The New Guide to Peterborough Cathedral

into a Cathedral during the rule of abb

nts recorded in our national history. It changed the whole aspect of civil and eccl

one was to be chosen as Precentor, to whom the other Minor Canons, the Organists, Lay Clerks, and Choristers, were to be subordinate. The chancel of Thomas à Becket's Chapel, already spoken of, was then converted into a school-room, in which the Choristers, and a certain number of other boys, were to receive a classical education at the hands of one of the Minor Canons appointed, for his superior learning, to the office of schoolmaster. Chambers governed 15 years in his new office. There is some dispute amongst the historians of this church about the time o

ng of importance occurred. It was during his rule that the unhappy queen of Scots fel

ich it was immediately deposited. The vault was then covered, an opening merely being left through which the Heralds might deposit their broken staves. No service was said at the time, as it was agreed that it had better be done on the day fixed for the solemnization of the funeral. On the day following, there came to Peterborough all those persons of rank appointed to attend the funeral, for whom a grand supper was prepared at the bishop's palace. On Tuesday, the first of August, 1586, being the day fixed for the funeral, they all marched in order to the church, the Counte

the doorway leading from the choir into its south aisle. Over this was erected a super

Dean and Chapter of Peterborough, requesting them to allow of the removal.[18] The corpse was accordingly taken from its grave at Peterborough, an

l cloister, for which the cathedral was remarkable, were defaced and injured by them as they passed through the city, on their way to Croyland, which they were going to besiege, it having declared in favour of the king. To reduce that town, the Parliamentarian forces marched through Peterborough about the middle of the month of April. The first regiment that came did no harm to the church, for, being commanded by one Hubbart, who

oldiers is thus describe

sing and Defacing the Cathedral Churc

organs, of which there were two pair. The greater pair which stood upon a high loft over the entrance int

he common prayer books that could be found. The great bible indeed, that lay upon a brass e

y. Whilst they were thus employed, they happened to find a great parchment book, behind the ceiling, with some twenty pieces of gold laid there, by a person a little before.-This encourages the souldiers in

aining a dozen and a half of lights, with another bow candlestick about the brass

poil speaks to an officer, desiring him to restrain them; who answered,

ut the communion table. The table itself was thrown down, the table cloth taken away, with two fair books in velvet covers; the one a bible, the other a common prayer book, with

ters of Nottingham or Darbyshire, coming to Peterburgh, break open the vestry, and take away a fai

ich rose up as high almost as the roof of the church, in a row of three lofty spires, with other lesser spires growing out of each of them. This now had no imagery work upon it

h crowns in their hands, intended, I suppose, for a representation of Our Saviour's coming to judgment. Some of the company espying this, cry out and say, 'Lo, this is the God these people bow and cringe unto; this is the idol they worship an

y seized on some of the principal actors; that one was struck blind upon the place; by a rebound of his bullet; that another dyed mad a little after, neither of which I can certainly attest.

ated wife: they break down the rails that enclosed the place, and take away the black velvet pall which covered the herse,-overthrow the herse itself, displaced the gravestone that lay over her body, and have left nothing now remaining of that tomb, but only a monument of their own shame and villany. The like they had certainly done to the Quee

on a large bed under a fair table of black marble, with a library of books about him. These men that were such enemies to the name and office of a bishop, and much more to his person,

that isle; the one the tomb of Mr. Worm, the other

y Orm (to save his heir that charge and trouble), thought fit to erect in his own life time, where he and his lady, his

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save only two pilasters still remaining, which shew and testifie the elegancy of the rest of the work. Thus it hapned, that the good old knight who was a constant frequenter of Gods publick service, three times a day, outlived his own monumen

lptures or inscriptions in brass, these they force and tear off. So that whereas there were many fair pieces of this kind before, as that of abbot William of Ramsey, whose large marble gravesto

take was this: the neighbourhood being continually disturbed with the souldiers jangling and ringing the bells auker, as though there had been a scare-fire, (though there was no other, but what they themselves had made,) some of the in

ch would have entertained any persons else with great delight and satisfaction, but only such zealots as thes

n the isles, in the new building, and elsewhere. But the cloister windows were most famed of all for their great art and pleasing variety. One side of the quadrangle containing the history of the Old Testament; another, that of the new; a third,

osed in rough walls on each side. The five recesses in the south wall were partly the lavat

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thing undemolisht, where either any picture or painted glass did appear; excepting only part of the great west window in the body of the church, which still remains entire, being too high for them, and out of their reach. Yea, to encourage them the mo

e, finds the floor all strewed and covered over with torn papers, parchments and broken seals; and being astonisht at this sight, does thus expostulate with them. Gentlemen, (says he,) what are ye doing? they answered, we are pulling and tearing the popes bulls in pieces. He replies, ye are much mistaken: for these writings are neither the popes bull

rch duly, but it was only to do mischief, to break and batter the windows and any carved work that was yet remaining, or to pull down cross

l beauty, and made a ruthful spectacle, a very chaos of desolation and confusion, nothing

lay wide open, and was between thirty and forty yards off from the ground. The two children, coming hither and finding this passage, one, out of his childish simplicity, was for jumping down: No, (saies the other) let us rather swarm down, there being a bell rope then hanging down through that place to the clockhouse below. Now, this last they did, and a gentleman walking there beneath at that time, sees two children come with that swiftness down the rope, like arrows from a bow, who were both taken up for dead, on the place. This hapned on a Sunday ith' afternoon, in sermon time. The news coming into the parish church, that two children falling off from the minster were slain, the congregation

a son to a parliament officer, was got upon the top of the minster about this employment; who going along the cieling in the body of the church, and treading unwarily on some rotten boards, fell do

to be own'd and approved by the powers then in being, when they sold all the churches lands, and many fair buildings adjoyning to the minster, were likewise pulled down and sold by publick order and authority, such were the cloysters, the old chapter-house, the library, the bishops hall and chapel at the end of it: the hall was as fair a room as most in England; and another call'd the green chamber, not mu

into a new parochial church, in which way it was employ'd and used ever after, untill the kings happy restauration. For Mr. Oliver St. John, chief justice then of the common pleas, being sent on an embassy into Holland by the powers that governed then, requested this boon of

all agree to pull down the ladies chapel as it was then called, an additional building to the north side of the minster, (being then ruinous and ready to fall

azing several windows, and then fitting up the quire, and making it pretty decent for the congregation to meet in. And this they did, by taking the painted

preacher, with a sallary of 160l. per an. in which employment he continued untill the kings return. Then Dr. Cofin, the antient dean of the church, after almost twenty years exile in France, return'd and re-assumed his right again, in the year 1660, about the end of

d, viz.: a fair silver bason gilt, and the virgers two silver rods, and a linnen table-cloth to wrap them in, which were never heard of to this day. This was the same bason that had been plunder'd by the souldiers, and recovered again, but irrecoverably lost now. Yet both th

the loss of some of her fairest manners; and yet what that king took away in revenues, he added to it in dignity, by converting it from an abbey into a cathedral church. But the worst mischief that ever befel it, was that in the late rebellious times, when the church itself was miserably defaced and spoiled; and all the lands for the maintenance thereof, quite alienated and sold. And yet through Gods especial goodness and favou