulation of this work, however, did much good. It set people to look into matters hitherto neglected, and the beginning of several improvements in our cathedrals and large churches may be attributed to the effect of the exposures it made. But if Pugin here commented severely upon the architectural defor- mities perpetrated by Protestants, his later publica- tions will show that he was not more sparing in the exposure of blemishes in the Eoman Catholic system. His attacks upon the meretricious style of music em- ployed in the service of that Church, to the exclusion of the early Gregorian chaunts, and his vehement reproba- tion of the depraved and paltry character of some of 112 RECOLLECTIONS OF the sacerdotal vestments, made him many enemies in his own communion ; for he spared no one, and feared not to speak evil of dignities, nor to engage in literary conflict with the most distinguished theologians. On one occasion, when enjoying himself among a few con- genial spirits in a college at Oxford, the conversation turned on the original character of the chasuble and other vestments which he was then trying to revive. After dwelling with great delight on the beauty of Gothic forms, and the dignity gained by the ample folds of a soft material, instead of the stiff tabards of the French and Italian school, he broke out with an even more than wrathful malediction : — ' But after all, my dear sir, what's the use of decent vestments with such priests as we have got ? a lot of blessed fellows ! Why, sir, when they wear my chasubles, they don't look like priests, and what's worse, the chasubles don't look like chasubles.' One great fallacy in the remarks made in his ' Contrasts ' must not be passed over : he labours hard to prove that no work of high art can be produced by any one not within the pale of the Roman Catholic Church. In his view, it is only with the feeling inspired by that communion that anything excellent in religious art can be inspired. Thus, he says: — 'The mechanical part of Gothic architecture is pretty well understood, but it is the principles which influenced ancient compositions, and the soul which appears in all the former works, which is so lamentably deficient ; nor, as I have before stated, can anything be regained, but by a restoration of the A. WELBY PUGIN. 113 ancient feeling and sentiments; 'tis they alone can restore Gothic architecture.' This is the whole gist of Pugin's arguments. He appears wholly insensible of the merit which belongs to works of the classic period, and we find not a word even in toleration of that great school of art. Con- ceding very readily the unsuitableness of the severe Greek and Eoman styles of architecture for giving the most impressive character to religious edifices, still the assertion that it is impossible to effect great and masterly productions unless inspired by the genius of the Eoman Catholic Church is untenable. No one denies that the ceremonial character of the ritual of that Church, and the intensity of feeling generated by its doctrines and traditions, afforded a wide scope for the exercise of those branches of art, such as architecture and painting, which have flou- rished chiefly in connexion with it ; nor that a revulsion of feeling, not yet wholly extinct, which took place at the Reformation, chiefly through the fanaticism of the Puritans, affected most seriously the cultivation of fine arts. Still, to conclude that none but Roman Catholic artists can produce works of merit and feeling, even in a religious sense, is a lamentable mistake, of which Pugin himself must have been convinced before his death. Beyond all doubt a debt of gratitude is due to him for the remarks in his ' Contrasts,' calling attention to the degraded state of modern architecture ; but the public fail to recognize that identity of cause and effect, which, in Pugin's view, would give the monopoly of art to i 114 RECOLLECTIONS OF the Church of Rome. The many structures erected by Pugin himself, though superior to the generality of modern buildings, and exhibiting much of the archi- tectural truthfulness for which he contended, are yet far from being perfect; on the other hand, several churches and schools in connexion with the Anglican communion have been built since he commenced prac- tice, which beyond all question, both in design and feel- ing, will bear comparison with anything executed by him. Nay more, they may be considered superior, since they manifest an amount of study and care in design, which are sometimes found wanting in Pugin's best works. The very soul and expression which he claims as exclusive prerogatives of his own Church are present in the carefully considered details of some of our own recently bnilt churches. But in justice to Pugin it should be added that this excellence has been really attained through the impetus which his writings gave to the study of ' the true principles of Gothic architecture.' In the remarks which will be found in succeeding Chapters upon his executed works, notice will be taken of the infraction of some of the fundamental rules laid down by Pugin himself, with great emphasis, in his published works, from which it will appear, that although he could point out defects in the perform- ances of others with unsparing severity, making no allowance for the difficulties under which they laboured, yet his own productions are justly censurable when tested by the same severe rules. A. WELBY PUGIN. 115 Still the general current of public opinion was cer- tainly very favourable to the ' Contrasts,' and on the whole the book was well spoken of by the Press. It gave, as might be expected, some offence, but at the same time it caused much amusement by the pungent character of its remarks. The following lines, droll and clever, written by Mr. M'Cann, an Irishman, were first circulated privately, but at length got into 'Notes and Queries,' and were subsequently copied into the ' Builder :' SONG ON PUGIN'S < CONTRASTS.' Oh ! have you seen the work just out By Pugin, the great builder ? ' Architect'ral Contrasts ' he's made out Poor Protestants to bewilder. The Catholic Church, she never knew — Till Mr. Pugin taught her, That orthodoxy had to do At all with bricks and mortar. But now it's clear to one and all, Since he's published his lecture, No church is Catholic at all Without Gothic architecture. In fact, he quite turns up his nose At any style that's racent, The Gracian, too, he plainly shows Is wicked and ondacent. There's not a bit of pious taste Iver since the Reformation ; 'Twas Harry the Eighth, the nasty baste, That introduced the Gracian. When they denied the truth outright Of Tran substantiation, They built them in the Composite — That great abomination. i2 RECOLLECTIONS OF Next thing their Men's to build dozing pews In the most systematic way go ; They'd be kilt, they say, the other way, With rheumatics and lumbago. Some raise a front up to the street, Like ould Westminster Abbey ; And then they think the Lord to cheat, And build the back part shabby. For stuccoed bricks, and sich like tricks, At present all the rage is, They took no one in ! those fiue ould min ! In the ' pious Middle Ages ! ! !' A. WELBY PUGIN. 117 CHAPTER X. Pugin's introduction to the Earl of Shrewsbury — Letters addressed to his Lordship on various occasions— Letter from the Rev. Dr. Rock — Memorials to Pugin from Maynooth and other places — Letter from Count de Montalembert — Letter to the Lords of the Committee of Trade. It was in the summer of 1832, when calling at the well-known furniture-dealers, Messrs. Hull, in War- dour-street, that the Earl of Shrewsbury first became acquainted with Pugin's great talent for design. Ob- serving some drawings upon a table executed in a beautiful manner, he inquired the name of the artist, and on learning that it was Pugin, he desired to be introduced to him, a request which was immediately complied with. The introduction had no sooner taken place, than this illustrious and wealthy nobleman, the premier Peer of England, and most devoted son of the Roman Catholic Church, immediately availed himself of Pugin's professional skill to aid him in the alterations and additions to his princely residence, Alton Towers ; but perceiving, also, Pugin's zeal for the Catholic Church, and fully appreciating his eminent qualities, both as a man and an artist, he at once extended to him a friendly confidence, seldom found to exist between 118 RECOLLECTIONS OF men in such different positions of life. His lordship, though warmly attached to the Catholic Church, knew that much was defective in her external rites and cere- monies, and was conscious of many abuses needing remedy. In Pugin he found a man fully alive to these blemishes : eager and panting to correct them, at any risk, and who needed but the moral support of so powerful a patron as the Earl of Shrewsbury to make his efforts completely successful. Having then the same objects in view, Pugin, without reserve, commu- nicated to his lordship every fact which came to his knowledge showing neglect of ritualistic ceremony, or flagrant abuse of architectural propriety. In a series of letters, addressed to his noble friend, commencing in 1841, and extending over several years, there is much interesting matter on different subjects, and not one letter which does not contain some observations worthy to be recorded. Many of them relate, necessarily, to details of the architectural work he was carrying on at Alton Towers, and might not be generally interesting ; still, a few extracts are given, to show the independent manner in which he insisted upon carrying out his own views. One cannot but admire the manliness with which he intimates his determination to resign the superintendence of works he had in hand rather than be made the instrument for effecting alterations which his superior knowledge convinced him would be wrong. He had fondly hoped that, in designing buildings for his lordship, he would have been spared the mortifying interference so often encountered with public com- A. WELBY PUGIN. 119 mittees, and been permitted to erect structures in every respect suitable to the dignity of his employer ; but in this he was in some degree disappointed, as the following letter shows : — ' Hornby Castle. ' My dear Lord Shrewsbury, ' I cannot admit that I am to blame respecting the design of the dining-room. Of course I intended to make a fine thing, suitable to the purpose for which it is destined, and not a common room, fit only for a hotel. This is the very first room at the Towers that I was called upon to design, and it was quite natural that I should wish to produce something that would have a striking effect, especially when so many persons were loud in condemning the alterations, and declaring that the present room was far better than anything that could be done : yes, indeed, on the plan proposed by your lordship, at present, I do think the present room far better as regards design ; for the new room would be the most common-place apartment that can well be imagined. If I am not enabled to exercise any judgment, and make use of my knowledge and expe- rience, I am reduced to the condition of a mere draw- ing clerk to work out what I am ordered, and this I cannot bear ; and, so far from knocking under, I really must decline undertaking the alteration, unless your lordship will consent to its being made worthy of your dignity and residence. It shall never be said that I have spoilt the dining-room at Alton : I would not do it for a thousand pounds. I always opposed the win- 120 RECOLLECTIONS OF dow, and at one time your lordship suggested it would do for the east window of a church, to which I quite agreed, for it is a church window in design. From the first moment I spoke of a screen, and it is indispensable to break the current of air into the room. I never proposed anything for mere effect. I know my design was quite right, and again I entreat of your lordship to carry it out, or to leave the present building un- altered. . . . Nothing can be more dangerous than looking at prints of buildings, or trying to imitate bits of them : these architectural books are as bad as the Scriptures in the hands of the Protestants. I am very unhappy about it ; and as regards the hall, I have nailed my colours to the mast, — a bay window, high open roof, lantern, two good fire-places, a great side- board, screen, minstrel-gallery — all or none. I will not sell myself to do a wretched thing. Lady Shrews- bury told me, when I was last at Alton, that she would rather see the present room left, unless the new one was a truly fine work : and I am sure her ladyship is right. ' Ever, dear Lord Shrewsbury, &c, ' A. Welby Pugin.' The readiness with which Pugin exposed any abuse, in one instance made him the subject of a hoax. On receiving the annexed letter, he promptly wrote to Lord Shrewsbury, and did not discover, till some days afterwards, the trick which had been played. A. WELBY PUGIN. 121 ' Dear Sir, 4 It is with deep sorrow that I venture to in- form you of a circumstance which has just come to my knowledge ; and, though an entire stranger, I take the liberty of addressing you, being aware of your zeal for the honour and welfare of the Catholic Church. What, then, will be your grief and indignation (if you have not already heard it) at being told that — fearing the bazaar* in behalf of the Monastery of St. Bernard may prove unsuccessful — it has been thought that more people will be drawn to it were the monks to hold the stalls ! Was there ever such a scandal given to our most holy religion ? It may have been done ignorantly or innocently : but it is enough to make a Catholic of feeling shudder ! / am not in a situation to have the slightest influence in putting an end to this most dreadful proceeding : but knowing you to be well acquainted with the head of the English Catholics — the good Earl of Shrewsbury — would you not write to him, and request him to use his influence (which must be great) in stopping the sacrilege — for such it really is ? Think of your holy Church, thus degraded, and made a bye-word in the mouths of Protestants ! I know how you love and venerate her. Aid her then now : and attempt to rescue her from this calamity ! Pray excuse the freedom with which I have written, and, believe me, dear Sir, ' A Sincere Lover of my Church, but an Enemy to the Protestant Principle of Bazaars.' * See woodcut from Pugin's sketch, page 189. 122 EECOLLECTIONS OF In reference to this trick, when writing to Lord Shrewsbury, he says : — ' 1 have found out at last that the alarm about the monks at the bazaar was all a hoax ; and rumour mentions some ladies not far distant from the Towers as the authors. I must own it was capitally done, and put me into a perfect fever for some days. I only read the letter late in the day, and sent a person all the way to the General Post Office to save the post. I never gave the clay of the month a moment's consideration. I shall be better prepared for the next first of April. 5 Pugin, at this time, was much gratified by receiving the following complimentary letter from the Rev. Dr. Rock : they had both common objects in view, as the letter indicates ; but there evidently grew up a little rivalry between them ; for, in a later communication with Lord Shrewsbury, Pugin complains that a charge of piracy had been made against him by the learned Doctor. It was extremely likely that men interested in the same cause might, in their researches, quote the same authors : they had too much respect however for each other to let a slight mistake interfere with their friendship, and a little explanation soon healed the breach. £ Alton Towers, Ashbourne, Derby, 4 DEAR SlR, August 19, 1836. ' Though, as yet, I have not had the good for- tune of making your personal acquaintance, but know A. WELBY PUGIN. 123 you only by your admirable and very valuable works on the architecture of our country, still I cannot resist the pleasure of addressing a line to you, to offer you my most cordial congratulations and sincere thanks for the manner in which you have contributed to honour our holy religion, by the way in which you have exe- cuted the screen part more particularly, of your Book of Designs for silversmiths. The work is a most elegant and correct one : the designs are really beautiful. In the second part I was quite at home, amid chalices, monstrances, cruets, &c. : and I cannot tell you how much I feel indebted to you, not only for the delight you afforded me as an individual who is enthusiasti- cally attached to the study of the architecture and church antiquities of Catholic England, but for the assurance which I felt that your designs of Catholic church-plate would, on many occasions, propitiate the good-will of the man of taste towards the olden faith, and, perhaps, induce some to inquire into, and adopt its tenets. The first moving cause of several of our countrymen returning to the faith of their forefathers has, more than once, originated in similar trivial inci- dents. Truth is, very often, at first, like the grain of mustard-seed. 4 Having written a work, entitled " Hierurgia," in which I attempted to trace the origin, and note the accidental changes in the vestments of the priests and his attendant ministers at mass, and to explain to our Protestant fellow-countrymen the meaning of our church ceremonies, I feel very interested in 124 RECOLLECTIONS OF everything which can illustrate the subject. May I, therefore, request of you to inform me where you found the originals or models of the second part of your Designs ? 1 have an ancient chalice and a very old bronze processional cross, much in the style of the one you gave, but without the figures of the blessed Virgin and St. John. I should be most happy to show them to you. I should very much like to know if there be still existing, in England, any Catholic church-plate, and the places where they may be seen. I know that much may be detected figured in illuminated MSS., in painted glass, in the sculptures of our beautiful old churches, and in collegiate and monastic seals. When you favour me with a line, direct " The Rev. Dr. Rock," and send your letter under cover to Lord Shrewsbury. Thus you will be conferring a kindness on one of the numerous admirers of that correct and refined taste and accurate knowledge which you have displayed in the illustration of our splendid and venerable national ecclesiastical antiquities. While I take this opportunity to offer you my many thanks for the instruction and delight which I have derived from the sight of your works, allow me to congratulate with you on having discovered the pearl of great price — the knowledge of the true faith — while exploring those monuments of ancient piety which were erected by the generous zeal and religious feelings of our ancient Catholic pre- decessors. Believe me, dear sir, with sincere esteem and regard, yours most truly, 4 Daniel Rock/ A. WELBY PUGIN. 125 He was extremely angry in finding that his build- ings were no sooner completed than they were subject to mutilations through the indifference of those in- trusted with their care, and expresses himself with much indignation : 'I regret to say that there seems little or no appre- ciation of ecclesiastical architecture among the clergy. The cathedral I built, at Enniscorthy, has been com- pletely ruined. The new bishop has blocked up the choir, stuck the altars under the tower ! ! and the whole building is in a most painful state of filth : the sacra- rium is full of rubbish, and it could hardly have been worse treated if it had fallen into the hands of the Hottentots. I see no progress of ecclesiastical ideas in Ireland. I think if possible they get worse. It is quite useless to attempt to build true churches, for the clergy have not the least idea of using them properly.' In one of his communications Lord Shrewsbury had referred to the illegible character of some of Pugin's letters, which is not to be wondered at. It is indeed surprising to think that he could design all his buildings, make every working drawing, and carry on a voluminous correspondence, single handed- He might well, therefore, be excused for occasional careless writing. Thus he says in one of his letters : 6 1 am very sorry for my bad writing, but really I have so many letters to write, so much work to do, and get so driven up for time, that my ideas go so much faster than the pen, I fear I cut the syllables short, but I will be more careful in future.' 126 RECOLLECTIONS OF Amongst several letters written by him to Lord Shrewsbury while he was travelling on the Continent, the following are very amusing. ' Florence, Ascension of our Lord, May, 1847. ' My dear Lord Shrewsbury, ' Ever since I left Eome I have been delighted with Italy. By good luck, instead of coming here by sea, I took a veturrino from Eome, and saw Assisi, Perugia, Arezzo, Cortona, &c. I am certain that your lordship never could have seen those places, for they contain the most magnificent things in the world. I have seen three of the finest Gothic altars in Christen- dom, and one of silver about 12 feet long. As for the stained glass there is nothing so good on our side of the Alps ; and the sacristies are full of Gothic shrines, reliquaries, chalices, &c. I am in a perfect mine of mediaeval art. I used to imagine that there was nothing of the kind in this country, and I find more than in any other part of the world. Florence is enchanting. The glass at Santa Croce is perfectly beautiful, and the frescoes of Angelica di Fiesoli enchanting. Eome is certainly a miserable place, quite disgusting and depressing ; but Italy is yet the richest country for true Christian art, and I do not despair of St. Peter's being re-built in a better style. I saw two prelates at Eome in immediate attendance on the Pope, who quite agreed with me. What absurdities people have talked and written about the pointed style not being- adapted for Italy ! Why, it is full of it ; there is not A. WELBY PUGIN. 127 a little town that does not contain some fine specimens, to my astonishment. When I was at Pistoia one of the Canons, seeing I was an Englishman, asked me if I knew a Mr. Pugin, a Catholic architect, and when I told him I was the man, he embraced me, &c.' The horror which Pugin felt at the depraved taste, shown by some portion of the Roman Catholic priest- hood, and so forcibly dwelt upon in the modern Ambonoclast, is more particularly described in the following extract. After remarking upon the mischief done to the Catholic cause by the articles in the c Tablet,' he adds : 4 Has your lordship heard that the Oratorians have opened the Lowther Rooms as a chapel ! ! — a place for the vilest debauchery, masquerades, &c. — one night a masqtjed ball, next Benedictus. This appears to me perfectly monstrous, and I give the whole order up for ever. "What a degradation for religion ! Why, it is worse than the Socialists. What a place to celebrate the mysteries of religion in ! I cannot conceive how it is allowed. It cannot even be licensed or protected by law, since they only have it for a time. It is the greatest blow we have had for a long time ; no men have been so disappointing as these. Conceive the poet Faber come clown to the Lowther Rooms ! The man who wrote " Thoughts and Sights in Foreign Churches ! ! !" hiring the Lowther Rooms ! Well may they cry out against screens or anything else. I always 128 ItECOLLECTIONS OF said they wanted rooms, not churches, and now they have got them. Sad times! I cannot imagine what the world will come to, if it goes on much longer. ' Ever, my dear Lord Shrewsbury, ' A. W. PUGIN.' * London, Tuesday in the Octave of the Assumption. ' My dear Lord Shrewsbury, ' 1 arrived home quite safe last week after ex- periencing most miserable weather. I encountered one gale of wind between Rotterdam and Antwerp which was awful, and to make the matters worse I was in a wretched steam-boat that I found after I was on board had been condemned, and after the week was to be replaced by a fine new vessel. We had both pumps going, and the vessel strained as if she would go to pieces. I was very thankful to get safe ashore. Imme- diately on leaving your lordship, I was the victim of the grossest piece of villany that I think was ever per- petrated in broad daylight in a Christian country. I sat in the coupe, and immediately before me was a black, ferocious-looking rascal in a conical hat, mous- taches and beard, a compound of both Infidel and Republican. He brought an enormous pipe, at least three feet long ; this he laid on the seat unperceived by me. After a short drive the postillion said every- body must dismount, as there was a dangerous bridge to pass. It was impossible to get out of the coupe without pushing up the seat. The fellow had left his pipe behind the cushion, and of course down it went A. WELBY PUGIN. 129 and broke the bowl. On this he attacked me most furiously, and declared I should pay 25 francs ! ! for his pipe not worth 30 sous. And if it had been worth 500 francs, he placed it in a position where it was im- possible even to perceive it. I refused, and remon- strated, and this went on till we got to the place where we join the high road to Liege ; he was going to Aix. As soon as I got out of the coach he rushed on me and declared he would have the satisfaction of a man of honour, or 25 francs. He drew a knife and desired me to defend myself; this of course I refused to do, for I had no idea of fighting. He then swore that if I did not instantly pay 25 francs, I should not leave the place alive. Not a soul came to help. The other pas- sengers, who saw the whole injustice of the business, left me to this horrid ruffian ; I had no alternative but to pay. What could I do ? My diligence was waiting ; he was going to Aix, I to Liege ; I had not even time to seek redress. The furious ruffian would have stuck me at any rate ; but I never paid 25 francs with such bad grace 5 and yet what other chance had I to free myself from this beast ? Whenever I see a man with a conical hat, a beard, and a pipe, I shall avoid him most carefully ' With kindest respects to her ladyship, believe me, my dear Lord Shrewsbury, with great respect, ' Your most devoted and faithful servant, 'A. W. PlJGIN.' K 130 RECOLLECTIONS OF ' Ramsgate, July, 1840. My dear Lord, 4 1 intend proceeding to London on Monday, and shall not fail to call at Mivart's, where I shall have the greatest delight in going over that glorious church of St. Peter's, Westminster, with your Lordship. I have just returned from St. Omer's, where the glories of Catholic antiquity and modern trash are surprisingly contrasted. I witnessed a procession of the Fete Dieu, in which ecclesiastical ornament and vestments were burlesqued in the most outrageous manner. I reserve particulars till I have the pleasure of seeing your Lordship ; but such a collection of paper wings, sashed and pinked acolytes, petticoat albs, board-like cha- subles and dalmatics I never before witnessed, and the ressosoirs were worthy of Bartholomew Fair.' ' Hotel des Trois Rois, Basle ; October 2nd. ' My dear Lord Shrewsbury, ' I have arrived safe at Basle, and never was better repaid by a journey. I think this is one of the most interesting places I have seen next to Nurem- burg. I wonder your lordship did not recommend me to come here before. There are several exquisite things, especially in lead work, and everything is so picturesque. I feel a great deal better than I have done for some time ; the journey has done me good in every way. I shall return laden with treasures of detail. It is wonderful to find so much that is new A. WELBY PUGIN. 131 even to me, and I have had dreadful weather all the time, but I have managed, by working in doors during the worst rain, to get on. I arrived here in a dread- ful thunderstorm, and we have another to-night. I never saw heavier rain, and those who had any luggage got it soaked ; thanks to my large pockets and mackin- tosh I escaped dry. It is quite delightful to travel without incumbrances. I care nothing for custom houses and baggage offices. / have everything about me, and cannot leave anything, it is the only way to travel with comfort. I met two Oscott students with six large packages, out for three weeks' tour ! ! ! It is quite a duty to sketch all the fine old places, for they are modernizing in every direction, and in a few years we shall have nothing left. Mayence is utterly ruined, nothing but modern streets and great square houses. I begin to return on Monday, and purpose coming down to Alton soon after my arrival in England. As soon as I get back I will write again to your lordship, but I thought you would be glad to hear that I was well, and had accomplished the object of my journey. 1 Ever, dear Lord Shrewsbury, 4 With great respect, ' Your most devoted and faithful servant, 4 A. W. Pugin.' ' I have just returned from Ireland, and to all appearances, everything is arranged about Maynooth, but, after the great experience I have had of the un- certainty of human affairs, I shall not calculate on it k 2 132 RECOLLECTIONS OF till we have actually begun. I was very kindly received both by the authorities of the colleges and the Lord Lieutenant, who invited me to a grand state dinner on Tuesday' i I was horrified, on arriving at Manchester to-day, to find that some pious persons had bought those horrid figures that came out of your lordship's chapel, cast iron brackets and all, and given them to be fixed in the church I have built at Manchester, St. Wilfrid's, with that French image of the blessed Virgin for the lady chapel : it is dreadful. I will never advise send- ing anything to bazaars again. Good gracious ! the horrid things to come back again : they pursue me like the Flying Dutchman. I thought I had seen the last of them, and they actually go into a church that should be perfect in its way. What to do, I know not.' ' 1 am now on my way to Gloucester, to build a small chapel, and alter a house for Mr. Leigh, who became a Catholic some time ago. I am doing a great deal in various ways, but nothing now of any great importance ; the new Houses of Parliament occupy a great deal of my time, and I work incessantly. There are great difficulties about Maynooth ; the grant is quite insufficient for the building, and it appears that the Government will neither give any more, nor con- sent to Dr. Crolley's proposition to take a sum from the yearly grant for its completion, so I am quite at a stand and have no idea how it will end.' A. WELBY PUGIN. 133 1 1 have latterly nothing but Protestant business,, but that pays, and by erecting my church I turn it to Catholic purposes. There are so many Catholic architects now, that there is not a chance of any new buildings. I believe I design for all of them, for I see actually my own casts and figures used, and then they abuse me afterwards. These men can afford to sell cheap, for they steal their br ooms ready made ; however, the movement progresses, and the right sort of thing becomes general, and that is the great point.' The perplexing suggestions interfering with his own better knowledge, which he had to resist with his friend Lord Shrewsbury, were trifling as compared to the difficulties he met with in dealing with committees. He had been appointed by the Government to prepare plans for the additions to Maynooth College in Ireland. After producing a satisfactory design, from some causes beyond his control, the proposed expenditure was re- duced from £30,000 to £18,000. This unexpected reduction put it out of Pugin's power to do anything which he felt could be creditable to him ; he, in con- sequence, tendered his resignation as architect. This step on his part caused the greatest disappointment to the local authorities. They were so fully impressed with his superior abilities, that they addressed a me- morial to the Executive Board as follows : — * We the undersigned have learned with deep regret that Mr. Pugin has ceased to be the architect to the 134 EECOLLECTIONS OF College. We are fully convinced that his long ex- perience in ecclesiastical architecture, and his thorough acquaintance with the noble churches and colleges of former times, eminently qualify him for the task of building the new church and making other improve- ments which have been already intrusted to him by the Board. We are strongly of opinion that there is no other person likely to be appointed who is in any degree equally qualified with Mr. Pugin for executing buildings of this kind. In confirmation of this con- viction, we appeal to the beautiful plan which he sub- mitted to the trustees last summer, and of which they unanimously approved. May we be allowed to suggest to your lordship, and to the other members of the board, that the circumstances which have induced Mr. Pugin to resign are not of an insuperable nature, but that, on the contrary, they may be overcome by hearty co-operation, and we fully calculate on the kind and powerful support of our illustrious hierarchy in making our College worthy of Maynooth and of Ireland. 'P.S. We have taken the liberty of forwarding a copy of this note to each of the members of the Board.' N.B. This document was signed by the several pro- fessors. Mr. Gaffney. P. A. Murray. J. Behan. Mr. Lee. G. Crolly. D. McCarthy. J. Gunn. T. Furlong. D. Gargan. T. Fanelly. C. Russell. M. Kelly. T. Dixon. N. Callan. J. Tully. E. O'Reilly. A. WELBY PUGIN. 135 Mr. Gaffney, also a leading member of the College, addressed this letter to him : — « Maynooth, 6th of April, 1846. ' My dear Mr. Pugin, * I would in vain endeavour to convey to you, by letter, our anxiety here on this important question, which every one puts to himself and to his confreres, 6 ' Who will build our new church and college ? " Some months ago we hailed, with delight, the appointment of a man, whose genius, whose talents, whose truly Catholic spirit were sure to leave a solemn impress of Catholicity, within and without the walls of this national establishment, which for fifty years has presented no emblem, to the eye, as of a Catholic seminary, save the sacred tabernacle which deco- rates the altar. You were the man, in whom our fond hopes were centred, through whom we expected the realisation of them. Conceive then, if you can, what our feelings were, when we heard that you had ceased to be the architect to our College. This news was bad news indeed ; it was a severe blow, it was deeply felt. We were disheartened, but we did not despair. One of us waited on His Grace Dr. Murray, who feels as intensely as we do regarding your resig- nation. By the Archbishop's advice, we sent a docu- ment to each of the members of the Board of Trustees. I send you a copy of this paper, which was signed by all the members of our body except three. These gentle- men are, however, anxious that you should be the archi- tect to the College. We have received many answers to 136 RECOLLECTIONS OF our circular, all of which agree with us in opinion. Doctors McHale, Brown, McNicholson, and Lord French, declare, in their answers, that they will use all their influence as trustees, to secure to the College the services of Mr. Pugin. There will be a meeting of the trustees in Dublin on the 22nd day of the pre- sent month, for the sole purpose of coming to a decision on the buildings. Mr. Owens will submit his plan (without a new church) on that day, but I am almost certain that the great majority of the trustees will not have any other plan than the one proposed by you last summer and approved of by all. We have £30,000 ; let us begin with that sum, and when exhausted, Pro- vidence will not be wanting. The new church and buildings will not remain unfinished. This is the idea of some of our most distinguished prelates. We agree most heartily with them. We all here are full of hope that two months will not pass away until you are again the architect to St. Patrick's College. We all desire it, we all pray for it, and no one more ardently than he who has the pleasure of subscribing himself, 6 Most sincerely yours, 'M. Gaffney.' Though Pugin was greatly annoyed either by the opposition or indifference to his views, showed by many leading men in the Roman Catholic Church, yet he had reason to be pleased with such spontaneous communications as the following. A. WELBY PUGIN. 137 To A. Welby Pugin. ( St. Edmund's College, near Ware, Herts. ' Dear and respected Sir, 6 Feeling ourselves highly honoured by your presence amongst us, long anxiously expected, we hasten to present you with a testimonial of our senti- ments. While others more favoured have lived in the very circle of your actions, we, in our retirement, have communed with you solely in your writings. But think not that, therefore, our esteem has been less en- thusiastic. We have watched your constant exertions in the revival of the real glory of art, we have wit- nessed your successful labours for the beautifying of the House of God, and great has been our respect, heartfelt our gratitude. A time has at length arrived when these feelings, so long secret, may be made manifest, and we rejoice in the hope that this small manifestation will give some passing satisfaction to you as highly deserving. The approving voice of many truly learned has already gone forth to cheer you in your career of utility and fame. And amongst these may we not number several of our own body, several amongst the anointed of God ? They have been happy in their appointment to raise the broken altars of Israel — they have been further happy in having one who might render the beauty of these altars a fitting throne for the Eternal. In this twofold honour may a share be reserved for us. May we be one day their successors, and may we too have the advantage of 138 RECOLLECTIONS OF your co-operation. That for many years your mind may be guided by the Framer of all beauty, that you may long continue the worthy embellisher of His temples is the united earnest prayer of ' The Students of St. Edmund's.' The only drawback to this token of approval must have been the form in which it was sent, for the letter paper was headed with the view of a most de- testable and commonplace building in the Grecian style which can possibly be conceived ; but still these approving communications were very grateful to Pugin, as showing that there were certainly some amongst his own communion who appreciated his zeal and devotion to their Church, and he might well excuse the somewhat forced and far-fetched language in which the testimonial was couched. It may easily be supposed that Pugin, filling so distinguished a position as an architect, would be in communication with the leading men of all countries ; and so he was ; but the letters mostly relate to pro- fessional business, and are therefore scarcely suited or interesting to the public. One, however, from the Count de Montalembert, commending an artist of emi- nence to Pugin s notice, is worthy of insertion. ' Paris, in Festo S. Marci Evangel, 1848. ' My dear Mr. Pugin, 'Allow me to introduce to your kind notice and protection M. Emile Lusson, one of our best Catholic A. WELBY PUGIN. 139 artists. As a painter, in the modern Christian style, I sincerely think he has no superior in France ; and I should be very much astonished if he had any in Eng- land. The sad and discouraging state of every concern depending on art and intellect, owing to the late cata- strophe in France, induces him to try his fortune in England ; and, if I am not greatly mistaken, he would do honour to any of the churches and chapels with which your genius has adorned your native land. 'I abstain from all reflections on the astounding events which we are now going through. The French clergy has taken a part which has astonished and grieved some of its best friends ; but, whatever hap- pens, the Almighty will know how to save His Church from the frenzy of its enemies and its false friends. ' Believe me ever cordially and faithfully yours, ' W. C. de MONTALEMBERT.' In 1851 Pugin was appointed one of the Commis- sioners of Fine Arts in connexion with the Great Exhibition. During his absence from one of their meetings, a recommendation was made for the purchase of a shield ornamented in a style he did not approve. This caused him some annoyance, and, feeling strongly upon the subject, he addressed a letter of remonstrance to the Lords of the Committee of Trade, exonerating himself from any implication in this act of his colleagues. The letter, couched in strong terms, affords another illustration of the manly outspoken manner in which he always expressed his opinions. 140 RECOLLECTIONS OF * St. Augustine's, Ramsgate, 1 My LORDS, December 10th, 1851. i 1 hasten to acknowledge with most earnest thanks the communication which I have just received respecting the purchase of the shield of Vechte, No. 25. It enables me to present myself as the uncompromising opponent of that purchase, to which I have never, by word or deed, consented. The purchase appears to have been decided by the three other commissioners on a day when I was unavoidably absent on Government business at Westminster; and, when I was informed of what had been decided, I exclaimed that they would never obtain my consent. I repudiated the very idea of purchasing the shield, as, although it was, in the abstract, an exceed- ingly clever piece of chasing, yet it was diametrically opposite to the style and principles which I considered we ought to put before the students, and the object of the collection we were entrusted to form. I trust, therefore, that your Lordships will exonerate me from all participation in this shield purchase, the cost of which is out of all character for such an object, useless and obsolete, excepting as a space to exhibit metal chasing ; and I do not hesitate to say that, clever as this chasing may be, it does not in any way illustrate the English character of the poet to which it pretends to refer, but is a positive revival of Pagan art, and unfit for our National school of design, and as such, as well as from the great cost, I consider it a most ob- jectionable object to select, and out of all character with the purpose for which we have had the honour of A. WELBY PUGIN. 141 being appointed. I am very happy to add that we have, on the whole, worked most cordially, and I may truly say that our purchases, as a collection, will be of infinite service, especially in the Oriental pro- ductions and works designed on natural principles. Cannot this matter be reconsidered by your Lordships, and the money, which is a considerable sum, far better applied ? I imagine the East Indian importations of costly articles might be revisited with great benefit. I have been preparing a short account of our reasons (barring the shield), which has unfortunately been re- tarded by my late severe attack of nervous fever, from which dangerous malady I am only very lately deli- vered, and the state to which it has reduced me pre- vents my returning too quickly to anything that re- quires much mental exertion ; but if, by the blessing of God, my faculties are again restored to their former strength, I will send a fair copy to Mr. Cole (from whom I have received the kindest attentions), or, in his absence, to Mr. Dodd. I feel confident that my friend Mr. Herbert will only echo the sentiments I have expressed, if his opinion be taken. 4 1 remain, my Lords, with all respect, your most de- voted and humble servant, 'Augustus Welby Pugin. * To the Lords of the Committee for Trade, Whitehall.' Note.These letters have been brought together into one chapter without reference to their dates : they form no portion of connected correspondence bearing on one particular subject, but are inserted here as illustrating the force of character so observable in all Pugin's affairs, and as showing the high esteem in which his talents were held. 112 RECOLLECTIONS OF CHAPTER XL Publishes ' True Principles of Gothic Architecture ' — Cruises at Sea — Facility of Drawing and Etching while in the Boat — Sound Princi- ples of Design — Tact requisite to carry them into execution — Ex- posure of unrealities, and censure of wrong Roman practices — Pub- lishes his great work, ' A Glossary of Ecclesiastical Ornament and Costume' — Its effect. The success attending on the publication of the 1 Con- trasts ' induced Pugin very soon afterwards, in 1841, to prepare another work, entitled ' True Principles of Gothic Architecture.' This volume was published by- Mr. Weale, the architectural bookseller. It has been already noticed that Pugin's former work, 6 The Con- trasts,' was published by himself at St. Marie's Grange. He was compelled to take this course in consequence of his failing to find a publisher who would incur the responsibility of giving to the world a work so strongly seasoned with personal abuse. His present aim was to further the correct revival of ancient architecture, by exposing the miserable way in which all branches of trade connected with mediaeval art were carried on, and the unsatisfactory result arising through the artifices and deceptions prac- tised in the production of fabrics of every kind used in buildings of this description. Such true and incon- A. WELBY PUGIN. 143 trovertible principles are contained in this book, that it may be safely affirmed we owe more to its in- fluence in correcting public taste than to all other causes combined. The simple and masterly manner in which first principles are insisted upon constitute the key to the extensive usefulness of the volume, which is illustrated in the most happy manner by diagrams and sketches, all drawn and etched by him- self. While occupied in the preparation of this work Pugin was pursuing a rather eccentric mode of life ; it has been previously remarked that he was fond of the sea : he now frequently made cruises along the coast, sometimes extending them to the opposite shores of France, and in fair weather reaching the coast of Holland. In this way he was frequently afloat for many days together ; yet, amidst this seeming neglect of his legitimate demands on his time, he contrived to give sufficient attention to what was in progress at home. The following incident is somewhat character- istic. After an absence of some weeks Pugin unex- pectedly called at his publisher's, who observed that his dress, which usually was untidy, appeared more strange than ever. He was enveloped in a huge pilot-coat, large enough for a man twice his size. On this strange exhibition Mr. Weale, his publisher, remarked : 'Why, you appear to have made a mistake, and have got a coat belonging to somebody else/ 6 Oh,' observed Pugin, 'it is of no consequence — I caught up the first garment that came in my way, 114 RECOLLECTIONS OF getting into harbour after a stiff gale off Calais ; but here are the plates for my book :' — at the same time pulling out a heap of copper-plates from under the ample folds of his coat. 'They are all ready for proving.' ' But how and where did you finish the etchings ?' c Oh,' said Pugin, 'I finished them in the boat/ ' Impossible/ replied Mr. Weale. ' Not a bit of it,' retorted Pugin ; ( the motion of the sea makes no difference to me and, truly, many of the outlines illustrating the 'Apology' were etched by him under these apparently impossible circum- stances. There is a tendency, whenever any measure sound in principle is made strongly manifest, to carry it to extremes in practice. Nothing, for instance, can be more true than Pugin's theories, laid down in the ' Apology,' and, among other axioms, that the plan of a building should combine all the convenience required for its intended purpose, and when once the plan is settled, then the elevations may be considered. In all the buildings erected by Pugin this rule has been acted upon ; and they are very happy illustra- tions of his theory. There is an obvious character and fitness about them, no stiffness or studied uni- formity, but graceful adaptations of plan and eleva- tion. As in the plans, doors and windows are placed where convenience needed them, so in the elevations, their heights and positions are regulated by the natural requirements of construction. Still A, WELBY PUGIN. 145 the application of this same rule can scarcely be suc- cessful unless the artist, while planning his building, can see by anticipation the general outline of the superstructure to be raised from his ground plan. The system of drawing a plan and disposing of windows and doors without reference to the gracefulness of exterior design must end in a composition remarkable for eccentricity and awkwardness, rather than for pleasing appearance. A great disposition is shown among the young architects of the present day to fall into this error : and indeed, amateur architects who, charmed with the truthfulness of Pugin's views, have boldly acted upon his rule without suspecting any difficulty, have found themselves cruelly disappointed in the result. At the time when the ' True Principles ' were written, few beyond strictly professional men ventured to carry into practice the axioms so plainly laid down by Pugin. There were then, however, as there are now, some men whose natural taste for drawing and application to the study of mediaeval art rendered them almost as competent as professional men. A few such the writer of these pages has had the pleasure of knowing. The attempt of one of these gentlemen to work out Pugin's theory will afford a good illustration of the difficulty in design just re- ferred to. The late Lord T was an ardent admirer of Pugin's writings, and, being really a scientific and accomplished man, he determined, un- aided by any professional advice, to build a parsonage in the mediaeval style, and strictly upon the 4 true L 146 RECOLLECTIONS OF principles ' embodied in the work he so much admired. Selecting, then, his site with much judgment, in the village of A , in S , my Lord arranged the ground plan to his own mind perfectly, and in so convenient a manner that a triumphant result seemed certain ; and in due course, though unexpected diffi- culties continually presented themselves, the parson- age was finished. The embarrassments, however, attendant on the building of this house were almost endless, and the various shifts by which false bearings were overcome, small gutters carried from the roofs over ceilings, and other expensive contrivances made to meet new and unforeseen checks, were many. ' Well,' said a friend one day to his lordship, while inspecting the parsonage, 'and now what has been the cost of this example of truthful construction ?' To which he received the short but expressive answer, ' For heaven's sake don't ask me.' No doubt all this disappointment might have been avoided if his lord- ship had called to his aid competent professional assistance, and the mention of the failure is only made to show that a sound principle in theory is not suffi- cient; but to be useful must be worked out with professional practical knowledge. Perhaps the greatest service has been done, through the agency of this work, by Pugin's unsparing ex- posure of the system of shams in architectural design. Every kind of unreality is pointed out and denounced. The good effect of his decrying this most vicious practice may certainly be witnessed in many works A. WELBY PUGIN. 147 executed since his day ; for whatever may be their other faults, there is a much greater degree of honesty and sterling character in them than is to be found in modern buildings erected previously to Pugin's publi- cation. The circulation of this work established his reputation, and he rapidly obtained extensive busi- ness, reaping the pecuniary advantages accruing from large commissions. Had he now reserved but a moderate share of his annual income, he would have left a handsome fortune behind him; but Pugin's love for all that was interesting and useful in con- nection with his art was so strong, that he never could resist the temptations of purchasing ancient works of art and literature. Whenever opportunities offered of obtaining choice pictures, books, and prints by early German masters and divines, the cost of such objects was readily incurred, so that in a short time he possessed a very valuable library of the most choice books, and a large collection of rare articles of vertu. Pugin seems about this time to have been more than ordinarily annoyed by observing that in all the accessories connected with the Catholic worship where art should be apparent, there had been a sad declen- sion since the period of the Reformation ; and having exposed in no sparing manner all the abominations, as he was accustomed to call them, of the Reformed Church, he now sought, by the influence which his genius gave him, to effect an improvement in eccle- siastical vestments, furniture, holy vessels, and other l2 148 RECOLLECTIONS OF objects connected with the ritualism of the Roman Catholic Church. His intimacy with many learned ecclesiastics enabled him to obtain such an amount of historical information in reference to these matters, that, aided by them, he produced the most elaborate and beautiful work which had been hitherto attempted, under the title of ' A Glossary of Ecclesiastical Orna- ment and Costume ; with Extracts from the Works of Durandus and others, faithfully translated by Bernard Smith of St. Michael's College, Oscott.' The book is illustrated with the most exquisite chromolithic examples of ancient design, besides many beautiful woodcuts, and many ingenious devices of his own. The subject was one so entirely congenial to his taste that he seems to have exhausted all the resources of art bearing upon the' sacred furniture and decoration of the Church. The influence of this work upon poly- chromatic decoration has been immense. No well- directed attempts in recent times had been made to in- troduce coloured embellishments into churches ; but a stimulus was now given to such efforts, and although Protestant prejudices were opposed to coloured deco- rations, yet they were depicted with such fascinating effect in the pages of the Glossary that many of his symbols, suited only for the walls of a Roman Catholic edifice, were innocently repeated in our English churches. Although not immediately, yet in great measure, we owe the successful application of poly- chromatic decoration in the Chapter-houses at Salis- bury, Chester, Wells, Ely, and elsewhere to the well- A. WELBY PUGIN. 149 directed efforts of Pugin to revive this art. None who studied his books could fail to see the truth of his reasoning on art, and the diffusion of his writings among the public tended much to abate the blind prejudice against colour, so that the cathedral autho- rities could in some degree count upon support where hitherto they had met opposition. Whenever coloured wall spaces were advocated the prejudice was strange which led the same people who approved filling windows with painted glass to raise objections when painting was sought to be applied to stone surfaces. 150 RECOLLECTIONS OF CHAPTER XII. Publishes ' A Treatise on Chancel Screens ' — Severity of his Remarks upon a section of the Roman Catholic Church, when disregarding proper Church Arrangements — Precedents taken from Lombardic Churches — ' Modern Ambonoclast ' — ' Calvinist Ambonoclast ' — Anecdotes. After labouring hard both by pen and pencil for many years to bring about a revival of purer art, chiefly in connection with the Catholic Church, Pugin published his last book in 1851, entitled ' A Treatise on Chancel Screens and Rood Lofts ; their Antiquity, Use, and Symbolic Signification. Illustrated with Figures copied on Stone, from Drawings by the Author with the motto, ' ISTe transgredearis terminos quos posuerunt patres tui.' In this publication he traces with remarkable clear- ness the uses of screens of every description, from the earliest period of the Christian Church to the present time. It was not in his nature to express himself feebly on any matter, and his lively imagination finds ample scope in fervid description while engaged on this topic. But the most remarkable feature of the work consists in its extreme severity upon the modern usages of the Roman Catholic Church. Whereas in his earlier writings no terms of condemnation were sufficiently strong to express his dislike of the prac- A. WELBY PUGIN. 15J tices of the Reformed Church, we now find him ex- hausting his vocabulary of censure upon the learned ecclesiastics of his own creed. Speaking of screens, he says : ' Screens are, in truth, the very least part of the cause of their animosity to the churches of their fathers, for if any man says he loves Pointed Architec- ture and hates screens, I do not hesitate to denounce him as a liar ; for one is inseparable from the other, and more inseparable from Catholic arrangement in any style, Byzantine, Norman, Pointed, or Debased.' The numerous illustrations of this work, consisting in delineations of ancient screens of every kind, are admirably drawn. The author does not confine himself to examples in the pointed style only, but gives several specimens of early Italian designs in support of his theories. He appears to have studied the arrange- ment of the ancient Basilicse with much care, and derived several of his best screens from the noble mediaeval churches of Lombardy. His precedents are wholly taken from buildings of well-known early date and authority, during this period. Pugin's tour in Italy did not in any degree alter his opinion of classic architecture. When at Rome a story was current of his going round St. Peter's in a state of rage, exclaim- ing, 6 Why they can't even carry out decently their own miserable style and on his return to England he told his friends he got out of Rome as soon as he possibly could, ' for every hour he was there he felt endangered his faith ; that the metropolis of Christen- dom should delight in such monstrosities of architec- 152 RECOLLECTIONS OF ture was,' he observed, 4 almost enough to make a man an infidel.'* He sums up his treatise by four sketches of great interest, entitled ' The Calvinistic Ambonoclast,' ' The Pagan Ambonoclast,' 'The Revolutionary Ambono- clast,' and 'The Modern Ambonoclast,' each showing the retribution which attends those who despise, and destroy holy things. The work concludes with a severe philippic against a certain section of the Roman Catholic clergy, who, ignoring the usages of antiquity, directed all their efforts to the establishment of places of worship wherein a total disregard might be shown of the many objects which Pugin so much venerated. Those who remember the fittings up of the oratory in King William Street, Strand, with all its tawdry and unartistic embellishments, will see how well-merited was his denunciation, conveyed in the unflinching terms of the chapter of his book describ- ing the ' Modern Ambonoclast.' ' The Modern Ambonoclast. ' This character is of comparatively recent creation, some of the species having been seen in this country previously to the consecration of St. George's Church. About that time two or three made their appearance, and though not by any means in a flourishing condi- tion, they have somewhat increased. It has been asserted that their first dislike of screens arose from * In a letter to a friend, speaking of Rome, he says : « The bad archi- tecture there belongs to a period, not to a nation ; for Italy is full of Gothic work, and within a short distance of the Eternal City.' A. WELBY PUGIN. 153 a desire of literary notoriety ; and that, finding seve- ral old women of both sexes had taken a most unac- countable and implacable offence at the ancient divi- sion of the chancel and the restoration of the Crucifix, which had been so wisely destroyed in the good old days of Queen Bess, they profited by the occasion to increase the sale of a periodical. But this may be mere calumny ; and, indeed, it is very probable that it is a case of pure development, as at first they did not exhibit any repugnance to Pointed churches, which they rather lauded, and only took objection to certain upright mull ions and fanciful images. But they speedily developed other propensities and ideas, and latterly have exhibited symptoms almost similar to hydrophobia at the sight — at mere mention — of Pointed arches or pillars. The principal characteristics of modern ambonoclasts may be summed up as follows : — Great irritability at vertical lines, muntans of screens, or transverse beams and crosses ; a perpetual habit of abusing the finest works of Catholic antiquity and art, and exulting in their admiration of everything debased, and modern, and trumpery ; the inordinate propensity for candles and candlesticks, which they arrange in every possible variety. They require great excitement in the way of lively, jocular, and amatory tunes at Divine service, and exhibit painful distress at the sound of solemn chanting or plain song ; at Divine worship they require to sit facing the altar and near the pulpit, and then if the edifice be some- what like a fish-market, with a hot-water pipe at 154 RECOLLECTIONS OF their feet, a gas-pipe in the vicinity, and a stove in the rear, they can realize a somewhat Italian atmo- sphere in cold and cheerless England, and recover some sparks of that devotion of which the gloomy vaulting of Westminster and the odious pillars of a new rood- screen had well-nigh deprived them of. It must be however stated to their credit, that the modern ambo- noclasts, unlike their predecessors, confine their attacks to strokes of the pen ; and we do not believe that they have hitherto succeeded in causing the demolition of a single screen. Indeed it is probable that if the development of their real character had not proceeded so rapidly they might have caused some serious mis- chief to Catholic restorations ; but the cloven foot is now so visible that men are looking out in expecta- tion of the tail, and are already on their guard.' The interesting description which he gives of the city of London with all its ancient churches in Catholic times, and his graphic account of the de- struction of the roods and fittings, are so powerfully written under the title of the ' Calvinist Ambono- clast,' that the temptation to insert it in these pages cannot be resisted. 4 The Calvinist Ambonoclast. ' When we now behold the city of London, with its narrow lanes lined with lofty warehouses, and gloomy stores leading down to the banks of the muddy Thames, whose waters are blackened with foul dis- charges from gas-works and soap-boilers, while the air A. WELBY PUGIN. 155 is darkened with the dense smoke of chimneys rising high above the parish steeples, which mark the site of some ancient church destroyed in the great conflagra- tion, it is difficult to realize the existence of those venerable and beautiful fabrics where the citizens of London assembled in daily worship, and whose rood- lofts shone so gloriously on Easter and Christmas feasts. But this great and ancient city was inferior to none in noble religious buildings; and in the 16th century the traveller who approached London from the west, by the way called Oldbourne, on arriving at the brow of the steep hill must have had a most splen- did prospect before him : to the right the parish church of St. Andrew's rising most picturesquely from the steep declivity, and surrounded by elms, with its massive tower, decorated nave, and still later chancel ; on the left the extensive buildings of Ely House, its great gateway, embattled walls, lofty chapel and refec- tory, and numerous other lodgings and offices sur- rounded by pleasant gardens, as then unalienated from the ancient see after which it is called, presented a most venerable and ecclesiastical appearance. Further in the same direction might be perceived the gilded spire of St, John's church of Jerusalem and the Nor- man towers of St. Bartholomew's priory. Immediately below was the Fleet river with its bridge and the masts of the various craft moored along the quays. At the summit of the opposite hill the lofty tower of St. Sepulchre's which, though greatly deteriorated in beauty, still remains. In the same line and over 156 RECOLLECTIONS OF the embattled parapets of Newgate, the noble church of the Grey Friars, inferior in extent only to the cathedral of St. Paul, whose gigantic spire, the highest in the world, rose majestically from the centre of a cruci- form church nearly 700 feet in length, and whose grand line of high roofs and pinnacled buttresses stood high above the group of gabled houses, and even the towers of the neighbouring churches. If we terminate the panorama with the arched lantern of St. Mary-le- Bow, the old tower of St. Michael Cornhill, and a great number of lesser steeples, we shall have a faint idea of the ecclesiastical beauty of Catholic London. ' But to return to our more immediate subject : each of these fine churches was provided with its screen and rood. Numerous are the entries in the old church- warden's accounts yet remaining of pious offerings made by the citizens to beautify the devotional sculp- tures which decorated them, and to provide tapers and branches to deck them for the returning festivals. There were veils for Lent, when the glory of our Lord was partially obscured by his approaching Passion; and there were garlands for Easter, and paschal lights, and crowns, and diadems. The old parish church of St. Mary-at-Hill was inferior to none in the beautiful partition of its chancel. It was principally the work of a pious citizen, who on the decay of the older work renewed the same ; or, as the old chronicle expresses it, " For the love he bore to Jesu and his holy Modir did sett up at his own proper costes and charges, and most artificially dispensit the image of Christ, Mary A. WELBY PUGIN. 157 and John and many saynts and aungels, with the loft whereon they stood ; and for the due maintainyng of a perpetual light to hang burnyng before the same, and for a priest to synge at his anniversary he also left 2 tenements in the paryshe of Barkynge ; and when he died he was buried under a grey stone over and against the holy doors of the chancel, and till the sad time of the civil wars was his portraiture in brass and that of his wife and 3 sons and 5 daughters at their feet, and his shield of mark, and the arms of the honorable Company of the Fishmongers, and round the bordure, with an Evangelist at every corner, with this inscription: 6 Good Christen people, of y r charitie pray for the soulys of John Lay ton, citizen and fyshemonger of London, who deceded on the feast of St. Stephen, in the yeare of our Lord 1456, and of Margaret his wyffe, on whose sowlys and the sowlys of Christen men may Jesu have mercy. Pater ave, Amen.' And on the brestsumer of the rood loft were carved divers devices, such as St. Peter's keys for his Patron, and the dolphins and sea-luces salterwise for the company, and scrolls with lays coming out of tuns for the founder, and above all was a most artificial bratistring, with large bowls of brass, with prickets for tapers on great feasts, and there was a staircase of freestone, closed by an oak door, set up on the south side of the aisle, for the convenience of ascending to the same ; and on each of the lower panels of the holy doors, and of the bays of the screen were pictures of saints and martyrs, on grounds of gold diaper, each 158 RECOLLECTIONS OF with their legend. For nearly a century this goodly work had stood the pride and delight of the parish- ioners, who bestowed much cost on sustaining its lights and ornaments, as the church books yet testify. But a sad and fearful change was approaching — new and heretical doctrines were circulated, and even heard at Paul's Cross ; men became divided in heart and mind ; the returning festivals exhibited no unity of joy and devotion, many gloomily stayed away, and it was currently reported that nocturnal meetings were privately held at some citizens' houses, where preachers from beyond sea taught novel opinions, and inveighed against altars and priests, and sacred images and ancient rites; and soon there was a quest to examine into the ornaments of the churches, and many a goodly pyx, and chalice, and chrismatory were seized by the sacrilegious spoilers for the state ; and shortly after the ancient service was interrupted by the scoffers and infidels, and they who adhered to the old faith of England's Church were filled with sorrow and dismay, and they worshipped in fear and sadness, and every day brought new troubles and greater sacrilege. ' It was late in the evening, or rather the early part of the night, that a number of persons, evidently of very varied ranks and conditions, were crowded into a back-chamber in the habitation of a citizen notori- ously disaffected to the ancient religion. They were listening with considerable earnestness of attention, to the exhortations, or rather ravings, of a man of sour aspect, whose dress and gestures announced him as A. WELBY PUGIN. 