Lichfield Cathedral also houses the Chad Gospels – sometimes known as the Lichfield or St Teilo Gospels. I have been saving this one up for you. The Chad Gospels are 8 th century gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, written on vellum (calf skin) in Latin by one scribe around 1300 years before you were a twinkle in your daddy’s eye. Their provenance is unknown, but they may have come from Northumbria or Iona and have been in the Cathedral since at least the early 11 th century. They contain, as notes in the margin, some of the earliest known writing in Welsh. There were originally two volumes – one was lost during the Civil War and the other was hidden. This is usually on display in the 13 th century Chapter House – which is a work of art in itself. Even more incredibly, you can actually access and read the Chad Gospels online; congratulations to whoever had the wisdom and generosity to do that. The Lichfield Angel Lady Caroline Lamb, friend of Byron and, by strange coincidence, a distant relative of Sarah Ponsonby, also found time to visit, as did the formidable Duke of Wellington. Visitors often brought with them pieces of wood carving which the ladies promptly added to their collection.

Hawkes, Ross (9 July 2010). "American experts help record Lichfield Cathedral's St Chad Gospels". Archived from the original on 11 October 2019 . Retrieved 22 November 2019. The ornate west front was extensively renovated in the Victorian era by George Gilbert Scott. [4] It includes a remarkable number of ornate carved figures of kings, queens and saints, working with original materials where possible and creating fine new imitations and additions when the originals were not available. Between 1877 and 1884 the empty niches on the west front were given new statues, most carved by Robert Bridgeman of Lichfield: the statue of Queen Victoria on the north side of the central window was carved by her daughter, Princess Louise. [2] Putting their plan into motion, they undertook a picturesque tour of the Welsh countryside, eventually settling in North Wales. Living first in a rented home in the village of Llangollen, they moved in 1780 to a small cottage just outside the village they called Plas Newydd or "new mansion". [6] They proceeded to live according to their self-devised system, though they could rely on only a modest income from intolerant relatives, and eventually a civil list pension. They "improved" Plas Newydd in the Gothic style with Welsh oak panelling, pointed arches, stained glass windows, and an extensive library, in which they received their many guests. [5] They hired a gardener, a footman, and two maids. This led to significant debt, and they had to rely on the generosity of friends. [3] Recognition and popularity [ edit ] There are few things more agreeable than pootling around and about a medieval cathedral. I found Lichfield’s reflected in the Minster Pool, a small reservoir which has been used by the city since the 11 th century. You’d think it couldn’t get any better, wouldn’t you? Then you wander up the Cathedral Close, past Erasmus Darwin’s House, and the only 3-spired medieval cathedral in England confronts you, its reddish local sandstone showing off the ‘people of God’ carved on its massive west front. It is quite a statement – as it was undoubtedly intended to be. A bit about Chad and Lichfield’s history In April of the same year (1643) Prince Rupert led an Royalist expeditionary force from Oxford to recapture Lichfield. [5] The siege started on 8 April. During the second assault Rupert's engineers detonated what is thought to be the first explosive mine to be used in England to breach the defences. Unable to defend the Close, Colonel Russell, the parliamentary commander of the garrison, surrendered on terms to Rupert on 21 April. [6]At about the same time Bishop de Clinton fortified the Close and laid out the City to cater for the pilgrims visiting the shrine of St Chad. Within a century, however, work began on the Gothic cathedral, which we see today. The Choir dates from 1200, the Transepts from 1220 to 1240 and the Nave was started in 1260. You may be additionally privaleged to see items from the magnificent Staffordshire Hoard. The Staffordshire Hoard is the largest heap of buried Anglo-Saxon gold and silver treasure ever unearthed in Britain. It consists of more than 3,500 items, mostly martial in nature, discovered in 2009, and in amongst the gold and silver are precious stones – including a ridiculous amount of garnet that may have come from as far away as India or Sri Lanka. The items have been dated to the 7 th or 8 th centuries – contemporary with St Chad and the founding of Lichfield Cathedral – and are on permanent display there, as well as in nearby Birmingham and Tamworth. Can you imagine finding something like that? The Sleeping children During the English Civil War in the 1640's the destruction was intense as the Cathedral was at the centre of some of the fiercest fighting of the war. a b c d e f "Lichfield Cathedral: Our history". Lichfield Cathedral. Archived from the original on 22 February 2017 . Retrieved 22 November 2019. The famous spire of Chesterfield Parish Church has towered over the town for hundreds of years. It is an iconic and memorable image that has been used time and again by local organisations and businesses. Let’s take a look at a few you may recognise. Where is the smallest Cathedral in the UK?

