Higgins and Hacket, rebuilders

Summary. Precentor William Higgins and Bishop John Hacket oversaw the rebuilding of the cathedral after the devastation of the Civil War from1660. It was a major enterprise backed by the king.

          Three sieges of the Close, including a heavy bombardment, in the Civil War, 1643-6, left the cathedral wrecked. Cromwell’s parliament wanted it demolished. Harwood wrote, ‘the whole of the building reduced almost to a ruin.’[1] Two priests, both Royalists, resisted attempts to complete the demolition and with the restoration of the monarchy, 1660, supervised reconstruction. They were Precentor William Higgins and Bishop John Hacket.

AI generated image of the cathedral in 1646.

William Higgins, born in London, was educated at Christ Church, Oxford and held livings at Henstridge, Almondbury, Cheselbourne and was rector of Stoke on Tern, Shropshire, before becoming a canon of Lichfield Cathedral in 1633, and precentor in 1636.[2] In 1642, he fought for the Royalists at Edgehill and was taken prisoner and imprisoned at Coventry for three months. His release came with paying a sum of money.[3] At some point in the 1640s he removed St Chad’s gospels and arranged for its safe keeping. He admitted to having the gospels on 15 August 1658. He stayed within the Close during the third siege and was taken prisoner when the Close surrendered in 1646. The priests by now had scattered and the cathedral was without any leadership. On his release Higgins became a teacher in Shropshire, but this reduced him to penury.[4] 

Letter claiming he had looked after Chad’s gospels.   

AI generated image of William Higgins holding St Chad’s Gospels.

At the Restoration of the Monarchy, 1660, the rebuilding of the cathedral began under the supervision of Higgins and later in February 1661 with the help of dean William Paul. Paul was only the dean for two years, 1661-3, before being elevated to Bishop of Oxford, but he must have contributed to the preparation for rebuilding, as well as the clearance of the Close.

In September 1660, Higgins became president of the chapter and reformed it with much disagreement on who should be appointed. Services restarted in the chapterhouse and vestry, 1660. Savage wrote, ‘practically alone (Higgins) preserved a continuity of the cathedral’.[5] In 1664, he had to cope with a new dean who was disliked by all. Higgins died in 1666, aged 66, half way through the rebuilding.

Procession to the Chapter House on 16 June 1660 after the restoration of the monarchy. A roundel in the presbytery floor. A diary records “The Clerks Vicars of the cathedral had entered the chapter-house, and there said service; and this, with the vestry, was the only place in the church that had a roof to shelter, them.”

 John Hacket (Halket), 1592–1670 was Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry, 1661–1670. He has been described as ‘another founder of the cathedral’.[6]  He was born in St Martin-in-the-Fields, London and educated at Westminster School and Trinity College, Cambridge. His father was a prosperous tailor in London.

AI gen. rendition of the statue of John Hacket from west front. He is holding the Book of Common Prayer which he used all his life.

    

He was ordained in London in 1618, aged 26 and gained a D.D. in 1628. He preached to James I in 1623 and again in 1624;[7] being made a Prebend of Lincoln Cathedral in 1623. Between 1631 and 1661, he was archdeacon of Bedford. In 1641, Hacket was asked to speak to parliament against a bill forwarded by Puritans to abolish bishops, deans and cathedral chapters. He gave reasons for the existence of cathedrals, their clergy and all who work in them causing the bill to be delayed for a month. A year later he was made a residentiary canon of St Pauls. In 1642, he was imprisoned for failing to pay money to Parliament and a year later the Parliamentarians accused him of ‘superstition, covetousness, sending money to the king and aversion to the Covenant’. Whereupon he retired to his rectory at Cheam having no more to do with the Civil War.[8] After the Civil War and the Commonwealth he became chaplain to Charles II. In 1660 he frequently preached before Charles II, sometimes occupying the pulpit at St. Paul’s. That year he was offered the bishopric of Gloucester but refused it, and then on the recommendation of Charles II accepted the see at Lichfield with all the difficulty of rebuilding “that most ruined cathedral, city and diocese to his prudent circumspection and government.” He was consecrated Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry on 22 December 1661, aged 69. Taking on this project for the next 8 years must have seemed daunting, and can only be explained by the king imploring him.

 

                   Bishop Hacket painting in Trinity College, Cambridge.                      

  

Near life-size effigy of Hacket on a marble table monument located in the South Choir aisle. The bishop is holding the Book of Common Prayer and a crozier. His eldest son, Andrew, erected the effigy to his father’s memory.

