York Guides

The charming abbey grounds contain within their precincts historic monuments and relics of the greatest interest. An angle-tower, with a portion of the wall that surrounded Roman York, recalls the struggle of the Brigantes with the armour-clad legionaries. Tacitus recounts how Caractacus, the gallant Silurian chief, after his defeat, sought the protection of Cartismandua, the Queen of the Brigantes, and how basely she betrayed him.

The Romans, after their conquest of York, garrisoned the city with the Ninth Legion, and subsequently built a walled-in rectangular fort with angle towers and central gateways. The Emperor Hadrian sent over the Sixth Legion to replace the Ninth at York, and afterwards he came over in person to superintend the building of a wall from the Tyne to the Solway Firth. Ninety years later the Emperor Septimius Severus, with his sons Caracalla and Geta, came to York on his way to repel the Caledonians, who had broken through the Wall. The campaign lasted two years, during which period the Imperial court was placed at York, where Papinianus the great jurist administered the Roman law. The Emperor died at York and his remains were cremated on a hill, thenceforth known as Severus Hill. His ashes were placed in an urn and conveyed by his sons to Rome. About a century later the Emperor Constantius Chlorus came over to quell a rising in the north. He died at York, and his son Constantine was proclaimed his successor. The latter soon afterwards left York to enter on that famous career which has earned him the title of the Great.

The wall enclosing the York fort, built by Roman masons, is four and a half feet thick, consisting of lime-concrete faced on both sides with narrow courses of small ashlar limestone, and having a band of red tiles about the middle of its height. The angle-tower is ten-sided and from the number of its angles is known as the Multangular Tower. The preservation of the wall and tower is owing to the fact that the mediaeval architects adopted the same line for their walls. On the northern side of the tower, however, the mediaeval wall is placed some five feet beyond the Roman one.

Within the Roman tower and wall are the remains of St. Leonard's, formerly St. Peter's, Hospital. The hospital was founded by King Athelstan on his return to York from the glorious victory he had achieved at Brunnanburh. He met in the Minster a number of religious people called Coli Dei or Culdees, devoted to works of charity. The value of their work being greatly hindered for want of funds, Athelstan granted to God, St. Peter, and the Culdees, a piece of crown land on which they might erect a hospital, and for its endowment he granted a thrave of corn from every plough going in the province of York. The land given to the hospital is that on which the Theatre Royal now stands. The hospital belonged to the Minster, and was rebuilt by the first Norman Archbishop, who induced the Conqueror to confirm the gift of thraves of corn, and also to add more land. The cloister or undercroft of the hospital was divided into aisles by short columns and covered with groined vaulting. King Stephen built a church for the hospital on that part of their close adjoining the king's street. The church was dedicated to St. Leonard, and he also changed the name of the hospital from St. Peter's to St. Leonard's. From this time, under royal patronage, the hospital became independent of the Minster. On the banks of the river was a staith appropriated to the hospital.

New buildings arose. All that remains of these are a long vaulted gateway having on the north cloisters of the same length, now three aisles but formerly five, two of which are provided with a large fireplace, which has the back formed of thin tiles arranged herring-bonewise. Above were the wards of the infirmary, opening at the east end to the chapel, under which is a vaulted chamber.

The occupants in 1280 numbered nearly 400. In the infirmary were 229 men and women with 2 washerwomen and 7 servants, in the orphanage 23 boys with a woman caretaker. There were 8 chaplains, ii lay brethren, 3 secular chaplains, and a sub-deacon, 17 sisters, 19 choir boys, and a master of the song school, a schoolmaster, and 67 servants. There was a large distribution of alms at the gate of this king's almshouse of St. Leonard, and a dinner was given every Sunday for each prisoner in the castle.

