History around us questions and plans Flashcards
A) Explain what it was about the location of your site that led the people who created it to think that it would meet the needs.
Para 1: Strategic Significance
- Positioned on Ludgate hill (Central and highest point in London)
Physical features/sources of evidence: Ludgate hill (Westernmost of the two hills upon which the roman settlement of Londinium was built)
Para 2: Religious Significance
- Believed that there was a possible pre-existing roman shrine to Diana
Physical Features/Sources of Evidence: Excavations ordered by wren found roman funeral earns and an 1830 excavation in Cheapside discoverd a stone altar with an image of diana
Para 3: Political Significance
- Important way for the Anglo-Saxon Christian leaders (e.g. King Ethelbert) to re-establish political power
- London had been slower to abandon paganism
Physical Features/Sources of Evidence: Roman walls
B) Why did the people first start using your site?
- Pope Gregory ordered Augustine to set up two archbishoprics in London and York. Mellitus was a bishop who went with Augustine, was consecrated, and set up a church in the old Roman capital of Londinium.
- After the South of England returned to paganism and Mellitus was expelled from London in 616. In 668, Theodore became the Archbishop of Canterbury and consecrated Erkenwald as the Bishop of London in 675. Erkenwald was then canonised after his death, and this led to his shrine becoming a major site of pilgrimage in Medieval England. His shrine helped to establish St Paul’s as the primary church in London.
- After a fire destroyed the Cathedral in 1087, Bishop Maurice, William the Conqueror’s chaplain rebuilt the Cathedral. This Cathedral would take over a hundred years to build and w ould become one of the finest, most impressive buildings in Europe.
C) The ways in which the site has changed over time
Intro: St Paul’s Cathedral in the period of the long reformation from the 1534 act of supremacy to the restoration of the monarchy in 1660
Religious Rollercoaster
Decay and dilapidation
Para 1: Impact of the Long Reformation
The Church of England was forced by its monarchs to break away from the authority of the Catholic Church and the Pope, and England became a Protestant nation. Dissolution of the Monasteries. The Shrine of Erkenwald was plundered for its valuables.
Shrine of Erkenwald was plundered
The bell tower was gambled away
Para 2: Religious change
* Many Catholic features were removed or destroyed, including: * The high altar was demolished in 1550 * Pilgrimage attractions were removed in 1538 * Religious items no longer used in the new doctrine were removed in 1553 * Chantry chapels were torn down or abandoned * The Charnel House and its chapel were torn down * The Shrine of St Erkenwald was dismantled * Stained glass windows were smashed Wall paintings were whitewashed over
Para 3: Impact of Civil war
Collapsing of the roof. Nave used as cavalry barracks. Parliamentarian forces destroyed shrines and other features. Portico became a shop for seamstresses.
Iconoclasm
D) How the site has been used throughout its history
- Key religious site and its main purpose has always been to bring people closer to God. The Shrine of St Erkenwald was a major site of pilgrimage for people all over Europe during the Medieval period and this helped to establish St Pauls as the major church in London. St Erkenwald’s shrine was destroyed along with other relics, statues, and chapels during the dissolution of the monasteries. The only statue to survive this was the statue of John Donne.
- A focal point for trade, meeting, gossip, news, and thoroughfare. In the medieval period, the clergy tried to ban ball games and trade within the Cathedral though with little success. During the 16th and 17th centuries the nave was used as a meeting place, marketplace, and thoroughfare. During the civil war, much of the timber was sold off and it was turned into a cavalry barracks.
- A site of national celebration and mourning: Old St Paul’s was used as a mausoleum with the old cathedral having 2 royal tombs: King Sebba of the Anglo-Saxons and Ethelred the Unready. After the Great Fire, Queen Victoria’s Jubilee in 1897, and the wedding of Charles and Diana in 1981, tombs of Wren, Wellington, and Nelson in the crypt.
- Symbol of wealth, rebirth, and survival. Symbol of Rebirth after the Great fire of London, it was a huge opportunity to rebuild the whole city bigger and better. During WW2, the Cathedral became a symbol of survival. In 1940 a photo was taken called St Paul’s survives, it pictures St Paul’s amongst the smoke from the Blitz, untouched. This became a national symbol of hope during the war.
E) the diversity of activities and people associated with the site
Site of pilgrimage.
