A daeg to remember
"Nu sculon we herigean". . .Winchester.
Today was a gloriously elegiac day, windswept, cloud-covered, moody and muddy. It sang of the West Saxons.
Sorry.
Winchester was recently voted one of the most desirable places to live in England. . .kind of the Fayetteville of Wessex. And, if it can be so attractive on such a drear day, it must be spectacular in Spring when all the gardens re-green.
Of course, I started at the (Norman/Gothic/Perpendicular/Victorian) Cathedral.
I was the youngest member of the tour group. . .sad that. So, I fully unleashed my gee-whiz childlike enthusiasm. The guide knew and deeply loved everything about the Cathedral--the longest knave in medieval Europe dontcha know. He observed that I was especially entralled by the Chapel of the Holy Sepulchre. . .so after the tour finished he unlocked the door to let me have a closer look. I was giddy.
But, coming out, I was quite embarassed because some other tourists tried to enter, but my lord-guide dispersed the rabble. Jane Austen is buried in the Cathedral's floor; if she had paid another 10 quid she could have been much closer to the high altar.
There's little if anything to see of Alfred the Great's greatness in Winchester these days because "lif bith laene."
But the town's museum has some quite interesting displays with the Roman finds of Venta Belgae on the top floor, then the Anglo-Saxon and Norman artifacts on the second (a.k.a first) floor, then the modern crap on ground. And, mirabile dictu, this museum is free.
Very little remains of Winchester Castle because Cromwell could be so pissy at times, but the Great Hall is a Victorian resurrection with its great bronze blob of Queen Victoria herself. The Round Table hangs above the former site of the hall's thrones, well a round table.
Henry VIII had it painted with the Tudor rose in its center and a Slim-Fast self-fashioning of himself enthroned supposedly. Actually, the table itself is quite old and has been carbon-dated to the reign of Edward I. I asked but got no answer as to why the seat to Arthur's right is reserved for Mordred.
The town itself is just lovely to walk around. In addition to all the regular stores, pubs and the market, a Christmas fair was being set up on the Cathedral close. Although my feet were already screaming "We yield!" I had to walk the mile or so along the Itchen River
to the Hospital of St. Cross where I received my Wayfarer's Dole (a piece of bread and a thimble of ale) from the Porter. The hospital was founded as a Norman almshouse for the elderly by Henry de Blois, a grandson of William the Conqueror.
The Hospital still houses about 25 brothers. When I first arrived at the Porter's Lodge, she was on the phone and I heard her say "We've been in business since 1132."
Today was a gloriously elegiac day, windswept, cloud-covered, moody and muddy. It sang of the West Saxons.
Sorry.
Winchester was recently voted one of the most desirable places to live in England. . .kind of the Fayetteville of Wessex. And, if it can be so attractive on such a drear day, it must be spectacular in Spring when all the gardens re-green.
Of course, I started at the (Norman/Gothic/Perpendicular/Victorian) Cathedral.
I was the youngest member of the tour group. . .sad that. So, I fully unleashed my gee-whiz childlike enthusiasm. The guide knew and deeply loved everything about the Cathedral--the longest knave in medieval Europe dontcha know. He observed that I was especially entralled by the Chapel of the Holy Sepulchre. . .so after the tour finished he unlocked the door to let me have a closer look. I was giddy.
But, coming out, I was quite embarassed because some other tourists tried to enter, but my lord-guide dispersed the rabble. Jane Austen is buried in the Cathedral's floor; if she had paid another 10 quid she could have been much closer to the high altar.There's little if anything to see of Alfred the Great's greatness in Winchester these days because "lif bith laene."
But the town's museum has some quite interesting displays with the Roman finds of Venta Belgae on the top floor, then the Anglo-Saxon and Norman artifacts on the second (a.k.a first) floor, then the modern crap on ground. And, mirabile dictu, this museum is free.Very little remains of Winchester Castle because Cromwell could be so pissy at times, but the Great Hall is a Victorian resurrection with its great bronze blob of Queen Victoria herself. The Round Table hangs above the former site of the hall's thrones, well a round table.
Henry VIII had it painted with the Tudor rose in its center and a Slim-Fast self-fashioning of himself enthroned supposedly. Actually, the table itself is quite old and has been carbon-dated to the reign of Edward I. I asked but got no answer as to why the seat to Arthur's right is reserved for Mordred.
The town itself is just lovely to walk around. In addition to all the regular stores, pubs and the market, a Christmas fair was being set up on the Cathedral close. Although my feet were already screaming "We yield!" I had to walk the mile or so along the Itchen River
to the Hospital of St. Cross where I received my Wayfarer's Dole (a piece of bread and a thimble of ale) from the Porter. The hospital was founded as a Norman almshouse for the elderly by Henry de Blois, a grandson of William the Conqueror.
The Hospital still houses about 25 brothers. When I first arrived at the Porter's Lodge, she was on the phone and I heard her say "We've been in business since 1132."
posted by Bill Quinn | 12:40 PM
1 Comments:
Winchester rocks. A friend once took me for a tour of Wessex. We hit every site that had the remotest association with the Great King. Love your descriptions.
By the bye, have you ever phoned my friend Daniel? He'd be glad to give you a tour of the old Kingdom of Northumbria.
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