The hospital was independent of the Archbishop, and only subject to the king or his deputies. The great Walter Langton, when master in 1294, ordered each chaplain a seat and desk in the cloister. In 1344 there were, amongst others, in the hospital a clerk of the church, a cooper, 3 bakers, 2 brewers, 2 smiths, 3 carters, a miller, a swineherd, 12 boatmen, a ferrywoman, 2 valets, a groom, a cellarer, a clerk of the exchequer, an auditor, and a seneschal. There was plenty of work for all in such a large establishment. There were the master, brethren, and sisters to wait on, the sick and needy to attend to, the destitute to relieve at the gates, whilst a few in their own homes had a corrody in the shape of food or money. The inmates were well provided for; the king's almsmen received the same fare as the chaplains, namely, a loaf of white bread and a gallon of ale of the better quality, flesh and fish for dinner and supper, also a loaf and a gallon of ale of the second quality. During the year, 565 stones of cheese and 60 stones of butter were consumed. In the year 1469 there were in the hospital the master, 13 brethren, 4 secular priests, 8 sisters, 30 choristers, 2 schoolmasters, 6 servitors, and 206 beadmen. Seventy years later this useful hospital was dissolved, Dr. Thomas Magnus, Archdeacon and a member of the Privy Council being then master. He became parson of Sessay Church where he died eleven years later. He is commemorated by a fine brass engraved with his effigy.

A story tells how once a miracle was wrought in St. Leonard's Hospital. The hero of the tale, so far from being a saint was very much a sinner. After a not too reputable secular career, he was persuaded to become a religious. The change in his life was more apparent than real, for, it seems, when fair-time came round, he made up his mind to join, as on many a previous occasion, in the festivities of the season. Taking advantage of the after-dinner sleepiness of the porter, and seizing the latter worthy's keys, Brother Jucundus, for that is the hero's name, made his exit, contemptuous of discipline.

Whether it was the unusually severe life he had lately been leading, is not known, but it appears that by the evening the brother's ideas were, as a result of his unwisely frequent potations, in quite a nebulous state.
Meanwhile, attention having been directed to the absence of Jucundus from the monastery, two brothers were deputed with orders to discover his whereabouts and to rescue him. Eventually they conveyed their erring comrade home in a wheelbarrow.

Such a breach of discipline was a most serious offence; indeed, Jucundus was sentenced to be walled up alive. This unpleasant process was actually carried out, and our friend thought that he had looked his last upon the sun.
Mured up thus unkindly, he was soon sobered, and beginning to kick against the walls, was surprised that the stones gave way under the pressure he applied to them. He soon had worked a big enough hole (not, of course, in the wall which Justice had just built in order to immure him) to allow his passage.

He now found himself in the adjoining Abbey of St. Mary, and his only hope of safety lay in his passing as one of the regular inmates of that establishment. He, too, therefore subjected himself to the Rule of Silence, and acquiring in a remarkably short space the esteem of his new brothers, was appointed cellarer.

Alas after a year, temptation was too much for him. He made an unworthy use of his office and underwent a second sentence for riotous misconduct. He was carried by the unsuspecting monks to the place where he had been before immured and was left to his fate. He was still under his drunken delusion singing merrily, to be heard by the reverend brothers of St. Leonard's. The news of Jucundus's continued existence was carried to his superior, who, recognizing his former subject's voice, ordered the cell to be opened and knelt in awe before the revivified but still merry Jucundus.

Within and around St. Leonard's gateway are collected a number of Roman stone coffins which have been found in York. One coffin in particular is of more than usual interest, for it is believed to be connected with a Christian burial. Evidences of Christianity during the Roman occupation of York are rare. A record exists that Eborius, Bishop of York, was present at the Council of Aries in 314. The discovery of this coffin tends to confirm this •tatement, by showing that there were Christians in York amongst its Roman inhabitants. In this Roman stone coffin were found a glass jug and a disk-which are considered to be the cruet and paten of the viaticum-and a bone tablet carved with a Latin inscription "SOROR AVE VIVAS IN DEO", which is rendered in English, "Sister, hail, mayest thou live in God".

