Bristol, the great western port of England, has a history which tells of the ancient glories of English seamanship. From this port sailed the first Englishman who landed in America, Sebastian Cabot, who was born in Bristol, and was the first to discover that which is now known as the United States. A Bristol chronicle states, "this year 1497, on St. John the Baptist's day, the land of America was found by the merchants of Bristowe, in a ship of Bristol, called The Matthew, the which said ship departed from the port of Bristowe the 2nd of May, and came home again 6th August following." It was a Bristol ship which brought home the real Robinson Crusoe (Juan Fernandez) from his island home. Very famous were the great merchants of Bristol, such as William Cannynge, who founded the noble Church of St. Mary Redcliffe, whom his king, Henry VI., delighted to honour, and styled "his beloved and honourable merchant." Vast was his fleet—his shipping, amounting to 2470 tons, was seized by the victorious Yorkist monarch—and vast were his commercial enterprises, whereby he made Bristol a large and flourishing port.

But we must go back to earlier days. In Saxon times the port was famous, or infamous, for its slave-dealing, which the coming of the Conqueror scarcely suppressed. Here Harold's three sons made a vain attempt to rescue the kingdom from his iron grasp. A famous Norman castle destroyed in the Civil War was built here, where Stephen was kept a prisoner. Pleasanter visits were frequently paid by other monarchs. The city was besieged and taken by Henry Bolingbroke, and Shakespeare in Richard II. tells of the beheading of four supporters of the luckless king in the city market-place. Here, too, five martyrs were burnt, and in the first year of Elizabeth's reign a mass of roods and images shared the same fate. The imposition of the ship-money tax was so distasteful that the Royal cause was not very popular at Bristol. The citizens opened their gates to the troopers of Cromwell, who held it from 1642 to the following year. Prince Rupert stormed the place, and held it till it was wrested from him in 1645. The "Bloody Assize" of Judge Jefferies left its mark on this western port; six prisoners were executed, and hundreds sent across the sea to serve in the plantations. The darkest spot in the history of Bristol is the story of the Reform riots of 1831, sometimes called "the Bristol Revolution," when the dregs of the population pillaged and plundered, burnt the bishop's palace, and were guilty of much vandalism. Of the old churches we shall write subsequently. The old quaint houses are very attractive, especially the old Norman hall and Tudor windows of the house of Edward Colston, one of Bristol's merchant princes, Cannynge's house, with its fine Perpendicular roof, and the old Hospital of St. Peter.

The History of the See

Bristol was one of the sees founded by Henry VIII. in 1542, after the destruction of the monasteries. There is, however, in the British Museum, a MS. copy of a Papal Bull of 1551, for the refounding of the see, directed by Pope Paul IV. to Cardinal Pole. In 1836 the Sees of Bristol and Gloucester were united, and remained so until 1897, when they were again separated.

