The chapter-house itself is octagonal in form, being divided into eight bays. Seven of these are filled with windows, the eighth, that over the entrance, being ornamented with blank tracery of the same design as that of the windows. These windows are very acutely arched, and their tracery is of the geometrical Decorated style. They contain five lights, each light terminating in a trefoiled arch. The central light has further a very acute arch above it, also filled with a trefoil. The two outer lights on each side are joined together by an arch above them, in which is a cinquefoiled circle. Above are three circles arranged pyramidally, each containing nine cusps. The mullions enclosing the central light are thicker than the others. All the mullions are broken up into very slender shafts with capitals. It may be safely said that for elegance, symmetry, and the ingenious filling of a given space, the tracery of these windows is not surpassed in Europe.

Between the windows are clusters of shafts which support the ribs of the vault. These shafts have fine capitals, and are separated from the windows by blank spaces of wall set at an obtuse angle to the windows, so that the shafts are pushed forward. Below is an arcade, famous both for its richness and curiously beautiful design. It consists of a series of canopies, six to each bay, under each of which is a seat forming the half of an octagon. At each angle of these seats is a shaft of Purbeck marble. The seats, or niches, are divided from each other also by shafts of Purbeck marble. The use of Purbeck marble, both here and in the doorway of the chapter-house, is worthy of note. It is unusual after the Early English period, and might be advanced as an argument of the early date of the chapter-house. In the bay which contains the entrance, there is a seat on each side of the doorway. The capitals of the Purbeck marble shafts are carved with unusual richness; but it is the canopies which demand most attention. They are flat at the top, and each is divided into three bays in front, the central bay being divided from the other two by pendants richly carved with foliage of the same character as the capitals of the shafts. Between the shafts and the pendants are trefoil arches, one to each bay, and above the arches and pendants are gables crossing each other and ending in finials of carved oak leaves. Where the gables cross each other are carved heads and figures. The sculpture of the arcade as a whole is the finest in the cathedral, and some of the finest in England; but the art of the Gothic sculptor reaches its culmination in these heads. In grotesqueness, fertility of invention, and perfect fitness as decoration they could hardly be surpassed. The canopies are decorated at the top with a cornice of carved grapes and vine leaves. Above them is a passage running round the whole chapter-house and passing behind the vaulting shafts and through the masses of masonry between the windows. The vault is of wood, though ribbed and painted to give it the appearance of stone. This vault is arranged so that the ribs diverge from the vaulting shafts until they reach the central octagon of the roof. At this point they converge to the boss in the middle of the central octagon. This boss is modern. The roof was restored in 1845. Before this time it was painted with figures of kings and bishops, and the bosses were covered with silver. The modern decoration of the roof is dull and trivial in design and offensive in colour. During the same restoration many of the marble shafts were replaced and the floor was paved with tiles, with a most unfortunate effect. The east window has also been filled with very bad modern glass. In fact, restorers have done their worst to the chapter-house; but, luckily, their work is not irreparable. We may hope that some day the glass, the tiles, and the paint on the roof will all be removed. This chapter-house marks the farthest point reached in the development of such buildings. It differs from the chapter-houses at Lincoln, Salisbury, Westminster, and Wells in that it has no central pillar, and this absence of a central pillar is supposed to be its special glory. No doubt the pillar was an inconvenience when the chapter met, and the architect was given a fine opportunity for the display of his mechanical ingenuity when he decided to do without it. But there can be no doubt that a central pillar or cluster of shafts such as is found at Wells, would be more beautiful. And as the architect at York was afraid to vault his chapter-house with stone, his mechanical ingenuity was not put to so severe a test after all. And yet, though we may regret the beautiful central pillar as we find it at Wells or Lincoln, there are other respects in which this chapter-house surpasses all its rivals. In size, in richness of decoration, in boldness of outline, and in aerial lightness it is unequalled. Above all, it still contains six windows of magnificent stained glass. Even now it seems to justify its boastful inscription:

Ut Rosa flos florum, sic est Domus ista Domorum.



The Choir is separated from the rest of the church by a very elaborate rood screen, which was built circa 1475-1505, and is therefore the latest part of the original building. It is a fine example of Gothic work of the latest period, and though, the details are of course inferior to those of thirteenth century work, and the parts are small and rather crowded, the whole effect is one of great richness and magnificence. This screen consists of a central doorway into the choir, and of fifteen niches with rich canopies and bases, seven to the north, and eight to the south, of the central doorway. The niches are filled with statues of the Kings of England from William the Conqueror to Henry VI. The statue of Henry VI. alone is modern. It has been said that the original statue of this king was regarded with so much reverence as to have aroused the anger of the iconoclasts of the Reformation. At any rate, it was destroyed, and an image of James I. set in its place. This has been happily removed in the present century, and a statue of Henry VI., a fair work, by the hand of Michael Taylor, a local sculptor, has been inserted. The original statues are unusually good for their period, and it has been suggested that the details of their dress show some consideration for historical correctness. The same consideration was not given to the hair, for it has been pointed out that the Normans were clean-shaven and wore short hair, whereas the statues of the Norman kings have beards, moustaches, and long hair. The kings are dressed in robes of state. The legs of Stephen alone are exposed. The hands of the Conqueror are broken off. On the pedestals are the names of the kings, with the length of their reigns. They begin on the north side. The figures of angels above the canopies of the niches are made of plaster designed by Bernasconi, who also restored other parts of the screen.

The central archway is unusually rich and delicate for the period in which it was built. It is somewhat obtuse in form, and is surmounted by an ogee pediment or outer moulding. On each side are four narrow shafts with carved capitals, an unusual enrichment in this period. Between those shafts are rosettes and rows of foliage. The bases, both of the shafts, the pedestals, and the buttresses, are very long, as is usual in late Perpendicular work. The arch itself has four divisions of ornamented mouldings, with plain mouldings between them. The ogee moulding is richly decorated with foliage, and terminates in a lofty finial reaching to the top of the screen. Below this finial is an empty niche with a kind of ball-flower ornament at the base. On each side of this niche is an angel with a censer, with rich foliage below. The interior of the screen under the central arch is vaulted with carved bosses. The niches are divided from each other by buttresses decorated at intervals with pinnacles. The pedestals are long, and richly ornamented with tabernacle work. The greater part of the ornament of the screen is massed in the canopies. These canopies are made up of three inner arches, cusped, immediately above the heads of the kings, and five outer arches, cusped and gabled, round them. Round these outer arches is a mass of pinnacles, with three larger, richly-ornamented pinnacles, and two smaller, above them. Above these are three small figures, apparently playing on musical instruments, with other figures of the same size, one on each side of the buttresses. These figures, in their turn, have above them canopies of much the same character as those below. Above these canopies is a row of panelling with the plaster angels of Bernasconi above it, at the beginning of the cornice. The rest of the cornice is made up of a row of sculptured ornament and a row of cusped arches terminating in the "Tudor flower" ornament, alternating with rows of plain moulding.



The chief fault of this screen is its heaviness, which the mass of ornament is not bold enough in its parts to lighten. The central entrance is not cleverly managed, and seems cut out of the screen, as if to make a way into the choir at all costs. This screen should be compared to the beautiful rood screen at Exeter, with its three bold arches and its simple yet delicate decoration. After the fire in 1829 it was proposed to remove it, and one is almost tempted to regret that it was not removed. The nave at York would be enormously improved by a closer connection with the choir. Under any circumstances the nave must be somewhat cold and ineffective; it would be far less so if the eye could pass with scarcely a break into the sumptuous choir. The naves of English cathedrals are too apt to look like splendid museums rather than places of worship, and this is peculiarly the case with the nave at York. Doctor Milner has stated, though apparently without authority, that this screen was taken from the Abbey Church of St. Mary, close to the cathedral. It is difficult to understand how it could have fitted so much narrower a building.



The choir itself, with the retro-choir or Lady Chapel, is divided into nine bays. It is considerably the largest and loftiest in England, being over 100 feet high and 99 wide. The altar is three bays from the east end, and one bay west of the altar are the eastern transepts. The choir was begun at the east end in 1361, and finished in 1405. There are differences between the earlier work east and the later work west of the transepts, which will be pointed out, though the plan of both is the same.

The plan, allowing for differences in detail caused by the change of style, is very like that of the nave. It is, therefore, an interesting example of a Perpendicular building carried out on the lines of an earlier Decorated design. When the east end of the choir was begun (1361) the Gothic style was fast reaching its fullest development in England. The nave of Winchester, a contemporary building, is the finest example of that development. There, as has been pointed out, the vertical division made by the vaulting shafts and the mouldings on each side of them becomes the most important feature in the design. The window tracery is planned merely as a frame for glass, and not as a design interesting in itself. Decoration supplied in earlier work by carved foliage, deep and various mouldings, and elaborate tracery, gives way to a system of lines emphasising construction as completely as possible. The contrasts between masses of ornament and blank walls, which play so great a part in earlier Gothic, disappear; and the only contrast is between the orderly lines of the stone and the kaleidoscopic decoration of the windows. Architecture loses much of its fancy and its delicacy, but becomes more logical, more reasonable, and more organic.

