The Cathedral Close is a historic set of buildings surrounding Lichfield Cathedral in Lichfield in the United Kingdom. The Close comprises buildings associated with the cathedral and the clergy which encircle the cathedral. The Close grew up around the cathedral during medieval times and today some medieval buildings remain in the Close but the majority of buildings date from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries.
After raids from the Vikings during the 9th century, the Cathedral lost some of its power. Bishop Clinton fortified the Cathedral in the 12th century. A deep man-made ditch was dug on three sides and the south was defended naturally by Minster Pool. This fortification effectively created the cathedral close.
In 1299 Bishop Langton was licensed to wall the Close in stone and crenellate it. He also rebuilt the gates. The work was unfinished at his death in 1321. In 1322, during the crisis involving Thomas, Earl of Lancaster, the chapter under royal pressure ordered the immediate clearance of the ditch and the completion of the west tower of the south-east gate. The fortification comprised corner towers and interval towers along the wall. An octagonal tower at the north-east corner was incorporated in Langton's palace; its base still survives. At the south-east corner, there was a parapet along the top of the wall and a projecting turret, which survive as part of the later St. Mary's House. The south-west tower was recorded in 1312–13 and was shown on Speed's 1610 map of Lichfield; it had been demolished by 1661. The north-west tower had a statue of Bishop Walter, presumably Walter Langton, in the 1390s; the tower was evidently another Civil War casualty. Three interval towers were placed on the east wall, two of them incorporated in Langton's palace and the third on the site of the later Selwyn House. The Dean's Tower, so called in 1315, apparently stood on the west wall; it had been demolished by 1661.
The gate built by Langton at the south-east corner of the Close had two towers. The eastern one, whose base was excavated in the late 1980s, was a half-octagon with 12-foot sides. The western tower was presumably of similar dimension. The gate had a portcullis in 1376. There was a drawbridge, still in existence in the earlier 18th century, which crossed the outflow of water from Minster Pool, and also a wicket for pedestrians. The gate was removed in the mid-18th century in order to improve access for coaches into the Close. A northward extension of the eastern tower was used as a porter's lodge in the early 17th century. After being damaged in the Civil War, it was rebuilt and in 1666 was assessed for tax on four hearths. By 1734 the porter or verger lived in a house at the west gate, and the former lodge was demolished between 1812 and 1836.
The west gate was completed by the chapter in the time of Bishop Northburgh, 1322–58. It was in the form of a tall block with side windows. It was decorated with coats of arms, and there was a statue of the Virgin Mary by 1530. The gate was demolished in 1800 to make room for Newton's College. Traces of its stonework survive on the north side of the road from Beacon Street. A house, evidently at the north-west corner of the gate, was let in 1661 to James Barrow, a tailor. He converted a dungeon underneath the house into a cellar for his own use and was ordered by the chapter to dig another dungeon of the same size with a hole to provide light. In 1734 the house was occupied by the verger; it was rebuilt in 1835 and survives as no. 1 the Close. There is no evidence that the Close ditch ever contained water. It was dry in the 1590s, and evidently in the mid-1550s. By the mid-17th century it was called the Dimple or Dimble, a name meaning a deep hollow filled with trees or bushes. [1]
There were three sieges of Lichfield during the English Civil War in the period 1643–1646. The cathedral authorities with a certain following were for Charles I, but the townsfolk generally sided with Parliament, and this led to the fortification of the close in 1643. Robert Greville, 2nd Baron Brooke, led an assault against it, but was killed by a deflected bullet from John Dyott (known as 'dumb' because he was a deaf mute) who along with his brother Richard Dyott had taken up a position on the battlements of the central cathedral spire on 2 March 1643.[ citation needed ] Brooke's deputy John Gell, took over the siege [2] and the Royalist garrison surrendered to him two days later. [3]
In April of the same year (1643) Prince Rupert led an Royalist expeditionary force from Oxford to recapture Lichfield. [2] The Siege of Lichfield started on 8 April. During the second assault Rupert's engineers detonated an explosive mine to breach the defences. Unable to defend the Close, Colonel Russell, the parliamentary commander of the garrison, surrendered on terms to Rupert on 21 April. [4]
The cathedral suffered extensive damage: the central spire was demolished, the roofs ruined and all the stained glass smashed. Bishop Hacket began the restoration of the cathedral in the 1660s, aided by substantial funds donated by the restored monarch, but it was not until the 19th century that the damage caused during the Civil War was fully repaired. [3]
Lichfield is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly 18 miles (29 km) south-east of the county town of Stafford, 8.1 miles (13.0 km) south-east of Rugeley, 9 miles (14 km) north-east of Walsall, 7.9 miles (12.7 km) north-west of Tamworth and 13 miles (21 km) south-west of Burton Upon Trent. At the time of the 2011 Census, the population was estimated at 32,219 and the wider Lichfield District at 100,700.
