U.K. 2013
Day 20, Sunday
September 22, 2013
London
to Chichester
Our friends Mike and Val picked us up at 10:00, and we headed
south. Our first stop was Guildford Cathedral. It was after 11:00 and
church was over.
Building work on the Cathedral started in 1936, to a design by Sir
Edward Maufe. But work was stopped by the Second World War. Despite
enormous setbacks, regular services were held in the Crypt Chapel.
When building restrictions were lifted and materials were available
again, there was a renewed sense of determination in the local community
to complete the Cathedral. But there were very limited funds.
Eventually, through the “Buy-a-Brick” fundraising campaign, work
re-started again in 1954. More than 200,000 people became brick-givers.
Their generosity helped ensure the completion of what they thought of as
“their Cathedral”. It was an extraordinary act of public support.
With a resilient and make do and mend approach, the inside of the
Cathedral was furnished. Again, much of this was done with the
assistance of local people. For example the locals hand made 1500
kneelers, which remain in place today.
George
Reindorp in the presence of HM The Queen, HRH The Duke of Edinburgh, the
Archbishop of Canterbury and a packed congregation from all parts of the
diocese.
We found a scaffolding in the choir in front of the high altar
because the ceiling had been plastered and contained asbestos which was
flaking. In another building, they had a nice tea room, so we had a cup
of coffee.
For part of the trip we were on major highways, and then we switched
to country back roads with attractive little towns with half timbered
houses.
About 1:00 we arrived in Chichester. 
We went to a restaurant for
lunch. Kathleen and I had small minute steaks with fries. We walked up
to Chichester Cathedral which was quite lovely. The cathedral was
Romanesque with rounded arches. It was surrounded by other buildings,
making it impossible to get a long shot photo of the entire Cathedral.
Following the Norman conquest, bishoprics located in out-of-the-way
places were transferred to greater centers of population; so in 1075 the
bishopric was moved from Selsey to the old Roman city of Chichester. A
new cathedral was begun on the site of a Saxon Church. The cathedral was
completed and consecrated in Bishop Ralph Luffa in 1108. There was
another disastrous fire in 1114 and Bishop Luffa at once set about the
task of rebuilding. The present church was largely restored after
another fire in1187 which destroyed the wooden roof . Bishop Seffrid II
build a stone vaulted roof and introduced the blend of r
ounded and
pointed arches into the clerestory using stone from Caen in Normandy
together with Purbeck marble. He replaced the apses with a square east
end.
All of the interior arches were rounded Romanesque; however the
frame of the external windows were pointed Gothic as was the choir
screen. The Victorians, who loved unimpeded vistas, dismantled the choir
screen and stored it for a century before becoming re-erected as
Memorial to Bishop Bell in 1961.
Unlike anything that we have seen in other cathedrals, the reredos
or tapestry behind the older was quite modern. The colors were brilliant
and the design was awe inspiring. The subject of the tapestry is the
Holy Trinity, in whose honor the cathedral is dedicated. The sun
represents the Father, the cross the Son, and the wing-like flames the
Holy Spirit. Flanking the central motif are the symbols of the four
evangelist and the four elements of creation (earth,air,water, and
fire). There were also many beautiful stained glass windows in the
cathedral.
After seeing the cathedral, we retraced our steps and stopped in a
little town, Midhurst, where there is a famo
us inn, The Spread Eagle
which dates back to the 1620. Mike and Val have stayed there and have
had dinner. We decided to enjoy high tea at 4:00. We made
reservations and then walk the wonderful little town. The town had many
interesting old buildings.
Tea was very nice – tea, scones, jelly and clotted cream. After
leaving there, Mike and Val wanted us to stop by their home. It was fun
to see where they lived. Mike showed us some of his models that he had
taken to a show yesterday. Mike brought us back to our apartment, which
is about 15 minutes from their house.
We really had a wonderful time. We appreciate their entertaining us
for two days. Well, tomorrow is our last day. We are planning a boat
trip to Greenwich.