The church has a history long before it became a Cathedral. It was the church of the monastery of Augustinian canons, founded in 1142 by Robert Fitzhardinge, afterwards Lord of Berkeley, on the site of Augustine's oak (so tradition says), where Augustine met the British bishops in conference and offended them by his haughty demeanour. The consecration of probably the chancel took place six years later. In 1155 Fitzhardinge received from the king the forfeited estates of Roger de Berkeley, and was thus enabled to extend his building operations, which were continued until the time of his death in 1170. The church consisted of a nave with north and south aisles, a central tower with north and south transepts, a presbytery with north and south aisles, and a processional path. The choir had a square ending, and consisted of three bays, the altar being at the east of the second bay, the last bay forming a via processionum. The chapter-house and vestibule are also Norman. The Early English builders erected the Elder Lady Chapel, Bristol Cathedral being rich in Lady Chapels, and possessing two. Abbot John (1196-1215) or his successor, David, was doubtless the builder. Later Early English work is evident in portions of the north and south transepts and in the Berkeley Chapel, but much of the work of this period has been destroyed. Serious complaints were made at this time concerning the conduct of the monks, and sundry visitations were made and orders issued for the reform of the monastery. During the Early Decorated period the roof and east window of the Elder Lady Chapel were added, and a little later (1306-1332) Abbot Knowle reconstructed the choir and choir aisles. With his work came the beginning of Perpendicular aspiration, and it is an earnest of the course of the later English Gothic which first manifested itself in the choir of Gloucester. Bristol nearly had the lucrative honour of receiving the body of the murdered King Edward II., slain at Berkeley Castle. But for fear of offending his patrons Abbot Knowle declined to have the burial here; hence the corpse was taken to Gloucester, where it caused a great concourse of pilgrims, and brought many offerings. Knowle's successor, Abbot Snow (1332-1341), was made a mitred abbot, and had a seat in Parliament. He continued the work of his predecessor, erected a chantry, and built the Newton Chapel. Soon after his death terrible misfortunes happened to the city and monastery. The Black Death invaded the land, and so great were its ravages that in Bristol the living were hardly able to bury the dead, and few monks survived the awful malady. The effects were disastrous. For over a hundred years no building was attempted, and the monastery was in a deplorable condition. In the time of Abbot Newbury (1428-1473) the great tower was begun, and finished by his successor, Hunt (1473-1481), who re-roofed the church. Abbot Newland (1481-1515) rebuilt the upper part of the abbey gateway in Perpendicular style, and began to rebuild the ruinous nave. As the power of the town increased the citizens often had disputes with the monks over rights of fairs and markets and other matters, and the burghers of Bristol were not more submissive than those of other places. Hence the usual quarrels arose and disturbed the peace of the city. Some of the succeeding abbots wrought some minor improvements, but in 1543 a most drastic remedy was applied to the ruinous nave. It was entirely pulled down, and not rebuilt until recent times. The monastery was dissolved like other similar institutions, and Paul Bush became the first bishop of the new see founded by Henry VIII. For a brief space during Mary's reign the old worship was restored, and Her Majesty and Philip bestowed costly gifts of copes and altar frontals and vestments. But in Elizabeth's reign all "relics of Popery" were ordered to be destroyed, such as the rood-lofts, tabernacles for images, and scripture texts and the table of the commandments to be painted in large characters on the wall. Beyond purloining the lead from the roof neither the besiegers nor the besieged did much damage to the church during the Civil War.

On the site of the destroyed nave some houses were erected, but after the great riots these were taken down. The building seems to have been kept in fairly good order. Edward Colston, the benefactor of Bristol, repaired the pavement. Sundry restorations were taken in hand during the last century, and finally in 1865 it was decided to undertake the stupendous task of rebuilding the nave. The work was begun in 1868 and finished in 1888. Since then the Elder Lady Chapel and the tower have been restored, and the church is now complete. It contains much of unusual value and interest, and the completion of the nave is a triumph of nineteenth-century achievement.

The Exterior

As we have said, the whole nave is new work, and therefore need not be examined very closely. The West Front is flanked by two towers, which bear the honoured names of Bishop Butler and Edward Colston. The style is an imitation of fourteenth-century work. There is a crocketed gable above the door, a rose window of good design, and some delicately-carved work surmounted by a cross. The face of the towers has three storeys; on the first a large window; on the second some lancets; and above two windows with louvres, the heads of which have crockets and finials. There are pinnacles at the four corners.

On the South Side we see the remains of the monastic buildings. The north and east walks of the cloisters alone remain, except a few traces of the western walk, and the north is a restoration. We will visit the east walk from the Cathedral. Passing round to the North Side we notice the North Porch built in 1873. We have often noticed the figures of the four great doctors of the church—SS. Gregory, Ambrose, Jerome and Augustine. They appear in the sculptures of many of our cathedrals. A great storm of indignation arose at Bristol when it was proposed to place these figures here, and the four Evangelists were substituted. We can pass over the modern work, which is not wholly satisfactory, and notice the interesting character of the eastern portion. The north transept has some remains of Norman work in the north wall. The north window is modern in memory of Colston, and replaces an Early English window. The building adjoining is the Elder Lady Chapel, which is Early English work of the early thirteenth century. The east window is Decorated and is rather earlier than the choir built by Abbot Knowle (1306-1332). The battlemented parapet is, of course, a later addition. The buttresses of the chapel are Decorated, and there are curious little flying buttresses connecting the two pinnacles. The Lady Chapel at the east end of the Cathedral is of the same date as the choir, and has a large, noble and graceful window. Passing round to the south we see the outside of the Berkeley Chapel, of Decorated design, and adjoining it the sacristy and external walls of the Newton Chapel, chapter-house and modern vestry. Here, too, is the old churchyard. The Central Tower is Perpendicular and was constructed by Abbot Newland (1481-1515) or his successor, Abbot Elliot (1515-1526).

