Lady Chapel and Sainte-Chapelle ?

             Many historians have been convinced the cathedral’s Lady Chapel instigated by Bishop Walter Langton was deliberately modelled on Louis IX’s Sainte-Chapelle in Paris.[1] Perhaps no building in Europe refers to the Sainte-Chapelle in such a direct and literal fashion as the Lady Chapel. The following is a comparison of the two shrine chapels, both dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

·         Work on the Lady Chapel is thought to have started by 1315,[2] and completed by 1336,[3] but the dates are uncertain. Work was possibly halted in 1321 on Bishop Langton’s death. Quarrying was mentioned in 1323 for use in the Lady Chapel and work was still being undertaken in 1335. Sainte-Chapelle was built nearly 80 years earlier; construction began sometime after 1238 and the chapel was consecrated in 1248. The ‘Holy Royal Chapel’ in Paris was therefore an architectural gem to emulate.[4]

 

The Lady Chapel standing behind the spot where once stood a shrine to St Chad.

 

Sainte-Chapelle 1890–1900.

 

·         The name of William Franceys has been suggested as the master-mason employed by Bishop Langton and he might possibly have been a Frenchman.[5] It has been conjectured Parisian stonemasons were employed and they knew how Sainte-Chapelle was built, but there is no evidence for this. There are many similarities in the construction which give this inference.

An examination of stonework in 2009[6] found red sandstone was used on the lower half of the Lady Chapel and an orange sandstone on the upper half from the springing line of the windows. The red sandstone is thought to be original and from the cathedral site; the source of the orange sandstone has not been found. It shows significant alteration of the chapel.

·         Both chapels present as tall, narrow extensions to the church. The Lady Chapel is approximately 17 m long, 13 m wide and 18 m high,[7] whereas Sainte-Chapelle upper chapel (there is a smaller lower chamber) is much longer and a little taller, internally, at 33 m long, 10 m wide and 20.5 m high.

 

Comparison of plans of the two chapels. The Lady Chapel shape is semi-octagonal with nine external bay elevations and eight buttresses. It is unusual for England, but has French parallels. Sainte-Chapelle has four bays on each side and a seven-sided apse.

 

Lady Chapel exterior. Note the massive buttresses to hold the mass of window. Also, the three windows are all different indicating alteration. At the base are three recesses and below them at ground level can be seen small windows to a subterranean undercroft. The three small windows were added once the ground level in front had been lowered, c. 1 m, on several occasions.

 

Large buttresses with pinnacles on top

East end showing the step necessary in the base to accommodate the slope of the land, c. 1 m. The outside has 24 niches for statues, which were supposed to be for 12 patriarchs and 12 apostles originally. Today it is an eclectic mix of people that Victorians considered were important to the cathedral.

 ·         Deep buttresses strengthened with ironwork were added to both chapels in order to support the considerable glass.[8] Lichfield’s buttresses and ironwork were removed in the 1880’s to 1892 restoration under the supervision of John Oldrid Scot. It was written the ‘much dilapidated buttresses were defaced by iron bands’.[9] At Sainte-Chapelle two metal rings girdle the chapel and are disguised from the outside as bars for the windows. It too has had much restoration, 1840–68. Iron reinforcement indicates the problem of avoiding having to support much heavy, leaded window with huge buttresses which then would have shielded the light.

·         The windows have simple trefoil tracery. Sections of the three windows in the Lady Chapel apse are original, those on the sides were rebuilt by Scott.[10] At Sainte-Chapelle around two-thirds of the 15 windows are original, one-third were destroyed in the French Revolution, 1789. The greater loss of original window in the Lady Chapel has to be ascribed to the Civil War.

·         Internal niches held statues. In the Lady Chapel it was supposed the original figures were the ten wise and foolish virgins (Matthew 25, 2).[11] In 1895, the niches were filled with figures of ten virgin saints and martyrs.[12] Sainte-Chapelle has 12 apostles, of which six are replicas, the originals were destroyed in the French Revolution, 1789.

·         Ogee arches. The Lady Chapel has ‘nodding’ ogees (they curve forwards).

·         On the south side of the Lady Chapel are three small chambers.[13] They act to buttress the lower part on ground which is much lower on the south side. They were possibly intended as sacristies for chantry chaplains serving at the chapel altar.[14]  Alternatively, they were used for anchorite priests to receive visitors for spiritual guidance, see the post ‘Anchoritism’. From the western chamber a low doorway in the west wall gives access to a flight of stone steps that leads down to an undercroft below the three chambers. Either this undercroft or the one under the consistory have been used for imprisonment.[15] Externally there were recesses, presumably for tombs. In the early 18th-century there was a doorway, now stopped up, that accessed the Close.     