Starting in 1085 and continuing through the twelfth century the original wooden Saxon church was replaced by a Norman cathedral made from stone, and this was in turn replaced by the present Gothic cathedral begun in 1195. It was completed by the building of the Lady Chapel in the 1330s. The Choir dates from 1200, the Transepts from 1220 to 1240 and the Nave was started in 1260. The octagonal Chapter House, which was completed in 1249 and is one of the most beautiful parts of the cathedral with some charming stone carvings, houses an exhibition of the cathedral's greatest treasure, the Lichfield Gospels, an 8th-century illuminated manuscript. [4] Devastation of the English Civil War [ edit ] Who's Who". Lichfield-cathedral.org. 7 December 2020. Archived from the original on 2 January 2020 . Retrieved 7 December 2020. But with questions being asked by generation after generation about why the cathedral has three spires, Burton historian David Adkins believes he has the answers. He said: "Lichfield Cathedral is unique, as it is the only medieval cathedral in England to have three spires. Together, they sailed from Ireland to Milford Haven and then journeyed north, eventually arriving in the Vale of Llangollen, an area they considered to be one of the most beautiful pieces of countryside they had ever seen. Just outside Llangollen they found and, in 1780, bought a small house called Pen-y-Maes and settled down to life together.

Butler's Hill, near Plas Newydd, is named in honour of Eleanor Butler. The Ponsonby Arms public house, a Grade II listed building on Mill Street in Llangollen, [11] claims to take its name from Sarah Ponsonby. [12] In popular culture [ edit ] In February 2003, an eighth-century sculpted panel of the Archangel Gabriel was discovered under the nave of the cathedral. The 600mm tall panel is carved from limestone, and originally was part of a stone chest, which is thought to have contained the relics of St Chad. The panel was broken into three parts but was still otherwise intact and had traces of red pigment from the period. The pigments on the Lichfield Angel correspond closely to those of the Lichfield Gospels which have been dated to around 730AD. The Angel was first unveiled to the public in 2006, when visitor numbers to the cathedral trebled. After being taken to Birmingham for eighteen months for examination, it is now exhibited in the cathedral. [7] COVID-19 pandemic [ edit ]

A mystery that is until you remember that Lichfield was the seat of the third archbishop of England. The Archbishopric of Lichfield was short lived and disappeared over 1200 years ago, it only lasted from 787 to 803 AD and meant that Staffordshire was the only other county in England to have ever had an Archbishopric based within it. In February 2020, the burial place and memorial of the Ladies were blessed at a special service for LGBT History Month at St Collen's Church, Llangollen. A tribute to the legacy of the Ladies was given in music by Ian Shaw. [17] Chad of Mercia, Bishop of the Northumbrians, later Bishop of the Mercians and Lindsey People, and Saint (c. 634–672)— originally buried in the Church of Saint Mary which became part of the cathedral. Relics moved to St Chad's Cathedral Birmingham [15]In April 2011, the same month in which the first Irish civil partnerships took place under the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010, Irish state broadcaster RTÉ broadcast a 45-minute radio documentary about the lives of Eleanor Butler and Sarah Ponsonby entitled An Extraordinary Affair. It asked whether they were Ireland's first openly lesbian couple. [8] Many famous tall spires are of this type, including the spires of Ulm Minster (the world’s tallest church), Freiburg Minster, Strasbourg Cathedral, Vienna Cathedral, Prague Cathedral, Burgos Cathedral and the twin spires of Cologne Cathedral. Which English cathedrals have spires? They fascinated the public and intrigued the imagination of many who wondered, in public and in private, about their relationship - was it sexual? Nobody, either then or now, has been able to find out.