I have had the incredibly good fortune of being born in and living twenty five miles away from Salisbury my entire life. however it seems of late that I have begun to take this wonderful place for granted. Something I am wrong for doing. I have admittedly always preferred Bath with its beautiful, statuesque Georgian buildings and its fascinating regency and roman history. However Salisbury is by no means historically inferior to Bath. In fact, Salisbury is full of the history I prefer.
I have always loved to look at Salisbury Cathedral and the stories which surround it. For instance the lore surrounding its move from inhospitable Old Sarum its original site, and the site of an important royal castle, to where Salisbury as we know it today grew up a number of miles away. This story comes in many forms, but I have one that I particularly like.
Old Sarum is well situated high up on a hill, but it is very cold and inhospitable William Cobbett went as far as to call it the 'Accursed Hill' (It is is possible that he could also have been referring to folk lore). Because of this and their dislike for the garrison of soldiers at the castle the monks decided to move their cathedral into the valley. They reputedly decided that wherever God make their arrow fall they would build their new place of worship. Some stories say that the arrow was shot by the abbot, and others that it was shot by the captain of the garrisons archers. whoever it was must have been a fabulous shot because it apparently sailed through the air and landed a number of miles away. Too far to be carried by the wind (although if you stand in the wind at Old Sarum you might begin to think it possible) and much too far to be simply a good shot. This story was of course later changed to be more realistic. The shot hit a passing deer which managed to stagger, bleeding to the new site. The monks followed the blood trail and found their new site. Which just so happened to be at the confluence of the rivers Ebble, Wylye, Avon, Nadder and Bourne Brook. However, I have never been one to shy away from a good story and I rather like to think of this story as the founding of the Cathedral.
The other day I went inside the Cathedral for the first time. Or at least for the first time that I remember. I find that I am more likely to go to a historical site further away than those close too. A stupid thing to do living where I do. The Cathedral visit was well worth it in many ways. For instance there are many interesting people buried there; including men with influence over some of the kings who made some of the biggest changes in this country. For instance Henry VII and Henry VIII.
However, it was unfortunate that the Magna Carta was away for conservation before its eight hundred year anniversary in June. I didn't get a particularly close look at the document (which was admittedly a very good facsimile) due to there being a number of people there as well. However, I am happy to go back and see it at a later date. Just looking at the architecture made it a worthwhile donation. The picture at the bottom was taken a number of weeks ago, and I believe that the beauty of the carving is testament to the ingenuity and talent of the artists at the time who were making things like this with technology that would seem to us basic.
I have always loved to look at Salisbury Cathedral and the stories which surround it. For instance the lore surrounding its move from inhospitable Old Sarum its original site, and the site of an important royal castle, to where Salisbury as we know it today grew up a number of miles away. This story comes in many forms, but I have one that I particularly like.
Old Sarum is well situated high up on a hill, but it is very cold and inhospitable William Cobbett went as far as to call it the 'Accursed Hill' (It is is possible that he could also have been referring to folk lore). Because of this and their dislike for the garrison of soldiers at the castle the monks decided to move their cathedral into the valley. They reputedly decided that wherever God make their arrow fall they would build their new place of worship. Some stories say that the arrow was shot by the abbot, and others that it was shot by the captain of the garrisons archers. whoever it was must have been a fabulous shot because it apparently sailed through the air and landed a number of miles away. Too far to be carried by the wind (although if you stand in the wind at Old Sarum you might begin to think it possible) and much too far to be simply a good shot. This story was of course later changed to be more realistic. The shot hit a passing deer which managed to stagger, bleeding to the new site. The monks followed the blood trail and found their new site. Which just so happened to be at the confluence of the rivers Ebble, Wylye, Avon, Nadder and Bourne Brook. However, I have never been one to shy away from a good story and I rather like to think of this story as the founding of the Cathedral.
The other day I went inside the Cathedral for the first time. Or at least for the first time that I remember. I find that I am more likely to go to a historical site further away than those close too. A stupid thing to do living where I do. The Cathedral visit was well worth it in many ways. For instance there are many interesting people buried there; including men with influence over some of the kings who made some of the biggest changes in this country. For instance Henry VII and Henry VIII.
However, it was unfortunate that the Magna Carta was away for conservation before its eight hundred year anniversary in June. I didn't get a particularly close look at the document (which was admittedly a very good facsimile) due to there being a number of people there as well. However, I am happy to go back and see it at a later date. Just looking at the architecture made it a worthwhile donation. The picture at the bottom was taken a number of weeks ago, and I believe that the beauty of the carving is testament to the ingenuity and talent of the artists at the time who were making things like this with technology that would seem to us basic.
Comments
Post a Comment