The Interior

Retracing our steps, we enter the Cathedral by the north porch and view the new Nave from the west end. The slender piers and fine vaulting are striking, and the work is in many ways very beautiful. The surface of the walls in the aisles is broken by canopied recesses for tombs, one only being occupied by a marble figure of Dean Elliot. The baptistry is in the south-west or Colston Tower, and is decorated in memory of Bishop Monk. Already there are many memorial windows of good modern glass.

The North Transept has some original Norman work in the core of the buttresses and in the wall below the north window. Some alterations were made during the Decorated period, probably by Abbot Snow (1332-1341), and the arch leading to north choir aisle is Perpendicular work constructed by Abbot Newland (1481-1515), called "the good abbot." Either he or his successor, Elliot, constructed the groined roof, which has on the bosses sculptured representations of the instruments of the Passion. The north window is modern, in memory of Colston. The well-known writer, "Hugh Conway" (F. Fargus), has a memorial here, and also Jane Porter of literary fame, Sterne's "Maria" (Mrs. Draper), and the parents of Macready, the actor.

The South Transept has much Norman work in the lower part of the walls. Part was rebuilt in Early English times. Abbot Snow (1332-1341) continued the work and constructed the arch leading to the south choir aisle. The vault is Perpendicular work by Abbot Elliot (1515-1526).

On the south is a staircase now leading to the consistory court, but which formerly echoed with the tread of the monks as they came here to their midnight services from the dormitory. In this transept there are monuments to Lady Hesketh (1807), the friend of Cowper; William Phillips, the sub-sacrist or verger who prevented the rioters from profaning the Cathedral in 1831; Chantrey's monument of Mrs. Crawford; and most famous of all, Bishop Butler (1752), one of the most honoured of English divines, the author of The Analogy of Religion. The inscription was written by Southey.

It is deplorable that a beautiful stone screen of Tudor architecture, which separated the choir from the transept, was ruthlessly destroyed in 1860, and another one erected. This also has been removed, and the view of the east end, with its Decorated piers and arches and the rich glass of the windows, is extremely fine. All the work before us was constructed by Abbot Knowle (1306-1332) and is Decorated. The Norman choir had two bays with a third for a processional path. Knowle added two bays to the choir and built the Lady Chapel. The clustered piers have triple shafts which support the vaulting. The capitals on these shafts have very graceful foliage. The piers have no capitals, but the mouldings run round the arches continuously, as is not unusual in Decorated work. The vaulting is what is known as lierne. Iron screen work divides the aisles from the choir. The reredos is modern, erected in 1899, and has some fine carving. The Stalls were originally Decorated, but "restoration" has destroyed much, and little of the old work remains. There are some curious Misereres: a fox preaching to geese, a tilting with brooms between a man and a woman, one mounted on a pig, the other on a turkey-cock, the story of Reynard the Fox. The pavement is new, and not altogether successful. The organ is a noble instrument placed on the west side, and has been often reconstructed. The Throne is modern and has some fine carving. Passing into the north aisle we notice the peculiar vaulting. It will be seen that the roof of the choir and aisles is the same height, and in order to support the weight of the choir-vault transoms are thrown across the aisles supported on arches, and above a vaulting shaft springs from the centre of the transom. This ingenious plan produces the same effect as a flying buttress and is most ingeniously arranged. The windows have beautiful Decorated tracery and the ball-flower is extensively used in the string-course beneath them. The east window has seventeenth-century glass, said to have been given by Nell Gwynne, more probably by Dean Glemham (1661-1667). It treats of the Resurrection, with Jonah and Abraham's sacrifice as types of the same, the Ascension with Elijah as a type. There are monuments here of Robert Codrington (1618); Harriet Middleton (1826); Paul Bush (1558), the first bishop; Robert Southey, the poet; Bishop Westfield (1644); Bishop Howell (1649); and Mary Mason, wife of the poet, with some touching lines (1767).

Between the aisle and the Elder Lady Chapel are the effigies of Maurice, Lord Berkeley (1368), and his wife, Elizabeth. There is a tablet to the memory of Robert Fitzhardinge, the founder of the Cathedral and also of the house of Berkeley. Some Norman corbels will be noticed in the door leading to a staircase in the third bay.