Hacket gained a reputation for learning, perseverance and determination and was widely known for his strong Royalist sympathies, but he came to Lichfield in mental turmoil.[9] The Civil War had caused him much anguish and sorrow and he had retired to rural Cheam claiming he would never again enter London after the execution of the king. William Harvey, a fellow Royalist who had been physician to James I, described Hacket as wanting to depart the world after the execution of Charles and death of clergy. His time was spent in prayer and study and the isolation made him a ‘sickly old man.’ Harvey told him to take exercises and gave him curatives for his despondency. Leaving his rectory sanctuary and restoring the cathedral after its Civil War desecration was for him never going to be easy.

Hacket seated at the bench planning the restoration of the cathedral. Note the figure at the front of the bench holding the working drawings. Also the loss of the middle spire.

He arrived at the cathedral two years into its restoration. By then precentor Higgins, a reinstituted Chapter, a new Dean and other local notables had initiated much of the early planning and clearance of the site from 1660–1.[10] Hacket arrived in August 1662 and was immediately preoccupied with building a house in the Close, spending £1000 of his own money.[11] He returned again in October. He gave a silver-gilt communion service, two chalices, two flagons and a paten, for facilitating Eucharist.

Communion service given to the cathedral by Hacket, 1662. Made by Daniel Rutty and engraved with the cathedral arms, with one piece made by an unknown silversmith.

From 1663, Hacket and the Chapter had a quarrelsome relationship with the Dean, who he described as siding with ‘Puritans’ (Nonconformists) in the town.[12] He visited Lichfield in August 1668 to see the work being done. The restored cathedral, after eight years of considerable work, was rededicated by Hacket on Christmas Eve 1669, followed by a feast for three days.[13] Hacket paid for a statue of Charles II to be placed high on the west front.[14] For some, he was the builder of a new cathedral,[15] but evidence for his close involvement in its material reconstruction is lacking. Instead, Hacket’s great contribution was the raising of finance and before he died, he claimed to have raised £15,000 (equivalent to £1.5 million).[16] In his last year he preached again to the king. When close to death he heard a new bell chiming in the south-west tower; described by one writer as his passing bell. He died in October 1670. Hacket’s sermons for which he was most noted were published in 1675.[17]

      

Hacket grave marker at the end of the south aisle.

AI rendition of Hacket’s cathedra, the middle stall. It was adapted for use by judges in the Consistory Court, 1814. The Court from late 17th-century to 1830 was mostly concerned with arbitration for intractable disputes of a predominantly rural nature.[18]

         

Chairs believed to be from Hacket’s restoration of the interior of the cathedral.

   

    It is supposed that Hacket brought his friend Sir Christopher Wren to help with the rebuilding, but there is little evidence he did any more than be consulted.

AI gen. rendition of statue of Christopher Wren on the east end

Harwood gave a long list of all who contributed to pay for the rebuild.[19] He also wrote, ‘In the space of eight years it was restored to its former beauty and magnificence.’[20]

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[1] T. Harwood, The history and antiquities of the church and city of Lichfield. (London: 1806), 50

[2] J. Foster (ed), Hieron-Horridge', in Alumni Oxonienses 1500-1714, (Oxford, 1891), British History Online https://www.british-history.ac.uk/alumni-oxon/1500-1714/pp706-747 .

[3] H. E. Savage, ‘Reconstruction after the Commonwealth. Unpub. article in Lichfield Cathedral library (1918).

[4] M W Greenslade and R B Pugh (ed), 'House of secular canons - Lichfield cathedral: From the Reformation to the 20th century', in A History of the County of Stafford: Volume 3. (London, 1970), 166-199. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/staffs/vol3/pp166-199  .

[5] H, Savage, (1918), 18. See note 3.

[6]. T. Harwood, (1806), 155. See note 1,

[7] Hacket in his study time composed the Latin comedy called Loyola, which was twice performed before James I. It satirised church groups outside of mainstream Church of England.

[8] There is a story of Hacket preaching from the unauthorised Book of Common Prayer when a soldier entered his church and presented a pistol at his breast and ordered him to stop. Hacket replied that he would do what became a divine, let the other do what became a soldier; and continued with his service. It has not been possible to find the origin of this story, or which church it occurred in; there are variations.

[9] T. Plume, An account of the life and death of the Right Reverend Father in God, John Hacket, late Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry, foreword to A century of Sermons, (London: 1675)

[10] H. E. Savage, (1918). See note 3.

[11] T. Harwood, (1806), 66. See note 1.

[12] The bishop was driven to excommunicate the Dean openly in the church.

[13] M. W. Greenslade, ‘Lichfield: From the Reformation to c.1800', in A History of the County of Stafford: Volume 14, Lichfield, (London, 1990), 14-24. 

[14] T. Harwood (1806), 72. See note 1.

[15] M. W. Greenslade and R. B. Pugh, (London, 1970), 166-199. See note 4.

[16] Ibid. £1683 12s was said to have come directly from Hacket.

[17] See https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebo/A43515.0001.001?view=toc for a list of the sermons.

