NORTHUMBERLAND: DURHAM

LINDISFARNE: HEXHAM: JARROW: FINCHALE
LINDISFARNE (Benedictine)

St Aidan, in the 7th century, builds a church and monastery on the island of Lindisfarne; land given to him for this purpose by Oswald, King of Northumbria; the rules of St Columba observed—875, Entirely destroyed by the Danes—1093, Priory church built on site of St Aidan’s church and monastery established by monks from Whitby—15—, Dissolved—1887, 3000 pilgrims visit the ruined abbey—1888, Excavations undertaken which result in revealing some of the foundations.

’MIDST the wild breakers and the thundering sea, an oasis in the desert of water, lies Holy Island, not far separated from the rude coast of Northumberland; and in this island rise the remains of a once stately edifice, the Abbey of Lindisfarne. It must not be supposed that the remains now standing are those of the original Celtic monastery, established by St Aidan, for, when the Danes, with irresistible force, invaded our island in 875, almost without warning, the old Abbey of Lindisfarne was utterly destroyed and the body of the saintly Cuthbert borne across the narrow waters by the monks, mid the glare of conflagration. Not one single stone of{18} this monastery remains; the present ruins are those of a Benedictine priory, founded in the 11th century by a band of holy fathers from Whitby, who, eager to possess themselves of the land made sacred by the names of St Aidan, St Cuthbert, and those men who died at the hands of the Viking Invaders, determined to raise yet another stately building, and to make it their home.

For three and a half centuries, since the last prior, Thomas Sparke, was ejected at the bidding of Henry VIII., desolation has reigned supreme; but Lindisfarne, though small, is well preserved. It was built of strong red sandstone carried laboriously from the mainland. It was, moreover, built especially to withstand the fury of the gale and the ferocity of the invader. The insatiable greed, however, of much more modern vandals, who despoiled it of the lead from the roofs, and the roofs from the walls, until all stood bare and desolate, compassed its destruction. This, coupled with years and years of neglect and petty stealing, has brought the abbey to its present state. The mighty red walls have crumbled and fallen away, the tower lies a heap of little more than dust, the vaults have completely disappeared, but much yet remains to bear witness to the self-sacrifice and devotion of these early communities. As regards architecture, Lindisfarne is strongly in the English-Norman style. There is none of the Saxon here, as Scott would have us believe—“In Saxon strength that abbey frowned,” he says. Lindisfarne, if we except the sanctuary—which belongs to the 15th century—is perhaps the most perfect example of 11th century architecture in England. The abbey does not receive the patronage it deserves, for it is a spot with unrivalled historical and sacred memories—a place full of melancholy splendour and barren grandeur.{19}
HEXHAM (Augustine Canons)

674, A religious institution founded in Hexham by St Wilfrid—821, Church destroyed by the Danes—1113, Church rebuilt and endowed by Thomas II. Archbishop of York, and dedicated to St Andrew; Augustine Canons placed there—1296, The nave burnt down—1297, Unsuccessful attempts made to restore the nave—1537, Monastery surrendered to Henry VIII.—1706, St Wilfrid’s crypt discovered under the nave of the choir—1907, The foundation stones of the new nave laid.

The town of Hexham, picturesquely situated on the southern bank of the river Tyne, 19 miles north of Newcastle, was once the centre of Border warfare and at one time a Roman station. To the west of the old market-place, one of the most interesting in England, stands the ancient abbey—a type of Early English architecture. Of the original Saxon structure the crypt alone remains, under the nave of the choir, consisting of a central and an ante-chamber, with two passages to the west and south. The Roman stones of which it is built were probably brought from the ancient Roman station of Corstopitum (3? miles distant from Hexham). Unfortunately very little remains of the 12th century church—only, in fact, the greater part of the choir (with the exception of the Early English chapel) and both transepts. Of the conventual buildings we have still the refectory, some portions of the cloisters and the precinct gate. The greater part of the old woodwork was destroyed in the so-called restoration of the present church in 1858; but an exquisitely carved rood screen, and, on the south side of the altar, the Frith stool (supposed to have been St Wilfrid’s chair), may still be seen. Among the many monuments in the present church of special interest is a peculiar slab on which is depicted a Roman horseman, discovered beneath the south entrance in 1881.

Until the time of Henry I. the Bishop of Durham exercised ecclesiastical jurisdiction over this monastery,{20} but in this reign it was included in the See of York. The church was then rebuilt and Thomas II. of York founded a priory of Augustine Canons. “It was found by inquisition taken in the four and twentieth reign of Edward I. that Thomas the Second, Archbishop of York, did found and endow this Priory—the lands by him given, and by many other Benefactors, were all found and set forth in particular.”

In the following century the nave of the church was destroyed by the Scots, and with the exception of some unsuccessful attempts at restoration, was not rebuilt until last year (1907), when the foundation stones of the new nave were laid on June 29th.