The Elder Lady Chapel is Early English and therefore earlier than the choir, and was probably built by Abbot John (1196-1215); it is therefore, as the architectural details testify, very early work. The east window is Decorated. There are some curious grotesques in the spandrels of the arcade—a hunter-goat blowing a horn and carrying a hare on his back, a ram and an ape playing musical instruments, St. Michael with the dragon, and a fox carrying off a goose. The foliage is what is known as stiff leaved, and opposed to the more natural foliage of the Decorated period. The roof is Early Decorated. The eastern Lady Chapel, formerly the chancel of the choir, was built by Abbot Knowle and is Decorated like the rest of the eastern part of the Cathedral. It has a magnificent east window with beautiful tracery. This is a Jesse window, showing the descent of our Lord from Jesse, the father of David, and the glass is in the upper parts of the same date as the stone-work. Above we see the arms of many distinguished families—the Berkeleys, Mowbrays, Beauchamps and others. The glass in the other windows is also of the same period and is of much interest. The parapet under the windows is modern. The reredos is ancient, of the same date as the chapel, and designed by Knowle, but it has been much altered in Perpendicular times. The Sedilia have been much restored. A characteristic feature of this Cathedral is the star-shaped recesses designed by Knowle, which are very beautiful. In one of these is Abbot Newbury's tomb with ball-flower ornament; in another Abbot Hunt (1473). Here, too, is Abbot Newland's tomb, and a modern brass to the memory of Bishop Butler, and at the back of the reredos a brass to Bishop Ellicott.

The South Choir Aisle resembles the north. It has a very similar east window, and the same curious vaulting. Two very interesting chapels adjoin this aisle. The Berkeley Chapel is entered by a richly-ornamented doorway which leads into the old sacristy, with its chests for relics and plate, and a hearth for baking sacramental bread. Abbot Knowle was a student of nature and loved to reproduce in stone the fruits and flowers which he saw growing around him. In the ornaments of the doorway we see the ammonite and medlar. The chapel had two altars, as we see the remains of two piscinÆ, beneath the two east windows, separated by a screen. There is an altar tomb of Thomas, Lord Berkeley (1321). The lower part of the tomb is Early English. The other chapel is the Newton Chapel, which is Late Decorated and almost Perpendicular in some of its details. The ball-flower has ceased to be used as an ornament. There are many memorials of the Newton family here, and one to Bishop Gray (1834). Returning to the south choir aisle we notice another of the curious recesses adorned with oak leaves, acorns and mistletoe. There are some more Berkeley tombs which furnish interesting studies of the armour of the period.

We now enter the Cloisters. As we have said, only the north and east walks remain; the north is entirely new, and the east has been much restored. The vestibule and chapter-house are, however, part of the original Norman building, and the work is of Transitional character. It is oblong in shape. The east wall is modern and has three windows. The north and south walls have beautiful arcades, and above lattice work and zigzag mouldings. The west wall has three rows of arcading. Twelve stone coffins were found here and a curious piece of ancient sculpture representing our Lord wounding the head of Satan and rescuing a child by means of the Cross. Adjoining the chapter-house was the dormitory. The refectory was on the south side of the cloister garth. It still exists after many transformations and is the house of the master of the Cathedral School.

The Great Gateway should be visited. The lower part is of Norman character, and was part of the founder's work; the upper is Perpendicular and was the work of Abbot Elliot. He probably renewed the rich Norman ornamentation, so much so that in the opinion of Mr. Godwin, the great authority on Bristol architecture, "the so-called Norman gateway of College Green is no Norman gateway, but a Perpendicular restoration of the old work."

Another gateway, which formerly led to the palace destroyed in 1831, exists, which is part of the original Norman work of the Cathedral. At the south-west corner of the cloister is an Early English doorway, which formerly led to the refectory. It is a sad pity that so much of the old monastery has been destroyed.

Dimensions

Principal Building Dates

• Norman (1142-1170)—Part of transepts, chapter-house, lower part of gateway.
• Early English (1196-1215)—Elder Lady Chapel, parts of transepts and Berkeley Chapel.
• Decorated (1306-1332)—Choir, Lady Chapel and stalls. (1332-1341)—Newton Chapel.
• Perpendicular (1428-1481)—Great Tower, upper part of gateway, roof.
• Modern—The nave.

The city has a large number of interesting churches. The noble Church of St. Mary, Redcliffe, one of the finest in England, chiefly fourteenth century; All Hallows' (Norman and Perpendicular); Temple Church (Decorated and Perpendicular); St. Philip's, St. Stephen's, St. John's, are the most important.