[18] A. Tarver, The Consistory Court of the Diocese of Lichfield and Coventry and its work, 1680-1830. Unpub. thesis, University of Warwick. (1998) 

[19] T. Harwood (1806) 59-65. Contributors were from across the county. The Archbishop of Canterbury gave £200 and the Duke and Duchess of York each gave £100. The Dean and Chapter raised £445 in 1661 and £186 in1668. The Close raised £18 and the magistrates of Lichfield £14. It is presumed most of the benefactors were Royalist in sympathy.

[20] Ibid 65.

Christmas, Christ's-mass

Summary.  Before Reformation Christmas was solemn with fasting, chastity and ritual liturgy. Carol singing and dancing occurred outside of the church. After Reformation there was more festivity. By the 17th-century, puritanical Protestantism forbade any kind of celebration apart from a Christian Mass. It changed in the early 19th-century. 

          The earliest reference to a festival on 25 December was in Rome in the year 336. This date was probably fixed because it was 9 months from 25 March, the date considered to be Christ’s conception.[1] It was also the date of the Spring Equinox. Christmas Day was seen as the return of the sun and linked with the creator of light. Bede in De temporum ratione, 725,[2] writes, “it is fitting the Creator of eternal light should be conceived and born along with the increase of temporal light.” An early name for the midwinter festival which became a name for Christmas Day was Geola or Yule (meaning redemption or deliverance). This name continued in some areas of the north of England and Scotland into the late medieval period. The Vikings upon conversion used the word Jól. Early medieval England used the word middlewinter and Christmas day was middlewintres mæsse dæg. This name appeared in 1066 with William the Conqueror’s coronation. The name Cristesmæsse, Christmas, was not used until the early 11th-century and even then, was often substituted with the name ‘Midwinter’. Another was the French Noël.

 

Nativity scene cathedral 2025.

In pre-Reformation times, Advent leading to Christmas in church was a solemn occasion with three weeks of formal services.[3] The reading of Isaiah and the prophecy of Christ’s birth was a given. Fasting was recommended with fish preferred to meat. Marriages were not allowed because sexual activity was inappropriate (it also applied to Lent). A vigil and fasting occurred on Christmas Eve as a precursor to the feast on Christmas Day. Three masses were celebrated, on Christmas Eve, at dawn on Christmas Day and then later in the morning. The following three days were festivals, St Stephen (Boxing Day, so called in 1871, and no one knows why), St John the Evangelist on 27 December and finally Holy Innocents Day on 28 December with the custom of installing a boy-bishop – see the post on ‘Choristers’. There were further festivals on 1 and 6 January. The centre pieces of the Christmas liturgy were the shepherds at Christmas, the three Magi at Epiphany and Simeon at Candlemas. The three events are similar in welcoming and presenting Jesus as the Messiah. Alfred the Great ordered a celebration of 12 days at Christmas. It was a festival to brighten the darkest time of the year.

Visit of the three Magi on the reredos in the Lady Chapel.

 

Richard II spent Christmas 1397 at Lichfield staying in the palace in the Close. His stay until January 6 with a large protecting bodyguard, according to the allegations of a monk of Evesham, meant the consumption of twenty cattle, three hundred sheep, and a daily large quantity of poultry.

          The church could be decorated with holly and ivy, and more candles than usual. There is no record of a nativity scene with a crib being displayed.[4] In homes there was generally much celebration with food, games and gift-giving on New Year’s Day. Carols were sung outside of the church and usually accompanied with dancing. The twelve days of Christmas could be a holiday for the prosperous, but for many there was a need to keep working. Candlemas on 2 February was the time of ‘light’ and almost everyone attended church and brought in a candle. In some places the people processed to the church carrying torches. New candles for the coming year in the church were blessed. 

The Nativity, from a 14th-century Sherbrooke Missal. The Missal on parchment originates from East Anglia and is held in The National Library of Wales.

 

          The origins of the allegorical Father Christmas are obscure, but might have developed from folklore figures in Early Medieval times. The earliest evidence for a character called Christmas can be found in a 15th-century carol, in which a 'Sir Christëmas' shares the news of Christ's birth. One portrayal of Father Christmas was a large man who wore a scarlet robe lined with fur and had a crown of holly, ivy, or mistletoe. A link with a pagan ritual sounds plausible, but is conjecture.  A red suited Father Christmas carrying a sack of toys first appeared as an illustration to a poem in 1881.

Father Christmas crowned with a holly wreath and holding a staff, wassail bowl and Yule log. From Illustrated London News, 1848, altered with AI.