159 belonging to the class of unordained preachers called the New Gospellers. The subject of his discourse was the extirpation of idolatry. The triumphs of the Jewish people over the unbelieving nations was the principal source from whence he drew his denunciations. The texts relating to the destruction of the heathen idols he transferred to the ancient images of the Church, and he succeeded in rousing the passions of his hearers to the utmost frenzy. " But why," he ex- claimed, 6 6 do we waste time? Let us lay the axe to the root of the tree ; the famous rood of St. Mary-at- Hill standeth hard by, to the shame and reproach of Christian men. Let us pluck it down and utterly deface it, so let it perish and be seen no more." ' Some of the most zealous of the fanatics instantly acted on this suggestion. Descending to the street, they soon surrounded the residence of the aged sacrist (who still retained his office, though the duties were sadly curtailed), and rousing him from his rest, de- manded the keys of the church. Alarmed by the uproar, many casements were opened ; but the numbers of the clamouring party appeared so considerable, and the prospect of any assistance from the watch, which was then only perambulatory, so remote, that none ventured down to the assistance of the old clerk, who, terrified by the menaces of his assailants, and without any companion, except a lad who acted as his servant, at length surrendered the keys. A few links had by this time been procured, and by their smoky and lurid light the southern door was opened, and the 160 RECOLLECTIONS OF whole party tumultously crowded into the venerable edifice. ' The lamp so liberally provided by John Layton had ceased to burn for some time ; its revenue had been sequestered as superstitious, and the chancel was shrouded in unpenetrable darkness. Against this gloomy background the rood and its attendant images stood out in red reflected lights, but the Jews them- selves who scoffed on Calvary's Mount were not more bitter in their scorn than the New Gospellers, who uttered loud shouts and cries as they beheld the object of their sacrilegious vengeance. The sound of hollow blows echoes through the church, the lower cloor is forced, ascending footsteps are heard on the staircase ; then the rebounding tread of heavy feet on the loft itself, torches appear — axes gleam — heavy blows fall thick ; some cleave, some pierce, some shout, and with one great crash it totters and falls — images — cross — all lie a ruin on the ancient pavement. The work of destruction now proceeds : some wrench the extended limbs from the sculptured cross; broken and dismembered, the sacred image of the Bedeemer is dragged down the nave, while others deface and cleave the evangelistic symbols, tossing the fragments in wild derision ; some curse, some spit, some foam, others exclaim " Into the fire with it !" and a glare of light striking through the western window, showed that the suggestion had been followed. It crackled in the garth, and now the mangled images are piled on the roaring mass, while furious cries, " Away with it !" A. WELBY PUG1N. 161 " Destroy it utterly !" break through the stillness of the night, and scare the affrighted parishioners, who behold this horrible spectacle from their gabled residences. Nearly three hundred years have elapsed and the rood was again raised in glory in this very city, and the cry " Away with it " was again heard. Came it from the blaspheming Jews? No. Came it from the bitter Calvinists ? No. Came it from the incarnate fiends ? No. It proceeded from a modern Catholic ambono- clast ! ! !' When Pugin was in Dorsetshire, engaged in re- building a chancel and parsonage, a friend started him upon a subject on which he knew that Pugin felt very uneasy just then, viz. The Italian taste that was rife amongst the Roman Catholics in England. To the utter bewilderment of those present he began vehemently to denounce the Romanizers ; and, a well- known name in the Anglo-Roman hierarchy being mentioned as one of them, he exclaimed, ' Miserable ! my dear sir, miserable !' The clergyman for whom he was building, who at that time was more than half inclined to think everything Roman must be right, was utterly astonished to hear so distinguished a convert giving vent to such heresies ; and his friend had to explain that the heresy was on the other side, but that it was only architectural. M 162 RECOLLECTIONS OF CHAPTER XIII. Ruskin's severe Criticism upon Pugin's Buildings — Inconsistencies pointed out — Strong religious Bias — Troublesome Interference of Committees — Incidents relating to the Foundation of St. George's Church and Conventual Establishment, Lambeth— Remonstrates against unusual Expectations, and exposes their Fallacies — Defects in the Design from want of due study. Pugin, who had hitherto stood almost unrivalled as the great champion of mediaeval art, soon en- countered a powerful rival in a person whose learning and literary genius were of the highest order. The name of Ruskin had long been associated with art and archaeology. His work, ' The Seven Lamps of Archi- tecture,' was read with eagerness, and gave rise to new and more exalted views of art than had yet pre- vailed. Devoted to art and the means for its promo- tion, he looked at the subject from a different point of view from Pugin. Familiar with Italy, and well versed in the peculiarities of the foreign schools, abhorring the Romish religion with an intensity as strong as Pugin's affection for it, he could not endure the fulsome language in which Pugin indulged when writing of anything belonging to the Catholic Church ; aM in his publication entitled the 1 Stones of Venice,' A. WELBY PUGIN. 163 when speaking of modern Eomanist ar , he expresses himself in these words on Pugin and his works. Extract from Buskins c Stones of Venice! Appendix 12. ' I had hardly believed that it was a thing possible, though vague stories had been told me of the effect, on some minds, of mere scarlet and candles, until I came on this passage in Pugin's " Eemarks on articles in the Rambler :" — ' " Those who have lived in want and privation are the best qualified to appreciate the blessings of plenty ; thus, to those who have been devout and sincere members of the separated portion of the English Church ; who have prayed, and hoped, and loved, through all the poverty of the maimed rites which it has retained to them, does the realization of all their longing desires appear truly ravishing Oh ! then, what delight ! what joy unspeakable ! when one of the solemn piles is presented to them, in all its pristine life and glory ! the stoups are filled to the brim ; the rood is raised on high ; the screen glows with sacred imagery and rich device ; the niches are filled ; the altar is replaced sustained by sculptured shafts, the relics of the saints repose beneath, the body of our Lord is enshrined on its consecrated stone ; the lamps of the sanctuary burn bright: the saintly portraitures in the glass windows shine all gloriously; and the albs hang in the oaken ambries, and the cope chests are filled with osphreyed baudekins; and pix, and m 2 164 RECOLLECTIONS OF pax, and chrismatory are there, and thurible and cross." ' One might have put this man under a pix, and left him, one should have thought j but he has been brought forward, and partly received, as an example of the effect of ceremonial splendour on the mind of a great architect. It is very necessary, therefore, that all those who have felt sorrow at this, should know at once that he is not a great architect, but one of the smallest possible or conceivable architects ; and that by his own account and setting forth of himself. Hear him : — ' " I believe, as regards architecture, few men have been so unfortunate as myself. I have passed my life in thinking of fine things, studying fine things, designing fine things, and realizing very poor ones. I have never had the chance of producing a single fine ecclesiastical building, except my own church, where I am both paymaster and architect; but everything else, either for want of adequate funds, from injudicious interference and control, or some other contingency, is more or less a failure. . . . '"St. George's was spoilt by the very instructions laid down by the Committee, that it was to hold 3000 people on the floor at a limited price ; in consequence height, proportion, everything was sacrificed to meet these conditions. Nottingham was spoilt by the style being restricted to lancet — a period well suited to a Cistercian abbey in a secluded vale, but very unsuit- able for the centre of a crowded town. . . . A. WELBY PUGIN. 165 ' " Kirkham was spoilt through several hundred pounds being reduced on the original estimate. To effect this, which was a great sum in proportion to the entire cost, the area of the church was contracted, the walls lowered, tower and spire reduced, the thickness of walls diminished, and stone arches omitted." — (Remarks, <$fc, by A. W. Pugin: Dolman, 1850.) ' Is that so ? Phidias can niche himself in the corner of a pediment, Eafaelle expatiate within the circum- ference of a clay platter ; but Pugin is inexpressible in less than a cathedral ! Let his ineffableness be assured of this, once for all, that no difficulty or re- straint ever happened to a man of real power, but his power was the more manifested in the contending with, or conquering it ; and that there is no field so small, no cranny so contracted, but that a great spirit can house and manifest itself therein. The thunder that smites the Alp into dust can gather itself into the width of a golden wire. Whatever greatness there was in you, had it been Buonaroti's own, you had room enough for it in a single niche ; you might have put the whole power of it into two feet cube of Caen stone. St. George's was not high enough for want of money ? But was it want of money that made you put that blunt, overloaded, laborious ogee door into the side of it ? Was it for lack of funds that you sunk the tracery of the parapet in its clumsy zigzags ? Was it in parsimony that you buried its paltry pinnacles in that eruption of diseased crockets ? Or in pecu- niary embarrassment that you set up the belfry fools'- 166 RECOLLECTIONS OF caps, with the mimicry of dormer windows, which nobody can ever reach nor look out of? Not so, but in mere incapability of better things. ' 1 am sorry to have to speak thus of any living architect; and there is much in this man, if he were rightly estimated, which we might both regard and profit by. He has a most sincere love for his pro- fession, a hearty honest enthusiasm for pixes and piscinas ; and though he will never design so much as a pix or a piscina thoroughly well, yet better than most of the experimental architects of the day. Employ him by all means, but on small work. Expect no cathedrals of him ; but no one, at present, can design a better finial. That is an exceedingly beautiful one over the western door of St. George's 5 and there is some spirited impishness and switching of tails in the supporting figures at the imposts. Only do not allow his good designing of finials to be employed as an evidence in matters of divinity, nor thence deduce the incompatibility of Protestantism and art.' The withering sarcasm of these remarks can scarcely be said to be warranted under any circumstances. It so far exceeds the bounds of fairness, that thoughtful people feel shocked at finding a man of Ruskin's ability descending to such gross personalities, in order to embody in them the expression of his bitter aversion to Romanism. Nothing but the most bigotted feeling could have prompted the writer to abuse Pugin for studying with minuteness the details of art so inseparably connected A. WELBY PUGIN. 167 with the ornament and costume of the Roman Catholic Church. If there is one thing more than another upon which Mr. Ruskin insists in all his lectures and papers on art, it is on the necessity of artists attending with unremitting care to all the minutiae, and accessories of architecture. In the ' Stones of Venice/ whole chapters are written and spun out in eulogy of the beauty and meaning of small and unimportant details ; while in his lectures he almost invariably brings forward, as one of the most distinctive contrasts between genuine ancient and modern art, the extraordinary care be- stowed in the former, even in the design of the smallest objects. Nor are his remarks upon Pugin's executed works animated by a spirit of fairness. Looking at his buildings as the first evidences of a better knowledge of pointed architecture, they deserved to be judged by a different standard, and nobody can doubt that if adequate funds had been forthcoming he would have erected edifices free from the defects of which he was fully sensible, and so feelingly deplores in the passages which Ruskin quotes against him. Where was the man at the time of Pugin's early career who could design and execute works at all approaching the excellence of his productions ? Indeed, it is admitted on all hands that Pugin was immeasur- ably in advance of his day. That his works are perfect no one asserts; but his indulgence in some small enriched details upon a building otherwise plain and poor in general character, ought not to expose him to the anathema launched against him. The 1G8 RECOLLECTIONS OF small saving which might have been obtained by the omission of the questionable enrichments, could never have supplied means for giving St. George's the solidity and gracefulness which would have satisfied his own desires ; and, as to the strictures upon the design of the finials, parapets, &c, they are not founded upon sound judgment, but are the arbitrary opinions of a critic who is determined that nothing shall be right if it emanates from a Eoman Catholic. None but those who have been obliged to submit to the dicta of Committees can form any adequate idea of their interference with the functions of professional men when engaged in the exercise of their art. Pugin had suffered much annoyance in this way, and was often heard to complain of the mutilations made in his designs by pretending and meddling ecclesiastics. His impatient disposition sometimes led him to rebel, and even to set at defiance the ordinary rules of courtesy when acting with ill-informed employers. It is related of him that when, owing to the increasing number of Roman Catholics in London, the prelates and in- fluential laymen formed a Committee to take steps for providing a cathedral with a convent and schools, Pugin was applied to for plans. He at once prepared with his usual skill very beautiful designs, and the Committee were duly summoned to receive him, and hear his plans explained. They were of an elaborate kind, and provided for a cathedral with chapter-house, cloisters, conventual buildings, and every usual adjunct. The drawings excited great admiration, and many A. WELBY PUGIN". 169 questions were asked to which Pugin gave most satis- factory replies. Indeed, all promised well, and nothing seemed likely to prevent the realization of this magnificent project, when a member present very naturally asked the amount at which he estimated the cost of the entire work ; others put the like ques- tion, and inquired also the time which it would take to carry his scheme into execution. These requests met with no direct reply ; entering upon that part of the subject, was, for the present, evaded, and the con- versation turned to another point. Meanwhile Pugin, in a manner not to excite observation, swept up the several drawings which were on the table, politely asking those who were admiring the details to be good enough to hand them to him for a few minutes. Having thus collected his plans, Pugin deliberately rolled them up, took his hat, wished the gentlemen good day, and walked out of the house, leaving the Committee in perfect astonishment at his inexplicable conduct. The next day some members of the Committee calling on him for an explanation, met with a rough re- ception. ' You asked me,' said he, 6 to furnish designs for a cathedral, chapter-house, cloisters, and conventual buildings, upon a grand scale. I complied with the request, and supposed that I was dealing with people who knew what they wanted. The absurd questions, however, put to me soon showed my mistake. Who ever heard of a complete cathedral being built in the life of one man? Those structures have been the gradual work of centuries, begun by one founder, and carried to completion by his successors. How could 170 RECOLLECTIONS OF I possibly frame an estimate for a building, a small portion of which might possibly only be raised during my lifetime ? That which would cost little one year, might, by the increased price of materials, be doubly expensive in future years. Everybody acquainted with building operations knows the fluctuating nature of these things. Common sense should have taught the Committee not to put such absurd questions to me. If you approve my design, adopt it, and carry out all or part, in its integrity, as the means may be forth- coming.' However just these views might be, it certainly did not warrant such abrupt conduct on Pugin's part. The Committee had mistaken their power of raising funds for the great purpose on which Pugin was to be employed, and we may wonder that after this out- break of his sentiments he should have agreed to further a scheme, which resulted in so meagre a fulfil- ment of the original intention. It appears, however, that after this, the building was put up to competition, and at the earnest solicitations of a friend, he con- sented (quite contrary to his usual custom) to send in a new design.* As a proof that a building worthy of Pugin's skill w r as at first contemplated, two views are annexed showing the size and grandeur of the church which was to have been erected on a scale worthy of * While these pages are in the press Mr. A. J. Beresford Hope has published a very interesting book under the title of 4 The Cathedral of the 19th Century.' He refers in this work to St. George's Cathedral, and points out very fairly its defects. Pugin was fully sensible of the mis- takes he had made in this building, and always deplored the necessity which led to the rejection of his first design. A. WELBY PUGIN. 171 ancient times. There are in the church, as now built, amidst many beauties, defects which may be found in his other productions, arising from the rapidity with which he sketched his designs, and his never deign- ing to revise or modify them. Hence many crude notions were adopted, which would undoubtedly have undergone change had he exercised the pa- tience required for revision. In this particular he might have learned much from the great artists of the middle ages, the very best of whom, however happy in their first sketches, did not rest satisfied till, by successive modification and grouping, they were convinced that no further improvements could be made. How fully do the sketches of Raphael illus- trate this fact ! what intense pains-taking they exhibit ! And hence the excellence of the final result. The annoyance to which Pugin was subjected by applications for designs to be executed from ridiculously insufficient funds, made him at times very irritable. A story is told of his once receiving a letter from a Roman Catholic prelate, requesting designs for a new church of the following description. It was to be ' very large, — the neighbourhood being very populous ; it must be very handsome, — a fine new church had been built close by ; it must be very cheap, — they were very poor, in fact had only £ — ; when could they expect the design ?' Pugin wrote in reply : — 'My dear Lord — Say thirty shillings more, and have a tower and spire at once. A. W. P.' 172 RECOLLECTIONS OF Pugin's patience was often tried by the irresolute conduct of those who sought his professional services ; thus on being sent for by a noble lord, whose seat in Lincolnshire had been greatly injured, and partly destroyed by fire through the overheating of a stove, to advise him on the work of restoration, and suggest such improvements as might occur to him ; he at once pointed out what ought to be done, re- marking upon the bad taste yet remaining in the details of the portion of the house not destroyed, plainly intimating that the whole building should be re-constructed. Being interrupted occasionally by the noble proprietor asking, ' Well, what shall I do ? what shall I do ?' 6 Do,' exclaimed Pugin, 6 why put a barrel of gunpowder and blow up what remains, and when it is demolished then I'll tell you what to do a piece of advice not acted upon, and the house was restored in the same debased style, but not, as may be imagined, under the professional guidance of Pugin. A. WELBY PUG IN. 173 CHAPTER XIV. Quits Salisbury and comes to London — At the same time commences building a House and Church at his own expense at West Cliff, Ramsgate — Description of the Church of St. Augustine — Loses his second Wife — His presentiment of her approaching Death — Buries her at St. Chad's Cathedral, Birmingham — His great Patron and Employer, the Earl of Shrewsbury — His Lordship's remarks upon Pugin's Works— Much assisted in his Buildings by Mr. Myers — His first Meeting with Myers — Designs Alterations for Balliol College. Upon quitting Salisbury in 1841, Pugin came to Lon- don, and took up his residence at Cheyne Walk, Chel- sea. Here he resided some time, but he had previously purchased ground at the West Cliff, Eamsgate, and com- menced building a house upon a much larger scale than the one he sold near Salisbury. He also began to build there a church at his own. expense. This building, which occupied some years in construction, was ad- vanced from time to time as he could spare the means from his yearly income. His desire was to build it in the most correct and solid manner, and in this he was successful. The church, as it now stands, consists of a nave, chancel, centre tower, south aisles, and tran- sept. Everything about it is truthful. The exterior is faced with flint banded with courses of stone ; the oak roofs are covered with ornamental Staffordshire tiles, the walls with ashlar ; the chancel and Lady Chapel ceilings are panelled and emblazoned; the 174 RECOLLECTIONS OF floors laid with beautiful encaustic tiles ; the altars and tabernacle are elegantly designed and executed in costly materials, the latter being entirely lined with plates of silver gilt, and the rood screen and stalls richly carved in oak. The font and cover are of unusual beauty. The painted glass by Hardman is excellent. Many of the fittings are yet wanting, the church not having been completed before his death, and for the present there are only temporary seats and screens, without pretensions ; but his family and friends purpose to complete these accessories in a manner worthy of the rest of the work.* While he was at Chelsea he found opportunities of running down to Ramsgate to advance these private works of his own. It is to this building Pugin refers in the passage which Ruskin so severely censures. He never could have seen the church, or he would have moderated his language. He had now another trial soon to undergo ; his wife, to whom he had been married ten years, was attacked by a severe illness, and died in August, 1844. Thus in the short space of about twelve years he had become twice a widower. Being now a member of the Roman Catholic Church, it was unlikely that he should remove her remains for interment to Christchurch. The place chosen for her burial was the church of St. Chads, Birmingham, a building which he had himself designed. Here the * The cost of the church, land, and fittings, has been upwards of £15,0C0. One gentleman, a great admirer of Pugin, has offered money without limits for the completion of all that remains unfinished in the Pugin Chauntrey. A. WELBY PUGIN. 175 funeral took place, conducted with as much pomp and ceremonial as he could command. The Earl of Shrewsbury signified his intention of being present by the following letter : — 4 My dear Pugin, 4 1 am coming to St. Chads to pay my tribute of affection and respect to you by attending the solemn service, and in which we all feel so deep an] interest. Douglas comes with me, and young Bodenham returns. * I hope you will allow me to see you after the sad ceremony. ' Yours, &c, 6 Shrewsbury.' Nothing was wanting to give solemnity to the obse- quies. Some bishops took part in the ceremony, and by their presence showed the high respect in which Pugin was held. When travelling from Derby a short time before his wife's death, the author of these pages met him at the railway station in a state of the greatest agitation. He accounted for it by mentioning, that he had been staying a few clays at Alton Towers, and on the last night had twice dreamt that his wife was taken alarmingly ill, and her life despaired of. Oppressed by these omens he resolved at once to go to town, and leav- ing Alton Towers for this purpose was met by a special messenger, urging him to come home instantly if he wished to see his wife again alive. He was now on his journey back, and in this instance his presenti- ment was indeed realized; for though on reaching 176 RECOLLECTIONS OF home his wife still lived, she was in a state of insensi- bility, unable to recognize him, and died within a short time after his return. In conversation during the journey he constantly expressed his belief that he should find his wife dead, though when he parted from her a few days previously, she was in tolerable health. Although suffering greatly from his severe loss he is said to have found consolation in the solemn rites of the Catholic church and the prayers offered up for the repose of her soul. About this time Pugin may be said to have reached the height of his professional career. His house at Chelsea became a place of great resort, especially by a certain section of his artistic friends, and in their society many a delightful evening was passed, en- livened by his wit and brilliant conversation. It was not only on matters of art that he was con- sulted, for the great revivalist was at this time in constant communication with the leaders of the high church movement, and doubtless the recognition of his principles in art was, to many, the bridge which first led them to join the Church of Borne ; but, strange as it may appear, these afterwards became the very men who formed the vanguard of his antagonists, and who seem to have taken the greatest delight in de- stroying that work which they, in common with Pugin, at one time considered of so much importance. Not to break the thread of these memoirs, it will be necessary that this delicate question should be treated by one bet- ter versed in the matter than the writer of these pages ; A. WELBY PUGIN. 177 he has therefore accepted the assistance of a Roman Catholic gentleman, who, in contributed chapters, will set forth the results of this fierce and important controversy which marked an era in Pugin's life, and will give an insight into his great theological know- ledge, his character and religious principles, too im- portant to be passed over by a biographer who is not indifferent to the main springs of action. Although much courted in the highest intellectual circles, Pugin's dislike to this kind of life was rooted too deeply to be easily overcome ; he therefore determined to return at the earliest possible period to St. Lawrence, the spot where he passed his early life, previous to the death of his aunt, Miss Welby. Visiting the Isle of Thanet for this purpose, he happened to £nd land for sale on the West Cliff at Ramsgate, a portion of which he immediately purchased, which is the site now known as ' The Grange, St. Augustine's,' intend- ing to build a house of the simplest possible character : this idea, however, was much modified at the request of his wife, who induced him to erect a building in some way commensurate with his present position. Here he appears to have led the life of almost monastic regularity. His constant practice was to be in his private chapel at six o'clock ; and as sure as the church bell tolled the Angelus, so sure might be heard the withdrawal of the four heavy external bolts which fastened the door of the chapel. Here it was his custom to say a few private prayers and make an offering of his forthcoming work to God. N 178 RECOLLECTIONS OF After this he worked in his library until half-past seven, at which time the bell tolled for morning prayers, which he always said habited in a cassock and surplice ; this was followed by oreakfast, which seldom lasted more than seven minutes. At eight o'clock on feast days he always heard mass in the adjoining church. He then worked until one o'clock, when, punctual to a moment, he dined. His fare was of the simplest description, neither taking wine nor malt liquor. This meal lasted but a quarter of an hour. After dinner he generally inspected his buildings, and visited his only pupil and afterwards son-in-law, Mr. John H. Powell. In the afternoon he resumed his work, which was often enlivened by the visits of a few of his confi- dential friends and admirers. He was generally occupied with his post letters until nine o'clock, after which Pugin amused himself pre- paring designs for his own buildings until ten, when Compline was sung in his own private chapel. The last hour of this busy day was devoted to the study of historical and theological works; Collier, Lingard, Dugdale, Stow, and Du Caunge being amongst his most favourite authors. It may be here remarked that on his return from town he invariably had answered the whole of his letters, having written them in the railway carriage. He had an intense and holy horror of all charity A. WELBY PUGIN. 179 balls, dinners, ecclesiastical and pious entertainments, bazaars, lotteries, &c, so much so that he never con- tributed to anything of the kind. Yet Pugin's funda- mental charity was unbounded ; it may be said that he was literally the father of the poor and shipwrecked sailor, as well as of the indigent of the towns in which he happened to live. In his generosity he spared neither money nor per- sonal exertion, and relieved all, without distinction of country or religion. For this end he had in his hall a chest filled with entire suits of clothes, and one of his greatest pleasures in life was to send away clothed and fed those who came to him ragged and hungry. His active benevolence originated the Sailors' Infirmary at Eamsgate, the embryo of which was to be found in two small houses he hired in King-street, where he engaged nurses to attend the fever-stricken sailors who were left destitute in port. This effort attracted the attention of his fellow- townsmen, who generously raised the present infirmary / to which Pugin handsomely subscribed. He was idolized by the workmen, and in fact by all those who were in his service, notwithstanding the severe discipline he so rigorously enforced, for in spite of his kindness of heart he was not what may be termed an indulgent man. The following incident is characteristic. Visiting one Sunday afternoon the captain of his lugger, who had sprained his leg, and finding him destitute of what N 2 180 RECOLLECTIONS OF he considered necessary for his comfort, he at once returned home, and finding no man about the place he sallied forth, to the astonishment of all who met him, with a mattress, blankets, &c, on his shoulder, and a bag of provisions in his hand, for the use and comfort of the damaged sailor. On another occasion when two hundred German emigrants were detained in port by stress of weather this thoughtful and kind-hearted friend of the friend- less not only attended to their corporeal wants, but at his own expense invited the priest from the German chapel in London to come down and look after their spiritual necessities. On the morning of their de- parture, a deputation of thirty of their principal men waited upon him, and being unable to make them- selves understood, their chief and would-be spokesman, threw himself on the ground and placed his head under Pugin's foot in token of gratitude, and as an expression of homage towards their kind-hearted benefactor. While living at Ramsgate his love for cruising in the Channel was easily gratified ; yet he did not sail for pleasure only, but was always ready in the roughest weather to put out to sea and aid in the rescue of crews whose vessels were cast upon the Goodwin Sands. The only social entertainments he gave were at Christmas and on twelfth nights, when he would collect a few friends and invest them in ancient cos- tumes, personating the different characters they as- A. WELBY PUGIN. 181 sumed : the king and queen were splendidly got up, and some acting indulged in ; after which there was a handsome repast. He was sometimes very amusing by the way in which he issued his invitations, as the following letters illustrate. Desiring to collect some friends at his house he adopted this form : — 'The humble petition of the inhabitants and so- journers of St. Augustine's, Ramsgate. 'Whereas on the Feast of the Epiphany forth- coming, commonly called Twelfth Day, divers revels are to be held at St. Augustine's ; and whereas much of contentment and joy of the said revels would be lost if Mr. J. Thornton of Sturmy be not present to assist thereat ; the petitioners therefore most humbly pray that he will not fail to come, together with all belonging to him. God save the Queen ! ' Signed, A. Welby Pugin, Jane Pugin, E. B. Daniel, Kezia Herbert, Anne Pugin, J. R. Herbert, J. H. Powell, A. Herbert, Cuthbert W. Pugin, Catharine Pugin, Mary Pugin, Edward W. Pugin, A. Herbert.' Fearing lest his friend should disappoint him or leave some members of his family at home, he writes — 182 RECOLLECTIONS OF ' My dear Thornton, ' From what Edward says I have every reason to hope and expect that you will act honestly, and come on Saturday. We shall expect you by the train which gets in at ten minutes past six. Tea ready — good fires. Why is one of your little girls left behind ? Pray bring her. It will make me unhappy if you don't ; for it will be a great grief for her to be left behind, and we have plenty of room for her ; so now do bring her with you, and let her enjoy her- self at Xtmas. The more the merrier. I am your sincere friend, ' A. Welby Pugin.' These letters show great good nature, and were quite in keeping with his generous disposition. He in- variably illustrated his letters with some marginal sketches, admirably expressed by a few spirited touches. The following note is an instance of the kind : — 4 My dear Thornton, ' 1 find Christmas Day comes on Monday, so of course you must all corne here on Saturday, by which means we shall have the benefit of another day out of you (Capital !). I could not in conscience allow you to travel on Sunday ; so Saturday afternoon, by the six o'clock train, we shall expect you. A. WELBY PUGIN. 183 ' Yours very truly, < A. W. Pugin.' Pugin suffered some annoyance at the period of the celebrated Durham letter, when Lord J. Russell protested against the sub-division of the country into more Papal ecclesiastical divisions. The boys greatly enraged him by chalking 4 No Popery ' on his walls and doors, and some unhappy lads were severely cuffed and kicked when unluckily caught in the act. His professional practice now still increased, espe- cially amongst the Roman Catholics. -Among his great- est patrons was the late Earl of Shrewsbury, who employed him extensively at Alton Towers and Cheadle. The several letters given in the former pages, show the friendly intercourse which subsisted 184 RECOLLECTIONS OF between them. He was wont to cite the church of Cheadle and its accompanying buildings as amongst the most successful of his undertakings. A friend hav- ing asked him, on one occasion, whether there was any building executed under his superintendence which he considered free from defects, he replied, ' Yes, St. Giles Cheadle ; I don't think there is any fault there.' This remark being repeated a few years afterwards to Lord Shrewsbury, he smiled and said, i He won't say that now though ; he abuses it as much as everything else that he has done.' At Cheadle there certainly could be no excuse from want of funds, his lordship appear- ing to have given him carte blanche. Tor richness of colour and general decoration the church has no equal in this country, if perhaps we except the new church of All Saints, Margaret Street, London. But what Pugin had a right to complain of was, that when he first had to execute the design he was ignorant of the sum which was to be placed at his disposal ; the building being commenced as a parish church only, with a suggested outlay of £5000, whereas after- wards the expenditure was increased, and the cha- racter of the building entirely changed, and made to assume a degree of dignity and richness never pre- viously thought of. Undoubtedly these buildings attest the consummate skill of the artist. In design, choice of material, and execution, the master mind is visible. Perhaps it is hardly fair, in awarding the well-earned commendation these works deserve, to omit the mention A. WELBY PUGLN". 185 of the art- workmen to whom Pugin was indebted for the successful way in which his designs were executed ; and foremost must in justice be mentioned the name of Mr. Myers, the eminent builder, to whom Pugin in all cases entrusted the execution of his works when he was not overruled by his employers. The way in which Pugin first fell in with him was singular. Pugin became acquainted with Myers at Beverley. He was then a working man in that town, and while Pugin was sketching at the Minster, rendered him some assistance in procuring ladders and scaffolding to enable him to reach the lofty portions of the building, manifesting much interest in Pugin's proceedings ; but here their acquaintance for a time ended. It happened, however, that Myers, and other builders, were invited a few years afterwards to tender for the erection of a Roman Catholic church at Derby. On going to the town to see the plans, he found, (as is frequently the case,) that in all probability a local builder would be selected, there being a strong feeling in favour of employing a native tradesman. Determined, however, to obtain fair play, he de- sired an interview with the architect, and to his sur- prise found it was Pugin whom he had previously known. Pugin quickly recognized in Myers the enthusiastic mason who had taken such interest in what he was doing at Beverley, and had there rendered his help. Rushing to him he clasped him in his arms, exclaiming, ' My good fellow, you are the very man I 186 RECOLLECTIONS OF want, you shall execute all my buildings a promise which he nearly kept to the letter : for of the numerous edifices executed from his designs, of which forty-two were churches, the greater number were built by Myers. Pugin knowing how imperfectly builders were acquainted with the true spirit of mediaeval work, was glad to meet a man of energy like Myers ; who with admirable tact gathered about him a body of young workmen, and they being impressed with the true prin- ciples, soon became efficient auxiliaries. It is entirely owing to the praiseworthy exertions of Mr. Myers that so many competent carvers, both of wood and stone, are now to be found. He spared no pains in obtaining casts and directing them to proper models for studies, not with a view to their making servile copies of an- cient examples, but that they might imbibe the feeling and spirit belonging to mediaeval art, and throw like expression into their own productions. We must also here mention that Mr. Hardman devoted himself to Pugin from the commencement of his career, and brought both men and money to aid him in his work. Being now looked upon as the highest authority in all matters relating to mediaeval art, his professional assistance was much sought by those who were engaged in any private or public works executed in the style of the middle ages. The fellows of Balliol College, Oxford, contemplating some extensive additions to their College, applied to him for designs, and he submitted a very beautiful set of drawings, which met their entire approval. But A. WELBY PUGIN. 187 they were not adopted, owing to the refusal of the then master, Dr. Jenkyns, to permit the employment of a Roman Catholic architect. His plans were there- fore discarded, and a great opportunity lost of achieving a really magnificent work. Two clergymen calling one morning at his house at Chelsea asked to see these plans. He had been at work on them for a fortnight only, but they found not merely the usual architectural drawings for a new chapel, master's house, gateway and rooms, but large perspective drawings of all these in water colours —interiors as well as exteriors — lining the entire walls of his room. Not content with these, he was then amusing himself with filling a book with the most beautiful finished outlines of all these drawings. This book he designed for a present to Mr. George Ward, the fellow of the College to whom he owed his appoint- ment as architect to the new buildings. He was at work standing, stooping to the table. When asked why he didn't give the mere mechanical part of his working drawings to a clerk to do, ' Clerk, my dear sir, clerk, I never employ one ; I should kill him in a week.' And true it was that he had gone down to Oxford, stayed a few days, formed his plan in his own mind, and then returned to London to get out the whole of these elaborate and detailed drawings in a fortnight with his own hands. The new buildings were ultimately erected upon a more limited plan by Mr. Salvin, and the chapel, a still more recent structure, by Mr. Butterfielcl. Though Pugin was not much professionally em- 188 RECOLLECTIONS OF ployed at Oxford, yet he frequently visited friends at the colleges; and his opinions on architecture were held in great estimation by a large body of the mem- bers of the University. On one of his journeys to Oxford he became acquainted with Bartley the come- dian in the following curious manner. Bartley having buried a son at Oxford, was anxious to place an obituary window in St. Marys Church as a memorial. The incumbent having made an appointment to meet him in the church, Bartley left London early in the morning and found himself in the railway carriage oppo- site a very roughly-dressed young man, with a two-foot rule sticking out of his pocket, and other indications that he was in some way connected with building. They entered into conversation, and Bartley soon found that his odd companion was a person of no ordinary character. On reaching Oxford, Bartley went to the church, where the incumbent was waiting his arrival, expecting momentarily the artist whom he wished to design the window for Bartley 's approval. It was then within a few minutes of the time for morning service, the clergyman being robed and wait- ing the verger's summons, when in rushed Pugin, whom the comedian immediately recognized as his odd travelling companion. ' It is too late now/ observed the clergyman ; i we must defer the consideration of this matter till after the service.' 4 Why not now ?' exclaimed Pugin, looking at his watch. 'There is plenty of time — ten minutes or A. WELBY PUGIN. 189 more to spare.' Then, pulling out his sketch-book, began, addressing Bartley, ' Now what is your son's name ? Thomas ? Ah, Thomas : subject, incredulity of St. Thomas, &c. asking, with his usual rapidity, a number of other questions, sketching all the time. In less than a quarter of an hour he had made two or three masterly sketches for the subject of the window, to the astonishment of all present. The only building erected by Pugin in Oxford is the new entrance gateway to Magdalen College. But few works were in contemplation about this period at the University, otherwise, in all probability, Pugin would have been consulted ; for it would be a slur upon the heads of houses to suppose that they would have rejected the services of an architect, confessedly then the most competent in the practice of the medieval styles, simply on account of his being a Roman Catholic. For the credit of the University it is hoped that the decision of the late Master of Balliol College may be viewed as an exceptional case. new catholic ]~ CAT H LIC CHAKITIES CHAPEL IN THE \«j . e^mf c- ran d HIGH MA« 190 RECOLLECTIONS OF CHAPTER XV. Consulted by the late Lord Stuart de Rothesay at High Cliff— Leaves the place hastily — Contemplates a third Marriage, but meets with a disappointment — Publishes a Pamphlet in vindication of his conduct entitled, ' Statement of Facts ' — Extracts from Pamphlet. Curious stories are told of Pugin in reference to his independent spirit while corresponding with em- ployers or directing their works. The following speci- men is an instance of this. The late Lord Stuart de Rothesay, having found some beautiful remains of a conventual building in the south of France, and being about to build a residence on the south-east coast near Christchurch, determined to purchase the materials, have them removed to England, and use them as far as they could be made applicable to the design of a new and large mansion. The site chosen by his Lordship was a part of the high cliff facing the Isle of Wight. Near this spot there had formerly been a house belonging to the Earl of Bute, the celebrated minister, which, owing to the encroachment of the sea on that part of the coast, was literally by degrees washed into it. Still Lord Stuart thought that by draining the land springs and taking other precautions he could prevent the spread of A. WELBY PUGIN. 191 further mischief. Acting on this belief, he began the erection of a stately pile at such a distance from the edge of the cliff as was thought sufficient to leave a good margin to the buildings for ages to come. But notwithstanding all precautions the drainage has not been so effectual as to save the cliff from disruption. By the expansion of frozen land springs after severe frosts, and the encroachment of the sea, land-slips still occasionally take place. Lord Stuart not being perfectly satisfied with the design of the building, which was being conducted under the superintendence of the late Mr. Donthorn, and desiring to obtain the mature judgment of Pugin, invited him to High Cliff to act as his consulting archi- tect. He at once assented, and repaired to High Cliff to inspect the works. Arriving in the afternoon, he engaged himself busily in examining all that was going on ; soon made him- self master of his subject, and with his usual rapidity, before the close of the clay had prepared sketches for Lord Stuart's approval. After dinner he exhibited his plans, entering into explanations, and pointing out all the alterations which he considered indispensable. His suggestions, unfor- tunately, did not fall on such willing ears as he ex- pected. Lord S. had spent large sums in the work already done, and was not disposed to pull down heavy stonework just finished ; and some amount of demoli- tion was quite necessary to meet Pugin's views. After much discussion, therefore, they separated. Lord 192 RECOLLECTIONS OF Stuart intending to resume the subject on the next morning, but in this he was disappointed. To meet Pugin's convenience, an early breakfast hour was ap- pointed for the next day, and at the time fixed some sur- prise was expressed that he did not appear. Inquiry being made, it was discovered that Pugin had risen at six o'clock, taken his carpet bag in hand, walked some distance to a little wayside inn, and thence taken his departure by coach to London, without previously giving the slightest intimation of his intention to any one in the house. Thus terminated his connexion with Lord Stuart de Rothesay. All this abruptness arose from the simple circumstance that his employer did not at once adopt his recommendations. Probably this discourtesy would not have been shown at an earlier period of his career, but he had now obtained such a professional standing that he could afford to disregard giving offence. Pugin was now looking forward to enter the mar- riage state a third time. It was at Alton Towers that he first met Miss Amherst, niece of Lord Shrewsbury, and was soon captivated by her fascinating manners and her evident admiration of his talents and conversation. A proposal of marriage followed, but many obstacles were interposed to prevent the union. The disappoint- ment was a heavy blow to him. On the advice of the parents, Miss Amherst broke off the engagement, and afterwards retired to a convent. This, however, was not so severe a trial to him as a later event of a some- what similar kind, which, having already been made A. WELBY PUGIN. 193 public, can hardly be passed over without some notice in these pages. Pugin had been a second time widower for some years, when certain circumstances led to his again forming an ardent attachment to a lady of position, of considerable accomplishments, and of views on most important subjects which were congenial with his own. The attachment becom- ing mutual, marriage engagements were solemnly exchanged between the parties. On Pugin's side, various characteristic and costly preparations had been made for the solemnization of the nuptials, when the connection was abruptly broken off, to the great dis- tress of both, by the interposition of the lady's family. The circumstances attending this affair forms a curious episode in the story of Pugin's life, to which it is im- possible to do justice, without laying before the reader a ' statement of facts ' relating to it, printed by Pugin for his own justification. This paper is here given in extenso, with the omission, only, of some passages at the close of the pamphlet in which Pugin reflected in strong terms of vituperation on the conduct of the lady's father and friends. Allowance may be made for the use of even intemperate language by a man of Pugin's stamp, when smarting under a keen sense of the injury inflicted : but it would be unpardon- able to give them further circulation. A Statement of Facts, &c. 6 It is with feelings of the deepest pain that I put forth the statement contained in the following pages ; o 194 RECOLLECTIONS OF and nothing but imperative necessity would compel me to adopt such a course. I must beg to state most emphatically, that, in so doing, I am not actuated by any vindictive feeling towards the unhappy person who has caused me such bitter distress ; but the very extraordinary circumstances connected with this case having already given rise to reports prejudicial to my reputation, and as it is probable that, in the absence of any authentic account, the real circumstances will be still further misrepresented, I have, after full deli- beration, considered it most advisable to adopt this course, as the only means by which I could make a public justification of my conduct. ' 1 purpose to confine myself, as nearly as possible, to a mere statement of facts ; as, in the present state of my feelings, were I to indulge in making comments, I might be betrayed into some expressions which would not accord with that spirit of charity which we are bound to maintain even towards those from whom we receive the deepest injuries ; and which it has been my most fervent prayer and endeavour to preserve all through this most trying business. ' I became acquainted with Miss L — nearly three years since, when she came with her parents on a visit to Eamsgate ; but our intimacy did not commence till the winter of 1846 : at that time I was suffering from a most severe illness, produced by anxiety of mind ; and Miss L — , who was staying in the neighbourhood, came frequently to pass a great part of the day at my residence, and her extreme kindness and attention A. WBLBY PUGIN. 195 contributed, in no small degree, to my ultimate reco- very. It was then I had an opportunity of appreciat- ing the many admirable qualities she possessed ; and, notwithstanding all that has subsequently happened, I feel bound to say that my opinion, as regards her talents and accomplishments, remains unchanged. When I discovered, in addition to her just appreciation of art, that her mind was strongly imbued with Catho- lic principles, I considered her one of the most admi- rable persons I had ever seen ; and I speedily became strongly attached to one who held such a communion of ideas with myself on so many important subjects. ' As she was exceedingly anxious to obtain informa- tion on various points of Catholic doctrine and disci- pline, I not only explained them to her verbally, but I supplied her with various Catholic works explanatory of the faith, both while at Ramsgate, and also after her return to H — . ' Early in the spring I left England on a continental journey ; and while abroad Miss L — frequently cor- responded with me, principally on matters connected with religion. In a letter dated May 20, she writes thus : " I do love every thing Catholic ; and nothing gives me more pain than the things I hear against it : so much bitterness, and so many things which I know to be utterly false. At the same time this very thing makes me dread to look forward ; for if people are so inveterate against Catholics in general, what would be the consequence if they were to discover that I am leaning that way ?" &c. o 2 196 RECOLLECTIONS OF ' Extract. '"How magnificent the service at Amiens must have been ! What would I not have given to have the same privilege ! I never wished to be a Catholic more than on Easter Sunday : how much we lose in the Pro- testant Church ! I really hardly know what I wish or feel. I am convinced you are right ; and my convic- tions are supported by what I read at night : pray for me that I may have perseverance and courage," &c. ' Extract. '"Your welcome letter from Avignon was for- warded to me here. I prize your letters above all others ; you cannot think how I long for them ; your description of the churches, and other antiquities you have seen are most interesting. I wish you were not so kind to me, for I never can be grateful enough to you 5 you are my best friend, and I would confide any- thing to you. I have just finished Vicentius de Lirens against heresy, which I like very much : it seems to me the Church of England is so inconsistent ; it receives some things and rejects others which have equal au- thority. We had the curate of Broadstairs letter sent us the other day ; and I really felt more convinced of the view which the Catholic Church takes of the sub- ject after I had read it than before." ' ' Extract. 1 " I long to have a talk with you : there is no one to whom I can open my mind ; and I hear so much A. WELBY PUGIN. 197 against the Catholic Church, that it often distresses me exceedingly. I shall be obliged to attend a Bible meeting this evening at Dover, where I am now staying for a few days. I was at one at C — Castle the other day. I never liked the Society, and of course I dislike it more. I wish you could have heard the poor arguments against Popery that one of the speakers brought forward the other night. I de- clare, even with the little that I know on the subject, I could see how very absurd they were." 'There were many letters of the same tendency; but these were destroyed at Miss L — 's request, in a letter she sent July 21, which will be referred to here- after. 'Immediately after my return from the continent, Miss L — came to Ramsgate, and she then told me that she was quite convinced of the truth of the Catholic religion, and that she could not bear to continue in her. present position. I represented to her the vast importance of the step she was about to take ; and although, on one hand, she was bound in conscience to confess the truth openly, yet there was a fear that a premature declaration, which she might not have the courage to act up to, would be productive of more evil than good. However, her resolution remained un- changed ; and in a letter dated July 19, she writes : ' " I thought, on the whole, the best thing I could do was to let the change that had taken place in my sentiments be known at once. Oh, the courage it re- quired to do so ! My eldest brother was furious, and 198 RECOLLECTIONS OF declared he would quarrel with me if I did not give up reading those accursed books ; but papa was so grieved, and yet so mild, that my heart bled for the pain I have given him and darling mamma. If I did not feel firmly convinced I had learnt the truth, I would ease their minds at once, by declaring I would give up what they call errors ; but I could not do this conscientiously." i Postscript in Pencil, " Matters are worse than ever : believe nothing you hear except from me. I may not be able for some time to keep to my opinions openly, but I do not think I shall ever inwardly lose them. I suffer such grief, I hardly know how to bear it. I know where I should find peace ; that is, in the communion of the Church, and this shall be the end' 9 ' Two days after this, I received a letter written in pencil, and under the greatest distress of mind, as the following extract will show : " However painful it may be, I must NEVER write to you or any body belonging to you again. My opinions regarding the Church are the same, and it seems very improbable they should ever be altered; but as to any further communication, it must cease, cost what it may. I beg and entreat of you never to write to me, or any body connected with me ; or, if you do, you will ensure me the greatest misery ; and please to destroy any letters 3 T ou have of mine," &c. A. WELBY PUGIN. 199 ' Up to this period, I had never mentioned my affec- tion for Miss L — to herself or anybody else, although I had loved her in secret for a considerable time ; and it is worthy of remark, that her religious change was accomplished without any knowledge of my senti- ments towards her, by which she might have been biassed. ' The receipt of this letter distressed me exceedingly, but I determined to comply with the desire expressed in it ; and I did not write, or take any means of further communication with Miss L — , till she recommenced the correspondence of her own accord some months later. And I can most solemnly affirm that, had it not been renewed by her, I should never have written, and all the misery which her subsequent conduct has inflicted on me would have been avoided. ' In the latter part of October, the evening post de- livery brought a letter from S — in Miss L — 's hand- writing. I was so astonished and delighted, that I hardly dared to break the seal, for fear of a disappoint- ment ; but the contents were most satisfactory. She be- gan by stating that she feared I should despise her for her weak conduct, but that she could no longer refrain from writing; that her opinions were unchanged in every respect, although her friends had succeeded in making her, for the time, a hypocrite in religion. She concluded by naming a day on which she could receive a reply, and that she should count the hours till it came. In a postscript, she strictly charged me to burn the letter, which I did ; but the following extract from 200 RECOLLECTIONS OF my own reply will fully prove the arrival of the letter, and the nature of its contents. ' Extract from my Letter in reply. ' " My dear Miss L— , ' " I can hardly express the delight I felt at again beholding your handwriting ; it seemed almost too good to be true, and I hardly dared to break the seal, for fear of a disappointment. After that dread- ful letter you sent me from H — , I lost all hope. I read it over and over again, but you did not leave me a chance of replying ; and, fearing I should only make matters worse, I was reluctantly compelled to remain silent. But I was terribly cut up ; I could do nothing for some time ; and, excepting that unhappy matter which I explained to you, I never felt anything so much. When you abandoned me, I felt more lonely than ever ; and, a few days after, your books and seal were left by a servant without message. I knew not what to think, and I was racked by perplexing ideas. However, I never ceased to pray night and morning for you, even under all these discouragements ; and I am now indeed rewarded by seeing your handwriting and hearing from you. I felt sure you could not be a consenting party to such unkindness, and I resolved to bear patiently any insult or reproach for your sake, and to remain perfectly quiet. Do not for an instant suppose that I despise you for the unhappy part you have been compelled to take ; it is impossible for me to despise you, or even think unworthily of you ; but I A. WELBY PUGIN. 201 am indeed grieved at what you have suffered, and I cannot sufficiently deplore such premature resolution which you were so ill able to sustain. I do indeed feel and sympathise with you in all the difficulties of your position, for they are many, and hard to contend with. I well know all you suffer, having gone through the same ordeal, though under less trying circumstances ; but I dare not conceal from you that your present po- sition is one of extreme danger. You have made a profession of your faith, and you are now practically denying God before men. It is far safer to remain in ignorance of the truth, than, having known it, to fall back on error, even in appearance. I know you will forgive me speaking so strongly ; but I have seen such terrible examples of persons falling from the verge of truth into a state of indifference, that I feel it a sort of sacred duty, to warn you of your danger ; and surely the letter you sent to your aunt (Mrs. B — ) was a po- sitive denial of the Catholic faith. I am willing to be- lieve that this was extorted from you by terror and distress of mind ; and certainly the trial was a severe one — most severe ; and even the strongest might have fallen under such circumstances. But after this, you must forgive me for urging on you greater resolution for the future, &c. ' " I have burnt your letter, according to your wish, and will only write when you direct ; but do not desert me again. I have really suffered in mind and body from that dreadful letter you sent me from H — ; it seemed so unkind, so unlike yourself, that it com- 202 RECOLLECTIONS OF pletely upset me. However, I can freely forgive all the pain you have caused me, if it was only for the pleasure of receiving your letter from S — . ' " Ever yours most devotedly, A. W. PuGIN." 6 To this I received a reply, in which Miss L — stated, that my letter, not having arrived the day she expected, she was in great distress, fearing I should not reply to her. She also excused herself as to denying God before men, on the ground that the true God was worshipped in the Protestant Church, &c. ' My reply to the above. ' " My dear Miss L— , '"I cannot conceive how my last letter was behind time ; but how could you for one instant ima- gine I should not write ? You would have had a letter by return, only I was obliged to act by your instruc- tions. You quite mistake what I meant by your deny- ing God before men. I did not mean God {per se)\ for the Jews acknowledge the true God, but they deny Him in the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, One Lord. Persons may deny God in His Church and in His ordinances ; this is what I mean. The Church being founded by Him, and supported by His Divine power, is to be obeyed as the vox Dei; if persons therefore, either through fear of human considerations, or for the sake of temporal advantages, neglect the observances of the Church, and to profess the faith, A. WELBY PUGIN. 203 they certainly deny God before men, however they may think and feel internally; and those who per- severe in such a course must undoubtedly meet with dreadful punishment in the world to come ; for our Lord says, 6 He who denieth Me before men, I will deny him before the Father.' And, after all, what need we really fear but the anger of God? If the primitive martyrs could bear all the dreadful tortures inflicted on them for the sake of the faith, should we not go through the comparatively easy trial of the displeasure of relatives and contempt of the world? Do not imagine that I am underrating all you have suffered in this matter ; but everything is compara- tive, and, by the side of the trials of all the early Christians, all that we have to undergo is light," &c. i It should be remembered that I addressed these exhortations to Miss L — , as I believed, from her own statements, that she was inwardly fully convinced of every Catholic doctrine, but hesitated to profess her faith openly, for fear of the displeasure of her relatives ; under these circumstances I was not only justified in the course I pursued, but positively bound in conscience so to act. I explained to her the vast distinction between a person in her position and a conscientious Protestant, who worshipped God with sincerity of heart, to the best of his knowledge. In a subsequent letter I wrote as follows : ' " I do not seek to precipitate you ; but remember I have already told you that those who know the truth, 204 RECOLLECTIONS OF and do not openly confess it, are in a most dangerous position. I have explained to you the doctrine of the Church relative to the salvation of Protestants ; but this cannot apply to you. God hath visited you with His Divine grace ; He has singled jovl out ; He has enlightened you ; He has called you to become a member of His holy Church on earth, and to enjoy eternal life in heaven ; He has offered Himself to you in the Holy Eucharist; He has promised you His Holy Spirit in confirmation 5 He will enroll you in the communion of His Saints and faithful servants who have confessed Him from the beginning; He invites you to celebrate the mysteries of the Redemp- tion, as they occur in the succeeding festivals of the year, and to partake of every privilege and blessing ; — and yet you turn away, and allow yourself to be driven, Sunday after Sunday, to a miserable mockery of a service, established by that Church-destroying Knox and his associates ; and you have no other, or better, reason to give for this inconsistency, than the fear of displeasing your relatives. But will they save you? Were they the most powerful nobles of the land, could they weigh one grain in the balance of Divine justice? Remember, when great graces are vouchsafed, much is expected, and most certainly much will be required from you." 4 This correspondence continued for some time ; Miss L — always writing in the kindest and most confidential manner, until feeling that it was neither A. WELBY PUGI.N-. 205 sincere nor honourable to go on without fully declaring my sentiments to her, and being about to undertake a journey to Hornby Castle, I wrote to her to propose an interview at E — , to which she consented in a letter, from which the following is an extract : ' " I have just received your most welcome letter. How delightful it would be to see you in Edinburgh next week ! The only way that I think it would be possible to see you, would be at Aitcheson's the con- fectioner's, a shop at the west-end of Queen Street, at half-past one o'clock, on Tuesday next, the 30th. But you see I could not positively say that I could be there, as, although no other engagement of any sort would keep me away, yet supposing it should be a very bad day, although I should not mind the weather, my brother and sister would not let me go out," &c. ' In the same letter, in reply to a complaint of mine about being frequently called away from my art to attend to domestic matters, she writes : " I wish I were so situated that I could prevent your having a moment's anxiety on such subjects ; then my happiness would indeed be perfect T ' On receiving this letter, I immediately wrote the following reply, containing my proposal of marriage : ' Reply and Proposal of Marriage, written Nov. 26. 6 " My dearest Miss L — , 4 " Do you think I would hesitate going three 206 RECOLLECTIONS OF times the distance on such a chance ? I will not fail to be at the place you mention on Tuesday; and should you be prevented, I will remain about Edin- burgh till I have the great delight of meeting you. I would not miss you on any account, for there is no one left whom I am so anxious to meet. From the first moment I had the happiness of seeing you, I found the greatest consolation and comfort in your society ; and I cannot describe the delight I felt when you unfolded your sentiments to me on religion. From that moment I really ventured to hope that you were raised up by God to support me in my great undertakings, and to become my guardian angel. I must rely on your kind heart to forgive me, if I am too presumptuous ; but I cannot refrain from opening my heart to you. I love you with all the intensity of affection that a Christian man can love one who has a perfect communion of soul and feeling with himself ; I know you possess every quality that could make a home happy; and I do believe I could accomplish double what I do at present, if I had the support of your society, and the infinite consolation and comfort of knowing that I possessed a being in whose affection I could rely, and to whom I could communicate all my ideas. At present I am desolate and miserable ; and when your sad letter came from H — , I felt as if everything was cut from me. Your dear letter from I — revived all my hopes; and I cannot remain any longer, without laying before you the true state of my heart. You know I am a sincere man, A. WELBY PUGIN. 207 and you will pardon the abruptness of this communi- cation. I am well aware that I am soliciting you to make a great sacrifice in many respects ; but I rely on the noble qualities of your mind ; and I will not insult you by imagining that you would prefer the luxuries of fashionable society to the consolations of religion, and the comforts of domestic life. I will not attempt to disguise from you that objections will be raised against our union on different grounds; first, on religion ; second, on my position ; third, from my having already a family of children. Now, to reply to these : on the first, religion. With your opinions, you are bound in conscience not to allow any objections or opposition, even of parents, to prevent you occupy- ing a position in which you can have the free exercise of the Catholic faith ; and I need scarcely remind you that, as my wife, you would have comforts on this score which few can possess. ' " Secondly, although I am a professional man, yet it is a most glorious profession that I follow, and a far more honourable state than that of independent idle- ness. Moreover, unoccupied persons are apt to fall into a state of ennui, and to seek amusement in society instead of their home ; and rely on it, if husband and wife are not all in all to each other, happiness is at an end. I mentioned to you once that my income averaged about a year ; of this, I have made a rule to lay by for investments, and with the remainder to live and carry on my ecclesiastical buildings, &c. ; while I can work — and by the blessing 20$ KECOLLECTIONS OF of God I hope to do so for many years — I have, as you see, a fine income ; but if I were deprived of my powers by illness, my fortune would be very small, about in money, bringing me in a year. 6 " 1 have my freehold residence, and other property, worth about more, but which does not bring in any interest ; however, I do not owe one shilling, and I pay every week ; and I would of course take means to secure you a good independence. I lay all this before you as I am in duty bound ; for, of course, as regards attendance and style of living, I fear you would find a considerable change from your present habits; and I must tell you sincerely and candidly, no increase of fortune, consequent on my extending business, would induce me to keep up a costly esta- blishment, or indulge in luxurious living. According to Catholic principles, every man is only a steward of his wealth, for the expenditure of which he is answer- able to God ; and while so many souls require instruc- tion, and so many bodies food and clothes, I dare not waste my means on superfluities ; and I hope you have the same views on these points. ' " Thirdly, as regards my family. I am willing to grant that there are some evils to be feared ; but, on the other hand, as I once remarked to you, that the experience which the father of a family has gained is calculated to contribute, in no small degree, to the comfort of a wife. Inexperienced persons are apt to imagine that marriage is a mere love-romance ; hence they are disappointed with the realities of the state of A. WELBY PUGIN. 