North East Durham Cathedral

Set high above an incised meander in the River Wear, Durham Cathedral is regarded as one of the finest examples of Norman architecture in the country. The views from Prebends Bridge and along the river banks provide some of the classic shots of the cathedral.

The splendid Norman building replaced an earlier church, built to hold the body of St Cuthbert. When Cuthbert died in 687 he was buried on Lindisfarne, Holy Island. The monastery became very rich from gifts bestowed by pilgrims to the shrine. The Vikings made many raids on the monastery forcing the monks to flee taking the coffin of St Cuthbert with them. The coffin was carried around the north east for over a hundred years before being buried in a newly built church at Durham.

According to the legend, the vehicle carrying the coffin came to a standstill and no-one could get it to move. After a period of fasting and meditation, St Cuthbert appeared in a vision to one of the monks saying the coffin should be taken to a place called Dunholm. The monks were now able to move the coffin, although they had no idea where Dunholm was. By chance a few days later, they heard a milkmaid asking another milkmaid if she had seen her dun cow that had wandered off. The other replied she had seen the cow roaming near Dunholm. The monks followed the milkmaids to where they found the dun cow. This place became the site for a new church for the body of St Cuthbert in AD995. The story is remembered by an C18th carving of two milkmaids and a cow on the north west corner of the Chapel of the nine Altars.

Legend or no legend, this was an excellent spot to rebury the body as the peninsula was a very defensive site set high above the river with only a narrow neck to defend. A simple stone church was built in AD998 housing a community of Benedictine monks and soon became a site of pilgrimage.

There is nothing left of the original church. The present building was built by William of Calais who was appointed Prince Bishop by William the Conqueror in 1080. Construction began in 1089 and continued until 1140 when the nave, quire, and two transepts had been built. These have the typical round Norman windows and heavily carved Norman doorways. The Galilee Chapel was added in 1175. to the west end of the cathedral. From the outside it feels small compared with the bulk of the rest of the building.

The two west towers were built between 1217-26. The central tower dates from the same time, but was struck by lightning and had to be rebuilt in 1429. It was struck again thirty years later and had to be completely rebuilt between 1465-74 with tall lancet windows. The top was added ten years.

The Chapel of the Nine Altars was added to the east end between 1242-1280 and was built in the completely different Gothic style.

After the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1539, the Cathedral was re-founded with the last prior becoming the first dean. Twelve former monks became canons. The wall paintings were covered with whitewash, Cuthbert’s shrine was destroyed and the stained glass broken.

After the Civil War, the Cathedral was closed and used by Cromwell to hold 3000 Scottish prisoners. They burnt much of the surviving woodwork to keep themselves warm. Prior Castell’s clock in the south transept is said to have survived because it had a thistle on it.

After the Restoration, Bishop Cosins, a former canon refurbished the church. The glorious woodwork in the quire dates from this time.

The cathedral still has some of the best surviving monastic buildings with the cloisters and the chapter house rebuilt in C19th.

The cloisters surround a central lawn area with a stone laver bowl in the centre. This was originally in the south west corner and was the base of a fountain installed in the early C15th. where the monks could wash before meals.

Above the west cloister is the monks dormitory. After the Dissolution of the monasteries, this was used by one of the Cathedral Cannons and his family. in the 1840s, it became the Cathedral Library and is now part of the Cathedral museum.

The Great Kitchen was built in the 1300s and with its vaulted ceiling is one of the best surviving kitchens in. Europe. It is now part of the museum and houses the Treasures of Saint Cuthbert.

The Undercroft is now the shop and tea room.

On the north cloister, a stone set in the floor marks the Meridian Line which was used to tell the time.

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[Eleanor]

Durhan Cathedral cont - Inside one of the most impressive examples of Norman architecture in England

The cathedral can either be approached from the north by Palace Green which was the original market place with the entrance to the castle off it. This takes you through the massive north door with its rows of chevron carving and massive sanctuary knocker, into one of the best Norman naves in England.

The other entrance is via College Green on the south side. This was the former outer court of the monastery. Following the Dissolution, the buildings were converted to provide accommodation for the Dean and twelve Prebends. This entrance takes you into the cloisters, past the undercroft with shop and restaurant and in through one of the south doors off the cloisters. Although smaller and less ornate than the north door, they have round pillars with carved capitals and several rows of Norman carving around the round arches above the door.

Standing at the back of the nave, the immediate impression is the size and strength of the building with its massive round pillars with round arches with chevron carving above. Every other one is carved with a different geometric pattern. The diameter of the pillars is the same as their height which brings home to you just how massive they are. The stone vaulted ceiling with stone ribs forming arches to support the ceiling is equally impressive. This was the first time this technique had been used in the construction of a roof. It let the masons construct a much taller ceiling which soars above the nave. The ribs are also carved with chevron patterns. At the base of the ribs are carved heads, each different.

(When I visited in August 2024, there was a massive artwork hanging from the crossing made of thousands of individually made paper doves. Made by schools, local groups and the church community each was inscribed with messages of peace and hope. They were illuminated with a purple light.)

