Summary. King
Wulfhere fixed the location of the first cathedral and must have organised its
building. By the 8th-century the church was elaborate and decorated.
King Wulfhere of Mercia and
Bishop Wilfrid of Ripon selected a site called Licetfelda, later Licitfelda,
c,667–8, for an early church.[1] “He (Wilfrid) knew of a
place in the kingdom of Wulfhere, King of the Mercians, his faithful friend,
which had been granted to him at Lichfield and was suitable as an episcopal
see.” Wulfhere had given a large estate to Wilfrid and it seems he wanted Wilfrid
to be his next Bishop of Mercia, but instead a new Archbishop of Canterbury arrived
in 669, and intervened by appointing Chad of Lastingham.[2]
AI rendition of King Wulfhere and Bishop Wilfrid fixing the location
of the first cathedral at Licetfelda.Chad died, probably of a plague
variant, and was buried at Lichfield in 672. The location of Chad’s grave and a
shrine tower were revealed in 2003.[3] See the post ‘Chad's
grave-the evidence,’ Wulfhere was King of the Mercians for 17 years, 658-75,
and in this time set up Chad’s cathedral-church and his grave eventually becoming
a shrine for pilgrims. Bede records the cathedral church was called St Peters
and the grave was near a cemetery chapel called St Marys.[4]
AI rendition of the first pilgrims visiting Ceadda's (Chad)
grave by St Mary's chapel
The premiss is Wulfhere would be like all Early Medieval
kings of the late 7th-century and build a first cathedral to impress. Bede
records that King Ecgfrith of Northumbria, 670–85, brought masons and glaziers
from Gaul to build churches literally ‘in the manner of the Romans’ (Romanum).[5] Wulfhere presumably did
likewise for his growing kingdom of Mercia.
The location and nature of the first cathedral is
unknown, though some features can be deduced.
1. Wulfhere would
have insisted on a stone church.[6] The reason for the
changeover from timber to stone churches has been much speculated. Indeed, churches
in Wales and Ireland did not change to stone construction for another three
centuries. The Roman mission culminating in the Synod or Council of Whitby,
663–4,[7] is clearly a critical
influence. Bishop Wilfrid had Ripon and York churches rebuilt in stone.[8] This was repeated at
Hexham, Hartlepool and most likely at Lindisfarne. It is thought Early
Medievalists perceived stone as the material not just of Rome and the Roman
Church, but as the material of permanence. Timber was the perishable material
of the cyclical natural world and transient human life.[9] Stone also differentiated the
new Roman church from the small, wooden Celtic, folk, pagan churches and
temples.
AI rendition of King Wulfhere from
his statue on the west front of the cathedral. He is carrying his cathedral,
the first at Lichfield, and it resembles the 7th-century church of St Peters in
Wearmouth.
Escomb, County
Durham, the late 7th-century church was constructed of reused Roman stone, but
its proportions are that of the putative timber church at Yeavering. It was
therefore a bridge between two very different traditions, the layout being ‘Germanic’
and the masonry Roman.[10]
AI Headda
holding a church like Escomb. The small statue is in the north choir aisle.
Bishop Headda, 691-c.709 or 721, is credited in some websites with building the
first cathedral in 700; this is untrue and is based on an unreliable
14th-century text written by a cathedral scribe/vicar. Headda was a minor
bishop and under the control of Bishop Wilfrid of the Middle Angles.
2. The cathedral most
likely was constructed wholly or in part from recycled Roman material obtained
from Wall (Letocetum). The roof could have been Roman tile and looked
like St Martin’s, Canterbury, the earliest stone church still in use, dating
from the 590s. Its chancel is built of Roman brick, and its later nave is of
reused Roman stone and brick, “laid in the Roman manner.”
Possible original plan of St Martins, Canterbury. St
Augustine from the south doorway arrived in 697.
St Martins Canterbury, middle section
dated to 600s.
The recycling of Roman material also occurred with the
church-cathedral of Chad’s older brother Cedd, at Bradwell-on-Sea, Essex. The
church was on the edge of a large Roman shore fort and part is considered to be
still standing.[11]
St.Cedd's
church of St Peter, Bradwell-on-Sea, and its plan.