After the departure of the Romans, the pagan Anglians drove the Christians out of the district to the westward, and when the Anglians in York had themselves embraced Christianity, they suffered the like from the Danish invaders. Subsequently the Danes embraced Christianity, and adjoining the abbey grounds is the church founded by the conqueror of Mapbeth, Jarl Siward, to the Norwegian sainted King Olaf. Siward was Earl of Northumbria and a great warrior. On his deathbed he commanded his attendants to put on him his armour, and thus fully equipped, he died.

Soon after the Norman Conquest, the church of St. Olave, with four acres adjoining, was given by the Earl of Richmond to Stephen of Whitby to found a Benedictine monastery. The site, however, was church property, and the Archbishop only relinquished^ it when William II gave him an equivalent. KingJ Rufus laid the foundation stone of the abbey church, which was dedicated to St. Mary. The foundations of the eastern part of this church have been laid bare and show the apsidal terminations.
The introduction into England of the Cistercian;, order, with their stricter rule of conduct, led some of the monks of St. Mary's to attempt a raising of the standard of discipline in their own monastery. The other monks, however, resented their interference. The reformers, filled with admiration of the accounts they heard of the holy lives led by the inmates of the Cistercian house of Rievaulr, were now anxious to found a colony of that order and communicated their desire to the Abbot of St. Mary's, who, however, refused to allow them to leave, as it would bring discredit on his abbey. The reformers included the prior, sub-prior, sacrist, almoner, and precentor. The prior consulted the Archbishop, who decided to hold a visitation at the abbey.

Archbishop Thurstan on the day appointed rode to the abbey gatehouse attended fay the Archdeacon of York, the Minster Treasurer (afterwards St. William), the Prior of Guisborough, and the Master of St. Leonard's Hospital. Leaving their horses at the gateway, they walked to the chapter house and were received by the abbot, who protested against anyone entering but the Archbishop and his clerks. The Archbishop remonstrated, but the monks who had filled the chapter house, considering it was a Cistercian attack on their own order, created an uproar by hooting and •creaming and prevented the Archbishop being heard; he, however, in a lull shouted, "I place the Abbey under an interdict." "Interdict it for a hundred years," exclaimed one of the monks, and then arose the cry of "Catch them!" The Archbishop with his retinue and the thirteen reformers were alarmed and took refuge in the church, and after a time were permitted to leave the abbey.

The Archbishop befriended the outcasts and subsequently gave them a plot of ground, near his manor at Ripon, on which they founded the Cistercian Abbey of Fountains.

Simon of Warwick became Abbot of St. Mary's in 1259, and placed it in greater security from the attacks by the citizens, between whom and the monks were often quarrels, owing to the privileges claimed by the abbey. The monastery, being just outside the city, was always in danger from raiding expeditions of the Scots, so in the year 1266 the abbot had licence from the king to wall in the abbey close.

Abbot Warwick in 1271 laid the foundation stone of a new church to St. Mary's Abbey. He began by building at the rear of the Norman church a new aisled choir of nine bays. The Norman edifice was then taken down and replaced by a new aisled nave of eight bays, transepts of three bays with eastern aisles, and lofty tower with spire. The western front has a central doorway set between arcading; the door way jambs are delicately sculptured with the ivy and its trailing stem. The aisle windows are alternately of two and three lights with geometrical tracery and placed above an arcade-the work is similar to that in the north aisle of the choir at Selby Abbey One of the views depicts the eastern archway with clerestory of the nave north aisle. The remains of the church show it to have been a magnificent example of the art of the last quarter of the thirteenth century. Excavations have revealed the foundations of the choir and exhibit the full length of the church.