Hexham Abbey does not stand alone as a religious house owing its origin to the self-sacrifice and piety of a woman. Queen Etheldreda, the wife of Ecgfrid, King of Northumbria, gave land, which formed part of her dower (including the parishes of Hexham, Allendale, and St John Lee), to St Wilfrid. A monastery was founded in 674, and a church built, which, according to Richard, prior of Hexham, must have been one of the largest and most sumptuously equipped in England at that time. Hexham came, after nearly a century and a half, under the jurisdiction of York, and its church attained the dignity of a cathedral with right of sanctuary. The sanctuary extended for a mile in all directions—one boundary being in mid-stream. Discreditable stories are told of a certain Walter Biwell, chaplain to Bernard de Baliol, who made attacks on people and their property while crossing the river. Subsequently, and owing to these depredations, the boundary was placed on the northern bank of the stream. After the destruction of the cathedral by the Danes (about the year 821) and until after the Norman Conquest, only a shattered fragment of the building remained. Poverty was for years the lot of the canons regular of St Augustine, or Black Canons as they were called.{21} In time, however, they acquired wealth, land, and many privileges, until at the close of the 13th century, Hexham was among the most important of the monastic houses in the Borderland.

The story of the surrender of Hexham to Henry VIII. is full of dramatic and romantic happenings. An appeal from Archbishop Lee to Mr Secretary Cromwell on the plea that the abbey served as a house of call and entertainment for north-bound travellers proved of no avail. Four commissioners were empowered to suppress the abbey, but before reaching Hexham they received tidings of the determination of the canons to garrison the abbey and to resist to the last. Two commissioners decided to remain behind while the two more venturous rode on to find the town full of people, many of them armed, the gates of the abbey shut, and the canons in warlike array standing on the steeple and on the leads of the church. From their point of vantage, the canons defied the commissioners to the death, but were advised by them to take counsel together. After consulting for some time in the abbey they once more refused to surrender, upon which the commissioners returned to Corbridge. The canons had a wily and unscrupulous adviser in John Heron, sometimes called Little John, a Border robber, who persuaded them to maintain their defiant position, hoping by this means to bring about a general rising in the northern counties and to profit in the consequent plunder and robbery. His infamous scheme was attended with success, and shortly afterwards the prior of Hexham and six of the canons were hanged at Tyburn, while the site of the abbey was granted to Sir Richard Carnaby, a devoted royalist, who died without an heir in 1843.

As recently as March 1907 some interesting excavations have been made at Hexham. The Reverend E. Sidney Savage, Rector of Hexham, writes to The Times giving particulars of discoveries of{22} arch?ological interest made on the site chosen for a nave in the Hexham abbey church.

“Several lengths of enriched cornices have been found, with various ornaments of late Roman character, the forerunners and dictators of many of the ornamental details of a subsequent Saxon and Norman period. Two great arch stones are from a grand ornamental arch fully 20 Roman feet across, and can hardly have come from a lesser structure than the entrance gate was into the town from the main road, such as Watling Street. The upper part of a well-finished altar, a stone hypocaust pillar, and a number of smaller stones with various ornaments are amongst the architectural vestiges. A part of what was apparently a sculptured panel has a finely cut bust of a Roman Emperor, probably Severus; and a portion of a Legionary stone has the remains of two panels divided by pilasters with pediments. It is much shattered, but the sculpture is of the best class. The gem of the yield is another and important portion of the well-known and Imperial Inscription, built into the covering of the north passage of the crypt.”
JARROW (Benedictine)

674, Ecgfrid King of Northumbria gives land to the Holy Abbot Benedict Biscop for the building of a religious House—679, Bede becomes a student of the Monastery—685, Benedict Biscop builds the first church—793, The Monastery burnt by the Danes—1069, After restoration again burnt down by William the Conqueror—1074, Monastery rebuilt—15—, Dissolved. Annual revenue, ￡25, 8s. 4d.

The history of Jarrow Abbey is intimately associated with the revered name of Bede, for here this wonderful writer and thinker spent his days and accomplished his life’s great work—a work for which his fellow-countrymen have reason to be grateful to this day. Born in 672, Bede was, at the youthful age of seven years, placed by Benedict Biscop in the care of the monks at Jarrow Abbey, where, with the exception of an occasional visit to Wearmouth, he spent all the{23} days of his useful life. His writings include commentaries on the Scriptures, translations, biographies of his contemporaries, treatises on many learned subjects, and also poetry, whilst in ecclesiastical matters he is the most reliable authority of the time. One of his scholars has given the following account of the characteristic ending of Bede’s strenuous and devout life:—