3. The floor might
have been recycled Roman tile or brick which was crushed and mixed with mortar
to create a distinctive pink floor. It has been noted at Glastonbury, Reculver,
Canterbury and Jarrow, and suggested early churches declared their Romanitas
through plastered masonry buildings and terracotta-coloured floors in stark
contrast to traditional timber and earth constructions.[12]
Excavated
Saxon church at Glastonbury, c. 700. At Glastonbury, the old timber
church of St Mary was joined by the church of St Peter, built by King Ine,
688–726, which incorporated an early stone hypogeum on the site.
4. The cathedral
probably stood to the west of the shrine. There are 9 possible examples of
Early Medieval mausolea being small square, or rectangular buildings east of
the church.[13]
Some of the examples are questionable, especially in regard to their existence.
If Lichfield follows this linear tradition, then St Peters was located at the
west end of the nave. St Marys cemetery chapel would be somewhere to the east
of Chad’s shrine and near the cemetery uncovered in the choir area. Blair
identified where a church was dedicated to an apostle and paired with St Mary,
the lesser St Mary church often stood due east of the apostolic church and this
followed Continental practice.[14] Gittos expressed it as
many chapels were situated in an easterly position when within a group.[15]
5. The cathedral could have been decorated, well-lit and furnished
with valuable vestments. Aldhelm wrote a poem, 689-709, describing a church
built by Bugga, possibly his sister.[16] It was rectangular, lofty
and had 12 altars. It glowed within with gentle light, presumably from oil
lamps or bee’s wax candles, and had glass windows. The altar cloth glistened
with gold twisted threads. A gold chalice had jewels attached and the platen
was silver. A main cross was burnished gold and silver and had jewels attached.
A metal censer embossed on all sides hung down by chains and through openings,
it let out the smell of frankincense. There was a good chance the walls were
plastered or lime washed and even had some painting. If there was a painted
image, the likeliest being Mary, since the apse was dedicated to the Virgin. If
a baptismal receptacle was present, it could have been wooden, but equally
possible would be a stone bowl with incised figures. The altar table would most
likely be made from stone and positioned so that worshippers could stand close
to it. Near it might have been a small calling bell.
AL rendition
of Bugga’s church
A poem known as the Song
of the Abbots written between 803 and 821 by an unknown monk, gave some
detail of three imagined churches which might have been based on Bywell
monastery, Northumberland, or Crayke monastery, Yorkshire.[17] It described a cruciform
church with lofty walls and lead on the roof. Three large altars with
substantial jewelled crosses were placed with one in the nave and one in each
side porticus. The altars with golden offerings, perhaps a reference to a
chalice, had garlands of gold flowers which could have been on the altar cloth.
There was also a tomb with relics and across the top was a sparkling vestment
of fine linen.
6. Whether the
cathedral had a square or rounded apse is uncertain. Some contemporary churches
had a square east end, such as at Wearmouth, Escomb, Bradford-on-Avon in
Wiltshire, and Glastonbury, whilst others had a round apse, such as at
Bradwell, St Augustine and St Martins at Canterbury, Lyminge, and St Paul in
the Bail at Lincoln.
AI rendition of Lyminge church with apse and triple arch to the nave.
St Paul in
the Bail, Lincoln, indicating an outline of a 7th century church
7. There is no firm
evidence for church towers in England until the early tenth century, and none
before c.800.[18]
This is tentative because there is no standing 6th to 8th-century church in
existence. An early example, late 8th-early 9th-century, is at Brixworth,
Northamptonshire. It is unlikely even a low tower was present in Wulfhere’s
cathedral.
8. There is no historical
record of how the church was heated in the winter.
Extrapolation
Wulfhere’s cathedral was 60feet (4 short perches) long and
30feet (2 short perches) wide.[19] Walls were sandstone and
plastered internally and externally, so coloured white. Roof was timber or
thatch. The nave had seats and probably men and women sat separately. An apse
contained a stone slab altar. The apse was separated from the nave by a triple
arch. Windows were small and glazed. The floor was either cobbled stone, stone
slabs, or pulverised tile. The bishop had his own stone seat, a cathedra, and
King Wulfhere a throne chair. Walls were decorated with biblical artwork. Many
oil lamps were on wall niches. The bishop used a small calling handbell.
