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Saxon Archbishops, with the exception of Jambert, who lay at St. Augustine's Monastery, (having been formerly Abbot there;) Elsin who died abroad, Robert and Stigand who were ejected from the see, and Odo, St. Dunstan, and St. Elphege, who received sepulture in the Romano-British Cathedral.

The tomb of Odo was on the south side of the altar of our Saviour, that of St. Dunstan was in front of the steps ascending from the choir of the singers to the platform of the presbyterium; the body of St. Elphege (who had been murdered by the Danes, A.D. 1023) was first buried in St. Paul's Church, London, but was eventually restored to his own church of Canterbury, and deposited in the eastern part of it.

The learned Professor, at the conclusion of this chapter, asks, "Whether the said church was the ancient Roman-Christian building, or whether Augustine or one of his successors might not have rebuilt it, who can tell? . . . . The imitation of St. Peter's was as likely to have been an object with Odo, or with Augustine, as to have resulted from the original plan and derivation of the building, and its site, from the primitive christianity of the island. . . . . I do not think it probable that it was rebuilt by Augustine, whatever his successors might have done during the three centuries that separated him from Odo." (pp. 30-1.)

This, to say the least of it, is unpardonable trifling; there is not the slightest foundation for the doubts thus so unnecessarily introduced by the learned Professor. They are dissipated by the concurrent testimony of the Venerable Bede, Edmer, and Gervase, the first of whom tells us [Art. 1] that the church had been constructed by the original labour of Roman believers; and the two latter historians, in describing its destruction by the fire (A.D. 1067, Art. XIV, xv,) This was that very church . . . . which had been built by Romans, as Bede bears witness in his history."

CHAPTER III. (pp. 32-62.) "Here beginneth Gervase his History of the Burning and Repair of the Church of Canterbury."

"This chapter (says the Professor) is literally translated from the Tract of Gervase,' and contains the whole of it, with the omission only of a long digression upon the merits of Thomas à Becket, and of a quotation from the Opuscula of Edmer, which I have already given in its proper place in the first chapter. I have broken the original into sections for the convenience of reference, and have also added, within parentheses, letters referring to my plans and sections." (p. 32.)

We regret that the Professor has not inserted the original Latin text. This omission detracts considerably from the value of his history.

SECT. 1." The Conflagration."

"In the year of grace one thousand one hundred and seventy-four, by the just but occult judgment of God, the Church of Christ at Canterbury was consumed by fire in the forty-fourth year from its dedication (A.D. 1130); that glorious choir, to wit, which had been so magnificently completed by the care and industry of Prior Conrad.” (p. 32.)

An account of the fire (which occurred between 3 and 4 P.M. of Sept. 5, 1174) then follows. The extent of the conflagration appears from the following passage:

"For not only was the choir consumed in the fire, but also the infirmary, with the Chapel St. Mary, and several other offices in the court. Moreover, many ornaments and goods of the church were reduced to ashes.' (p. 34.)

SECT. 2.—" The Operations of the First Year.”

These principally consisted in selecting the architect, and collecting materials for the restoration of the church.

"However, amongst the other workmen there had come a certain William of Sens, a man active and ready, and as a workman most skilful both in wood and stone. Him, therefore, they retained on account of his lively genius and good reputation, and dismissed the others; and to him and the providence of God was the execution of the work committed." (p. 35.)

"The choir thus condemned to destruction was pulled down, and nothing else was done in this year." (p. 36.)

SECT. 3.-" Of the Church of Lanfranc."

"I will first describe the work of Lanfranc, beginning from the Great Tower, not because the whole of this church has been destroyed, but because part of it has been altered.

The tower, raised upon great pillars, is placed in the midst of the church, like the centre in the middle of a circle. . . . . On the west of the tower is the nave, or aula of the church, supported on either side upon eight pillars... A screen with a loft (pulpitum), separated in a manner the aforesaid

tower from the nave.

"The aforesaid Great Tower had a cross (transept) from each side, to wit, a south cross and a north cross, each of which had in the midst a strong pillar. This (pillar) sustained a vault which proceeded from the walls on three of its sides. The plan of one cross is exactly the same as that of the other. The south cross was employed to carry the organ upon the vault above, and beneath the vault was an apse, extended towards the east. (pp. 37-9.)

"Between this apse and the choir the space is divided into two, that is, for the few steps by which the crypt is gained, and for the many steps by which the upper parts of the church are reached. The north cross similarly had two apses." (p. 40.) Then after enumerating the altars and the Archbishops who laid buried around them, the historian proceeds:

"Between this apse and the choir the space is divided into two, that is, for the steps which descend to the crypt, and for the steps which serve those who ascend to the eastern parts of the church." (p. 40.)