In the choir of the minster this change is only half carried out. There is a much greater emphasis of line than in the nave, and there is less delicacy of detail; but the vaulting shafts are no more important, and the window tracery still plays a considerable part in the design. Hence the choir lacks that air of decision, that extreme lucidity, to be found in the design of the nave at Winchester. If it were not for the choir furniture, the stalls, the throne and pulpit, and the altar, this want of decision in the design would be much more evident than it is. But the builders of this choir are not therefore to be blamed. They designed it as a choir, counting, no doubt, on the effect of the furniture, and as a choir it must be judged. It might have been expected, perhaps, that a building designed on the lines of the nave, but without the beauty of detail of an earlier age, would show all the faults of that nave and few of its beauties. But this is not the case. The architects were certainly most skilful; they had the immense advantage of seeing the design of the nave actually carried out, they understood its faults, and by a few dexterous alterations they produced a "fair copy" of it, avoiding most of those faults, and keeping all its structural merits.

As in the nave, the triforium is merely the continuation of the clerestory, the proportions, of the western bays at least, are almost the same as those of the nave, and the whole is covered again with a wooden vault, plastered and ribbed to look like stone; and yet that air of leanness, flatness, and emptiness, the chief fault of the nave, is almost entirely avoided.

A comparison of the differences in the two designs, and a demonstration of the small means by which the success of the later one is produced, must be both interesting and instructive, but, to be fully carried out, it would require more space than can be given in this book. We must confine ourselves, therefore, to pointing out some of the more obvious changes.

The most curious and important, perhaps, is to be found in the treatment of the triforium. In the earlier bays east of the eastern transept this treatment is the same in essentials as on the nave. That is to say, the triforium is on the same plane as the clerestory, and the triforium passage runs outside the building. But when the choir proper was begun, after an interval of some years, the architects, seeing, no doubt, that the older design was flat and somewhat wanting in relief, were seized by a happy idea. They set the clerestory windows some inches back, so that they were no longer level with the interior wall and with the triforium, and placed the triforium passage in its customary place. The difference in the design may be easily observed both inside and outside the building.

By this simple change, a greater relief and depth, a greater contrast of light and shade, was given to the whole design; and this without breaking its continuity or harmony in any degree.

The following differences in plan and detail between nave and choir may also be remarked:—

Besides the transom dividing clerestory from triforium to be found in the nave, there is a second transom in the choir crossing the openings of the triforium. This gives a greater fulness and complexity to the design.

In the eastern bays, below the openings of the triforium, the bases of the mullions are elongated to about two feet in length, and between them are cusped arches. These arches and the mullions themselves are set on a slanting ridge, like the mullions of the triforium in the transepts.

The vaulting shafts also do not terminate altogether at the point at which the ribs of the vault converge, but the outer ones rise some ten feet higher than the central one, until they are cut short by the spreading ribs of the vault. This is a difference characteristic of the Perpendicular style, which tends to an interweaving of lines, and an abolition of capitals, where possible.

The mouldings of the main arches also are broader than on the nave, and the clusters of the piers bolder.

It must also be remembered that, as the floor of the choir rises gradually to the east, the proportions of the eastward bays are materially altered, and the main arches are smaller relatively to the clerestory than in the nave. There is no doubt that this change is a fortunate one. It is also lucky that it occurs in that part of the building which otherwise differs least from the design of the nave.

Finally, it must be remembered, in accounting for the greater effectiveness of the later work, that a choir design is made for different conditions, and has different objects in view, from that of a nave.

It has often been remarked that the nave of York, examined bay by bay, is logical and satisfactory enough. It is only when it is regarded as a whole, and judged as an avenue of stone, that its faults are evident.

But the choir is not to be judged as an avenue of stone at all.

It is cut in half by the altar. Its lower storey is concealed by the stalls, and its continuity broken by the eastern transepts.

In the nave, the lowest storey is the weakest. The thin pillars and the broad arches make too little division between the nave and the aisle. The whole is seen at a glance, and there is little of the mystery and shadow generally to be found in a large Gothic interior. Also the actual design of the pillars is poor. They do not fit well on to the arches above them. They seem almost insecure.

If these faults exist in the choir, they are concealed by the stalls, and east of the altar by the change in proportions. The choir itself is like an enormous college chapel. The aisles exist, but play no part in the design, which still culminates in the splendid blaze of glass from the eastern transepts and the great east window, and once culminated on the still more splendid blaze of the altar.



The retro-choir, far too short and wide to be judged as an avenue of stone, is still more dependent for its effect on its glass. As most of that glass luckily remains, it is a miracle of airy splendour; one may see from it what were the objects, and how great the success of the much-maligned Perpendicular architects at their best.

It is still the custom to regard Perpendicular architects as altogether inferior to their predecessors; an opinion partly arising, no doubt, from Mr Ruskin's eloquent exposition of the principle that beauty of detail is the most vital and important part of architecture; and partly from the general idea that older work is always better than later. But Perpendicular artists were not altogether retrogressive. In some respects they adapted their design more completely to their material than the older men. Their woodwork, for instance, completely shook off the forms of stone. Their glass, in spite of all that has been said, is better decoration of a given space than the patterns of the Decorated period. This is particularly evident in the nave and choir of the minster, for the original glass remains on many of the windows practically undisturbed. The earlier glass is more delicate, and purer in colour. Its designs are often more interesting pictorially. Look at the window simply as an isolated example of stained glass, and you will certainly prefer the earlier work. Look at it as a patch in a whole system of decoration, and you will be inclined to prefer the later. The wonderful success, as decoration of fragments of ancient stained glass pieced together almost at random, goes to prove, almost as clearly as the pictorial errors of modern designers, that a stained glass window should be conceived, not as a picture, hardly even as a pattern, but as a simple arrangement of broken patches of colour. This is what the designers of the windows in the choir have done, for they have seen that by that means, and not by the representation of architectural forms, they obtain the best contrast with the real architectural forms of the building. At their best, the windows of the choir remind one of patches of coloured sunlight on running water. It is true that these windows are really filled with pictures, but these pictures are only an excuse and a stimulus for the inventions in pure colour of the designer. Without them his work might seem merely kaleidoscopic. It is his great merit that he has never allowed his representation of actual things to interfere with his decorative purpose.



To sum up, then, this choir has not the delicate and spiritual beauty of the choirs of Lincoln or Ely. That is never found even in the finest work of Perpendicular architects; but for stateliness and magnificence it has not a rival in England. These qualities may be best appreciated standing midway between the two transepts and in front of the altar. From that point glittering screens of glass and soaring shafts of stone are to be seen on all sides; the whole effect is one of triumphant light and space and colour, not to be surpassed by the splendours even of Moorish or Italian architecture.

To pass to a more detailed description: the original stalls were irretrievably ruined by the fire of 1829. An illustration of one of these stalls from Britton is here given. They appear to have been magnificent examples of Perpendicular woodwork, and their destruction is an irreparable loss. There were twenty of them on each side of the choir and twelve at the west end. The modern stalls erected in the thirties are a simple imitation, better perhaps than original work of the period would have been—better, certainly, than might have been expected—but spirit-less in execution. The modern bishop's throne and pulpit are not even tolerable. They replaced a throne and pulpit erected in 1740, and, like the stalls, destroyed in the fire.



The fine Perpendicular altar screen was also destroyed by the fire. The present screen is a careful and very successful reproduction of it. It has been glazed with very good effect.

The reredos, designed by Street, with reliefs by Tinworth, is made of terra-cotta and wood, and is not successful either in colour or pattern. The carvings represent the first hour of the Crucifixion.

The clerestory windows are Perpendicular in style, and contain five lights. Though the design is not beautiful in itself, like that of the great east window, it makes an admirable frame for glass. There are certain differences in detail between the windows of the eastern bays and those of the western. The windows of the eastern bays are almost transitional. Certainly their Perpendicular character is not fully developed. Thus some of their upper compartments diverge to the left and right, whereas the windows in the choir itself are made up of parallel and vertical divisions. In the eastern windows, also, a transom runs through the upper lights of the windows, which is not found at the western. The tracery of the eastern window is even more filled with transitional characteristics. As a pattern of tracery, it is wanting in coherence and subordination, and these faults are painfully evident outside. But it is so vast, and filled with such magnificent glass, that the tracery seen from the inside seems hardly more important than the leads of the glass, and the whole is to be judged simply as a great wall of glass supported where necessary by stonework made as unobtrusive as possible.

There are differences also in the eastern and western windows of the aisles, especially in the interweaving and subordination of the lines of the mouldings, but these differences are not so obvious as in the clerestory.

The change in the placing of the clerestory window and of the triforium passage has been pointed out.

Among other and minor differences the following may be remarked:—In the eastern bays the capitals of shafts in the triforium run round the shafts of the main arch of the window.

In the western bays the arches between the mullions of the triforium are cinquefoiled (they are trefoiled in the eastern bays), and the bases are much shorter.

All the mullions of the clerestory windows have capitals. The two central mullions, as in the nave, are thicker than the rest. They rise also to the head of the arch. The two outer lights are coupled by an arch above them. The upper lights are broken up into a number of divisions, vertical and parallel in the choir proper, slightly varied in direction in the retro-choir. The mouldings are as elaborate and as carefully subordinated as in the earlier work of the nave.