Imagined sacred landscape of Licifelda, 7th to 8th-century. The
sandstone hillock had Wulfhere's church, St Peter's, a shrine chapel and a cemetery chapel. The name of the river is unknown.
AI rendition
of Wulfhere’s cathedral. Wulfhere and his queen, Eormenhild, are on the right. To their left is Wulfhere's brother, AEthelred, who abdicates to become a monk.The altar could be at the east end of the nave, or beyond the triple arch in an apse.
Extrapolation 2
Bishop Wilfrid began to rebuild his timber Ripon monastery
into a stone cathedral in 672. He brought
in plasterers and glaziers from France and Italy. An account[20] described a building
completed from the foundations to the roof with dressed stone (reused Roman
stonework?), supported by various columns and having side-aisles to a great
height. The columns were variis believed to be different kinds or
colours. The side aisles had porticibus, taken to be porticus. Some have
interpreted this description as a basilica church, but that is conjecture. His
other church at Hexham had many windows, arched vaults and a winding cloister,
but it cannot be assumed they were at Ripon. The
implication is Wilfrid and Wulfhere knew each other well and Wulfhere could
have visited Ripon on his military manoeuvres. So did his cathedral have columns,
side-aisles and porticus chambers? Was it more than a rectangular church with a
simple nave? Its architectural context has been reviewed.[21]
AI imagined 7th century aisled, basilica church with triple arches and apse. King Wulfhere and Prince AEthelred sit on thrown chairs for Eucharist. His two sisters would be close by.
The inference is the first cathedral at Lichfield would have
emulated the northern churches (Escomb, Wearmouth, Hexham and particularly
Ripon) to emphasise the power of Wulfhere, 658-75, and then his brother Æthelred,
675-704. Under both the hegemony of Mercia extended to include the southeast,
London, Essex, Surrey and Sussex, eastern parts of Wessex and the Isle of
Wight. Humbria or north Lincolnshire was gained, lost and retrieved. Furthermore, in 656, Wulfhere sets up Medeshamstede
(Peterborough) Monastery and consecrates it with his brother Æthelred, sisters
Cyneburh and Cyneswith, Archbishop Deusdedit of Canterbury, Bishops of
Rochester, London and the Mercians (Jaruman) and Bishop Tuda with an elaborate ceremony
recorded in The Laud Anglo-Saxon Chronicle (pages 29 and 30). The king gives
the monastery much land to support it and promises gold and silver. It would be
unusual if he did not do the same at Lichfield.
[1]
Wilfrid’s life is known from his biography Victa
Sancti Wilfridi I. Episcopi Eboracensis. Edited by B. Colgrave, The
Life of Bishop Wilfrid by Eddius Stephanus. (Madison: 1927), 33.
This was later referred to in Bede’s Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum,
Book 4 Chapter 3. The ecclesiastical history of the English People, 731. Bede
listed this work as Historiam ecclesiasticam nostræ insulæ ac gentis in libris
V, which translates to, The ecclesiastical history of our island and nation in
five books. B. Colgrave (1985). “He knew of a
place in the kingdom of Wulfhere, King of the Mercians, his faithful friend
which had been granted to him at Lichfield, and was suitable as an episcopal
see either for himself, or for any other to whom he might wish to give it.”
[2]
A. Thacker, ‘Wilfrid, his cult and his biographer.’ Wilfrid Abbot, Bishop,
Saint. Papers from the 1300th Anniversary Conference, ed. N. J. Higham.
(Donington, 2013), 6. If Wilfrid was Bishop of Lichfield, 667/8‑9, then Chad
was the 6th bishop of Mercia.
[3]
W. Rodwell, Archaeological excavation in the
nave of Lichfield Cathedral.
Lichfield, Unpub. report in Lichfield Cathedral Library. (2003). Also W.
