Cotswolds Tewkesbury and its Abbey, Gloucestershire

Tewkesbury is a lovely Medieval town on the banks of the River Avon with a lot of brick and timber frame buildings. A Norman Abbey was built here in the early C12th and a town grew up around it. It rapidly developed as a trading centre for the local area, with the Rivers Avon and Severn providing navigable transport routes.

It is still an important market town for the area with a good range of locally owned shops as well as the chains.

Close to the Abbey on Church Street is a row of timber frame houses which were built in 1410 by the monks as a speculative venture. These were rented out to merchants providing an extra source of money for the monks.

In the 1930s the row of houses was bought by the Abbey Lawn Trus and have been carefully restored. Most of the buildings are rented out as homes or for business. One is now the John Moore Museum with the natural history collection. Also included in the entry charge is the restored Merchant’s House a bit further along the row. This has been restored and furnished much as it might have been in the 1580s.

The Merchant’s House

Most building of that time were timber frame. The timbers were left unpainted, weathering to a silver grey colour. (The fashion for the black and white painted buildings dates from the mid C19th.) There was a continuous roof line along the block indicating they were all built at the same time.

A low stone base formed the foundation for the buildings with an oak sill above. As well as providing a solid foundation, this raised building above damp ground helping prevent rot. A raised step at the front and back entrance helped stop water entering. This was important as floors were made of trodden earth.

Buildings were constructed as rigid box like timber frame held together with mortice and tenon joints with non load bearing walls. Infilling was wattle and daub using hazel or willow twigs and covered with a mixture of clay (or cow dung) mixed with straw before being covered with a thin layer of lime plaster.

The first floor juts out over ground floor forming an overhang known as a jetty. This was a symbol of wealth and the more wealthy the person the wider the jetty. As people were taxed on the amount of ground their house occupied, this as a way of increasing area without increasing the tax. It also provided a certain amount of protection to the ground floor walls from drip.

All buildings had the same layout.

The building had a shop at the front, opening directly onto the street. The shop front had shutters that could open out in the day to provide a counter. (However the very narrow pavement meant it was impossible to restore this arrangement.)

Behind was an open hall which acted as both kitchen and living area. This had an open hearth in the centre of the room with a smoke void above. The fire was kept burning through out the year as it was the only means of cooking.

Later, the open heart was replaced by a brick fireplace with brick chimney.

At the back of the building was a workshop or store room.

Sleeping quarters were on the first floor reached by a staircase made of slabs of oak nailed to the side supports.

At the back of each house was a long thin garden used for growing fruit, vegetables, herbs and for keeping livestock.

Visiting the Merchant's House

Entry to the Merchant’s House is through the garden into the storeroom with a costumed interpreter dressed as a medieval merchant in wool tunic with linen undergarments. This faced south to make the most of available daylight.

It is thought this was added later which would explain internal the internal windows

Next to it is the kitchen with its open hearth. Wood was used for fuel. The earthenware ‘lid’ or couvre-feu (from which we get the word curfew) was used to cover the fire at night to stop it going out. All cooking was done over the open fire either using metal or earthenware containers.

At the front of the building was the shop with a window that opened directly onto the street.

Wooden stair led from the kitchen to the sleeping quarters on the first floor. The top few treads are still the original oak stairs.

The sleeping area had bedstead with a wooden frame. The mattress would have been supported by cords. Below was a pull out bed and babies would have slept in a small wooden cot.

The window had wooden shutters that could be closed at night. Glass was very expensive, so the window was covered with linen soaked in linseed oil, which was waterproof but still let in certain amount of light.

cont...

 

[Eleanor]

The Old Baptist Chapel

The Old Baptist Chapel is also included in the price of entry to the John Moore Museum and is possibly the oldest Baptist meeting house in the country. It is reached down a narrow alleyway off Church Street.