Below the transom dividing triforium from clerestory is a row of panelling divided by the mullions of the triforium, which, as in the nave, are merely a continuation of the mullions of the clerestory. The arches of the triforium are not ornamented with a gable, as in the nave, but with a moulding decorated with crockets and ending in a rich finial. The capitals of the main vaulting shafts are very curious. They consist of an ordinary row of carved foliage with three pendants ending in small carved figures with cinquefoiled arches between them. The outer mouldings of the main arches are cut short by the small outer vaulting shafts. A little way below them are small heads, as in the nave. The capitals of the main arches are like those of the nave, but their foliage is more disconnected. On the north side of the choir are figures on the capitals. Mr Browne, the enthusiastic and laborious historian of the minster, has supposed these figures to represent scenes in the rebellion in which Scrope took part. If the ordinary date given to the choir be accepted, it was built before that rebellion. But Mr Browne has endeavoured to prove that the choir was built later than is usually supposed. It is impossible in this book to do more than mention the controversy started by him, and to say that, in the opinion of Professor Willis and others, he has not made out his case. In the four eastern bays brackets and canopies for statues are attached to the vaulting shafts below the capitals of the piers. Those east of the altar were badly altered and restored after the fire of 1829. It should be mentioned two eastern bays are narrower than the rest for the better support of the eastern wall of glass, and the western bays for that of the tower. In the spandrels of the main arches are coats of arms, mainly of benefactors. The following is a list of these, taken from Murray's handbook to the minster, and beginning at the north-east end of the choir:—

1. Two keys in saltire—Chapter of York. 2. Six lions rampant—Ulphus. 3. Three lions passant guardant, a label of three points, each charged with three fleur-de-lis—Thomas, Duke of Lancaster. 4. Three lions passant guardant, a border—Edmund of Woodstock. 5. A bend between six lions rampant—Bohun. 6. Checky, a fess—Clifford. 7. A cross flore—Latimer. 8. Barry of ten, three chaplets—Greystock. 9. The instruments of the Passion. 10. Three estoiles of six points, a border—St. Wilfrid. 11. Two keys in saltire, a border engrailed—St. Peter. 12. Two swords in saltire, a border engrailed—St. Paul. 13. Seven lozenges conjoined, 3, 3, and 1—St. William. (Archbishop and Patron Saint.) 14. On a bend, a lion rampant—Musters. 15. A chief, three chevronelles interlaced in base—Fitz-Hugh. 16. On a saltire, a crescent—Neville. 17. 18. A fess dancette—Vavasour.

Those on the south side, beginning at the west end, are as follows:—

1. A cross—St. George. 2. A cross flore between five martlets—Edward the Confessor. 3. Three crowns, 2 and 1—King Edwin. 4. Barry of six, on a chief, two pallets between as many esquires based—Mortimer. 5. Six lions rampant, 3, 2, 1, with a horn on the west side of the shield (referring to the famous gift of lands)—Ulphus. 6. A lion rampant—Percy. 7. Quarterly, 1 and 4 a lion rampant for Percy, 2 and 3 three luces hauriant for Lucy—Percy. 8. A bend, a label—Scrope of Masham. 9. Six osier wands interlaced in cross—Bishop Skirlaw. 10. A bend, a border charged with mitres; over all a label—Archbishop Scrope. 11. Three water bougets—Roos. 12. A saltire—Neville. 13. On a cross five lions passant guardant—City of York. 14. Three fusils in fess—Montague. 15. A fess between six cross crosslets—Beauchamp. 16. A lion rampant—Percy. 17. France (ancient) and England (quarterly), with a label of three points—Edward, Prince of Wales. 18. France (ancient) and England (quarterly).

The vault of the choir is of wood, like that of the nave; it is an imitation of the vault destroyed by the fire of 1829. It is covered with a network of ribs that obscure the main structural lines of the vaulting.

The aisles of the choir are of much the same size, design, and proportion as those of the nave. Their vault is of stone. The windows are filled with tracery of an unusual transitional character, and altogether more beautiful and interesting than that of the clerestory. They are divided into three lights, each terminating in a very obtuse arch. Above these arches are three others, also obtuse and hardly pointed. Short mullions run from the points of the lower arches to the points of the upper. Above the upper arches are three irregular-shaped openings, arranged pyramidally, the two lower being quatrefoiled, the upper sexfoiled. The whole is a curious mixture of vertical and flowing lines. They represent a design, as it were, of which the tracery is arrested half-way in its process of stiffening from the curved lines of the Decorated style to the straight of the Perpendicular. Here, as in the clerestory, the mouldings are delicately varied. The central shafts alone of the mullions have capitals. On each side of every window are three shafts, all with capitals.



Below the windows runs an arcade of very simple panelling, four divisions to each window, and two trefoiled arches in each division. There is also panelling of the same character on each side of the vaulting shafts between the windows. The windows of the eastern bays are more sharply pointed than the others. The vaulting shafts of the aisles have capitals of carved foliage and wings of leafage on a level with the top of the arcade below the windows. The windows next to the east end have only two lights.

The eastern transepts stand between the four western and the four eastern bays. They mark the position of the eastern transepts and towers in Roger's Norman choir, and are of rather unusual design. They are of only one bay in width, and do not extend beyond the aisle walls. They therefore represent a bay of the choir, of which the clerestory and triforium are removed, and the aisle roof is raised to the height of the roof of the choir itself. Both outside and inside their effect is magnificent. Their north and south walls are filled with enormous windows, containing splendid glass. Of these windows, that on the north contains scenes from the life of St. William, and is known as the St. William window; that on the south, scenes from the life of St. Cuthbert, and is known as the St. Cuthbert window. Both have had their mullions recently restored.

These windows are divided into five lights, and are crossed by three transoms. Below these transoms, in each light, are cinquefoiled arches. The upper lights closely resemble those of the clerestory in design, and are of the same size. The main arch in these transepts remains, and is of the same character as that of the other main arches. Above it in each case is a gallery with panelled openings. Above the main arch, on each side of the transept openings, are thick clusters of shafts. The lower part of the windows has double tracery, like the great east window, and the east windows in the Chapel of Nine Altars at Durham, the inner tracery consisting of open lights about a foot off the actual tracery, containing the glass, and of exactly the same design. On each side of the windows are five canopies and brackets. The arches east and west of the transepts and opening into the aisles are of the same character as those opening into the choir. Above them are windows of the same size and design as those of the clerestory.

In the spandrels of the arches are coats of arms as follow:—

North Transept—East Side. 1. A chief, three chevronelles interlaced in base—Fitz-Hugh. 2. A bend, a label of three points—Scrope of Masham.

North Side. 1. Three escallopes—Dacres. 2. A fess between six cross crosslets—Beauchamp.

West Side. 1. On a saltire, a martlet—Neville. 2. A bend—Scrope of Masham.

South Side. 1. Checky, a fess—Clifford. 2. A cross flore—Latimer.

South Transept—East Side. 1. A lion rampant—Mowbray. 2. A lion rampant—Percy.

West Side. 1. A fess dancette—Vavasour. 2. A blank shield.

North Side. 1. A fess between three cross crosslets—Beauchamp. 2. Three escallopes—Dacres.

The stone carving of the retro-choir, as the earlier work cast of the transepts is generally called, was greatly injured by the fire. After the fire five of the canopies on the piers were renewed by the mason of the minster, who treated them according to his own sweet will. The canopies on the piers next to the altar screen remain untouched. The eastern bays of the aisles are of the same character as the rest. The east end of the choir is chiefly filled by the great east window, which fits into its position better than the west window of the nave, but not entirely satisfactorily. The mouldings of its arch are decorated with niches containing figures, and following the curve of the arch. This curve does not run parallel to that of the vault, which is less acute. The window itself is set back a little way from the wall, and on each side of it are mouldings with occasional niches. The outside mouldings of the window run straight up through the outside mouldings of the arch, and are cut short by the ribs of the vault. This inter-penetration of mouldings is found also on the aisle side of the main piers of the choir, and is more characteristic of later German Gothic than of English. The wall between the outer mouldings of the window and the boundaries of the choir is filled with shallow niches, two rows to each side and four niches to each row. These perhaps were never meant to contain figures, and are more like panelling than niches. The upper outside niches on each side are cut into by the ribs of the vault. Below the east window is a row of quatrefoils, and below them nine divisions of panelling, in unequal portions, and of the same simple character as that in the aisles. The upper halves of the three central panels are filled with niches with rich canopies, each canopy being divided into three parts. The east end below the windows is now chiefly filled with uninteresting monuments of the later archbishops. There is no doubt that the aisles of the choir and the whole of the retro-choir could be better without the greater part of the monuments in them. The magnificent tomb of Archbishop Bowet is almost the only fine one to be found in the retro-choir.



There has been a considerable controversy about the position of the Lady Chapel founded by Archbishop Thoresby. This controversy, in which Mr Browne has endeavoured to prove that Thoresby's Lady Chapel was placed on the north side of the nave, is far too long and intricate a business to find a place in this book. It is enough to say that the other authorities seem unanimously to be of the opinion that the altar of the Lady Chapel was under the great east window, where an altar, used for Holy Communion, is now placed. Thither, it is said, Thoresby removed the bodies of certain of his predecessors. And the tombs of six of these were existing in the seventeenth century, when drawings were made of them by Torre, the antiquary.

Brasses were placed over the burial-places of these archbishops, and were mostly destroyed in the Civil War.