209 which they had no idea. Now, in my case, having already gone through all sorts of troubles and diffi- culties, I am better prepared to meet them ; and I do believe, by the blessing of God, I could make you very happy. And now, my dearest Miss L — , I have stated my case, and considered all the diffi- culties, which I hope I have solved. I need not say with what anxiety I await a few lines from you ; pray give me some comfort; at least let me know I have not incurred your displeasure, &c, ' " Ever, dearest Miss L — , ' " Your devoted, * " Augustus W. Pugin. 4 " P. S. — What a horrible place you have named for our meeting — a confectioner's shop! ! cheesecake and mock-turtle ! The ruined abbey of Holy Eood would have been a far more appropriate spot." 4 1 proceeded, as arranged, to Edinburgh, where I met Miss L — according to her appointment; the interview was most satisfactory. And on my return I received a letter, in which she stated that she felt she must overcome any difficulties to become mine, and consented to be united to me. ' The matter of our union being thus agreed, the next point to arrange was the manner in which it could be best and most prudently accomplished. Although at that time I had not been unfortunate enough to come into contact with Mr. L — , yet, from p 210 RECOLLECTIONS OF some circumstances that had occurred, I judged him to be a man so deeply prejudiced against the Catholic faith, that it was next to impossible that he should consent to my union with his daughter. Taking into consideration that Miss L — was four-and-twenty years of age, and foreseeing the danger of all that has since happened, I was strongly in favour of a private marriage. I frequently wrote to Miss L — on this point, warning her that in marrying me she would have to give up her family, and that her father never would consent, except by miracle. She cannot possibly plead want of consideration on this point, for half my letters were on this subject. 4 Extract, 6 " If you expect to obtain any sanction to our union from your parents beforehand, you will be miserably mistaken, and it will only be exposing me to a repetition of all I have suffered before, and if you abandon me, I shall give up in despair. I cannot tell you how I suffered from that letter you sent me from H — , although our relative position was so different from what it is at present. But / could not bear it now ; anything of the kind is too horrible ; indeed, I will not imagine you capable of forsaking me, or I should work myself up to distraction." ' I also warned her of the loss she would sustain in temporal matters by her marriage, not knowing that she was entitled to one shilling in her own right. A. WELBY PUGIN. 211 4 Extract. 6 " Of course, in marrying me, you will have to forego any expectation of temporal benefit , either from your parents or family — that you must expect. But I trust to make ample amends on that score ; and in itself it is not a question that can be balanced for one moment, either with your duty to Gocl, on the score of religion, or even with respect to the acquisition of temporal happiness in the married state." 4 Extract from another Letter on the same subject, written in February. 4 " If you regard our troubles in a true light, you will see that they have been the means of testing the sincerity of our affection. Suppose, on the one hand, that, instead of making some sacrifice to become mine, I was a man of high worldly position, — what people would call a very advantageous match for you, — could I feel that gratitude, that absolute obligation of doing everything in my power to make you happy, which our present circumstances enjoin on me ? Again, supposing that, in marrying you, I was to receive an accession of temporal goods, instead of incurring the sacred duty of making a suitable provision for your support, under any circumstances that may happen, could you feel so satisfied of the sincerity of my attachment as you must do at present ?" 4 It was at first arranged that our union should be private; but I was induced to concede this point p 2 212 RECOLLECTIONS OF contrary to my better judgment, in consequence of Miss L — 's assurances that she had the necessary for- titude to face her father, and, in case of his refusal, to act on her own responsibility. 1 Extract. ' " I have been thinking that the best plan would be for me to be reconciled to the Catholic Church before I leave Edinburgh; and then, after I get home, I would tell papa and mamma that I was engaged to be married to you ; they could not reproach me with having taken such a step without their knowledge, and they could never wish me to break my solemn promise to you ; besides, as I should then be a Catholic, a great part of their objections would be removed. It strikes me that, although my plan requires an immense deal of courage on my part, yet it is the right one to pursue ; however, I shall be guided by you, &c. But you may rest assured that, should anything occur to divulge our secret, I shall stand firm as a rock ; nothing shall move me or tempt me to forsake one whom I love and adore. You are my all in all, — my only support and consolation." 'Trusting to these assurances, in an evil hour I gave my consent to the course that has been adopted, partly from the considerations advanced in her letter and partly from feeling that a private marriage could not be celebrated with the solemnity becoming a person of her position. A. WELBY PUGIN. 213 ' On the 25th of January Miss L — sent me a formal written promise of marriage, the counterpart of one she received from me. The following is a true copy : ' " In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. I, the undersigned, most solemnly promise to take Augustus Welby North- more Pugin, of S. Augustins, in the county of Kent, to be my wedded husband, according to the laws of Holy Church and of this realm, as soon as conveniently may be after the feast of Easter next forthcoming. " Witness / — v ' As soon as my union with Miss L — had been de- finitely arranged, I immediately proceeded to make the necessary arrangements, by altering and com- pleting my residence, making new furniture, plate, &c, and providing dresses, jewellery, &c, with the full knowledge and approbation of Miss L — . ' " I am full of work at the house, improving every- thing before you come, so that we shall have nothing to do but enjoy the place afterwards. I am panelling the best rooms, putting new stained glass into the windows, redecorating the ceilings, and the three cros- letts will not be forgotten. I am fitting out in every department, and I do trust everything will please "I— M— Jan. 25, 1843. my hand and seal. " S — H — S — L — ' 1 Extract from a Letter, Feb. 7. 214 RECOLLECTIONS OF you. You have no idea of the work we have to get done by Easter. I have between thirty and forty people working different ways. There are five at your jewellery at Birmingham ; of course I cannot pre- tend to vie in intrinsic value with thousands of people ; but no woman, not excepting the Queen, will have better ornaments, as regards taste, than you will." 1 Extracts from Miss L — '«§ Letters relative to her Dresses, § m c. ' " I will send you the pattern of the dress directly it comes home, and also the size of the bracelets, — how beautiful they will be ! I see you are determined to lavish all your care and attention on me ; and if it were possible, my love would be increased by your never ceasing kindness ; but this is impossible, for I could not love you more ardently than I do," &c. ' Extract (in an envelope containing a ring and piece of tape.) * " The ring is rather a tight fit for my third finger ; a size larger would fit my second ; the tape is the size of my head." ' " My dearest Augustus, ' " I send you the pattern of a dress ; the piece of tape is the length of the skirt, the back, and where the pin is put, the length of the front ; the slip of paper is the proper length of a bracelet. My own A. WELBY PUGIN. 215 dearest, how much trouble you are taking on my account ; I can never do enough to testify the love I have for you," &c. 'All the things made for her being of a most costly description and in the first style of ancient art, amounted to large sums of money — including the alte- rations, and various matters connected with this un- happy business, altogether more than two thousand pounds. 'And in the mean time Mr. J — , solicitor of Eamsgate, had prepared a deed of settlement, by my instructions, by which I made £5000 over to her ab- solutely, and my residence, with all its contents, worth at least, £8000 more, for her life, besides a life interest in other property ; and thinking it might be a satis- faction to her family, I appointed her brother, Mr. E — L — one of the trustees. In all these arrange- ments, I was actuated by the one idea of providing, to the best of my ability, for an affectionate woman, whom I imagined to be giving up temporal advantages to unite herself with me. ' Every particular relative to these matters was com- municated to Miss L — , who expressed herself more than delighted with all I was doing for her. She fre- quently expressed her anxiety to be received into the Catholic Church at Edinburgh during Lent, instead of waiting till after Easter, as I had proposed. From one of her letters, it would appear that her relatives had strong suspicions of her religious feelings, and were 216 11EC0LLECTI0NS OF endeavouring to counteract them, for she writes as follows : ' " Papa sent us the other day a heap of sermons, &c. against Popery, one of them by my uncle in London, which my brother read to us on Sunday. It just contains the old abuse which has been answered so often, &c. ' " If Protestants would only allow themselves to investigate the Catholic religion as it really is, and leave their prejudices behind them, they could not fail in being convinced of its truth." 6 On March 1, owing to her being likely to leave Edinburgh, she wrote to say it would not be right to defer her profession of the Catholic faith later than the week after next. 4 My reply to this did not reach her so soon as I , expected ; and I received a second letter from her to the following effect : " Why on earth do you not write to me ? I have been in the greatest anxiety in consequence. Pray write by return of post ; and direct to me at M — S — 's. Next Tuesday is the clay I should like to be reconciled to the Church. I do not think it would be safe to defer longer. You must arrange everything, and let me know. I shall be wretched till I hear from you. 'I accordingly went down to Edinburgh on the A. WELBY PUGIN. 217 12th, found a letter at the hotel, appointing an inter- view in the country, near B— , for the 14th, where I met Miss L — , and settled all for her reception at St. Margaret's on Wednesday the 15th, which took place accordingly, in a most solemn and edifying manner. 6 Immediately after the ceremony, she despatched a letter to her father, informing him of what had taken place, and likewise of her engagement to me ; and in this letter she enclosed another, addressed to Mr. L — from myself, entreating his Consent to our union. ' On Friday, by particular desire of Miss L — , I went to see her at Mr. I — 's, at I — , and met, on the part of her relatives, with the most inhospitable recep- tion I ever experienced north of the Tweed, which was, however, more than compensated for by the affec- tionate kindness of my affianced wife. 6 On Sunday, the 19th, she was actually prevented by Mr. I — from attending the Catholic service, as she states in the following letter, sent to me at Birming- ham : 6 " My dearest Augustus, ' " I am sure no one can regret more than I do being prevented from going to church to-morrow. It is indeed dreadful to absent myself the first Sunday after my reconciliation to the Church. Were I at home I should insist on going, and must certainly next Sun- day ; no power on earth shall prevent my doing so, wherever I may be." 218 RECOLLECTIONS OF ' In the same letter she returned her wedding-ring to be finished off, as it had been sent to her to try if it fitted exactly ; and she informed me that she was going up to London by the express on Monday, and would write as soon as she arrived. I accordingly joined the train at Rugby, and came up to town at the same time. 4 On Wednesday I received a letter from her, dated from I — ; and its contents are remarkable, as they prove that she received very different treatment and language on her arrival to that she afterwards experienced : 1 " They (my parents) will not forbid our union ; but I think it probable they would wish it delayed for a little while. You cannot think how kindly and gently they treat me here. Write to me directly you get this ; and do send me a rosary and the book you lent me ; also tell me which days I am to fast, now I am in the London district. Will you also send me my little Missal papa took away, and my book of instruc- tions ? Oh, my dearest Augustus, what a comfort it is to have you to apply to !" ' In accordance with the wish expressed in this letter, I wrote to C — Park without obtaining an answer, and addressed four other letters without any result, as they were all intercepted. The utter uncertainty in which I was thus kept, as to what had befallen Miss L — , occasioned me the most intense anxiety ; and on Fri- A. WELBY PUGIN. 219 day, not being able to endure the suspense any longer, 1 went to I — , when I was informed that Miss L— had gone down to H — , at least two clays previous. I immediately quitted London for Ramsgate, despatch- ing a letter that evening to H — , stating the extreme agony of mind I felt at the absence of all intelligence from her, and entreating for some information. 6 Late on the evening of Saturday, Mr. B — came to my residence with a communication from Miss L — , and my astonishment and anguish may be readily con- ceived on my perusing a document, in which she de- clared, in the name of the holy and ever-blessed Trinity \ the blessed Virgin, and all the Saints, that she would never, under any circumstances, unite herself in marriage zoith me, or see me, or receive any letter or communi- cation from me. Such a document, coming suddenly from a woman who was my affianced wife, whose pre- vious letters and conduct breathed nothing but the most devoted affection and fidelity, completely over- powered me. I fell to the ground, and was for a time deprived of my senses. Mr. B — was exceedingly shocked and alarmed at the effect which his mission had produced ; and although at that time he was rather prejudiced against me from the false and garbled account he had heard of the affair at H — , yet he de- termined on making further investigation into the facts ; and I feel it a sacred duty to state that, from the moment he was satisfied of the real truth, and of my honourable conduct, he acted in the most firm, im- partial, and kind manner possible ; and indeed I may 220 RECOLLECTIONS OF say, that had it not been for his friendship and support, I should probably have sunk under these most trying circumstances. c The next morning he came to my chamber, as I was confined to my bed, and having perused some of the most important documents relative to the affair, he was literally astounded by the facts, and horrified with the gross injury that would be inflicted on me by any violation of the marriage engagement; and he proceeded at once to H — to lay the facts of the case before the family. 4 It will scarcely be credited that, on his return, this poor woman, who, only the evening previous, had sent a paper, as above, discarding me for ever, told her uncle that she would crawl on her knees to Eamsgate ; and sent me a message by him, that if I did not marry her, it would be her death. Can it be considered sur- prising that, under these circumstances, I should resort to every expedient to see and communicate with her ? ' The result of Mr. B — 's statement was the depu- tation by Mr. L — , of Mr. B— , the Rev. J. S — , and Mr. I — , of I — , to come over to Eamsgate and exa- mine the documents mentioned by Mr. B — . They accordingly arrived at S. Augustine's on Monday afternoon ; and on the supposition that I was dealing with honourable men, and that if I was able to make good my case, as stated by Mr. B — , the union would be permitted, I opened the whole matter, even to my own private resources and pecuniary affairs, without reserve ; and even forwarded through Mr. S — , the A. WELBY PUG1N. 221 most important letters of my own and Miss L — for her father's inspection. Certainly both Mr. S — and Mr. I — expressed themselves, while at my house, and afterwards at Mr. B— 's, as very favourably impressed with the result of the investigation, and when they left, there seemed every hope of a speedy adjustment of the difficulties. It is impossible to say how far they acted in accordance with their professions, but the result would lead me to infer a great deficiency in this respect. No letter arriving from H — in the course of two days, Mr. B — went over, and was received in a manner that would not induce him to repeat his visit 5 and the next day the letters sent from his home were returned unread, with a desire that no further commu- nication might be sent from him. A most unaccount- able proceeding, and strangely inconsistent with his appointment as one of the arbitrators of the case, made by Mr. L — himself. 4 After a fortnight of most cruel anxiety and sus- pense, after all this investigation into my most private affairs, and after full proof of his daughter's being mo- rally and legally affianced to me, I received a note of literally three lines from Mr. L — , merely stating he should oppose the marriage to the utmost 5 and, on my replying, my letter was returned unopened ! All direct communication being thus cut off from H — , a most unsatisfactory correspondence was carried on by the medium of Mr. J. S — . In the commencement of the business I was disposed to give that gentleman credit for some sincerity and good feeling ; but I soon dis- 222 RECOLLECTIONS OF covered that he was as determined, and perhaps a more dangerous opponent, than his violent brother. It ap- peared to me that he wrote against time. Half his letters were written to say that he could not find leisure to write, such was the pressure of his parochial duties. A confirmation and a religious tea-party served him as an excuse for three weeks ; and between apologising for omissions, and proposing vexatious objections, he managed to eke out the time, which I conceive was employed by those at home to harden Miss L — for the very unfeeling and disgraceful part she was to act towards me. ' At length, in a very off-hand note, in which he rather impudently told me that the immediate resignation of my pretensions was only a due and proper reparation for the pain / had caused the family, was enclosed a note in Miss L — 's hand-writing, addressed to her uncle, but intended to be forwarded to me. It was to the following effect : '"That she was deeply grateful to him for all the kind interest he took in her welfare ; and as she was resolved not to fulfil her engagement, she begged him to let me know that any further intrusion (sic) on my part, or on that of my friends, would be exceedingly offensive to her," &c.' ^ Many of Pugin's friends will be of opinion that this paper does credit both to his head and his heart. A. WELBY PUGIN. 223 It was printed only for private circulation, and a man of even less ardent temperament than Pugin might perhaps be excused for taking such a step to set him- self right in the estimation of his friends under circum- stances so painful. But the 6 Statement of Facts ' must speak for itself, and the general reader will form his own judgment upon it. At the same time, it must be remembered that we have no counter-statement, no- thing in writing from Miss L — 's friends, which discloses their reasons for the strong aversion entertained to the match. It may, however, be gathered from the ' Statement ' that their objections were mainly based on religious grounds. 221 RECOLLECTIONS OF CHAPTER XVI. Remarks on Jewels prepared for the intended Wedding — Pugin makes a Tour in Italy— Reception by the Pope — Expresses his annoyance that many of the Priesthood disregarded his theories upon Christian Art —Contrasts their apathy with the earnestness of many in the Angli- can Church, who readily adopt his " True Principles." In anticipation of his intended marriage with Miss L — Pugin designed most beautiful bridal jewels, and had them made under his personal directions. These, it will be remembered, were exhibited amongst the productions of mediaeval jewellery in the Great Exhibition of 1851. They were deservedly admired, and on Her Majesty's visit to the Exhibition, she specially requested to see them, before inspecting the other objects in the collec- tion. The expense incurred in these ornaments must have been considerable, and he evidently intended that his marriage ceremony should be of no common kind. Pugin in the year 1847 for the first time extended his travels beyond Germany, and after visiting all the leading cities in the north of Italy, proceeded to Rome. His studies hitherto had been exclusively confined to the mediaeval architectures of England, France, Bel- A. WELBY PUGIN. 225 gium and Germany. With all his appreciation of the beauties of foreign art, he never hesitated to claim for the English churches and cathedrals a degree of ex- cellence not to be surpassed by anything on the Con- tinent ; but admitted that in domestic and municipal architecture, foreign countries supplied a multitude of beautiful examples not to be found at home. He was especially delighted with Nuremberg, and the pictu- resque features of this ancient city afforded him most interesting studies. Although fully alive to the merits of real art in whatever style it was found, still his deep- rooted antipathy to classic forms unfitted him for receiving those strong impressions of satisfaction which people generally receive, from the contemplation of the magnificent buildings of Rome and the south of Italy. Nor does he appear to have modified his opinions in any material degree after examining them. For on his arrival at Eome he writes to a friend near Durham, in unmistakable terms, expressing his disap- pointment at the buildings in the Eternal City. He says : 1 Rome, May 1st, (1847). ' I have now seen Rome and what Italian archi- tecture can do, and I do not hesitate to say that it is an imperative duty on every Catholic to defend true and Christian architecture with his whole energy. The modern churches here are frightful ; St. Peter's is far more ugly than I expected, and vilely constructed — a mass of imposition — bad taste of every kind seems to Q 22G RECOLLECTIONS OF have run riot in this place 5 one" good effect however results from these abortions : I feel doubly grateful for living in a country where the real glories of Catholic art are being revived and appreciated. In Rome it is hopeless, unless by miracle. I assure you I have felt quite depressed and miserable here; I shall be quite glad to get away. Were it not for the old Basilicas and the associations connected with the early Christian antiquities, it would be unbearable — the Sistine Chapel is a melancholy room, the Last Judgment is a painfully muscular delineation of a glorious subject, the Scala Regia a humbug, the Vati- can a hideous mass, and St. Peter s is the greatest failure of all. It is quite painful to walk about; Italian architecture is a mere system of veneering marble slabs; it is enough to make one frantic to think, that these churches with their plaster pilasters and bad windows, have not only been the model for all larger churches erected during the last two centuries, but have been the means of spoiling half the fine old buildings through the efforts that have been made to assimilate them to this wretched model. They must have had some fine things at one time, for there are several tombs and incised stones of the right character, and the subterranean church of St. Peter's contains several bishops and popes in fine chasubles, &c. I hope you will tell everybody that this is the place to confirm people in the true style, and I can now speak of all their matters from personal observation. I leave here A. WELBY PUGIN. 227 on Tuesday (the 1st of May) ; as soon as, D. V., I return to England T will come down to Ushaw. ' My legs are still very weak, but otherwise I am stronger, and I shall feel better when I can get sight of a mullioned window again. The old Basilicas are very interesting, and if they had not given such a miserable modern dress to all the holy places, one might realize all the wonderful events connected with the early ages of Christianity within the city; but how is it possible to realize an idea of the residence of St. Peter, when we see a thing like a side chapel of Versailles ? or the relics of a saint in a flower-pot ? we must nail our colours to the cross, not to the mast. I never surrender; if my health will permit me, I shall publish this journey and my impressions of Eome ; it will have novelty, at any rate, to recommend it. 4 1 remain yours respectfully, 'A, Welby Pugin.' Unfavourable as were his impressions of Rome, yet he was not insensible to the beauties of mediaeval art to be found in the great cities of Northern Italy, and expresses himself warmly concerning them in his letters to Lord Shrewsbury. In the libraries and galleries, rich with ancient manuscripts and the works of the early Italian artists of the thirteenth century there was much to interest him ; and he did not fail to draw largely from these valuable stores. As may readily be supposed, he was Q2 228 KECOLLECTIONS OF received with marked attention by all the leading dignitaries of the Church. The fame of his great exertions in the revival of church architecture, and the successful results of his co-operation through the medium of the arts in fostering a taste for external and ceremonial display, were duly appreciated at Rome. The Pope, to mark the sense His Holiness entertained of services he had rendered, presented him with a splendid gold medal. This token of approbation from the Pontiff gratified Pugin more than any other event in his life. For it should be mentioned that, although his merit as an architect was acknowledged by a large section of the Church Catholic, and his talents used wherever possible : there were yet many eccle- siastics, who, if they did not altogether dislike mediaeval art, showed a great indifference to Pugin's efforts. These persons, obstinately persisting in setting at defi- ance his notions of true art, continued to erect their buildings in late Italian architecture, and to fit up their churches with all sorts of cheap and tawdry ornaments, artificial flowers, candles, plaster figures, coarse paintings, and (as he termed them) other "abominations," these being the external objects through which they sought to make the forms of devo- tion attractive. This course of procedure greatly an- noyed Pugin, and he often found himself at issue with dignified ecclesiastics, who instead of advancing his objects, countenanced some of the clergy in their per- verse doings. He frequently expressed a more favour- able opinion of the Anglican clergy, than of those A. WELBY FUGIN. 229 belonging to his own Church, for however abhorrent his religious opinions might be to the former, the clergy of the Church of England as a body were entirely favourable to the revival of architecture of which Pugin was so masterly an exponent. 2H0 RECOLLECTIONS OF CHAPTER XVII. Pugin's third marriage — Lord Shrewsbury's congratulation — Account of Eoman Catholic Buildings in course of erection — Assumed comple- tion of Structures partially built — Strictures upon Pugin's Buildings in the 1 Ecclesiologist ' — Insufficient record of his negotiations with employers and others to make a full Biography — Addresses a Letter to M. Didron, giving an account of all that he is doing in England in the revival of Ancient Art. After remaining a widower five years Pugin again entered the marriage state. This his last marriage was a most happy union. Miss Knill, the lady whom he now espoused, was the youngest daughter of Thomas Knill, Esq. of Typtree Hall, Herefordshire, a descen- dant of the ancient family of that name in the same county. She was married from the house of her uncle, the late John Knill, Esq. of Blackheath, and the cere- mony was performed at St. George's Eoman Catholic Cathedral on the 10th of August, 1848. By this mar- riage there are two children. Mrs. Pugin was enthu- siastic in her love of ancient art, and appreciating her husband's genius, entered into all his projects : and when his health gave way, watched over him with the most affectionate care. He often refers in his letters to the soothing manner in which she nursed him when he was suffering intense pain. How agonized her feelings must have been to witness the derangement of that great mind which she had known in its fullest power ! A. WELBY PUGIN. 231 On the occasion of his marriage, Pugin announced the fact to his friends by sending a very pretty card,* ex- pressing by heraldic devices the happy union which had taken place. Foremost amongst those to congra- tulate him was the Earl of Shrewsbury, who wrote — ' Mivart's. fi My dear Pugin, ' 1 can assure you that nothing has given me more pleasure for a long time past than the announce- ment of your sudden and happy marriage. Providence I am sure has now rewarded you for all your past sufferings, and given you a happy home for the rest of your days. Lady Shrewsbury desires me to say everything that is kind upon this occasion; we are here till Thursday, and hope to be back at Alton on Saturday. Your card is beautiful, and I am sure you may well be satisfied with your new armorial bearings. 'Believe me, my dear Pugin, ' Most truly and faithfully yours, 6 Shrewsbury.' The Duke of Norfolk and other distinguished people also wrote to him, expressing their pleasure at his marriage. The readiness with which the Anglican clergy adopted Pugin's principles of art, was forcibly alluded to in a long and interesting article, published in the Dublin Review of February 1842, entitled ' The Present State of Ecclesiastical Architecture in England.' In this * Chromolithograph of the wedding-card is annexed. 232 RECOLLECTIONS OF paper a very full description is given of all the Roman Catholic churches and religious houses building in England, and great praise incidentally bestowed upon the Protestant clergy for their judgment in acting upon correct architectural principles, while the most bitter invectives are launched against the doctrines of the Reformation. Although the writer of that article, (which is accompanied by numerous plans and eleva- tions,) has not appended his name, there can be little doubt that Pugin was the author. It is written in a vigorous tone, but loses much of its point by the in- flated descriptions of Catholic ceremonies. The prints are entirely illustrative of churches, &c, built from Pugin s designs, etched by him, comprising the principal Catholic structures then in course of erection. Judging by some of these representations it would be thought that the Roman Catholic churches and monastic insti- tutions were of gigantic dimensions. Few, however, if any of the projects are completed. They show cer- tainly what Pugin intended, but if any person curious to see the effect of one of these groups of buildings were to visit the establishment, great would be his disappointment at finding but an inconsiderable part of the scheme really executed. No blame attaches to Pugin on this account. It cannot be doubted that the founders of these ecclesiastical institutions intended to complete them, and they naturally desired to ex- hibit them pictorially in their completeness.* It also * A friend always asks the question, " Do the Romanists in England or I reland ever finish the pretentious buildings they design ?*' A. WELBY PUGIST. 233 answered another purpose as tending to show how rapid was the alleged extension of Romanism in England, which could demand such extensive churches and monastic buildings. The ' Ecclesiologist ' of January 1846, contains an ar- ticle upon ' the artistic merit of Mr. Pugin,' in which some very severe observations are made upon the several designs published in the ' Dublin Review.' The writer remarks that ' these buildings with one excep- tion are the work of Mr. Pugin himself; and they are, to speak generally, all represented, whether yet com- menced or not, as in a state of ideal perfection ; to which humanly speaking there is very little probability of their attaining, excepting in a few cases, for an in- definite period. And yet from the whole tenour of the letter-press, one might suppose that they all were already far advanced towards such a consummation. This,' it is observed, 6 is scarcely dealing as he should with his readers ; for not only does he represent the buildings as in a state of perfection, but he gives the impression of their being larger and more stately than they turn out on examination to be. 'Of such pictorial architecture, perhaps the most striking example is the Benedictine Priory of Saint Gregory's at Downside, near Bath. Here we are presented with a bird's-eye view of an immense mo- nastery with four quadrangles and a huge church, crowned by three lofty spires ; stately indeed to look upon, but when will it be finished ? how far is this priory an example of the present state of architecture 231 RECOLLECTIONS OF of England in 1842, any more than the gorgeous palaces which form the backgrounds of Mr. Martin's pictures? The safe generalities of the letter-press leave this question very doubtful. Such a proceed- ing on Mr. Pugin's part is calculated to throw an un- real halo, not only around his own reputation, but (are we uncharitable in the sentiment ?) round that of the communion to whose services he has devoted him- self. We know its numbers ; and assuming his prints as the outward index of its religious liberality, its earnestness, its increase, we should not fail to form a very exaggerated opinion of its present condition in England ; more especially when we consider that, but for the pious munificence of one excellent nobleman of that communion, these performances would in all pro- bability have been far less than they are.' Having traced Pugin's career up to this period, and noticed his principal professional works, some idea may be gathered of the character and ability of the man. But in order to appreciate the peculiarities of his mind, there needs a faithful record of his sayings and doings in connexion with the many distinguished em- ployers, and other persons of eminence amongst whom he moved. The materials for such a biography are wanting, as Pugin unfortunately destroyed all letters received during the early years of his practice. And although it is not unlikely that he himself would at a future day have brought together his memoranda (such having been his expressed intention), yet the sudden- ness of his removal terminated this expectation. A. WELBY PUGIN. 235 Observing that a laudable spirit of ecclesiastical restoration had commenced in France, and taking a deep interest in the movement, he addressed a long letter to Monsieur Didron, explaining all that he was himself doing in England. This communication is printed in the ' Bulletin Archeologique, publie par Le Comite Ilistorique des Arts et Monumens, 1843 and shows clearly the importance Pugin attached to a careful study of ancient art. Nobody could design new forms with greater ease than himself, yet so fully did he appreciate the value of ancient examples, that we find him scrupulously adopting the forms and man- ners of constructing old objects in preference to modern modes of workmanship. By adhering to this principle he succeeded in producing the most beautiful revivals of ancient metal-work, tiles, glass, enamel, &c. This letter is so valuable that it is subjoined in extenso. * M. Pugin, architecte Catholique Anglais correspon- dant, a ecrit la lettre suivante a M. Didron, qui en donne lecture ; cette lettre temoigne du mouvement archeologique et religieux, tout a la fois, que FAngle- terre favorise en ce moment. Monsieur, * " Je suis fort content d'apprendre que le desir de restaurer le veritable art chretien, si longtemps neglige, se represent avec force en France. On doit encourager de pareilles tentatives, et je vous donnerai 23G in: COLLECTIONS OF sur mcs travaux, avcc le plus grand plaisir, tous les renseignemens que pourraient vous etre utiles. Mes travaux ne se bornent pas aux Hionumens religieux ; je m attache encore h la restauration des moindres accessoires, et je m'occupe meme des etoffes pour les chapes et les chasubles. Je n'ai pas besoin de vous dire en effet que rien n'est plus choquant a l'esprit d'un veritable connaisseur de l'art chretien que de voir une eglise magnifique avec des autels, des chan- deliers et des ornemens dans le style moderne ou rococo, comme ceux qu'on trouve dans les plus belles cathedrales cle la France et de la Belgique. J'ai done etabli, il y a quatre ans k peu pres, des fabriques de tous les objets qui peuvent contribuer a la decoration et h la richesse des monumens ecclesiastiques. 6 " Dans ces fabriques, on confectionne des objets en or, en argent et en cuivre, tels que burettes, calices, ciboires, ostensoirs, chandeliers, lampes, couronnes ardentes, tabernacles en forme de tour, croix pro- cessionales, reliquaries, chasses, et enfiu tous ce qui appartient au culte catholique. J'ai fait copier ces objets d'apres modeles anciens avec la plus grande exactitude, et je suis parvenu a former des ouvriers qui travaillent tout-a-fait dans Tancien style. Les calices, larges a la coupe, sont poses sur des pieds emailles, meme enrichis de pierreries et dessines dans des formes geometriques. Les chandeliers sont de toute grandeur, mais moiris eleves qui ceux qui s'execu- tent a present. Je n'ai pas trouve dans les autorites ancienncs que les chandeliers fussent tres-eleves autre- A. WELBY PUGIN. 237 fois. Jc dois vous clirc que ces objets sont executes dans l'ancienne maniere. lis sont ciseles, graves, emailles, battus, et non pas coules en fonte comme a Tliabitude de faire aujourd'hui. Le procede de la fonte rend tons ces ouvrages lourds, tandis que les anciens ornemens en metal sont legers et travailles avec art et sentiment. Pour les ostensoirs et les reliquaires, j'ai imite les plus beaux qu'on trouve en Belgique. ' "J'ai fait faire pour les cierges une couronne ardente qui a trente-six pieds de circonference. Elle est chargee en ecussons couverts d' inscriptions et suspendue avec des chaines ornees. Lorsqu'elle est allumee pour les grandes fetes, cela produit un effet magnifique. ' " J'espere que le temps n'est pas eloigne ou tous les mauvais lustres, qui previennent des salles de bal et qu'on voit aujourd'hui dans les eglises, seront remplaces par des couronnes de cuivre dore qui sont d'un carac- tere tout-a-fait ecclesiastique. J'ai deja envoye en Amerique plusieurs ornemens de ce genre, et toutes les eglises que j'ai baties sont decorees d'objets qui portent le meme caractere et sont dans le style de l'epoque reproduite par le monument. L'autel de la chapelle de la Sainte Vierge, dans l'eglise de Birming- ham, est extremement riche, et dans le style Gothique du temps de Saint Louis. II porte un tabernacle pre- cieux en forme de tour, orne de pierreries et des quatre evangelistes en email. Cet autel est tout couvert de bas-reliefs dores et peints dans le style chretien ; de chaque cote sont suspendus des rideaux richement brodes. Tous nos autels ont des rideaux, comme on 238 RECOLLECTIONS OF cn voit clans les tableaux anciens et dans les miniatures. Nous avons plusieurs triptyques avec des portes cou- vertes de peintures; nous les plains au-dessus des autels dans les chapelles. J'ai parfaitement reussi a faire des paves incrustes ; l'eglise de Nottingham sera pavee de ces briques emaillees de differentes couleurs, chargees ^inscriptions et de divers ornemens colores en bleu, rouge, jaune et vert. Ces paves produisent un effet magnifique, et rappellent la richesse des vitraux peints. Les vitraux de couleur, si essentiels aux eglises, sont bien faits chez nous. Un morceau de verre epais, attache par la plomb, ne porte qu'un seule couleur. Je ne cherche pas a faire des tableaux sur verre, mais a suivre la severites des anciens verriers qui accordaient leur style avec l'architecture des fene- tres. Vous seriez forte content, j'en suis bien sur, des vitraux que j'ai places dans les eglises que j'ai fait construire. Tout ce que je cherche c'est de restaurer ce qu'on faisait anciennement, et non pas cVinventer de nouveaux procedes qui ne reussissent jamais. Quant aux draps d'or et de soie, quant aux galons, je les ai copies sur des tombeaux anciens d'eveques et d'autres ecclesiastiques, et j'en ai fait faire une assez grande quantite. J'aurai tres-grand plaisir de vous envoyer des echantillons de ces galons qui sont fort legers. Avec cette lettre, je vous adresse la gravure de quelques-uncs des briques incrustees dont je surveille Texecution. La liste suivante des travaux que je dirige pourra vous etrc utiles." ' [Ilere he gives a list of his finest churches, &c,.~\ A. WELBY PUGIN. 239 tu Jc compte commencer quatre eglises nouvelles clans le courant de l'annee 1843. ' " Tous ces batimens sont construits clans le veritable style chretien. lis sont plus ou moins riches dans les details ; plusieurs ont des murailles et cles plafonds charges de peintures et de dorures. Les autels, les fonts baptismaux, et surtout les jube's qui separent les choeurs et qui portent le grand crucifix, les images de la Sainte Yierge et de Saint Jean, sont tous dans le meme style. J'espere que vous viendrez un jour ici pour voir ce que nous avons fait. L'eglise de Saint Georges a Londres vous fera plaisir ; elle a 246 pieds de long.* Le clocher aura 317 pieds de hauteur jusqu'a la croix de la Heche. Je vous adresse un paquet de gravures pour vous donner une idee de ces construc- tions. ' " J'aurais grand plaisir a vous envoyer des renseig- nemens plus precis sur tout ce que vous voulez savoir, et je reste, Monsieur, votre serviteur bien devoue, < " A. Welby Pugin." ' * The base of this tower is only yet built, and according to present appearances there seems little hope of the structure being ever com- pleted according to Pugin's design. 210 RECOLLECTIONS OF CHAPTER XVIII. Destruction of the old Houses of Parliament — Pugin assists in preparing' Designs for the new Palace — His subsequent employment, under Sir C. Barry to superintend certain details — Sir C. Barry's Testimony to Pughrs Genius — Pugin's readiness to accord merit wherever due. An opportunity soon presented itself of showing the capabilities of mediaeval architecture which had hitherto never occurred in this or any other country in modern times. The destruction by fire of the Royal Palace of Westminster, containing the two Houses of Parlia- ment, although in itself a great calamity, has been the means of giving to the metropolis a new building which in splendour and extent is equal if not supe- rior to any other building in the world. When the commission appointed by Parliament in 1836 made their report, preferring the mediaeval styles to those of Greece and Rome, no one doubted that Pugin would in any competition be at the head of the list. It was therefore generally expected that he would furnish a de- sign immeasurably superior to those of his professional brethren. But, strange to say, amongst the names of eighty-four competitors, who submitted designs, his did not appear. This may be considered the great mistake in his professional life. Had he but applied himself to the consideration of this national work with A. WELBY PUGIN. 241 his full power and energy, and entered the competition ; who can doubt but that he would have gained one of the premiums (which were large) even if he failed to obtain the execution of the design. Still, although he declined joining openly in the contest, there was a design offered by a Scotch architect, Mr. Gillespie Graham, in which the hand of Pugin was so evident that its real authorship could not be doubted. In fact he never denied that the drawings were his, and the composition to some extent his own.* This design did not find favour with the commissioners to whom was entrusted the power of selecting five designs to be classed for the premiums according to their respective merits. The commissioners selected designs in which symmetry of plan and elevation were conspicuous, rather than pictorial outline combining bold and strik- ing contrast. Pugin's design was perhaps wanting in dignity, but it was marked by the most successful treatment in the disposition and grouping of its parts. No attempt was made to produce an extended river facade of uni- form character. The Houses of Peers and Commons, the Speaker's residence, St.Stephen's Chapel, committee rooms and officers' residences were severally treated in subordination to each other, either detached or united as the plan might require, but presenting a sky-line * The Commissioners appointed by the Crown to make a selec- tion were, Hanbury Tracy, Esq. (now Lord Sudeley), Lieut. -General Sir Edward Cust, Thomas Liddell, Esq., George Vivian, Esq. These gentlemen made their report to the King (William TV.) on the 29th of February, 1836. R 212 RECOLLECTIONS OF of singular and picturesque beauty. There was un- doubted merit of the highest order in this design, for it was strikingly mediaeval in treatment, and the very irregularities of the plan gave point and expression to the composition. However, there was so strong a feeling in the minds of the umpires for breadth of effect and simplicity in plan, that they refused to recognize the great qualities which were certainly em- bodied in Pugin's design.* The appreciation in which Pugin's knowledge of Gothic art was held, secured for him at a later period, when Mr. Barry's design was adopted, a large share in the actual execution of the work : but even of the original design some portion of its merit must be assigned to Pugin. Frequent reference is made to the great demand on his time, caused by his occupa- tion on the drawings for the new Houses of Parliament ; and the following extracts from his small diary of 1837 may not be without some interest; unfortunately a great portion of his memoranda prior to that date has been lost. Feb. 4dh. — Finished work on timber-houses. Ditto Holyrood chapel drawings. 6th. — Came up to London. At Hull's. * In the 1 Morning Post ' the following critique' upon this design appeared : ' Gillespie Graham has given a plan, in the genuine sjjirit of Gothic architecture, defying symmetry and order, but presenting com- binations of convenience and picturesque grouping in perfect keeping with the character of the style, and most delightful to contemplate. The designs evince the author's intimate acquaintance with the style. The drawings by the same hand which appears to have assisted No. 64, are masterly, and entirely peculiar.' A. WELBY PUGIN. 243 7 th. — Ackcrraan started on work of houses, which I trust will do something towards reviving a love for the ancient thing — but it is not calculated to do much. 9th. — On composition of new river front. 10^.— Begun lodges. Wind N. N.W. 1 1 th. — On composition of centre and wings, draw- ing centre tower ; also 16th. — Upper part of same. Taken ill. m.— Ill all day. Wind N. HE. lSth.— Better. W. N. NE. ; stormy. Acker- man's bill. Finished timber-houses. Dined at Mr. Stodeim's. 19 th. — Much better. Be turned Barry lOd. 31st. — Finished all Barry's drawings. Feb. 5th. — Left London for Sarum. The more I think, the more I deplore the degraded state of the public taste. 10th. — Finished chapel for Mr. Barry. Ditto for Wolfe. 11th. — Began Mr. Scarisbrick's hall. l^th. — Left Oscott college at night for Walby. From Walby to Manchester. — Back to Oscott. Here all day. Earl Spencer came. Left with Bishop for London. All day in London. Called on Bury, Webb, and Hull. Left Sarum at night. 21st. — Sent drawings to Dr. Weedall, Messrs. Moore and Hull. r 2 244 RECOLLECTIONS OF Worked hard all day. Sent off draw- ings of great room to M. Gr. Gr. Com- menced sketches for a work to be entitled * Contrasts.' Aug. \bth. — At Moorfields; afterwards to St. John's Wood. Saw Etty. Dined with Nash. Left for Birmingham. mh.~ Left Oscott for Priory, Stafford. At Caverswell Castle and Aston Hall. 21^. — Stafford Castle. From Stafford to Liver- pool. From Liverpool to Scarisbrick. 24*A. — Writington Hall. Left Scarisbrick for Manchester. 2 5 ^.—Lichfield, at Sir Charles Worsley's, to Alton. Sept 15th.~ Took lodgings at Chelsea. A poor boy lost on the Goodwin Sands. 16th. — Began Dr. Rock's work. 17th. — Read lecture at Oscott, etc. From this, some little notion may be formed of his immense energy, as well as of his iron frame, which allowed him absolutely to annihilate space even before the introduction of steam. But to return to the particular object of this chap- ter : Sir Charles was always ready to admit the great assistance he derived from Pugin, although much has been said to the contrary. Strange to say, the follow- ing letter from Sir Charles is the only one now to be obtained, most of the others being destroyed prior to Pugin's death, and what remain have been unfor- A. WELBY PUGIN. 245 tunately mislaid. This however testifies how highly Barry prized all that Pugin touched. ' Foley Place, 22nd October, 1836. ' Dear Sir, 'Being from home yesterday I could not ac- knowledge by return of post the receipt of the draw- ings of the House of Lords, King's Stairs, &c, which came safely to hand last night, and afforded me a rich treat. They will in all respects answer the purpose most admirably. I can easily imagine the great labour they must have cost you, and knowing all the diffi- culties, I cannot but wonder that you have been able to accomplish so much in the time. I am not much surprised to hear that your health suffers from excess of application. Do not, however, I beseech you, carry too great a press of sail, but take in a reef or two if you find it necessary in due time. I send by this morning's mail a packet containing tracings of the Grand Public Entrance, and approach to the Houses and Committee Rooms. They are most wretchedly made by a youngster, who is as dull and destitute of feeling as the board upon which he draws : they will nevertheless, I doubt not, afford you all the data you require. The groining and interior generally of the King's or Record Tower entrance you may make of any design you think proper : you need not be shackled as to height, but the groin should, I think, be concentric with the arch of the opening to the vestibule at the foot of the Kings Stairs, which you already have. 246 RECOLLECTIONS OF The design of this part of the building should, I think, be of a simple and massive character, and a pillar in the centre of the tower must be avoided. I am much flattered by your hearty commendation of the plan, and shall know where to look for a champion if I should hereafter require one. Truly it has cost me many an anxious thought, and an extraordinary degree of perseverance. With many thanks for your glorious efforts in the great cause, and best wishes for Mrs. Pugin's early recovery, believe me, dear sir, ' Yours most truly, ' Charles Barry.' In a building of such vast magnitude the architect was naturally glad to secure the best assistance possible for directing and attending to the multifarious details be- longing to such a structure. Pugin therefore, by direct wish of the Commissioners, and with the approbation of Mr. Barry, was afterwards appointed to aid in the great national undertaking. The designing of the internal fittings, furniture, decoration, encaustic floors, &c, were officially confided to him, and to his unremitting energy and attention in the formation and selection of carvers, glass-stainers, metal-workers, &c. &c, may be attributed the great excellence and beauty here attained, as well as the masterly skill shown by him in their conception. Barry was accustomed to spend a considerable time every year with his friend Pugin ; this practice commenced at Salisbury, and only ter- minated with death. Here the greatest good feeling A. WELBY PUGIN. 247 existed, and many and most interesting topics (mostly of scientific interest) were discussed, whilst Pugin drew and Barry suggested, and digested, the several parts in which the skill of Pugin was required. When asked how it was he had not himself endea- voured to obtain the great prize, for which he appeared so eminently fitted — he frankly said : ' Barry's grand plan was immeasurably superior to any that I could at the time have produced, and had it been otherwise, the commissioners would have killed me in a twelve- month. No, sir, Barry after all is "the right man in the right place ;" what more could we wish ?' In fact, he lost no opportunity of expressing his admiration of Barry's genius, and took pains that no misapprehen- sion should exist in the public mind, whereby Barry should be deprived of the merit due to his skill. To many of his most intimate friends he was accustomed to speak in the highest terms of him, desiring that whenever any undue share of credit was assigned to himself in the great national undertaking the statement might at once be contradicted. Notwithstanding this honourable avowal, there are still many who adhere to their conviction that the great merit of the entire Palace of Westminster belongs to him, and since the lamented decease of Sir Charles Barry this statement has been revived. Much as Pugin admired Barry's work, he still entertained his own private view of the treatment of the general design. A friend of his recollects that on one occasion, when accompany- ing him in a steam-boat from Chelsea, on passing the 248 RECOLLECTIONS OF new Houses of Parliament, at that time without their corona of towers, he waved his hand over them, ex- claiming : ' All Grecian, Sir ; Tudor details on a classic body.' Although unquestionably Pugin's knowledge of mediaeval detail was superior to that of any other person of his day, and was absolutely necessary for the conception of much as well as the effective execu- tion of the actual work — still those who were familiar with Sir C. Barry's facility of drawing and design, cannot doubt that he possessed skill of the very highest order, and that Pugin's assistance was based on the general plan provided by Barry. Those who knew Sir C. Barry could also testify to the affectionate regard which he entertained for Pugin, and his grief at the distressing malady by which he was afflicted. Indeed the first open manifestation of his derangement occurred in the presence of Sir Charles and his family, and he with the greatest promptitude called in a most eminent physician before even the sad fact was communicated to Pugin's own family. Unflinching as he was in holding up to ridicule, in his ' Contrasts,' the works of modern artists, comparing them with ancient productions, yet he was most honest and generous when noticing the works of others who had benefitted by his labours and erected successful buildings. Speaking to a friend he observed ' that the only merit he claimed was giving to other architects the hey to the use of knowledge which in theory they already possessed ; that since he opened the door other men had surpassed him in the goodness of their work.' A. WELBY PUGIN. 249 This was indeed true, for Pugin really never fairly had a chance of showing the wonderful resources and capabilities of his fertile brain, and shows how justly he appreciated himself and others, and how generously he gave credit where credit was due. In short he was a great man ; his chief object was the advancement of his favourite art, and faith, for which he sacrificed both mind and means, and in his pursuit of this he was wholly unselfish, quite as ready to rejoice in the ex- cellence of another man's work as in his own, provided only it tended to the advancing of true principles and the glory of God. 250 RECOLLECTIONS OF CHAPTER XIX. Intimacy with Mr. Minton, of Stoke-upon-Trent — Labours with him to revive and re-introduce the use of Encaustic Tiles — Complains of failing health — Writes again, referring to his impaired health and shattered nerves — Addresses an angry Letter to Mr. Minton, and withdraws all confidence in him —Upon Mr. Minton's explanation, expresses deep sorrow at having written so harshly. Among the various objects occupying Pugin's atten- tion, not one received a greater share than the revival of the manufacture of encaustic tiles. In the gradual formation of his antiquarian museum, while he lived in Great Russell Street, he had collected many beau- tiful ancient specimens, and well knew what an effective means of ornamentation they formed in both ecclesiastical and secular buildings. The old builders neglected no part of their structures, the floor was rendered pleasing though trodden under foot, as well as the coloured and emblazoned roofs and stone groin- ings ; and even the constructive parts concealed from public view were finished with the same care and attention as those details more prominently in view. In Mr. Minton, of Stoke-upon-Trent, Pugin found a man of most enlarged views, who ably seconded him in his endeavours to re-establish the ancient method of making these tiles ; no pains nor expense were spared A, WELBY PUGIN. 251 to obtain the proper clay, and impress them with ornaments of different colours. Many fruitless efforts were however made before such an amount of pressure could be obtained, and a process of kiln-burning dis- covered so as to render the tiles hard and true on their surface ; but at last success was achieved, and we owe entirely to Mr. Minton the beautiful means of enrichment supplied through the multiplied form and colour which his tiles afford. Other manufac- tories have, indeed, since sprung up where tiles of almost equal quality can be procured : but Minton was the great originator of the modern art of making encaustic tiles. A warm intimacy existed between him and Pugin ; they had been associated many years in their endeavours to recover the lost art, and Pugin had excellent opportunities of using encaustic tiles in the many Eoman Catholic churches he was building, besides the one great work of the new Houses of Parliament. No -pains were spared by Pugin in his efforts to produce beautiful and effective tile floors. He was ever suggesting some new method by which brilliant colouring might be secured, and in his correspondence with Mr. Minton extending over several years, there are amusing passages in which he enforces his views in his own racy and emphatic manner, accompanied by numerous illustrative sketches. Pugin was evidently much delighted with the result of Minton's manufacture of tiles, for when writing to him in January 1852, he says: 'I declare your St. Stephen's tiles the finest done in the tile way ; vastly 252 RECOLLECTIONS OF superior to any ancient work ; in fact they are the best tiles in the world, and I think my patterns and your workmanship go ahead of anything/ It was in the commencement of the year 1852, that the first indications were seen of his failing health, arising from over exertion of body and mind. He observes in one of his letters : ' 1 have been dreadfully ill, so ill that it was at one time doubtful if I could ever recover; but by the blessing of God I am certainly gaining strength very fast, and I have lost nothing of mental power, as I think you will find by the work I send to you. There is no probability of my being in London for the next month or two, and the medical men recommend perfect rest till the advanced time of spring, and then to travel in an easy and gentle way.' Unhappily the improvement of his health was but of short duration, for he was soon again afflicted more than ever. It was now that his intimacy with Mr. Minton, which had existed in an unbroken degree for some years, was interrupted by a misconception on Pugin's part of some remarks made by Mr. Minton on his professional charges. Nothing could be further from that gentleman's intention than to say or do anything which could give offence to his friend, but he was then in such a state of nervous debility as to be scarcely responsible for his actions. In letters at this time he repeatedly alludes to his shattered health. Thus in January 1852, he says : 'I believe I have been too hurried so soon after such an illness. I cannot get my A. WELBY PUGIN. 253 bodily strength up at all, and I perspire intensely, to that degree as to be obliged to put on five or six shirts a day, &c.' In another letter to Mr. Minton of a later date, he writes : 4 1 am in such a deplorably nervous state that I am at times scarcely answerable for what I write ; I am so dreadfully afflicted in the head. You seemed to think I had cheated and sent you a false account (though now I don't believe you did), and I cried like a child, and trembled all over in dreadful perspiration, and I thought my fever had re- turned. Pray, my dear Minton, don't agitate me, the doctors say I am not to be agitated. If you saw your poor old friend so reduced as I am — thin, trembling, hollow-eyed, changed, and yet working tremendously at times — you would be very careful not to distress me.' His condition was now truly distressing, and each succeeding letter showed fresh symptoms of suffering. His sight, which had hitherto been good, now failed him. He writes : 6 You have no conception of the dreadful agony which I still suffer, the least thing agitates me ; I feel trembling and my eyesight is dimmed. I am obliged to bathe my eyes with sea water, and to drink the coldest water to bring my sight again.' Even still worse sufferings are described in other communications ; it can therefore scarcely excite sur- prise that he should misinterpret some of the letters addressed to him, and in a moment of irritation, he wrote a letter reproaching Mr. Minton in severe language, withdrawing from him his confidence, and threatening to transfer all business commissions to 254 RECOLLECTIONS OF other manufacturers. Mr. Minton was much dis- tressed by this proceeding, well knowing that he had done nothing to merit such displeasure. To remon- strate however he knew would be vain, for Pugin refused either to see or receive any communication whatever from him. He therefore addressed a very feeling letter to Mrs. Pugin, protesting his ignorance of the cause which could have given such dire offence, at the same time offering to retract any expression he had used, and offer any apology rather than lose the friendship of one he so highly valued. This letter had its desired effect, and Minton w r as overjoyed at receiving one of the most touching communications ever penned. During the infliction of the severest visitation to which he was subjected by the inscrutable will of the Almighty there were occasional lucid in- tervals when gushes of warm-hearted feeling evidenced the tenderness of his nature. It seemed indeed as though affliction brought out the best dispositions of his heart. Notwithstanding the harsh manner in which he had expressed himself, when Mr. Minton s appeal was made to him through his wife he replies, February 14, 1852: 'My dear, ever dear Minton, ' Your capital letter to my wife has just arrived, thus leaving nothing, my dear friend, but a perfect reconciliation between us. You must attribute a great deal to the dreadful irritation of nerves left by this terrible fever under which I suffered; but A. WELBY PUGIN. 255 nothing would contribute so much to the final re- establishment of my improved health, as a real and hearty reconciliation with you. It is ridiculous, and a delight to the many, to see two such men as you and I quarrelling. We cannot afford it long, let us cut the row and embrace. I will endeavour when sufficiently restored to settle it over a leg of mutton at Huntfield ; and if you will come and see me I will give you a better reception at St. Augustine than the Emperor 5 for all my things are in the true style, which is more than you can say for the fancy patterns. I have written to Mr. Barry by this post that we are quite reconciled : it would be too affecting to see us really embracing over a happy combination of four tiles, so it must pass in imagination, though not less real. ' Your devoted old friend, 1 A. W. Pugin.' There is a rough sketch appended to this letter ex- hibiting Pugin and Minton embracing each other over an altar inscribed: 'Pax Pugin et Minton,' and on each side a crowd of people shouting 1 Pax Minton et Pugin.' At the foot there is placed in old characters as a border tile, * Pax in eternam.' The last pattern. ' A. W. Pugin, Fecit.' On the 16th of February, he again writes : — ' Many thanks for your kind letter, my dear friend. J don't think I have been myself. This nervous fever is a dreadful delusion : since I wrote I am no longer an 256 RECOLLECTIONS OF architect, that is in a general way. After I wrote to you I was taken with a terrible relapse and a stagna- tion of blood. I soon became cold in all the vital parts, and I felt that without instant relief I must die. I ordered three strong glasses of brandy : — my doctor came in : — and by the mercy of God, and by about half a pint of sal volatile which I drank off, and by my dear wife putting on hot flannels all over me, with rubbing, in which others assisted, at last the circulation returned. My medical man said this could not go on any longer, and he had a consultation of all the first medical men, who declared that I could not live a week if I did not give up my profession. There was no hesitation on my part : I immediately relinquished all my buildings except Lord Shrewsbury's and Sir C. Barry's, and of course yours, which will not kill me ; but I am a private gentleman, a grand fellow. The relief of mind, as the doctors predicted, was instantaneous, and succeeded perfectly, and I am, thank God, out of danger. I shall enshrine your kind letter among my most esteemed epistles. My mind has been deranged through over exertion. The medical men said I had worked one hundred years in forty. I have not time to say : more I am ordered to Italy as soon as possible. 4 A. W. PUGIN.' This was the last communication between them, the state of his health did not improve, and the distressing malady soon returned with increased force. A. WELBY PUGIN. 257 CHAPTER XX. Pugin's opinion of the Great Exhibition Building in Hyde Park, 1851 — Exhibits largely in the Medieval Court — Praise given him by Pro- fessor Waagen — Consulted, in 1852, upon the formation of the Architectural Museum — His opinion upon Art-Workmen — Power of persuasion in Argument — A work on Sculptured Ornament contem- plated but never carried into execution — Desire to see a Mediaeval Club established. On the occasion of the Great Exhibition in 1851, Pugin became much interested in the project, so far as to evince a great desire that there should be a department for the display of successful modern works executed in the true spirit of mediaeval art. How- ever, he took no active part in suggesting or designing the character of the building ultimately adopted and known as the Crystal Palace. In truth he was rather disgusted at the notion of enclosing everything under the shelter of a huge green-house, and considered the construction of the building rather an instance of retrogression than of advancement. Cast-iron pillars were odious things in his sight, and notwithstanding the astonishing mechanical skill shown in the concep- tion of the building, Pugin viewed the whole scheme with feelings of aversion. He could see no evidence whatever of artistic treatment in its composition, and s 258 RECOLLECTIONS OF railed vehemently against the style of ornament em- ployed. One day, on visiting the building when it was nearly completed, he met Mr. P — the originator of the de- sign, who naturally asked him what he thought of it. — ' Think,' said he ; ' why, that you had better keep to building green-houses, and I will keep to my churches and cathedrals/ Powerful as were his objections to the structure, he nevertheless took great pains that the objects ex- hibited in his own department of art should be fairly represented. No one who remembers the picturesque arrangement of the Mediaeval Court can doubt that he had a great share in its success — the various and beautiful objects it contained were entirely executed from his designs, by Mr. Myers, and amongst other things, were exhibited the wrought gold and silver ornaments made for the intended marriage with his third wife. Great praise was awarded to him by the jury who reported on the mediaeval department ; and Professor Waagen, in his notice on the various sectional divi- sions of the Great Exhibition, says, when speaking of this particular court : ' To conclude this notice, I must also mention the Mediaeval Court fitted up by Professor A. Welby Pugin, one of the most distin- guished amongst English architects, as a designer of Gothic buildings and ornaments. In this court he has endeavoured with great success to present to the spec- tator a gene ml idea of ecclesiastical art, by exhi- A. WELBY PUGIN. 259 biting an assemblage of altars, shrines, tapestries, painted windows, chalices, and patens, vestments and other ecclesiastical furniture and objects. Most of these articles are executed from his own drawings. The merit of the collection has been duly acknow- ledged by the jury.' His name is also mentioned honourably, in connection with the metal productions of Messrs. Hardman of Birmingham, whose articles are chiefly executed from his designs. When, in March, 1852, several architects and others interested in the promotion of art sought to establish a school for ' art-workmen, and a museum of archi- tectural casts,' they naturally desired to enlist Pugin in favour of their undertaking ; and with a view to elicit his opinions, Mr. Bruce Allen, one of the ori- ginators of the scheme, addressed the following letter to him. ' Cannon Eow, Westminster ; March, 1852. 