The side aisles are very narrow, more like passageways and draw the eye down the length of the building. On the outer walls is blind arcading with interlooped round arches.

At the back of the nave is the C17th font, part of the post Restoration work carried out by Bishop Cosins. The font is small white marble bowl standing on a stem with flowers round the bottom and looks fussy against the stark Norman architecture. Above it is a huge crocketed pinnacled structure of carved dark varnished wood standing on legs.

The stained glass in the windows is mainly C19th. At the back of the north aisle on the north wall is the RAF memorial window dating from the 1950s. This is a lovely window with an airman on the back of an eagle flying over Durham Cathedral and Durham Castle. Above him is a large angel surrounded by four smaller angels. A the bottom is written “As Birds Flying, so shall the Lord of hosts protect Jerusalem”. On the wall below is “Remember with Honour the men and women of county Durham who served in the war 1939-45 and give thanks for all their courage and consistency of those whose task it was to endure”.

On the west wall above the doors leading into the Galilee chapel are two other windows, also from the 1950s, with St Oswald and St Cuthbert.

In the centre of the west wall is a huge west window containing C19th glass with Mary and the young Jesus surrounded by Biblical figures.

The Galilee Chapel was built onto the west end of the cathedral between 1175-89 as the Lady Chapel, the only place women could worship in the Cathedral. Traditionally the Lady Chapel is at the east end of a church, but attempts to build a chapel there failed. This was probably due to inadequate foundations, although according to legend this was because St Cuthbert would not allow women near his shrine. (There is still a mark on the floor of the side aisles beyond which women were not allowed.)

Seen from across the river, the Galilee Chapel looks tiny compared to the rest of the Cathedral. Inside it feels much larger. Marking the start of the transition from the Norman to the Gothic style of architecture, it feels much lighter and more dainty than the nave. The heavy round pillars are replaced by four arcades of slender pillars with water leaf capitals. These support round arches with chevron carving.

It is lit on three sides by very large windows containing square pieces of medieval glass set into later plain glass windows. This gives the chapel a light, airy feel.

On the south side is the tomb of the Venerable Bede, a massive stone base with a darker top engraved with “HAC SUNT IN FOSSA BAEDAE VENERABILIS OSSA”. Bede was an Anglo Saxon scholar and monk who spent most of his time at the monastery at Jarrow. He died in 735Ad and is best known for his Ecclesiastical History of the English People, which had a lot of information about St Cuthbert and early Christianity. His relics were brought to Durham in 1022 and were originally placed with the remains of St Cuthbert. They were removed to the Galilee Chapel around 1370. Amazingly his simple shrine survived the Dissolution of the Monasteries.

On the wall behind is a gilded wood memorial to Cyril Alington, the Dean of the Cathedral from 1933-1951, and his wife Hester. The words are a quote from Bede’s Commentary on the Apocalypse. “Christ is the Morning Star who, when the night of this world is past, brings to his saints the promise of the light of life, and opens everlasting day”.

In the centre is Bishop Langleys’s tomb. This blocked the main west door into the nave, which had to be replaced by two smaller doors on either side. Steps on either side of the stone tomb lead up to an altar with a triptych on the back wall set on a Frosterley marble base and under a gilded canopy.

Beyond to the north, is the Cruikshank altar, a simple stone altar table set in front of a round topped arch with the remains of C12th wall paintings. On one side is a bishop, on the other a King who may have represent King Oswald.

Above the arches to the south are more wall paintings but it is difficult to make out many details now.

Also in the Galilee Chapel is the carved stone coat of arms of Elizabeth I which was originally over the north door. From the time of Henry VIII, the royal arms had to be displayed to emphasise the monarch’s role as Head of the Church of England.

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[Eleanor]

Durhan Cathedral cont - Inside one of the most impressive examples of Norman architecture in England

Back in the nave, at the back of the south aisle is the splendid carved wood Father Smith’s Organ case. This was built in the 1680s and was positioned above the entrance to the quire until about 1847, when it was replaced and moved here for display.

On the wall of the south aisle is the the Durham Miner’s Memorial, placed here in 1947 and made of very dark varnished wood. The inscription reads “Remember before God the Durham Miners who gave their lives in the pits of this county and those who work in darkness and danger in those pits today.”

Next to the memorial is a miner’s lamp and a Book of Remembrance of the Durham Miners giving the date, their name and age. Even though the last pit closed in 1994, the miners still hold a service in the cathedral every July during the Miner’s Gala.

Further along the south aisle was the Neville chantry. This is long gone although two rather battered Neville tombs survive between the pillars. It is thought they were probably damaged during the Civil War. The first was once a splendid tomb with weepers carved round the base set in canopies arches with painted shields between the arches. On top of the tomb are two bits of the original effigies.

Beyond it is another table tomb with an effigy of a lady in a long robe with a bit of the torso of her husband.

The transepts are large and impressive. At the end of the south transept is Prior Castell’s Clock installed during the time of Prior Thomas Castell between 1494-1519. It is the only wooden object known to have survived the Civil War, allegedly as it had a thistle on it and was spared from being used as firewood by the Scottish prisoners. It is a splendid clock set in a painted surround with crocketed pinnacles. It just has a single hand on the main dial with three smaller dials above.