Rodwell, Revealing the history of the Cathedral. 4. Archaeology of the Nave
Sanctuary. 67th Annual Report to the Friends of Lichfield Cathedral held in
Lichfield Cathedral Library. (2004). Also W. Rodwell, ‘The forgotten
cathedral.’ Current Archaeology, (2006), 18, 1 (205), 9–17.
[4]
Bede HE, Book 4 chapter 3. See note 1.
[5]
Historiam Abbatum 5, in C. Plummer Venerabilis Baedae Opera Historica (Oxford:
1896), 1, 368, quoted by M. Shapland, ‘The Cuckoo and the Magpie: The building
culture of the Anglo-Saxon Church.’ Chapter 5 in The Material Culture
of the built environment in the Anglo-Saxon World, eds. M. C. Hyer and G.
R. Owen-Croker, (Liverpool: 2015), 95.
[6]
There was a distinction between building in timber, which encompassed nearly
all known secular buildings, and building in stone, which was almost
exclusively confined to ecclesiastical structures. See Shapland (2015) 100,
note 5.
[7]
The importance of this council has been argued. Essentially it was a local gathering
of the leading clergy of the Northumbrian church with some national bishops and
presided over by King Oswiu. It was symbolic. It marked Romanisation of the
church, but the changes were not fundamental. Perhaps, the most surprising
aspect was the hosts were the nuns of the monastery at Whitby (Bede names it as
Streanæshealh, which means ‘the bay of the lighthouse’.) It was a
testimony to Hild s influence, both as a member of the royal family of
Northumbria and as abbess of the monastery. Those who exalt the early Celtic
(Ionian) church see Whitby as a disaster, mainly from the perspective of Roman
control and order. The Roman church, unlike the Celtic, was seen to be obsessed
with sin.
[8]
Bede (731) HE, book 2, ch. 14. See note 1.
[9]
M. Shapland, (2015), 100. See note 5.
[10]
E. Fernie, The Architecture of the Anglo Saxons, (New York: 1983),59.
[11]
Bradwell-on-Sea was a Roman Saxon Shore fort known as Othona. The Early
Medievalists originally called it Ithancester. Cedd founded
a cathedral within the old walls in 653, which survives as the restored
Chapel of St Peter-on-the-Wall, and is one of the oldest churches in
Britain.
[12]
R. Gilchrist and C. Greeb, ‘Glastonbury Abbey archaeological investigations
1904–79. The Society of Antiquaries of London, (2015), 418.
[13]
M. Shapland (2015) 108. See note 5. Kings
or saints were buried in either a porticus on the side of the nave, such as Canterbury,
Wearmouth, Hexham and Ripon, or in a separate mausoleum east of the church such
as at Glastonbury, Whithorn, Hexham, Wells, Worcester, Winchcombe, Repton,
Gloucester and possibly Bradford on Avon.
[14]
J. Blair, The church in Anglo-Saxon society (Oxford: 2005), 200.
[15]
See note 5. H. Gittos, (2013), 100.
[16]
Aldhelm's poem ‘On the Church of Mary Built by Bugga’ records the consecration
on 15/16 August of a church with an apse dedicated to the Virgin Mary. It was
constructed by a daughter of Centwine, king of the West Saxons. https://doi.org/10.25446/oxford.13909079
[17] The Song of the Abbots, De abbatibus, is a Latin poem
by a 9th-century monk called Æthelwulf. It recounts the history of his
monastery and its abbots. The three manuscripts were composed between 803-21
and addressed to Bishop Ecgberht of York.
[18]
R. Gem, ‘Staged Timber Spires in Carolingian North-East France and Late
Anglo-Saxon England’, Journal of the British Archaeological Association 148
(1995), 40–44.
[19]
See the post, ‘Second cathedral was Early Medieval’.
[20] Victa Sancti Wilfridi I. Episcopi Eboracensis. The Life of Bishop Wilfrid by Eddius Stephanus. Chap 17, 22.
[21] E. Cambridge, ‘The sources and function of Wilfrid’s architecture at Ripon and Hexham’, in Wilfrid Abbot, Bishop, Saint. Papers from the 1300th Anniversary Conference, ed. N. J. Higham. (Donington, 2013), 136-151.