“It was the eve of Ascension Day 735 that Bede in his last hours was translating the Gospel of St John, and some scribes were writing from his dictation. They reached the words ‘What are these among so many’ when Bede felt his end approaching. ‘Write quickly,’ he said, ‘I cannot tell how soon my Master may call me hence.’ All night he lay awake in thanksgiving, and when the festival dawned he repeated his request that they should accelerate their work. ‘Master, there remains one sentence.’ ‘Write quickly,’ said Bede. ‘It is finished, master,’ they soon replied. ‘Aye, it is finished,’ he echoed. ‘Now lift me up and place me opposite my holy place where I have been accustomed to pray.’ He was placed upon the floor of his cell, bade farewell to his companions, to whom he had previously given mementoes of his affection, and, having sung the doxology, peacefully breathed his last.”
“How beautiful your presence, how benign,
Servants of God! who not a thought will share
With the vain world; who, outwardly as bare
As winter trees, yield no fallacious sign
That the firm soul is clothed with fruit divine!
Such priest, when service worthy of his care
Has called him forth to breath the common air,
Might seem a saintly image from its shrine
Descended—happy are the eyes that meet
The apparition, evil thoughts are stayed
At his approach, and low-backed necks entreat
A benediction from his voice or hand;
Whence grace, through which the heart can understand;
And vows, that bind the will in silence made.”
Primitive Saxon Clergy (Wordsworth).

{24}

Standing on a green hill near the river Slake, the grey walls of Jarrow Abbey (now the Church of St Paul) contrast markedly with the general sense of everyday work conveyed by the active life of Shields, not far distant. Past and present, ancient and modern, are brought into close proximity, suggesting to one that were it possible to infuse some of the contemplative and quiescent frame of mind of Bede and his scholars into the toilers of this progressive 20th century, less might be heard of brain fag and other attendant evils of the high pressure of modern life. Of the Abbey church, the tower and chancel alone remain and are now used as the parish church. In the vestry is a chair said to have belonged to the Venerable Bede. Many visitors (as visitors will) have chipped off pieces of the old oak, the tradition being that a splinter, if placed under a damsel’s pillow, would invoke pleasant dreams of the ever prospective husband.

Of the domestic part of the establishment, which was situated on the south side of the church, there still stand some walls and a gable end which may possibly have formed part of the refectory.
FINCHALE (Benedictine)

1100, Godricus de Finchale, a hermit, spends his old age in devotion in a cell in this place—1196, Hugh, Bishop of Durham, founds and endows the Abbey—1536, Dissolved. Annual revenue, ￡122, 15s. 3d.

Engirt by trees and surrounded by wooded heights, this abbey on “Finches Haigh” (“low flat ground”) still retains a few old grey walls on the banks of the river Wear. Following the road from Durham, the “city on a hill,” one obtains the first view of the ruins from the west—where the long lane that leads from the high road dips towards the Priory. The church is of the Early English period, and until 1665 it{25} retained its original stone spire. On each side of the nave are four piers, alternately round and hexagonal, supporting the exquisitely moulded arches which were built up during the 14th century—John of Tickhill being prior at the time. At this period, too, the aisles of the church were completely blocked up and Decorated windows were inserted—the south aisle becoming the northern alley of the cloister. These architectural alterations, which spoiled the beauty of a church originally perfect in its proportions, were probably inspired by the constant dread of Scottish invasion to which the Border counties were so peculiarly liable. Two beautiful lancet-windows light the north transept in which is an eastern chantry—while in the south transept may be seen an altar to St Godricus the Hermit, erected in the year 1256. The east wall of the choir has fallen, but the south-east turret still holds itself aloft.

The site of Finchale Abbey has been identified by some with Pincanhale—the meeting-place of the synods of the Saxon clergy in the 8th and 9th centuries. Tradition records that even further back this spot was inhabited by men who were eventually forced to abandon the place owing to the number of venomous snakes which abounded there. In the time of Godricus, however, it was a forest, and to the finches, which among other birds may have found their home there, some credit for the name Finchale may possibly be given. The story of the peddler Godricus, of his repeated pilgrimages to the Holy Land, his determined and successful search for knowledge, and his sixty years of solitary meditation at Finchale, was written by the monk Reginald, who after constant attendance on the aged hermit during his last illness was placed in charge of the hermitage. During the thirty or forty years following the death of Godricus, his tomb at Finchale was much visited by pilgrims, attracted thither by the fame of his virtues. The hospitality and resources of the monks would{26} have been sorely taxed during these years had it not been for the benefactions of one Henry Pudsey who granted all his belongings “To the Durham monks serving God and the Blessed Mary, and St Godric, at Finchale,” directing that the gifts should be applied, firstly, in hospitality and alms-giving and for maintaining the service of God, etc., and secondly, for the spiritual welfare of himself and of his kith and kin.

The religious community at Finchale varied in number. Early in the 15th century the number was fixed at nine, four of whom with the prior were to live there permanently and relays of four others to be sent from the mother house at Durham. These visitors made a stay of three weeks, spending every alternate day in liberty and recreation, the remaining time being devoted to choir singing and other religious duties. The office of prior was in much repute, and served in more than one instance as a stepping-stone to promotion—Priors Strehall and de Insula attaining the Bishopric of Durham. The last prior, William Bennet, surrendered the priory in 1536, and his monks were cast adrift. He, however, was made Prebendary of the fourth stall in Durham Cathedral, and took to himself a wife “as soon as he was discharged from his vow.”