Lichfield Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Lichfield, Staffordshire, England, one of only three cathedrals in the United Kingdom with three spires, and the only medieval one of the three. It is the cathedral of the Diocese of Lichfield, which covers Staffordshire, much of Shropshire, and parts of the Black Country and West Midlands. It is the seat of the Bishop of Lichfield, currently Michael Ipgrave, who was appointed in 2016. It is a Grade I listed building.
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Walter Langton of Castle Ashby in Northamptonshire, was Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield and Treasurer of England. The life of Langton was strongly influenced by his uncle William Langton, Archbishop of York-elect, by Robert Burnell, Lord Chancellor of England and then by the years in which he served King Edward I. Lichfield Cathedral was improved and enriched at his expense.
The Westgate is a medieval gatehouse in Canterbury, Kent, England. This 60-foot (18 m) high western gate of the city wall is the largest surviving city gate in England. Built of Kentish ragstone around 1379, it is the last survivor of Canterbury's seven medieval gates, still well-preserved and one of the city's most distinctive landmarks. The road still passes between its drum towers. This scheduled monument and Grade I listed building houses the West Gate Towers Museum as well as a series of historically themed escape rooms.
English Gothic is an architectural style that flourished from the late 12th until the mid-17th century. The style was most prominently used in the construction of cathedrals and churches. Gothic architecture's defining features are pointed arches, rib vaults, buttresses, and extensive use of stained glass. Combined, these features allowed the creation of buildings of unprecedented height and grandeur, filled with light from large stained glass windows. Important examples include Westminster Abbey, Canterbury Cathedral and Salisbury Cathedral. The Gothic style endured in England much longer than in Continental Europe.
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St Mary the Virgin is a 13th-century Anglican parish church in Northolt, London Borough of Ealing. It is on a slope shared with Belvue Park, the site of a 15th-century manor house — both overlooked the old village of Northolt. It is one of London's smallest churches, its nave measuring 15 yards (14 m) by 8 yards (7.3 m). The church was built around 1290 and was expanded over the centuries, with the chancel being added in 1521, the spired bell tower in the 16th century, and a gallery at the west end of the church in 1703. Twin buttresses were erected against the west wall around 1718 to alleviate concerns that the church could slip down the hill. The internal beams are original and the bells date from the 17th century. The church was constructed from a variety of materials; the nave incorporates clunch, flint and ironstone, and the mouldings of the doors and windows are made from Reigate Stone.
The Church of St Chad is a parish church in the area of Stowe in the north of the city of Lichfield, Staffordshire, in the United Kingdom. It is a Grade II* Listed Building. The church is located to the north of Stowe Pool on St Chad's Road. The current building dates back to the 12th century although extensive restorations and additions have been made in the centuries since.
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St Mary's Church is a city centre church in Lichfield, Staffordshire in the United Kingdom, located on the south side of the market square. A church is reputed to have been on the present site since at least 1150 but the current building dates from 1870 and is a Grade II* listed building. The church was remodelled in the early 1980s and again in 1997-1999 and now serves a variety of purposes including Lichfield Library and Tourist Information on the ground floor, and on the top floor, The Hub at St Mary's is now home to a speciality coffee shop, art gallery, treasury exhibition and performing arts space.
The Franciscan Friary was once a large estate located on the west side of Lichfield city centre in Staffordshire. The estate was built and inhabited by the Franciscan Friars from 1237. At one time the estate consisted of a large church, a cloister, dormitory lodge and a refectory building as well as many other domestic dwellings.
Minster Pool is a reservoir located between Bird Street and Dam Street in the heart of the city of Lichfield, Staffordshire in the United Kingdom. The pool lies directly south of Lichfield Cathedral and historically has been important to the defence of the Cathedral Close. The pool was originally formed in the 11th century when a boggy stream was dammed at its eastern end to drive a mill on Dam Street. The pool was used as a mill pond and fishery until 1856 when the mill was demolished; it has since been retained for public amenity.
The Bishop's Palace is a 17th-century building situated in the north-east corner of the Cathedral Close in Lichfield, Staffordshire in England.
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Holy Trinity Church in Eccleshall, Staffordshire, England, is a Grade I listed Anglican church.
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