Exeter Part 2

It has been ascertained from the fabric rolls that it was the gift of Bishop Stapledon (1465), and the exact sum paid for the work and timber was just under thirteen pounds, a considerable sum of money when its modern equivalent is calculated. The throne consists of a series of pinnacles and niches, rising in diminis.h.i.+ng tiers until the crowning pinnacle almost reaches to the clerestory window. There is not a single nail in the whole of this canopied seat, although it rises to a height of more than sixty feet from the choir floor. It has been taken to pieces on at least two occasions; once by the son of Bishop Hall, when it was hidden away during the Civil Wars to save it from Cromwell's troopers, and a second time by Sir Gilbert Scott, for the purposes of cleaning. It is highly probable that the oak of which it is made came from Chudleigh, some ten miles away, where the bishops of Exeter had a palace, of which fragments remain in Palace Farm.

[Ill.u.s.tration: THE ABBOT'S LODGE]

The beautiful stone sedilia was due to Stapledon. Above the seat are three arches 10 feet in height, surmounted by elaborately designed tabernacle work. The arches spring from three carved heads reputed to be those of St. Edward the Confessor, Leofric, and Edith.

The Lady Chapel is at the eastern end of the choir, from which it is separated by a broad ambulatory, and within it are the tombs of Bishops Stafford, Brones...o...b.., Simon of Apulia, and Bartholomew, as well as the tomb of Sir John Doddridge. A plain slab marks the resting place of Bishop Quivil, the stone bearing an incised cross and around it the inscription--

"PETRA TEGIT PETRUM NIHIL OFFICIAT SIBI TETRUM".

The large number of interments in Lady Chapels was due to the perfectly natural desire of our forefathers to be laid to rest in the chapel dedicated to the Blessed Virgin.

The cloisters stood formerly on the south side, in front of the Chapter House. They were so sadly mutilated by the Cromwellian troopers that houses were erected and a weekly market held on the site. In 1887 a portion of the ruinous cloister was restored, so that a new cathedral library could be placed above it for the purpose of housing the valuable libraries bequeathed to the Cathedral, no more s.p.a.ce being available in the Chapter House. An interesting ma.n.u.script, preserved in the library of the Devon and Exeter Inst.i.tution, contains many references to the city which have not been recorded by other historians. With reference to the cloisters the unknown author of this ma.n.u.script says:

"1657. The Cloysters neer to Peters churche was converted into the serdge markett, which was before in Southgate street.

"1660. The wall which divided East & West Peters was taken downe in December and in the month following the serdg markett was removed out of the Cloystures, and carried againe into Southgate street whear it was before. Also the uniting of severall parishes into one was againe made void & each parrish to enjoy her owne priviledges and lyberties as before."

When Daniel Defoe visited Exeter, in 1723, it had the largest serge market in England, next to Leeds.

Although the Close has not succeeded in retaining any of its gates it is interesting by reason of the few old houses that still surround it, whilst behind their gabled roofs rises the double-towered Cathedral, completing the picturesqueness of a really charming scene, of which the prevailing tone is a dark grey, stained and almost blackened by weathering and by age. In the fourteenth century the Close at Exeter was enclosed with walls, and until comparatively recent times it was built over. The well-kept Close is peculiar to England.

The Bishop's Palace dates from about 1381, and is supposed to have been either built or enlarged by Bishop Courtenay. It was in a very ruinous condition when Bishop Philpotts set to work to restore it, when many old fragments of masonry were let into the new work. The fine archway leading into the cloisters was put up at this time, and the large oriel window of the library came from another old house in Exeter. Within the hall of the Palace is an ancient chimney-piece erected about 1486, upon which are sculptured the Courtenay arms and badges, the arms of England, and the emblem of St. Anthony. During the Commonwealth the Palace came into the possession of a sugar baker, and the succeeding bishop was content to leave him undisturbed. The next occupant of the see, however, turned the sugar baker out of the house, which he occupied himself.