- Shrine of Erkenwald
- In the modern day, tourism replaces pilgrimage - people travel to see the cathedral, but out of historical interest rather than religious
Diversity of activities in surrounding area (but site fundamentally a place of worship)
- For example its use as a stable in the civil war
- Nave ‘Paul’s walk’ used for gossip and commerce, yet processions still take palace
- Modern day has been used in the ‘Occupy London’ protests (2011-2012)
Impact of monarchs on the site.
- Henry VIII gambles away the bell tower
- Consecrated by Mellitus as a Christian place of worship
- Edward VI introduces the book of common prayer 1555-58
- Elizabeth I reintroduces it in 1559
- Edward VI takes away high altar, replaces it with a wooden communion table (restored in the new cathedral)
- Dissolution of the Monasteries and Chanties Act 1552 - Cathedral lost a large amount of interior ornamentation
Ceremonies that take place in this site
- Marriages
○ Henry VII and Catherine of Aragon (1501)
○ Diana and Charles (1981) – one of the most popular televised events in history
- Funerals
○ Admiral Nelson (1806)
Winston Churchill (1965) – Largest state funeral in British history
F and G) reasons for changes to the site and to the way it was used (turning points)
- 604 AD: the first cathedral dedicated to St Paul was built on Ludgate Hill by Mellitus. It was built out of wood, though some Roman stone, brick and tile may have been recycled and used.
- 1087
- Tudor period and English civil war
- The Great Fire of London
- Late nineteenth century onwards:
St Paul’s began to regularly hold events of national significance. Jubilees of various monarchs. Queen Victoria in 1897, Queen Elizabeth II and George V. As well as royal weddings and the site of state funerals such as those held for admiral nelson, the duke of wellington, Churchill, and Thatcher. Many services of remembrance have also been held at St Paul’s including the Napoleonic wars, the Crimean war, and WW2 and recent terrorist attacks in 2001 and 2005.
1806 and 1852: St Paul’s becomes a national mausoleum, holding the funerals of Nelson and Wellington
During the second world war St Paul’s becomes a physical and visible symbol of hope and survival. The St Paul’s fire watch was formed in 1939 to help London’s firefighters during the war. Despite suffering damage to bombs in 1940 and 1941, the Cathedral stayed intact. On 25 August 1944, the cathedral bells rang out to celebrate the liberation of Paris.
(H) The significance of specific features in the physical remains at the site
Consideration of old and new site. Difficulties with telling story of old st pauls with new site.
- Dome ○ Built by Sir Christopher Wren ○ Part of the new design for new St Paul's after the Great Fire of London § 2nd largest cathedral dome with 365ft § Tallest building in London until 1963 ○ Tells historians about the effects of the Great Fire in 1666 § Opportunity for Wren to redesign the building § Created a symbol of resurrection for the city § Lots changed within it and the Warrant Design - Crypt ○ Was used as a pantheon for important men in the 19th century § The order of the British empire chapel is also situated here ○ The chapels that were built since the new st Pauls § Religion even underneath the cathedral ○ These tombs still exist; allowing historians to make inferences on what the crypt was used for in new St Pauls - Inability to learn from it - FIRE ○ Destruction of Old St Paul's post Great Fire of London § Not a lot left over so difficult to learn about it ○ Unable to learn about Old St Paul's § Many key things that speak of its story that we cannot see from current remains § Spire □ Underwent many restorations and changes especially through reformation that we cannot see with current building of St Paul's ○ Fire burnt almost all of it down ○ Incapable of seeing how tall the spire was exactly from current remains § Have to use other sources, but these can reconstruct the building almost exactly § The Virtual St Paul's Project Recreated old St Pauls ○ Know where old things were such as Paul's Cross § Do not know from the current remains what it was used for § But we can use other sources such as the painting by John J to see that it was a hot spot for preaching and gatherings
I) The importance of the whole site either locally or nationally, as appropriate
Impact of Reformation. Significance to Londoners. National significance (events)
National and local - reflects the changes across the country in religious attitudes
- Reformation
- Henry VIII - dissolution of the monasteries in 1534 - Iconoclasm
- Edward VI - Protestant - high altar dismantled, reredos and stonework around demolished
- Local significance - Paul’s Cross,
Local significance - resurrection and hope after the Great Fire
- Site of national significance - events that happen here
- Symbol of British Imperial power
Local significance - hope and resistance in the War
- National symbol
- Herbert Mason - St Paul’s Survives
Dome especially a physical feature that represented hope in the blitz for example, said to be seen standing amongst the smoke
j) The typicality of the site based on a comparison with other similar sites
Comparisons. Spire/shrine - Lincoln, Canterbury.