'Sir, ' We are trying to establish a museum of archi- tecture, and a school of art for artist workmen, i. e. a school for all the workmen in any way employed in carrying out architectural works; — to do, indeed, for the men just what the Royal Academy does for students and painters. I enclose you a prospectus I have drawn up, which, as you will see, has been approved by many architects and others, and thought capable of realiza- tion. If you will kindly read it and tell me what your opinion of it is, I shall feel greatly obliged, and I feel s 2 260 RECOLLECTIONS OF sure that your opinion when repeated to others will greatly help me (if you approve of it), in the very- difficult task of inducing people to assist such an un- dertaking. It is, as you will at once see, capable of almost indefinite expansion. We intend to include all styles, but have commenced our collection with the Gothic as the one of churches and ecclesiastical struc- tures. As I am quite a novice at this work, I trust, Sir, you will pardon my writing without introduction. 4 1 am, 4 Faithfully yours, 6 C. Bruce Allen.' To this communication he sent the following short but characteristic reply ; it has neither date or address. 4 Sir, 1 1 have just returned home and received your prospectus and letter. I wish you every success, but it appears to me you are going to work on too exten- sive a scale in bringing up men to work in all styles. Practically, I expect you will find no end of difficul- ties. Workmen are a singular class, and from my ex- perience of them, which is rather extensive, are gene- rally incapable of taking a high view on these sub- jects, — and ready at a moment to leave their instruc- tors and benefactors for an extra sixpence a day for the first bidder that turns up. I have been all my life instructing men, while others profited by the re- sult of my labours. In the present state of society, A. WELBY PUGIN. 261 and the total absence of anything like the faith and religious feeling that actuated men in past ages, I believe it is impossible to do much good ; how- ever, I have no doubt your inclinations are excellent, and time will show if they are attended with practical benefit. ' I am yours most sincerely, ' A. W. Pug-in/ There is observable in the tone of this letter the same leading delusion which enthralled him continually. Pugin could see nothing likely to be successful which was attempted by those separated from the Eoman Catholic Church. Still much good sense is displayed in the remarks on the slight hold which employers have on their skilled workmen ; unfortunately there is too much truth in them. Great, however, as would have been the difficulties attending the working of the projected school, it must be admitted that the establishment of the Architectural Museum has been productive of real benefit to art-workmen. Some advantage has been gained by bringing together into a central situation, casts taken from all the most beautiful fragments of sculpture known, and art-workmen have not been slow to avail themselves of the opportunities for consulting these valuable authorities. As a further inducement, prizes are annually offered to those who produce the best designs for different subjects submitted for com- petition. The designs and objects of sculpture sub- mitted at various times in answer to these invitations, 202 RECOLLECTIONS OF afford convincing proofs that the establishment of this Museum has realized some of the objects contemplated by its founders. In describing Pugin's personal character, it should be noticed that though his general manner was brusque and vehement, and his mode of asserting facts some- what overbearing, yet he had great powers of persua- sion when he tried gentler means than were his wont. No subjects excited him so much as discussions on re- ligious matters. He could scarcely ever converse calmly and quietly with those who differed from him ; but occasionally he did so, and his power of persua- sion was very considerable when he chose to adopt that mode in the interchange of ideas. He used to relate that when travelling from Derby in a railway carriage, alone with an elderly lady, she on seeing him cross himself as he was reciting an office, exclaimed with horror, 4 You are a Catholic, sir ; — Guard, Guard, let me out — I must get into another carriage ;' but as that could not be accomplished at the moment, Pugin reasoned gently and quietly with her, so that on arriving at the next station the lady had no desire to get out, and before the journey's end, she was shedding tears of sorrow and regret for her past hatred of such good Christians. Those who knew him well, can readily understand how soon he could disarm a weak opponent, and the fascinating manner in which he would present his arguments when he chose to adopt a persuasive tone. Much as he had clone for the promotion of genuine A. WELBY PUGIN. 263 ancient art by his publications and executed works, yet had he lived longer, there can be no doubt that he would have realized other useful schemes in con- nection with his art. He had it in contemplation to publish a great work upon Architectural Ornament and Foliated Sculpture, and frequently spoke of the benefit which he anticipated would result from his ex- positions on the subject. That he would have dis- coursed successfully on this branch of art no one can doubt ; and there would then have been added to his natural powers the benefit of many years' experience in practical work. Although Pugin at no period of his life sought to associate himself with any institution or chartered body, having for its object the promotion of the arts, yet he never withdrew himself from the society of his professional brethren, and was always ready to give assistance or advice when asked by any of them to do so. It should however be mentioned that (without his consent) Pugin was nominated to fill a vacancy amongst the members of the Royal Academy; un- fortunately he was not elected, a circumstance much to be regretted, as so eminent a man ought to have been associated with a body of artists pre-eminently distinguished by royal favour, his genius being con- fessedly of the highest order : his friends Herbert, Etty, and Stanfield much lamented this untoward event. The very strong views he entertained regarding the fitness of medieval architecture for all purposes, was probably one of the reasons which led him to 264 RECOLLECTIONS OF hesitate in associating himself with societies in which classic architecture is held in equal honour with the mediaeval styles ; on the other hand, so strongly was he impressed with the desirableness of furthering pursuits connected with Gothic architecture, that he took great interest in a proposition made to him by an earnest clergyman for the establishment of a Gothic club in London, to be called the ' Old English/ It was to have been for all the purposes of an ordinary club, only the building was to be English Gothic, to show, among other things, how applicable the style is to the wants of the present day, and how much more beautiful it is, as street architecture, than any other.* Pugin's mind was never at rest, and notwithstand- ing the great labour thrown upon him by his pro- fessional practice, carried on it must be understood mainly by his own hands, as he scarcely ever deigned to seek assistance — except occasionally from an old friend, a pupil of his father, Mr. T. Talbot Bury, he could yet find time to engage in religious controversy. * Since Pugin's death this project has been again revived, and the establishment of a club house, with the distinctive character he pro- posed to give it, would be most acceptable to a large body of active men both in literature and art. It is indeed strange that a want so long felt has not yet been supplied. All other professions have their dis- tinctive institutions for social intercourse : why then should not men devoted to mediaeval art make a united effort to realize this scheme? ^ Amongst the nobility and wealthy commoners of England there would be many willing to become its patrons. The only existing club in which professional men and others attached to art and archeology can find a place is the Athenaoum, but, amongst its members, they form only a small minority. A. WELBY PUGIN. 205 CHAPTER XXI. Pugin writes to Mr. Minton that he is engaged on a work to produce Mutual Charity amongst Members of different religious Communions — The Work never published — Premonitory symptoms of disturbed intellect — Public sympathy and intended Subscription for his sup- port — Letter of Lord John .Russell — Mr. E. Welby Pugin, his son, dis- countenances the proposed public Appeal as unnecessary— Rumoured change in his Religious Views — No sufficient foundation for the report. Early in the year 1851 he observed, in a letter to Mr. Minton : 'I am almost distracted, for in addition to all other labours, I have a most important work on the real cause of the change of religion in the 16th century, which will place matters in a totally new light, overthrow the present opinions on both sides, and may be the means of tending to much mutual charity on both sides, and a better understanding. The present state of things in a Christian country is afflicting, and it all proceeds from men not being able to separate the temporal tyranny of Ca- tholic States from the religion itself, which suffers all the odium of the system to which one was bound up and tied.' The work here alluded to was never published. Pugin's opinions respecting the Roman Catholic Church 26(3 RECOLLECTIONS OF had latterly undergone some change, and he was now wont to speak of her system with greater freedom and independence than he had ever hitherto done. During the dreadful malady which afflicted him, one of his hallucinations was, that there had been a perfect re- conciliation between the separated Churches, and in the course of one night he wrote upwards of sixty pages to his cousin Sibthorp, respecting the union of the Churches, stating that he could now again embrace his previously unfortunate brother — that there was now but one Church — no distinct Roman Catholic, An- glican, nonconformist, or other denomination, and he drew imaginary cheques to be given to clergymen and others for distribution to the poor of their neigh- bourhood. Whether the book on which he was occupied con- tained any actual renunciation of his previous opinions does not appear ; but that some great change in his mind was then in progress, rightly or wrongly, was generally believed. The language in which he an- nounces his intended publication to his intimate friend, Mr. Minton, can only be understood on the supposition that a reaction of some kind had taken place.* The premonitory symptoms which had shown them- selves during the last few years, and had been noticed * A prospectus of this work, entitled ' An Apology for the Church of England ' was printed, but never circulated ; the contents of the book were classified in chapters with their headings, from which it might be gathered that his opinions had undergone considerable change, and more charitable interpretations were now placed upon historical events which had formerly extorted from him expressions of strong condemnation. A. WELBY PUGIN. 267 by his friends, were now unhappily to be succeeded by that mental darkness than which nothing more dreadful afflicts the human race. The first undoubted proof of his insanity was dis- covered by his friend and medical attendant at Rams- gate, when meeting him one evening returning to Saint Augustine's. Pugin, impetuous as usual, began by asking him if he had heard of the dreadful calamity outside the harbour, — five merchant ships having sunk while striving to reach the entrance. He de- scribed the catastrophe in such apparently clear and truthful terms, entering minutely into every particular, that his medical man left him impressed with the full belief of the reality of the event, and proceeding to meet some friends at a dinner party soon after related the account he had just heard. The astonishment was great, for none of them knew the occurrence ; and upon an inquiry being made it was found that there was not a particle of truth in the story. His extraordinary conduct was also afterwards noticed by his acquaintances in London, whither he had hurried from Eamsgate. He greatly alarmed Sir Charles Barry, as already mentioned, and that gentle- man immediately called in Dr. Tweedie. Pugin was then removed to the Golden Cross in Wellington Street, Strand, and put under proper restraint; but his violence became so great that all moderate attempts to tranquillize him were useless. The fact of his de- plorable condition soon became well known, and the deepest sympathy for him was felt amongst all classes 268 RECOLLECTIONS OF of society. In a publication devoted to the interest of the arts and sciences, letters were written, under the most erroneous impressions, suggesting subscrip- tions. It was said he was reduced to beggary by his religious zeal, that there were no funds to support him, and that he had actually been removed to a public asylum. Invectives of shame and reproach were hurled against his fellow Roman Catholic friends for permitting this degradation to overtake a man so dis- tinguished, and who had rendered such important ser- vices to their Church. The Editor of the ' Builder,' participating in the writer's remarks on the melancholy subject, recommended that some endeavours should be made by subscriptions to place him in a private asylum, instead of his remaining in a public hospital for the insane. The effect of this appeal was instantaneous, and the first response was from a no less distinguished person than Lord John Russell, who in a letter dated Pem- broke Lodge, July 10th, 1852, says — « Sir, 4 1 do not know whether there is any truth in the assertion of a correspondent of your paper, that Mr. Pugin has been reduced to beggary. I hope not. But if there is any truth in the statement, and a sub- scription is opened for Mr. Pugin's relief, I beg that my name may be put down for ten pounds. 6 1 am, Sir, your obedient Servant, ' J. Russell.' A. WELBY PUGIN. 269 It would be too painful an investigation to re- open the circumstances under which Pugin's temporary removal to Bethlehem Hospital took place. By many persons the fact is even now contested, and the idea of his having been conveyed to a public receptacle for insane patients entirely rejected. There is something abhorrent in the very name of ' Bedlam/ but perhaps it may not be generally known that this noble insti- tution is the refuge of many educated persons and professional men, who unhappily have become proper subjects for the shelter and treatment it affords. There can be no doubt, however, that for a short time Pugin was under the mild restraint practised in this hospital, where he was visited by some of his most intimate acquaintances ; but no improvement in his condition taking place, Mrs. Pugin, aided by his old and true friend, the Rev. Mr. Glennie, transferred him to a house in the Grove, Hammersmith, where he re- sided some time in the midst of his family, under the care of Dr. Dickson (the author of the ' Fallacies of the Faculty '). While there, great hopes were enter- tained of his recovery; so much so, that he was removed thence to his own residence, the Grange, Ramsgate ; where he appeared to enter into the delights of his old home, visiting with great delight all portions of his buildings. On entering the library, the first thing he noticed was the absence of his original sketches, then in the possession of his son Edward, at Birmingham. At first he was extremely annoyed; but afterwards be- came calm, and hearing they were safe, expressed a 270 RECOLLECTIONS OF hope that they would be serviceable to him in the course of his professional career. The circulation of a statement that Mr. Pugin had been removed to a public hospital ' for want of funds for his support/ met with a prompt denial from his son, Mr. Edward Pugin, who protested that the idea of making a public subscription ought not to have been put forth without at least some authority. 4 For the rest/ he said, ' T trust I may be able to carry out my father's professional engagements ; and with the continued assistance and encouragement of his friends, to maintain the family till such time as it may please God to restore him to us.' Had Pugin not been taken to an eleemosynary asylum, the idea that he was in a state of pecuniary destitution never could have gained currency. Every one must have known the large professional practice Pugin possessed, his buildings are found broadcast throughout the land, and instead of being in a state of poverty, it might reasonably have been inferred that he had realized a comfortable fortune. Such indeed ought to have been the case, yet although he spent large sums in the purchase of rare and costly books, &c, and in the erection of the beautiful church of St. Augustine, there was sufficient property realized to afford the means of supporting him without recourse to a public subscription. Eeference has already been made to a reported change in Pugin's religious views previous to his insanity, but no positive evidence can be adduced A. WELBY PUGIN. 271 to support this notion. It is very likely that, in a moment of exasperation at the perverseness of a section of the Roman Catholic Church in resisting his archi- tectural recommendations, and with the recollection of the bitter terms in which he had in earlier days vilified the Anglican Church, he may have said, 6 the rest of my life must be one of penitence to seek forgiveness for the wrongs I have done to the Anglican Church,' words ascribed to him in a notice elsewhere of his last illness. During the short time he was under the care of his friends at the Golden Cross, an incident occurred which showed that, even while under the torments of frenzy, his innate love for his profession was not extinguished. One night he became much excited and attacked Mr. Myers, but was ultimately calmed ; and the latter, in order to turn his attention to a subject of interest, re- proached him for keeping the scaffolding up at Beverley, as they were waiting for drawings.* ' Give me a pencil,' said Pugin, and on the back of a large envelope he designed an elegant vane, clear and precise, which has since been placed on the corner pinnacle of St. Mary's at Beverley. The hope which had been raised by the improve- ment in his health on his return to his residence, was soon to be dispelled ; for his physical frame was so shaken by the severe attacks he had undergone, * See the ' Builder ' of Sept. 25, 1852, containing a brief but well- written notice 'of some leading facts connected with Pugin's career, from the pen of Mr. Talbot Bury. 272 RECOLLECTIONS OF that he could not rally : and on the night of September 13th, 1852, his medical attendant was hastily sum- moned to his bed-side, where he found him agitated by strong convulsions, which defied all attempted remedies, and continued till the morning of the 14th, when he sank from exhaustion. Thus terminated the life of a great and remarkable man at the early age of forty. By singular coincidence, on the same day, in the same county, and within a few miles from Eams- gate, died also the greatest man this country has pro- duced, the Duke of Wellington. Although Pugin when he attained manhood was strong and hearty, yet his labours aged him prema- turely. Continued anxiety, feverish exertions, and sleepless nights had done much to undermine a naturally strong constitution ; and towards the close of his life, his personal appearance underwent great change. He had a quick and piercing eye ; his nose and lips exhibited a Grecian outline, on which usually played a humorous expression ; his forehead was broad, and indicated his mental power. In him there w as nothing studied. Whenever, and however he was found, he was always the man, a true child of nature. In his character the fervid Celtic spirit often appeared through the nature of the Saxon. For unre- strained freedom of action he sacrificed the pleasures of society. His genius was great. The part he had to perform in life gave insufficient scope for the ener- gies of his mind, and the incessant exercise of his mental faculties destroyed his physical frame before A. WELBY PUGIN. 273 he had attained the ordinary age of man. He bore little similarity to the other men amongst whom he lived ; in many respects superior, he was different and out of his element everywhere except in his own study. Such was Welby Pugin before his last malady. By his three marriages Pugin has left eight children. The eldest son, Edward Welby Pugin, succeeds to his father's practice, and as an architect displays con- siderable talent. Those who remember the elder and the late Welby Pugin cannot fail to observe that Edward inherits much of the refinement of his grand- father with the genius of his father, though he does not possess the literary power of the latter. On the 21st of September the funeral obsequies of Augustus Welby Northmore de Pugin took place in St. Augustine's, the church which he had himself founded. Part of the service was performed on Mon- day evening with all the ceremonials of the Eoman Catholic Church, and in the morning his remains were placed in a vault beneath the south transept. Besides the members of his family and the priesthood, Sir C. Barry, Mr. Herbert, Mr. T. T. Bury, Mr. Hardman, Mr. Crace, Mr. Myers, Mr. Scott Murray, Mr. Daniel, Mr. Knill the father of Mrs. Pugin, and some other friends took part in the ceremony. The crowd of strangers in the church was great. The funeral oration, eulogizing the talents of the deceased, was delivered by Bishop Grant. The appreciation of the service which Pugin had rendered to art was shown by an act of great kindness T 274 RECOLLECTIONS OF of Her Majesty, who, immediately upon hearing of his affliction, directed a pension to be granted to Mrs. Pugin from the Civil List, this resolution being com- municated to Mrs. Pugin, in the most complimentary manner, by the Earl of Derby. In addition to the publications noticed in former Chapters, which by the enunciation of great principles have become extensively useful, many others were pro- duced by Pugin which deserve commendation. Among these are works on Gothic Furniture, published in 1835 ; on Ironwork, in the same year ; and on Ancient Timber Houses, in 1836. These works were admirably illustrated with spirited etchings by his own hand, fully worthy of their author. To give an enumeration of the various buildings which Pugin executed would be difficult, but the following list is a selection somewhat in the order of their erection. His first church was that of St. Mary at Derby, where he renewed his acquaintance with Mr. Myers in the manner already described. The little Norman Chapel at Reading soon followed; it is built of flint. He was next occupied with St. Chad's at Birmingham, and the schools, nunnery, and bishop's house attached. Then followed St. Edward's, St. Mary's, and two other churches at Liverpool; a chapel and convent at Edge Hill ; St. Wilifred's, Manchester ; churches at K^nilworth, Cambridge, Stockton-on-Tees, Newcastle-on-Tyne, Preston, Ushaw, Keightly in Yorkshire, Sheepsteen, Warwick, Rugby, Northampton, Stoke-upon-Trent, Breeswood, Wool- A. WELBY PUGIN. 275 wich, Hammersmith, Pontefract, and Fulbam; St. John's, Walham G-reen ; St. Edward's near Ware ; St. Martin's, Buckingham ; St. Wilifred near Alton ; St. Barnabas Nottingham, with a convent and chapel in the same town ; St. Bernard's church and monastery, Leicester ; the convents of the Sisters of Mercy at Birmingham, Liverpool, and London; St. Gregory's Priory, Downside near Bath ; colleges at Radcliffe, Rugby, and Maynooth, Ireland ; being engaged on the latter by the Government of the time. The Roman Catholic cathedrals of Killarney, Enniscorthy, and St. George's, Southwark, with the schools, priests' houses, and other offices connected therewith 5 also Sibthorpe's almshouses, Lincoln; schools at Stone; chancel, Winick (one of his finest works) ; restoration of Tofts, near Brandon ; his magnificent plans, which were never executed, for the entire restoration of Hornby Castle, for the Duke of Leeds; the partial rebuilding of Alton Towers, for the late Earl of Shrews- bury ; the entire rebuilding of the castle on Alton Rock ; the church, hospital, and schools of St. John's, Alton ; the Jesus Chapel near Pomfret, for the late Miss Tempest ; the cathedral church at Uttoxeter ; the restoration of Jesus College, Cambridge ; the chantry of the late Lady Sutton ; the chapel at Danes- field, for Scott Murray, Esq. ; the Catholic church at Lynn ; the completion of St. Mary's College, Oscott ; St. Wilfrid's, Manchester ; the design he prepared for the cathedral of St. John's, Salford, which building was afterwards erected by Mr. Hadfield, as Pugin T 2 27G RECOLLECTIONS OF could not be induced to give way on some point of principle ; the chapel in Douay College ; the restora- tion of the parish church at Winswold ; the Catholic church at Salisbury ; St. John's, Kirkhara ; the church of St. Mary's, Southport; the church of St. Oswald's, Old Swan, near Liverpool ; the church of our Lady of the Annunciation, Bishop Eton ; the convent at Ber- mondsey ; the completion of St. David's, Barnstaple ; the convent and school at Nottingham ; the church, and restoration of Grace dieu Manor, for Ambrose Lisle Phillipps, Esq. ; the chapel for Sir William Stuart, in Scotland ; the magnificent designs prepared for St. Margaret's cathedral, Edinburgh ; the church at Whit- wick ; the church of St. Augustine, Solihull ; the church of our Blessed Lady, Dudley ; the church of St. Peter's, Great Marlow ; the tower and spire of St. Mary's, Edinburgh; St. Stephen's, Blargowrie; Scaris- brick Hall, near Ormskirk ; the Catholic churches of Tagote and Gorey, and several other churches in Wex- ford ; the convent and church at Parson's Town ; the convent and church at Waterford ; the convent at Gorey; the Catholic church at Guernsey ; the Catholic church, Macclesfield. He also designed many churches for Australia, and the other colonies. It was not likely that Pugin would be extensively engaged by the clergy and friends of the Anglican Church ; in some few instances only was he consulted by these authorities on the restoration of their churches. His time and energies were so devoted to Catholic buildings that few private gentlemen applied to him A. WELBY PUGIN. 277 for domestic mansions. Still mention must not be forgotten of Scarisbrick Hall, Bilton Grange, War- wick ; Lord Dunraven's seat at Adare in Ireland ; Mr. Drummond's house ; restorations to Chirk Castle, Denbighshire, for Colonel Biddulph; gateway and chancel of the church at Pepper Harrow, for Lord Middleton ; and his magnificent designs for Hornby Castle, for the Duke of Leeds. 278 RECOLLECTIONS OF CHAPTER XXII. General Eetrospect of the Progress of Modern Architecture — Pecu- liarities of Lombardo- Gothic— Pugin's treatment of Medieval Archi • tecture — Precognition of the labours of Architectural Authors pre- ceding Pugin's time. Dwelling upon what Pugin accomplished, especial reference must be made to the period and the state of architecture at the time when he commenced his studies. Without entering into the interminable question as to the merits and fitness of either the classic or mediaeval styles (for the battle of the styles is now being fought with greater violence than in Pugin's days), it must be borne in mind that the then prevailing taste was in favour of Greek architecture. The learned and beautiful publications of the Dilettante Society, the acknowledged ability and skill of those architects who had devoted themselves to the investigation of classic remains, were the plausible means of introducing the claims of a style of art, practised by the polished people of Greece ; little effort however was made to modify the antique types, and make them applicable to modern wants, or to meet the requirements of our A. WELBY PUGIN. 279 more northern climate ; but a system sprung up of minutely copying both the general designs as well as details of temples and monuments of heathen character, applying them indiscriminately to churches, theatres, asylums, and institutions of every kind. Well-pro- portioned porticoes without any reference to their positions ; pediments where roofs could never exist, and multitudes of like inconsistencies, were continually erected. It seemed a sufficient warrant for expecting public approval that an undoubted antique example was followed, without any regard to its fitness or con- gruity. Added to these misapplications, a further evil pre- vailed of executing buildings with an extent of un- reality which had never hitherto been known in this country. The earlier period of the Georgian Era, if not remarkable for the pure taste to be found in the public structures then built, at least exhibited some admirable examples of sound brickwork and durable stone ; roofs substantially constructed with oak and fir, either covered with lead or Westmoreland slate ; elabo- rately wrought iron-work, as well as bold and effective carving. But in the early part of the 19th century, cements of all kinds for facing and ornamentation took the place of real good brick or stone. Walls were built of mere rubbish coated with cement jointed and coloured to look like stone, and numberless other cheap and tricky artifices resorted to for outward appearance, showing a total disregard to constructive honesty. 280 RECOLLECTIONS OF Amidst the prevalence of such glaring mistakes, Pugin, possessing a large amount of daring, came out with his brusque and powerful pen, to what purpose the present practice of mediaeval architecture will best answer ; but wherever improvement is visible in recent works, it may be unmistakably traced to the archi- tectural reformation set on foot by Pugin thirty years ago. The value of his exertions must not be measured by the merits of his own executed buildings, they are justly open to the criticism of matured knowledge now gained from his own published books, but by the present state of architecture throughout Europe, which certainly evidences an advance to be attributed only to the effect of ' True Principles.' It is now much the fashion to decry Pugin ; another development of mediaeval art has obtained popularity ; and the study of the peculiar character of Italian Gothic now cultivated, has brought into favour a diffe- rent type of pointed architecture little known in Pugin's days, and not introduced till some time after his death. Of the great merit to be found in the architecture of the middle ages of Lombardy, there can be no question: the adventitious aid of beautiful local marbles, the skill of great Italian artists, the effect of climate, and the chisel of the Lombard sculptors combine to produce monuments of art singularly grand and im- posing, and a debt of gratitude is justly due to those great architects, by whose skill such excellent illus- trations are handed down to us. But it is still ques- tionable whether the merit of this class of Gothic A. WELBY PUGTN. 281 buildings equals the beauty and fitness always found in the magnificent buildings on this side the Alps. The great facilities for obtaining local marbles and other materials since the introduction of railways, have probably led to the recent use of the transalpine forms of Gothic abounding largely, with coloured wall-decorations, introduced by the easy use of local marbles. The architect should be ever ready to avail himself of each and every succeeding new substance, applying it in the manner which its natural properties justify, either in construction or decoration. There are now brought into notice Devonshire, Cornish, Derby- shire marbles, and other coloured limestones which, till within the last few years, if known, were not avail- able, excepting within the confines of their immediate localities ; now, however, through the facilities of steam conveyance, they can be carried easily to any distance at a moderate cost, and are thus at once applicable for building purposes. Already the effects of these changes may be observed in many recently-erected buildings, more particularly in the Museum at Oxford, where our native marbles are introduced with the happiest results ; and there is no reason why all newly- discovered products may not be used in the develop- ment of architectural forms, provided they are intro- duced with skill and judgment. Viewing the forms of Lombardo-Gothic buildings apart from the advantages of the beautiful material with which they are erected, it may still fairly be questioned whether they are equal to either the French or English examples. There is a want 282 RECOLLECTIONS OF of parity in their compositions, and some strange ad- mixture of classical details which destroys the harmony so remarkable in the best buildings of France and Ger- many. While borrowing therefore those features of interest belonging to the Italian type, such as the spiral marble columns, the inlaid door and window panels, friezes, circular sunk niche, and boldly-carved bust pro- jecting before the face of the wall, the open niche and canopy, the balconets and other distinctive parts of Italian character, care should be taken not to import the less happy peculiarities of general design, in which there is a marked inferiority when compared with our northern architecture. The facades of the most celebrated mediaeval palaces in Italy are confessedly inferior to the palatial build- ings of France and Belgium, and the monotony of the Venetian elevations is only redeemed by portions of beautiful sculpture and coloured marbles. To abandon therefore the principles of our northern composition, and exchange them for the faulty mannerism of the Italian school is indeed a mistake. Let advantage be taken of those features in detail which are wanting in our own climate, infusing them harmoniously into our designs ; but never let us give up those leading characteristics of pure Gothic composition so conspi- cuous in the palatial and domestic architecture of Nor- mandy and the south of France. True that in the hands of a great artist, any style may be so treated as to produce a successful result, yet it must be re- membered that the licence permissible to such a A. WELBY PUGIN. 283 man cannot be exercised by the less accomplished architect, or tyro : who imitating the quaint treat- ment of his subject by a man of genius, adopts the peculiarities and deviations from ordinary rules in a capricious manner, and produces a building re- markable rather for oddity than the discriminating exercise of the latitude which in more able hands results in success. Many of the strange buildings now erected with the most exaggerated details, utterly wanting in grace and proportion, rendered mainly attractive by the introduction of striped brickwork in imitation of coloured marbles, are the fruits of a fashion which appears to set aside all the sound canons of architecture, and gives reins to every kind of eccentric treatment which the young architect may choose to adopt. This country abounds with admirable examples show- ing the skilful manner in which our ancestors availed themselves of stone, brick, and flint, in the character of their designs. The most elegant and elaborate details in carved and cast bricks, are to be found in the baronial mansions of Norfolk ; and the aptitude with which cut flints are used in combination with stone, may be seen in all the churches of Suffolk and Norfolk. The moment seemed to have arrived when through the exertions of Carter, Britton, Pugin, Parker, Eickman, Brandon, and others, by their published works, a knowledge of the grammar of Gothic architecture was at length attained ; and buildings were daily showing evidences of the study and thought which had been 284 RECOLLECTIONS OF heretofore sadly wanting in Gothic structures. At this juncture, the principles of the style being nearly mastered, and ample scope given for realizing them, the continental type is suddenly thrust on the public notice, diverts attention from the beautiful forms of northern Gothic, and claims consideration for the Lombardic peculiarities. This is to be regretted, be- cause it has diminished the opportunities of showing the full capability of our national architecture. The laborious studies of past years, the painstaking re- searches of the author of 4 The Glossary of Architecture,' and numerous others who have laboured successfully in collecting and publishing the most beautiful details, showing the marvellous fitness of our ingenious archi- tecture when thoroughly understood, are set aside for this foreign school. Since the rebuilding of the Houses of Parliament, no building of any magnitude has been erected in our vernacular mediaeval style ; every competition for a public structure has called forth designs almost exclusively cast in the new mould. One might imagine that many of them were drawn on gutta-percha, capable of expansion or contraction ac- cording to the required size, so similar are they in their servile imitation of some favourite idea. Thus the ex- tended facade of an hotel de ville is not unfrequently taken as a model for a railway station, union work- house, literary institution, or some much smaller esta- blishment. And it would be difficult to say how many designs have been founded upon the outline of the Oxford Museum, fitness and propriety being quite A. WELBY PUGIN. 285 set aside in order that the popular mannerism should be followed. Now this is manifestly wrong, and re- sults entirely from the love of seeking to give novelty instead of aiming to produce convenience in plan, and elevation, suitable to the purposes of the intended structure. Upon this topic nobody has ever spoken more truly than Welby Pugin, who has laid down rules of universal application. And though unhappily they are now too frequently disregarded, yet some happy illustrations of his principles may be found in recently- erected build- ings, where judicious freedom of design is exemplified without forced treatment. So admirable are his remarks, that though they have been already quoted by Mr. Scott in his able work on ' Gothic Architecture, Secular and Domestic,' they may rightly claim to be inserted here. $ * * * * 6 In the second place, when modern architects avoid this defect of regularity, they frequently fall into one equally great with regard to irregularity ; I mean, when a building is designed to be picturesque, by sticking as many ins and outs, ups and downs, about it as possible. The picturesque effect of the ancient build- ings, results from ingenious methods by which the old builders overcame local and constructive difficulties. An edifice which is arranged with the principal view of looking picturesque, is sure to resemble an artificial waterfall, or a made-up rock, which are generally so unnaturally natural as to appear ridiculous. 286 RECOLLECTIONS OF 4 An architect should exhibit his skill by turning the difficulties which occur in raising an elevation from a convenient plan into so many picturesque beauties ; and this constitutes the great difference between the prin- ciples of classic and domestic architecture. In the former he would be compelled to devise expedients to cover these irregularities ; in the latter he has only to beautify them. But I am quite assured that all the irregulari- ties that are so beautiful in ancient architecture, are the result of certain necessary difficulties, and were never purposely designed ; for to make a building in- convenient for the sake of obtaining irregularity, w T ould be scarcely less ridiculous than preparing working drawings for a new ruin. But all these inconsistencies have arisen from this great error — the plans of buildings are designed to suit the elevation, instead of the elevation being made subservient to the plan. ' They were substantial, appropriate edifices, suited by their scale and arrangement for the purposes of habitation. Each part of these buildings indicated its particular distinction : the furreted gatehouse and porter's lodging, the entrance-porch, the high-crested roof, and louvred hall, with its capacious chimney, the great chambers, the vast kitchens and offices, all forming distinct and beautiful features, not masked or concealed under one monotonous front, but by their variety in form and outline increasing the effect of the building. ***** ' 1 must mention here two great defects, very com- A. WELBY PUGIN. 287 mon in modern pointed buildings, both of which arise from the great fundamental principle of decorating utility not being understood. In the first place, many architects apply the details and minor features of the pointed style to classic masses and arrangements ; they adhere scrupulously to the regularity and symmetry of the latter, while they attempt to disguise it by the mouldings and accessories of the former. They must have two of everything, one on each side : no matter if all the required accommodation is contained in one half of the design, a shell of another half must be built to keep up uniformity. What can be more absurd ? Because a man has a real door to enter his house on one side, he must have a mock one through which he cannot get in on the other. How inconsistent it is to make and glaze a window which is to be walled up ab initio !' No better proof can be given of the value of Pugin's teaching than that it should have led to the further development of his principles by the publication of Mr. Scott's work. If Pugin laid down general rules, Mr. Scott has shown the manner in which they should be applied, pointing out in the most discriminating manner the caution to be observed in following his maxims and suggesting thoughts for new combinations of a most interesting kind in connection with the introduction of Italian details into our own Gothic styles. What Pugin's notions might have been upon this subject it would be presumptuous to say. Although acquainted with the mediaeval architecture of North 288 RECOLLECTIONS OF Italy he had not given special attention to its claims ; but that in the gradually improved practice of his fa- vourite styles he. would have availed himself of the continental details which might consistently be infused into English Gothic can hardly be doubted ; but how far he would have recognized the propriety of mingling the characteristic details of different countries may be questioned. Whatever defects exist, in the works executed by him there is always a great unity of effect visible in their composition ; proportion and harmony of parts are never neglected, and in matter of minute detail there is nothing wanting. Fertility of design and delicacy in execution are specially remarkable. Nobody was so thoroughly master of detail ; his memory could recall to him the beauty and fitness of any ornament which he had ever seen, and he would apply it when- ever a fitting opportunity offered for its introduction. Added to his intuitive taste for architectural form he possessed an excellent eye for colour. This gift is not necessarily associated with the love of picturesque out- line. Some men are utterly incapable of distinguish- ing with nicety the various tints and gradations required for harmonious effects, or the just proportion between positive and complemental colour, but Pugin was a master of this art, and many excellent decora- tions were carried into effect by the Messrs. Crace under his immediate guidance. The same capacity for colour made him a good landscape artist. Some of his sketches of coast scenery are most truthful — executed on rough paper with few touches they are crisp and A. WELBY PUGIN.. 289 spirited. He had not patience to finish drawings ; thus all his efforts were slight but masterly. Much as he loved colour, yet he never at any time tinted his archi- tectural designs ; his established habit was to draw them firmly in Indian or common ink, not relying upon the aid of either colour or shadows, giving them force by a few light lines or spirited touches thrown in when necessary. Whenever he moved about the country it was his custom to travel in a gig, if he could possibly do so, in preference to any other mode of conveyance, in order that he might stop and examine every old church that he passed in his way ; and although his memory was most retentive, yet, in order to assign dates quickly, he carried about with him a tabular compendium, written and drawn upon vellum, in the most minute and beautiful manner, containing a chronological list of the kings of England and France, the anniversaries of the saints in the English Calendar, the dates of great national events, a chart of the British Channel (indicating the shoals), tide tables, sectional outlines of the mouldings and forms belonging to different dates, and many other aids to memory connected with religion and archi- tecture. He could draw and talk upon any subject at the same time, and has been known to originate and complete the design for a monastic institution, sitting at the edge of a table with his drawing board, while tea was going forward, carrying on a running conver- sation, and in the course of the evening showing the successful result of his occupation. No adequate idea u 290 RECOLLECTIONS OF of the rapidity with which he sketched can be formed by anybody who has not seen him draw. The several volumes of beautiful outlines in the possession of his family, afford the most convincing proof of his won- derful power. Great as this gift was, it would never have secured for him the lasting honour attached to his name : the great 4 Fundamental Principles ' which Pugin revived and laid down could alone do this. Scarcely reaching the middle age of man, Welby Pugin lived to see the whole state of architecture revolutionized by the standard which he himself had raised. A long war had utterly erased the last germs of truth, principle, and beauty in architecture. Gothic was no longer thought of, except for the purposes of an arti- ficial ruin, or an absurd castellated mansion ; for eccle- siastical purposes it was alone known. The schools of Wren and Jones had passed their day, and were dead, — even the red brick buildings of the early Geor- gian era, with their protruding stone quoins, and heavy pediments, and truthful panellings, had been forgotten in the universal decay. Europe had suffered too long from an utter absence of art, not to have been eager and hungry for a change. Public taste looked, but hoped in vain, for a movement to emanate from the ranks of the profession. All felt the existence of the void ; many sought for an external expression of their times, and some called for a renewal of the glories of the past. These w^ere answered by the efforts of Eickman, the researches of Carter, the theories of Milner, and the examples of the elder Pugin and others. A. WELBY PUGIN. 291 These accomplished nothing but the galvanism of the ancient body. Gothic buildings Eickman produced it is true. The tree bore a strong resemblance to the old one ; it had stem, branches, and even leaves, but one thing was still wanting — it had no root. The spikey pinnacles, cast-iron tracery, consumptive and attenuated columns, showed at a glance that the sap was wanting, and where it had begun it must end, and would germinate nothing. One man only could be found sufficiently bold, and sufficiently devoted, to realize the colossal works which all felt were wanting. The wit, humour, and exaggerated views adopted by Welby Pugin for the accomplishment of the revolu- tion, were often personally abusive, always painful, and sometimes dangerous. But they were weapons to achieve victory, and instruments for effecting great results. Others tried different roads and failed, whilst the mass of men wallowed in the vulgar utilitarian style of the nineteenth century ; a few carried away by the enthusiasm, but without a knowledge of the grammar, followed only in a servile manner, the glory of extant examples. All were found wanting. Some men must be judged, not by their accomplished works, but by their conceptions ; the buildings Pugin has left behind him are nothing in comparison to his splen- did theories. England called for a renovation, Welby Pugin answered the summons. The country looked for the spirit of reformation, Welby Pugin imposed upon her the despotism of the ancient art, whilst giving her the alphabet by which to form her own expression. u 2 292 RECOLLECTIONS OF To the hopes of the Anglicans he replied by submis- sion to the Eoman Catholic Church. Few men were ever destined to accomplish more, yet his greatest works were to be realized only in theory. A. WELBY PUGIN. 293 CHAPTER XXIII. Further Illustrations of Pugin's Character — Appeal to his Co-religionists on the subject of the Papal Hierarchy in England — Neglect in the recognition of his great services by the leading Roman Catholics — A Memorial in honour of his memory, founded by the Protestants, to perpetuate the great service he rendered to Architecture. The following eminent qualities are observable in Pugin's eventful life. First, his untiring industry : from the time he began his professional career to the moment of his fatal malady, no day was ever wasted by him. His vigorous mind was always at work ; a simple change in the object of his pursuits afforded him the only kind of recreation he desired. He en- tirely abstained from light and frivolous amusements. From the moment he embraced the tenets of the Eoman Catholic Church, to the close of his life, lie laboured incessantly in promoting true art in connection with the structures and ceremonies of that Communion. His devotion was intense, and has never been duly appreciated nor acknowledged by the most eminent members of that Church. His independent spirit was not less remarkable. He would rather forego great pecuniary advantage than lend himself to carry into execution any building which he knew to be inconsistent with the principles 294 RECOLLECTIONS OF of design he had promulgated. This exercise of con- sistency is deserving of great praise. Whatever he laid down in theory he carried into practice, setting a noble example, unhappily not always followed by pre- sent fortunate professors, who seem to possess less power of abnegation than belonged to the great re- vivalist. His impartiality was also conspicuous towards his professional contemporaries. He rarely engaged in public competitions, though often invited to do so, and therefore was not brought into collision with them. Yet on many occasions, when his opinions were sought (towards the end of his career), he eulogized the talents of the rising young men whose works deserved praise. No mean or petty jealousy ever actuated him. He desired to see the glories of ancient art revived, and whoever furthered that object received from him due share of commendation. Various as have been the reports regarding the motives and tendency of his religious life, in conse- quence of his having separated himself from the Church in which he was baptized, yet it is impossible to doubt this momentous step was taken under a deep convic- tion that his soul's welfare was in peril. This over- whelming consideration eventually impelled him to enter the fold of the Roman Catholic Church, though by his ow r n admission he was at first drawn towards her through the fascinating influence of art. His earnestness in the cause of Catholic art was immense, and his sincerity patent to the world by the costly A. WELBY PUGIN. 295 sacrifices he made. What a noble pattern of self- devotion he exhibited, and that without the least ostentation, annually putting aside a good part of his income to build and endow a church. When Pope Pius IX. in the year 1851 determined on subdividing England into papal dioceses, Pugin hailed the inten- tion with joy, and on that occasion addressed an ap- peal to the Roman Catholics of Southwark, showing the difficulties which must arise in obtaining sufficient funds to support the newly consecrated bishops, un- less the Romanists made sacrifices according to their respective incomes to meet the new order of things. His appeal was as follows : — ' Catholics of this Diocese. ' We beg to draw your attention to a system which, we believe, under the blessing of God, may be the means of restoring religion in this land, and supporting that hierarchy which has just been established to our great consolation. 6 We hope and trust that all good Catholics are thoroughly agreed in recognising the hand of God in this great act, which, has imparted full episcopal powers to our bishops, and constituted us, who were before a scattered remnant, into a regular church. As a body, indeed, we have addressed the Holy Father with grateful thanks for the blessing he has conferred on us — we have addressed the bishops themselves in language of congratulation and affection. But the time has arrived when we must do more ; we must 296 RECOLLECTIONS OF prove the sincerity of these preliminary acts by coming forward and affording a practical support to religion and its ministers. The duties which are inseparably connected with the offices of the new bishops entail great additional expenses on their position ; the very publication of the necessary pastorals and official documents for the government of their dioceses — the visitations they must make for the preservation of discipline and administration of their sacred duties, however economically conducted, are necessarily at- tended with much cost. Moreover, if our bishops are really to become that benefit to religion which their sacred office, when efficiently carried out, may legiti- mately lead us to hope and expect, they must be placed on such a footing and supported with such means as will enable them to fulfil their high office and duties, and make them practically what they were intended by Providence to be — the channel through which aid, both spiritual and temporal, has to be conveyed to the very extremity of their dioceses. How is this to be accomplished ? To raise such a sum as, when invested, would enable them to do anything with the interest is out of the question. Moreover, large sums of money lying by as investments are practical evils, and sources of dissension and scandal of which we have already had too many sad examples. Again, the very idea of locking up money in imaginary securities is in itself an evidence of some want of confidence in Almighty God and His .promises to the church. But what we have to propose on the present occasion is this — that A. WELBY PUGIN. 297 we, the faithful of the English Catholic body, should become a living investment for our bishops, and through them to the church. Let every man, independent of local obligations, see what amount of capital he can afford to represent by an annual or biennial offering. For instance, one man is wealthy, he represents 1,000/., and sends 50/. a year; another 400/., and he sends 20/. a year ; another 100/., and he sends 5/. ; another 20/., and he sends 1/., and so on, more or less. There is no responsibility binding to sin in making this resolution before God, and no legal responsibility incurred to man, but a great revenue would be at once obtained for church purposes out of a true and apos- tolic investment in the hearts, souls, and devotion of baptized men, an investment with which no parlia- mentary decrees could interfere, no state laws confis- cate, no rapacious tyranny could grasp, by legal fiction ; and an investment which would be a reciprocal tie between the church and the people. Moreover, in its collection there are no expenses incurred, no odious list of comparative contributors published, no committees, no waste of time or money. Each man has only to go into the nearest church or chapel, examine truly what amount of capital he can repre- sent for the church, make his solemn resolution, go home, and send his cheque or Post-office order, as the case may be, direct to his bishop, and repeat it at the appointed times unless hindered by circumstances he cannot control ; and he may rely that God, who sees this in secret, will reward him openly in the develop- 298 RECOLLECTIONS OF ment of his holy religion, in the efficacy of the episco- pal rule, in the increased aid afforded to the various parochial churches of the diocese, in the greater solemnity of the services of religion, in the multipli- cation of priests and religions, the erection of schools, and all those glorious works connected with the re- vival of Catholic faith and practice. By this endow- ment all legal difficulties of trusts, mortmain, and lapsed legacies will be avoided, for this should sup- plant the old rotten system made only to fatten lawyers and create hatred among men : no stamps required except the penny one on the envelope that conveys the money ; no deed except the good deeds of those who contribute without expense or difficulty twice every year, and thus would the ample means of supporting religion be placed in the hands of our apostolic rulers. The church was intended to be a self-supporting institution by its apostolic constitution, creating its own supplies through the continual sacrifice of its faithful children, always succeeding, and always con- tributing. Such a perpetual endowment as this is exempt from all dangers, and, as we have already said, will place our spiritual rulers completely beyond the reach of state enactments in temporal matters. 6 We intreat every zealous Catholic in the land, what- ever be his position and means, to contribute accord- ingly, to the temporal support of that church which the Holy Father has established amongst us, and which we do not hesitate to say, without some great exertion on our part, will become our shame and re- A. WELBY PUG1N. 299 proach instead of our glory. We cannot allow the episcopal power to become, in a manner, paralyzed for want of that temporal support for which it has an apostolic claim on the faithful children of the church. Unless we are prepared to show what Catholic faith and Catholic zeal can do in the free support of a free hierarchy, our thanks to the Holy Father are a mockery and our addresses a sham. But we will hope for better things. We trust that this event has been ordained of God to raise our hearts and instil into us some of that true zeal, devotion, and spirit of offering which was inseparable from the profession of Catholic truth in early ages. We have now laid before you the means by which a considerable revenue can be raised to relieve the necessities of religion ; and we may truly say they have never been greater than at the present time. Let, then, any man who has Catholic interests at heart look to his means and conscientiously think what amount he can represent as an investment, of which he contributes the interest. We have already paid our instalments into the treasury, and others have done the same ; and we have made a solemn resolution, whilst we have a hand or an eye left to work with, we will repeat it twice every year ; and, by God's help, we will bring up our children to the same principles ; and we exhort all to do the same, that the succession of contributions may be kept up with that of the bishops. We intreat all on this important occasion to sink private feelings and all paltry considerations in the respect due to the office of their bishops, appointed 300 RECOLLECTIONS OF by apostolical authority, apart from any temporal or state intrigue whatever, and in a hierarchy perfectly free in principle ; we say, if these men are not worthy objects of our entire confidence and our most strenuous aid, if these be not men in whose endeavours for the advancement of religion we can fully believe, there is an end of all belief in apostolic succession and church government. Had a concordat existed between our government and the Holy See ; had these names ever passed through an ambassador's portfolio, there might be room for suspicion and doubt ; but under present circumstances there is none. They come to us from the highest ecclesiastical authority on earth, as from the Vox Dei itself; and while they keep their free and honourable position inviolate, we are bound to them as children to their spiritual fathers ; and the man who, possessing temporal means, holds back on this most important event, must be dead to every sense of duty and unworthy to rank among the faithful.' This scheme was worthy of all praise as a means to an end, but how feebly was it responded to by those to whom it was addressed ! Pugin had personally set an excellent example, acting up most fully to the precepts he taught, but through the degeneracy of the Eoman Catholic laity his recommendation was followed by no satisfactory result. No greater blot rests upon the Eomanist community of this age than the disregard shown by them for Pugin's great exertions in strengthening their cause by advocating A. WELBY PUGIN. 301 a restoration of neglected Catholic usages, and the correction of modern abuses. What a stigma upon the Eoman Catholic body, of which he was so bright an ornament ! and to the edification of whose temples he devoted his life, believing the most successful efforts in art to be compatible only with the highest inspira- tions of her creed! that her dignified ecclesiastics and wealthy noblemen should allow many years to roll by without making the slightest effort to honour his memory for the invaluable services he rendered to art — leaving this act of simple justice to be accomplished by members of the Reformed Church of England. It might reasonably have been supposed that the digni- taries of his own Church would have been first to contribute liberally to a fund raised in honour of their great church architect ; but to their shame it must be recorded, that out of their whole hierarchy only two or three names appear on the list of contributions to ' the Pugin Travelling Fund,' while other men, of all shades of opinion, and in various grades of society, not mem- bers of the Roman Catholic Church, came forward spontaneously to do honour to the memory of one who did so much, and so well, for Christian Art ; thus con- firming the solemn truth, 'a prophet is not without honour save in his own country, and in his own house.' In all that has been said relating to Pugin, every endeavour has been made to represent him in his pro- fessional character, to do justice to him in the great occupation of his life, and not to dwell more than necessary on his religious opinions. His reputation as 302 RECOLLECTIONS OF an architect has been gained by the excellence of his writings on art, and if they were divested of every sentence bearing a religious impress, there would still remain the residuum which must ever be received as offering an invaluable 4 vade mecum ' for the profes- sional architect; yet, it must be observed, that he never wrote on any subject but from a Eoman Catholic point of view, and loved to trace all excellence in architecture and art through that channel, maintaining stoutly that the only really great works could be exe- cuted by Eoman Catholics. His family, sharing in these impressions, have felt that, however desirous Pugin's biographer might be to do him justice, yet that the author of these pages, being a member of the Anglican branch of the Church Catholic, and not a son of the Roman Catholic Church, it was impossible he could appreciate the motives which actuated Pugin in all he did, and hence might unintentionally deprive him of the halo inseparable from his labours. The author of this book has therefore, in deference to these opinions, readily admitted the contribution of the succeeding chapters, relating, amongst other matters, to a great dispute on the hierarchy question of 1851. He feels it incumbent on him to add that he cannot agree in some of the conclusions drawn by the writer in his notices of Pugin's published works. The chief object of the author of this memoir has been to give in some popular form a connected sketch of Pugin's career as a professional man, avoiding, wherever possible, topics which might lead to controversy ; and with this leading A. WELBY PUGIN. 303 purpose he has not dealt, as he might otherwise have clone, upon many questionable passages in his writings, leaving the enlightened readers of Pugin's works to form their own judgment thereon. In reference, how- ever, to the dispute on the Eoman Catholic hierarchy question of 1851 — a subject not treated of in any of his architectural publications — the author of these pages has felt that this matter could only be handled by a Eoman Catholic familiar with the points of controversy, whose acquaintance with the persons engaged, and knowledge of the facts involved, could qualify him to write authoritatively on transactions connected with which Pugin played so prominent a part. AN APPENDIX: IN WIITCH THE WRITINGS AND CHARACTER ARE CONSIDERED IN THEIR CATHOLIC ASPECT. BY EDMUND SHEKID AN PUKCELL. " The greatest privilege possessed by man is to be allowed, while on earth, to contribute to the glory of God." — True Principles. [The right of translation is reserved hj the Author. ,] INTRODUCTION. The name of Pugin is familiar to the world. His dramatic and eventful life, from the brilliant develop- ment of its early dawn down to the darkness of its untimely and tragic close, has not escaped the notice of the moralist or the preacher ;* but the character of his mind, the views which he has unfolded in his writ- ings, and the genuineness of his religious belief have been ill-understood by too many, and misinterpreted by not a few. To remove the accidental misconcep- tion, to rebut the false charge, and, by a fair and dis- passionate examination of his artistic and religious principles, to throw light upon the character of his mind, and the peculiar nature of his genius, is the pur- port of these pages. It would best please him, whose habits of thought and character of life we are about more closely to consider, and whose image and likeness we are endeavouring to set up before the eyes of those who had not the good fortune of knowing him, that in his biography there should be no concealment and no re- * Vide Dr. Weedall's Funeral Oration on the death of the Earl of Shrewsbury. p X 2 308 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF serve. Were, indeed, the secret motives of his heart, and the character of his mind as well known as his name, it would but enhance his reputation, and add still more to our admiration and love. The first aspect, however, in which Pugin presents himself to the mind of all, is as the prime mover in the revival of Christian art, as the great mediaeval architect who considered the highest honour that could fall to the lot of man was to raise a church to the glory of God. To his patient and often unrecognized labours, — to his studious researches and striking comparisons between modern and mediaeval productions, — is mainly owing, not only the revival of a higher standard of excellence and a purer taste in our national archi- tecture, but the more general recognition of those true principles of Christian art which are now, indeed, accepted by all who have a right to pronounce an opinion, as normal rules and fundamental axioms. In his writings, so rich in illustration, so full of anti- quarian knowledge, and so powerful by their earnest eloquence, Pugin has done more than any man in the present age to promote the study of mediaeval art, and to revive again the glories of our national architecture. In the ' Contrasts,' a work which first fixed public attention on the rising artist and man of letters, the Author unfolded as they gradually became familiar to his mind the principles of his art, which, in his latest works, found their fullest development. Pugin was not an artist merely, his genius had a larger range and his mind a greater grasp than to be satisfied A. WELBY PUGIN. 309 with the technicalities of any school or the limits of a single pursuit. The investigation of the great prin- ciples which underlie all knowledge, and of which art is only a partial expression, had an attraction for his mind, and was the source of his originality as well as the cause of the errors into which through inadvertence or immaturity of judgment he sometimes fell. This investigating spirit he carried into historical subjects ; and on matters of church-government and history he had often bold and original, and sometimes, what many termed, hazardous, views to propound, and in fine, no small portion of his laborious life was devoted to theological studies. To him religion was no idle form, and the Catholic faith no mere aesthetic fancy, as many have supposed, which gratified, by its grand ritual and sublime symbolism, his sense of the beau- tiful and his love of the ancient. It was rather the informing spirit of his mind, on which his principles rested, and the guide of his heart in the battle of life. Religion, there is no question, is the stamp and seal set upon the character of a man's life ; it is the finger- mark of God upon the soul. To have broken this seal, to have obliterated the tracings of the Divine Hand, to have been a renegade at heart to the faith of his Church, and to the principles which were the very foundations of his character, was a charge that was never deliberately and distinctly brought against the great Christian artist. But the doubt as to the com- pleteness of his attachment to Rome has been more 310 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF than insinuated ; therefore on the very threshold of this closer inquiry into his life, I have thought it right to be explicit and outspoken on the genuineness of his faith ; and if, in the course of these pages, I shall be enabled to remove the imputation of incipient heresy — for to such a length did the prejudice or misconception extend — good service will have been clone to the cause of truth in thus preserving from tarnish the fair fame of a great and extraordinary man. A. WELBY PUGIN. 311 CHAPTER I. Pugin's principles as manifested in his writings — The f Times' on the * truthfulness ' of Pugin's principles — His chief works considered — * Contrasts ; or, a Parallel between the noble Edifices of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries and corresponding Buildings of the present day ' — Causes of the decline of Gothic architecture — The revival of letters in the sixteenth century — Paganism in art and literature — The neglect and decay of the English Cathedrals a quarter of a cen- tury ago — Pugin's hatred of shams and unrealities — His severe criti- cisms on modern church builders — 4 The True Principles of Pointed or Christian Architecture considered ' — Pugin's principles generally adopted as fundamental axioms in Mediaeval architecture — His criticisms on the Grecian style — Pointed Architecture best suited for Christian purposes— Its symbolism, strength, and beauty— Appro- priateness the principle of ornamentation — ' An Apology for the Re- vival of Christian Architecture ' — A defence of his own principles^- Their antiquity — The Gothic revival and its results. Pugin was the Gibbon of architecture. In the ' Contrasts/ he wrote the history of its decline and fall, not in the mocking spirit of the great disciple of Yoltaire, but with the earnest and vehement eloquence of Savo- narola. Like the Italian Dominican, the English architect was a reformer and denouncer of Pagan abuses ; as orthodox as Savonarola, he was more for- tunate in having lived in happier times, when to denounce abuses is not to be a candidate for mar- tyrdom. 