Several traces of the sugar refinery were discovered when the Palace was restored by Bishop Philpotts. The Palace Gardens are very extensive, and are bounded on the south side by the remains of the city wall, upon which is now a pleasant walk. Near the centre of the wall is a curious building generally known as the Lollards' Prison, although whether it ever was used for this purpose is a matter of conjecture. One of the finest views of the Cathedral is that obtained from a corner of the lawn in the Palace Gardens.

THE EXE

After leaving the peaceful atmosphere of the Cathedral the noise and distractions of the modern city grate upon us; the return to the twentieth-century commonplace after the fourteenth-century refinement is too sudden, there being no intermediate stage between the one and the other, between the gloom of the great church and the glare and feverish hurry of a prosperous city. This being so, we cannot do better than seek a measure of quietude and repose along the banks of the Exe, a river which, rising on Exmoor, gives name to Exeter, Exminster, and Exmouth.

Although rising in Somerset, the river may fittingly be claimed as a Devonian one, as it enters the county a little below Dulverton, where it receives the waters of the Barle. At the beginning of its career the Exe flows through a country of great beauty and much romantic interest, which has been immortalized by R. D. Blackmore in _Lorna Doone_.

[Ill.u.s.tration: THE EXE AT TOPSHAM]

This land of Exmoor is a heathery plateau that rivals in everything but extent the sister moorland which gives birth to that prince of English rivers, the Dart.

Dartmoor is larger, wilder, and grander in the bold contours of its cloud-capped tors, but the wildness of Exmoor is blended with a sweet and gentle charm which is all its own. It presents us with a panorama of misty woods, gleaming water, and glowing heather; a combe-furrowed moorland clothed with scrub oaks and feathery larches. After leaving this forest shrine the Exe enters Devons.h.i.+re, where, after flowing through richly wooded and fertile valleys, it sweeps past the ancient town of Tiverton, where it is swelled by the waters of the Loman. Three miles from Tiverton it reaches Bickley Bridge, beyond which it is the recipient of the Culm, the largest of all its tributaries. Along the greater part of its course to this point its silver streams thread their way between sloping hills crowned with hanging woods, and by scenery of the true Devonian order. At Cowley Bridge, two miles above Exeter, the river is joined by the Creedy, which, coming from the north-west, flows through and gives name to _Creedy-ton_, or Crediton. The course of the Exe, from its source on Exmoor to the sea at Exmouth, is estimated at about seventy miles. It is a pure pellucid stream until joined by the Creedy, which imparts to it a reddish colour from the soil through which the latter flows.

The importance of the river to Exeter, especially before the waterway was obstructed by Isabella de Fortibus, Countess of Devon, cannot be overestimated, and in old books many of the now flouris.h.i.+ng ports on the south coast are described as "creeks under Exeter". From ancient records it seems certain that an arm of the sea extended to the very walls of the city, and from the facility thus afforded to commerce, Exeter, at a very early period, became the great trading port of the West Country. Of the various trades carried on here those of the woollen and its allied industries were the most numerous. It was also one of those favoured English ports to which licences were granted in 1428 for the embarkation of devout persons and pilgrims who were visiting the great Continental shrines, and particularly that of St. James at Compostella. Before they were permitted to leave this country these mediaeval devotees were required to swear a solemn oath that they would "not take with them anything prejudicial to England, nor to reveal any of its secrets, nor carry out with them any more gold or silver than what would be sufficient for their reasonable expense".