The great east window, like the windows of the transepts, has a double plane of tracery reaching to about half the height of the whole. Between the two planes a passage runs at the base of the window, between two doors which lead to staircases in the turrets on each side of the windows. These staircases, in their turn, lead to a gallery across the window on the top of the inner plane of tracery. The view from this gallery is very fine. The window itself contains nine lights, and these are divided by two mullions, thicker than the rest, into sub-divisions of three lights each, each sub-division terminating in an arch formed by the curving of the mullions. From the top of each of these arches rises another mullion, the two outer being soon cut short by the arch of the window, the central one curiously splitting into two thick branches to right and left in straight lines until they also are cut short by the window arch. The rest of the upper lights are filled with an infinite number of small divisions, in which the occasional presence of curved lines shows the transitional character of the design. The window is crossed by three transoms, the two lower at equal distances, the upper close to the one below it. The gallery across the window is formed by these two upper transoms. The glass in the choir, as in all the rest of the church, is described in a separate chapter.

The entrance to the crypt is from the north aisle of the choir as it was in ancient days. There are still remains of the original vestibule to the crypt, and also the bases and one of the jambs of the Norman door leading to it.

The Crypt itself is very interesting, not only for its own sake, but for the light it throws on the history of the building of the minster. The fire of 1829 gave Professor Willis and Mr Browne the opportunity to make elaborate and prolonged investigations, to which we owe much of the light which has been thrown upon problems connected with the choirs of Thomas and Roger.

Before this fire, the only crypt whose existence was known of, was a small chamber under the platform of the high altar, no wider than the central aisle of the choir, and only equal to a bay and a half of that aisle in length. The greater part of this crypt was Norman in character. The vault was supported by six Norman pillars, and the ribs of the vault were apparently Norman. But the side piers were Perpendicular, and the transverse arches of the ribs four-centred, as in late Perpendicular work. There can be little doubt, Professor Willis says, that this crypt was a mere piece of patchwork put together, when the present choir was built, out of old materials which came readily to hand, with the object of giving support to the platform of the altar, and to provide chapels and altar room beneath it.



After the fire of 1829, the existence was discovered of a large crypt, stretching westward of the altar platform, and extending under the whole of the rest of the choir and its aisles. Of this crypt, only the pillars and the lower part of the walls remained.

At the west end of this crypt a portion had been enclosed in walls and filled up with earth. The eastern part was vaulted, and had stout Norman pillars at the side, while in the middle were two rows of smaller single pillars. The earth has since been removed, and the building laid open, repaired, and vaulted.

The thicker pillars are of elaborate late Norman work, diapered in a manner recalling the piers of the nave at Durham. The vault was ribbed. These pillars were, no doubt, erected by Roger Pont l'Eveque, and enable us to understand what the character of his choir must have been.

The walls enclosing the western part of the crypt are of peculiar interest. They are made up of three partitions. The outer wall, 3 feet 6 inches thick, is, no doubt, the work of Roger. The middle wall, 4 feet 8 inches thick, is faced with herring-bone work, and this, and the coarseness of its workmanship, prove it to be of great antiquity. It is almost undoubtedly Saxon, and has been supposed, though on slender evidence, to be part of the original church begun by Edwin in the seventh century. A bit of this wall is now bare, and may be seen.



The third wall is only 2 feet thick. It probably was also erected by Roger, but it is composed of older materials of an early Norman character. It may be from Thomas's choir, if, as is probable, the earlier choir which Roger pulled down had been built by Thomas. The stone of this wall is of the same coarse sandstone as the remains of Thomas's apse under the north transept, and there are traces of plaster on the stones showing that they had been used for the interior of a building.

No doubt the outer wall was erected by Roger as a support for his massive piers, for which purpose the middle wall alone would have been insufficient. Roger also probably added the thin inner wall, and filled the whole with earth, for the same purpose.

Close to the remains of the Norman doorway before mentioned, is a low arch, and the portion of an apse, no doubt the work of Thomas, the apse being the eastern termination of his transept.



It was from his examination of the side walls of this crypt that Professor Willis was able to support his conjectures as to the dimensions and character of Roger's choir. Thus he traced it to the eastern transept of that choir, in the same place as the present eastern transepts, and deduced from the extra thickness of the wall in that part that those transepts had been capped by towers. Beyond this the crypt was filled up with graves, and there is now no access, but during the repairs he was able to trace so much of the walls as to make it plain that Roger's choir had a square ending, and also to mark the situation of the east end of that choir.

The Record Room.—A chantry founded by Archbishop Zouch, but rebuilt in 1396, during the erection of the present choir, is now utilised as the record room, and contains the fabric rolls, and other documents concerning the building and constitution of the minster.

The vestry and treasury date from the middle of the fourteenth century; like the record room they lie to the south of the choir.

In the vestry is the famous horn of Alphus. It was given by Alph, or Alphus, son of Thorald, a little while before the Conquest. Alphus laid it on the altar of the minster, as a sign that he gave certain lands to the church. The horn is made out of an elephant's tusk. The wide end of the horn is ornamented with carvings of griffin dogs, a unicorn, and a lion eating a doe. This carving shows a strong Eastern or Byzantine influence, and may well have been of Byzantine workmanship. The horn was lost during the Civil War, but found by Lord Fairfax, who gave it back to the minster. The silver gilt chain now attached to it was added in 1675. The vestry also contains an oak chest finely carved with the stag of St. George, and dating from the early part of the fifteenth century, and the fine pastoral staff plundered from James Smyth, the Roman Bishop of Callipolis, in the streets of York at the time of the deposition of James II.

Here also is the Mazer Bowl or Indulgence Cup of Archbishop Scrope. It is of wood, with a silver rim, and three cherubs' heads for feet. Round the rim is the following inscription:—

"Recharde, Arche Beschope Scrope grantis on to alle tho that drinkis of this cope x dayis to pardune, Robart Gubsone, Beschope Musm grantis in same forme aforesaide x dayis to pardune, Robart Strensalle."

The cup was originally given to the Corpus Christi Guild, and afterwards passed to the Cordwainers Company. When the latter were dissolved (in 1808), the bowl was presented to the minster.

The vestry also contains three silver chalices and patens taken from the tombs of archbishops; the rings of Archbishops Greenfield, Sewall, and Bowet, also taken from their tombs; and an ancient chain, probably dating from the fifteenth century.

* * * * *

The minster, for all its size, age, and importance, contains curiously few tombs of interest. Though most of the earlier bishops were buried within its walls, not more than three of their monuments are really remarkable. Only one member of the royal family, William of Hatfield, the infant son of Edward III., lies there, and very few persons of distinction. It is not proposed therefore to give a description of any tombs, except such as are notable for beauty or interest.

Monuments In The Nave.—In the north aisle, three bays from the west end, is a monument of late Perpendicular work, said to be the tomb of Archbishop Roger, who died in 1181. It is possible that his bones were transferred here from the choir, though there is no record of such transference. This tomb was opened and restored in 1862, when some bones and remains of ecclesiastical vestments were found in it. The restoration appears to have been arbitrary and inaccurate.



The tomb is recessed in the wall of the aisle, and consists of a lower storey for the coffin with a flat top, with a front of open stone work in eight divisions, each containing a quatrefoil. Above is a very obtuse arch with plain mouldings, with a row of "Tudor flower" ornaments on the top, and a figure of the Virgin in the middle. There are two birds holding scrolls in their beaks on either side of her. These have been changed by the ingenious restorers into eagles bearing ears of wheat.

All other monuments of importance in the nave were destroyed by the Puritans, or at the Reformation.

A word must be said, however, as to the tomb and shrine of St. William, the patron saint of the minster.

William Fitzherbert was a great-grandson of the Conqueror, and an opponent of the monks. He was expelled from his episcopacy in 1147, but returned to it in 1153. He is stated to have performed a miracle immediately on his return, and died about immediately afterwards in 1154. He is said to have been poisoned, whilst celebrating mass, out of the holy chalice itself. It was perhaps the peculiar atrocity of his end which gave him so great a reputation for sanctity. During his life he does not seem to have been distinguished above other archbishops for learning, piety, or good deeds. He was not canonised until 1284. It is difficult to understand either why the minster had not obtained a patron saint before this time, or why the choice eventually fell upon St. William. No doubt the authorities felt the want of a shrine fit to be enriched by the visitations of pilgrims, and were encouraged by the example of the shrine of St. Thomas of Canterbury to obtain one as soon as possible. We can only suppose that they chose St. William for want of a more distinguished patron. At all events, his shrine never obtained the celebrity of that of St. Thomas of Canterbury, and in after years was probably regarded as inferior in sanctity and interest even to that of Archbishop Scrope in the minster.

He had originally been buried in the nave, where, exactly, is not known, but it is said that even before his canonisation his tomb was visited by pilgrims, and was the occasion of miracles. When he was canonised, the 8th of June, the day of his death, was appointed for his festival.

The visit of Edward I. to York in 1283-4 was chosen by Archbishop Wickwaine as the occasion for the translation of St. William's relics from his old tomb in the nave to his shrine in the choir. The ceremony was performed with great pomp in the presence of the King and of his wife Eleanor. William became one of the King's patron saints, and Edward gave various gifts of jewels to his shrine.

In the Acta Sanctorum for June 8th, St. William's day, it is recorded that "Corpus ab imo in altum, a communi loco in chorum Venerabiliter est translatum."

"His body was translated with all reverence from the lowest to the highest place, from a common position to the choir."