The Baptist Movement was thought to have originated in Amsterdam in 1609 with two English men, John Smyth and Thomas Helwys. Thomas Helwys returned to England and founded the first Baptist church in the country around 1611 or 1612 at Spitalsfield, near London.

The name ‘Baptists’ was originally a derogatory term used by their enemies and was only adopted by the group in the C19th. They originally referred to themselves as Dissenters. They differed from other nonconformist groups as they practised adult baptism.

Earliest records show in 1625 Thomas Harris purchased a merchant’s dating from 1485 to use for worship. This was a typical three bay hall house with a central hall open to the rafters with an open hearth and rooms on either side.

The central hall area was used for worship but there was no proper baptistry and baptisms took place after dark in the river.

It was only after the Act of Toleration in 1689 that Baptists no longer had to escape persecution and consequently were able to worship publicly. As a result, the building was ‘modernised’ in 1720 to make it more suitable for its new use.

The interior was converted into a chapel which could hold about 100 worshipers, with pulpit and baptistry dug in the floor with steps leading down into it. Windows were enlarged to let in more light, and a gallery was built around the walls with a priest’s room off. )

A chimney stack on north wall had a large stove at ground level with a smaller one in the priest’s room above. A plaster barrel ceiling hid the original A-frame timber roof as it gave better acoustics.

The priest’s oom contains a copy of the original Minute Book, covering events from 1655-1808. Early entries were written in a cipher to protect the anonymity of the congregation. It also records the names of several members expelled from the congregation for having returned to the ‘national church’

There are a lot of information boards detailing the history of the Baptist and the chapel. Part of the original wattle and daub construction can be seen on the first floor gallery

By the start of the nineteenth century it was decided that Tewkesbury needed a new church building, as the old building was too small and in poor condition.

The congregation moved into the new church in in 1805 and the Old Chapel building again reverted to domestic use with the two end bays converted into small cottages. The central bay survived as a redundant chapel with the baptistry hidden beneath wooden floor.

The building has been restored to its 1720s appearance with the external rendering removed to again reveal the timber frame construction. It looks magnificent.

 

[Eleanor]

Tewesbury Abbey

Tewkesbury’s tall tower dominates the landscape and was described by Pevsner as “probably the largest and finest Romanesque tower in England”. Along with Durham and St Albans, Tewkesbury Abbey is considered one of the finest examples of Norman ecclesiastical architecture in Britain .

Tewkesbury had been the site of Christian worship since the C7th and a priory was established here by the C10th. The present building dates from the beginning of the C12th when it was built to house Benedictine monks. Building stone came from Caen and was brought up the River Severn. There were three important families holding the Honour of Tewkesbury in the Middle Ages, the de Clares, Despensers and Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick. They have all left their mark on the Abbey.

By the Dissolution of the Monasteries, Tewkesbury was one of the richest abbeys in England.

After the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1540, the possessions of the abbey went to the King’s exchequer, the monastic buildings were pulled down along with the Lady Chapel, and used for building stone. The church was sold to the parishioners who had used the western part of the nave as their parish church for £453. This was the estimated value of the lead on the roof and the bells. Henry kept the right to appoint the vicar and King Charles is still patron of the benefice today.

George Gilbert Scott was responsible for restoring the building in the late C19th.

It is an impressive building from the outside with a splendid central square tower with blind arcading, battlemented top and corner turrets. Remains of earlier roof lines can be seen on the walls. The long nave has tall turrets at the west end, clerestory windows with blind arcading between them and lower side aisles with flying buttresses. The huge west window is set under a series of recessed Norman arches.

The angular chancel has an open carved frieze round the top with lower side chapels and flying buttresses. The chancel originally had a large Lady Chapel at the east end and its foundations are marked by slabs in the grass and the remains can be seen on the outside of the Abbey between the ambulatory chapels .

Entry is through the large plain north porch with a modern carving of the Virgin and Child above the arch.

Stepping into the nave, the first impression is of Norman power with huge round pillars and round arches soaring up to a vaulted ceiling.