The ruins of the vestibule and entrance to the chapter house are beautiful examples of the richly ornamented late Norman work.
The walls of the abbey close remain. The principal, and for a long time the only entrance, was that of Mary Gate. There is a fine arch and on either side of the gateway is an arcade with stone seats. The vaulted roof and the courtroom above for the Liberty of St. Mary have disappeared. The gatehouse adjoins and is now a private dwelling. John Phillips, the eminent geologist, resided in it for some years. On the opposite side are the ruins of the Chapel of Our Lady at the Gate; the edifice was of two stories, with the chapel on the first floor which was reached by a stone stair.

The Bootham entrance was made in order to shorten the distance from the abbot's house to the Minster, and in expectation of a visit of Henry VII, on his return from Scotland. The Princess Margaret, daughter of Henry VII, was the guest of the Lord Abbot of St. Mary's for two days on her journey to the north to be the bride of James IV of Scotland. The Princess, accompanied by five hundred lords and ladies, was met at Tadcaster Bridge by the Sheriffs in crimson gowns, attended by one hundred persons on horseback, who conducted her royal highness towards the city. At Micklegate Bar, the Princess was received by the Lord Mayor and Corporation, who welcomed her to the city. On the following day the Lord Mayor and Corporation waited upon the Princess, and presented her with a silver gilt cup containing one hundred angels of gold for which she heartily thanked them. The next day the Lord Mayor, Sheriffs, and Aldermen escorted the Princess as far as Magdalene Hospital in Bootham. The Lord Mayor made a long oration in taking his leave, to which the Princess replied, "My Lord Mayor, your brethren, and all the whole city of York. I shall evermore endeavour to love you and this city all the days of my life."

The Bootham entrance to St. Mary's Abbey consists of an archway with porter's lodge now used as a shop. From here the abbey walls continue behind the houses to the circular tower at the end of Mary-gate. The tower contained the records of many of the suppressed northern monasteries. During the siege of York in the time of the Great Civil "War, one Sunday the Parliamentarians having laid a mine, blew up the tower and entered the grounds. The Royalists sent out a body of men by the Watergate and up Marygate to the ruined tower. Those inside were thus caught and were compelled to surrender. The tower was afterwards rebuilt, but on a smaller scale. From the tower the abbey walls stretch to the gatehouse and from there continue to the river, where they terminate in a circular tower, which is seen in the view taken across the river from near the railway bridge.

The river front had its water gate and walls. The water gate led to the "hospitium", a two-storied building, the lower part of stone and the upper of timber and plaster. The hospitium adjoined the gateway, on the other side was the gatehouse, of which little remains.

In the lower room of the hospitium is stored much sculptured work from the abbey. Amongst the large bosses are represented the Holy Lamb, surrounded by maple leaves; the Virgin amidst the vine, and a monk playing an early violin. There are ten statues which formerly adorned the abbey church, each one is five feet eight inches high, and amongst others Moses and the Baptist are represented. There are also two "cresset" stones, the holes of which were filled with grease and provided with wicks to form the night lights for the monks.

In the same room are a number of Roman objects which have been discovered in York. A tesselated pavement, depicting the head of Medusa surrounded by emblems of the four seasons, was found near Mickle-gate Bar. One of the most ancient of Roman inscriptions in Britain is the inscribed tablet of the time of Trajan, which was found in King's Square. An altar was found under one of the piers in the ehurch of St. Denis. Amongst other Roman objects are stone coffins, tiled tombs, and a sculptured eagle.

Of mediaeval objects are moulded stones from the demolished church of St. Crux, an effigy in chain armour of Sir John de Vescy, a defaced effigy of a knight which passed as a statue of Mother Shipton, the famous Yorkshire prophetess, and a tablet inscribed "Here stood the image of York", referring to Ebraucus, the founder of York, according to Geoffrey of Monmouth.
The upper room is chiefly devoted to pottery, glass, and the smaller Roman objects found in York. There are seven hundred and fifty perfect vessels. Of particular interest to many and kept in a glass case is the hair of a Roman lady-taken out of a lead coffin enclosed in a stone one. The hair retains its auburn colour, is coiled and secured by two jet pins. The other conventual buildings have been destroyed, the Museum stands on a portion of them. In the basement is a fireplace in situ, and in another part are three octagonal pillars which have been removed a little from their original position. The mortar of the abbey infirmary is placed in the Museum entrance; it was cast in 1308 by William of Towthorpe, one of the monks. It is a beautiful example of the art of the bellfounder, the design consisting of two rows of quatrefoils between an inscription.