312 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF His life marks an era in the history of the archi- tecture of his country, and the name of Welby Pugin will be for ever identified with the revival of a purer taste in art, and of a severer and more critical judg- ment, which now promises to remove the reproach that has so long rested upon the artistic fame of England. The almost universal recognition of those fundamental axioms for which he so long and so ably contended, is a proud tribute to his memory, and one which the author of the ' True Principles of Christian or Pointed Architecture ' well deserved at the hands of his countrymen. Wren's epitaph, mutatis mutandis, might be justly applied to Pugin — 'Si monumentum requiris, cir- cumspice.' Look around on the churches and public edifices which are now being raised in England, and whatsoever is grand and solid in construction, or Christian in principle, and whatsoever is in keeping with the traditions of the ancient architectural glory of England, is a proud and eloquent monument to him, who was the first to raise his voice against the abomi- nations of an adopted paganism, against the base imi- tation of a corrupt style, foreign to our soil, to our climate, and to our national character. "When Welby Pugin began his labours, there was not a single build- ing of modern date, either public or private, which was not a reproach and a disgrace to the country. The finest site in Europe, as the late Sir Robert Peel him- self declared, was spoiled by the ugliest building the imagination of man could conceive. And no less an A. WELBY PUGIN. 313 authority on all matters which concern public conve- nience than the ' Times' newspaper, declared in an article on street architecture, that to no man do we owe more than to Pugin, for the improvements which have already taken place and for those which may yet be effected in our public and private buildings. Leading article in the Times on Pugin and the revival of architecture in England, 6 Of all those arts which combine the useful with the beautiful there is not one that has descended in this country to such degradation as architecture, and there is not one which now gives greater hope for the future. That very little of the architecture of the last century and the present is beautiful is not the heaviest charge that we have to bring against it, the heaviest charge is that it is utterly false, utterly inappropriate, and not durable. Domestic, palatial, or ecclesiastical, no matter what the style of building, there is not much of the masonry of the last hundred years which the educated eye can contemplate with pleasure. Which of us in his heart admires Oxford-street or Regent-street ? Forget for a moment the immense wealth in the ware- houses that line those busy thoroughfares, forget that the streets are paved with gold, and look up calmly at those plastered walls and wooden pillars and fixtures of stucco flowers, and say whether the nature of the . materials, or even the forms into which these materials are wrought, can be more false, inappropriate, clumsy, futile, transitory.' 314 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF After some further remarks on the recent manifest improvement in street architecture and in church build- ing, the ' Times ' concludes its article with the follow- ing laudatory but well applied observations on Pugin's earnest endeavours to promote a purer taste in archi- tecture. ' Whether successful in treatment or not, what we regard with so much satisfaction in this and some other late specimens of architecture is the honesty of the work ; and for this we have to thank, in the first instance, the late Mr. Pugin. With all his crotchets, and with an absurd attachment, not merely to the spirit but to the letter of medievalism, he has perhaps done more for architecture than any of those who run him down. He it was who first exposed the shams and concealments of modern architecture, and con- trasted it with the heartiness and sincerity of medieval work. He showed the fair outside of a modern build- ing having no relation to its construction except that of a screen to hide its clumsy makeshifts. He then showed how the first principle of medieval work, was to expose construction and not to hide it, but to adorn it ; a modern building for example conceals its flying buttresses with a dead wall 5 an ancient one exposes them and derives a principal charm from these contri- vances being seen. It is the law of all the old architec- ture ; there is nothing which it fears to show, it rather invites inspection within and without ; whereas conceal- ment was for long the rule of modern British architec- A. WELBY PUGIN. 315 ture, concealment of the real materials, concealment of the manner of construction. Pugin is dead. Let us remember to his honour that if now there seems to be the dawn of a better architecture, if our edifices seem to be more correct in taste, more genuine in material, more honest in construction, and more sure to last, it was he who first showed us that our architecture offended not only against the law of beauty but also against the laws of morality.' Far from being ornamental, our public buildings are not even convenient. To a practical people, like our- selves, this failing in their chief purpose ought to be their final condemnation ; but our national character inclines us to avoid rash reforms, even when most required, and makes us conservative even of abuses. Yet, when we reflect, that in no age have buildings so public and so important — constructions so vast and so novel — been undertaken as in the present, and that in no age or country has so little been shown for the vast outlay of public money, this consideration alone ought to induce the public to listen to the counsels of a writer, who in his various works has not only laid down the true principles of architecture, but has shown in how ready a manner they may be put in practice. In considering Pugin's writings, however, it is neces- sary to remember, lest his criticisms should appear severe and overstrained, that his labours at reform commenced about a quarter of a century ago, when apathy and irreligion combined, had allowed the great 316 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF ecclesiastical buildings of the country to fall into a state of neglect and degradation, ill-suited to the holy purposes for which they were built. If a purer taste in art and a higher sense of duty have now removed this national scandal, it ought not to be forgotten how much of this revival was due to the bold and un- sparing criticisms of the writer of ' Contrasts.' This awakened regard to propriety in art, and reverence in public worship, is a triumph of the principles for which Pugin life-long contended, — a triumph of reverence over irreligion, of the Christian over the Pagan prin- ciple. In the ' Contrasts ' the author institutes a parallel between the noble edifices of the fourteenth and fif- teenth centuries and corresponding buildings of the present day, and shows in a striking manner, and with unconcealed delight, the wonderful superiority of the architectural works of the middle ages over those of the present century. In a philosophical spirit, and with the logical acumen, which were distinguishing qualities of his mind, the great defender of Gothic ar- chitecture next proceeds to inquire into the causes which led to the decay of taste, and assigns as the chief reason for the present degraded state of architecture, the substitution in the sixteenth century of Pagan for Christian ideas. The first axiom which Pugin lays down, as the great foundation on which to build his argument, is that the great test of architectural beauty consists in the fitness of the design to the purpose for which it is intended, and in the correspondence of the A. WELBY PUGIN. 317 style of a building with its use. He then shows that the ideas and ceremonies of different people, as well as the nature of the climate, have given rise to various styles of architecture. Every ornament, too, every detail, in the temples of Pagan nations had a mystical import. 6 The pyramid and obelisk of Egyptian architecture, its lotus capitals, its gigantic sphynxes and multiplied hieroglyphics, were not mere fanciful architectural combinations and ornaments, but emblems of the phi- losophy and mythology of that nation.' In classic architecture, likewise, not only the forms of the tem- ples, but the very ornaments, down to the minutest de- tail, were symbolic. In all the works of Pagan anti- quity, from the caverns of Elora to the Druidical remains of Stonehenge, the writer shows how the con- nexion between architecture and religious belief is invariably found in the mystical plan or emblematic decoration. With its stupendous mysteries Christianity introduced an architecture of its own, symbolical of the sublime doctrines of the Christian religion. It is not the mere beauty of Pointed or Christian archi- tecture which renders it so immeasurably superior to all the productions of ancient Paganism, but the won- derful power it exhibits, in embodying and illustrating the faith and practices of Christianity. The three great doctrines of the redemption of man by the sacri- fice on the Cross, the Trinity, and the resurrection of the dead, are, the author of ' Contrasts ' maintains, the very foundation of Christian architecture. The Cross, he says, is not only the very plan and form of a Catholic 318 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF church but it terminates each spire, and gable, and is imprinted as a seal of faith on the very furniture of the altar. The second doctrine is fully developed in the triangular form and arrangement of arches, tracery, and even subdivision of the buildings themselves ; and the third doctrine is beautifully illustrated by great height, the vertical principle having been from the earliest period acknowledged as the emblem of the resurrection, and on this principle we may readily ac- count for the adoption of the pointed arch by the Christians. And do not all the churches erected during the mid- dle ages, continues the author, set forth their origin as well as exhibit the triumphs of Christian truth ? Like the religion itself, their foundations are in the Cross, and they rise from it in majesty and glory. The emblem of the Christian's brightest hope, the shame of the Pagan, placed between the anger of God and the sins of the city, crowns, in token of mercy and forgive- ness, the sacred edifice. Not the external magnifi- cence alone is to be contemplated with feelings of awe by the Christian, ' for if the exterior of the temple,' to quote the eloquent words of the author, ' be so soul- stirring, what a burst of glory meets the eye on entering a long majestic line of pillars rising into lofty and fretted vaulting ! The eye is lost in the intricacies of the aisles and lateral chapels; each window beams with sacred instructions, and sparkles with glowing and sacred tints ; the pavement is a rich enamel.' Not pecuniary reward, not even the applause and A. WELBY PUG IN. 319 admiration of mankind, but devotion for, and faith in, the religion for whose worship they were erected, can enable the mind to conceive and compose buildings which shall produce such imposing effects. Unless the mind of the builder feel, is the writer's argument, that to raise a temple to the worship of the true and living God is the most glorious occupation that can fall to the lot of man— unless he be imbued with the faith, the zeal, and the unity of spirit which prevailed when the term Christian had but one signification throughout the world, and when the glory of the house of God formed an important consideration with mankind, — he will be utterly unable to conceive and raise won- derful fabrics, like those of our ancestors, which still remain to excite our wonder and admiration. In the second chapter of 6 Contrasts ' the author treats on the revived Pagan principle, and shows that as prior to Christianity 'all art was devoted to the service of error and impurity, so that Christian art itself was the natural result of the progress of Catholic feeling and devotion, and its decay consequent on the decline of faith itself; while all revived classic buildings, whe- ther erected in Catholic or Protestant countries, are evidences of a lamentable departure from the true Catholic feelings and principles.' He agrees with the opinion of M. le Comte de Montalembert, that the ancient Pagans at least were consistent, since in their architecture, symbols, and sculpture, they faithfully embodied the errors of their mythology; whilst modern Catholics have revived 320 WETTINGS AND CHARACTER OF these profanities in opposition to reason, and formed the types of their churches, their paintings, their images, from the detestable models of pagan error which had been overthrown by the triumph of Chris- tian truth. Not feelings of devotion, but a desire to dis- play their art, or to increase their fame, have during the last three centuries, Pugin contends, inspired the works even of the most celebrated artists in every country. This mania for Paganism has not only infected every church which has been erected in modern times, from St. Peter's at Eome downwards, but what is still far worse to such a lover of antiquity as Pugin, it has scarcely left, unencumbered by its unsightly and incon- gruous additions, one of the glorious fabrics of the olden days. What does the Christian artist find in the most celebrated palaces of Europe, but the veriest heathen buildings ? Not a Christian emblem nor orna- ment is to be seen. In the halls and galleries, on the ceiling, window, and wall, we are indulged with a more than Pagan luxury of gods and goddesses, demons and nymphs, tritons and cupids. Holy sub- jects are exchanged for the fables of Ovid, classic heroes take the place of the saints, and Paganism in literature and art supersedes the principles of Chris- tianity. So fatal indeed has this rage for Pagan novelties proved to Christian art on the Continent, that after all the demolitions and destruction they have escaped, the old English churches have retained more of their ori- ginal features than most of those in foreign countries. A. WELBY PUGIN. 321 They enjoyed all the advantages of neglect. To Pro- testant apathy, continues the author, we are not a little indebted, since neglect is a greater preservation of antiquity than either modern innovation or restoration. When Protestantism originated anything of itself, its work was ten times worse than the extravagances per- petrated by its Catholic contemporaries, since it em- bodied the same wretched Pagan ideas, without either the scale or richness of the foreign architecture of the same period. It is most fortunate for English archi- tecture that during the greatest rage for classic art, in consequence of Protestant ascendancy and indifference, the desire for church building was nearly extinct. Pro- testantism and the revived Pagan principle both date from the same epoch, both spring from the same causes ; and neither could possibly have been introduced, is the argument of the author, had not corruption and internal decay prevailed to so fearful an extent, as to undermine the very principles and faith of Catholicism. ' I was perfectly right in the abstract fact/ Pugin contends, against a charge of misstatement which had been brought against him, 6 that the excellence of art was only to be found in the Catholic Church, but I did not draw a sufficient distinction between the Catholic Church in its venerable garb, or as disguised in the modern externals of Pagan corruption.' The third and fourth chapters treat of the pillage and destruction which the churches and great abbeys suffered under Henry the Eighth, Edward the Sixth, and during the Puritan ascendancy. The latter is a Y 322 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF period in English history, too well known and too generally regretted, to need much comment. The de- struction, by the hand of fanaticism, of altar and shrine, of chapel and abbey, which in perfect beauty adorned every hamlet in England, roused, as may well be imagined, in the mind of the great Christian artist, an indignation that knew no bounds. It is not neces- sary to do more than merely indicate the train of his argument, because the sacrilegious and impious de- struction of these glorious works of our forefathers is now to every cultivated and Christian mind a subject of painful and humiliating regret. None will deny, unless perhaps the most recent historian and eulogist of Henry the Eighth, the rapacity which neither re- spected art nor sanctity, and which, by the help of the axe and the halter, replenished] the royal coffers from the rich spoils of the monastic institutions. The arrogant and impious step of proclaiming himself su- preme head of a Christian Church, roused against the King the noble resistance of those who preferred the interests of religion to the will of a despot. Amongst the numerous victims who suffered under the bitter persecution which followed, the author cites the glorious names of Bishop Fisher, Thomas More, and Abbot Whiting, to show the injustice and cruelty of this merciless tyrant, under whose reign the work of sacri- lege was inaugurated. The suppression of the religious houses proved, as the writer shows, the occasion of the total overthrow of art, and paved the way for all those disastrous events that so rapidly succeeded each other. A. WELBY PUGIN. 323 In a treatise like the 4 Contrasts ' the author could do no more, although he could hardly do less, than indicate some of the advantages accruing from these splendid institutions. He points out how the poor were entirely maintained by their boundless charity and hospitality, and how well the monastery was adapted alike as the training place of youth, and as the quiet retreat of mature age. The vast results in all classes of art and science, in the preservation and advancement of litera- ture, show the excellent use the monastic bodies made of that time which was not consecrated to devotion, and the immediate duties of their orders. How sublime and admirable the splendour of their churches, how precious the material, how exquisite the form of their sacred vessels and sumptuous vestments the author delights in showing, and then the shelves of their libraries, who shall describe the host of ponderous and valuable volumes under which they groaned ? I can well enter into the feelings, and understand the indig- nation which filled Pugin's mind, on the contemplation of the entire overthrow of the religious houses, the dis- persion of so many treasures of ecclesiastical art, and the destruction of so many glorious monuments of an- cient piety. To satisfy the wasteful extravagance of a profligate court the very lead was torn from the roofs and spires of venerable churches, and the shrines of the saints were rifled for their precious ornaments, and the vessels which had served for centuries in the most solemn rites of the Church were melted in the fire of the sacrilegious crucible. y 2 324 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF The suppression of the monasteries Pugin considers to have been a fatal blow to the progress of architecture, and from that period he traces only a melancholy series of destructions and mutilations, by which the most glorious edifices of the middle ages have either been entirely destroyed, or so shorn of their original beauty, that what remains only serves to awaken our regret at what is for ever lost. The author of 4 Con- trasts ' enters into details, and verifies the facts he adduces by the weighty authority of Dugdale and Peter Heylin, and by the testimony of Stowe and other writers. Numerous references and quotations are given in a valuable Appendix attached to his volume. The hand of the church-builder was indeed paralysed, for who would build new churches when they saw the old buildings ransacked or allowed to fall into decay ? The parochial churches, when they were used for the new service, were cut to pieces, as the author feelingly laments, 'by galleries of all sizes and heights, the nave blocked up with pews, wooden panelling of exe- crable design, smeared over with paint, set up with the Creed and Commandments, entirely covering some fine tabernacle work, the projecting parts of which have been cut away to receive it.' ' Large portions of the church,' continues the writer, ' for which there is no use, were walled off to render the preaching more snug and comfortable, porches en- closed and turned into engine-houses ; and when all has been done, what are they but inconvenient, inap- propriate buildings, for the purpose they are used for V A. WELBY PUGIN. 325 Nor were these enormities confined to obscure villages only, but abominations equally vile, he alleges, and far more reprehensible, were to be found in collegiate and cathedral churches.* In fine, the author contends that the fall of archi- tectural art in this country is intimately connected with the rise of the established religion, not only on account of the check it received from the destructive rapacity of Henry the Eighth, and from the avarice and fanaticism engendered by the growth of the new opinions, which had plundered and destroyed all those splendid works of art that, under the fostering care of the ancient faith, had flourished for so many centuries, but chiefly because to the new system the ancient architectural symbolism was both unsightly and inap- propriate, and because oneness in faith and form of worship, and that inward unity of mind, which had hitherto bound men together, were utterly fled. 4 In fact,' continues the remorseless author of 4 Con- trasts,' 4 from the moment the new religion was esta- blished, all the great architectural edifices ceased to be of any real utility ; the new rites could have been equally well performed in a capacious barn.' Were not the spontaneous offerings, the heartfelt tribute, the liberal endowments by which the ancient churches had been raised in splendour, exchanged for rates wrung from an unwilling people? The destructive principle triumphed. 4 No longer were village priests looked on as pastors of the people, or those high in ecclesiastical authority with veneration and respect.' 326 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF In the ruins of the old religion its venerable archi- tecture perished. The two concluding chapters treat on the degraded state of ecclesiastical buildings at the period when Pugin lent his powerful aid to the Gothic revival movement, and contain some reflections on the probable state of the English churches, had this country re- mained in communion with the Catholic Church. The author states, in the first place, that none, who were acquainted with ecclesiastical antiquities, but must have felt the emotions of astonishment and ad- miration, which the examination of the glorious cathe- drals and churches of England had raised in their minds, rapidly give place to regret and disgust at the barren, meagre, and inappropriate use to which these edifices have been reduced, and at the miserable un- fitness of the present tenants for the vast and noble buildings they occupy. He laments that the gates of these once ever open churches were fast closed, ex- cepting for the brief space of time set apart twice a day to keep up the form of worship, and regrets still more the necessity of fastening up the churches lest, as was alleged, they should be exposed to destruction and desecration by the people in whom the ancient devotion and piety had become extinct. 6 Few there are,' he continues, 6 who amid the general change and destruction the ancient churches have undergone, can conjure up in their minds the glories of their departed greatness, and who, while they bitterly despise the heartless throng that gaze A. WELBY PUGIN. 327 about the sacred aisles, mourn at the recollection of those ages of faith now passed and gone, which pro- duced minds to conceive and zeal to execute such mighty, glorious works/ The author here points out the state of neglect and decay in which so many of these wonderful churches were allowed to remain, mouldering away from the want of the commonest care ; and under the name of restoration, he exclaims, what mutilations have not been committed, what abomina- tions perpetrated ! 6 There is no sympathy,' he con- tinues, ' between these vast edifices and the Protestant worship. So conscious of it were the first propagators of the new doctrines that they aimed all their malice and invective against them. The new religion may suit the conventicle and the meeting-house, but it has no part in the glories of the ancient days ; the modern Anglican establishment is the only one among the many systems that sprung up, which retained the principle of cathedral establishments and episcopal jurisdiction; and so badly put together were these remains of ancient church government with modern opinions and temporal jurisdiction, that they have ever proved the subject of popular clamour, and might be suppressed at any time by a legislative act. Then what a prospect to look to ! What new ordeal, what new destruction would these ill-fated fabrics undergo ? The mind shudders at the thought. Would they be walled up as in Scotland, and divided into preaching-houses for the Dissenters, the Unitarians, and the Free-thinkers ? Would they be made into 328 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF factories or store-houses, like the churches in France during the fatal Revolution of 1790 ? or — ruined, roof- less, neglected — be left to decay like the many glorious fabrics that perished at the change of religion, of which only a few mouldering arches remain to indi- cate the site ? One of these results would in all pro- bability be produced if the present Establishment ceased to exist. One ray of hope alone darts through the dismal prospect ; that, ere the fatal hour arrives, so many devout and thinking men may have returned to Catholic unity, that hearts and hands may be found willing and able to protect these glorious piles from further profanation, and in the real spirit of former years restore them to their original glory and wor- ship.' Pugin argues, in conclusion, that had even this coun- try remained Catholic, it is not to be supposed that it would have been able to resist the inroads of those Pagan principles, which, since the revival of letters in the sixteenth century, had invaded and overrun most of the countries on the Continent, until scarcely a vestige of Christian art escaped the hostile hand of a revived and dominant intellectual Paganism. The animadversions of the author of 6 Contrasts ' were as severe on the corruptions of art in Catholic countries, as on Puritan abuses and Protestant apathy. He was too honest a man, and too candid a writer, not to stig- matize Rome, the seat of Catholicism, as the head- quarters of the Pagan revival, and even to attack St. Peter's, raised at such unparalleled cost, for exhibit- A. WELBY PUGIN. 329 ing in its decoration the symbolism rather of a heathen temple than of a Christian Church. That pointed architecture is not repugnant to the genius of Italy, nor unsuited, as often alleged, to papal ceremonial, the author has no difficulty in proving from its preva- lence in the Peninsula during the middle ages. In the prolonged absence of the Popes from Rome during the purest period of Christian art, he discovers the cause of the comparative barrenness of the Eternal City in monuments of Christian art. He advises those stu- dents, who go to Italy to study art, to follow in the footsteps of the great Overbeck, — to avoid alike the contagion of its ancient and modern Paganism, and to confine their researches to its Christian antiquities. ' They would then indeed,' he says, 1 derive inestimable benefit, for Italian art of the 13 th, 14th, and 15 th centuries is the beau ideal of Christian faith and purity, and its imitation cannot be too strongly incul- cated ; s but when it forsook its pure, mystical, and an- cient types to follow those of sensual Paganism it sunk to a fearful state of degradation, and for the last three centuries its productions of every class should only be looked upon for the purpose of being avoided. Now is the time, he urges, to break the chains of Paganism, which have enslaved the Christians for the last three centuries. Why should we any longer be content with mere natural and sensual productions in art, in place of the mystical and divine? 'When I see a man,' he says, 6 professedly a Christian who, neglecting the mysteries of the faith, the saints of the Church, and 330 WHITINGS AND CHARACTER OF the glories of religion, surrounds himself with the obscene and impious fancies of mythology, I may presume, without violation of charity, that although he is nominally a son of Christian Eome, his heart and affections are devoted to that city in the days of its Paganism.' In illustration of his text the author appends at the end of his volume a splendid collection of drawings, in which he shows the striking contrasts between modern and mediaeval architecture. But how can these pro- ductions of Pugin's pencil be described, — how is it pos- sible to convey to them who have not seen these now celebrated 'Contrasts' an idea of their beauty and power ? They tell their own tale at a glance. They speak volumes. What amazing cleverness is not ex- hibited in their selection and juxtaposition! What humour and ridicule do they not throw on the grand and pretentious efforts of modern art ! What quiet fun lurks in the brilliant pages of the great mediaeval artist ! But his sarcastic pencil reserves its strength to expose and attack the hollow shams and ostentatious vulgarity in which the architects of the day revelled, in glorious ignorance of the first principles of correct taste and true harmony. The angry manner in which his work was received, showed how true was its mark, and how it hit home into the very heart of the evil which it sought to destroy. Not an architect of the unreal and pretentious style, but recognised the truth of the contrast and felt its application. The self-love of many was wounded, and the vanity of all disturbed. A. WELBY PUGIN. 331 The rough hand of the great medievalist had torn the veil from vulgar pretence, and exposed to contempt the hollow claims of modern art to original power, beauty, or genius. In reply to the accusation of being either ignorant or disingenuous in not having noticed the charge pre- ferred, amongst others, by Mr. Hope, the eminent archi- tectural writer, against the Catholic Church, of having engrafted many heathen rites on Christianity, Pugin, in a letter addressed to the editor of Fraser's Magazine, contended that it would not be difficult to show, that ample authority was found in holy writ for the use of emblems, without referring their adoption to an imita- tion of Pagan usages ; and as for the assertion, that Christians borrowed their idea of consecrating their churches and protecting them from profane uses, from similar practices among the idolatrous Romans in regard to their temples, Pugin remarks : ' I think we may attri- bute the zeal of the early Christians on this score to far nobler motives and ideas than the bare imitating of ido- latrous customs. As touching the use of lustral water, incense, and lights, all of these can be traced to an infinitely higher origin than either Greek or Roman Paganism. We find it employed in the worship of the true God, and that by his own command, centu- ries previous. The adoption of these practices by the heathen did not certainly render them evil ; it is the object to which external acts are addressed by which their propriety is to be tried, and not by the mere acts themselves, otherwise prayer itself might be proved to 332 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF have existed among Pagan nations, and consequently to be objectionable and unfit to be exercised among Christians.' The author of 'Contrasts' then notices another charge or taunt brought against that work. ' With regard,' he says, 'to the omission of my own house among the " Contrasts," which my reviewer says cannot be attributed to excess of modesty, I beg to say, I am by no means possessed of so large a stock of impudence as he supposes ; at any rate I have too much common sense and feeling of propriety to exhibit as an example, a small dwelling, erected with very limited means, and simply calculated for a retired residence. I really fear, that the earnestness with which I have set forth the glorious works of past days, and my forcible reprobation of modern abomi- nations, has caused a mistaken notion that I have no low idea of my own judgment and excellence. Such, however, I beg to say, is far from the case. I am in too continual contact with the noblest achievements of ancient art to lose sight of my own extreme in- feriority, and my vain endeavours even to follow those, whom my wishes would be to rival, are quite sufficient to repress any feelings of self-satisfaction. But in giving vent to my admiration of works which have ever been my study and admiration, and exhibit- ing, by their scale, the inferiority of our own times, I will contend I have by no means laid myself open to a charge of either arrogance or presumption.' In the ' Contrasts,' as in his other works, and in his A. WELBY PUGIN. 333 life itself, the energy of Pughi's mind and the labour of his hand were ever devoted to the broad principle of erecting the most glorious temples to the worship of God, and consecrating the highest efforts of art to his honour. ' The True Principles of Pointed or Christian Architecture.' In two lectures delivered at St. Marie's Oscott, in which college he was professor of ecclesiastical antiquities, Pugin, at a time when they were but little understood, undertook to explain the ' True Principles of Pointed or Christian Architecture,' and to lay down rules by which architectural excellence might be judged and tested. His treatise is the grammar of architecture. Its laws are no more to be violated than the ordinary rules of language. That architectural principles are set at nought with im- punity is only the result of the profound ignorance which prevails on the subject, not only in the public at large, but among those who are not ashamed to style themselves professors and teachers of the art. The two great rules for design which the lecturer lays down are these : ' 1st, That there should be no features about a building which are not necessary for conveni ence, construction, or propriety ; 2nd, That all orna- ment should consist of enrichment of the essential construction of the building.' In pure architecture, 334 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF tlic writer maintains on principle that the smallest detail should have a meaning or serve a purpose, and that construction itself should vary to accord with the pro- perties of the materials employed. In pointed architec- ture alone, he contends, are these principles carried out. He then proceeds to examine more fully ancient exam- ples of stone, timber, and metal construction, and to show that no features were introduced in the ancient pointed edifices, which were not essential, either for conveni- ence or propriety. The pillars, the arches, the vaults, the ramified tracery of a stone building are all peculiar, as the author well points out, to stone, and could not consistently be executed in any other material. The great altitude obtained by the ancient masons, and the wonderful strength and solidity of their buildings, are shown to be the result, not of the quantity or size of the stones employed, but of the art of their disposi- tion. A comparison is then instituted between the pointed architecture of the middle ages and the classic buildings of Greece, and the text is illustrated by various wood-cuts which are of material assistance to the reader. Grecian architecture, according to the author of ' True Principles,' originated in wooden build- ings, and its professors never possessed either sufficient imagination or skill to conceive any departure from the original type. Their buildings, in the earliest period, exhibit the most ancient and the most barba- rous mode of construction that can be imagined. But what the learned professor of ecclesiastical antiquities evidently considered most extraordinary, was, that A. WELBY PUGIN. 335 when the Greeks commenced building in stone 'the properties of this material did not suggest to them some different and improved mode of construction' The author loudly and justly declaims against the monstrous absurdity, which has originated in the blind admiration of modern times for everything Pagan, of holding up their buildings as the standard of architectural ex- cellence, and as the types on which the modern edifice and the Christian temple are to be formed. The writer then enters into details, for the consideration of which I must refer the reader to the work itself. He proves, however, that buttresses, the distinguishing feature of pointed architecture, are essential both for strength and beauty, and examines in which style, Christian or Pagan, these breaks and projections, so necessary in architecture, have been most successfully carried out. He maintains that it is the great prin- ciple of pointed architecture not to conceal, but to beautify its construction, while classic architecture seeks to conceal, instead of decorating, its supports. The writer next proceeds to criticise 'St. Paul's/ London, and ridicules the miserable expedients adopted "to disguise those essential supports of the building, which in Gothic constructions are made the means of light and elegant decoration. In St. Paul's, one half of the edifice is built to conceal the other. This system of shams and unrealities is Pugin's abhorrence. He does not fail to point out its fictitious dome as one of the greatest defects in the metropolitan cathedral. The author takes high ground in his argument, and 836 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF indeed maintains that 4 if we view pointed architecture in its true light as Christian art, as the faith itself is perfect, so are the principles on which its architecture is founded.' 'It is as easy,' he says, 4 to improve in mechanical contrivances as it is difficult successfully to deviate one tittle from the spirit and principles of the pointed style. After having proved that the orna- mental parts of pointed stone buildings are merely the decorations of their essential construction, the author proceeds to treat on metal-work, and shows that the same principles of suiting the design to the materials, and decorating construction, were strictly adhered to by the artists of the middle ages in all their produc- tions in metal, whether precious or common. He then briefly notices the exquisite productions of the ancient gold- and silver-smiths, and laments that the Reformers and Puritans have left us nothing but the mere name of the glorious shrines and ornaments, which formerly enriched our cathedral and other churches, and states, that were it not for a few places on the Continent, which have preserved their ancient treasures from heretical and revolutionary violence, we should be unable to conceive half the art, half the talent, half the exquisite beauties of this class of ecclesiastical ornaments. Pugin is severe on the ignorance and incapacity of the modern artisan. Silver- and iron-smiths were in former times artists, and often great artists too ; bui in this enlightened age of mechanics' institutes and scientific societies, if you go, he contends, to a smith A. WELBY PUGIK 337 with a piece of work, not of the ordinary stamp, the vacant stare of the miserable mechanic speedily con- vinces you, that the turning up of a horse-shoe is the extent of his knowledge in the mysteries of the smithy 5 and even ' the capital hand of the establishment,' if he be sufficiently clever to comprehend your meaning, will tell you, that what you want is quite out of his line. The true Mechanics' Institute, the oldest and the best, is the Church. Under her guidance at least, he contends, the minds of the operatives were not poisoned with infidel and radical doctrines. 'The Church,' says the writer, at the conclusion of his first lecture, 'was the great and never-failing school in which all the great artists of the days of faith were formed. Under her tuition they devoted the most wonderful efforts of their skill to the glory of God ; and let our prayer ever be,' he continues, 6 that the Church may again, as in days of old, cultivate the talents of her children to the advancement of religion, and the welfare of their own souls, for, without such results, talents are vain, and the greatest efforts of art sink to the level of abomination/ Such characteristic passages abound in the ' True Principles ;' and if we would estimate the character of Pugin aright, and penetrate into the mainsprings of his actions, we must not overlook, or treat lightly, indications which bear more than ample testimony to the earnest mind and religious heart of the great Christian artist. In the second lecture, after treating on decoration with regard to construction in wood, and giving beau- z 338 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF tiful specimens of wooden roofs over churches in various parts of England, and showing how a mystical and appropriate meaning was exhibited ' in the carvings on the beams, and in the vacant spaces between the rafters, painted azure and powdered with stars/ the author proceeds to the consideration of propriety in architecture ; and to illustrate his meaning more fully, divides edifices under three heads — Eccle- siastical, Collegiate, and Civil. The first principle to be considered in church building is the motive or intention. It was not Pugin's habit of mind to be content with superficial and unworthy motives. A man, who builds a church, draws down a blessing on himself, both for this life and for that of the world to come, was a conviction nearest his own heart ; there- fore he held that religion should form a leading im- pulse in the mind of the man who undertakes to erect a temple for the honour and worship of the Author of all good. In the olden days, when faith had a greater hold on the minds of men than commercial speculation, each city, he shows, had its mighty cathedral, rising above all the parochial churches ; then came the abbatial and collegiate churches, with their vast and solemn buildings ; each street had its temple raised for the true worship of God, 4 variously beautiful in design, but each a fine example of Christian art ; even the bridges and approaches were not destitute of religious buildings, and many a beautiful chapel and oratory was corbelled out on massive piers over the stream that flowed beneath/ It is this oneness in principle, A. WELBY PUGIN. 339 this singleness of purpose, united with an infinite variety of detail, which the author wishes to illustrate and enforce by the examples to be found in many an ancient city, of edifices, to use his own words, ' of various dimensions, of various degrees of richness, various in arrangement, yet each bearing on its very face the stamp of Catholic — cathedral or abbey, church or oratory, they all show that they are dedicated to the one true faith, raised by men actuated by one great motive, the truly Catholic principle, of dedicating the best they possessed to God.' One principle, the author of this magnificent treatise insists upon without qualifi- cation or reserve, — and that is, not that all men should build vast and splendid churches, but that all men should render the buildings, they raise for religious pur- poses, more vast and beautiful than those in which they dwell. For men, who build churches, without the least regard to tradition, to mystical reasons, or even common propriety, the writer has no mercy ; but the utmost vehemence of his invective is expended on the contemptible deceptions and showy expedients, prac- tised to disguise by artificial means the meanness of the real building. Trick and falsehood, he urges, may make a church appear rich and beautiful in the eyes of men, but the deception cannot escape the all- searching eye of God, to whom churches should be built, and not to man. The rubble wall and oaken rafter of antiquity impress, he says, the feelings with reverent awe, which never could be produced by the cement and plaster imitations. of elaborate tracery and showy designs. z 2 340 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF The intrusion of Pagan emblems and attributes into Christian churches, is not only, he contends, a violation of ecclesiastical propriety, but a great inconsistency in the admirers of classic decoration, since the Pagans never introduced any emblem without a mystical signification being attached to it ; while great as their enormities may be, the author does not charge the advocates of revived Pagan decoration with an actual belief in the mythology, of which they are such zealous admirers. But what have we as Christians to do with Pagan emblems in churches ? How does the owl of Minerva show our wisdom, or the club of Hercules our strength ? Still more inconsistent, if possible, are the Pagan sepulchral monuments. ' How can we,' asks the author of 4 True Principles,' ' who believe in the glorious light of the resurrec- tion, carve the inverted torch of Pagan despair on our tombs ? Not only the details, the ornaments and emblems, but the very plan of modern churches are fashioned, not on the principles of Christian but of Pagan antiquity. The author then adduces further reasons why the architecture of the Greek temple cannot be introduced, or imitated with propriety by Christians, and shows how utterly inapplicable Greek temples are to the purpose of Christian churches. There is, indeed, no affinity between the idolatrous rites of the Pagan and the worship of the Christian to serve as an excuse for such an unwarrantable and unworthy imitation. The madness of the attempt to introduce an alien style into a country, literally covered with beautiful models A. WELBY PUGIK. 341 of ecclesiastical structures, is heightened, when he shows how every portion of these buildings, from the fundamental arrangement down to the most minute detail, answers both a useful and mystical purpose, ' What indeed,' he asks, 4 is more appropriate for the ancient worship than an old English parish church, with its heaven-pointing spire — the beautiful and instructive emblem of a Christian's brightest hopes — with its solemn-sounding bells to summon the people to the offices of the church, or to serve by their lofty elevation in the belfry towers as beacons to direct their footsteps to the sacred spot ? How well suited, too, is the interior of such a church for the perform- ance of Catholic rites — the spacious nave and aisles for the faithful ; the oaken canopy covered with images of the heavenly host, and painted with quaint and appropriate devices ; the impressive doom or judgment pictured over the great chancel arch ; the fretted screen and rood-loft ; the mystical separation between the sacrifice and the people, with the emblem of redemption carried on high and surrounded with glory ; the great altar placed far from irreverent gaze ; and all the long perspective terminating with the brilliant eastern window.' Such, says the author of * True Principles,' is but a faint outline of the national edifices which have been abandoned for ' pewed and galleried assembly-rooms, decorated only with gas-fittings and stoves, and with- out so much as one holy or soul-stirring emblem about them.' 342 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF Under the next division of his subject, architectural propriety is examined with reference to collegiate architecture, and the author shows how perfectly this principle was carried out in our old English Catholic colleges. As the celebration of the divine office, with becoming solemnity and splendour, formed a primary consideration to our Catholic forefathers, so was ample provision made for this purpose in all the old collegiate foundations; and in illustration he points to Oxford, which presents, at a distance, a complete grove of towers, spires, and pinnacled turrets, rising from the collegiate churches. After noticing how every portion of these buildings had its distinctive character, how well adapted to the purpose was the external construction, how complete the internal arrangement — the solemn quadrangle, — the studious cloister, — the turretted gate-house ; he contrasts with these noble monuments of Catholic wisdom and Catholic piety the modern collegiate buildings, and the system pursued in the godless colleges. He ridicules London University with its useless dome and portico. It may, however, be urged in its de- fence, he adds, with equal justice and severity, that anything ecclesiastical or Christian would be very inappropriate, and that the Pagan exterior is much more in character with the intentions and principles of the institution. In no place which he ever visited, did Pugin find a more scholastic architecture than in Oxford, and he expresses a hope that its glories may not exist in vain, A. WELBY PUG IN. 343 but that learned and thinking men may be led to draw a parallel in their minds between the faith of those who founded these noble institutions and our present degraded and half infidel condition, and by this consideration be led back to Catholic faith and unity. In the last place, the author considers architectural propriety in reference to domestic architecture, and maintains that the condition of the climate has had, in every country, a large share in the formation of architectural style. On what consideration, then, is it correct to build an Italian house in England ? Another objection to Italian architecture which the author starts, is the principle of nationality. ' We are not Italians, we are 4 Englishmen. God,' he argues, 'has implanted in our breasts the love of our country, therefore we should avoid and oppose the extraor- dinary amalgamation of architecture, style, and manners now in progress. We are not cosmopolitans ; why, therefore, hanker after the bastard Greek non- descript style, which has ravaged so many of the most interesting cities of Europe, and forget our own land and our own national architecture, which has so many claims to our reverence and love ? It is needless to remark how the great artist laments that England is losing her venerable garb, and exchanging her ancient variety for dull and monotonous uniformity. Apollo-terraces, factory-chimneys, government preach- ing-houses, Zion chapels, Bethel meetings, New Con- nections, and Socialist halls, were to him like the 344 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF seven plagues of Egypt. He ridiculed the ostentation and vulgarity of our street architecture, where the linendraper's shop apes the palace of the Caesars, and the cigar divan, with its Turkish look, is a vile bur- lesque of Eastern architecture. The whitewashes the grainer, the Roman-cement men, come in for their share of well-merited castigation. The author has nothing but contempt for the modern castellated mansion and the pretentious abbey style of building, which, like Fonthill, erected at an enormous expense, is a mere sham and unreality. Not so the old English mansion ; — it was a solid, dignified, Christian structure, built with a due regard to the general prosperity of the family, and to the exercise of the rites of hospi- tality. And in the days when Catholic England, he urges, was merry England, at least for the humbler classes, the almoner dealt out their share of bounty to the poorer guests beneath the groined entrance of the manorial gate-house ; thus true architecture answered a purpose in all its arrangements, when it was in keep- ing with the faith and manners of the times— at once strong and hospitable. This original and eloquent treatise the author closes with the following words : — ' In conclusion, Christian verity compels me,' and let us add, the manly candour inherent in his noble nature, ' to acknowledge that there are hardly any defects, which I have pointed out to you, in the course of this lecture, which would not with propriety be illus- trated by my own productions at some period of my professional career. Truth is only gradually developed A. WELBY . PUGIN. 345 in the mind, and is tlie result of long experience and deep investigation. Having, as I conceive, discovered the true principles of Pointed architecture, I am anxious to explain to others the errors and miscon- ceptions into which I have fallen, that they, profiting by my experience, may henceforward strive to revive the glorious works of Christian art in all the ancient and consistent principles. Let, then, the Beautiful and the True be our watchword for future exertions in the overthrow of modern paltry taste and Paganism, and the revival of Catholic art and dignity/ ' An Apology for the Revival of Christian Architecture in England.' The aim of the third work, at the head of this chapter — ' An Apology for the Eevival of Christian Architecture in England,' — is to show Gothic architec- ture in its true light, to vindicate its title to the appella- tion of Christian, and to exhibit the claims it possesses on our veneration and obedience, as the only correct ex- pression of the faith, wants and climate of our country. The writer exposes also with just severity the falla- ciousness of the arguments, used both by the advocates and opponents of Pointed architecture, in treating it as a mere question of abstract beauty, whereas the author of the ' Eevival ' contends that fitness and congruity is the sole criterion of architectural beauty. Not therefore on the score of its comparative superiority over other styles, but only because it is the most perfect expression of the Christian idea, is the Pointed 34G WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF style adopted or defended by Christian architects. To the neglect of this principle the author ascribes the confusion which prevails in the present most eventful period for English art, when, after a gradual decay of four centuries, we are just emerging from what he well terms 4 the dark ages of architecture/ Because no fixed principle is recognised, private judgment runs riot, and every architect adopts a theory of his own, the result generally of the last impression of his latest travel — a view adopted from the Alhambra, or the Parthenon, brought from the banks of the Nile, or from Eome — a style revelling in lotus cups and pyramids, or in dome, basilica, or portico. What is to be said of the taste and judgment of men, who, insensible to the exquisite beauty and magnificence of our national churches, borrowed their style from the heathen temple, the Chinese pagoda, or the mosque of the Mahometan, until the distinctive characteristic of the Christian Church was lost in the impure emblems of Paganism ? In this carnival of architecture, as Welby Pugin termed it, 4 motley was the only wear,' 4 for its professors appear,' as he observes, 'tricked out in the guises of all centuries and all nations ; the Turk and the Chris- tian, the Egyptian and the Greek, the Swiss and the Hindoo march side by side, and mingle together.' But what, however, most grieved the earnest heart of the great Christian architect, was to behold the vene- rable form of our national and Catholic architecture adopted, not on consistent principle, not as the ex- pression of the Christian faith, but as one of the dis- A. WELBY PUGIK 347 guises of the day, to be put on and off at pleasure, and used occasionally, as circumstances or private caprice might suggest; adopted, because it was a style which an architect of the day should be ac- quainted with, or in order to please those who admire old things, or because it was melancholy, and therefore fit for religious buildings ! ! ! With the directness of purpose which was habitual to him, the defender of the revival of Christian architecture attacked the evil in its head-quarters. Where, if not in the Royal Academy and in the Universities, had he a right to expect correct taste and Christian principles ? but if he were disappointed in his expectation, he knew at least on whose head to place the cap and bells. ' A man,' he says, ' who paganizes in the Universities deserves no quarter, and it becomes a question whether the greater share of blame, attaching to such transac- tions, is due to the architect who could so wed himself to the bastard compositions generated in his studio, as to intrude his huge deformity, not only in the vicinity, but on the site of ancient excellence ; or to the authorities of the University, who, in the very teeth of the present revival, have sanctioned so gross a violation of propriety. But their madness is paralleled at Oxford, where the same architect is erecting another unsightly pile of Pagan details stuck together to make up a show, for the University galleries, immediately facing the venerable front of St. John's, and utterly destroying this beautiful entrance to the most Catholic-looking city in England. 348 WHITINGS AND CHARACTER OF i The Pagan character of this edifice has however awakened the disgust of some of the most learned members of the University; and if it pleases the admirers of gin-palace design, it will draw down the indignation of every true disciple of Catholic and consistent architecture. But, although some men, by dint of name, fortune, and station, may rule for a brief space, and mock that excellence to which they can never attain, yet their day is fast drawing to a close : several of the junta who have disfigured the face of the country are already gone; and, like Bunyan's giants in the Pilgrim's Progress, the others are so enfeebled that they can only snarl at the revival of excellence. Their works will hardly be endured for the time they have to run, and the remembrance of them will be the laughing-stock of posterity; and when the ancient glories of our native land are re- stored, and this generation of pretenders have passed .away, men will be amazed that a period could have existed when they were permitted to disfigure and destroy, unchecked and unreproved/ If the ancient architectural glories of our country are to be revived in our time, it will be owing, in no small measure, to the labours of Welby Pugin himself, to the earnestness and ability with which he called to mind the true principles of architecture, which had, for so long and dismal a period, been forgotten or neglected, and to the unsparing vigour with which he denounced the abortions of these miserable times, — ' the conceits/ as he calls them, fc of a Soane, or the pitiful A. WELBY rUGIN. 349 fancies of a Nash.' In the convulsion of the old theories and systems of the arts, which were breaking up at last, like the icebergs in the Atlantic after the severity of a long winter, an inextricable confusion ensued. On the dull uniformity which had hitherto predominated, disorders of every description suc- ceeded ; styles of every variety were adopted and mingled, from the most extravagant conceits of Pagan- ism, down to the grossest caricatures of our national architecture. At a time so favourable for a master- mind to leave his stamp and mark upon the age Pugin arose. He was equal to the emergency. To an origi- nality of mind was added a profound conviction of the truthfulness of the principles he was called upon to defend. His love of the beautiful was surpassed by his love of the true. His earnestness was equal to his knowledge, and his enthusiasm was contagious. To warn, to guide, to counsel, to recal men to the know- ledge of first principles, was, to borrow a phrase so much in vogue in the present day, the mission of Welby Pugin. His mission was triumphant where pompous mediocrity had failed, and learned dulness was forgotten, true genius succeeded. But success was accompanied by detraction and jealousy. His knowledge was assailed, his motives impugned, his enthusiastic love for the olden time derided by men, who were as incapable of judging of the extent of his knowledge, as of appreciating the motives of his reve- rence for the ages of faith. In the 'Revival of Christian Architecture/ the author 350 WHITINGS AND CHARACTER OF vindicates himself against the charge of being a blind bigot, insensible to and ignorant of any beauty, but that of the middle ages. It is indeed much to be doubted, whether he were not better acquainted with the principles on which the various styles of Pagan antiquity were founded than many of their warmest advocates. A Christian artist like Welby Pugin did not, indeed, underrate the supreme beauty of classic art, he only condemned it as unfit for the sublime purposes of Christian symbolism. It was simply incapable of expressing the divine ideas which Chris- tianity imparted to the mind of man. * The Pagans wished to perpetuate human feelings, the Christians the divine.' ' I believe,' he continues, to quote the very words of his Apology, ' Pagan principles to be the perfect ex- pressions of imperfect systems, — the summit of human skill expended on human inventions ; but I claim for Christian art a merit and perfection, which it was im- possible to attain even in the Mosaic dispensation, much less in the errors of Polytheism. The former was but the type of the great blessings we enjoy, the latter the very antipodes of truth, and the worship of demons.' The history of architecture, he argues, is the history of the world. The belief and manners of all people are embodied in the edifices they raised. Each style was the type of their religion, customs, and climate, and perfect in its kind. A follower of Brahma, or Isis, a fire-worshipper of Persia, could not have produced anything different from what they A. WELBY PUGIN. 351 had done, because their edifices so truly embodied the principles and worship of their builders. To raise a temple, or erect a pagoda, is consistent in the worshipper of Jupiter, or in the votary of Juggernaut. The use of cinenary urns is necessary to them who burn their dead, and to them who offer animals to gods m it is natural to carve sacrificial friezes of bulls and goats. It is right in him who denies Christ, to reject his cross. For all these are natural consequences. But how is it consistent in Englishmen, who profess the creed of the Christian, to reject, in favour of a foreign and Pagan style, an architecture, whose beauties we may claim as our own, whose symbols have originated in our religion and customs ? The difference, the author urges, between the religion of England at the present day, and the religion of those who were the founders of our national architecture and the builders of our glorious cathedrals, is slight, compared with the difference which exists between our country and those nations, from whom we have been accustomed / for the last century, to borrow our types, as being the best suited to our present habits. The author then meets the ob- jection which has so frequently been urged against Christian architecture, namely, that the Pointed style was not developed until several centuries after the establishment of Christianity. The Christian faith, as soon as it began to spread and to gain importance, had to encounter the bitterest persecution and all the ma- lignant hate of a tottering Paganism. Christianity had to live in the solitude of the catacombs. It had 352 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF to be silent unless it were compelled, for God's honour, to speak. But to speak was to suffer martyrdom. This was no time for the cultivation of the material arts. But, observes the thoughtful and profound author of the ' Revival of Christian Architecture/ may we not say that the foundations of Cologne were commenced in the catacombs of the Eternal City ? There it was that the Christian idea took root, to be developed, in all directions and under all forms of ex- pression, in its later glories. As with doctrine, so it was with art ; both had their germ in the catacombs, and both found their development when the Church had liberty to speak and power to act. In his grand and elaborate argument on development, Dr. New- man has well shown how the grain of mustard-seed has gradually expanded into the greatest of all trees, until, triumphant in beauty and luxuriant foliage, it extended over the earth. Pugin is the Newman of art. In the days of her power and triumph the Church found a voice in the material arts. And what was the language which she then spoke? Was not Gothic architecture her glorious speech, the crowning result of her earlier efforts? Byzantine, Lombard, Saxon, and Norman, were all various developments of the Christian idea, until her mind found its most perfect expression in Pointed or Christian architecture. But why in these latter days do the material arts speak with so uncertain a sound, — why but because they do not speak the mind of the Church ; if the Church have not been struck dumb, yet her voice has been paralyzed by A. WELBY PUGIN. 353 the confusion of tongues. When all speak, there is none to listen ; when all desire to lead, there is none to obey. Architecture has only shared the fate of faith, of philosophy, of literature. The change which took place in the 16 th century was not a mere change of taste, it was a change of heart and mind. The illu- mination of faith was obscured by the darkness of Paganism, by the shadow which a pestilential heresy cast over the intellect. 6 When Pagan ideas,' says the author whose argu- ment I am pursuing, 6 triumphed over Christian prin- ciples, inconsistency for the first time was developed in architectural designs. Previous to that period, archi- tecture had always been a correct type of the various systems in which it was employed ; but from the moment the Christians adopted this fatal mistake, of reviving classic design, the principles of architecture have been plunged into miserable confusion.' The author then proceeds to comment on the gradual development of inconsistent design, and shows how at first it was confined to the introduction of Pagan details into the ancient buildings. In the same manner as the ' Contrasts ' this work is also enriched with plates to illustrate the arguments of the text, and to impress on the mind of the reader the gradual confusion which arose in the architecture of the 16th century. It was long indeed before the ancient plan and arrangement of buildings, either ecclesiastical or civil, were entirely forsaken, and it is only within a comparatively recent period that error 2 A 354 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF and inconsistency has reached its climax, by indulging in unrealities of every possible description, dressing up, as the author shows, Italian masses with pointed details, gathered from all styles, dates, and buildings. Illustrations of these absurd inconsistencies are given in the numerous plates attached to the volume. The author next treats on Sepulchral Memorials, on the costumes of ecclesiastical and court personages, and on sculpture, and shows how the servile imitation of classic art, without endeavouring to embody exist- ing principles in their works, is the great error of modern artists, and reproaches modern sculptors and painters with having used the Christian mysteries as a mere vehicle for the revival of Pagan forms, and the exhibition of the artist's anatomical skill. From this reproach, however, he excepts the modern German school, with the great Overbeck at their head, and bestows on them his warmest eulogiums for their glorious revival of Christian art and tradition. Pugin has been often reproached, in no measured terms, for the harshness of his judgment and the severity of his criticisms on contemporary artists and their immediate predecessors. But Pugin has only anticipated the verdict which history will not fail to pronounce on the taste and judgment of the age. What modern monuments have we to boast of, to illustrate the progressive march of our national great- ness, to commemorate the deeds of our departed wor- thies, or to embody and express the grandeur of our national institutions ? The history of a mighty people A. WELBY PUGIN. 355 ought to be written in its public buildings ; its military glories, its legislative wisdom, its religious belief, shown in triumphal arch, in palace and temple, so durable as to set even time at defiance, and so glorious and Chris- tian as to fascinate the eye and lead captive the mind of Macaulay's celebrated ' New Zealander,' who, in ages yet to come, shall visit our shores to mourn over fallen greatness, and to study our national character. How immeasurably superior in that future travellers eye will not appear the barbaric piles of unfashioned stone to our most elaborate productions, because they had attained the chief purpose of public buildings — a durability which had defied the ravages of ages, and remained a standing memorial of a people's greatness. Pugin is hopeful that when the principles, on which beauty in architecture depends, become more generally understood, England will once more attain to architec- tural excellence. He would have the architectural student learn, that the same perfection of design is to be found in the simplicity of the village steeple, as in the towering central spire of cathedral churches, and that architectural beauty consists in embodying and expressing in the structure the purposes for which it is to be used, and not in disguising, or altering its cha- racter by borrowed features. ' The peasant's hut, the yeoman's cottage, the freeman's house, the baronial hall,' he continues, 'may be each perfect in its kind ; the student should visit village and town, hamlet and city ; he should be a minute observer of the animal and vegetable creation, of the grand effects of nature. 