As civilization increased trade and commerce, both foreign and domestic, kept pace with the growth of the city, and in the reign of Elizabeth the wool merchants of the county and the woolstaplers of its capital had risen to fame and opulence. In the year 1560 Queen Elizabeth granted the traders of Exeter a charter of privileges, and letters patent were issued forming them into a company under the name of a "Socitie of Marchante Adventurers of the citie of Exeter". The possession of the charter induced the citizens to commence the spirited undertaking of cutting a ca.n.a.l to Topsham, a work that was begun in 1564, and which const.i.tutes one of the earliest examples of ca.n.a.l navigation in the country. "But why", it may be asked, "did the need for cutting a ca.n.a.l arise when the river flowed up to the heart of the city?" The need arose in consequence of the obstruction of the natural waterway near Topsham, by Isabella de Fortibus, Countess of Devon, with the result that no s.h.i.+ps could proceed beyond Countess Weir, at Topsham, 4 miles below Exeter. The first obstruction was placed in the river by Isabella de Fortibus, about the year 1284, owing to a dispute she had with the merchants of the city concerning various dues. The merchants appealed to Henry III, who ordered the obstruction to be removed, but so powerful were the Earls of Devon in those days that no steps were taken to restore the navigation of the waterway. In 1312 the river was still further obstructed by Hugh Courtenay, Earl of Devon, the first member of the Courtenay family to hold the earldom. Tradition states that the motive for the earl's action was the displeasure he felt towards the mayor and citizens of Exeter on the following occasion. His steward was sent into the city to buy fish, and the bishop's steward having been sent for the same purpose, the two servants met in the market on a day when there were only three kettles of fish for sale. Each of the stewards wanted the whole of the supply, and after a quarrel the mayor was sent for to decide the issue, which he did by giving each of the stewards one basket and retaining the third for the use of the citizens.

The mayor was in the service of the earl, who, hearing of the decision, visited the city and sent for the mayor. The latter summoned the citizens to meet him at the Guildhall, where he explained to them the cause of the earl's displeasure and requested them to accompany him.

According to Tyacke, the Exeter historian, "being come to the Earl's house, the mayor was conducted to his lodging chamber and the door closed on him; and finding that none of his speeches would satisfy the Earl, who stormed at him, he took off an outer coat he then wore (it being the Earl's livery), and delivered it to him again; at which the Earl fell into a greater pa.s.sion. The commons attending at the door, doubting the mayor's safety, knocked, and demanded their mayor. Being several times denied they attempted to break open the door, which the Earl apprehending and fearful of what might ensue, entreated the mayor to pacify the people, which was soon done, and they all peaceably returned. And though the Earl then, to avoid the fury of the people, seemed pacified, he could never afterwards show a good countenance to the city."

[Ill.u.s.tration: COUNTESS WEIR]

In order to revenge himself on the citizens he built a quay at Topsham, and compelled all merchants and captains of s.h.i.+ps to unload their cargoes and convey them by wagon to the city, to the inconvenience of the merchants and his own profit. He also took from the citizens their rights of fis.h.i.+ng in the river, and oppressed them in various ways. Some years later Edward Courtenay, nephew of Hugh, still further blocked the waterway by erecting two other weirs, under the pretext of building some mills. Many complaints were made to the king, and various writs were issued against the earls, but no one dared to enforce them. For four hundred years the feud continued over what was apparently the destination of a kettle of fish, although in later days there is no doubt that the earls' motives were to increase the income of their own port of Topsham at the expense of Exeter. On the receipt of Queen Elizabeth's charter in 1560 the citizens at length decided to construct a ca.n.a.l to Topsham. This was begun in 1564 and completed in 1697, and it is one of the earliest examples of ca.n.a.l navigation in the country.

Topsham is now a little port, whose s.h.i.+pping trade is confined to small coasting schooners and fis.h.i.+ng smacks. The Church of St. Margaret is very large, and, with the exception of the tower, has been almost entirely rebuilt. Near Topsham the Exe is joined by the little River Clyst, and just below the confluence the Exe expands until it is more than a mile in width. From the Clyst many villages take name, as Clyst St. Lawrence, Broad Clyst, Honiton Clyst, Clyst St. Mary, and Clyst St.

George. The last two are near Topsham and were the scene of a struggle during the Prayer Book Riots. In Devon the insurrection started on Whit-Monday, 1549, at Sampford Courtenay, the day following that on which the Act altering the Church service came into force. The people of the village insisted on the priest saying the usual ma.s.s instead of the prayers given in the appointed Book of Common Prayer. The rebellion spread rapidly, and ten thousand men marched on Exeter, with a good sprinkling of old Devon families in their ranks; but they were undisciplined and were quickly dispersed by Lords Grey and Russell.

