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Page 10
Whatever else is omitted from the history of the Cathedral, mention must
be made of the valiant efforts that have been and are still being made
to preserve the stability of the structure. A few years ago the east end
showed signs of subsidence, and ominous cracks appeared in the north
transept, a part of the old Norman church. An examination of the fabric
proved that herculean tasks were essential to save this portion of the
edifice. It was agreed that only by extensive underpinning could the
work be accomplished. It has been very costly, and funds are most
urgently needed to complete the preservation, not only of the eastern
end, but of the whole Cathedral. The cradle of woodwork erected to give
temporary support to the eastern superstructure cost over a thousand
pounds to fix, and up to date many thousands of pounds have been spent
on the work. It was not until these temporary supports had been fixed
and excavations begun that the magnitude of the task was fully revealed.
The Cathedral was found to have been built on an old "water-bed" having
a foundation of peat, the distance between the ground level and the
firm gravel beneath the peat being 27 feet. The only hope of saving the
east end was to remove the peat and fill in the spaces with concrete and
cement. With the removal of the peat, however, there was so great an
influx of water that pumping was of no avail. Two of the best divers in
the kingdom were then procured, and by working on their backs and sides
in 15 feet of muddy water they succeeded in laying the concrete bed.
Owing to the same cause, the remainder of the structure will, sooner or
later, have to be treated in the same way, and the thorough restoration
of the west front cannot be long postponed. The difficulty of the work
is realized when we consider that it takes a whole month to underpin 4
feet of foundation. Owing to the cramped space and the darkness three
weeks are spent in excavation; after which the divers require a week to
place the concrete and cement in position. That so national a heritage
will be saved, for the delight of our own and the instruction of future
generations, must be the wish of all true lovers of the great building
achievements of the past.
The cathedral precincts are in excellent keeping with the repose and
beauty of the building to which they form the court, and are full of
historical memories. The palace of the Conqueror reached from Great
Minster Street to Market Street, from High Street to the Square; and
eastwards rose the "New Minster", and the Nuns' Abbey of St. Mary.
To-day the greater part of the Close, with the Deanery and the various
canonical residences, lies on the south side. Only a few slight
fragments remain of the cloisters, the destruction of which could not
have been considered possible by Wykeham. They were taken down by Bishop
Horne in the reign of Elizabeth. The short row of Norman arches seen
from the Close belonged to the old Chapter House, which is said to have
been pulled down for the sake of its lead. The Deanery was the ancient
house of the Priors, of which it contains many interesting memorials.
Here are the Great Hall, now subdivided, and the Hospitium, used as
stables. The Deanery entrance has three pointed arches, beneath which,
as we have stated, the poor pilgrims and other wayfarers received food
and alms. On his numerous visits to Winchester, Charles II used to lodge
at the Deanery, until Prebendary Ken (afterwards Bishop of Bath and
Wells) refused to allow Nell Gwynne to enter the house, with the result
that she had to content herself with an inferior residence outside the
precincts.
Of Wykeham's "College of St. Marie", or New College, Oxford, this is not
the place to speak, especially as it has already been dealt with in the
"Oxford" volume of this "Beautiful England" series. His other
"College of St. Mary", or, as it is commonly known, Winchester College,
has a history extending far beyond that of most of our great public
schools; and Winchester was celebrated for its educational institutions
in Saxon days.
[Illustration: WINCHESTER COLLEGE: THE OUTER GATEWAY FROM "ARCADIA"]
Wykeham's idea in founding these two colleges was one for which he had
no precedent before him, so that his design was to a large extent in the
nature of an experiment. His idea, of course, was to enable those who
proceeded from the Winchester to the Oxford College to receive a
systematic and continuous education. Where Wykeham led, others were not
long in following. Two of his successors in the see of Winchester,
Waynflete and Fox, gave to Oxford the beautiful colleges of Magdalen and
Corpus Christi respectively. Archbishop Chichele, one of Wykeham's first
scholars, built St. Bernard's College, now St. John Baptist's, which he
gave to the Cistercians before its completion; and later in life he
founded the College of All Souls, while in his native village of Higham
Ferrers, Northants, he built and endowed a school, bede-house, and
church, which are among some of the loveliest pieces of building we
possess. Henry VI made himself intimately acquainted with the works of
Wykeham, and copied them for his two colleges of Eton, and King's
College, Cambridge. Until Wykeham's time, schools had been under or
connected with monastic houses; now they were distinct foundations, with
priests still as masters, but priests secular and not religious. Wykeham
was, indeed, the pioneer of the public-school system, of which, with all
its shortcomings, England is so justly proud.
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