The shrine was probably placed behind the high altar, and afterwards between the reredos and the eastern screen, as at Durham and St. Albans. The bones themselves were deposited in a portable feretrum, so that they might be easily carried in procession.

As in the case of Thomas a Becket, the original place of William's burial still remained an object of veneration.

It was at the eastern end of the nave, and was covered with a great superstructure, so large that processions, it is said, were obliged to divide and march to each side of it.

The head appears to have been kept in a silver jewelled chest separate from the rest of the body. It was exhibited to worshippers who gave offerings to it. At the Reformation the head was seized by one Layton, afterwards Dean, and a follower of Thomas Cromwell; its seizure was one of the chief causes of the Pilgrimage of Grace.

At this time, also, the shrine was demolished, and also the superstructure over the saint's original place of burial in the nave. It is said that no remembrance was left of the spot except a tradition that the saint had lain under a long marble slab in the nave of the church.

In 1732, during the repairing of the nave of the minster, Drake, the historian of York, obtained leave to search under the said slab, and there found a coffin of stone, containing a leaden box, in which were bones wrapped in sarcenet. There was no inscription by which the remains could be identified, and they were again buried.

Archbishop Melton was buried near the font, as it then stood, at the west end of the minster. In 1736, when the new pavement was laid, the stone covering his grave was taken up, and a lead coffin was discovered, containing the bones of the archbishop. On the top of the coffin was a chalice and paten of silver-gilt. Inside the coffin was the pastoral staff, but no ring or vestments. The archbishop was re-buried in the same place.

Monuments In The South Transept.—In the eastern aisle is the tomb of Archbishop de Grey, who died in 1255. This, one of the two or three really fine monuments in the church, is Early English in style, and has been very little damaged. It consists of an effigy, with a canopy supported by nine pillars above it. The figure of the archbishop is clothed in full canonicals. In his left hand is a crozier, and his right is raised to bless. The feet trample on a dragon, into the mouth of which enters the butt end of the crozier. On each side of the figure is a shaft ornamented with bunches of leafage at regular intervals. Round the head of the archbishop is a gable cusped with censing angels on each side of it.

The pillars supporting the canopy have fine capitals, and above them are cusped arches, with richly-carved scroll work in their spandrels. Above is a further tier of arches, supported by short shafts, also having beautiful capitals. Above these arches are gables covered with crockets, and on the gables are elaborate finials. These finials are an addition of the beginning of the century, and are of plaster. They are the work of an Italian sculptor, Bernasconi by name, and, considering the circumstances, are unusually good. Round the tomb is a railing, presented by Archbishop Markham, also of the beginning of the century, and of very poor design.



To the south of this tomb is the large and elaborate modern monument to Archdeacon Duncombe, which has nothing, either in workmanship or design, to recommend.

To the north is the tomb of Archbishop Sewall de Bovill, who succeeded Archbishop de Grey. His sepulchre, says Drake, was much frequented after his death by the common people, who reported many miracles to be done at it. The tomb consists of a plain slab of marble, with a cross upon it, supported by twelve low pillars, with plain capitals, and trefoiled arches.

Monuments In The North Transept.—In the eastern aisle of the north transept is the beautiful tomb of Archbishop Greenfield, who died in 1315. This tomb belongs to the most fully-developed period of the Decorated style. It is ornamented with arcading in front, with gables, each partition divided by buttresses with pinnacles. Above it is a canopy with a richly-foliated arch, and a gable with crockets, terminating in an elaborately-carved finial, with a statue of the archbishop in the act of benediction on the top. On each side are buttresses, with elaborate pinnacles. The statue of the archbishop is a modern addition. On the tomb itself are the remains of a brass. In 1735 this tomb was opened, and a ring discovered in it. Close to the tomb was the altar of St. Nicholas; and the archbishop was buried in this position because he died on the festival-day of that saint. This tomb is also remarkable for the fact that the lunatic Martin hid himself behind it, in 1829, before setting the minster on fire.

Near at hand, in the same aisle, is the tomb of Dr Beckwith (died 1843).

In the west aisle is a monument to Archbishop Vernon Harcourt (died 1847).

Behind the walled-up arch also in this aisle is a tomb, said to have been erected either to or by Thomas Huxey, who was treasurer of York from 1418 to 1424. Huxey himself, however, was buried to the south of the tomb. It consists of a slab, with the figure of a corpse below it inside a grating.



Monuments In The Choir.—We find here many monuments, but few of either beauty or interest. In the westernmost bay of the north aisle is the tomb of William of Hatfield, second son of Edward III., who died at the age of eight, in 1344. The effigy of the prince is fine, though much damaged. Canon Raine has pointed out that the canopy is ornamented with the Plantagenista. The head was formerly supported by two angels, which have been destroyed (Britton). The feet rest against a lion. Drake relates that the vergers in his time asserted that this was the son of the Emperor Severus, buried at Acombe Hills, and carried thence to the cathedral. The statue appears to have been removed from its proper place, and neglected for a long time.

One bay east, and on the opposite side of the aisle, is the tomb of Archbishop Savage, who died in 1507. This is one of the latest of the Gothic works in the cathedral. It is a plain oblong, with four panels, containing coats of arms on each of the larger sides. It is surmounted by an effigy of the bishop, with mitre and crozier. Drake states that above it was a wooden chantry, of which there are now no traces. The name, Thomas Dalby, on the inscription on the tomb, is that of an archdeacon of Richmond, who is said to have erected the monument. Farther east, the outer wall of the aisle, as also of the southern aisle, is almost covered with pompous and ugly monuments, few of them remarkable either for their design or for the fame of the persons to whom they were erected. The best, perhaps, is that to Lionel Ingram, who died at the age of six. It is Jacobean in style, and has a pathetic Latin inscription setting forth the unusual virtues of the child.

The tomb of Archbishop Sterne, at the east end of the aisle (1683), is an example of almost everything that a monument should not be. West of this is the tomb of the unfortunate Scrope, beheaded by Henry IV. It is of little interest in itself, and was restored after the fire of 1829; but in the Middle Ages thousands of pilgrims flocked to it, and it was for a time more popular than the shrine of St. William himself. Henry IV. forbade offerings to be made to it, and gave these orders to the clerk of the cathedral.

"Y faces mettre sur la terre entre les pilers et par bonne espace de hors beilles fuystes et grosses piers de bonne hautesse et lacune iffint gils i soyent continuellement pour faire estoppoil a les faux foles que y beignont par couleur de devotion." The offerings were not, however, thus checked. Close by was the Chapel of St. Stephen, in which was the chantry of the Scropes, and so many offerings in memory of the archbishop were deposited there that it increased in riches up to the Reformation.

Farther west, between the aisle and the retro-choir, is the cenotaph of Archbishop Markham (died 1807), who was buried in Westminster Abbey.

To the north of the eastern altar is the tomb of Archbishop Rotherham, died 1500. It is a plain monument, Perpendicular in style. The top is a later addition; the whole was restored after the fire of 1829. The tomb was opened when a new pavement was laid in 1736, and a vault was discovered to run under it, in which were bones and a wooden head—"a piece of extraordinary sculpture for that age"—with a stick thrust into the neck to carry it on.

Under the east window are the tombs of Archbishops Frewen (died 1664), and Sharpe (1714), the latter being, perhaps, the ugliest and most absurd in the minster.

In a line with the monument to Rotherham is the effigy of Archbishop Matthew (died 1628). His tomb is on the south side of the retro-choir, and an unknown monument, with bases of pillars which once, no doubt, supported a canopy. This has been attributed to Sewall de Bovil, who, however, is buried in the south transept. Between the retro-choir and the south aisle is the beautiful tomb of Archbishop Bowet (died 1423). This is one of the finest Perpendicular monuments in the country, and far the finest in the minster. The stone which covered the grave was removed from it and used for the pavement in 1736, and the remains were laid bare, showing the archbishop's episcopal ring.

The canopy consists of an arch of a curious elliptical shape, over which are three clusters of tabernacle work, with pinnacles between them. The curious manner in which these clusters are joined to the arch beneath them, with fan tracery projecting outside the arch, should be noticed. The whole has been much destroyed.

At the east end of the south aisle of the choir stood the altar of All Saints, founded by Bowet.

A bay west of this is the tomb of Archbishop Matthew (died 1628), and north of it is that of Archbishop Musgrave (died 1860).

In the south aisle are the tombs of William Wentworth son of the great Earl of Stafford (died 1695); Archbishop Lamplugh (died 1691); and Archbishop Matthew Hutton, (died 1757). All of them, like most of the other tombs in the choir, remarkable only for ugliness.



Stained Glass.—Undoubtedly the chief glory of the minster is its glass. There are 25,531 square feet of ancient stained glass in the church—at least twice as much, that is to say, as in any other English cathedral, and perhaps more than in any other church in the world. And this glass is of all periods. There are fragments of Norman in the five sisters and in some of the windows of the nave; Early English in the five sisters; Decorated in the nave, and Perpendicular in the choir. Further, the glass is almost all of very high quality—far higher, for instance, than that in King's College Chapel, Cambridge—and of infinite variety of effect. It ranges from the simple, almost uniform scheme of the five sisters, to the strong contrasts, definite forms, and glittering colours of the great west window.