Although demoralized, the rebels a.s.sembled at Clyst St. Mary, which they fortified. From here they sent word to the king demanding the continuance of their former Church services, but the king's reply was an army under the command of Lord Russell, and after a brief resistance Clyst St. Mary was burned to the ground and the rebels scattered, to be again beaten and their leaders taken on Clyst Heath. The vicar of St.

Thomas's Church, Exeter--at that time situated outside the walls--one of the leaders, was hanged from his own church tower.

On the west bank of the Exe, almost opposite Topsham, are Powderham Park and Castle, the latter supposed to have been built originally by Isabella de Fortibus. It has been conjectured, and is indeed highly probable, that a fortified building or earthwork of some kind occupied the site at a much earlier date, possibly as early as the Danish invasions. In later times the manor belonged to the Bohuns, and it came into possession of the Earls of Devon through the marriage of Margaret de Bohun with Hugh Courtenay, the third earl. In 1645 the castle was besieged, unsuccessfully, by Fairfax, but in the following year it was taken by Colonel Hammond. Until about the middle of the eighteenth century it remained strongly fortified, but at that time it was subjected to many alterations. The oldest part of the present castle dates from the time of Richard II, but the whole fabric has undergone so many restorations that it presents a great variety of architectural styles. The fine modern hall contains a fireplace which is a replica of the one at the Palace, Exeter. The park is a delightful stretch of greensward, studded with ancient oaks, and it extends for many miles around the building. In one corner of the park is the little church of St. Clement, a Perpendicular building of red sandstone, and within which are several memorials of the Courtenays. These include a rec.u.mbent effigy popularly supposed to represent the renowned Isabella, although this lady is known to have been buried at Bromnor Priory, Wilts. It is the opinion of some authorities that this monument is a cenotaph to Elizabeth, daughter of Edward I, and wife of Humphrey de Bohun, whose daughter, Margaret, married Hugh Courtenay. On the highest ground of the park is the Belvidere, erected in 1773, a triangular tower with a small hexagonal turret at each corner. It is 60 feet high, and from the summit the view comprises the city of Exeter, the broad estuary of the Exe, the village of Lympstone, and the little town of Topsham, where the spars of the s.h.i.+ps appear to mingle with the trees on the river's banks.

Looking inland we may see the well-wooded country stretching away in a succession of hills and combes, until the view is bounded by the stone-capped heights of Dartmoor in the far distance.

The parish of Woodbury, on the east bank of the river, contains several small villages and a large stretch of common. Woodbury Castle is a well-known earthwork on the top of a high hill; it is probably prehistoric in origin, although afterwards occupied by the Romans. The church of St. Swithin at Woodbury has a chancel in the Decorated and a tower in the Perpendicular styles. The beautiful screen has been modernized and consequently spoiled, but some good monuments may still be seen. Nutwell Court, overlooking the estuary, is a modern mansion on the site of a castle which had been converted into a dwelling house so early as the reign of Edward IV. It is now the home of the Drakes, of the same family as the famous sailor of Elizabethan days. Among the relics preserved here are the cups given to Sir Francis Drake by Queen Elizabeth on his return from the memorable voyage round the world in the _Pelican_. Here also is a portrait of Sir Francis by Zucchero.

Exmouth, although a modern watering-place, has a few points of interest, being one of the oldest seaside resorts on the south-west coast.

In the time of King John it was an important port, and it supplied ten s.h.i.+ps and one hundred and ninety-three seamen for Edward III's expedition to Calais. The princ.i.p.al part of the present town is very modern, but it is very pleasantly situated. The greater part of the town is included in the parish of Littleham, whose church, dedicated to St.

Margaret and St. Andrew, is of Early English and Perpendicular architecture. The Spratshayes aisle was probably built by the Drakes of Spratshayes. The screen, dating from about 1400, has richly undercut cornice bands, the Stafford and Wake knots being freely introduced among the carvings. There are many delightful walks around Exmouth, both along the coast and inland, the view from Beacon Hill being very fine and including a large strip of the eastern and the western coastlines that border the blue waters of the English Channel.