[This is the second of a series of articles giving a brief
description of each of the 26 ancient Anglican cathedrals coupled with a sketch
of a person, activity or institution connected to the area]
Bristol is one of the most
interesting cities in England.
A great port since medieval times, prosperous through a variety of trades, a
financial and business centre, Bristol
is the premier cultural and educational magnet for the talent of the South
West.
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| Bristol Cathedral |
The Cathedral we
now see is an impressive place but it took some 700 years to be completed. Built
originally as an Augustinian Abbey on its foundation in 1140, its Norman
chapter house and Abbey gateway survive as does the 1220 Elder Lady Chapel.
From 1298 to 1332 the abbey was rebuilt in the English Decorated style and the
central tower was erected in the 15th century. The abbey became a
Cathedral soon after the dissolution of the monasteries in 1539 but it had an
inadequate nave and no West front.
A fine nave in sympathy with the medieval East end was
completed in 1877 by G E Street, the apostle of Victorian Gothic Revival and
architect of the mock-ecclesiastical Law Courts in the Strand in London. The magnificent
twin towers were completed in 1888 by J L Pearson, whose masterpiece is Truro
Cathedral.
Architecturally the Cathedral is unusual in that it is a
“Hallenkirche” (a Hall Church) with its aisles much the same height as its
choir – a common enough arrangement in Germany
but rare in England.
This means it has no clerestory and its windows need to be large as light would
otherwise be limited. The other special feature is its 14th century
“lierne” vaulting, the elaborate ribbing creating a pleasing stellar pattern.
Pevsner waxed lyrical "From the point of view of spatial
imagination" it is not only superior to anything else in England or Europe
but "proves incontrovertibly that English design surpasses that of all
other countries at that date.”
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| Lierne Vaulting at Bristol Cathedral |
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Although Bristol
is some miles from the mouth of the tidal River Avon, It has functioned as a
port for 1,000 years. In medieval times Bristol
was the third city of England
after London and Norwich
and gradually it grew its trade in wine, olive oil and spices from the
Mediterranean and timber from Russia.
Like many cities, a Guild of Merchants was formed in the 13th
century. In Bristol the Guild was notably
entrepreneurial and it sponsored the voyage of discovery in 1497 of John Cabot,
a citizen of Venice, to the West and he made his
first landfall in the bleak north of Newfoundland.
Soon Bristol fishermen were regularly visiting
the teeming Grand Banks. The Guild became The Society of Merchant Venturers under
a charter granted by Edward VI in 1552, which gave the Society the monopoly on Bristol’s sea trade – the Society controlled Bristol docks until 1848,
effectively running the city.
The restless spirit of Bristol
was exemplified by the writings of Richard Hakluyt, a leading clerical member
of the Cathedral chapter, who wrote extensively urging King James I in the
early 1610s, successfully at last, to colonise Virginia. The British settlement of North
America followed and Bristol was the main port
serving America,
dealing in all manner of commodities.
By the early 18th century, Bristol’s prosperity relied heavily on the
profits of the notorious “Triangular Trade”. Locally made cloth and brassware
were shipped to the native kings of West Africa
and exchanged for slaves. The slaves were then shipped in hideous conditions
(“the middle passage”) and sold to the plantation states in America or the West Indies.
American produce, rum, sugar, tobacco and raw cotton were shipped back to Bristol. Fine houses in Queen Square,
stately commercial Corn Street,
the Theatre Royal and many mansions outside the city were financed by this
shameful trade.
The slave trade diminished in importance after about 1760
when Liverpool’s rivalry and larger docks started to bite and the abolitionist
cause, supported by dissenters like John Wesley, moved public opinion leading
to Britain outlawing the slave trade in 1801 and abolishing slavery itself in
its domains in 1833.
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| The "Nails" at Corn Street |
Bristol merchants continued to prosper greatly with “sugar
houses” (refineries) employing many, the wine trade expanding and the famous
Wills cigarette factories producing iconic brands like Woodbine, Gold Flake and Capstan.
Commercial expressions entered the vocabulary – “shipshape and Bristol fashion” or “paying on the
Nail”. The Wills Memorial
Tower, completed in 1925,
now part of the University, is a Neo-Gothic landmark.
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| The Wills Tower, Bristol |
The Society of Merchant Venturers helped finance Brunel’s
magnificent Clifton
Suspension Bridge,
completed in 1864, and in due course evolved into a charitable and
philanthropic institution, generously supporting schools, almshouses and the
two Universities. Many loyal Bristolians from the commercial world continue to
be active and proud members.
So Bristol
has a very distinguished history. Its Cathedral is associated most strongly
with the University and the Council. Unusually, it has a rival in the splendid
St Mary Redcliffe, “The goodliest, fairest and most famous parish church in England” in the
words of Queen Elizabeth I. The church was built in the various Gothic styles
between the 12th and 15th centuries. As it was near the
port, it became and perhaps remains the favourite of the Bristol merchants, who beautified it and
erected chantry chapels for the priests to say masses for their (no doubt
deserving) souls. How lucky is Bristol
to have this rich heritage!
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| St Mary Redcliffe, Bristol |
SMD
18.10.12
Text Copyright © Sidney Donald 2012.
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