Then, after describing the martyrdom of St. Thomas à Becket in the north cross, he proceeds:

"The pillar which stood in the midst of this cross, as well as the vault which rested on it, were taken down in process of time out of respect for the martyr, that the altar elevated on the place of martyrdom might be seen from a greater distance.

"Around, and at the height of the aforesaid vault, a passage was constructed from which pallia and curtains might be suspended. From the cross to the tower, and from the tower to the choir, many steps ascended. There was a descent from

the tower into the south cross by a new entrance; also a descent from the tower to the nave through two doors. Thus much for the church of Lanfranc." (p. 41.)

SECT. 4. Of the Choir of Conrad.

"You must know, however, good reader, that I never saw the choir of Lanfranc, neither have I been able to meet with

any description of it.* Edmer, indeed, describes the old

church, which before the time of Lanfranc was constructed after the Roman manner. Also he mentions, but does not describe, the work of Lanfranc which succeeded this old church, and the choir of Conrad constructed in the time of St. Anselm. Now therefore that this choir of Conrad so gloriously completed has been in our own days miserably consumed by fire, my poor and simple pen shall attempt its description, lest the memory of so great a man and so noble a work be utterly lost.. Let us begin, therefore, with the aforesaid Great Tower, which, as already explained, is placed in the midst of the whole church, and proceed eastward. The eastern pillars of the tower projected as a solid wall, and were formed each into a round semi-pillar." (p. 42.)

Then follows an account of nine pillars on each side of the choir, and six in the circuit.

"At the bases of the pillars there was a wall built of marble slabs, which surrounding the choir and presbytery divided the body of the church from its sides, which are called aisles (alæ). Above the wall in the circuit behind, and opposite to the altar, was the patriarchal seat." (p. 43.)

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In the crypt under the altar of Christ stood the altar of the Holy Virgin Mary, to whose honour the entire crypt was dedicated, which crypt occupied precisely the same space and compass in length and breadth as did the choir above it. (p. 44.)

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"But the exterior wall of the aisles was as follows: Beginning from the Martyrium of St. Thomas, that is to say, from the cross of Lanfranc, and proceeding towards the east, [here Gervase's description carries us along to the upper

"Gervase was at Canterbury in 1170, the year of Becket's murder, and the choir of Lanfranc was pulled down about seventy years before. In this time it seems that all tradition of its arrangement had vanished." Note by the Professor,

cross, or eastern transept, thence to the Tower of St. Andrew, and thence to the Trinity Chapel,] which (chapel) was extended towards the east at the front of the church, and opposite to the high seat of the Archbishop." (p. 45.)

The south wall is then traced up to the same point, beginning from the apse of St. Michael in the cross of Lanfranc, to the upper cross or eastern transept, thence to the Tower of St. Peter and St. Paul (afterwards called Anselm's Tower), and thence to the aforesaid chapel of the Holy Trinity, which was placed at the front of the church.

"The chapel placed outside the wall, but joined to it and extended towards the east, had the altar of the Holy Trinity. Behind the altar there lay two Archbishops, to the right St. Odo, to the left St. Wilfrid, Archbishop of York. To the south, close to the wall, the venerable Archbishop Lanfranc, and to the north Theobald." (p. 46.) "In the crypt

beneath were two altars. ... In the middle of this chapel there stood a column which sustained arches and a vault ... At the base of this column, on the eastern side, was the place where the blessed Martyr Thomas was buried, on the day after his martyrdom." (p. 47.)

“ And now the description, as concise as I could make it, of the church which we are going to pull down, has brought us to the tomb of the Martyr which was at the end of the church, let therefore the church and the description come to an end together." (p. 47.)

The extracts which we have made will convey to the reader a concise view of the Norman Cathedral, and of the style and writing of Gervase, as translated by the learned Professor. We must, however, remark, that in p. 38 the Professor has given, Fig. 3, plan of Canterbury Cathedral in 1174," which throws great light upon Edmer's and Gervase's descriptions of the church. But we cannot refrain from expressing our surprise and regret at an enormous blunder upon the face of the plan. We allude to the fanciful termination of Lanfranc's church. The Professor's note upon this subject is, "the portion in lighter tint marked V, is the conjectural termination of Lanfranc's church, see cap. iv."

If the learned Professor had let the matter rest here, we should not have deemed it necessary to take any further notice of it. But as in the progress of the work we find this

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