Drawing of south side showing the door. From Dugdale Monasticum Anglicanum, late 17th-century. Note also the style of windows before Victorian reordering.

      

     At Sainte-Chapelle there is a lower storey to the chapel once reserved for courtiers, servants and soldiers of Louis IX’s court. This chapel has a low ceiling and small windows and is consequently dimly lit. It contrasts with the upper chapel with its many windows, rays of coloured light passing through and painted walls and ceiling.

 

Roof of the Lady Chapel with its complex rib vaulting.

 

Beautiful rib vaulting, bosses and appropriate paintwork. 

 

·         

       

     Vaulting in the Lady Chapel roof is continuous with the nave and choir having a mid-line rib vault. There are seven ribs diverging from the slender shafts like the choir (only six in the nave). There are four transverse ribs, twelve roof bosses and tierceron ribs. Sainte-Chapelle is much simpler with no mid-line vault, only three arch ribs from each wall shaft and five bosses. It appears as a four-part ribbed quoin vault. Clearly the roof for the Lady Chapel is more complex and has a later date; it might not have been the first roof constructed. Civil war damage, especially on the parapet has been found.

           Boss which appears to have 'Green Man' features. 

                   
 Evidently the Lady Chapel takes inspiration from Sainte-Chapelle, but is on a smaller scale. Its original architecture was innovative for England, but has been much altered. Originally it was a building that framed a sumptuous shrine of St Chad completed c. 1307–8. Today it is a chapel of St Mary.

    

         Maddison has linked many features of the Lady Chapel which fit into the architectural fashion of 14th-century England. The decorative motifs have parallels with buildings in Kent, East Anglia and elsewhere.[16] He conjectured an association with Canterbury masons and sees associations with St Stephen’s Chapel at Westminster begun in 1292 and continued into the early 14th century. He particularly noted the wall passage at window-sill level that is absent at Sainte-Chapelle, but can be seen at the east end of Westminster Abbey, 1245‑69, and also at Bristol. The passage has no structural or functional purpose and must simply be an expected feature for the time of construction. The same goes for the small vaulted chambers on the south side which have a counterpart at Bristol. Maddison pointed out the decorative crenellations follow from those on the tower and the surrounding wall of the Close. It is clear the Lady Chapel is a mixture of features from several prior buildings and is thus unique.

                                  

[1] J. Maddison, ‘Building at Lichfield Cathedral during the episcopate of Walter Langton (1296–1321)’. The British Archaeological Association conference transactions for 1987. XIII Medieval Archaeology and Architecture at Lichfield. (1993), 72.

[2] Ibid, 80. Also M. W. Greenslade, 'Lichfield: The cathedral', in A History of the County of Stafford: Volume 14, Lichfield. (London, 1990), 47-57. 

[3] In 1336, William de Heywood and Robert Aylbrick were admitted as custodians of the fabric of the chapel of the Blessed Mary. This is taken to indicate the Chapel was now being used.

[4] Maddison (1993), 72, conjectured Bishop Roger Meuland, 1275–95, might have strongly considered adding a Sainte-Chapelle type ending to the squared east end of the 13th-century cathedral. He also conjectured, page 70, if Langton formulated the idea of rebuilding the eastern arm of the cathedral before ordering a new shrine for St Chad in the Lady Choir (retrochoir).

[5] Is Franceys a corruption of France? J. Harvey, English Medieval Architects. (Stroud: 1984) 105 conjectured if the builder was William of Eyton instead.

[6] K. Blockley, Lady Chapel, Lichfield, Staffordshire. Standing fabric recording report 665. (2011).

[7] Length and height of the Lady Chapel are taken from T. Harwood, The history and antiquities of the church and city of Lichfield. (London: 1806), 72. The height of the Lady Chapel is the same as the Nave.

[8] Sainte-Chapelle upper chapel is said to be two-thirds glass; that is the impression from the inside.

[9] J. G. Londsdale, Recollections of work done in and upon Lichfield Cathedral from 1856--1894. (Lichfield: 1895), 29–30.

[10] Londsdale and others noted the extremely poor state of the exterior of the Lady Chapel before restoration. Tracery was found consisting of Roman cement moulded onto wood with rope, metal and bitumen incorporated. The windows had to be re-leaded. The two western most windows are entirely Scott’s design.

[11] W. Stukeley, Itinerarium Curiosum: or an account of the antiquities and remarkable curiosities in nature and art observed in travels through Great Britain. (London: 1776).