2 a 2 356 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF The rocky coast, the fertile valley, the extended plain, the wooded hills, the river's bank, are all grand points to work upon ; and so well did the ancient builders adapt their edifices to localities, that they seemed as if they formed a portion of nature itself, grappling and growing from the sites in which they are placed.' ' The rubble stones and flinty beach,' he argues, 4 furnish stores as rich for the natural architect as the limestone quarry or granite rock. What beau- tiful diversity does the face of this dear island present ! What a school for study and contemplation ! Where are to be found twenty-four cathedrals, the finest mo- nastic buildings, thousands of parochial churches, and interesting remains of antiquity without number, all within a boundary of a few hundred miles? Each county is a school, where those who ran may read, and where volumes of ancient art lie open for all inquirers.' England, during the last three centuries, must be judged, Pugin contends, by the corresponding history of surrounding nations in that period of bitter trial and degradation, when Catholic art and traditions, throughout Europe, were neglected and despised : while Paganism ruled triumphant in the palace, pene- trated the cloister, and even raised its detested head under the vaulted cathedrals, and over the high altars of Christendom. Tn the common ruin in which war and revolution, on the countries of the Continent, have involved abbey and cathedral, church and con- vent,— so reducing the most dignified clergy of France, A. WELBY PUGIN. 357 that not one rood of land is left for priest or altar of all the vast estates which ancient piety had be- queathed, — he finds cause for thankfulness, that matters are not worse than they are in our own country. Who will not sympathise with the great Christian artist when he says, that the sad recital alone of the sacri- legious spoliation, which demolished churches, ran- sacked tombs of prelates and nobles for the sake of the lead they contained, profaned and melted the sacred vessels of the sanctuary, and trod under foot the images of our Divine Redeemer, moved him more than even the record of ancient glory ? 6 We lament, ' he continues, ' over the prostrate pillars and scattered fragments of some once noble pile ; we raise the fallen cross, bare the ancient legend on the wall, col- lect the fragments from the shattered panes, and clear the accumulating soil from moulded vase and tomb.' The study of Catholic antiquity, he argues, is so asso- ciated with ancient piety and holy recollections, that the soul is insensibly drawn from the contemplation of material objects to spiritual truths ; that an Eng- lishman needs not controversial writings to lead him to the faith of his fathers : it is written on the wall, on the window, on the pavement, by the highway. ' The cross, that emblem of a Christian's hopes, still sur- mounts, ' he say s, in conclusion, 6 spire and gable; in flaming red it waves from the masts of our navy, over the towers of the sovereign's palace, and is blazoned on London's shield. And who can look on the cross- crowned spire, and listen to the chime of distant bells, 358 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF or stand beneath the lofty vault of cathedral choir, or gaze on long and lessening aisles, or kneel by ancient tomb, and yet protest against aught but that mon- strous and unnatural system that has mutilated their beauty, and marred their fair design ?' In these three works, which we have been attempt- ing to analyze and digest, and in the ' Treatise on Roodlofts,' Pugin has developed the principles of Gothic architecture, and reduced them to a system. No one interested in the study of mediaeval art — no one aiming at the revival of a purer taste — no one engaged in architecture as a profession — can fail to derive be- nefit and pleasure of a high order from their perusal. Putin's works are text books in the architectural schools of Germany. In England the name even of Christian art was almost unknown before he com- menced his labours ; its revival is now associated with his memory. He was well fitted for his task : it was no easy one, for he had to encounter the deep-rooted pre- judice against the mediaeval times. ' Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?' Was there light in the ages of darkness ? and who is he that teaches truthfulness to Protestant England, even though it be only in architecture ? A recent convert to Borne. He had to convict the nineteenth century of igno- rance, and to twit the age of enlightenment with the absurdity of its taste, and the obscurity of its artistic vision. He had to lower the national pride of Eng- land. Better to face the lion in its den, or pluck its young from the tigress, than undertake such a feat. A. WELBY PUGIN. S59 But Pugin was in earnest, and eloquent, and never shrunk from the conflict: he could take a blow as well as give one. He was honest and outspoken, and wrote what he felt. His criticisms, if severe, were impartial, and never sprang from personal motives. He spared no one : his denunciations fell on all alike, no matter of what age or creed. The dissolute churchman of the mediaeval times, who, to the scandal of his pious clergy, squandered the vast revenues of his see, whilst the glorious cathedral was despoiled of its treasures and left to decay, met with no more mercy at the hands of this bold denouncer of abuses than he showed to the ignorant Puritan or fanatic Iconoclast. His ridicule was as frequent and as keen on the glaring absurdities of the new-fangled Catholic chapel as on the gross vulgarity of the Protestant conventicle. His writings were a key to his character ; he threw himself into his works without disguise or reticence. The thoughts which were uppermost in his mind came out; his views, often immature, often doubtful, sometimes erroneous, were spread abroad — vox scripta manet — the casual exaggeration, the inci- dental error, where his main position was right, were remembered against him, and brought out to his con- demnation. Judged as a whole, his works, from the elaborate treatise to the dashing pamphlet, were broad in their views, vigorous in style, and original in matter and form. He avoided shallow conventionalities as he would pitch ; he was always ready to grapple with great principles, to penetrate beneath the surface, 300 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF though sometimes he went beyond his depth. His writings — brilliant, impetuous, rash — were never put to an unworthy purpose — never advocated an unjust cause, or concealed an unwelcome truth : they were like the two main principles of his own Gothic style — upright and thorough. A. WELBY rUGIN. 3G1 CHAPTER II. Pugin on Rood Screens — Tractarian criticism — ' Reverence ' versus the ' All-seeing Principle ' of modern church, builders — His controversy with the ' E ambler,' the organ of debased Italianised principles in art and architecture — Dr. Newman's tribute to Gothic architecture — Pugin's denial that he would like to destroy St. Peter's, Rome — Moorfields Chapel — Musical mass in Cologne Cathedral — Ecclesiastical taste in France — His severe criticisms on the operative music in English Catholic chapels — ' Church-openings and religious perform- ances ' — Pugin's letter on the Catholic Church, Hereford — Legacy- hunting — A last 'scene' described — Pugin on the English Catholic hierarchy and its purely spiritual character — On Church government — He is accused of advancing heretical views — Refutation of his accusers — Episcopal opinions — Letters — Anglican orders — His advo- cacy of the voluntary principle — And of the complete separation of Church and State — The abuses resulting from large endowments — State tyranny and corruption, and consequent spread of infidelity in Europe during the last three centuries. On the publication of a ' Treatise on Chancel-screens and Rood-lofts,' in which Pugin undertook to show their antiquity, use, and symbolic signification, a con- troversy arose of such a character, that if we be not indifferent to the motives and main springs which were at work in Pugin's mind, and to the principles which animated his conduct in life, we cannot in justice to him pass over in silence. It would seem, at first sight, next to impossible, that, in an architectural treatise, questions could be broached which should not only in- 302 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF volve the interests of religion, but arouse the spirit of controversy. Were indeed the ' Rood-screens ' a simple architectural book, it would be unnecessary to allude to it in this place ; but like all the more impor- tant works which emanated from Pugin's hands, it enters in a bold and searching manner into the prin- ciples which underlie modern innovation in ecclesias- tical matters. It is not, he says himself, a mere ques- tion of architectural detail, but a question which in- volves great principles connected with discipline and even faith, for the revival of true architecture is inti- mately mixed up with education, and the formation of the minds of the rising generation. It may, perhaps, be necessary to explain here that the use of the rood- screen has been of universal obligation, and belongs to no particular style, or date, and that its object is to part the people from the priest, and to set a boundary in a church round the place of sacrifice, to teach the faithful to reverence the seat of the holy mysteries, and to worship in humility and awe. In the constitu- tion of Pugin's mind reverence was the strongest ele- ment ; it is therefore not surprising that his vivid imagination should be peculiarly impressed by the symbolism of ancient ecclesiastical architecture, in which the doctrines of Catholicity are so reverently figured. To him indeed the grand portals of the an- cient cathedrals were ever ' Bibles in stone.'' The pre- servation of the rood-screen itself, he maintained, was a vital principle, inasmuch as it would scarcely be possible to preserve the interior faith in the doctrine of the holy Eucharist, if all exterior respect and re- A. WELBY PUGIN. 3G3 verence were abolished. It was not a struggle on matters of taste or ornament, but a contention for the great principles of Catholic antiquity, tradition, and reverence, against modern development and display. Eood-screens, he contended, were not only inseparable from Pointed architecture, but inseparable from Ca- tholic arrangement in any style — Byzantine, Norman, Pointed, or Debased. The fundamental principle of the work is the recog- nition of the intimate connection between the exter- nals of religion arid the faith itself, and the necessity, consequent on the sacrednature of its awful mysteries, that the Christian worship should assume a form of solemnity and reverence unknown to the Pagan, and but ill-understood in the present day. On its first appearance, Pugin's work on chancel- screens was hailed with delight by some members of the High Church party, who strained his argument to the uttermost, in order, if possible, to twist it into a vindication of Anglicanism. One of the ablest writers, in a quondam Tractarian journal, directed the attention of the sound members of his community to this volume, ' which,' he says, ' greatly concerns the Church of Eng- land, rightly understoood, on a matter in which the great Eoman Catholic architect is found on the same side as the Church of England, and in opposition to the most extreme and Ultra-montane section of his own communion.' ' Amongst the most strenuous and em- bittered antagonists of the said unfortunate chancel- screens,' continues the writer, with a purpose which is only too transparent, i are to be found the " Papists " 3G4 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF liar excellence, those members of the Eoman Catholic Church who are most Roman, most Popish, most Ultra- montane — the believers in developments, the converts who find their most congenial home in the oratory of St. Philip Neri.' The writer assumes that those Catholics who are most attached, most drawn to the See of Rome adopted Italian as the typal architec- ture of ultra-montanism, whilst Pugin and another section of Catholics, hostile, he allows it to be inferred, to the Holy See, adopted the Pointed as the typal archi- tecture of national Roman Catholicism. This inge- nious Tractarian writer, so familiar with the doctrinal divisions in his own community, and so wise in recon- ciling to his own satisfaction the opposing articles of his own creed, sets up a theory to account for the dif- ference of opinion, which he assumes to exist, in the Catholic Church on the subject of the Eucharist. His theory is, that in modern ages a materialistic aspect has been given to the doctrine of the Real Presence in the Western Church, which 6 has created, so to speak, a sen- timental craving on the part of the ultra-Romanists for physical proximity to the altar — annihilated in them the conservative and repressive desire to preserve the traditions of antiquity — the desire, for example, that (to employ the words of our own Anglican Rubric), the chancels shall remain as in times past.' ' These trains of thought,' he continues, i have created the theory that chancels, and so forth, were all very well for the middle ages, but that this enlightened genera- tion had developed the necessity of the congregation getting as near the altar as possible, as if in this bodily A. WELBY PUGIN. 8G5 approach an increase of blessing was involved. The result has therefore been a movement in a certain section of the English Koman Catholics against chancels and their screens. The controversy however/ he adds, ' is, in its most real aspect, quite distinct from any architectural differences — purely doctrinal, one might affirm without much of exaggeration, in so far as the true reasons for the maintenance of these chancel- screens were the manifestation in the first place of the awful solemnity encircling the holy Eucharist in the eyes of all the early Christian Church ; and in the second, a certain separation between those specially engaged in divine worship and the general flock — two objects conjointly accomplished by a barrier not interrupting sight or sound, and yet gently parting the clerici from the whole body of the faithful, and leaving them alone face to face with the " holy mysteries," as our Prayer- book calls them. Chancel-screens happen to be the battle-field, but we fancy that many things besides chancel-screens are in ambuscade behind.' This criticism is a fair sample of the attacks which Pugin's Catholic reputation has had to endure, attacks in which more was insinuated than stated, in which impressions were intended to be left on the mind of the reader unfavourable to his character as a Catholic. It is hardly necessary to refute the confused notions which the writer entertains as to the division of opinion on matters of faith in the Catholic Church, but when he casts imputations on Pugin's orthodoxy, and on his fealty to Rome, such accusations ought not to be 3GG WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF passed over by those who hold his Catholic name in reverence. The facts are simply these : in his attempt to revive in England Christian architecture, Pugin was animated by no hostility to Rome, by no desire to set up a national church ; he had too great a reverence for Papal authority to be a Gallican. In his belief, which was no idle aesthetic fancy, but the rooted principle of his life, Pointed architecture was the best expression of the mind of the Church, the grandest mode of giving utterance to feelings of homage, reverence, and love. The Oratorians, so flippantly alluded to, did not cherish the bitter and inveterate hostility against Pugin and his works, imputed to them by this Tractarian w r riter, as appears from the subjoined letter from the Bishop of , and as might be expected from their character and position. The Fathers of the Oratory simply adopted, as is the custom of religious orders, the style of architecture, if one it may be called, which prevailed in the time of their founder. 'May 9th, 1851. 6 Dear Mr. Pugin, ' I saw Dr. this evening, and told him your declaration respecting the Oratory, and your intention to say no more regarding them. He was much pleased, expressed himself well satisfied, assumed that henceforward there would be silence on both sides in public w T ritings from attacks, and said in a very animated tone, that he should be happy to show any civility in his power to you. A. WELBY PUGIN. 3G7 ' 1 have also had a letter from the Cardinal in reply to one of mine, in which his Eminence says, that he will endeavour to throw oil upon the troubled waters. 'Allow me to say that I was much edified with your conversation, that is with its spirit, in a matter so personal last night, but not more than I had antici- pated. ' Wishing you every blessing, ' 1 remain, ' Your devoted father in Christ, The Tractarian writer, whose damaging patronage of Pugin's work I am noticing, and whose Anglican and non-natural interpretation of his views it is my purpose to rebut, introduces without the slightest warrant, and in a flippant style, the name of Dr. Newman into this controversy. There is no shadow of truth in the assertion that that eminent writer lent the high authority of his name to the assailants of Pugin, and of the revival of Gothic architecture. In a passage of a lecture, where he is pointing out how the fine arts may prejudice religion by giving the law where they should be subservient, Dr. Newman pays, in his own incomparable manner, a noble tribute to Gothic architecture, whilst he shows, at the same time, how we should be on our guard against the excesses into which all revivals have a tendency to fall. 'For myself,' he says, 'certainly I think that that style which, whatever be its origin, is called Gothic, is en- 368 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF dowed with a profound and a commanding beauty, such as no other style possesses, with which we are ac- quainted, and which probably the Church will not see surpassed, till it attain to the Celestial City. No other architecture, now used for sacred purposes, seems to have an idea in it, whereas the Gothic style is as harmonious and as intellectual as it is graceful. But this feeling should not blind us, rather it should awaken us, to the clanger, lest what is really a divine gift, be incautiously used as an end rather than as a means. It is surely quite within the bounds of possi- bility, that, as the renaissance three centuries ago, carried away its own day, in spite of the Church, into excesses in literature and art; so a revival of an almost forgotten architecture, which is at present taking place in our own countries, in France, and in Germany, may in some way or other run away with us into this or that error, unless we keep a watch over its course. I am not speaking of Ireland ; to English Catholics at least it would be a serious evil, if it came as the emblem and advocate of a past ceremonial, or an extinct nationalism.'* If it be in nowise true, that the converts as a body were hostile to the Gothic revival, it is still less true that they, who were most attached to RGme, were most opposed to Pugin. It is however a fact, as this Tractarian writer alleges, that 6 Pugin, from various causes, was the chief object of the attacks,' not as he supposes, of the ' ultramontane ' * discourses on the Scope and Nature of University Education. A. WELBY PUGIN. 369 party, but of a clique of writers, whose chief organ was the 'Rambler;' 'attacks,' he continues, 'the bitterness of which can only be accounted for by the fact, that those who have made them feel, in spite of themselves, how much he has to say for his own side of the question ; and the volume before us comprises his defence against the storm of hard words, with which he has been unsparingly abused for these last three years.' Pugin was not slow in retort, and when the ' Rambler * asserted that although it might be induced to admire Gothic churches, there were three things it could never like, and these were 'Gothic vestments,' ' Gothic letters,' and ' Gothic manners,' and advised the great architect to stick in future to his trowel, Pugin replied, ' We pointed men have pointed tools, and can contrive occasionally to cut other things besides crockets,' Pugin then carries the warfare into the enemy's camp, and denounces in severe terms the modern all- seeing principle advocated by the ' Rambler,' which, he says, would convert ' our churches into show-rooms,' and make them 'as barren and bare as barns, and as hideous to look upon as the shambles of the market- place.' If religious ceremonies are to be regarded as spectacles, to be consistent, he argues, they should be celebrated in regular theatres, which have been ex- pressly invented for the purpose of accommodating great assemblages of personages to hear and see well. 'It has been most justly said,' he continues, 'that there is no legitimate halting-place between Catholic 2 B 370 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF doctrine and positive infidelity, and I am quite certain that there is none between a church built on Christian tradition and symbolism, and Covent Garden Theatre/ In his controversy with the writers of the ' Rambler,' Pugin, nevertheless, admits that many of the proposi- tions advanced in its articles on church architecture and decoration are undeniable, while, at the same time, the conclusions drawn are utterly false, and that many important and evident truths are mingled with the dissemination of their debased principles. They set forth a forcible appeal for the spiritual wants of the people, and the need for a great number of moderately- sized churches ; they deprecate most justly extravagant outlay on ornament in the present state of spiritual destitution; the day of combat, when every inch of ground is disputed, they argue, is not the time for triumphant display. To these propositions Pugin readily assents, but when they wish to make it ap- pear that Pointed architecture is not adapted to meet these wants, and 6 that those, who are labouring for its revival disregard these necessities, thus me- riting the censure of St. Wulstan on some builders of his time — that they accumulate stones to the neglect of souls — then it becomes an absolute duty to expose the fallacy of the conclusions put forth by the "Rambler," and to explain the real views and feelings of its advocates.' He accordingly taxes the ' Rambler,' and its sup- porters, with harbouring Genevan tendencies, and in- dulging in Methodistical cant. He repudiates its narrow A. WELBY PUGIN. 371 and captious criticisms, and its open rupture, in the domain of architecture, church music, and ritual obser- vances with the time-honoured customs and glorious traditions of Catholic antiquity. He finally denounces the dangerous innovations and discontented spirit which he discovers lurking in the pages of the ' Rambler,' and foretells, with an almost prophetic keenness of vision, that, sooner or later, its writers will gravely offend against Catholic judgment and wound in its dearest interests Catholic instinct. The great restorer of medieval architecture then defends himself against the charge advanced by his opponents, that he had treated with disrespect the most splendid examples of Catholic zeal and art, and tl)at he had desired to pull down the church of St. Peter's at Rome. 6 Is it,' he says, ' because I exclaim against the abortions of these miserable times that I am accused of being insensible, and even opposed, to the great masters of Italian art? In this country, my own bias leads me certainly to prefer and advocate the Pointed style, and while I have life left, I will protest against the caricatures of ancient temples which are daily erected, serving alike for church, dwelling, hospital, or palace. At the same time were I to with- hold my just tribute of admiration for noble art of every style, were I not to ascribe to one common origin, one universal purpose, the great variety of genius, whether displayed in the Basilica of St. Peter's or in the Minsters of Strasbourg, and Cologne, whether in the massive grandeur of the Norman churches, or in 2 b 2 372 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF the gorgeous beauties of the later periods, I should consider myself richly deserving any reproach that might be cast upon me. 'I will never believe/ he says, 'that the English Catholics as a body can be led by the hollow argu- ments of the writers in the " Rambler," to abandon the traditions of their ancestors in the faith, and after gain- ing so much, to fall back on the mongrel edifices which these men would substitute for the pure, I may say divine, architecture which was generated by Chris- tianity in the ages of faith ; and I do say that the feeling for antiquity, which is in a manner inherent to this nation, is a more powerful lever for restoring the love and reverence for the old religion than all the controversy that has ever been preached or printed/ The traditions which clung to the old colleges of Oxford, and haunted its venerable halls and quad- rangles, were to Pugin so many arguments in favour of the restoration of the ancient architecture as a help towards the revival of the ancient faith. The power of association is strong in youth, and what associations are not connected with the names of Wykeham, of Waynflete, and of Allcock ? ' England/ Pugin argues in his hopeful manner, ' must be rent to pieces before the Catholic fibres that run through her whole system can be eradicated. Links, invisible to many eyes, but strong, I may say indissoluble links, bind this country to the traditions of the past ; nor can I believe that so much has been spared and preserved without being destined to serve some great end in the hands A. WELBY PUGIN. 373 of Divine Providence. What other nation that has departed from the faith has retained a tithe of the Catholic practices and traditions that have been pre- served amongst us ? I gained my knowledge of the ancient faith,' he continues, 'beneath the vaults of a Lincoln or a Westminster, and I found it indelibly marked in the venerable piles which cover the face of this land. This period of my life was one of great mental happiness. I almost lived in those great churches, and revelled in the contemplation of their ancient splendour.' How hard the struggle was for a man like Pugin to leave the spats he had held so sacred, and to worship in a room inferior to many a Wesley an meeting-house, may well be imagined. ' I had seen,' he says, ' little or nothing of the Catholic body in England. I once had a peep into Moorfields chapel, and came out exceedingly distressed before the service, of which I had not a very clear idea, was concluded. I saw nothing that reminded me of the ancient religion, from the fabric down to the vestments of the celebrants. Everything seemed strange and new ; the singing, after the solemn chants of Westminster, sounded execrable, and I returned perplexed and disappointed.' His continental journeys did not remove his perplex- ities. To a mind filled with the effect of the wonder- ful works of the Catholic Church during the middle ages, a continental journey now 7 must always be an extreme disappointment.- France he found in an execrable state, as far as regards taste and ecclesias- tical propriety $ but he made this just remark, that it is 374 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF only those who have an opportunity of penetrating into religious houses, and of becoming personally ac- quainted with the ecclesiastical authorities, who can at all appreciate the amount of piety and zeal that exists even in the most worldly-looking capitals.' In Ger- many he found matters no better. 'I remember,' he says, ' with what extreme devotion I entered the stu- pendous vaults of Cologne to assist at what I expected would be a service commensurate with the majesty of the fabric. I knelt outside the choir, into which, to my astonishment, I saw a crowd of lay persons pushing or standing about the entrance. The great bell ceased.' They who knew Pugin, and have witnessed the scene of confusion and distracting noises which, at that time, used to accompany a grand musical mass in Cologne Cathedral, alone can imagine his horror and grief. The tuning of fiddles, the maestro a la Jidlien, the women in fashionable attire, holding sheets of music and coquettish fans, the motley and moving crowd of sight- seers — tourists, infidels, bearded republicans, commis- sionaires in blouses, were enough to excite to indigna- tion a calmer man than the great mediaeval architect. ' An orchestral crash, commenced,' he says, ' what must have been intended for the u Kyrie." The mighty pillars, arches, vaults, all seemed to disappear ; I was no longer in a cathedral, but at a Concert Musard or a Jarclin d'Hiver. I never before felt so strongly the superiority of sound over form, and, architect as I am, I would infinitely prefer solemn chants in an ugly church, than to assist in the finest cathedral of Chris- A. WELBY PUGJN. 375 tendom, profaned by those diabolical fiddlers. I re- mained in agony. Sometimes we had a sort of robbers* chorus, sometimes the plaintive notes of a nightin- gale.' 6 Happily, at that time,' he continues, 1 I did not cross the Alps, so I escaped that severest of all trials for the faith of the neophyte — the Eternal City. I am quite satisfied that unless a man is able to distinguish principles from abuses, and to separate the majesty of the Catholic ritual from the debased externals of modern times, he is not likely to be impressed with the majority of the religious services at which he assists ; and it is an indisputable fact, that out of the thousands of travellers who annually quit this country for the Continent, few return with feelings of reverence for the religion of their ancestors, on account of the un- fortunate garb in which it is presented to their view. But however strongly I viewed these matters, as an artist, my moral convictions were such as admitted of no doubt as to my line of duty, and I felt that the only hope of reviving the ancient solemnity was to enter in at the gate and work on the old foundations. When I took this important step there was little human pro- bability of effecting anything considerable. I was not personally acquainted with a single Catholic eccle- siastic, without influence, and with but slender means.' Pugin had to contend against all kinds of hin- drances and attacks, not only from the common ene- mies of religion, but from false friends, or, what is 376 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF nearly as bad, from men who take up extravagant and perverted views with good intentions, and injure what they mean to aid* ' Let me then implore,' he continues, 4 those who are exciting this insane, I may almost say impious, movement against the restoration of old Catholic so- lemnity, to consider the mischief that may result from the course they are pursuing. They raise doubts and uncertainties among weak-minded persons ; they create a spirit of division in the faithful ; and, to a cer- tain extent, they mar the erection of fitting temples to Almighty God. As to the ultimate and entire failure of their architectural principles, I do not enter- tain a shadow of a doubt, but, in the mean time, it is most harassing and conflicting to be obliged to turn our arms against a body of mutineers, instead of ad- vancing on the common enemy — the Pagan and in- fidel principle — which requires our united exertions to subdue ; and I do trust and hope that in future they will turn their talents to better account, confining themselves to subjects or questions, on which they are fully qualified to write with edification and benefit to the faithful, and leave architectural matters to those who have devoted their whole lives and energies to its study.' The writers and supporters of the ' Kambler' were not, however, the only members of his own communion with whom Pugin came in conflict : the secular music and operatic performances which, at the time, prevailed to such an extent in the Catholic churches, as to cause a A. WELBY PUGIN. 377 fashionable Catholic chapel in the metropolis to be popularly known as the 6 Shilling Opera-house,' were Pugin's abhorrence. 4 Silent contempt' was no habit of the great reformer of abuses : in an earnest appeal for the revival of the ancient plain song, the writer says : ' When chancel screens were first attacked, about three years since, I at once denounced the writer of the article as one who was opposed to the very principles of Christian architecture, and I then stated my belief, that the objection to screens was merely raised as a test of public opinion, and in order to ascertain hoAV far the party (of which the writer was an organ) might proceed in their opposition to the whole system on which the revival of true ecclesiastical architecture was based. But although I foresaw the evil tendencies of their opinions, yet, I must confess, I was not pre- pared for the extent to which they have been carried in so short a period.' What Pugin had now to complain of was, that in spite of all his noble exertions to restore a purer taste and a higher standard of Christian art among the Catholic body, not only were churches erected whose 4 appearance was something between a dancing-room and a mechanics' institute,' but that the vocal enter- tainment of a concert-room was substituted for the solemn music of the Church. ' What !' he exclaims, ' shall the Song of Simeon, the Hymn of St. Ambrose, the Canticle of our Blessed Lady herself, give place to modern effusions ? Shall we tolerate the conversion of the liturgy into a song-book ?' 378 WHITINGS AND CHARACTER OF But his fiercest indignation is justly reserved against the theatrical performances which too often take place at the opening of new churches. ' Bills of perform- ance,' he complains, ' are circulated, worded and let- tered in the manner which a musical director with a travelling company would put forth on arriving in a country town. On one occasion, Madame Stock- hausen, the star of the day, headed the bill, then the name of some second rates and of the conductor or leader succeeded in due order. Even the clergy/ he says, 1 were played in like soldiers to parade. Pro- cession march ! occasional overture ! — so said the bills — choruses, duets, quartets, fuges, sermon, collection, solos, etc., succeeded in rapid succession ; and what began with an overture, ended, in true theatrical style, with a finale.' 'This new church at Hereford,' he adds, 6 might be fitly termed the new Catholic Concert Room ; it does not possess the slightest character or essentials of a church.' ' It is painful ' (and I will quote his letter at large, on account of its importance and of its earnestness, so characteristic of the writer) ' to be obliged to speak thus of a building which, in all respects, should have been a consolation and a glory ; but there are occa- sions when silence becomes a sin, and this is one. The odium of this and similar transactions falls on the whole Catholic body, and if they pass unnoticed by any but our enemies, they disarm us of many power- ful arguments against our adversaries ; and as I wage perpetual war against Protestantism and innovation A. WELBY PUGIN. 379 in every shape, and hope by the blessing of God to live long enough to set forth the glories of Catholic antiquity that formerly existed in this land, whenever I see Catholics truckling to the debased taste of the times and degrading their honourable title I shall not fail to reprove them, even at the cost of private benefit, or of being branded with the title of fanatic. I have, therefore, considered it necessary to make this public avowal of my horror of such proceedings as those of Hereford ; in which feeling, I am happy to say, I am most heartily joined by a vast number of faithful Catholics, both ecclesiastics and laymen, who, although unwilling to incur the odium of thus pub- licly avowing their feelings, coincide entirely in my views. For my own part, where the truth and the interest of religion are concerned I am a stranger to fear ; and all the fiddlers and organists and performers and committee-men in Ed gland, would not prevent me from exhibiting these disgraceful profanations in their true light. The usual excuse, that they are necessary to raise money, is not only false, but it shows an utter want of that confidence in God which should form the base of every Catholic's conduct. What a narrow mind and grovelling soul does it betray! with the knowledge of possessing the true faith and firm pro- mises of God, to descend to the tricks of perambulat- ing mountebanks, and compromise all propriety, and even common respect to holy things, for the chance of a few Protestant shillings, when a tithe of the number of real Catholic hearts, filled with true zeal and devo- 380 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF tion, would contribute more to the necessaries of the Church, in one hour, than could be drawn from the unwilling pockets of the heretics in twelve months. If speculating on musical talent is to be in vogue, the noted M. Bochsa would be a far better person to open Catholic chapels than the most holy bishop ; but then, let not the name of religion be mixed up with such an exhibition. Call it by its real name — a Concert — turn out the altar, fill the building with pit, boxes, and gallery for the occasion, but let not the clergy suffer the degradation of sitting in dumb show to hear some women sing ; and, above all, let not the holy sacrifice of the mass be made the vehicle of this hor- rible profanation. As for the pretence, that conver- sions can be made by such exhibitions, I deny it in toto. How was the true faith propagated in bygone days ? Did the apostles or ministers who converted England, lead about fiddlers to attract people to their discourses ? No ! they held the Divine commission to go forth, and forth they went, and God was with them ; and the same Eock which sustained them in difficulties ten times greater than surround us is our foundation. Did the apostles themselves hold greater power and authority to preach the truth and ad- minister the sacraments, than is possessed by the most humble of the ordained priests amongst us ? Certainly not. Why then resort to such miserable expedients and shallow policy, calculated to draw down a curse instead of a blessing ? Our great object should be to work for the love and glory of God, and do all things A. WELBY TOG IN. 381 in a manner calculated to please him, without regard to worldly prejudices ; and we may then expect, as in days of old, to receive his blessing on our endeavours. The present system of opening chapels is in complete opposition to the intentions and regulations of the Church. Instead of being solemn and edifying func- tions, they are, for the most part, scenes of irreverence and confusion ; and the building which for the first time is sanctified by the presence of God himself, is filled with a gazing mob and a company of noisy musicians, who run riot in extravagant sounds, and act in direct opposition to the decrees of Councils, and the regula- tions of the Pontifical. f What I have written on the present occasion is quite applicable to many recent openings of chapels. I have long had it in contemplation to put forth some observations on the subject ; and as the evil seemed to be on the increase, and the Hereford advertisement still more outrageous than any which had previously appeared, I could not refrain any longer from setting forth my sentiments. * I trust that the motives which have actuated me to write on the present occasion will not be misunderstood. I can solemnly appeal to God for the purity of my intentions ; and as it is only for the calumniator and those who are actuated by private or party motives to attack in ambush, and shelter themselves under as- sumed titles I most unhesitatingly affix my name, although by so doing I shall probably expose myself to the displeasure of many whose good opinion I 382 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF should highly value, but which I cannot purchase at the expense of sincerity, or the concealment of truth. ' A. Welby Pugin. * Alton Towers.' Against another obnoxious system Pugin was no less unmerciful than he was against the opening of churches with an almost theatrical display. Legacy-hunting, however disguised, he held to be as repugnant to right principles as it is destructive of true charity, and he advocated the restoration of the ancient practice of laying during life the gift on the altar as the best remedy for this evil. ' Nothing can be worse,' he con- tends, 4 than this legacy system. However good and holy a man may be, if he expects a large reversion at the death of an individual it is almost beyond the powers of human nature to expect that he will not take considerable interest in the state of his health ; and although anything like the desire of his departure is too shocking to entertain, still, if he could be removed to a state of bliss, it would not be a very affecting occurrence/ He then in graphic terms describes a scene which, it is to be feared, has but too often been acted. 'The moment,' he says, 'a rich old fellow dies, all the relations to the ninetieth degree turn up and assemble, and if they understand his money has been left to the Church the indignation is general. Was there ever such a monstrous thing known, when he had so many relatives, and some so slenderly provided for? One of his nephews had A. WELBY PUGIN. 383 married on the strength of his expectations, and was now burdened with a numerous family, who would be wholly without fortunes. Another had enlarged his dining-room, and built a conservatory on the same grounds, and this money to go to the bishops ; they would not allow it, they will have law. A lawyer is present and steps forward ; he quite agrees ; it is certainly a case for a British jury ; he would be happy to conduct it himself ; though a Catholic, he considers family interests should be protected. Proceedings are begun ; and to prevent scandal and expense, and the glorious uncertainty of the law, half the property is made over in a compromise, and is the speedy cause of a dozen secondary suits among the relations them- selves, who do not consider that they are fairly dealt with by each other. And now another bishop considers he has a prior claim or equal right on the residue. The first bishop cannot admit the justice of the premises. It must be referred to arbitration. Grave men travel up to London, put up at first-rate hotels, keep up good cheer, drive about in glass coaches, see sights, and occasionally sit in a back room round a green baize table. Portly and sinewy lawyers, with attendants bearing blue bags full of documents, read long extracts from interminable deeds. Rejoinder next day, all the preceding arguments demolished, time is up, but to-morrow the first party will again address on fresh grounds Days goby, one week gone, hotel bills running on, the cost of a small parochial church in the second pointed style swallowed 384 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF up already, proceedings becoming a bore, a com- promise proposed, could not two mutual friends settle it ? They agree, divide again, and deduct expenses. Only one-third of the whole sum reduced by sub- division to a very moderate amount. Both bishops reported to be immensely rich, and to have received an inexhaustible fortune, no subscriptions in consequence. Pious ladies are astonished that anything should be expected from them under such circumstances. Both bishops set forth what is quite true, that the sum received was so reduced as to be comparatively small. Nobody believes it, or if they do, they pretend they do not, and excuse themselves for not giving on those grounds. Both bishops are considerably minus at the end of the year that the great benefaction fell in. ' This is no exaggeration of the evils attendant on the legacy system, and therefore I should view any legal enactment that will induce men to be more liberal during their lives, and less relying on testamentary bequests, as a great practical blessing. I may be con- sidered as a visionary and enthusiast, but I am con- vinced that if Catholics acted practically up to the sincerity and good faith that w r e have a right to expect among Christian men, we could transact most important matters in the old Anglo-Saxon fashion, over shrines and before altars, and save large sums in stamps and deeds, which are no security after all, and often made the subjects of vexatious litigation. How vain are all these charters and testamentary restric- tions ; little better than waste wax and parchment. A. WELBY PUGIN. 385 What pains did the venerable founders of some of the old Oxford colleges incur to secure those institutions from change ; and yet, in a comparatively few years, the whole became practically a dead letter ; the altars and the very chantries pulled down, all the beautiful ornaments seized and sold by the state, and the costly foundation of Archbishop Chichele, endowed (in his remorse for the horrors of the French war, which he had instigated) for the souls of the slain, denuded of the very altars where the expiatory services were to have been offered, and the chantry priests replaced by good easy men, who say their own prayers, quite irrespectively of the memory of the brave knights and yeomen who fell on the field of Agincourt. I mention these things to show the vanity of endowments, and of providing for futurity in church matters, when the only security consists in the succession of well- instructed and apostolic men, keeping up faith and discipline' So stout a reformer of abuses was not likely to be popular except with the earnest-minded, and the earnest- minded and zealous are in every community always the few. But Pugin never courted popularity, or flattered the prevailing folly of the hour ; seclusion was his choice, yet he never shrank from publicly avowing what he inwardly felt on any matter that came under his notice ; his pen was never inspired by vanity or shriv- elled up by an anxious regard for self-interest. His strong hand has made the first indent into many a stubborn habit of evil, or inflicted the final blow on many a time-honoured abuse. The timid and the time- 2 c 386 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF servers regarded him with equal loathing and dread. They deprecated his interference in matters which did not concern the details of his art. They would have had him leave principles to take care of themselves, and to busy himself in executing orders to suit the fancy of the day. True principles they considered inconvenient burdens ; and when Pugin insisted that all the accessories of Divine worship should be in harmony with the solemn character of the building and in keeping with the approved ritual of the church he was regarded as a man utterly given over to obso- lete customs and to medieval crotchets. Pugin s ' Earnest Address on the Establishment of the English Catholic Hierarchy' and its hostile reception. We are approaching now to an important and criti- cal period in Welby Pugin's life — we shall have to examine acts of his which have been much canvassed, and a course of conduct which has been blamed by not a few, and misunderstood by too many ; we shall have to listen with as much patience as we can com- mand to the whispered insinuation against his good faith, as well as to encounter the graver charge brought against his orthodoxy, and we shall watch with inter- est and curiosity what a different effect the oblique hint had upon his mind to that produced by the open indictment. But why, it may be asked, open up the painful question again, — why enkindle anew the embers of a quarrel which has long since died out, — why A. WELBY PUGIN. 387 awaken prejudices which have slumbered over the grave of him who had provoked them, — and why show to the world that differences in opinion have disturbed the unity of Catholics ? My reason is simply this : that it is not just, for the sake of making things appear plea- sant to the living, to allow the taint of imputed heresy to rest upon the name of the dead ; and moreover, it seems to me unwise for Catholics to be constantly endeavouring to gloss over the differences of opinion which must arise even upon important matters, or to seek to appear before the world other from what they are. Such want of candour has neither prudence nor charity, nor any other gift of the Holy Ghost to recom- mend its adoption. Half-measures conciliate no one. If the life of Pugin is to be written at all it ought to be, like himself, thorough. Not a single fact of impor- tance, even if it were painful to the feelings of others, or derogatory to his own reputation, ought to be sup- pressed or distorted, or receive a colouring from the bias of prejudice or from the hand of partiality. The great lover of reality, the honest-minded architect, the first and most famous principle of whose craft it was to expose the construction of his building, and to rely on truthfulness for its beauty, ought not to have his biography built up on half-concealed facts, and coloured statements that resemble nothing so much as the hidden buttresses and plastered roofs which were such an abomination to his artistic and truth-loving eye. Why indeed should there be any reticence ? where is the need of concealment in the differences which arose 2 c 2 388 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF on the publication of 'An Earnest Address on the Establishment of the Hierarchy ?' Was there anything really to be ashamed of in the conduct of Welby Pugin, or to be regretted on the part of his ecclesiastical su- periors ? Did it not rather redound to the credit of those most nearly concerned that so much kindness and consideration were shown on the one hand, and such obedience and promptitude in retracting error on the other ? We must seek for the impugners of Welby Pugin s orthodoxy among less noble opponents, and we shall perhaps not be astonished to discover that they were confined principally, as the bishop of indicates, to persons not a hundred miles from ; to the captious writers in the 'Kambler,' and their more immediate supporters, the ancient antagonists of the Gothic revival, still smarting under the recent wounds inflicted on their crude innovations by the unsparing hand of the prime mover in the mediaeval restoration, — men, who in their ungenerous zeal to trip up an adver- sary, did not scruple, as the bishop of fore- saw, to make a handle of some overstrong statements in the 'Earnest Address,' or of some incidental errors, to bring the writer into discredit with his ecclesiastical superiors. The failure of their attempt was more signal than the triumph they had vainly anticipated. Docile and submissive to ecclesiastical authority, Pugin was not the man to be silenced, or to be put down, or to be turned aside from the path he had struck out for himself, by the clamour and calumny of A. WELBY TUGIN. 389. those, who when beaten in argument sougnt refuge, if not revenge, in an appeal to ecclesiastical censure. One of the first steps which Welby Pugin took to set himself right with the public, and with his fellow- Catholics, was the publication of a letter in the - Tablet/ in which he not only maintained the ground he had taken up in the ' Earnest Address ' with his accustomed boldness and vigour of argument, hut still further for- tified his position by the high authority of the late Bishop Milner, while at the same time he indignantly repudiated the charge of heresy, or of holding uncatho- lic opinions, and denounced the dishonesty of those who dared to distort, or to misrepresent his openly- avowed principles. At the same time, however, he again in this letter fell into the error of holding the validity of English orders to be an open historical question, and one on which he was at liberty to form his own opinion. Strangely enough this able writer seems at this time to have imagined that he was only bound or called upon to believe what the Church had solemnly defined, instead of recognising the principle that a Catholic must act and believe in unison with the mind of the Church even on trivial matters ; how much more so on matters of grave import, which she has already defined indeed by her constant practice. Schismatical Greek bishops and priests on their return to the unity of the Catholic Church she admits again into her body, but does not reconsecrate or reordain them, but Anglicans on their conversion she invariably does. This solemn act is in 390 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF itself alone a sufficient definition of the invalidity of the English orders. It is indeed an open historical question as to whether Barlow himself were really a consecrated bishop, or whether Parker ever received that form of ordination which he conferred on his brethren, and which all the Anglican prelates received until the middle of Charles the Second's reign, but the dogmatic fact still remains that the 6 form ' of ordina- tion out of King Edward's Ordinal was wholly invalid. Pugin however does not appear to have allowed this ' mere opinion ' to influence his practice, nor even to have carried it out to its logical consequences, for if the Anglican orders be valid, so is the consecration of 4 their sacrament,' and a Catholic at their commu- nion service would be bound to adore the real presence which Pugin is never known to have done. With the exception of the paragraph I have alluded to, this outspoken letter, a sequel, as it were, or a con- densation of a portion of his ' Earnest Address,' appears to me to call for unqualified admiration. I know few things more commendable than the courage he displays in rising superior to the weakness, too common among Catholics of the present day, of seeking to hide from the contemptuous or hostile gaze of the w^orld the blotches and sores that from time to time burst out and deface the divine beauty of the Church of God. Even if it were possible to escape the inquisitive search of our enemies, the attempt at concealment would in itself be unwise, for we should soon fall into the habit, too easily learnt, of blinding ourselves to our true condi- A. WELBY PUGIN. 391 tion, and be lulled into that greatest of dangers, a false security. Therefore I rejoice in the boldness of the author of this letter and of the ' Earnest Address/ in denouncing as a warning to the Catholics of the present day, and of other countries as well of those at home, the internal corruption or religious indifference of the rulers in Church and State as the primary cause of all the evils of the Eeformation. Nothing to my mind shows more clearly the strength of Pugin's reliance on the divine foundations of the Church than such un- reserve of conduct, and such truthfulness of utterance. The doubting mind hesitates, and want of faith makes us cowards. It is indeed but too true that long before the Eeformation the subserviency of the ecclesi- astical rulers to the royal authority, their jealousy of the interference of the Holy See, and their resis- tance to the Papal supremacy, prepared the way for the heresy and religious revolt of the 16th century. On its appearance in the ' Tablet,' the writer forwarded his letter to a distinguished layman with whom he was in the habit of corresponding, and re- ceived a reply full of kindly counsel and advice which is worth reading, as it shows in what estimation the character and writings of Welby Pugin were held at the time by learned and religious men. 392 "WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF ' , March 9th, 1851. ' My Dear Pugin, ' I waited for a few days before I wrote to thank you for your most acceptable present of the " Earnest Address" which safely arrived ; partly because the subject of which you treat is too deep an one to give an opinion off-hand, as one might on any idle ques- tion of the day. You know how fully my ideas agree with yours in the main to be prepared for my cordial concurrence with the general view of your pamphlet ; and I must say I admire and ap- prove it more than I can easily express, and heartily trust it may kindle the latent spark in very many others. Still there are one or two expressions I should have preferred altered, not because your own mind is not perfectly correct in reference to them, but because the enemy may take advantage of them ; for instance, in page 12, instead of " those countries which nominally retained the ancient faith, etc." I would have put " which continued to profess the ancient faith." It would-have given your meaning, and not have laid you open to the charge of looking upon the Catholic countries as only nominally and not really so, which of course you would be far from affirming. I think too you are hardly fair upon the mediaeval period. You write of those ages as an " Oratorian" might write. Who ever maintained that all things were holy and perfect then ? All that I would contend for them is that the acknowledged public prin- ciple of the period was essentially Catholic and Christian, which it never has been either before or since. That is the grand point for mediaeval men like you and me to uphold, and if we cannot uphold it, we are done for. The legislative principle was truly Christian in those days as much as the architectural, and for the same reason, because the nations then made a solemn national acknowledgment of Christianity. The public system they upheld was perfect, sub- lime : the vices, the barbarism, the abuses that prevailed were in spite of it, and in flagrant opposition with it. Whereas in these days men are wicked because the public system is wicked, because A. WELBY PUGIN. 303 tlie Established Church teaches heresy, because legislation is con- ducted either on Protestant or no principles. And in degree the same may be said of the modern Catholic countries ; they are degraded because they have admitted another principle, opponent to the Catholic principle : they no longer make Catholicism the basis of their legislation : there is no longer that solemn national recognition of Christianity and Catholicism which there was in the middle ages. This is the grand point to which I think Digby, in his Mores Catholici, and Montalembert, in his masterly preface to the life of S. Elizabeth, do justice and not more than justice ; and it is upon the intimate conviction of this fact that the whole feeling is based that would make us point to the middle ages, whether for architecture or any other exhibition of the human mind. And if this great fact be not admitted, the sooner we fall in with the dull routine of the 19th century the better ; to do otherwise in that case would be but unmeaning Quixotism. So you see, my dear friend, I think you have been somewhat cutting your own ground from under you. ' The standard of mediaeval manners, the standard of mediaeval legislation, of mediaeval education, of mediaeval architecture and art, of mediaeval literature, were each and all eminently Christian, and therefore good and worthy to be proposed by men now to their fellow-men as a true type to follow in their several departments. But for this view of the grand question I do not see how we are to escape the charge of mere antiquarianism in seeking to revive mediaeval Church architecture. And yet if we give up what up to now we have been so loudly vaunting — the exclusive Christian character of those ages, I do not comprehend why we are to con- tend for the productions of those ages. A good tree bringeth not forth evil fruit, neither doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. With these few criticisms I concur in all that you say most heartily, and I earnestly wish all success to your " Appeal." ' Your truly attached friend, 394 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF To a mind like Pugin's, not apt in slow deliberation to weigh its conclusions, but rather impelled by the quick impulse of genius to fling them off like sparks from the anvil in rapid succession, a larger latitude of expression must be allowed than is granted under ordinary circumstances to lesser men. If, however, I confess that on more than one occasion his boldness of argument verged, to say the least, on rashness, and that his vigour of language fell, now and again, not far short of violence, I only show that I am not striving to procure his beatification ; but on the other hand, when I come to examine and criticise more closely the principles laid down in the famous publication which created such a commotion* among Protestants * On this subject Pugin received upwards of a hundred letters, many of them from persons of eminence in the literary, religious, and po- litical world. A just tribute to his spirit of fairness was paid to him in the following letter from an eminent statesman : — ■ c , March 11, 1851. 'Sir, 1 1 am not aware whether I have to thank you individually for the favour of a copy of your Pamphlet on the recently instituted Roman Catholic hierarchy. If it be so, pray allow me warmly to acknowledge that favour ; but whether it be so or not, I cannot be out of place in thanking you, as one of the public, for the matter of the pamphlet itself. Among the many and varied gifts which combine to make it so interesting, I shall only particularise that spirit of enlightened and charitable appreciation of men and systems standing apart from you, which is at this moment, I grieve to say, so rare in any quarter, and which in the perusal of your work I have found refreshing and delight- ful in proportion. 1 I have the honour to be, Sir, ' Your very faithful Servant, < A. W. Pugin, Esq.' A. WELBY PUGIN. 395 as well as Catholics, I hope it will appear evident that I am not in the least disposed to play the part of devil's advocate. The incriminated pamphlet, written with power and manly eloquence, and bearing upon its face that peculiar air of truthfulness which characterised all Welby Pu gin's productions, appeared at a period when it was sure to excite attention and provoke controversy. It was published in the beginning of the year 1851, the year which witnessed the restoration of our glorious English hierarchy, the revival of our ancient faith in its perfect organization, and the futile attack of a bigoted statesman on the liberties of the Catholic Church in England. The outburst of popular prejudice w r hich accompanied this aggression on our rights, was manfully met by our great English cardinal. In the full vigour of his active intellect, and relying on the soundness of his cause, and on the common sense which in the long run seldom quite deserts the English people, he stood almost alone against the nation. The establishment of the hierarchy was the turning-point of Catholicism in England, it was the solemn inauguration of a new epoch ; and a thoughtful mind like Pugin's could not but be alive to the dangers which beset the birth of all great events. He was not slow in holding up as a terrible warning the degrada- tion which befel the ancient hierarchy in Henry the Eighth's time, when at the bidding of the king both bishops and clergy almost to a man forswore the supremacy of the Pope, and fell away from Catholic 396 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF unity. In his ' Earnest Address,' a terse but vigorous exposition of the dangers of state patronage and state interference in matters of Church government, the writer seeks to ascertain the primary cause to which all these sad changes may be traced, not only of the loss of faith in England, but of the lamentable degra- dation in countries where the old religion still prevails, from the standard of Catholic excellence, and of the fearful progress which indifference and infidelity have made ; and he states his belief that 6 we shall not fail in tracing this corruption to the common evil of state and temporal power crushing the free action of the Church, and enslaving its ministers in worse than Egyptian bondage.' 'The state of Christendom,' he urges, 'is full of matter for the serious reflection of sincere and religious men. To begin with England — which we all know was once a Catholic country, abounding in ecclesiastical foundations, possessing all the means, all the materials, for the preservation of the faith, the instruction of the people, and support of religion in the greatest solemnity and order — how comes it to pass that it is no longer so ? that, without invasion, or conquest, or change of dynasty, the whole has been altered, transformed, the churches plundered, the country separated from Catholic unity, and, in fine, brought to its present lamentable religious position ? Who has done this ? By whom has it been brought about ? Is it the work of Protestantism or not ? / boldly answer, No I ' It is a fearful and terrible example of a Catholic A. WELBY PUGIN. 397 nation betrayed by a corrupted Catholic hierarchy. Englishmen have been betrayed, and what is more, betrayed by the very power from whom, under God, they had a right to expect protection and safety. It was in a solemn convocation, when England's church- men were assembled, a reverend array of bishops 'and abbots and dignitaries, in orphreyed copes and jewelled mitres. Every great cathedral, every diocese, every abbey, was duly represented in that important synod ; and yet the fear of a tyrant and the dread of losing a few remaining years of wealth and dignity so far pre- vailed, that they sacrificed the liberty of the English Church at one blow,— that Church whose liberties at their several consecrations they had sworn to defend, whose freedom they were bound on oath and conscience to preserve. The deed is signed. Harry is declared the supremum caput of England's Church : not by the vox populi, but by the voice of the convocation, the Church is sacrificed, the people are sacrificed, and the actors in this vile surrender are the true and lawful bishops and clergy of England. One venerable prelate, aged in years, and worn with fasting and discipline, alone pro- tests against this sinful surrender; his remonstrance is unsupported by his colleagues, and he is speedily brought to trial and execution. His accusers are Catholics, his judges are Catholics, his jury are Catho- lics, his executioner is a Catholic, and the bells are ringing for High Mass in the steeples of St. Paul's, as the aged bishop ascends the scaffold and receives the martyr's crown.' 398 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF None were more ready than the writer of this pamphlet, to welcome with love, and receive with reverence the new hierarchy, fresh from the hands of the common head of Chris tianitv, and none were more eager to guard it, not so much against state hostility as against state patronage, and to keep this virgin gift, as he calls it, pure and unpolluted, free from the corrupting touch of diplomacy, from the intrigue of a minister, and from the adulation of an audience chamber. Abhorrence against interference of the temporal power in the internal concerns of the Church led the earnest and enthusiastic writer to denounce, in no measured terms, all union even with the state, un- mindful that the theory of the Christian polity is, that the state, the indirect work of the Divine hand, should be the nursing father of the Church, while the Church, the direct and divine creation of the Founder of Chris- tianity, should be in all things, and at all possible times, the guide and guardian of the Christian state. But the writer, dwelling with great force on the cor- ruptions which were in former days introduced into the Church by the tyranny, or by the still more fatal favour and flattery, of the temporal power, advocates the complete separation of Church and State, and supports to the utmost of his power the voluntary system. This is the chief purport to which he ad- dressed himself in writing the ' Earnest Address,' this is the main drift of his argument, and the reason why, in the manner of a man who never minced matters, or A., WELBY PUGIN. 399 dressed up his phrases to suit delicate ears, he brought out boldly the fact ' that very many, if not all the past abuses we have been in the habit of so loudly denoun- cing in the Church of England, are inherited from the old Catholic times — that the ancient churchmen were notorious non-residents and pluralists, and that every synod complained of the numerous foreigners intruded into English benefices, who never visited the churches to which they were appointed, and from which they derived the revenues, while the fabrics and religion alike fell into decay. We had bishops, he says, who never saw their cathedrals, and even a bishop who ruled the diocese of Lincoln for twelve years without having been in holy orders. From these facts, gathered at chance among a mass of documents of the same im- port, it may be conceived there was great room for reform before the Reformation, which was in fact rather a legalization of abuse by state enactments than a remedy to their continuance. The writer then proceeds, with just severity, to comment on the flagrant abuse descended from a very ancient period, of chapters invoking in that sublime hymn, the ' Veni Creator,' the divine illumination to guide them in the election of a man worthy to fill the office of bishop, whilst they had in their possession, during the time they were enacting this solemn farce, the name of the individual appointed by regal autho- rity, and whose sole title to the dignity he impiously aspired to, was often the disgraceful fact of his having 400 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF found favour in the eyes of a royal mistress, or in the ante-chamber of an intriguing minister. 'In a recent article, printed in the 4 Times/ on the Bishop of Birmingham's letter, the editor most taunt- ingly asks if we consider that we are more powerful now than we were in the days of Leo X., and I,' says Pugin, ' most unhesitatingly answer — ten times more powerful. The days of the tenth Leo were full of cor- ruption ; it was the spring of revived paganism and heresy ; the Church had just cast off her ancient tradi- tions, and was dressing out her temples in a heathen guise ; the most fearful heresies were rife on every side ; abuses intolerable to Christian men existed throughout Christendom ; the sacred reforms and de- crees of the Tridentine fathers had not been set forth ; the corruptions of centuries were drawing to a head, and the very fountain of jurisdiction itself, the Holy See, seemed poisoned with the luxury of the day ; Catholicism was still wrought up with barbarisms of the nations it had converted, and which, though it had quelled, it had never extinguished. The dawn of religious freedom had not struck one ray on the dark horizon of religious persecution ; if ever there was a time when a Catholic could have despaired of the pro- mises of God to his Church, it ivas then. But now there is every cause for hope, aye, for exultation. The Catholic religion now exists on free principles : she has got rid of one immense element of corruption in her vast temporal wealth ; her prelates have lost the A. WELBY PUGIN. 