The clerestory windows are almost lost in the height of the nave. To say it is impressive is an understatement. This is Norman architecture at its very best. Side aisles are narrow adding to the overall effect of dominance.

They have stained glass windows with C19th glass.

The clerestory and vaulted ceiling were added in the mid C14th and are typical of the decorated style.

The carved and painted bosses have either winged angels or scenes from the life of Christ.

The original bosses are now displayed round the wall of the side aisles and ambulatory.

At the west end is a lovely arch across the roof with a gilded carvings at the base of Eve and Jesse, forebears of Christ. Each have a carved square with foliage.

Opposite the north door is an octagonal font with a dark marble carved top with quatrefoils with a foliage pattern round the sides. There is more foliage below the bowl. It stands on a very old stone base with rounded pillars and ball flowers. Above is a very tall dark wood cover with crocketed pinnacles.

Behind it on the south wall is an impressive Roll of Honour from the 1914-18 war with flags round it.

At the end of the north aisle, under an ogee arch, is a wall tomb of a knight in armour with uncrossed legs, one of the many tombs found in the Abbey. The style of armour dates from the mid C14th although the canopy over the tomb is a much later date, suggesting he has been moved here from elsewhere.

The pulpit, lectern and rood screen are C19th and the work of Gilbert Scott. The pulpit is of carved stone and has panels with Christ with his disciples and also Christ preaching.

The carved rood screen separates the choir from the nave. Above is the Rood Cross, with the figures of the Virgin Mary and St John.

The choir is under the tower and the choir stalls still have candles.

On the south wall of the choir is the Milton organ, which is one of the oldest organs still in use. It was originally built for Magdalene College Oxford in 1631 but was bought by the people of Tewkesbury in the C18th.

The Grove Organ is in the north transept was built by Michel and Thynne for the 1885 Inventions Exhibition and was purchased and presented to the Abbey in 1887, as a memorial of Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee.

A brass plate in the floor marks the burial place of Edward, Prince of Wales, son of Henry VI who was slain in the Battle of Shrewsbury.

The wonderful lierne vaulted ceiling of the choir and chancel has gilded bosses on a red background with the Sun in Splendour at the centre. The stained glass in the windows is mid C14th and given by Eleanor de Clare, wife of Hugh le Dispenser.

Steps lead up to the sanctuary with brass tablets in the floor marking the graves of de Clares and Despensers. Chantry chapels surround it.

The sanctuary ceiling is magnificent with blue and red and gilded bosses.

The altar has a silver cross and tall silver candlesticks. Behind the altar are gold hangings. The elaborate tomb near it is that of Hugh le Dispenser, favourite of Edward II. He was hung, drawn and quartered in 1326 under orders of Roger Mortimer and his remains were collected and interred here.

On the south side is a three seater sedilia, with the remains of wall paintings on the back.

cont....

 

[Eleanor]

Tewkesbury Abbey cont .... the Chapels

The sanctuary is surrounded by three small chantry chapels.

The Founder's Chapel on the north side near the altar, contains the body of Robert Fitz-Hamon, second cousin of William the Conqueror and founder of the church. He died before the building was completed and was originally buried in the chapter house, being transferred here in 1241. It has a fairly plain stone screen round it with the remains of paint on it and a fan vaulted ceiling. This may have served as an Easter Sepulchre.

Next to it is the Warwick or Beauchamp Chapel, with a small stone altar. This was the last and most elaborate of the chantry chapels and was erected about 1430 by Isabella la Despenser for her first husband Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Worcester. This has a beautifully carved screen with angels holding shields on the base panels. The canopy has a fan vaulted ceiling which still has the remains of paint. It has an extra half storey inside which once contained the kneeling figures of Isabella and her second husband, Richard Earl of Warwick.