It would require years of investigation and the writing of a large book to give an adequate description of this glass, and this has not yet been done. Facts, both as to its origin and subsequent history, are almost altogether wanting. As we see them to-day, the windows are in almost inextricable confusion. At some time or another, perhaps at the Reformation, or during the Civil Wars, the glass has been removed from its setting, and afterwards carelessly pieced together. It is now in the condition of a puzzle wrongly arranged. Outlines of figures have been filled with scraps of different colours, male heads fitted to female bodies, or inserted alone in incongruous surroundings, and glass of one period mixed with glass of another. Add to this that the glass was generally renewed and restored by one Peckett about 1780, who inserted patches and curious geometrical patterns of his own manufacture wherever possible, and an idea may be obtained of the difficulties which will beset anyone who tries to write an adequate book on the subject. It is only possible here to point out the main characteristics of the different windows and some of the chief points of interest about them.

The glass in the nave is mostly Decorated, with occasional Norman, Early English, and later insertions. Except in the three west windows, it is very fragmentary, and includes many of Peckett's additions.

The great west window is one of the most perfect in the church. It measures 56 feet by 25, and is almost entirely filled with its original glass, said to have been given by Archbishop Melton in 1338. This is remarkable not only for the purity and boldness of its scheme of colours, but for the admirable way in which the design of the glass fits the elaborate pattern of the tracery. It will be noticed that both the figures and the architectural ornaments are in bolder relief than in the earlier glass of the five sisters, or the later of the choir. Some of the faces of the figures have been restored by Peckett, but not so as to interfere with the decorative effect of the whole. The window contains three rows of figures, the lowest a row of eight archbishops, the next a row of eight saints, including St. Peter, St. Paul, St. James, and St. Katharine, and above this a row of smaller figures unidentified. The window at the west end of the north aisle is also very fine. It contains a Virgin and child, and St. Katharine with her wheel. In one of the small lights above is a figure of St. Peter, crucified head downwards.

The kneeling figure below is obviously a later insertion, as may be seen from the incongruous colour of the arch above it.

The first window from the west in the north aisle of the nave is plain. The other windows are filled with fragments. In the third of these the top lights have been filled by Peckett, and contain the date of the insertion, 1779. The rest of these windows are free from Peckett's additions.

The second of these windows from the east is particularly worthy of attention. It is said to have been given by a guild of bell-founders. It was probably the particular gift of the Richard Tunnoc who died in 1330, after holding the office of Lord Mayor of York. Perhaps he was the head of the guild.

This window contains a most interesting representation of the casting of a bell, with an inscription, "Richard Tunnoc me fist," and also of Tunnoc kneeling and receiving the blessing of an archbishop, probably Melton. Above the figure of Tunnoc is the picture of a small window, and this certainly goes to prove that the window was given by Tunnoc himself. There are bells in the borders of the lights and other parts of the design.

The west window in the south aisle is as fine as its fellow in the north aisle. It contains a representation of the Crucifixion, in which the head of Christ is a later insertion, perhaps of the eighteenth century. The figure below, as in the corresponding window in the north aisle, is also of later date.

The first window from the west end is plain. The glass in the other windows is rather finer, and less fragmentary than in the north aisle.

The second window appears to have been largely restored. The tabernacle work is very crude in colour. It contains figures of St. Laurence, St. Christopher, another saint, and three coats of arms below. The top lights are fine, and perhaps of Perpendicular date.

The third window is one of the richest in colour in the minster, with its gorgeous arrangement of crimsons, greens, and blues. There are inscriptions by Peckett, with the date at the bottom, 1789. His deep blues on the top lights are particularly unfortunate.

The sixth window is also very bright. It probably contains Norman fragments. All the windows except the fifth contain insertions by Peckett.

The clerestory window contains fragments and coats of arms.

In the westernmost light of the second window from the west, on the north side, are portions of an Early English Jesse window. The wheel of this window, and those of the next five, also contain fragments of Early English glass. And in the lower lights of the fifth and seventh windows from the west are remains of the same date.

The wheels in the clerestory windows on the south side of the nave all contain Early English glass, except the third from the west. There is also some Early English glass in their lower lights.

The transepts contain less of their original glass than any other part of the minster. In the south transept there are fragments of Perpendicular glass in the east aisle, including figures of Michael, Gabriel, and St. William, and also Perpendicular fragments in the west aisle. The lowest row of windows at the south end of the transept has been filled with painted figures by Peckett, only better than the worst efforts of the Gothic revival. The figures represent Abraham, Solomon, Moses, and St. Peter. The glass in the five sisters, as has been said, is Early English of the simplest and most beautiful design. The colour, an almost uniform scheme of greyish green, is a curious contrast to the vivid blues and yellows of the period which preceded it, and examples of which may be seen in the choir of Canterbury. The pattern is an elaborate but restrained arrangement of the foliage of the Planta Benedicta (herb benet). The plain border surrounding the Early English glass was inserted in 1715. At the foot of the central light is a panel of Norman glass, the subject of which is either the dream of Jacob, or Daniel in the lion's den.

The glass in the west aisle of the north transept is modern, and of the worst character. A window by Mr Kempe in the east aisle is almost the only good example of modern glass in the minster.

The glass in the lancets above the five sisters is modern.

The glass in the choir is almost wholly Perpendicular. As in the nave, it is very fragmentary and disordered. The change in the character of the design will be easily noticed. The Perpendicular glass is not so clear and delicate in colour, and the architectural and other patterns are less pronounced. As has been said before, however, this glass, regarded simply as decorative, is perhaps superior even to that in the nave.

Mr Winton, to whom throughout in this short notice of the windows we are much indebted, has pointed out that the earliest Perpendicular glass in the choir is contained in the third window from the east in the south aisle; in the third and fourth windows from the east in the north clerestory; and in the fourth clerestory window from the east on the opposite side. These windows date from the close of the fourteenth century. There is also an early Perpendicular Jesse in the third window from the west in the south aisle of the choir. The other windows of the choir aisles east of the small eastern transepts, as well as the glass in the lancet windows on the east side of the great western transepts appear, he says, to be of the time of Henry IV.; the rest of the glass in the choir is of the reigns of Henry V. and VI., chiefly of the latter. He notices, also, that the white glass in the windows is generally less green in tint than usual, and that he has learnt from Mr Browne that it is all of English manufacture.

The great east window was glazed by John Thornton of Coventry. The terms of the contract for this work, dated 1405, are extant. They provide that Thornton shall "portray the said window with his own hand, and the histories, images, and other things to be painted on it." It was to be finished within three years. Glass, lead, and workmen were to be provided at the expense of the chapter, and Thornton was to receive 4s. a week, L5 a year, and L10 at completion, for his trouble.

The window is 78 feet high and 32 feet wide, and contains nine lights. It is entirely filled with old glass, except for certain pitches of modern glass, rather crude in colour, and inserted, it is said, after the fire of 1829. It contains 200 panels of figures. The subjects in the upper part are from the Old Testament, reaching from the creation of the world to the death of Absalom. The lower part contains illustrations from the Book of Revelations. In the lowest row of all are representations of kings and archbishops.

In the top lights are figures of prophets, saints and kings. At the apex of the window is a representation of the Saviour in Judgment.

This window is probably the finest example of Perpendicular glass in England. The windows in the south aisle are rather fragmentary. In the first two from the west the top lights are empty.

The second window is remarkable for the delicate modelling and drawing of the heads. The head of the Virgin reminds one of one of Lippo Lippi's Madonnas. That of an old man with a beard in the central light is German in character. If these are compared with the crude and simple design of the heads in the other windows, it will be obvious that they are of a different origin. Nothing, however, is known of their history.

The third window has borders by Peckett. It contains the Jesse noted before.

The fourth window is very fragmentary. It contains a beautiful figure of a saint in one of the top lights; the other top lights are by Peckett. In the central division, at the bottom, is the name of Archbishop Lamplugh, with a coat of arms. (Lamplugh's tomb is close to this window.)

The last of those windows contain painted glass given by Lord Carlisle in 1804, and bought from a church at Rouen. It is a representation of the Visitation, Mr Winton says, taken from a picture by Baroccio, and dates from the end of the sixteenth century. The upper lights contain the original glass.

The east window of this aisle is very fine in colouring, and fairly coherent in design. The subject is not clear.

In the north aisle the east window is also very fine. It contains a representation of the Crucifixion, with St. John, St. James, and the Virgin. The first window from the east is very fragmentary.



The next three are among the finest in the minster. Their beautiful and unusual arrangement of greys, browns, and blues, should be particularly noticed. Their top lights are empty.

The other three windows contain paler, and less interesting glass; their top lights also are empty. The last of these was given by Archbishop Bowet.

The two great windows in the small north and south transepts contain scenes from the lives of St. William and St. Cuthbert respectively. They are 73 feet long by 16 feet wide. They have both been restored, but their glass is mostly original. The St. Cuthbert window was probably given by the will of Longley, Bishop of Durham, who died in 1437. It contains, beside subjects from the life of St. Cuthbert, figures of members of the house of Lancaster.

The glass in the clerestory is fragmentary, and contains restorations by Peckett.

The glass in the chapter-house and vestibule is chiefly decorated. There are, however, fragments of Norman and Early English glass in the upper lights of the vestibule windows. The glass in the chapter-house itself dates from the time of Edward II. and Edward III. The design is chiefly made up of medallions and shields. There are some modern restorations in the glass; and one of the windows—there is no difficulty in distinguishing it—is wholly modern. All the glass, excepting the unfortunate modern example, is of the finest quality.