Site of Pilgrimage (Canterbury)
Atypicality - architectural grandeur, Rose Window, Paul’s Cross
Typical - Shrines + site of pilgrimage
Shrine of Erkenwald compared to Shrine of Thomas Beckett at Canterbury cathedral (both sites of pilgrimage)
Both plundered by Henry VIII during the reformation
Atypical - grandeur of features, Rose window and Great West Portico
Rose window beautiful stained glass window mentioned in Chaucer’s Canterbury tales
Great West Portico - built by Inigo Jones, commissioned by Charles I - cost £10,000 (shown by records of payment) - very expensive
St Pauls cross - one of only outdoor preaching spaces in country, very popular (John Gypkin 1616 painting)
Typical - Similar architecture (Romanesque + Gothic)
Canterbury and Salisbury both rebuilt in early Gothic styles, like the Octagonal Chapter house
In the traditional shape of the cross
Spires - many also burnt down (like Lincoln)
* Overall: typical with some unique features. More typical than unique because of the strength of the typical features like the spire and the architectural style when compared to St Paul’s cross which was dissembled in 1641 and the great west portico which only stood for 20-30 years.
k) What the site reveals about everyday life, attitudes and values in particular periods of history
Place of worship. Changing religious attitudes.
Social use of St Paul’s - every day life.
Point 1 - The Nave also known as “Pauls walk” became a hub of London thoroughfare and gossip, became “more of a shopping centre than a walk” - Ostovich.
Point 2 - Pauls cross, on the courtyard, shows religion is a big part of daily life
Point 3 - Shrine or Erkenwald, popular point of pilgrimage, shows St Pauls is a religious point of
l) How the physical remains may prompt questions about the past and how historians frame these as valid historical enquiries
Difficulties between old and new St Paul’s from fire.
Surviving fragments and monuments from Old St Paul’s were damaged in the Great Fire of 1666. Thus, pre-fire remains are significant as they are few in number
* Some stones from old St Paul’s used in building of New St Paul’s
○ St Paul’s became symbol of rebirth
* Excavations in 1878 gave information on the dimensions of Old St Paul’s and shows us it was the tallest building in the world
* Difficulty: most archaeological remains are located beneath current St Paul’s
Images and representations of the site over time
* The Great Model + documentary evidence & completed building. Significant as it shows Wren’s evolving design in the period after the fire
* Virtual St Paul’s Cathedral Project is currently reconstructing the site as it was in the early 17th century including a 3D virtual tour of Paul’s Cross
○ Since it is based off of various sources, there are questions over its accuracy
* Copperplate map of London by John Schofield displays the spire before its destruction
○ Useful to understand St Paul’s location within the city and surroundings
* William Dugdale’s engravings - gives indication of St Paul’s as a ‘building in decline’
○ Helps to understand changing attitudes towards the cathedral - shows St Paul’s without a spire in 1658
* Only small amount of fragmentary remains from the exterior e.g. Paul’s cross monument and plaque, and floorplan of Old St Paul’s
○ Significant features for examination of changing nature and uses of the site
* Interior: monuments, furnishing, decorations e.g. crypt
○ Examination of changing attitudes/values and uses of the site
m) How the physical remains can inform artistic reconstructions and other interpretations of the site
Para 1: Popularity of St Paul’s cross
St Pauls cross, John Gypkins painting
The popularity of St Pauls cross and its role of the cathedral
Para 2: The Nave- Paul’s walk
I would ask the artist to show the number of people walking through
Social Gathering site
Para 3: The Spire- How it was not rebuilt after being burnt down
I would ask the artist to draw it before it built down to show its significance,
N) The challenges and benefits of studying the historic environment
Benefits:
* Gives a sense of place and cultural identity.
* Can promote a regional or local distinctiveness.
* A way to engage with history.
* Important in the process of remembrance
Challenges:
* Lack of sources and evidence make it difficult to interpret.
o Evidence often destroyed, little of the Old St Paul’s remains.
o Different interpretations often based on emotional responses.
o Secular society makes it hard to appreciate and relate to religious history.