 

          In post-Reformation times not much changed with Christmas traditions except the saints were not venerated and this included St Nicholas the saint for children held on 6 December when a boy-bishop was picked from amongst the choristers. It has been suggested since St Nicholas was associated with gift-giving his cult gradually morphed into that of Father Christmas, but this is tenuous. Church liturgy changed with Reformation, but this did not stop festivities. Henry VIII celebrated twelve days of Christmas with prolonged feasting and the menu would include traditional boar’s head, peacock, swan, lark, partridge, quail, roast beef and prawn pasties. The hall, usually at Greenwich Palace, was decorated with greenery, dried fruit, berries, and candles. Carols were sung and danced as well as pageantry, disguising and convivial merrymaking, all led by the mischievous ‘The Lord of Misrule.’ Mummers would perform a play. The king allowed archery on Christmas Day, but no other sport.

 

          In parts of Europe, Reformation became a catalyst to curtail Christmas. John Calvin in Switzerland, 1550, thought people gave more importance to the festivities and ignored the Christian significance. Ulrich Zwingli in Zurich, Switzerland sought to abolish all feast and saint’s holy days, including Christmas. John Knox, who founded the Presbyterian movement in Scotland, followed the same thinking. Martin Luther, in contrast, liked Christmas; there is an untrue story that he first attached candles to a tree. In Britain, the 1559 Elizabethan Settlement steered a middle line between removing choral music, candles and dance and the desire to have a celebration. In contrast in Scotland,1583, the Presbyterians secured a ban on Christmas celebrations, though others ignored the ban. William Prynne, 1632, a puritan writer, stated all pious Christians should eternally abominate observance of the holiday. For puritans the word Christmas was synonymous with the Popish mass. This division of opinion simmered until the Civil War.

On 19 December 1643, an ordinance was passed by the Parliamentarians encouraging subjects to treat the mid-winter period with solemn humiliation. This was in contrast with the gaiety advocated by the Royalists. A year later another ordinance confirmed the abolition of the feasts of Christmas, Easter and Whitsun, but at this time it only applied to the Parliamentarians. It continued, however, until 1659. From 1656, Cromwell’s parliament legislated that every Sunday was to be stringently observed as a holy day. If Christmas was not on a Sunday, then shops and markets could stay open, but special food for a Christmas event was prohibited. Christmas was not to be celebrated with frivolous and immoral behaviour, but instead spent in respectful contemplation. There was a fear poor behaviour would spill over into church services and it was also too closely associated with Catholicism. Cromwell did not order the banning of Christmas, but instead legislated to severely curtail such celebrations. The Puritans' prohibition of Christmas proved very unpopular and pro-Christmas riots broke out across the country with many disregarding the ordinance. Royalist propaganda indicated the ban was severe, the reality was it was much ignored.[5]

AI rendition of an early 20th-century architectural drawing of Oliver Cromwell’s statue outside Parliament. There are differences with the statue.

 

          It took until the early 19th-century for the division between puritanical Protestantism and those who wanted to celebrate the mid-winter festival to subside. Popular evangelists, like George Whitfield, John Wesley and others, promoted Christmas as a genuine Christian celebration with carols such as ‘O Holy Night’ and ‘Go Tell It on the Mountain.’ The version of ‘O come all ye faithful’ was written by the priest Frederick Oakeley and he is associated with Lichfield in his early years. The Victorians added traditions to the festival, c. 1840s, and increased its commercialisation. Its observance has changed in many ways.[6]

                   The flaw in all this history is that it is clear how the church saw Christmas and changed its liturgy with time and much is known how leaders of the country tried to impose their idea of the festival, but very little is known how ordinary people approached the winter solstice and New Year. Indeed, the gaiety of Christmas, carols, dancing, gifts and feasting, originated in the homes.

The Christ-child was born in a manger, [7] in an ordinary dwelling, Luke 2, 7. From this, artists have painted and sculpted stables, barns, shacks and other out-buildings. The Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem has a cave. This is very different from how the celebration has become.

Fresco in the Catacomb of Priscilla, Rome, late second century. Three magi each in a different colour with outstretched hands approach Mary and child.

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[1] E. Parker, Winters in the World. A journey through the Anglo-Saxon Year. ((London: 2022), 68.

[2] Wallis, F, Bede: The Reckoning of Time. (Liverpool: 1999).

[3] Orne. N. Going to church in Medieval England. (New Haven and London: 2022), 257–260.

[4] Francis of Assisi is credited with staging the first nativity scene in 1223, but it then took many years before it was copied in European countries. The earliest cribs appeared in a few churches in Europe in the mid-16th century. Strangely, it did not get taken up in England. Paintings of the nativity were known in England, but never a diorama. In contrast, the tomb and stone at Easter was modelled in an Easter sepulchre.

[5] J.A.R. Pimlott, ‘Christmas under the Puritans.’ History Today, (1960), 10, issue 12.

[6] There is a theory that agricultural workers moving into the towns expanding with new industries in the early Victorian era brought their rural customs and added them to the Christmas celebration. It was a response to upheaval and many strange practices relieving the poverty and dark gloom occurred.

[7] Trough, crib or rack.