401 temporal prince and regained the Christian bishop ; ^ we have active missionaries and preachers in lieu of lazy abbes, flirting in parks and gardens ; we have no commendatory abbots, or misapplied revenues of reli- gious houses, but active and religious orders of charity ; no tonsured children holding great ecclesiastical bene- fices : and we have a clergy who commence to appre- ciate and, indeed, restore the long-neglected and despised architecture of Christendom ; Paganism is at a discount, at a ruinous sacrifice' If the preservation of the new hierarchy from the possible contamination of state influence were the main motive in the publication of the ' Earnest Ad- dress,' almost equally strong in the author's mind was the twin idea of the eventual restoration of the more Catholic-minded portion of the Anglican establish- ment to the bosom of Catholic unity. In the hope of bringing this union about, and in the desire to induce among Catholics generally, a more kindly considera- tion for the unhappy position of the more advanced Tractarians, he pointed out, to the scandal of some who were unwise in their sensitiveness, the degenerate and ungodly subservience of the Catholic bishops to the assumptions of the temporal power as the origin of the English schism, and all its consequent evils ; whilst, at the same time, he contrasted the preservation of much that was Catholic, and ancient, and grand, in the creed and ritual, and in the cathedrals of the Anglican communion, with the destructive inroads which the Paganism and infidelity of the 17th and 18th centuries 2 D 402 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF had made in many Catholic countries. But if, in the fervour of his argument, and in his joy over the sur- viving glories and grandeur of the old cathedrals, and out of the fulness of his gratitude towards those who had clone all in their power to preserve them against the iconoclastic fury of the Puritans, he appeared, for the moment, to forget that the supremacy of St. Peter is the supreme test of the Catholicism of any com- munity, he did not, at any rate, even in appearance, much less in reality, lay himself open to the charge of palliating the criminality of the more advanced Trac- tarians in remaining aloof, at the present day, from union with the Holy See. So Catholic in character, and so reverent in his demeanour towards ecclesias- tical authority, it would appear almost impossible to believe that a man like Pugin could be capable of deliberately upholding heretical or condemned opinions, although it is not to be denied that he fell into the error of treating the validity of the A nglican orders as an open historical question, instead of regarding their condemnation as a settled dogmatic fact. Fortunately we have not to go far to find conclusive proof of the orthodoxy of Pugin's faith, and of his reverent attach- ment to the Holy See ; and I am sure every Catholic will rejoice to hear that so good and great a man loyally sought the earliest opportunity to remove the imputa- tions cast upon his faith, by publicly insisting upon submission to Rome, as in all ages a necessity of Catholicism. ' It is the fact of being in communion with the Ro- A. WELBY PUGIN. 403 man Church,' says the author, in a short but pithy address to the inhabitants of Ramsgate, on the occasion of the restoration of the English hierarchy, 6 that has formed the test of Catholicism in all ages. The manner of celebrating the divine service, the vestments, the ornaments, the very churches might be in perfect con- formity with Catholic usages, and yet the worshippers in them as far removed from a Catholic position as the most determined Calvinist. This country was sepa- rated from the communion of Christendom by the old Catholic bishops themselves siding with the king against their duty and their conscience, to enable him to contract an unlawful union; and although the ecclesiastical rulers were unchanged, and the ancient rites of worship were unimpaired for several years after the separation, yet the position of the Church of England became schismatical, and many conscientious men suffered death rather than deny the spiritual obedience they owed to the common head of the Church throughout the world. I mention these cir- cumstances to show how impossible it is for us to sub- mit to the rule of the Anglican bishops as appointed by the state ; for if we could not have yielded obe- dience to the original prelates who subscribed to the royal supremacy, of whose consecration there could be no doubt, and who taught orthodox doctrine on all but one point, how can we be expected to yield to the present race of men separated above three hundred years from the fountain of ecclesiastical jurisdiction, of the validity of whose consecration we may enter- 2 d 2 401 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF tain reasonable doubts, and whose teaching is neither conformable with the ancient belief of the English Church, nor in many respects agreeable to their own written formularies and articles ?' Unnecessary as it was to those who were at all familiar with his religious principles, yet this timely profession of his belief on the great doctrine of the Papal supremacy came well, and served as a just rebuke to those who only founded their judgment of his character from the insidious praises lavished on his pamphlet on the hierarchy by the Tractarian or hostile journals, or drew all their knowledge concern- ing his true opinion of the English establishment from the disingenuous and distorted comments on his publi- cation, made in no spirit of fairness, by some of his ancient opponents among the supporters of the 'Rambler.' It appears to me impossible to put the conduct of Pugin in its proper light on this trying occasion, or to elucidate the controversy which arose on the publication of his 6 Earnest Address,' if I do not lay before the public a fragmentary portion at least of the voluminous correspondence in reference to the soundness of the distinguished writer's principles, or to the seasonableness of his views. With the tact and consideration so consonant with the character of his Eminence, Cardinal Wiseman intimated to Welby Pugin, in a letter addressed to him not in his ecclesi- astical capacity but in the terms of personal friend- ship, that grave charges had been alleged against the orthodoxy of his recent publication, and enclosed an A. WELBY PUGIN. 405 extract of one of several letters of complaint which had been addressed to his Eminence. It was intimated to Pugin that one learned priest had denounced his pamphlet as heretical, and that it was feared a more formal denunciation would be made, or even that the pamphlet itself might be sent to head-quarters. Pugin at once expressed his entire submission, and his readiness to withdraw or modify any opinion which might seem to border on heresy as soon as the incriminated passages or opinions were pointed out to his attention. As in the ' indictment,' enclosed in the Cardinal's let- ter to Pugin, allusion was made to the ' sanction ' which the pamphlet was said to have received from the Bishop of , we cannot do better than transcribe a few pas- sages from a letter written by the bishop alluded to, and dated 20th April, 1851, in which he tells Pugin that in a long conversation he lately had with Father , the latter, speaking of Pugin, stated that he has always had and has the highest opinion of him and of his works and writings, bating of course some rather strong ex- pressions against the practices (Antigothic) at the Oratory. ' This conversation, ' says the Bishop, 6 took place when I called upon him, some weeks ago, when there was some question of trying to get your pamph- let called " An Earnest Address "placed on the Index at Rome. Father denied all participation in any such plot against you. But I know there were parties at the time (not a hundred miles from ) who were trying to influence the Cardinal to wage war 406 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF upon you. But I trust the parties I allude to are rather ashamed of themselves. Surely they must see that your " Earnest Appeal" has not prevented pious Anglicans from coming over to us, though at the time they quoted some foolish and weak men of their acquaintance, who were remaining stationary in conse- quence of your opinion of the validity of their orders. What fools they must have been ! At all events, Arch- deacon Manning and the men at Leeds are not of their number. I trust we shall still see many more good Puseyites return to the bosom of Mother Church till the " Established " has no one left to be proud of.' Numerous as were the words of advice, and the letters of encouragement, of sympathy, and of friendly correction, which Pugin received at this time from so many quarters, none manifested a truer appreciation of his services and character, or pointed out with greater precision the incidental errors into which he had fallen and the misapprehension to which certain false deduc- tions might give rise, especially in the minds of those who were more disposed to be captious and critical than candid and fair in their judgments, than did the Bishop of on every occasion. The following letter will show his disposition towards Pugin, and the opinion of one so well qualified in every way to form a correct judgment on his deserts, is too valuable and important not to be recorded here. A. WELBY PUGIN. 407 < , March 3, 1851. ' Dear Mr. Pugin, — 6 I thank you for your kind letter, your circular, and pamphlet. I think the circular excellent, and that many good things as being true are in the pamph- let. But is it correct to say that after the clergy renounced the supremacy, which they did, however they might make a clause about " so far as the law of God permitted" were they not then practically heretics as well as schismatics, by giving up the spiritual supremacy of Peter into the hands of Henry ? I have spoken with Dr. Weedall and the Oscott people, and all think as well as myself that this state- ment is too strong, and may be made a great handle of. ' 1 much fear that the preoccupation of minds with our political position will be greatly in the way of your plan being taken up at present. Your circular has set me at work in writing out my contemplated pamphlet on the offertory, which is more than half completed ; but I do not think this the moment for putting it out. There are a great many cowards amongst us, and as a body we have no surplus of spirit or generosity. There are a few exceptions, but what might we not be ? And seeing how the Providence of God looks visibly for us, what ought we not to be ? 6 Wishing you and your family every blessing, and thanking you for your great efforts for the Church, I am, f Dear Mr. Pugin, 4 Your devoted father in Christ, < # ; 408 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF From the statements contained in these letters we are led to conclude that the attempt to place the ' Earnest Address ' on the Index originated in the in- discretion of a few intemperate men, and was in nowise supported by those who had the weight of experience on their side, or the right to judge. The Very Keve- rend Father , whose name no English Catholic can mention without reverence, and towards whom our gratitude is better felt than expressed, himself assured, as we have just seen, the Bishop of that he had 6 no participation in the plot ' to arraign Pugin's ortho- doxy, whose works and writings he had ever admired. The feud which was described by the Protestant, or hostile journals of the day, to be raging between the Oratorians and the promoters of Gothic art, and which was supposed or alleged to be at the bottom of this dispute, had, in fact, nothing whatever to do with the ungenerous attempt to place Pugin's name on the Index. Whatever the differences of opinion which may have arisen on the subject of mediaeval architec- ture or Gothic art, still the collision was only on a matter of taste, and not of faith ; and I am sure that on reflection Pugin would have been the first to regret that he had so far allowed himself to be carried away by the impetuosity of his argument, as to have placed a most religious and distinguished body of men in the category of those of whom the Church would be glad to be quit. But the pamphlet which attracted so much public attention, and provoked so much controversy, as we A. WELBY PUGIN. 409 have already seen, contained other striking views be- sides those just enumerated, and propounded principles of Church government which, especially in these event- ful times, deserve, by reason of their gravity and their boldness, the consideration of every thoughtlul mind. * Welby Pugin's " Earnest Address " will we expect,' says the writer of an elaborate review which appeared in the columns of the ' Morning Chronicle ' on that pamphlet, ' create quite as much astonishment among Roman Catholics as among other readers. The name of the writer will be very familiar as that of one of the most distinguished architects among us, and an energetic writer on topics connected with his profession. Those who know no more of him than this will scarcely be prepared for the boldness of thought, originality of views, and vigour of language which he exhibits in this pamphlet.' This publication, it is quite true, ' did create much astonishment among Roman Catholics,' but it also succeeded in extorting approval, as much on account of the breadth of its views, and the thoroughness of its exposition, as from the earnestness of its tone. It advocated the adoption of the voluntary principle, and denounced the system of state support and of endow- ments, on the ground that state patronage will in the long run, as experience has amply proved, lead to state interference in the internal concerns of the Church, and to the eventual supremacy of the temporal power, while rich endowments and landed possessions will gradually alienate from a luxurious clergy the 410 WHITINGS AND CHARACTER OF affections of the lower people, excite the envy of the upper classes, and provoke the insatiable greed of the state ; if even the accumulated wealth of ages do not always succeed in corrupting the morality, it will but too often deaden or destroy the ecclesiastical spirit in prince-bishop and priest. History, indeed, affords but too many an example of the fatal effect upon the Church of large endowments and unbounded riches, not to fill the reflecting mind with a wholesome abhor- rence against the system which tends unduly to enlarge ecclesiastical possessions, and not to make us receive with a double reverence and love our new hierarchy, free from the trammels of the state and unendowed with the wealth of the world. How many a saintly Pope, how many an ascetic writer, how many a learned divine have not in every age urged with all the weight of their authority, and in the respective spheres of their influence, upon churchmen the necessity of abstention from the pursuit of wealth, and the duty of self-denial, and the glory of apostolic poverty. How many a monastic house, famous even in the world, in its repu- tation of austere piety, in its charity that blessed the giver as well as the receiver, and in its intellectual pro- ductions which are even to this day our delight and our instruction, has not in the course of time so grown in unblessed wealth until the spirit of the place was completely changed, and the rule of the sainted founder so relaxed from its ancient severity by luxuriousness of living, and lawless innovation, that the monastery which once was a glory to the Church and an example A. WELBY PUGIN. 411 to the world, became a stumbling-block and a scandal to both. But the corruption of riches was not un- happily confined to isolated religious houses, but has at times spread like a canker through whole orders, and so tainted their life-blood that the strong arm of ecclesiastical authority was compelled to interpose, and to correct excesses which could not be passed over ; or perhaps until, inspired by grace, some man of God arose to reform the rule, and lead the order back to the ancient austerity of its ways and to the paths of its accustomed piety. The terrible contests which St. Charles Borromeo had to endure in his attempt to re- form the Church under his sway, is a signal illustration of the difficulty which even a saint has to encounter in dealing with a clergy corrupted by riches and strengthened in their insubordination out of fear of losing the benefits and privileges of their old endow- ments. Eiches like beauty are deceitful ; we are often carried away in our admiration of the outside gilding, and forget in our enchantment the snare which so often lurks beneath the hollow shows and semblances of ex- ternal splendour. The ' orphreyed cope and jewelled mitre ' have decked before now, but not concealed, the schismatic bishop and the rebellious heretic. The grand ritual and the gorgeous ceremonial that belonged to the ancient Church are but a delusion and a mockery when they are not informed by the spirit of faith, as the broad lands and extended sway of the magnificent abbey, and the princely dominions of the powerful bishop, though they exercise an equal fascination over 412 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF the mind, have but too often led, in the decay of the religious spirit, to fearful abuses, such as the author of the ' Earnest Address ' has so ably pointed out, and which brought, as he shows was the case under some of the prince-bishops in Germany, heresy up to the very gates of the episcopal palace, and corruption to the threshold of the sanctuary itself. * If the matter were not too lengthy for the space of this pamphlet, I am quite prepared to prove,' says the author of the ' Earnest Address/ ' that in every country in Europe the degradation of religion has been caused by its alliance with the temporal power, and the base compliance of the clergy to its measures ; nay, the great- est heresies that have afflicted Christendom have been the work of apostate monks and friars, fostered by tem- poral princes for their own political ends. Even the sacred Council of Trent was impeded and delayed in every possible manner by the intrigues of the Emperor, the king of France, and other potentates. All history will prove that, for many centuries, the Church had little or no freedom of action. Even in countries professedly Catholic, and where it was the exclusive religion sup- ported, or even tolerated, by the state, we find nepotism carried to a frightful extent, and the rela- tions of great men holding an enormous proportion of church benefices, canonries, deaneries, and archdeacon- ries, and even those ecclesiastical benefices most inti- mately connected with the salvation of souls and the preservation of faith among the people, were con- sidered as mere matters of revenue and property, like A. WELBY PUGIN. 413 temporal farms and estates ; and while many of those who held these sacred offices for the most part squan- dered their revenues in luxury and pomp, the people were left to ill-paid and ignorant curates, whom a learned parish priest of the seventeenth century desig- nated most justly under the appellation of des paysans en noir. Who can be astonished that active and zealous preachers, though teachers of false doctrines, should win the people from the religion of their fathers, when so cruelly deserted by their natural pastors? To these causes may be attributed the spread of every heresy that has torn the Catholic Church throughout Europe. They have originated in the supineness and neglect of the pastors, and the consequent ravages of the wolves on their flocks. And to resist false doc- trine by temporal punishment on its propagation, is a miserable system, which, independent of its abstract cruelty and injustice, is unworthy of men professing Catholic truth. As long as the clergy instruct their people and minister to their spiritual necessities, here- sies can never take root or flourish ; and it is only the sad causes that I have above mentioned to which we can attribute the decay of religion on the Continent, and the extended spread of schism and error.' Pugin then argues, in his out-spoken manner, how it behoves every English Catholic jealously to watch over the first free hierarchy created under a monarchy since the apostolic times, lest when legal restrictions fail to destroy its action, courtesy and favour be not attempted with more success. 'I should denounce,' 414 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF he continues, ' any man as a traitor to the cause and to religion who would aid or contribute in any way to impede direct and free communication between the English Bishops and the Sovereign Pontiff ; this is the divine constitution by which the Catholic faith is ordained by the providence of God to be preserved in unity through so many lands and people. It is a perpetual circulation, flowing from the centre to the extremities, and again returning to its source. While this circulation is free and unimpeded religion may be expected to prosper and discipline flourish ; but when the channels are clogged by diplomatic impediments the faithful are sure to suffer, and if they are cut off, the faithful decay, even though all the machinery of the hierarcy remain, as I have clearly set forth in the sad but instructive history of England's schism. God forbid,' says the writer, in the concluding page of this bold and brilliant pamphlet, 'God forbid that our ecclesiastical rules should ever be again mixed up with the intrigues of a minister or the adulation of an audience chamber. In the eye of the law, our bishops will only rank as English citizens and subjects, they will bear the ordinary burdens of tax and rate ; be exempt from any odious exemptions and privileges, and amenable to the common law of the land. But to us they will be the ministers of divine and eccle- siastical authority upon earth ; they will receive our obedience and respect; we shall look on them as imbued with the holiest powers ; they will consecrate the churches we raise for the worship of Almighty A. WELBY PUGIN. 415 God, and the. cemeteries where we shall repose when dead ; they will anoint the altars of sacrifice with the holy chrism ; they will impart the Holy Spirit in the Sacrament of orders to successive generations of eccle- siastics, brought up under their guidance in their semi- naries and colleges. They will be true pastors and shepherds of souls, and fathers of the poor. Denuded of their worldly magnificence, that I have shown to have been in former ages so fearful a snare, they will devote their entire lives and energies to the sacred duties of their office. And, my Catholic friends and brethren, shall not we on our side correspond to our chief pastors; thus I may say divinely established for our support and consolation ? Shall we not place in their hands the temporal means to enable them to fulfil the full measure of their usefulness ? God forbid : for I do not hesitate to say that if we neglect to support those whom God hath given us, he will deprive us of this great blessing. It will be vain if you agree with me in denouncing the temporal evils of rich endowments and state pensions, if you do not supply the necessities of the Church by renewing the apostolic system of continual and successive offerings. The real, the spi- ritual success of what the Holy Father has done for us depends on our exertions. I have shown that it is not in endowments, in testamentary bequests, that the true source of the Church revenues is to be found ; but in the hearts, the faithful hearts of her children. Oh ! let not this be a theory but a practice, which you would fulfil as earnestly and truly as your Easter 416 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF communion. Let every man send, according to his gains and means, a reasonable sum to his diocesan for episcopal purposes, independent of any other duties or local works in which he may be engaged ; let this be a distinct matter from all others. Let every faithful man make a solemn engagement before God to do this, otherwise the Te Deum we have sung, the addresses of thankfulness we have signed, are a farce and a mockery. "We have now an opportunity to show what the free principle can do, and if we carry it out nobly we shall be a beacon for Christendom. Let us show what a free hierarchy can do without pension from the state, without endowed property, without tithes or rates, or one coercive payment from friend or foe. Let us prove and show that Christ's Church can flourish on its own strength and the love of its children, and their free-will offerings. If you carry this out I can pro- mise you a reign of Catholic glory to which the medi- aeval splendours were as nothing. Glorious as are the mighty fabrics they raised, they are often connected with men and times which detract from the fairness of the architecture, and tarnish the gilding of the sanc- tuary ; but if the Church, under the difficulties of such systems, could do so much, what cannot she perform when relieved from these bonds ? What ought men not to expect under a free system and external peace ? and if we live as we ought, as Catholics to serve God, nothing is impossible to achieve. I fear not our enemies ; I fear not our calumniators ; I fear not the tyranny of state measures. I have but one fear ; that A. WELBY PUGIN. 417 is, I fear ourselves, I fear we have been so long slum- bering on under our imperfect ecclesiastical rules, that now the whole is come in all its fulness, we shall not duly appreciate the blessing, and respond to our altered circumstances. We are comparatively a small body ; but we could spare many that bear our name, and yet be strengthened in our cause. * I would we were quit of all those men, who, while retaining the name of Catholic, could betray the Church to state tyranny. I would we were quit of all those men, who, retaining the name of Catholic, afflict the pastors, and scandalise the faithful, by for- saking the holy sacraments of the Church. I would we were quit of all those men, who, while retaining the name of Catholic, exhibit no realization of its prin- ciples in their lives, but squander their revenues in every species of worldly vanity and folly, neglecting the Church and its ministers, and abandoning the temple of God to decay. I would we were quit of all those indifferent men, bearing the name of Catholic, who are almost too apathetic to try and save their own souls, and who never aid or contribute in any good work whatever ; and I would we were quit of all men who degrade religion by dressing it up in Pagan and paltry externals, and who import the worst style of the most corrupt period of continental ecclesiology into a land full of the purest Catholic traditions. For all these are only drags on the wheel of the revival of faith and Catholic art and practices ; and I believe, if we had only true zealous men left, like Gideons three 2 E 418 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF hundred lappers up of water, we should be in a better position to resist the Midianites. But this cannot be. We must trust in the arm of Almighty God to support us, and animate all with a good spirit. If ever there was a time or occasion when we might hope for unity in the Catholic body, this is one. If there could be imagined a moving cause so powerful as to break up local prejudices, party feelings, and unworthy division, it is this restoration of ecclesiastical government, and gathering our shattered and separated fragments into a real Church. If there ever was a magnetic power to draw gold from misers, to make niggards liberal, and sluggards active, it is now. If ever there was an event which was calculated to promote unity of action and unity of soul, to make men confess their past sins, and to make good resolutions for the future, to make them liberal to religion, and devout and thankful to God, animating them with a true spirit of the faith they profess, and lead them to discard for ever Pa- ganism and its wretched incongruities, and to labour with heart and soul for the revival of the true archi- tecture created by the Christian religion itself, it is the foundation of this English hierarchy which should be our delight and our glory, and which should now become one of the earnest objects of our lives and actions to support and maintain in all freedom, honour, and integrity, in scecula sceculorum. Amen.' A. WELBY PUGIN. 419 CHAPTER III. Pugin's character as exhibited in his Writings — His originality — His thoroughness — His honesty of purpose — His strong love of the national character — His habits of activity — Pugin's incomplete and unpublished Work, entitled 1 An Apology for the Separated Church of England since the Reign of Henry VIII.,' showing the general decay of the Ecclesiastical spirit and the corruptions of the Fifteenth Century — The system of endowments and large monastic possessions, and their abuses considered — The Work interrupted by Death — Conclusion. Character and Constitution of Pugin s mind. After having traced the development of his prin- ciples in his writings, and marked the mental power he displayed in defence of the Gothic revival and of his opinions on ecclesiastical history and on matters of Church government, it may not now perhaps be altoge- ther out of place briefly to inquire into the constitution of Pugin's mind, and examine those essential qualities which have raised him above the ordinary level of mankind. Genius, it must be remembered, has the peculiar power of bestowing vividness and variety on intellectual energy, and it freely conferred this gift on Pugin. His mind seemed to give out light. It brightened what it touched, and brought out the secret strength, the covert allusion, or the more recondite mean- 2 e 2 420 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF ing of the subject of its contemplation. His creative imagination was rapid and brilliant in its conceptions. The question, however, at once arises, how came it to pass that his vast conceptions in art have realized such comparatively feeble results ? Had the great medieval- ist, indeed, sufficient grasp of mind to carry into exe- cution the magnificence of his ideas ? Was boldness as well as loftiness a quality of his mind ? Or was opportunity as Pagin himself believed, and often asserted, alone wanting for the perfect realization of his designs ? It appears, indeed, probable that the exe- cutive faculty, from want of the opportunity and exercise it so much needed, was somewhat weakened ; whilst the energizing power was too exclusively ab- sorbed by the imaginative faculty, which usurped the empire of the mind and luxuriated in conceptions, never destined to be realized. If we reflect on the difficulties he had to encounter in breaking up single-handed the thraldom of a corrupt taste, and in reviving an almost defunct style of archi- tecture, if we note the marvellous changes which have mainly resulted from the labours of his life, we must own that no man could have accomplished so vast a work, unless he possessed great originating power, as well as an inflexibility of purpose, and an enthusiatic love for his art. Pugin was no mere antiquarian, no narrow-minded bigot, as many have pictured him, wedded to a useless and impracticable theory 5 he was alive and alert to the necessities of the day and to the requirements of his position. He was ready to adopt A. WELBY PUGIN. 421 and to assimilate whatever was sound in practice, though it were as new as yesterday, and all the mecha- nical contrivances of modern science were welcome to him as conducive to the greater perfection of his pro gressive art. With all the enthusiasm of his nature, and wonted energy of mind, Pugin threw himself into the revival movement, which in feebler hands had lingered so long with no positive results, and at once by the clearness of his principles and by his power in bringing them to bear, he took the lead in the movement. Had he chosen to abate one jot or tittle of his severe style in favour of foreign adaptations, had he con- descended to follow a vicious fashion, he would not only have remained the master of the position and have entered upon a fine field for the exercise of his splendid talents, but have easily carried off from more compliant competitors the great national prizes which immortalize a name. But his stubborn honesty of mind was proof against the temptation. Eooted in his principles he remained immoveable like a rock, and like a rock he was left stranded by the ebbing waves of the receding tide of fashion. Such stern adherence to principle is rather out of date, and looks old- fashioned, but it well became the antique grandeur of Pugin's mind, and will be held in honour when vain applause, or the idle fame of meaner minds is forgotten. If then we look in vain for the grand results in stone of the magnificent ideas and theories propounded in his writings, we shall know the reason of our dis- appointment. At the time, and under the disabling 422 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF circumstances in which he worked, — the narrow means, — the absurd demands which he had, with the patience of Job, to contend against, — it is perfectly marvellous that he was able to effect so much, and proves how, under favourable conditions, his buildings would have corresponded in a greater degree to his vast and glorious conceptions. In his own graphic manner he describes the sad condition to which his buildings were reduced. 6 1 can truly say,' he observes, 'that I have been compelled to commit suicide with every building in which I have been engaged, and I have good proof that they are but little better than ghosts of what they were designed ; indeed, had I not been permitted by the providence of God to have raised the church at St. Augustine's, I must have appeared as a man whose principles and works were strangely at variance.' Solid, thorough, and substantial as if it were hewn out of the live rock, St. Augustine's answers admirably the purpose for which it was built. The weather-beaten chapel blessing the sea, which Pugin loved so well, and the sailor whose munificent patron he ever was, — the Gothic-house with its unyielding stubborn tower, enclosed by the sharp defiant wall and obstinate gates, coped by heavy coverlids — will last as long as the rock on which it stands shall resist the ever encroaching wave. In building St. Augustine's Pugin erected his monument and wrote his epitaph — i Thorough/ The following lines I have somewhere met with, may perhaps be inserted here : — A. WELBY PUGIN. 423 ST. AUGUSTINE'S BY NIGHT. Tower and temple — built not in a day And built to fall, but when the sea-rocks fall, With jealous ivy on the garden wall To bar the envious outer world away, And turret-flag high o'er the dashing spray. Music of waters — beauty of the night — Here Art and Nature in one work unite, Bear the white cliff, and crown the rock-hewn way. If again we contemplate the mental energy exhi- bited by Pugin in his literary productions, we shall still find the same originality of view, the same vigour of thought and fancy as delighted us in his artistic conceptions. If a certain immaturity in judgment be sometimes apparent in the working out of his conclu- sions, it is mainly owing to the rapidity of his view, to his keenness in seizing upon the salient point of an argument, or the vital principle of a theory. The scaffolding of his argumentation is perfect, but the superstructure is sometimes top-heavy, since the height to which it was carried was often greater than the breadth of the base warranted. With the reality of purpose and honesty which was habitual to him, Pugin never attempted to conceal or defend an error, but at once went to work, not so much to reconstruct the principle of his argument as to widen the ground on which his operations were based. A signal instance of this habit occurs in the 'Contrasts,' and is still more apparent in the outlines and first for eshado wings of a work which Pugin projected on the English schism, and which it will perhaps be interesting to 424 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF examine more closely in the course of this chapter. In the first edition of ' Contrasts ' the author, namely, argues, that the decline of Gothic architecture was con- sequent on the rise of Protestantism ; the retort was ob- vious, if the argument be true, how came it then to pass that in countries exclusively Catholic the degradation of art was, if possible, even greater than in England ? Pugin's argument was correct as far as it went, and in a certain sense, but to include the sweeping conse- quences, which were involved in the question of the decay of the true principles of art, a greater argu- mentative breadth of base was needed. In the second edition of 'Contrasts' Pugin, in his straightforward manner, acknowledged that he had taken too narrow a stand-point in assigning Protestant ascendancy as the primary cause of the overthrow of Christian art, since it was in itself but an effect of those Pagan principles, which at the revival of letters in the 16th century, overran Europe, and sowed corruption in literature, art, and manners. Perhaps, however, the most marked attribute in Pugin's character was reverence. It was this quality which inspired him with so deep an affection for all that was consecrated by time, or made sacred by usage. In religion it increased the humility of his faith, it chastened in art the fervour of his imagina- tion ; and in letters it sobered the speculations of an inquisitive mind. The destructions of the sacrilegious Iconoclast, and the innovations of modern taste, so jarred against this primary principle of his nature, A. WELBY PUG IN. 425 that he could scarcely restrain his indignation within the bounds of reason. Reverence still further de- veloped another characteristic tendency in the consti- tution of Pugin's mind — love for symbolism. Nature for him was full of symbolic revelations : in the out- spread wings of the bird, in the bending branches of the tree, he beheld the form of the cross ; in the forest with its over-arching tops and clustering leaves, he discovered the prototype of the Gothic cathedral. The sublime symbolism of the Catholic Church in architecture and ritual first appealed to his imagination in favour of Catholicity, and at last his love for symbolism found its full satisfaction in the ancient religion, where his work was indeed worship, his buildings a perpetual prayer, There were no qualities more peculiar to Pugin than reality, thorough- ness of purpose, outspoken courage. He never flinched from a principle, or shrank from a conclusion. His home -life was in keeping with his public character ; he hated dissimulation or pretence in every shape. The idleness and hollow unrealities of conventional life were abhorrent to his nature. Kind, affectionate, gentle, he yet never forgot the duties of discipline or the rights of authority. And none knew better than he how, on every occasion, to enforce the respect which was his due. In temperament sanguine and eager, active in habit, in conversation gay and agreeable, Pugin was never for an instant idle; not a moment of time escaped him. He threw his heart into the hour as it passed, 426 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF and into the present work. He lived out his da} r s. The close of the evening left him where the sunrise had found him, and the toil of the livelong day made him only the more cheerful in temper, the brighter in mind. Labour refreshed his intellect, and made it the more prolific, like the rain does the thirsty earth after the noon-tide heats. But Pugin was no mere hewer of wood or drawer of water, no mere believer in the omnipotence of hard work. He did not forget that the depth of wisdom lies in meditation, and that creative power springs from the unfettered imagina- tion. It was asserted, indeed, by many who did not know him, that he was unfit for the work of his own day, because he lived only in the past, and imagined impossible things for the future. They affected to account him, in sooth, as a mere visionary enthusiast, and nothing more, to be pitied and passed over by the common sense of this wise generation to which he did not belong. Enthusiastic indeed he was, but enthusiasm gave him power to work as no man single-handed ever worked before. His intense labour was all given to his own day. In meditating on the glories of the past, he found strength and courage to sustain him in the thankless task of working for the good of his own time and country. Genius, in fine, is erratic, but so long as it does not forfeit its high calling, the errors of genius are easily overlooked, and few men has it led into lesser errors than Augustus Welby Pugin. The faults of his life, though they showed him indeed to be A. WELBY PUGIN. 427 very human, were but the weaknesses of poor over- burdened humanity ; and as a devoted son of the Catho- lic Church, he found in the constant and never-failing practices of religion, support, strength, and solace in his day of trial. On contemplating such a man as Pugin, we feel with Wordsworth — ' That not in entire forgetfulness, And not in utter nakedness, But trailing clouds of glory do we come From God who is our home.' All that now remains to do in this last chapter on the writings and character of Welby Pugin is, if possible, to discover the last impressions left on his mind, and to trace in his scattered literary remains the latest energies of his active intellect, before it was clouded by the direst physical calamity which God permits to befal mankind. In the last great work which Pugin lived to com- plete, the following note occurs in reference to an intended publication on the English schism : — ' 1 trust to be able before long to put forth an impartial statement relative to the destruction of Catholic edi- fices and ornaments, consequent on the change of religion in England. ' After the most patient investigation I have been compelled to adopt the conclusion that the most fear- ful acts of spoliation were committed by men who had not only been educated in the ancient faith, but who were contented externally to profess its doctrines. I 428 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF had originally fallen into popular errors on these matters in some of my early publications ; and it is but an act of justice to affix the odium of the sacrilege on those who were really guilty. I feel quite satisfied that one of the most urgent wants of the time is a real statement of the occurrences connected with the establishment of Protestantism and the loss of the ancient faith 5 of course I have to treat the subject in an architectural view, but still I trust to bring forward many facts that may lead to a better understanding and more charity on both sides, for we may all ex- claim, " Patres nostri peccaverunt et non sunt et nos iniquitates eorum portavimus." ' This urgent want of the time Pugin intended to meet by his projected work, which was to have been an historical investigation into the causes that led to the Reformation, and an impartial consideration of the state of Catholicism in the century prior to that event. The ground he intended to occupy was comparatively new, or, rather, it wxmld be more correct to say, the novelty lay in his manner of treating this debatable border-line between media3val and modern times — this battle-field of rival Churches. The work, to judge from the brief outlines and sketches left, was no polemical work ; it was no defence against the hasty and inconsiderate charge brought by ignorance or by prejudice against the Catholic Church ; it was rather a confession of guilt, an acknowledgment that the general decay of the ecclesiastical spirit throughout Christendom, the loss of piety among the people, the A. WELBY PUGIN. 429 increase of avarice and luxury among a degenerate clergy, the corruption and nepotism in the higher rulers of the Church were the chief contributing causes to the Reformation. The weight of the crimes of the preceding century broke the back of the old politico-religious system of Europe, which had so long and so nobly supported the edifice of society ; and in its fall the unity of Christendom was broken, and the minds of men received a shock from which they have not yet recovered. Pugin was candid, I will not say to a fault, but to the extremest limit of candour. The ardent admirer of mediaeval times had on the sudden discovered that the close of the middle ages was no period of glory of which a Catholic could well be proud, and he was forced, as it were, by the revulsion of feeling to make this public avowal. Pugin was not only in the habit of rushing to ex- tremes, but he often fancied that what was new to him- self was unknown to all the world. This assumption sometimes gave a tone of arrogance to his censures, and led him to condemn in others a line of conduct which was often the result of prudence, and not, as he supposed, the mere effect of ignorance. It is, however, but too true that Catholics, from the necessity of defending themselves against unscrupulous attacks, have been too much in the habit of glossing over errors and evading difficulties. Polemics is the ruin of historical investigation. The period just antece- dent to the Reformation, has yet to be submitted to the criticism of the candid historian. Pugin was in 430 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF mairy respects well suited to the task he had imposed upon himself. His judgment would have ripened under the toil of long and patient research. His crude theories, his dubious or extreme views would have been modified and corrected long before he had arrived at the conclusion of his projected work; whilst his truthfulness, which was beyond question, would have won for him the popular ear. As an attempt to account for the primary causes of the defection of so large a portion of Europe from the Eoman Catholic Church, and as a candid acknowledg- ment of the corruptions which had gradually under- mined the foundations of the faith, Pugin's projected work might be fitly termed an apology for the sepa- rated Church of England. In this sense it is true that ' the glorious men the Church of England continued to produce in evil times ' were not so guilty of the separation as those men who by their laxity of faith and worldly-mindedness brought about the revolt from Rome. The following is a full copy of the proposed title page of the book. ' Preparing for publication in parts at intervals, richly illustrated, An Apology for the separated Church of England since the reign of the Eighth Henry. Written with every feeling of Christian charity for her children, and honour of the glorious men she continued to produce in evil times. By A. Welby Pugin. Many years a Catholic-minded son of the Anglican Church, and still an affectionate and loving brother and servant of the true sons of England's Church.' A. WELBY PUGIN. 431 In consequence of the religious commotion of the times the work, by the advice of the author's eccle- siastical superiors, was delayed; he was admonished indeed ' not to go on with his promised publication without a sound, theological adviser, nor before he had cleared up the objections and the scandal which was feared to have resulted from his former work on the Hierarchy — a work so taken up by the hostile papers, and by whom certainly it was hoped Pugin could not wish to be considered as a friend.' 'Might I suggest,' — writes another ecclesiastical personage, the authority of whose name and position gave him a right to advise, — ' Might I suggest, what possibly is already in your own mind, the caution of having your book on the Schism looked over by some grave divine before publishing it.' The work was finally interrupted by the death of the author. From the fragmentary headings and brief outline of his subject, and the scattered and unconnected sheets he has left, it is only possible to gather indications of the line of argument adopted by the writer, and of mere summaries of the results of his historical investigations. These last relics from his hand are nevertheless in- structive and interesting, not only because they throw light upon his character, but because they are sus- ceptible on many points of giving an explanation of much which has been made the groundwork of a charge against him of defection from the Church of Kome. By connecting the stray passages and by preserving 432 WHITINGS AND CHARACTER OF the brief outline, or rather, headings which Pugin wrote for his guidance, it will be possible to gain an idea, at least, of the nature of the proposed work as a contribu- tion to ecclesiastical history. 'May God in his mercy,' the author commences, ' bless the work and in- crease the growing charity among men who see truth and real history, and begin to throw off unfounded prejudices on both sides and see truth face to face.' After this appeal against unfounded prejudices the author enters into the consideration of the English Church in the simplicity of Saxon times, so distin- guished for clearness of devotion, purity of manners, and unwavering faith. He then enlarges on the primi- tive rites, and on the style, plan, and arrangement of churches and altars. The form of vestments and or- naments were to have been reproduced in numerous and correct illustrations as interesting to the antiqua- rian as to the churchman. The next subject to be treated at large was the common ecclesiastical founda- tions and the possessions of the great monasteries. The author undertakes to prove that great ecclesiastical foundations were well suited to the wants of those ages and were then a great blessing, but he does not accept church endowment as a principle to be invariably ob- served ; on the contrary, as will be shown later on, he is an unequivocal opponent to endowments in the present day, and considers the accumulated wealth and magnificence of the church at the close of the middle ages, to have been not only the proximate cause of the encroaching tyranny and usurpation of the state, A. WELBY PUGIN. 433 but also the fruitful source of the vices of the ecclesi- tical rulers. In considering the period which immediately pre- ceded the Reformation, the author points out the general decay of the ecclesiastical spirit and the spread of immorality and infidelity among the ecclesiastics of the fifteenth century. ' Their pride, luxury, and temporal pursuits had raised throughout Christendom a general disgust against Churchmen, and had filled the minds of men with doubts and dismay.' When the author reflects on the religious indifference and corruptions of Italy, and on the commotion which the principles of Luther had awakened among the more thoughtful and religious-minded people of Germany, he cannot but regard the conduct of Leo X., in placing himself at the head of the revived Paganism, as most injurious to the true interests of the Church, and as an evidence of his insensibility to the clanger which threatened the faith of Christendom. The mind of the sovereign Pontiff, preoccupied with ambitious projects and worldly pursuits, was blind to the religious neces- sities of the time and forgetful of the more sacred duties of his high calling, whilst ' the cardinals of the Roman Court,' are described by the author, as men 6 puffed up with ostentation and human pride, and many of them as disgraced by covetousness and every degenerate vice,' whose time and thoughts were exclu- sively devoted to the patronage of the Classic revival in arts and letters. The author then considers the condition of France under what he terms its Pagan 2 v 434 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF monarch, Francis L, and describes the state of the old religion in England under Henry VIII., and en- deavours to show that the chief cause of its decay arose from the lamentable loss of discipline in the clergy, and from the extreme ignorance into which the people had been allowed to sink. In consequence of this deplorable state of things ' true religion was often replaced by miserable superstition ' which soon destroyed the vital energy and holiness of faith. He next proceeds to consider the dreadful abuses con- nected with chantry chapels and the evils attendant on their foundation, and treats generally on the misap- plication of the great Church endowments, but shows that these abuses were not peculiar to England, but extended throughout Christendom, about the close of the middle ages, when 4 the fine old apostolic spirit of serving God and him only, was changed into reliance on kings and emperors and on mere human aid.' The author then purposed to give a full and minute description of these abuses in the several countries of Europe. The state of the great monastic houses was next to be examined, and the decay of religious zeal was found to have paved the way for the foot of the intruder and to have opened the door to Cardinal "Wolsey, who by his subservience to the Crown, be- came the herald of the Reformation, and by his rapa- city in the suppression of the monasteries, antici- pated in some measure its work of spoliation and sacrilege. The author then insists upon regarding the union of A. WELBY PUGIN. 435 Church and State, or rather the increasing tyranny of the State which crushed the liberty of the ChurCh, as the most fruitful cause of the corruption and weak- ness of faith, which in the various countries of Europe led to the overthrow of religion. He shows that the spoliation and destruction of sacred things in Eng- land was carried on, not by Protestants, but by men professing the Catholic religion and conforming to its rites, by ecclesiastics and dignitaries of the Church, who from cowardice or from the desire of preserving their rich livings, were only too eager to comply with the encroaching demands and usurpa- tions of the State. The rights of the Church were surrendered, monasteries suppressed, and even the supremacy of the Pope impugned by men who were the ordained ministers of God, and the corrupt ser- vants of his Church. 6 All this ruin,' the writer elsewhere remarks, 'was brought about by the old ecclesiastical authorities, be- fore a single professed Protestant appeared on the scene. In many dioceses, the rector, vicar, or his curate was compelled to read to the people four times in the year a pastoral, dictated by the bishop, in which the authority of the Holy See was denounced in language scarcely less revolting, gross, insolent, and profane, than that which has been so profusely used in the recent Protestant demonstrations ; and this poison was infused into the minds of the people by the divinely appointed channels of truth, their own clergy, and soon the whole country presented a fearful scene of 2 f 2 436 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF destruction, carried on in the name of the old religion ; and it is a most humiliating fact that the greatest de- struction of glorious churches, religious houses, shrines, and sacred places, was accomplished by men who still assisted at the holy sacrifice of the Mass and conformed to all the essential practices of the ancient religion. The great spoiler of Lincoln's glorious church was not a Protestant fanatic, but Dr. Heneage, the Catholic archdeacon ; and it was he who demolished the shrine of St. Hugh, and was, as Willis describes, very for- ward in defacing shrines, and delivering up the trea- sure of the Church into the king's hands ! The shrine of St. Thomas was plundered, and his holy relics burnt in the cathedral-yard, while the canons sang the office and Mass in the choir. The chaplains of the chapel of old London Bridge, dedicated in honour of the same saint, broke their common seal, and petitioned for a new patron, and every Missal, gradual, anti- phonal, office, or choir-book, used in England at that period, has the name of every Pope or St. Thomas either erased or defaced by ink; and this by the hands of the priests and clergy, who read and sang, and celebrated from them in this mutilated state. Lead was stript off churches, noble pillars and arches prostrated, the tombs of venerable dead destroyed by men who concluded the despatches of their destructions to Cromwell, with hopes that the Holy Trinity and our Lady would have him in their keeping. The lands belonging to religious houses were partly divided among courtiers who professed the old religion, A. WELBY PUGIN. 437 andthe very suppression of monasteries was carried on in a manner secundum regulum : the greater part of the monks resigned and were pensioned or secularized ; a few resisted and were martyred. But many of the abbots became secular dignitaries, and as was the case at Westminster and Peterburgh, bishops of their old abbatial churches created into sees by royal authority, and conformed to all the changes enacted by the State. As long as the ordinary ceremonial of the Church re- mained unaltered, and Mass was celebrated, the people, with some few exceptions, remained passive spectators of these changes. But when the innovations and de- structions became apparent, there was a succession of formidable, though unsuccessful risings, in defence of the old religion. And again, in the succeeding reign of Edward the Sixth, there were several insurrections on the same ground, to quell which, and to force the new forms on the people, the Protector had recourse to the assistance of a numerous body of foreign mer- cenaries. I merely mention these facts to show the utter falsity of the prevailing idea that the change of religion in England was a national movement, or that it was even founded on doctrinal differences. It was a pure question of ecclesiastical power, ceded to the king by the hierarchy, and all subsequent events hang on this act. 4 The people were very much better than their clergy, and had it not been that the latter were so fettered and bound by the State power as to act like machines in the hands of the civil magistrate, the 438 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF English nation never would have submitted to these alterations in divine service and articles of faith. But it is very easy to conceive what difficulties attended even a faithful people when betrayed by their own clergy, and is a most striking example of the necessity of free action for the ecclesiastical powers, for without it a Catholic hierarchy itself offers no security to the faithful, as the sad case of England's schism fully shows.' The period filled by the reigns of Henry VIII., Edward VI., Mary, and Elizabeth, the author intended to consider in detail, and was to have enriched his pages with copious illustrations. Of the purport of the second part of his intended volume, he has only given the following brief sketch. ' The next part/ he says, ' is dedicated to the history of the Church in England from Elizabeth to our time, showing that, on the whole, our separation as a nation from the com- munion of so-called Catholic countries, in the degraded state of the continental countries and Churches in the sixteenth, seventeenth, and eighteenth centuries, has been a great blessing. We have, by the mercy of God, preserved our liberties, and ancient legal constitutions, and the great fundamental Christian doctrines ; while continental revolutions, atheism and infidelity had, at last, closed every church on the Continent, and in France even exposed for worship a prostitute on the altar of her largest cathedral. It was impossible for England, till the present time, to hold any sort of unity with so-called Catholic countries, all under the severest A. WELBY PUGIN. 439 tyranny, and the Catholic religion little more than a mere engine of the State, to control the people and hold them in a state of ignorance and bigotry, while all free discussion and learning was suspended. But now, thank God, this state of things has passed away ; religion is free in most countries ; disconnected from the State it will live by the reasonable faith of men who study, and believe. Search the Holy Scriptures under holy guidance and tradition, and see those won- derful perfections and doctrines restored in the revival of ancient rites free from any superstitious abuses, and restored to their original intention and purity. Great reformers are coming everywhere. That fine work of the Yer Eongeur alone is sufficient to show the decay of Catholic faith and discipline, and the loss of all its influence on men, mis-called Catholics, for the last three centuries, and its glorious renovation by English- men, who, by acting up to the principles denied at the Reformation, and providentially preserved hence, to have led to assist in the restoration of pious and glorious Catholic principles and art.' By his statement, that the separation of England as a nation from the continental countries and churches, has been a great blessing, Puginin nowise meant that her fall from Catholic unity was a blessing, but simply that schism was preferable to infidelity and atheism. The statement as to the comparative benefit which England derived by her separation from continental countries, is as a matter of fact open to this grave objection, that the infidelity common to Europe in the eighteenth 440 WHITINGS AND CHARACTER OF century, was in England superadded to a chronic state of schism 5 and when Pugin, perhaps in his eager desire to palliate the defection of his country from Catholic unity, charges the whole of the Continent during three centuries with guilt greater than heresy, he falls into a gross historical error, and advances facts which, on maturer consideration and research, he would have been totally unable to have substantiated. His error was not in upholding false principles but in a mistaken judgment as to matters of fact. The fol- lowing letter which he received from a valued and learned friend on the publication of his pamphlet on the Hierarchy, and when he was engaged in preparing his history of the English schism, w T as not lost on Pugin, who was never slow in taking advice, and no doubt, on consideration, he would have modified or corrected many of the dubious statements and opinions he seemed to advance in his proposed work. * However, my dear friend, bear these things with equanimity and offer them to God, for the great cause you uphold. Also we must remember the old adage, "fas est ab lioste doceri" and cer- tainly it is necessary for a person like yourself, who advocate a very grand and important work, to study extreme accuracy of ex- pression. Of course you admit as fully as himself, that neither Cranmer nor old Harry were Catholic after the year 1532, i. e. from the moment they renounced the supremacy of St. Peter's see. Of course after that fatal moment they became pestilent schis- maticks, and all their sacrifices and sacraments, though far from null, were nevertheless so many sacrileges : as holy Church sings of the B. Eucharist " mors est malis, vita bonis." If you read over the eleventh of Father Newman's able Lectures on Anglican Diffi- culties, you will find that he takes precisely the very line you A. WELBY PUGIN. 441 adopted in your address. I advise you to refer to it, and write again another letter making citations from it in order to strengthen your own very just and sensible view of the Anglican Church ; and you may depend upon it a few sentences from Newman would have a very trancliant effect in your favour. See Lecture xi., p. 387, el passim. But in doing this, my dear friend, take care you set your- self right as to the wcm-catholicity of Cranmer and old Harry from the moment they departed from their communion with the divine centre of unity. Dr. is quite sound as to what he says on that head ; of course they were not Catholic, no more Catholic than Blanco White or Father Gavazzi or poor . Cranmer was a bishop, but not a Catholic one, when he left the unity of the Church ; he is a bishop now in hell, and it will increase his tor- ment, while God is God. I perfectly understood your address in this sense from the first ; all you meant to insist on was the previous Catholicity of the pseudo-Eeformers, not to uphold their subsequent Catholicity ; but there is no harm in setting this still more clearly before the public, and if you do it in a dignified, temperate, chari- table reply to , you will gain great kvSoq as we used to say in our Greek slang at Cambridge. And be sure, my dear friend, to make a strong profession of faith in the all-important principle of the supremacy of the Holy See. Every hour I live I grow more and more devoted to that great principle : it is the very life-blood of the Catholic system, and Catholic life is vigorous in proportion as this blood circulates without impediment. I owe a great debt of gratitude on this head to that admirable treatise of the see of St. Peter by Mr. Allies. It has made my mind so clear upon it. Let us show that we are the Catholics par excellence, and that it is on that ground that we are plain chant men, and Christian artists' The arguments which Pugin in those writings advanced against the union of Church and State it would be difficult to gainsay. The question as to the relationship of the Church to the State has much ad- vanced since his time. Everywhere at the present 442 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF day the State is found arrayed in hostility against ecclesiastical rights and liberties. Kings are no longer nursing fathers of the Church. Catholic nations in their corporate capacity are throwing off the yoke of Chris- tianity, and proclaiming aloud the supremacy of the popular will in Church as well as in State. The Church, henceforth, is at best but to occupy a subordinate posi- tion, or to become, according to the favourite theory of revolutionary politicians, a mere department of the State. Nowhere, on the other hand, is the progress of religion greater than in those lands where, un- trammeled by State patronage, it enjoys perfect free- dom of action. The question then is how to reconcile modern necessity with the ancient practice. It is no wisdom to retain an obsolete theory, sound only when the State was Christian, or obedient to the principles of religion. The free Church in the free State, which Mon- talembert desiderates, could only be obtained, in the present condition of society, by a separation of Church and State. The Church itself must choose the lesser of two evils, and divorced from the State which, everywhere to-day upholds un-Christian principles, leave it to the reprobation of its own choosing. How by advocating in the present century this necessity Pugin could justly lay himself open to the charge of advancing un-Catholic views, or of betraying symptoms of incipient heresy, it is hard to perceive. Again, it must be remembered that in the sketch which he gives of the second part of his projected work on Anglicanism, some untenable arguments are broached, A. WELBY PUGIN. 443 some statements advanced which in the course of his investigations, or on reflection, would have been altered or modified. In the foregoing pages I have shown that it was a characteristic of Pugin's mind, if not to leap to conclusions, at least in the outset to state matters broadly which in the progress of his labours he would soften down or more accurately define. His meaning, therefore, when, as in the above sketch, it is open to a dubious interpretation, must in a spirit of fairness be judged by the principles upheld so stre- nuously in his completed works, which for this purpose have been fully analysed in these pages as Pugin's best justification and defence. Again, objections have been started to Pugin's views on the subject of endowments, and to his advocacy of the voluntary system ; but one cannot help acknow- ledging the substantial strength of his facts, and the wisdom of his deductions on this much disputed ques- tion. He had intended to devote a considerable portion of his projected work to the proof of what he elsewhere briefly states as his conviction, that the ac- cumulation of vast ecclesiastical properties is a great evil, and that the never-failing endowment of the Church is in the succession of baptized faithful men, filled with the spirit of religion, and willing to labour like men for its support and solemn maintenance. ' This,' he continues, and we will give the passage at length, ' is an inexhaustible treasure which no Govern- ment can sequester, no law reach, no tyranny im- pair; this is an apostolical endowment, and while 444 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF the clergy are faithful to the people and the people to the clergy, which is a corresponding natural con- sequence, she needs no other. "Wherever, on the other hand, a richly endowed clergy exist they are no longer beloved by the people ; and it is to this very cause that we may attribute the defection from the faith of so many countries in the 16th century. The eccle- siastics had become the temporal rulers and tax- receivers instead of their fathers and shepherds. Even here in England, Catholic England, Merrye England, in Richard the Second's reign, sixty thousand men were in arms to exterminate the nobles and higher order of clergy : the unfortunate and pious archbishop, Simon Sudbury, they succeeded in beheading ; and had their whole plot been completed, the friars alone would have been spared in the massacre, and that, most probably, on account of their wearing a poor habit, and mingling and ministering to the lower class. When the clergy of a country is once placed above the need of the people's aid and offering, it is a state of things fraught w T ith danger to both. There is a spirit of reciprocity under the old apostolic system that is a mutual protection, and that once gone, the wealth and endowment becomes a curse and a snare. We read an account of the death of a holy Catholic bishop, who addressed the surrounding clergy with these memorable words : — " I die, as becomes a bishop of God's Church, without money and without debts." Oh ! if all the ancient bishops would have said the same, how many souls would have escaped the penalty of their avarice ! A. WELBY PUGIN. 