[12] The statues are, 1. St Werburga with pastoral staff and book and a model of Chester Cathedral at her feet. 2. St Cecilia with organ. 3. St Prisca with palm branch, and lion at her feet. 4. St Faith with sword and rack. 5. St Catherine with sword and wheel and open book treading on a monster. 6. St Margaret with book and cross treading on a dragon. 7. St Lucy with palm branch and lamp. 8. St Agnes with palm branch and book and lamb at her feet. 9. St Agatha with palm branch and tongs. 10. St Etheldreda with crown, pilgrim staff, pastoral staff and a model of Ely cathedral.

[13] J. C. Fox, ‘The Mortuary Chapels of Lichfield Cathedral’, Derbyshire Archaeological Journal. (1879), 1. A. B. Clifton, The Cathedral church of Lichfield. (London: 1900), 105, also called them Mortuary Chapels.

[14] All three side chambers were altered in 1879 with the middle one converted for Bishop Selwyn’s tomb.

[15] Mentioned by T. Harwood (1806), 96, without reference. J. C. Fox (1879), 122, mentions hearsay of Parliamentarian spies being imprisoned during the siege of the Royalists.

16] Maddison, (1993), 75. See note 1.

West front of the cathedral

     New visitors to the cathedral are usually overawed by the front. Its twin towers,[1] tall spires, flat, symmetrical elevation, numerous statues in lines and the great west window all combine to give a surprise-welcome.[2] It is an ‘architectural screen’ reminiscent of the cathedrals of Wells and Salisbury and was probably inspired by their façades.[3] Five layers of statues, 113 in total (153 in total around the cathedral), two pointed spires with many pinnacles encourage the viewer to look to the heavens; the Gothic objective. However, it has not always looked this way; the original frontage was probably less elaborate and partially painted with red and green; Willis gave an approximate date of c. 1275. Cobb thought there were about a hundred figures all gilded.[4]  Erdeswicke in the 16th-century described “a great number of tabernacles containing statues of prophets, apostles, kings of Judah and divers’ other kings of this land.” The original top statue was Christ seated.[5] The story of a seated Christ statue, 2.1 m (7 feet) high and 13th-century, found at Swynnerton Church as being the lost statue is plausible, but unlikely.[6]

 

W. Hollar’s etching, early 16th-century. Thanks to Univ. of Toronto Libraries.

Almost the entire front of the cathedral was destroyed in the Civil Wall; mostly in the 1646 heavy bombardment. There was a partial restoration completed by 1666, further reordering in 1749[7], twice in the19th[8] and more work in the 20th centuries; all of which means little is original. The statues are the third set, very Victorian in composition, and undoubtedly different from the original decoration.[9] 

The top statue of Charles II, added with post-Civil War restoration, was removed between 1877–84 and by 1977 placed by the South Transept door.

Charles II 

West front showing Charles II statue and a mistaken hood stone for a cathedra.

 Much has been written on Joseph Potter’s addition of stucco[10] to the eroding statues on the west front in 1820–2, and then the removal of the grey figures began by G. Gilbert Scott and finished by his son, J. Oldrid Scott, in 1877–84. Almost everyone expressed disdain[11] at the early restoration and later praise for the current, reddish, sandstone, figures. Many of the new statues were copied from sepia drawings taken before the 1820–2 restoration,[12] but there is an obvious Victorian bias regarding which figures were included and how they were portrayed. The apostles in the lowest tier sculpted by Mary Grant are considered the finest. Other figures were sculpted by Gilbert Seale and Walter Rowlands Ingram of London and 63 were by Robert Bridgeman of Lichfield. The figure (head) of Queen Victoria, sculpted by her daughter Princess Louise invites surprise; it was added in 1885.[13] Princess Victoria visited Lichfield in 1832. The doorways had bushy foliage added around the arches in the early 19th-century and this was removed by Scott and replaced with small statues. The smaller doors were studded and this was replaced with shaped, wrought-iron decoration. The large central doors had ironwork at the bottom replaced. 

West Front, c. 1845 from Charles Knight’s ‘Old England’, 252. Old statues have been removed and the old west window has still to be replaced.

 Great west window being replaced in 1869. From John B. Stone, A history of Lichfield Cathedral (London: 1870). 

The window was furnished by Clayton and Bell and consists of six lights, which are filled with figures of the Archangel Gabriel, St. Joseph, the Virgin and Child, and the Three Magi; under which respectively are scenes representing the Annunciation, the Angel appearing to St. Joseph, the Birth, with angels adoring; the Journey of the Magi, the Magi before Herod, and the Flight into Egypt.   West Front restoration in the early 1880s. The south side and tower has been finished.