CHAPTER V

THE ARCHBISHOPS OF YORK

Paulinus (627-633). The origin and even the nationality of Paulinus are unknown. It is said that he was sent from Italy by Gregory the Great to assist Augustine in Kent. Nennius states that Edwin of Northumbria was baptised by Rum, the son of Urien. It has been supposed that this Rum may have originally gone to Italy, and there taken the name of Paulinus, and that consequently Paulinus was a Briton; but this is mere conjecture. For over twenty years Paulinus remained with Augustine; but in 625 a marriage was arranged between Edwin, King of Northumbria and overlord of England, and Ethelberga, daughter of Ethelbert, the Christian King of Kent. Edwin, though still a Pagan, agreed that Ethelberga should be allowed the free exercise of her religion, and that she should bring a chaplain with her, who might preach the Christian faith when and where he chose.

The office was given to Paulinus, and before setting out he was consecrated Bishop of the Northumbrians by Archbishop Justus. For some little time Edwin remained Pagan, but he allowed his daughter to be baptised so soon as she was born. Finally, a conference took place between Paulinus and the nobles of Northumbria, probably at Londesborough, as a result of which Edwin, two of his children, and many of his court were baptised at York on Easter Day, 627; while the heathen high priest Coifi took the chief part in destroying a great temple at Godmandham.

But in 633 Edwin was killed in battle, and Paulinus fled with the Queen back to Kent. He was created Bishop of Rochester, where he remained until his death, 644. Afterwards he became the patron saint of Rochester.

633-664. After the flight of Paulinus the country relapsed into Paganism. When Oswald, a Christian, became King of Northumbria, he applied not to Canterbury but to Scotland for a missionary to his kingdom, and this was the beginning of the rivalry between the British and Roman churches in Northumbria. Aidan, a monk of Iona was sent, and became Bishop of Lindisfarne (635-657). He was succeeded by Finan (651-661); Colman (661-664); and Tuda (664-5). But these men cannot be accounted bishops of York. None of them received the pall, which, indeed, was given to no bishop of York between Paulinus and Egbert (735).

Ceadda and Wilfrid (664-678). Wilfrid, who had been educated in Italy, became Bishop of York, with jurisdiction over the whole of Northumbria. He refused, however, to be consecrated by a British prelate, and went to Gaul for that purpose. He was away three years, and, in his absence, Oswi, the King, appointed Ceadda (St. Chad) to the see. Ceadda was of the British Church, and was consecrated by the Bishop of Winchester. Wilfrid, when he returned, went to the monastery of Ripon, and lived there in retirement.

In 669 Ceadda retired, and Wilfrid became Bishop of York. Ceadda was made Bishop of Mercia.

Wilfrid did not obtain the pall, but exercised the powers of a Metropolitan. He restored the dilapidated cathedral, and built minsters at Hexham and Ripon.

He quarrelled in course of time with Egfrith, King of Northumbrian who induced Theodore, in 678, to divide his diocese into four bishoprics—York, Lindisfarne, Hexham, and Witherne. Wilfrid went to Rome to appeal to the Pope. His appeal was successful, but when he returned in 680 he was imprisoned, and afterwards banished. But in 686 Theodore intervened again, and reconciled him to the king. He was first given the sees of Lindisfarne and Hexham, and afterwards York, but he soon quarrelled with the king again, and left Northumbria. It is uncertain whether Wilfrid died in the possession of the see or not. He died, 711, aged 75. He was buried at Ripon. In 940 his bones were removed to Canterbury by Odo.

Bosa (678-705?) was educated under St. Hilda at Whitby. He retired in favour of Wilfrid in 686, but afterwards was reinstated. He was the first archbishop to be buried in the cathedral.

St. John of Beverley (705-718) was also a pupil of St. Hilda and of Theodore of Canterbury, who made him Bishop of Hexham, 687. The venerable Bede was his pupil, and speaks of many miracles which he performed. He enlarged the church at Beverley, and founded a monastery there. He was famous for his piety and good works. In 718 he resigned his see, and retired to Beverley, where he lived privately for about four years in his own foundation. He was buried in the church there. He was canonised in 1037, and his relics were translated and placed in a golden shrine.

Wilfrid II. (718-732) had been a pupil of St. John. He is said to have begun the dispute between York and Canterbury for precedence. Little else is known of him.

Egbert (732-766) was brother to Edbert, King of Northumberland, and, it is said, "by his own wisdom and the authority of the King, greatly amended the state of the Church in these parts." Gregory III. gave him the pall in 735, and he was acknowledged Metropolitan Archbishop in the north. He founded the famous school at York, where Alcuin was educated, and also the library.

Albert (766-782) had been a master at Egbert's school, and had greatly contributed to its renown. He also played a large part in the establishment of the library. He retired to the monastery at York, and died there, 782. He was succeeded by Eanbald I. (782-796), Eanbald II. (796-812), Wulfsy (812-831), Wigmund (837-854), Wilfere or Wulfere (854-890), Ethelbald (895), and Redewald or Redward (928).

Wulstan (928-956) was raised to the see by Athelstan, who was now King of England. He was imprisoned by Edred in 952, at Jedburgh, but was released soon after, and restored to his bishopric at Dorchester. He died two years after his release at Oundle in Northamptonshire, and was buried there. He was followed by Oskytel (956-972), and Ethelwold (972).

Oswald (972-992) had been made Bishop of Worcester in 961, and held that see, together with York.

After his elevation to the sees of Worcester and York, he became a great reformer of monasteries, and founded that of Ramsey in the Isle of Ely. He was a strong opponent of married clergy. He died suddenly at Worcester, after washing the feet of beggars, as was his custom. He was buried at Worcester, and miracles occurred at his tomb. He was afterwards canonised.

Adulf (992-1002) had been Abbot of Peterboro', and succeeded to both sees held by Oswald.

Wulstan (1002-1023) was also Bishop both of York and Worcester, but in 1016 one Leofsi was appointed his suffragan at Worcester. He died at York, but was buried at Ely, where there is said to have been a picture of him under the lantern.

Alfric Puttoc or Pulta (1023-1050) was Archbishop of York alone. He is said to have incited Hardicanute to set fire to the city of Worcester. He was a liberal benefactor of the church and college of Beverley, and built a magnificent shrine of the tomb of St. John. He died at Southwell, and was buried at Peterboro'.

Kinsi (1050-1060) had been a monk at Peterboro', and chaplain to Edward the Confessor.

Ealdred or Aldred (1060-1067). He was successively a monk at Winchester, Abbot of Tavistock, and Bishop of Worcester. He is said to have made his way by money and bribes to the see of York, with which he continued to hold Worcester. He had been much employed by Edward in diplomatic work. When created Archbishop of York, he went to Rome with the famous Tosti to obtain his pall. This the Pope refused, having heard, it is said, of his Simoniacal practices. But the Pope afterwards relented, on condition that he should resign the see of Worcester—this he did.

Once established as archbishop, Ealdred showed great activity as a builder and benefactor, especially at Southwell and Beverley. He also built a new cathedral at Gloucester.

He crowned Harold, and afterwards William. For this Drake calls him "a meer worldling and an odious time-server." He is said, however, to have exacted an oath from William that he would rule Normans and Saxons alike. Afterwards he excommunicated William for disregarding his oath, but William is said to have bought him off.

Hearing of the Danish invasion in 1069, he is said to have sickened at the news and died of a broken heart. Thus he escaped witnessing the vengeance exacted by William upon the north.

Thomas of Bayeux (1070-1100) was the chaplain of the Conqueror. He had assisted William with all his fortune in the invasion of England. In his time, the quarrel for precedence broke out with Canterbury. Thomas refused to make a profession of obedience to Lanfranc, and appealed to the Pope, and both went to Rome. The Pope, however, discreetly referred the matter back to the king, and at a synod held by William it was determined that Thomas should swear allegiance to Lanfranc, but not to his successors, and should be installed in Canterbury Cathedral; also that the Humber should be the southern boundary of his diocese, and that Worcester should be added to the see of Canterbury.

Thomas found his diocese in a miserable condition, owing both to the Danish invasion and the barbarities of the Conqueror. He rebuilt the minster, called back the frightened canons and made a provision for them. He appointed a dean, treasurer, precentor, and chancellor. He died at Ripon, and was buried at York.

Gerard (1101-1108) was translated from Hereford; he was a kinsman of the Conqueror. Like Thomas he refused to submit to Canterbury, and his consecration was delayed until he submitted at the command of the Pope.

Thomas (1108-1114) was the nephew of Thomas of Bayeux, and chaplain to Henry I. He also refused to acknowledge the supremacy of Anselm, and in consequence his consecration was delayed. Anselm dying, forbade any bishop to consecrate him until he had made his submission. At length Thomas submitted, and was consecrated by the Bishop of London. He died at Beverley, and was buried in the minster.