445 Political economists and ministers of state cannot reach the true church revenues with their artillery; the Catholic faith and practice in its purity is unas- sailable with the longest range they possess. It is only when it becomes corrupt that it falls into their clutches, but, by the blessing of God, this shall not be : with so many warnings of the past, for the future we shall avoid the old rocks of temporal wealth and en- dowments, which have been the cause of ruin, and scandal, and corruption in former ages. 6 The closer we examine the practical result of all these large endowments, the more we shall be con- vinced that they were attended with far more evil than good to the foundations which possessed them. The riches of the great churches have rendered them, in all ages, objects of cupidity to the temporal rulers, who, for the sake of their revenues, deprived the dio- ceses of their spiritual rulers, and kept the appoint- ments open for years, to enable them to squander the revenues on their own luxury and extravagance ; and all history will show that superior piety, and learning, and ecclesiastical discipline, were by no means a certain recommendation to the high offices of the Church, connected as they were with great tem- poral wealth and power, and that those who were often selected to fill them were chosen from their dis- tinguished birth, connexions, and the likelihood of a compliance with the royal will, rather than as vigilant pastors and maintainers of ecclesiastical discipline. This, as might be expected, created a class of superior 446 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF clergy odious to the body of the people and unfaithful to their sacred duties, and was the occasion of some of those frightful excesses which were exercised against the episcopal order in English rebellions long before the Reformation. ' The only dependable endowment of the Church is to be found in the zeal and devotion of the fait! if ul. While there is a succession of baptized persons, brought up in the true faith, there must be a succession of funds that cannot fail or be taken away. Moreover, this wealth, continually flowing in to supply the occurring wants of the u Church and its ministers, present no tangible temptations, nor even the possibility of plun- der, which is inseparable from great estates and stand- ing wealth, which have been the occasion of such dreadful sacrilege and abuse in former centuries. There appears to be an internal element of corruption in the possession of great revenues, which causes the decay of that which it is intended to preserve ; and the history of every richly endowed Church presents a most lamentable succession of misapplication of its revenues, revolting abuses, and its final dissolution, for the sake of its very wealth. Moreover, there has been another most fatal result to religion in the irrespon- sible possession of rich endowments, as almost without exception, the duties have been vicariously performed, so that the very revenues have induced the evil of non-residence, while the spiritual consolations have been administered by some poor and often ignorant curate, provided at the lowest salary. A. WELBY PUGIN. 447 * I feel confident that while the true spirit is kept alive among the people, no investment is so certain and secure. Catholics are producers of wealth; be- sides so many men of noble and ancient families who still adhere to the Catholic faith, there are artists, ma- nufacturers, merchants, traders, mechanics, labourers, all not only living but accumulating by their exer- tions ; and is it to be supposed that any of all these classes, if animated by the spirit of their religion, will be not ready to devote a good portion of their tem- poral means to the support of their clergy, and, in- deed, the splendour of religion ? If they do not, then of course they must renounce the faith and cease to require the assistance of priests ; but I maintain that all practical Catholics must, in virtue of their faith, be regular supporters of religion, though certainly up to the present time, either through a false delicacy or some other indefensible reason, this duty of contri- buting has not been sufficiently urged, and I am confident that many are deficient in this important part rather from want of reflection and instruction than good-will. But I do believe that if this duty were properly and forcibly urged by the clergy, that it will be responded to most heartily, and especially as temporal laws are in preparation to deprive the Church of other means of support. ' No human legislation can interfere with the spiritual ties that must exist between the faithful and their clergy, while the latter remain true to their sacred duties and office. As well might an act be 448 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF passed to sever the husband from the wife, the parent from the child, as to disunite a faithful people from an apostolic clergy. As long as they are devoted to a faithful ministration of these sacred duties, and serve God, we have everything to hope and nothing to fear : serving God is the great source of all ecclesiastical strength. It was in that respect so many of the ancient bishops failed : they did not serve God. Was not this acknowledgment wrung from the remorse of an English prelate famous in history, a man who, though a legate and a cardinal, was in reality a greater instrument in producing the English schism than the arch-heretic Cranmer himself ; by his intolerable pride, by his worldly splendour and state, he made the highest ecclesiastical office an occasion of scandal and reproach ; by the vexatious exercise of his legantine power he caused the spiritual authority of the Roman Pontiff to become an odious and intolerable burden ; by dissolving religious houses to found institutions in his own name, he paved the way for the destruction of every great religious establishment; and when dis- graced by that Prince to whom he had sacrificed his life and his office, and abandoned by the world to die, then in anguish of heart, he exclaimed, " Had I served my God as I have served my king, he would not have thus deserted me in my old age." What a dreadful — what a fearful state of soul, for this old man when he felt himself deserted by God ! But his history and his end are but the epitome of a multitude of other celebrated ecclesiastics, who have served the king and A. WELBY PUGIN. 449 been forsaken of God ; it is not only the history of men, but it is the history of the decay of religion itself among many of the most powerful nations of Christen- dom. How very injurious must the rule of such men as Eichelieu, Mazarin, and, to come still later, the infamous Abbe Dubois, wearing the sacred habit of religion, engrossing the most sacred and important offices for the sake of their revenues, and with the externals of ministers of the God of mercy and of justice, ruling with all the diabolical machinery of tyranny and oppression, men who, like Talleyrand, used language only to conceal thought, whose smile was more dreadful than their frown, as disguising intentions the less easy to escape ; the possession of whose very confidence was attended with the peril of life to the unhappy object who held it, w r hose sumptuous banquets and entertainments were of so hollow a character that the gorgeous Gobelin hangings may be said to have only covered the dark ways which not unfrequently conducted the guests to the dungeons of Vincennes, or the torture chamber of the Bastile. Such are the men who have under the name of their ecclesiastical dignity been odious in a free country; and what is most unfortunate, while there were so many truly saintly cardinals who lived in comparative retirement, and died in the faithful discharge of their sacred duties, scarcely known to the pages of history, the most famous men of the order are often its dis- grace. St. Carlo Borromeo, of Milan, is indeed an exception : his virtues and his love commanded the ad- 2 G 450 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF miration and respect of all classes of men 5 but he was detached from all temporal considerations, and we may indeed say he served his God' The essential purport of ' An Apology for the Sepa- rated Church of England ' is no justification of schism, but only an additional plea on behalf of those whom the author was in the habit of terming his separated brethren, founded on the fact which Pugin wished to enforce, that the base compliance of the old Catholic hierarchy itself was the first cause which brought the English Church under the bondage of the State, and that they should be regarded by us rather as victims of Catholic degeneracy than the consequence of Pro- testant error. 'It is not for those,' as he has ex- pressed it before, i who have gained the ship of Peter, and ride securely in the storm, to mock the unwearied efforts of those good and earnest souls w 7 ho yet man the shattered bark of England's Church, brought among Protestant shoals by its old Catholic commanders, and who still, amid mutiny and oppression, yet labour to guide her to a haven of safety : and I will say that, battered as is that old hull, it is a great breakw T ater between the raging waves of infidelity and Catholic truth in this land ; that it has held so long together, under so manj^ disadvantages and difficulties, must be a work of Divine Providence for some great end which remains to be developed. It is quite true that within her pale -are arrayed the greatest opponents against whom we have to contend ; that her pulpits are often prostituted to the unwearied repetition of the grossest A. WELBY PUGIN. 451 calumnies against the Catholic faith; but these sad anomalies are not peculiar to this age ; they have existed in the Church of England ever since its separation from the communion of the Holy See. It contains contend- ing elements of good and evil, of Catholic faith and Protestant error that were generated at the schism and which must go on till one or the other is triumph- ant. Either the Catholic element will prevail, and the body of the Church return to its mother ; or, which is almost too sad to imagine, the Protestant element will expel all Catholic ritual, rubric, and practices, from her ordinals, drive from her pale every faithful child, and then what remains will collapse, like an ex- pended balloon, and go out with a stench. But we will hope for better things ; and, after all, the present state of affairs is certainly not worse, if not a great deal better than they were in the sixteenth century. At that period, as I have shown, the old priests, about whose orders there is not a shadow of doubt, were actually engaged in all the measures of the State, and in the destruction of our most glorious monuments and most sacred shrines. The four most Puritan bishops of Edward the Sixth's reign had all been superiors of monastic establishments, and had broken every vow they had ever made. These old clergy were married in violation of their solemn engagements ; their suc- cessors never entered into them, and consequently are free from the scandal. The great churches are no longer mutilated, but everywhere restored and pro- tected : surely, on the whole, the Church of England 2 g 2 452 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF under Queen Victoria is a great advance on the Church of England under Edward the Sixth; and, if the truth be spoken, after the first race of Elizabethan Puritans, the Anglican bishops have, on the whole, been respectable tenants of the sees. Some exhibited all the zeal of an olden time in restoring the ravages caused by Puritan ascend ancy, and preserving the traditions of ancient architectural arrangement, when it had been abandoned throughout Christendom. "We must not forget that many noble foundations and works of charity and piety, worthy of the brightest time of Catholic spirit, date from the seventeenth century ; and when we consider that the prince-bishops of Liege and Germany were employing the vast re- sources of their dioceses in laying out terraces, form- ing artificial canals and fountains, and paganizing their palaces, while the towers of their cathedrals were stunted and incomplete, the names of Hacket and Cosin may awaken a 'grateful remembrance in a Catholic heart. It would be unjust to test the works of these men by those of preceding centuries. They lived at a period remarkable for debasement all over Europe. Had those countries which nominally re- tained the ancient faith exhibited a grand exception to the general degradation, and adhered to the noble ecclesiastical traditions of their forefathers, then indeed we should have a grand argument ; but so far from this, the spirit of revived paganism flourished, and even commenced, among them, while here in England many of the ecclesiastical erections, though debased A. WELBY PUGI3. 453 in detail, exhibit great traces of the old traditions. What truly edifying and reverent works have been published on Catholic antiquities by devout members of her communion — by men who appreciated and set forth in most moving and pious language the noble works and lives of the founders of our cathedrals and abbatial churches. But for the labours of these men, every English Catholic antiquity would have fallen into oblivion, and their works are the standard of information to which we all refer. 'Let us then,' says Pugin, to quote the concluding words of ' An Apology for the separated Church of England,' 'let us then always speak and think with gratitude of the old bridge that has brought us over, and lend a pious help to restore her time-worn piers, wasted by the torrents of dissent and infidelity, and what is worse, internal decay by rotten stones, but which God in his mercy, beyond our human under- standing appears yet to sustain, and to make it the marvel of some of the most zealous men that have appeared since the ancient glory of the Church in the pious early times. Pax omnibus. Amen.' These were the last words which Pugin wrote. The peace of mind he wished to others was denied to his own mind. His over-exerted brain gave way beneath the pressure of labour. His words of peace, his works of charity, his efforts of genius were all paralysed at one blow. His fine intellect was gone. The malady which for a time came over his mind was the forerunner of death. 454 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF CONCLUSION. Death is always a surprise, even when it comes to close with gentle hand the wearied eye of the sufferer who has lingered hopeless for years, a living corpse on the bed of sickness ; it is still a surprise when with sad and strange aspect it approaches at last to gather to the grave of his fathers the time-honoured man, soldier or sage, who, full of honours, for fourscore years and more has filled the world with the renown of his name ; yet to whom should death be familiar if not to him who has outlived his day and already belongs to a past generation ? But never is death so strange as when, like a thief in the night, it comes to snatch on the sudden from his incomplete work and from the unaccomplished number of his days its strong and unwilling victim. To the young in their first disappointment death is often not so bitter as to the man in the pride of life and in the vigour of intellect ; for him to be smitten down in mid-career ; for the light of his genius to be extinguished ; for the rich treasures of his learning, gathered from ancient lore or from modern enlightenment, to be scattered and wasted, all the labour of years to be in vain — the ripe mind, the pure taste, the correct judgment — is A. WELBY PUGIN. 455 indeed a loss, not to himself alone, but to mankind. How many a noble effort to revive the glories of the past, to dispel the ignorance or prejudice which sur- rounded him, and to form the mind on matters that lay within his sphere of the future generation of his coun- trymen, were not rudely snapped asunder by the death of the man whose life and works we have been con- templating ! He had accomplished much, but much remained to be done. He had laid the foundation to the edifice of his fame, and wished to put the coping-stone to his own work. His fertile brain and vigorous hand were never for an instant slack. The luminous page, preg- nant with thought and rich in illustration, was not half finished when the pen dropped from his hand ; the most glorious designs of his pencil were left incom- plete ; he was only on the threshold of his labours ; his richly-stored mind was in the act of developing its manifold powers ; his genius was on its highest tide, when the ebb of the waters of life, which sooner or later comes to all, came upon him at a time when he could ill be spared by the country he adorned and the Church he had so faithfully served. In him, as in all vigorous and happy men, the love of life was strong ; the hopes of the future were brightening about him ; the cause to which he had attached himself with all the ardour of his fervid nature was in the ascendant ; new prospects of usefulness were opening up to his view ; the prejudice he had to encounter from those who ought to have stood him in good stead was on the 456 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF wane ; and, in fine, domestic ties with their strong hold bound him to life ; growing sons and daughters, the proud heirs of his name and fame, surrounded his hearth, and the sharer of his sorrows, the best partner of his joys, was ever near with her quick sympathy to lessen affliction in the day of reverse, or to gladden his heart in his hour of triumph ; but in the midst of all these delights, with a strange and a terrible surprise, death came to still the busy brain for ever, and to bid the full heart to beat no more. To revive the memory of the past ; to preserve the monuments bequeathed to us by the hand of genius ; to discover the motives that impelled the men of other days in the glorious works which still surround us, was to him a labour of love, and the active prin- ciple of his life. Not a spot in England consecrated by the beauty of his noble art was unfamiliar to his mind. The artistic glories and the natural beauties of France, and Germany, and Italy — the Alpine grandeur of Switzerland, are all reproduced and per- petuated in numerous still unpublished folios by the magic power of his pencil. In fine, to throw light upon an obscure period of history, to vindicate those ages which the presumption of ignorance and the ca- lumny of prejudice have ventured to call dark ; to show the Church of our fathers in the grandeur of her ritual, in the magnificence of her sublime archi- tecture, and in the holiness of her spirit, was the work — who shall refuse to call it the glorious work ? — of Augustus Welby Pugin. A. WELBY PUGIN. 457 The wondrous edifices that cover the land— the towering minster — the gorgeous cathedral — the ruined abbey, spoke to his enraptured mind of the antiquity of his faith, and of the ancient artistic glory of his country. The lofty spires, the pinnacled towers of the colleges and chapels reared by the ancestral piety of our forefathers in the most renowned seat of wis- dom in the land, recalled to his memory the union which once existed between learning and religion, while the sepulchral brasses of famous churchmen, graven on the pavement of cloister and of chapel, appealed not in vain to his piety for their departed souls ; though to his vision the neglected effigy of many a venerable but forgotten founder seemed to frown down from amidst the glories of the stained glass in reproach for the utter disregard that had of late befallen so many a last behest and pious petition. An unwavering faith, a most singular piety towards bygone ages, a veneration the most profound for all that appertained to the beauty of the courts of the Lord, an imagination glowing with the glories of the past, all combined in impelling the subject of this memoir to surrender his heart and soul to the desire for the restora- tion of the forgotten faith and for the revival in the land of its ancient magnificence in art and architecture. He was a man not easily to be turned aside by the many obstacles he had to encounter from the purpose of his heart. Although of a retiring habit of mind he yet possessed a robust temperament and a vehement nature ; and when, in spite, and almost, as it were, in I 458 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF defiant outrage of the monuments and memorials o f magnificent piety which encompassed and reproached them on all sides, he beheld every correct principle of taste in ecclesiastical buildings, and even the bare decency due in the public celebration of divine wor- ship, violated, not only by the followers of an alien creed, but even by the members of the ancient faith, his indignant denunciations broke forth, without stint and without reserve, upon the ignorance of church- builders and upon the sloth and unconcern of those who were bound to preserve the holy places of God from all that savours of irreverence, or leads to an ignoble association of ideas. His unsparing criticisms, although they provoked the hostility of not a few, and led to much unkind misrepresentation, were yet suc- cessful in quickly engaging public attention. It is indeed true, that, owing to his absolute turn of mind, which was ever averse to compromise, and had but scant consideration for views opposed to his own, he failed to conciliate many men of eminence and mark whom a gentler treatment might have wisely won to his side ; yet it must not be forgotten that he was a reformer of stubborn abuses, which would yield to nothing less than a vigorous onslaught. He went like an arrow straight to his mark, no matter how the bow were bent in the effort. He counted not the losses that accrued in the combat ; nor did he for one instant regard the sacrifices he made ; for, thanks to an up- right and generous heart, a selfish act has never yet been coupled with his name. Even in his most ex- A. WELBY PUGIN. 459 aggerated statements against public opponents, or in the vehemence of private correspondence, when he was sometimes betrayed into unguarded expressions of opinion, there was yet such singleness of purpose and such truthfulness apparent that none but a preju- diced or malevolent mind could have ventured to raise on the unrestrained utterance of his thoughts the painful charges which were insinuated, rather than stated, against his orthodoxy. Great as was his love to his art, and great as his hatred to the unreali- ties and shams which profaned in his eyes the temples they were intended to adorn, and indignant as were his denunciations against modern innovations and irreverent familiarity in the construction of churches and in the removal of those material safeguards that had shrouded and sheltered for ages the inmost sanc- tuary of the house of God from the intrusive gaze of impertinent curiosity ; yet he never allowed his feel- ings, intense and excited as they were on the subject, to interfere with the fealty and obedience he owed to ecclesiastical authority, and the homage he was ever foremost to pay to the Holy See. No truer or more docile son of the Catholic Church existed than the stern rebuker of clerical degeneracy, or than the inveterate hater of the destructive heresies which broke up the unity and destroyed the glories of the ancient Church of England. His tenderness towards the ' separated brethren ' of the Protestant Establish- ment arose from the hope, which he cherished to the last, that the more learned and the more pious mem- 460 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF bers of a community, which had retained in its ritual and in its creed so much that was grand and Catholic, could not long remain out of the pale of unity, but must return with their flocks and with the glorious churches which they had so nobly preserved, or so carefully restored, to the fold of Peter. He considered, too, with great reason," that the Protestant Establish- ment, with its remnants of Catholic doctrine and its external organization, was the great bulwark in England against the spread of more pernicious errors, and against the onsweep of infidelity. It was not by joining the Dissenters in the hope of destroying the Protestant Church, but by preserving and promoting whatever there was of good in the Establishment he could hope to make it a bridge over the gulf which divides the people of England from the rock of Peter. The personal relations of Pugin with many of the Anglican clergy were unreserved and friendly ; they shared in his desire for the revival of the ancient ecclesiastical architecture, and they appreciated his talents, and were not slow in availing themselves of his advice and assistance in the restoration of many a whitewashed church or dilapidated chapel to its pure and pristine beauty. Although the great Reviver of Catholic principles in the grand externals of religion, and of the spirit which gives life and their proper mean- ing to the splendid ritual and rubrics of the Church never feared or failed to denounce, in no measured terms, the too frequent shortcomings of our own clergy in their disregard of the outward dignity of the altar and A. WELBY PUGIN. 401 of the solemnity of Divine worship ; yet he never in the intimate intercourse which he cherished with many of the High-Church members of the Anglican com- munity, or in the long-sustained correspondence which he carried on with many of the Tractarian clergy, gave them reasonable ground to believe that he wavered in his faith, or that he bestowed on Eome a divided allegiance or a half-hearted love. Truthfulness was to him the pillar of life. On this sure foundation he built and rested in perfect security. Eeality was a condition of his being. The principle of truth was the hinge on which his mind turned. It was the 6 open sesame ' to his heart, and the talisman round which his thoughts clustered and crowded. It was the eagle- like wing whereon his genius rose and rested. All those who knew Pugin will recognize at once that his chief characteristic was thoroughness. He was in the deepest sense of the word thorough. This genuine- ness was the source of his greatness, and the secret of his power. All who approached him felt they were in the presence of no ordinary man, and they who had once enjoyed his conversation have never forgotten its indescribable charm, — its peculiar fascination ; so rich in allusion ; so suggestive of thought and so natural in the turn it ever took. So earnest too in their tone were the arguments on his lips that they persuaded even before they convinced the mind of the listener. But it was difficult to gain entrance into the charmed circle of his home-life. He was retiring and exclusive to a fault, almost to a weakness ; he shrank from con- 462 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF tact with strangers, and would dismiss the intrusive visitor with scant courtesy. The house of an English- man is his castle ; but the house of Welby Pugin was a fortress surrounded with a deep moat, and but seldom was the drawbridge lifted. Yet if once the gates were thrown open to the welcome guest by some secret talismanic power of association, his heart was opened with them, and his visitors were received with an overflowing hospitality and entertained with gay ceremonial and song and sprightly humour which made the Christmas revel of his sea-side home a scene of never-failing joy and of un forgotten delight. After witnessing such a festive display of mirth and jollity one would no longer be surprised to learn that the man whose mind was filled with notions of antique grandeur had the simplicity of a child, and the gaiety of heart which seems rather to belong to the dweller beneath the open and sunny skies of the south, than to the inhabitant whose character has been formed and har- dened beneath the ruder pressure of a northern climate. There was much in the character of Welby Pugin' s mind which would have gone far to overcome the prejudice which Englishmen entertain against the Catholic Church. His truthfulness, the utter absence of all pretension, his outspoken boldness, his love of the national character, would have won their way by degrees into the hearts of his countrymen, and would have led them to regard with greater consideration, and to judge with greater candour, the Church which watched at the cradle of our civilization, and was the A. WELBY PUGIN. 463 consecration of our maturer growth. His influence, indeed, was on the increase ; he was conscious of power within himself to do greater things than he yet had been able to achieve ; he often regretted that a larger opportunity had not offered itself; but, indeed, he had not yet arrived at the meridian of his power when he was taken down so early to the silent grave. Bat where then is the grave of this remarkable man ? for England, if she neglect the living, never fails to honour the great dead. How shall I answer the question ? Do you not know, gentle reader, how often real merit goes to the grave unrewarded, while the borrower of other men's gifts shines in false colours, and meekly assumes honours that were not his due? Pugin's tomb is in no place of public honour. No reward fell to his lot, living or dead. No troop of friends followed him to the grave to do homage to his memory, and to bear testimony to all the world that a great man had passed away from the earth. There wus no solemn gathering of the brotherhood of genius, filling in grief the nave of Westminster Abbey. Against him in death the glorious temple which he loved so well in life was closed. To England's greatest archi- tect the Gothic abbey afforded no honoured grave. No stone was raised to show to distant ages how abiding is the monument which generosity pays to greatness. Hamlet said of his own time, "There's hope a great man's memory may outlive his life half a year ; but by r Lady he must build churches then, or else shall he suffer not thinking on." But to-day a 401 WRITINGS AND CHARACTER OF great man may build churches and yet be forgotten by his country. I do not know who followed Pugin to his neglected grave ; we will not invade the sanctuary of private grief, but we may be sure that the last, long- look which followed him to his resting-place, and the treasured tears that fell, were to him of more moment than monuments of marble and all the proud trappings of woe. What to him in his grand simplicity was the outward circumstance of sorrow ? The pomp and majesty of grief were our duty indeed, but not his need. Yet while the wise men of the world drew far off, the muse of history stood by and proclaimed over the scanty grave of him who was indeed one of Nature's great ones, that he had achieved immortality, that his memory would be preserved in his country's annals, and his name be registered in the proud muster-roll of her great men as long as modest worth, true genius, and genuineness of character are loved and reverenced by the heart of man. To such a fame the monumental marble and the ela- borate epitaph can neither add nor take away. All that now remains to do is to endeavour to stamp the impress of his greatness on the mind of the present generation, and, in these days of forge tfuln ess, when the dim waters of Letho are rising so fast above their water-mark, and threatening to sweep into oblivion all that was grand and good in bygone times, it be- comes a duty, and is indeed the best memorial of Pugin's life and labours, to keep before the public mind that in the Gothic revival Pugin sought to A. WELBY PUGIN. 465 restore the fervour of faith and the self-denying spirit which were the real foundations of the artistic greatness and moral grandeur of the middle ages. Should it indeed fall to my fortunate lot to be able to recall to the memory of those who knew him a pleasant image of his life, it will be the great reward of my feeble efforts. Mine at all events shall be the honour of having paid a tribute of homage to a man of genius ; and it will be a proud satisfaction if my hand shall be permitted to place the last cypress- wreath on the grave of him who lies near the murmur- ing sea-shore in his own monumental church of St. Augustine, awaiting in hope the glory of the final Resurrection. 2 H MEMORIAL TO THE LATE Ir has been resolved to do honour to the memory of the late Augustus Welby Pugin, for his services in the promotion of true principles of Medieval Architecture, and, in furtherance of this object, to solicit donations and devote them to the Endowment of a Permanent Fund, to be entitled the " Pugin Travelling Fund," the interest arising therefrom to be awarded to an Architectural Student in such manner and at such periods as may hereafter be decided, and to be expended by the recipient within one year of the time of its allotment in travelling in the United Kingdom, and in examining and illustrating its Mediaeval Architecture, Sculpture, and Painting. To the Studentship it is proposed to add a medal. The Koyal Institute of British Architects will be asked to become Trustees of the Fund. This Memorial, whilst providing a lasting recognition of the ser- vices rendered to Art generally by the late Augustus Welby Pugin, will be the means of promoting in a thoroughly practical manner the principles so ably advocated and applied by him, and each occasion of the award of the Fund will form a special commemora- tion of the great Artist in whose honour it has originated. The following words of Pugin himself at page 20 of his ' Apology for the Revival of Christian Architecture in England,' confirm in a 2 i 468 MEMORIAL TO THE LATE peculiar manner the original opinion of the Committee that the form of memorial proposed is the most appropriate : " God grant me the means and I would soon place Architec- tural Studies on such a footing that the glory of these latter days should be even greater than that of the former. I would also have travelling students, but I would circumscribe their limits : Dur- ham, the destination of some ; Lincolnshire's steepled fens for others ; Northampton spires, and Yorkshire's venerable piles, Suf- folk and Norfolk's coasts, Oxford, Devonshire, and Warwick, each county should be indeed a school — for each is a school — where those who run may read, and where volumes of ancient art lie open for all inquirers." Committee. (Those marked * form the Working Committee.) * A. J. B. Beresford-Hope, Esq., Chairman. T. D. Acland, Esq. * Charles Ainslie, Esq. * Rev. G. Ainslie H. G. Austin, Esq. * Charles Barry, Esq. * E. M. Barry, Esq. * A. W. Blomfield, Esq. M. H. Bloxam, Esq. Rev. J. R. Bloxam, D.D. De la Barre Bodenham, Esq. G. F. Bodley, Esq. * David Brandon, Esq. * Raphael Brandon, Esq. W. Cunliffe Brooks, Esq. * William Burges, Esq. * Talbot Bury, Esq. Charles Buxton, Esq., M.P. * Viscount Campden The Dean of Canterbury The Earl of Carlisle R. D. Ch ANTRELL, Esq. * Ewan Christian, Esq. * Joseph Clarke, Esq. * Henry Clutton, Esq. R. T. Cocks, Esq. * W. C. Cocks, Ksq. * J. G. Crack, Esq. Lieut.-Gen. the Hon. Sir E. Cust * J. S. Danikl, Esq. E. B. Denison, Esq., Q.C. The Earl of Dunraven William Dyce, Esq., R.A. Viscount Fielding * Benjamin Ferrey, Esq. F. J. Francis, Esq. Rt. Hon. W. E. Gladstone, M.P. * George Godwin, Esq. * G. G oldie, Esq. His Excellency G. J. R. Gordon * J. H. Hakewell, Esq. * John Hardman, Esq. Philip Hardwick, Esq., R.A. * P. C. Hardwick, Esq. John Hayward, Esq. Lord Herbert of Lea * T. H. Washington Hiijbert, Esq. * J. Hogarth, Esq. — Hollins, Esq. AUGUSTUS N. WELBY PUGIN. 469 Edward I'Anson, Esq. Sir W. C. James, Bart. * Owen Jones, Esq. Henry Kennedy, Esq. * Stuart Knill, Esq. * H. L. Styleman Le Strange, Esq. T. H. Lewis, Esq. Rt. Hon. Lord John Manners, M.P. J. H. Markland, Esq. C. R. Scott Murray, Esq. * C. C. Nelson, Esq. W. Eden Nesfield, Esq. * John Norton, Esq. J. H. Parker, Esq. T. Gambter Parry, Esq. * J. L. Pearson, Esq. R. K. Penson, Esq. Arthur Powell, Esq. * J. H. Powell, Esq. F. H. Pownall, Esq. John Prichard, Esq. * Edward Roberts, Esq. Rt. Hon. Lord John Russell, M.P. Rev. C. W. Russell, D.D. J. Watts Russell, Esq. Anthony Salvin, Esq. * Sir F. E. Scott, Bart. * G. G. Scott, Esq., R.A. * Rev. Willtam Scott J. P. Seddon, Esq. * William Slater, Esq. J. P. St. Aubyn, Esq. William Stirling, Esq., M.P. * G. E. Street, Esq. J. G. Talbot, Esq. * S. S. Teulon, Esq. Ven. Archdeacon Thorp * W. Tite, Esq., M.P. Sir Humphrey de Trafford. Bart. R. E. E. Warburton, Esq. * Rev. Benjamin Webb F. R. Wegg-Prosser, Esq. The Dean of Westminster * William White, Esq. * Rev. G. Williams, B.D. * M. Digby Wyatt, Esq. * T. H. Wyatt, Esq. Treasurers. A. J. B. Beresford-Hope, Esq. 1 George Gilbert Scott, Esq., R.A. j Joseph Clarke, Esq., 13, Stratford Place, London, W.) „ „ . . Talbot Bury, Esq., 50, Weibeek Street, London, W. j ffl,w T Sccrctanes. M. J. Lomax, Esq., Assistant Secretary. Edward Ashworth, Esq., Exeter J. A. Clark, Esq., Bristol J. H. Chamberlain, Esq., Birmingham Rev. E. L. Cutts, Essex W. M. Fawcett, Esq., Cambridge W. J. Gillett, Esq., Leicester W. D. Griffin, Esq., Wolverhampton M. E. Hadfield, Esq., Sheffield. Edw. Haycock, Jun., Esq., Shrewsbury John Henderson, Esq., Edinburgh T. C. HiNE, Esq., Nottingham Rev. JEneas Hutchison, B.D., Plymouth Rev. T. James, Northamptonshire I §>CtXttXXit#, E. F. Law, Esq., Northampton Charles Luard, Esq., Cardiff Rev. W. C. Lukis, Marlborough Rev. C. R. Manning, Norfolk Rev. W. Maturin, Dublin Edward Peacock, Esq., Lincolnshire R. M. Phipsof, Esq., Ipswich G. E. Pritchett, Esq., Herts R. Reynolds Rowe, Esq., Cambridge Co. E. R. Robson, Esq., Durham Samuel Tymms, Esq., Lowestoft Alfred Wateriiouse, Esq., Manchester Thomas Wells, Esq., Chatham. Bankers— Messrs. Biddulph, Cocks, and Co., 43, Charing Cross, S.W., (who will receive Donations to the account of " The Pugin Memorial Fund.") 470 MEM01UAL TO THE LATE Donations will also be received by tbe members of the Committee, the Honorary Local Secretaries, and at the Royal Institute of British Architects, 9, Conduit Street,W. ; Messrs. Masters and Co., 33, Aldersgate Street, E.C., and 78, New Bond Street, W. ; Messrs. Burns and Lambert, 17, Portman Street, Portman Square,W. ; Messrs. Bell and Daldy, 186, Fleet Street, E.C. ; Messrs. Hogarth, 5, Hay- market, S.W. ; Messrs. Colnaghi, Scott, and Co., 14, Pall Mall East, S.W. ; Mr. C. Dolman, 61, New Bond Street, W. ; Messrs. Hardman and Co., 13, King William Street, Charing Cross, W.C. ; 166, Great Charles Street, Birmingham ; and 48, Grafton Street, Dublin ; Messrs. Lavers and Barraud, Endell Street, Long Acre, W.C. ; Mr. Henry G. Bohn, 4, York Street, Covent Garden, W.C. ; and Mr. Stanford, 6, Charing Cross, S.W. £. s. d. T. D. Acland, Esq., Sprydoncot j 2 Rev. Geo. Ainslie ... 2 % ,, (2nd donation) 1 1 G. Aitchison, Jun., Esq. ... 1 1 Edward Akroyd, Esq. 2 2 Lev. A. Alcock 1 T. G. D. Allason, Esq. ... 3 3 W. Allcard, Esq. ... 5 Peter B. Alley, Esq. 1 Arthur Ashpitel, Esq. 2 2 C. Bruce Allen, Esq. 10 6 J. Lewis Andr6, Esq. 1 1 Edward Appleton, Esq. ... 2 2 The Architectural Society of the Archdeaconry of Northampton 2 2 Edward Ashworth, Esq. ... 1 1 Messrs. Atchley and Co. ... 1 1 H. G. Austin, Esq. 3 3 Rev. and Hon. H. C. Bagot 1 1 Charles Barry, Esq. 10 E. M. Barry, Esq.... 5 5 R. C. Baxter, Esq. 1 1 Henry Benson, Esq. 2 A. J. B. Beresford-Hope, Esq. 25 John Billing, Esq 2 2 R. Blake-Humphrey, Esq.... 1 1 J. G. Bland, Esq 1 1 A. W. Blomfield, Esq. 2 2 De la Barre Bodenham, Esq. 5 J. R. Botham, Esq. 1 1 £. s. d. Henry Bowman, Esq. 1 1 Mr. Samuel Brancall 2 David Brandon, Esq. 5 Rev. J. R. Bloxam, D.D. ... 2 2 M. H. Bloxam, Esq. 2 2 John Blyth, Esq. ... 5 5 Henry G. Bohn, Esq. 5 5 Raphael Brandon, Esq. 1 1 W. Cunliffe Brooks, Esq. ... 5 Right Rev. Dr. Brown 5 Mr. Joseph Browne 2 2 J. A. Bunker, Esq. 1 1 A. Burges, Esq. 3 3 William Burges, Esq. 2 2 Yen. Archdeacon Burney ... 5 5 Rev. Henry Burney 1 1 Messrs. Burt and Potts 2 2 Decimus Burton, Esq. 2 2 Charles Buxton, Esq., M.P. 2 2 Talbot Bury, Esq. ... 21 C. W. W. (per A. W. Blom- field, Esq.) 2 2 The Dean of Canterbury ... 5 The Earl of Carlisle * ... 2 2 The Carpenter Memorial Fund, balance (per Ecclesiological Society)... 4 4 6 J. H. Chamberlain, Esq. .... 2 2 R. Chamberlain, Esq. 10 R. D. Chantrell, Esq. 5 5 Ewan Christian, Esq. 5 5 AUGUSTUS N. WELBY PUGIN. 47i £. s. d. £. s. d. J. A. Clark, Esq 1 1 J. W. Eraser, Esq. 1 1 G. Somers Clarke, Esq. 3 3 Messrs. Fulljames and Waller 2 2 Joseph Clarke, Esq. 10 10 J. Dunn Gardner, Esq. ... 3 3 Messrs. Clayton and Bell ... 2 2 Henry B. Garling, Esq. ... 1 1 Thomas Close, Esq. 2 2 Messrs. 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To which is added the Topo- graphy of the Island— so condensed as to give all that is useful to the Tourist, without the verbiage of ordinary Guide Books — by Mr. John Beion. This work aims to be thoroughly practical to the Geologist, the Antiquarian, and the Traveller ; it describes and indicates all tbe discoveries to the present day. It is illustrated by an elaborately-executed Relievo Map of the Island, coloured geologically; by numerous finely-engraved geological sections; and by a fine lithograph in colours, by Standidge and Co., of the tesselatcd pavements of the Roman villa lately discovered at Carisbrookc. Price 7s. 6d. ; by post, 8s. PUBLISHED BY EDWARD STANFORD 7 The WO ELD. — JOHNSTON'S COMMERCIAL CHART of the WORLD, on Mercator's Projection, containing the position of every glace of Commercial Importance, and showing the Principal Currents of the •cean, with their direction and rate of progress, with an enlarged Map of Central Europe, giving the Railway Communications, and distinguishing the States forming the German Customs Union ; Tables of Distances between the principal Ports, &c. Size, 6 feet by 4 feet 8 inches; in 4 sheets, coloured, £2. 12s. 6d. ; mounted in morocco case, or roller, varnished, £3. 3s. ; on spring roller, £6. 6s. EUROPE. — MAP of EUROPE for SCHOOLS; constructed for the Society for the Promotion of Christian Knowledge, and the National Society. Scale, 65 miles to an inch ; size, 4 ft. 10 in. by 4 ft. 2. Price, canvas, roller, varnished, 13s. EUROPE. — STANFORD'S LIBRARY MAP, constructed by Alex. Keith Johnston, F.R.S.E., P.R.G.S., engraved in the finest style on copper plates ; size, 65 inches by 58 ; scale 50 miles to an inch ; show- ing the Boundaries of all its Independent States, even the smallest, and the subdivisions of the larger Continental States. The Railways are accurately and distinctly delineated, and the Lines of Submarine Telegraphs inserted. Price, fully coloured, in cloth case, 4to. or 8vo. £3. ; in elegant morocco case, £3. 13s. 6d. ; on roller, varnished, £3. ; on spring roller, £6. " A work of science, as to drawing and correctness ; a work of art, as to clearness and beauty." Athen-eum. EUROPE. — STANFORD'S PORTABLE MAP, showing the latest Political Boundaries, the Railways, Submarine Telegraphs ; scale, 150 miles to an inch; size, 33 inches by 36. Price, fully coloured and mounted in case, 10s. 6d. ; roller, varnished, 14s. CENTRAL EUROPE. — DAVIES'S MAP of CENTRAL EUROPE, including all the Railways completed and in progress, and also the Stations marked on each Line ; forming the best Railway Traveller's Guide. Price, in sheets, 8s. ; in case, 12s. BRITISH ISLES. — The Geological Maps, Horizontal and Vertical, Sections, and Memoirs of the Geological Survey of Great Britain and Ireland. Detailed Lists may be had upon application. ORDNANCE SURVEY. — England and Wales, published under the Authority of the Board of Ordnance, on the scale of 1 inch to a mile. Sheets 1 to 97 are published. Price of the whole, in sheets, £9. 13s. 6d. ; ditto in a Portfolio, £10. 16s. 6d. ; mounted on cloth, in an oak case, £22. 17s. 6d. Any sheet may be had separately at 2s. per sheet ; when published in quarters, any quarter may also be had at 6d. Size of each sheet, 40 inches by 27. The above sheets are always kept mounted for the pocket ; size when folded about 6^ inches by 5, price 4s. ; with cloth case, 4s. 6d. ; ditto ditto, coloured, 6s. 6d. An Index Map, defining the contents of each Section, and distinguishing those divided into parts, may be had on application. Several towns, on the scale of 5 feet to a mile, are published in sheets, price 2s. each. For further particulars see Special Catalogue of Ordnance Maps. ORDNANCE SURVEY. — England and Wales. Scale, 10 miles to 1 inch ; on 2 sheets, of which only the South sheet, extending to Liver- pool, is complete. Size of each, 27 inches by 40, price 2s. each. This Map contains Principal Towns, Roads, and Rails ; and also forms a large Index to the Ordnance I -inch Map, showing the contents of each sheet. 8 ATLASES, BOOKS, MAPS, ETC. ORDNANCE SURVEY COUNTY MAPS. Scale, 6 inches to lmile: LANCASHIRE. — In 119 sheets ; YORKSHIRE. — In 311 sheets: DURHAM. — In 58 sheets, 5s. or 2s. 6d. each. ORDNANCE SURVEY, PARISHES.— Scale, 25 inches to a mile. Portions of the Counties of Durham, Hampshire, Surrey, Northumber- land, and Westmoreland are published. ALDERSHOT CAMP.— 6-inch Scale, with Hills and Contours, 5s. ; 1-inch Scale, 6d. ; on India-rubber, Is. 6d. For further particulars, see Special Catalogue of Ordnance Maps. ENGLAND and WALES. — Stanford's Portable Map, dis- tinguishing the Names of Places according to Population, the Cathedral Cities, County Towns, Railways, High Roads, &c. ; and the Mountains and Hills care- fully reduced from the Ordnance Survey. Size, 32 inches by 28 ; scale, 15 miles to an inch. Price, coloured and mounted in case, 5s. ; roller, varnished, 8s. ENGLAND and WALES, on a scale of 5 miles to an inch, with all the Railroads and Railway Stations distinctly laid down (projected from the Triangulation, made under the direction of the Hon. Board of Ord- nance). The Map comprises the principal Roads, Rivers, and Canals; the Parliamentary Divisions of Counties ; the Site of nearly every Church, distin- guishing the nature of the Living ; the Seats of the Nobility and the Gentry ; also the Distance in Miles and Furlongs of each City and Town from the General Post Office, London. Nine sheets, price £2. 12s. 6d., coloured and mounted on canvas and roller ; or in case, £3. 13s. 6d. ; roller, varnished, £4. 4s. ; spring roller, £6. 6s. ENGLAND and WALES. — Stanford's Travelling Railway and Road Map, on a scale of 12 miles to the inch. Size, 36 for 42, fully coloured. Price, 1 sheet, 6s. ; case, 8s. 6d. ; roller, varnished, 12s. COLLINS'S SIXPENNY COUNTY MAPS, full Coloured, and folded in Case for Pocket, where, in addition to the Railroads and Stations being accurately laid down, all the Canals, Boundaries of Divisions, Hundreds, and Parishes are carefully drawn to scale ; the number of Members each place returns, and the various Polling Places are shown. Price 6d. folded in cover ; or mounted on linen, folded in cloth case for pocket, Is. 6d. each. PARLIAMENTARY MAP. — Stanford's New Map of the Parliamentary Divisions and Boroughs of Englaud and Wales, compared with the Alterations proposed by Lord J. Russell, M. P., and Sir James Graham, Bart., in 1854, by Mr. John Bright, M.P., and the Times in 1859. Price, in sheets, 8s. ; case, 10s. 6d. •, roller, varnished, 14s. PROBATE DISTRICTS.— Stanford's Map of the new Probate Districts of England and Wales, showing the Boundary of each District, and distinguishing the Places where the District Registries are situate. Size, 36 in. by 42 in. Price 6s. in sheets ; 8s. 6d. mounted in case ; 12s. on roller, varnished. ENGLAND and WALES. — Geological Map, with all the Railways according to the most recent Researches. By Sir Roderick I. Murciiison, D.C.L., &c, Director-General of the Geological Surveys of Great Britain and Ireland. 3rd edition. Size, 18 inches by 14; scale, 28 miles to 1 inch ; on 1 sheet, price 5s. ; mounted, in case, 7s. ENGLAND and WALES.— Geological Map. By Andrew C. Ramsay, E.R.S. and G.S., Local Director of the Geological Survey of Great Britain, and Professor of Geology at the Government School of Mines. Size, 36 inches by 42 •, scale, 12 miles to 1 inch ; sheets, price £1. Is. ; case, £1. 5s. ; roller, varnished, £1. 10s. PUBLISHED BY EDWARD STANFORD 9 ISLE of WIGHT. — Stanford's Tourist's Map of the Isle of Wight. Scale, 1 inch to a mile. Sheet, plain, Is. 6d. ; mounted, in case, 3s. 6d. ; sheet, coloured, 2s. 6d. ; mounted, in case, 4s. 6d. ISLE of WIGHT. — Popular Map, coloured and folded in cover, Is. PORTSMOUTH, PORTSEA, and SOUTHSEA. — Popular Map, folded in cover, Is. LONDON. — Stanford's New Map, drawn from a Personal Survey, showing the Plans of Public Buildings, &c, and engraved in the finest style, on a scale of 6 inches to a mile. In 24 sheets. LONDON. — Davies's New Map of the British Metropolis, with the Botindaries of the Boroughs and County Court Districts, Railways, and Modern Improvements. Scale, 3 inches to a mile ; size, 36 inches by 25i. Price, plain sheets, 3s. 6d. ; coloured in Postal Districts, Boroughs, &c, sheet, 5s. ; ditto, mounted in case, 7s. 6d. ; ditto, on roller, varnished, 10s. 6d. The same Map with a Continuation Southward beyond the Crystal Palace. Size, 36 inches by 37. Price, plain sheets, 5s. ; coloured in Postal Districts, &c, 7s. 6d. ; ditto, mounted in case, lis. ; ditto, on roller, varnished, 15s. LONDON. — Stanford's New Map of the British Metropolis and Suburbs; showing the Boundaries of Counties and Boroughs, also the County Court and Postal Districts, together with the Railway Stations and Steamboat Piers. Size, 29 inches by 25. Price, plain, folded in case, 2s. 6d. ; coloured, 3s. 6d. ; coloured and mounted in case, 5s. 6d. ; roller, varnished, 7s. 6d. LONDON.— Collins's Standard Map, with 3000 Street Refer- ences. New Edition, with many Improvements. Scale, 4 inches to a mile ; size, 24 inches by 33. Price, plain, folded in case, Is. ; coloured, Is. 6d. , mounted in case, 2s. 6d. ; roller, varnished, 7s. 6d. LONDON. — The Useful Knowledge Society's Map, coloured to show the new Postal Districts, by command of the Postmaster-General. Price, plain, Is.; coloured and in case, Is. 6d. ; mounted on linen, in case, 2s. 6d. ; roller, varnished, 6s. LONDON. — Balloon View : a Panoramic Representation of the Great Metropolis; showing at One View the Public Buildings, Parks, Palaces, Squares, Streets, Railway Stations, &c. Size, 3 feet 5 by 2 feet 1. Price, folded in cloth case, plain, 2s. 6d. ; coloured, 3s. 6d. ; or mounted on cloth, in case, 4s. 6d. ; coloured ditto, 5s. 6d. LONDON. — The Block Plan with altitudes, made for the Metropolitan Commissioners of Sewers. Scale, 5 feet to one mile ; in 799 sheets ; size of each, 27 inches by 40. Price Is. each. *** Many other towns have been published on this scale, particulars of which wili be found in the Special Catalogue of Ordnance Maps. LONDON.— The Block Plan reduced. Scale, 1 foot to 1 mile ; or, 6 inches to 1 mile. Price, each sheet, Is. ENVIRONS of LONDON. — The Ordnance Survey. Scale, 1 mile to 1 inch ; sheet, plain, price 2s. ; case, 5s. ; coloured and mounted in case, 7s. ; mahogany roller and varnished, lis. ENVIRONS of LONDON.— Davies's Map, showing the New Postal Districts complete, and all other Modern Improvements. Scale^ 1 mile to an inch ; size, 28 inches by 42. Price : plain sheet, 4s. ; coloured sheet, 5s. 6d. ; mounted in case, 8s. ; on roller, varnished, 14s. 10 ATLASES, BOOKS, MAPS, ETC. ENVIRONS of LONDON.— Stanford's New Map of the Country 12 miles round London, showing the Postal Districts, Railways, with their Stations, Steamboat Piers, &c. Size, 25 inches by 25. Price, plain, folded in case, 2s. 6d. ; coloured, 3s. 6d. ; coloured and mounted in case, 5s. 6d. ; on roller, varnished, 7s. 6d. ENVIRONS OF LONDON. — Reduced from the Ordnance Sur- vey. Coloured to show the New Postal Districts. Scale, half inch to one mile ; size, 35^ inches by 25^ inches. Plain, folded in case, Is. 6d. ; coloured, folded in case, 2s. 6d. ; coloured and mounted in case, 4s. 6d. ENVIRONS of LONDON.— Topographical and Geological Map. By Robekt W. Mtlne, C.E., &c. On 1 sheet, price 8s. 6d. ; case, 10s. 6d. ENVIRONS of LONDON.— The Useful Knowledge Society's Map. Plain sheets, 6d. ; coloured, 9d. ; folded in cover, Is. ; mounted on cloth, in case, 2s. CHANNEL ISLANDS.— Popular Map of the Channel Islands. Price Is. folded in cover ; 2s. in case. SCOTLAND.— Stanford's Travelling Map, with the Coach- roads and Railways, height of Mountains, &c, on a suitable size and scale for Tourists, showing also the Rivers, Canals, Lochs, Islands, &c. Size, 26 inches by 21 ; scale, 12 miles to 1 inch. Sheet, price 2s. 6d. ; mounted on cloth in case, 3s. 6d. ; roller, varnished, 8s. SCOTLAND.— With all the Railroads and Railway Stations, the Seats of the Nobility and Gentry, &c. &c. distinctly laid down. The Map also comprises the principal Roads, Rivers, Canals, Lochs, Mountains, Islands, &c. &c. Scale, 5f miles to an inch ; size, 76 inches by 52. In 6 sheets, coloured, price £2. 2s.; mounted on canvas and roller, or in case, £3. 3s.; roller, varnished, £3. 13s. 6d. ; spring roller, £5. 5s. SCOTLAND. — Ordnance Survey. — Several Counties, on a Scale of 6 inches, and 25 inches to 1 mile, are published : the 1-inch General Survey is in course of publication, also the 60-inch Town Maps. For particulars, see Special Catalogue of Ordnance Maps. IRELAND. — Stanford's Travelling Road and Railway Map, showing also the Rivers, Canals, Lochs, Mountains, &c. Price, sheet, 2s. 6d. ; case, 3s. 6d.; roller, varnished, 8s. IRELAND. — Saunderson's Tourist's Map, showing the Roads, Railroads, &c, constructed since the Ordnance Survey of 1839. By Charles Saunderson. Folded in cloth case, 5s. ; mounted on cloth, in case, 10s. 6d. ; roller, varnished, 10s. 6d. IRELAND. — The Ordnance Survey in Counties, on a Scale of 6 inches to 1 mile, in sheets, 2s. 6d. and 5s. each. Index Maps to the Irish Coun- ties are sold separately at 2s. 6d. each : the 1-inch General Survey is being pub- lished, also the 60-inch Town Maps. For particulars, see Special Catalogue of Ordnance Maps. IRELAND.— A Geological Map to accompany the Report of the Railway Commissioners, showing the principal Physical Features and Geological Structure of the Country. Size, 81 inches by 66 ; scale, 4 miles to 1 inch ; on six sheets, £4. 4s. ; mounted in case, price £4. 15s. ; roller, varnished, £5. 10s. ; spring roller, £7. 15s. IRELAND.— Geological Map, with a Table of the most characteristic Fossils, &c. Scale, 17 miles to 1 inch; size, 22 inches by 15; on 1 sheet, printed in coloui-s, price 5s. ; or mounted in a case, 7s. PUBLISHED BY EDWARD STANFORD 1 1 ITALY. — Stanford's Map, including Sardinia, Venetian-Lom- bardy, &c, and showing all the Railways, Alpine Passes, Military Roads, &c., on a scale of 25 miles to an inch. Price, coloured, in sheet, 3s. 6d. : mounted, in case, 5s. NORTHERN ITALY.— Stanford's New Map, including the adjacent Territories as far as Rome, Paris, and Vienna, showing all the Railways, Roads, and Mountain Passes, Scale, 25 miles to an inch. Price, coloured, sheet, 2s. 6d. ; in case, 4s. 6d. ASIA.-*— Stanford's Library Map. The third of a large series of Library Maps, uniform in size and price with the Maps of Europe and Australasia, already published. [Preparing. INDIA. — A Physical and Geological Map of India. By G. B. Geeenough, Esq., E.R.S., E.G.S . 9 sheets, coloured, price £3. 3s. ; case or rollers, £4. 4s. Extract from the Address delivered at the Anniversary Meeting of the Geo- logical Society of London by William John Hamilton, Esq., President of the Society : — "The Geological Map of India by Mr. Greenough is a worthy counterpart of his Geological Map of England. We all know the careful and systematic manner in which Mr. Greenough has for a long series of years collected and arranged information respecting the geography, geology, and other kindred branches of knowledge from every portion of the globe, and many have been the regrets which I have heard uttered, that, with such a mass of systematically- arranged information as he possesses, greater than that of auy other individual, he should not already have enabled us to benefit by its publication in some form or other." INDIA. — Stanford's Map, based upon the Surveys executed by order of the Hon. the East India Company, the special Maps of the Surveyor- General, and other authorities, showing the latest territorial acquisitions of the British, the independent and protected States, the railways, canals, military stations, &c. ; together with a continuation of the Trans-Gangetic provinces, and diagrams exhibiting distances and bearings from the three Presidencies of Bengal, Madras, and Bombay. On 2 large sheets : price 18s. 6d. ; mounted in case, 25s. ; canvas, roller varnished, 31s. 6d. PALESTINE. — Palmer's Map of Arabia Petraea, the Holy Land, and part of Egypt (Ancient and Modern). By Richabd Palmer. Scale, 10 miles to 1 inch ; size, 51 inches by 38. On 3 sheets, coloured, price 18s. : on canvas, in case, or black roller, 21s. ; mahogany roller, varnished, 30s. CANAAN. — Palmer's Map of the Land of Promise ; designed chiefly to show the manner in which it is to be divided at the final restoration of the Jews to their inheritance, as foretold by the Prophet Ezekiel. Sheet, coloured, Is. SOUTH AFRICA to 16° SOUTH LATITUDE ; compiled from all available Official Documents and numerous Contributions from Private sources. By Heney Hall, Royal Engineers' Draughtsman, Cape Town. Scale, 50 miles to an inch; siz 3, 26 inches by 28. Sheets, coloured, 10s. 6d. ; mounted in case, 13s. 6d. ; roller, varnished, 15s. CAPE COLONY. — Map of South Africa, Cape Colony, Natal, &c. By Heney Hall, Draughtsman to the Royal Engineers, compiled from all the available Official Authorities in the Surveyor General's and Royal Engineer's Offices, Cape of Good Hope, and numerous contributions from private individuals. Price, in sheets, 4s. 6d. ; in case, 6s. 6d. EASTERN FRONTIER of the CAPE COLONY. — Map compiled by Heney Hall, Draughtsman to the Royal Engineers, Cape Town, from Military and other Surveys ; dedicated, by permission, to Sir J. F. Burgoyne, K.C.B. Sheets, 21s. : case, 25s. ; roller, varnished, 31s. 6d. SOUTH-EASTERN AFRICA.— South-Eastern Africa, from AlgoaBay; including the Eastern Provinces of the Cape Colony, Natal, Kafir and Basuta Lands, and part of the Orange River Free State, Trans-Vaal Republic, Betchuana Land, &e. Compiled from Official Authorities, by Heney Hall, R.E.D. Price, in sheets, 4s. ; in case, 6s. 12 ATLASES, BOOKS, MAPS, ETC. UNITED STATES. — A General Map of the United States, and British North America, constructed from the most recent Documents, pro- cured from the different Departments of Government, and valuable unpublished materials. By Alex. Keith Johnston, F.R.S.E., and ProfessorlH. D. Rogers, State Geologist of Pennsylvania. Price, fully coloured and mounted in case, or on roller, varnished, £3. ; morocco case, £3. 13s. 6d. ; spring roller, £6. UNITED STATES. - Stanford's New Railway and County Map of the United States of North America, compiled from the most reliable authorities, on two large sheets. Price, coloured, 21s. ; mounted in case, 25s. ; rollers, varnished, 30s. ; also each sheet separately, price, coloured, 10s. 6d. each ; or case, 15s.: the Eastern sheet containing the Atlantic and Mississippi States ; the Western sheet, California and other territories on the Pacific. UNITED STATES. — Stanford's New Large Print Map of the United States, distinguishing the Cities and Towns according to population, and showing the boundary of the Seceding States. Price, coloured in sheet, 5s. ; mounted on linen, in case, 7s. 6d. ; roller, varnished, 10s. UNITED STATES.— Stanford's New Hand Map of the United States, with tha result of the Census of 1860, distinguishing the Seceding States, the Territories of the Union, the State Capitals, County Towns, &c, engraved so as to indicate their distinctive" character and population. Price, folded in cloth case, 2s. 6d. ; or mounted on linen, in case, 4s. 6d. UNITED STATES.— A General Map of the United States, showing the Area and Extent of the Free and Slave-holding States, and the Territories of the Union. Sheet, coloured, price Is. MEXICO. — Map of the Republic of Mexico by Pedro Garcia Conde, Minister of War and Marine to the Spanish Government. Sheets, coloured, 10s. 6d. ; mounted, in case, 18s. CENTRAL AMERICA. — Baily's Map of Central America. Dy S. Moeo, Col. Lloyd, Gaeella, Codazzi, Hughes, Childs, and other documents ; the Railway Surveys in Honduras contributed by the Hon. E. G. Squiee, formerly Charge" dAffaires of the United States to the Republics of Central America. Sheet, price 7s. 6d. ; case, 10s. AUSTRALASIA. — Stanford's Library Map, delineating the Colonies of New South Wales, Victoria or Port Philip, South Australia, and Western Australia, divided into Counties ; with the Moreton Bay and North- Eastern Districts, as well as all [the Discoveries towards the Interior, including those of the North Australian Expedition and of the recent Explorations in the South and West. VAN DIEMEN'S LAND and NEW ZEALAND are shown in their relative position to Australia, and the latter contains various improve- ments over former Maps. NEW CALEDONIA, at present occupied by the Erench, NEW GUINEA, and adjacent parts of the ASIATIC ARCHIPELAGO, are also included. Engraved in the finest style on copper plates ; size, 65 inches by 58; scale, 50 miles to an inch. Full coloured and mounted to fold in cloth case, £3 ; in morocco case, £3. 13s. 6d.; on roller, varnished, £3 ; on spring roller, £6. AUSTRALIA. — Stanford's New Map, compiled from the latest | and most authentic Documents, embracing all the recent Surveys of Messrs. Geegoey, Stuaet, Stuet, Kennedy, and others ; engraved in the finest style. Size, 48 inches by 44. Full coloured, in sheet, 21s. ; case, 25s. j roller, varnished, 30s. j AUSTRALIA. — The Useful Knowledge Society's Map. | Coloured and folded in cover, Is. 6d. ; or mounted on cloth, in case, 3s. 6d. SOUTH AUSTRALIA. — Map of the Settled Districts. By H. Higginson and Jotin W. Paintee. Sheet, price 4s.; mounted in case, 6s. Od. ; roller, varnished, 10s. 6d. PUBLISHED BY EDWARD STANFORD 13 VICTORIA. — A Map of the Province of Victoria, Australia ; showing all the Roads, Rivers, Towns, Counties, Gold Diggings, Sheep and Cattle Stations, &c. Price 2s. 6d. in sheet ; 4s. 6d. in case. QUEENSLAND. — Stanford's New Map of the Province of Queensland (North-Eastern Australia). Compiled from the most reliable Authorities. Size, 20 inches by 15 ; scale, 50 miles to an inch. Price, in sheets, coloured, 2s. 6d. ; case, 4s. 6d. TASMANIA. — A New Map of Tasmania and the adjacent Islands, from Surveys and Drawings prepared expressly for this Work at the Office of the Survey Department. By James Speent, Surveyor-General. In Pour Sheets; size, when joined, 5 feet 4 inches by 4 feet, Scale, 31fa * 800 of Nature, or 5 miles to an imperial inch. Price, folded in 4to. morocco case, £3. 3s. 6d. ; in sheets, £2. 2s. ; coloured and mounted on mahogany roller, varnished, £3. 13s. 6d. TASMANIA. — A reduction of the above Map. By James Sprent. On one sheet, 3H inches by 23 ; scale, 10*36 miles to an inch. Price, on sheet, coloured, 15s. ; mounted in case, 21s. ; on roller, varnished, 25s. NEW ZEALAND. — Stanford's Map of New Zealand, compiled from the most recent documents. Size, 17 inches by 19. Pull coloured, in sheet, 2s. ; case, 3s. 6d. CANTERBURY. — A Map of the Province of Canterbury, New Zealand, showing the Freehold Sections and Pasturage Runs. The Map is based upon the Admiralty Surveys, the Trigonometrical Survey made by order of the Provincial Government, and the communications of Colonists. Scale 5 miles to the inch, with an enlargement of Christchurch and its neighbourhood, on a scale of half an inch to a mile. Sheet, price 7s. 6d.: case, 10s.; roller, varnished, 15s. STANFORD'S OUTLINE Atlases. Each 6d. MAPS, to accompany the School World in Hemispheres, West in Hemispheres, East Mercator's Pro- jection, West Mercator's Pro- jection, East on the Cubical Projection, on six sheets I. Africa and South Europe II. Middle Ame- rica III. Polynesia IV. South Asia V. North Pole VI. South Pole Europe British Isles England Scotland Ireland Prance Netherlands Switzerland Germany, General Germany, South, and Switzerland Italy, General — - North Central South, and Sicily Spain and Portugal Russia Denmark Sweden Norway Turkey, North Turkish Empire Greece, North South Asia Asia Minor Persia India China Palestine Africa Egypt America, North Canada and the United States America, South W. India Islands Australia New Zealand STANFORD'S PROJECTION MAPS, to accompany the Outline Maps. Each 6d. Europe England Scotland Ireland France Asia Africa North America South America Australia New Zealand Stanford's Scries of popular Ittaps, Full Coloured and Folded in Case, price Is. ; or Mounted on cloth, in Case, 2s. EUROPE. ASIA— continued. and ENGLAND and WALES : WALES. ISLE OF WIGHT. LONDON, Environs of. PORTSMOUTH, PORTSEA, SOUTHSEA. IRELAND : DUBLIN, with Public Buildings. SCOTLAND : EDINBURGH, with Views of Castle and Public Buildings. EDINBURGH, Environs of. CHANNEL ISLANDS. BELGIUM and NETHERLANDS. FRANCE, in Departments. GERMANY. ITALY. SPAIN and PORTUGAL. SWEDEN. NORWAY, and DEN- MARK. SWITZERLAND. ASIA, General Map. CHINA. INDIA. PALESTINE, in the time of Our Saviour. PALESTINE, Modern. AFRICA, General Map. EGYPT, Ancient. EGYPT, Modern. SOUTH AFRICA. NORTH AMERICA, General Map. BRITISH COLUMBIA and VAN- COUVER'S ISLAND. BRITISH NORTH AMERICA. UNITED STATES and CANADA. CANADA, Lower. CANADA, Upper. CENTRAL AMERICA. AUSTRALIA, General Map. NEW SOUTH WALES. NEW ZEALAND. WORLD, on Mercator's Projection, Is. 6d. ; or, on cloth, 3s. 6d. LONDON, with the Latest Improvements, Is. 6d. ; or, on cloth, 2s. 6d. DUBLIN, with Views of Public Buildings and Environs of Dublin, Is. 6d. ; or, on cloth, 2s. 6d. EDINBURGH, with Views of the Castle and Public Buildings, and Environs, Is. 6d. ; or, on cloth, 2s. 6d. PARIS, with Views of Public Buildings, Is. 6d. ; or, on cloth, 3s. 6d. CANADA, Upper and Lower, Is. 6d. ; or, on cloth, 3s. 6d. AUSTRALIA and TASMANIA, Is. 6d.; or, on cloth, 3s. 6d. %ximxB 3txuB of JUlicf Haps, Showing at a glance the configuration of the country, the mountains, their relative heights, beds of the rivers, &c. &c. ENGLAND and WALES. Size, 3 ft. 6 in. by 3 ft. ; scale, 12 miles to 1 inch. Coloured, price, mounted, varnished, and bordered, £1. Is. ; plain frame, £1. 5s. ; or elegant walnut, rosewood, or maple frame, £1. 10s. PALESTINE, DAMASCUS, and the HAURAN. Size, 3 ft. 6 in. by 2 ft. 10 in. ; scale, 6 miles to an inch. Coloured, price, mounted and bordered, £1. Is. ; plain frame, £1. 5s. ; elegant walnut, rosewood, or maple frame, £1. 10s. JERUSALEM. Size, 2 ft. by 1 ft. 8 in. ; scale, 1\ inches to a mile. Printed in natural tints, price, mounted and bordered, 10s. 6d. ; plain frame, 14s. ; or elegant walnut, rosewood, or maple frame, 18s. 6d. The ISLE of WIGHT. Size, 2 ft. by 1 ft. 8 in. ; scale, | inch to 1 mile. "White, or coloured either Geologically or in Parishes, price, mounted and bordered, 10s. 6d. ; plain frame, 14s. ; or elegant walnut, rosewood, or maple frame, 18s. 6d. ISLE of WIGHT in MINIATURE. Size, 10 in. by 7 in. ; scale, 2| miles to 1 inch. Price, mounted, 3s. 6d. ; in cloth case, 4s. 6d. ; morocco ditto, 8s. ; or walnut frame, 7s. 6d. BRIGHTON and its ENVIRONS. Size, 2 ft. by 1 ft. 8 in. ; scale, 1 mile to an inch. Price, mounted and bordered, 10s. 6d. ; plain frame, 1 4s. ; or elegant walnut, rosewood, or maple frame, 18s. 6d. ISSUED BY EDWARD STANFORD, 6 CHARING CROSS, S.W. 1. CATALOGUE of ATLASES, MAPS, GLOBES, and BOOKS recently published by Edwaed Stanford. 2. ORDNANCE MAPS. — Catalogue of the Ordnance Maps, published under the superintendence of Lieut.-Colonel James, R.E., Superinten- dent of the Ordnance Surveys. 3. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY of GREAT BRITAIN and IRELAND. — Catalogue of the Geological Maps, Sections, and Memoirs, of the Geological Survey of Great Britain and Ireland, under the superintendence of Sir Roderick I. Muechison, Director-General of the Geological Surveys of the United Kingdom. 4. GEOLOGICAL MAPS in general.— Catalogue of the best Geological Maps of various parts of the World. 5. GENERAL CATALOGUE of ATLASES, MAPS, CHARTS, PLANS, &C, English and Foreign, including the Teigonometeical Suevets of various States. {New Edition preparing. 6. USEFUL KNOWLEDGE MAPS.— Catalogue of Atlases, Maps, and Plans, engraved under the superintendence of The Society foe the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge. 7. ADMIRALTY CHARTS. — Catalogue of Charts, Plans, Views, and Sailing Directions, &c, published by order of the Lords Commis- sioners of The Admiealtt, 197 pages, royal 8vo. price Is. 6d. 8. WAR DEPARTMENT, TOPOGRAPHICAL PUBLICA- TIONS OF. — Catalogue of the Plans, Maps, and Drawings issued by The "Wae Depaetment, and sold by Edwaed Stanfoed. 9. SCHOOL BOOKS.— Catalogue of School Books published by Edwaed Stanfoed. 10. COLONIES and EMIGRATION. —A List of Publications on the British Colonies and the United States, selected from the Stock of Edwaed Stanfoed. 11. JOHNSTON'S MAPS. — Johnston's List of Geographical and Educational Works, comprising Atlases, Maps, Globes, &c, sold wholesale and retail by Edwaed Stanfoed. 12. TOURISTS' GUIDE BOOKS, &c. — Catalogue of Guide Books, Maps, Plans, Dictionaries, and Conversation Books, &c, for Tourists and Travellers. EDWARD STANFORD 6 CHARING CROSS, LONDON, S.W. BOOKBINDING ELEGANT OR PLAIN, IN CLOTH, CALF, RUSSIA, OR MOROCCO $ fltttptjMs prints nnit rirrnlHtrti PERIODICALS AND NEWSPAPERS REGULARLY SUPPLIED A GREAT VARIETY OF SCHOOL-BOOKS, GUIDES FOR TRAVELLERS, & WORKS ON THE COLONIES Paps, gtitas, <%ria, biotas, # gingrams for ^tlpok ox "gtdmt* Agent, by Appointment, for the Sale of the Ordnance Maps, Geological Survey Maps, and Admiralty Charts MAPS -A_ 1ST ID PLANS DRAWN TRACINGS MADE AND MOUNTED Mounting in every form, whether for the Pocket, Library, or Hall WHOLESALE DEPOT FOR GEOGRAPHICAL WORKS GENERALLY WRITING, SCRIBBLING, PACKING, AND KITCHEN PAPER OF EVERY DESCRIPTION FOR OFFICE OR PRIVATE USE Envelopes of every size, made to order when required Plain and Coloured Stamping Drawing and Tracing Paper, Tracing Cloth, Continuous Cartridge, Mounted Drawing and Cartridge, and every material for Architects, Engineers, and Surveyors ACCOUNT BOOKS RULED AND BOUND IN THE BEST MANNER TO ANY PATTERN STATIONERY FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES Copperplate, ITiiljogmpIjir, # i^tterpitss |1rmtitt0, Curbs, gtfokplHtes CIRCULARS, FACSIMILES, ILLUSTRATIONS, CHEQUES Letter-Headings, Bill-Heads, Bills in Parliament or Chancery, Books of Reference, and every kind of Parliamentary or other Printing ENGRAVING Pjunted by SPOTTISWOODE & CO., London, E.C.