On the south wall is the Trinity Chapel which was the chantry chapel of Edward le Dispenser who died in 1375 and erected by his widow. He held command under the Black Prince at the Battle of Poitiers. This is surrounded by a beautiful open carved screen with pinnacled arches on the base and carved arches above.

Above, set in a crocketted and pinnacled arch is the painted figure of a kneeling Edward facing the high altar. The attitude and position of the kneeling figure are unique and it is possibly one of the finest monuments of its type in existence.

It has a fan vaulted ceiling.

There is a small altar at the east end. High on the wall above is a beautiful mural of the Holy Trinity with God the Father holding the body of the crucified Christ with an angel on either side. The small figures at the edges are Lord Edward and his wife.

The chancel is surrounded by an ambulatory with smaller chapels off it.

The first chapel on the north wall is the Chapel of St James which is now the abbey shop. The large painted reredos on the back wall used to be behind the high altar. In the centre is Christ on the cross with apostles on either side. The left panel shows the Annunciation. The right panel shows the Nativity. Near the shop is an old strong box opened to show its complex locking mechanism under the lid.

Next is St Margaret's Chapel which contains the holy sacrament and is used for private prayer. Between the chapel and the ambulatory is the tomb of Sir Guy de Brien who died in 1390. He was standard bearer to Edward III at the Battle of Crecy and one of the earliest Knights of the Garter. He was the third husband of Elizabeth Montacute, who is buried with her second husband Hugh Despenser in the tomb on the north side of the sanctuary. Sir Guy is in full armour, with his feet resting on a lion.

Next to it is St Edmund's Chapel which has a small modern reredos of Christ preaching. The ceiling bosses show his martyrdom by the Danes in the C9th.

Next to it is St Dunstan's Chapel. The reredos above the small altar is a reproduction of a C15th Flemish painting showing the Passion of Christ.

On the right is the Wakeman Cenotaph under an elaborate canopy with a cadaver effigy lying on an open shroud. He was the last Abbot of Tewkesbury.

Behind the high altar, the iron grating in the floor covers the stairway down to the Clarence vault containing the bodies of George, Duke of Clarence (brother of Edward IV who was murdered in the Tower of London, reputedly by being drowned in a barrel of Malmsey wine) and his wife Isabel, daughter of Warwick the 'King Maker'.

Near it is the modern statue of Our Lady Queen of Peace.

There is now a blank wall where the Lady Chapel would have been. Continuing round, on the outer wall by St Faith's Chapel is the Robeson Cenotaph. Arcdeacon Robeson was vicar from 1877-92 during the great Victorian restoration of the abbey. He is in fact, buried in Bristol Cathedral.

St Faith's Chapel has a modern altar and a big chest to store ecclesiastical copes.

Next is the Chapel of St Catherine and St John the Baptist with two glorious windows by Tom Denny to mark the 900th anniversary of the coming of the Benedictine monks to Tewkesbury in 1102.

Their theme is the Benedictine motto 'Labore est Orare'. They are abstract designs predominately in shades of yellow, green and blues. The overall impression is colour but the more you look, the more detail you realise there is.

In front of the chapel is the tomb of Abbot Cheltenham who ruled here between 1481-1509.

Opposite, on the outer wall of the sanctuary are the tombs of two unidentified abbots.

On the east wall of the south transept is what is described as the Norman Chapel, shaped as an apse set under massive Norman arches. This has a mosaic image of Christ on the east wall.

In a small niche on the west wall is a prie dieu beneath an icon of St Benedict.

(The pictures were taken on two different visits using different cameras which explains the differnce in colour between them. )

Website

Floor plan

 

[Tina]

Great Trip report. Tewkesbury has always been my family's favourite day trip, so this brings back memories and the Abbey is magnificent

 

[Eleanor]

It's a long time since I was last there and I'd forgotten just how magnificent the Abbey is. I could have done with a lot longer as I didn't really have time to see much of the town.

I'd not heard the Merchant's House or the Old Chapel before my visit so they were a bonus.