The Durham Light Infantry chapel is also in the south transept. The DLI was established in 1881 and served in the Boer War and both World Wars, fighting in every major battle. In 1968 it merged with two other regiments. The chapel was created in 1922 to mark the loss of life in the First World War when more than 12,600 men from the Durham Light Infantry were killed and thousands more wounded. It contains the Books of Remembrance for both World Wars, as well as a book listing all those who fell in Korea, Borneo, Cyprus and Northern Ireland between 1952-73.

There is a large wooden cross inscribed “In memory of the gallant officers , NCO and men of the 6th, 8th and 9th battalions of the Durham Light infantry who fell in an attack on the Butte of Warlencourt and surrounding trenches on November 5th 1916.” This was erected in “affectionate remembrance by their friends who fought with them and will forever keep their memory green”.

Filling the south wall is a memorial listing all the battles the DLI have fought in from the Peninsula War to Korea. Their colours hang from the roof.

Separating the nave from the quire is a decorative stone screen with Frosterley marble pillars and highly carved arches. This was designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott who also designed the lectern
of a pelican plucking her breast to feed her young and the pulpit. The pulpit is a glorious bit of baroque work, standing on different coloured marble legs with lions at the base. It is reached by a flight of stairs and is decorated with small marble pillars and mosaic marble insets. The book rest is supported by an eagle.

The elaborate marble floor is also part of the Gilbert Scott restoration.

The quire is completely different to the massive bulk of the nave, with a much more intimate feel. The beautifully carved dark wood quire stalls with elaborate ends and poppyheads date from the 1660s and were part of the Bishop Cosin renovations after the Restoration. Those at the back have misericords and are set under tall crocketed and pinnacled canopies with the names of the canon occupying the each painted on the back.

The Bishop’s throne towers above them, being set over the Hatfield chantry. This contains the tomb of Thomas Hatfield, a C14th Bishop and his effigy was the only one to survive the Reformation. It is set under an ogee arch with his shield and angel’s heads.

The throne above dates from the same time and when it was built was claimed to be the highest throne in Christendom. It is a glorious structure brightly painted in red, blue and gold. Stair lead up to the throne with a dark wooden gate at the base with a carved shield with a bishop’s mitre above and a lion and griffin on either side.

Opposite on the north wall of the quire is the splendid tomb of C19th Bishop Joseph Barber Lightfoot .

Steps lead up to the high altar, a simple table set beneath the stone Neville Screen. This was a gift from John Neville who is buried in the nave. It was carved in London from Caen stone and then shipped to Newcastle by boat before being re-assembled on site in 1380. The screen is a mass of pinnacle niches which would have contained statues, 107 of them. These were removed to a safe place during the Reformation but have never been found. Originally it would have been brightly painted and gilded. Towering behind the screen is the round east window.

The aisles on either side of the quire lead to St Cuthbert’s shrine, which is set behind the Neville Screen and high altar. In the south aisle is a list of Bishops, Priors and Deans of the Cathedral.

The shrine is reached by a flight of stairs and is surrounded by a wooden screen. It was a major place of pilgrimage in the Middle Ages and was a lavishly decorated tomb covered with gold and precious jewels. This was destroyed during the Dissolution of the Monasteries and the Reformation and was replaced by a simple marble slab inscribed Cuthbertus.

Above the marble slab is a painted and gilded canopy with Christ in Majesty dressed in blue and red and with the nail holes in his hands and feet. On either side are small roundels with an angel head surrounded by red wings. In the corners are the symbols of the four evangelists with blue wings.

Beyond is the Chapel of the Nine Altars which was added at the end of the C13th. The apsidal end of the Norman church was becoming dangerous and had to be demolished.

This gave more space for pilgrims to visit the shrine of St Cuthbert. The architecture is completely different to the rest of the cathedral being Gothic with wall columns of Frosterley marble soaring up between the tall and narrow lancet stained glass windows to form the ceiling ribs. Above these in the centre is the glorious rose window with Christ in the centre surrounded by the apostles with the 24 elders from Revelation round the outside. The overall impression is of height and light. It is much more ornate than the Norman building.

There are no longer nine altars, although their positions can still be seen. In the centre is a large altar occupying the space of three original altars. This has an embroidered reredos set in three arcade arches which was made in 1994 to celebrate Aidan, Cuthbert and Bede. The frontispiece is a patchwork of semicircles of blue and green at the base (sea) with yellow and brown above (land), which have small embroidered motifs of seaweed, crabs, birds and flowers.

To the left is a smaller altar dedicated to St Hild. The kneelers in front are embroidered South Shields, Hartlepool and Whitby, places associated with the ministry of St Hild. Next to the altar is a modern icon of St Hild with her image in the centre surrounded by scenes from her life.

At the north end is a statue to Bishop Van Mildert, set beneath a massive window depicting the life of Joseph.

On the outer wall of the North Quire aisle are the Bedesmen’s benches. These were originally elderly men who sat on this bench and were paid to pray for the soul of the bishop or other benefactors.

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