West front post-Victorian Reordering.

 Four statues on the top left are 14th-century and believed to be original.  They could have been queens of the kings involved in the early construction of the cathedral (Edward I, Henry III and Richard II are possibilities). Other cathedrals with kings on the front include Canterbury, Exeter, Lincoln and York.

 For a detailed exposition with images of the 113 statues see the website  https://statues.vanderkrogt.net/object.php?webpage=ST&record=gbwm025

The current eclectic mix of statues contains King Richard II, reigning 1367–1400, (immediately left of Chad) and thus well after the front had been completed. The figures to the right of Chad were uncertain, but one king was playing a harp so this was considered to be Alfred and therefore kings to his left were earlier and those to the right were later. There was much uncertainty in who was being replaced.

    Work in 1878 included the lowering of the ground across the whole of the front of the cathedral. Also, an entire restoration of the southwest tower, exclusive of the sculpture.[14]

Conjecture on Great Window extending above the stone vault

The top of the Great West window cannot be seen from the inside of the cathedral. The stone vault roof cuts off the top of the window. This has led to much speculation on whether the stone roof was added later and whether originally the window was so large. The plausible view is the window was built to be admired from the outside and having foreshortened internally is not a problem. The same feature occurs in the south transept with the hiding of a wheel window within the stone roof vault.

Conjecture on an earlier date for the lower west front

Rodwell, 1989, examined the stonework below the internal lower passage and conjectured it was Romanesque and earlier than the 1320s.[15] Moulding profiles and mason’s marks led him to believe a date of 1220‑30 was more appropriate. It might also explain the two buttress foundations under the pavement and either side of the central door. If true, it means an earlier nave front was contemporary with that at Wells cathedral and earlier than Salisbury. It also gives doubt to the dates of the nave.

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[1] There are differences between the towers which has led to the speculation they were built at different times. It is more likely they were built by different masons and the lower ground on the south side was a complication. Furthermore, the south tower held the heavy bells and clock. The south side spire is a little taller than the north side spire. The first recorded bell in the southwest tower was in 1477. This ‘Jesus Bell’ was destroyed in the Civil War and removed in 1653. It was replaced after the War, but had to be recast again in 1688.

[2] J. Leland, 1540s, wrote ‘the glory of the church is the work of the west end which is exceedingly costly and fayre’. T. Fuller, Church History of Britain. Vol. 1. (London: 1842), Book 4, 499, wrote ‘the west front is a stately fabric adorned with exquisite imagery’.

[3] J. P. McAleer, The west front of Lichfield Cathedral. A hidden liturgical function. 52nd Friends Annual Report held in Cathedral Library. (1989), 26–9.

[4] G. Cobb, English Cathedrals: the forgotten centuries. Restoration and change from 1530 to the present day. (London: 1981), 140.

[5][5] Noted from Hollar’s etching, early 17th-century, appearing in Thomas Fuller’s book, Church history of Britain. Volume 1. (London: 1842).

[6] It depends on a Royalist climbing the front and retrieving a very heavy statue in the middle of a siege. That assumes it avoided damage from cannon and musket and could be taken north without discovery. In contrast the statue is in a stone similar to that used for the cathedral and it has red paint on the sleeve; the cathedral was painted in red and green.

[7] Several statues in a poor state were removed.

[8] 1820–22 and 1877–84.

[9] Apart from four (two and six are quoted elsewhere) at the top left-hand corner where cannon and musket appear not to have reached out of a total of 113 now present. Wells Cathedral has 297.

[10] A proprietary formula labelled ‘Roman Cement’ which was very hard wearing, had low shrinkage, but was brittle. Roman Stucco is made with a natural cement by burning limestone in a traditional kiln. 

[11] A. W. Pugin wrote a censorious letter in 1834 describing brown, (grey?) cracked cement and heads devoid of expression. The letter was published by B. Ferrey, Recollections of A. W. Pugin and his father Augustus Pugin. (1861), 85–6.

[12] R. Prentis, The restoration of the west front, 1877–1884. Unpub. article in Cathedral Library (2007), 11.

[13] Possibly Chad with a resemblance to a previous Archbishop. 

[14] G. H. Holderness, ‘The cathedral a hundred years ago.’ (1977). Unpub. article in cathedral library.

[15] W, Rodwell, ‘Lichfield cathedral. Notes on the gallery and other features at the west end of the nave.’ (1989), Unpub. article in the cathedral library.