Thurstan (1114-1140) was the son of a prebendary of London, and chaplain to Henry I. Like his predecessors, but with more determination, he continued the quarrel with Canterbury. He refused to make his submission to Archbishop Ralph, who therefore refused to consecrate him. Thurstan was supported by three successive Popes, and was at length consecrated at Rheims by Calixtus II. Thus he alone succeeded in avoiding any submission to Canterbury. Henry I, taking the side of Ralph, deprived him of his lands, but the Pope issued a bull freeing him from all subjection to Canterbury, and threatened Henry with excommunication. In 1121 Thurstan returned triumphantly to York, and Henry submitted. The quarrel was revived by William de Corbeil, Ralph's successor, who was appointed papal legate as a compromise. Thurstan's victory over the Scots at the Battle of the Standard is perhaps his most famous achievement. William Fitzherbert (St. William, 1143; deprived 1147, restored 1153-1154). On the death of Thurstan the see was not filled without a contest. The chapter chose Henry of Selby, Abbot of Fecamp, but the Pope refused his consent unless he would give up his monastery at Fecamp, and thereupon the choice fell upon William, who was a great grandson of the Conqueror. His election was not popular, especially among the monks. Accusations were made against him in Rome, where his election was bitterly opposed by St. Bernard and others. The Pope, however, agreed to allow his consecration, if the Dean of York would swear that his election had not been corruptly procured by the king. William was consecrated in 1143, at Winchester, and the pall sent to him in 1145. Meanwhile, Eugenius III. had become Pope, and fresh accusations were made against William, who went to Rome to meet them, but was suspended by the Pope, who, on hearing that certain followers of the archbishop had plundered the monastery of Fountains, deprived him altogether. (1147.)

Thereupon, Henry Mordac (1147-1153), the Abbot of Fountains, and like Thurstan, a friend of St. Bernard, was elected in his place. Stephen at first refused to receive him, but was induced to do so on the condition that the Pope would acknowledge Stephen's son heir to the throne of England. Mordac died at Beverley in 1153.

Meanwhile William had remained at Winchester. On Mordac's death he was re-elected. On his return to York, after it is said, performing a miracle, he died almost immediately, and so suddenly as to cause a report that he was poisoned at mass. He was buried in the cathedral, and pilgrims began to visit his tomb almost immediately after his death. Before long many wonderful cures were reported there, but it was not until one hundred and fifty years after his death that he was canonised. William is said to have performed thirty-six miracles after his death, and a list of them was once hung up in the vestry.

Roger De Pont L'Eveque (1154-1181) had been Archdeacon of Canterbury, and chaplain to Henry II. He was consecrated by Theobald of Canterbury, but without a profession of obedience. He is said to have instigated the murder of Becket. It was certainly after a conference with Roger that Henry uttered the words which led to the death of the archbishop.

Roger also was the hero of the famous and ridiculous scene in 1176 at the Council of Westminster, when Robert of Canterbury having seated himself on the right of the papal legate, Roger, refusing to take an inferior seat, placed himself in Robert's lap. The unfortunate Roger was pulled off, beaten with sticks, and flung upon the ground.

Roger, however, was a good administrator, and charitable. He rebuilt the palace, and the choir of the minster, and also began a new minster at Ripon. After his death the king seized on his personalty. He was buried in the cathedral, and his tomb, though of much later date, is in the nave.

Geoffry (1191-1207), the illegitimate, and only faithful son of Henry II., was appointed only after ten years' interval, during which time the king took the revenues. He was early in life made Archdeacon, and then Bishop of Lincoln. He afterwards became Chancellor of England. He was only ordained priest when he obtained the archbishopric. He had sworn not to go to England while Richard was away on his crusade, but he returned immediately after his consecration at Rheims, and was clapped into prison at Dover. He was, however, soon released, and went at once to York. There he proved a better bishop than was expected, according to Stubbs, though Drake shrewdly remarks that "that author has made saints of every prelate he writes on." It is certain that he quarrelled always with John and Richard, or with the canons of York. At length he was suspended by the Pope, appealed, and was reinstated. Richard, on his return, seized all his goods, spiritual and temporal, but Geoffry obtained their return by payment of a sum of money. John also seized his goods, and Geoffry excommunicated all concerned in the seizure. He was from time to time reconciled with the king, but after a final rupture fled to Norway, where he died in 1212.

Walter De Grey (1216-1255) was only appointed after the see had been vacant for nine years, during which time John of course kept the revenues. The dean and chapter elected Simon Langton, brother of Stephen, Archbishop of Canterbury; but John would have none of him, and was supported by the Pope. Walter de Grey was therefore chosen at the desire of the king. He died just before the outbreak of the Barons' war.

He conferred many benefits on his diocese, and built the south transept of the minster, where is his beautiful tomb. He is said to have built the west front of Ripon Minster.

Sewal De Bovill (1256-1258) had been Dean of York. After the death of De Grey the see remained vacant for some time, the king saying that he had never held the archbishopric in his hands before, and was therefore in no hurry to let it slip out of them. He refused his consent to Sewal's election for some time, who, however, obtained a dispensation from Rome. He afterwards quarrelled with the Pope about the election to the deanery, and was excommunicated. This sentence lay heavy on the archbishop, and is said to have brought him to his grave. According to Stubbs, he began to "squeak" at last, and called for absolution on his death-bed. His tomb is in the south transept.

Geoffry Of Ludham (1258-1265) had been that Dean of York over whom Sewal fell out with the Pope. When elected, he was still under the Pope's ban. He went to Rome, however, and by bribery and much trouble obtained his pall. Little is known of him except that in 1260 he laid the city of York under an interdict.

Walter Giffard (1266-1279) had been Bishop of Bath and Wells, and Lord Chancellor of England. He was with others entrusted with the regency of the kingdom during the absence of Edward I. in 1275.

William Of Wickwaine (1279-1286) had been Chancellor of York. He died at Pontigny, and was buried there.

John Le Romeyn or Romanes (1286-1296) was the son of that treasurer of York, an Italian, who had built the north transept and central tower of the minster. He had been precentor at Lincoln. He began the nave of the cathedral as it now stands. He died suddenly, near Burton.

Henry Of Newark (1298-1299) had been Dean of York. Owing to the wars in Europe, he did not go to Rome, and was consecrated in his own church.

Thomas Of Corbridge (1300-1304) had been Chancellor of York. He was consecrated at Rome. He was said to be a great and learned divine. He was buried at Southwell.

William Greenfield (1306-1315) was related to Giffard a past archbishop, and had been Dean of Chichester, Chancellor of Durham, and Chancellor of England. He died at Cawood. His beautiful tomb is in the north transept of the minster.

William De Melton (1317-1340) was of lowly origin. He was elected in 1315, but not consecrated until two years after, owing to the interested delays of the Pope. He took a large part in civil affairs, especially in the war with the Scots, by whom he was defeated at Myton-on-Swale. His army was filled with clergy, and the battle was derisively known as the Chapter of Myton. In 1325 he became Lord Treasurer of England, and supported Edward in his troubles. He even intrigued against Edward III., it is said, in 1330, and was arrested for treason, but soon acquitted of the charge.

He completed the nave of the minster, and glazed the great west window. He died at Cawood. His grave in the north aisle of the nave was opened when the present pavement was laid down in 1736, and a chalice and paten taken from it.

William La Zouche (1342-1352) had been Dean of York. When Edward III. set out for the French wars he left Zouche warden of the northern parts of the kingdom, and as such he defeated the Scots at Neville's Cross, near Durham, 1364. He built, or began, a chantry on the south wall of the choir, which was destroyed by Thoresby. He died at Cawood, and was buried in the nave of the minster.

John Of Thoresby (1352-1373) had been the King's Proctor at Rome, Master of the Rolls, Bishop of St. David's and Worcester, and Lord Chancellor of England. He drew up a famous catechism in Latin translated into English. In his time the controversy between York and Canterbury finally came to an end. The Archbishop of Canterbury was to be styled Primate of All England, the Archbishop of York, Primate of England. Each also was to be allowed to carry his cross erect in the province of the other.

In 1361 he began the present choir of the minster, contributing L200 a year to it during his life. He died at Bishopthorpe. It has been said that Urban VI. made him a cardinal, but this is probably not true. He was buried in his own Lady Chapel. Alexander Neville (1374-1388) was a Canon of York, and high in the favour of Richard II. Consequently, on Richard's overthrow he was imprisoned in Rochester Castle, whence he escaped, and was translated to St. Andrews in 1386, but the Scots would have none of him, not acknowledging Urban as Pope. Thereupon, it is said, he fell to teaching a school at Louvain, where he died in 1392.

Thomas Fitzalan of Arundel (1388-1396), son of the Earl of Arundel, was translated to York from Ely, and had been Lord Chancellor. He was a great benefactor to the church and manors of the see, and gave much plate for the service of the minster. He was in 1390 translated to Canterbury, the first Archbishop of York to be so advanced.

Robert Waldby (1397-1398) had been an Augustinian friar and professor of theology at Toulouse. He was created Archbishop of Dublin and Bishop of Chichester before his translation to York. He died and was buried at Westminster.

Richard Scrope (1398-1405) was the son of Lord Chancellor Scrope, and was himself Lord Chancellor of England and Bishop of Lichfield. He received his preferment from Richard II., of whom he was a firm supporter, though for a short time he submitted to Henry IV. The history of his famous rebellion with the Percys, and the trick by which he was captured, is well known. He was taken to his own palace at Bishopthorpe, and there Gascoign, the famous Chief Justice, greatly to the king's wrath, refused to try him. He was condemned to death by a creature of the king, not even a judge, and beheaded near to York. He was buried in the minster, and was long lamented and almost worshipped by the people.