[This is the fifth 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]
Worcester
is a historic English city and a famed and comforting image is that of the Cathedral, towering over the
formidable river Severn as is runs through the
area, with the charming county cricket ground opposite.
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| Worcester Cathedral and the cricket ground |
Before its Dissolution in 1540, Worcester was a Benedictine monastery and was
built in a succession of styles from the 11th to the 16th
Century. Its Norman crypt is much admired; the church is unusual in that it has
two rather than the normal one transept; the monastic circular chapter house
and pretty cloisters have survived. Its Perpendicular Gothic tower is one of
the glories of England.
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| Worcester Cathedral; The Norman Crypt |
Sadly, in the 18th century the Cathedral became
very dilapidated and a comprehensive renovation was undertaken by the famous
Victorian church architect George Gilbert Scott. Some of the medieval mystery
was inevitably lost.
Worcester
is always associated with the composer Sir Edward Elgar (1857-1934) whose home
town it was. Elgar was the Catholic son of a music-shop owner and his contact
with the Cathedral was indirect. Many of his works were performed there and the
Three Choirs Festival, linking the cathedrals of Worcester,
Gloucester and Hereford, focuses on English music, notably
Elgar’s. Elgar struggled for recognition but in 1898 his Enigma Variations became popular in England
and Germany.
His fine oratorio The Dream of Gerontius,
based on the poetry of Cardinal Newman, has also entered the repertory (its
Catholic use of the concept of Purgatory caused it to be banned from
performance in certain diehard Anglican venues). Pomp and Circumstance March
no 1 (Land of Hope
and Glory) became a global favourite. Two symphonies, a violin concerto but
above all his haunting Cello Concerto
followed. There is a memorial window to Elgar at the cathedral; the wistful
serenity of his music epitomises the English spirit.
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| Sir Edward Elgar |
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| Stanley Baldwin |
The cathedral also holds the ashes of Stanley Baldwin,
Britain’s prime minister three times in the inter-war years, who lived near Worcester. Baldwin was a
scion of a Birmingham
ironmaster family but he affected a tweedy rustic pose and was interviewed
tickling pigs and leaning on farm gates, enhancing his popularity.
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The English porcelain industry grew and prospered from 1750
onwards and probably the oldest brand still in existence is Royal
Worcester. Its factory there is now a porcelain museum, as the industry
gradually concentrated its production at Stoke-on-Trent in the famous Potteries.
Fine porcelain with its prized translucent qualities had
been produced in China
for centuries. How to make it was a closely guarded industrial secret but the
secret was broken in 1710 and after many experiments, fine china ornaments were
made in Saxony at Dresden
and Meissen and in France at Sèvres.
The English became particularly expert in the production of
bone china, a durable product requiring a mixture of bone ash, china stone and
china clay (kaolin), The first bone china in England was made by Josiah Spode, who developed the formula and
whose company went on to produce the iconic Blue Italian pottery.
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| Royal Worcester tureen |
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| Blue Italian tableware by Spode |
The early pioneering china makers, like Bow, Chelsea and Bristol did not survive long and high-value
porcelain production became part of larger companies also producing the cheaper
stoneware or ironware. This ceramic industry had long been established in the Potteries, where coal and clay were readily available. Typical
of this trend was Wedgwood, famous for
its Jasperware, and it absorbed in time famous names like Royal Doulton and Crown Derby
while also making popular artefacts like Staffordshire Toby jugs.
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| A typical Wedgwood plate |
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| Three Derby figures |
A final famous name is Minton, whose plates are much prized
but whose fame mainly derives from its encaustic tiles, so much loved by
Victorians and by Prince Albert
himself.
The mode for Minton was embraced by the Americans and a fine
example of Minton tiling is to be seen at the Capitol, Washington DC.
Minton tiling at the
Capitol
England
was transformed by the Industrial Revolution and its reach was long. Although
it brought overcrowding, disease and dirt it also brought convenience,
gentrification and beauty, enhancing all our lives.
SMD
24.10.12
Text Copyright © Sidney Donald 2012
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