The Museum contains some Roman sculptures, including one to Mithras, an inscribed stone coffin of Julia Fortunata, and a fine statue. On the walls are three tapestry maps of central England. These are the first specimens of tapestry weaving in this country and were executed in 1579. In a wall case are fetters from York Castle, consisting of those worn by Nevison and Dick Turpin, the famous highwaymen.

The Abbot of St. Mary's together with the Abbot of Selby were the only two mitred abbots north of the Trent, and by virtue of their rank they were summoned as Lords of Parliament. The Lord Abbot of St. Mary's had, near York, country residences at Overton, Deighton, and Beningbrough, and a London house near St. Paul's Wharf.

The abbey after its surrender was retained in the possession of the Crown. The church became a quarry for anyone who required building stone; engravings show that in the seventeenth century both sides of the nave with the Triforium were standing. In the eighteenth century the abbey ruins supplied the stone for the repairing of various buildings. The whole of the structure was gradually being cleared away, and to hurry on the work of destruction, a limekiln was erected. Fortunately, in 1827, the Yorkshire Philosophical Society obtained a grant of the ruins and land.

Through the nave north doorway is seen the tomb of William Etty, Royal Academician, who was a native of York and to whom a statue has recently been erected in front of the City Art Gallery.

The abbot's house, although much altered, is that occupied by the Wilberforce School for the Blind. After the Dissolution, it was called the King's Manor and made the residence of the Lord President of the North. On the site of the monastic chapter house, a palace was built and occupied by Henry VIII and his Queen, Catherine Howard, when they visited York. The palace was afterwards disused and became a ruin. The basement, known as the "King's Cellar", remains and now forms the substructure of a recent building. During the reign of Elizabeth additions were made "to the Queen's Majesty's house" by the successive Lords Presidents, the Earls of Sussex and Huntingdon. One apartment contains a large fireplace with pilasters which have bases, raised panels and caps, and an arch adorned with sculptured panels.

The plaster frieze has the crest of the Hastings, Earls of Huntingdon-a coronet over the garter, within which is a bull's head between the letters H.H., the royal Tudor badge-an open pomegranate between two dragons-and the bear and ragged staff-the badge of the Dudleys, the Countess being the sister of Robert Dudley, the Queen's favourite. In the reign of James I other additions were made, including a new entrance. In the pilaster base on either side are the letters I.R. under a crown. A view is given of the stairs and doorway, with the Royal Arms above, which led to the Banquetting Hall added by the great Earl of Strafford (then Viscount Wentworth). He placed his own armorial bearings over the doorway on the west side of the courtyard, and although there was nothing unusual in such an act, it formed one of the charges against him at his trial, he having placed his own arms on one of the king's palaces. Later, King Charles I took up his abode here for a month, and the Royal arms were placed over the entrance.

The School for the Blind, with its two courtyards surrounded by mullioned windows and quaint doorways with heraldic devices, forms an extremely picturesque brick and stone building. A pretty view is that obtained from the abbey grounds. It shows the Elizabethan additions, one a stone building with gabled end and a series of stone dormers; the other, a later building on a stone base is of brick with brick pilasters, cornices, and gables, the whole making an especially fit subject for the artist in water colours.

Three of the Abbots of St. Mary's became bishops: Thomas of Spofforth went to Hereford, William Wells to Rochester, and William Sever to Carlisle and Durham. Bishop Sever was buried in the choir of St Mary's Abbey church. His tombstone was discovered during recent excavations.