Religion in medieval North-Eastern England

The Battle of Hastings in 1066 marked the beginning of Norman rule in England. The impact was felt in the North through the replacement of the existing Northumbrian lords by incoming Norman knights and their supporters. This change was also echoed in the church, with powerful new churchmen replacing the existing Northumbrian ecclesiastical leaders. The most notable example of this was the placing of a Norman appointee as the new Bishop of Durham in 1071. Walcher was installed as a new bishop replacing the Anglo-Saxon Aethelwine. However, the new Norman rule was contested by Northumbrian leaders, and Walcher was killed in Gateshead in 1080. His successor William de Saint Calais was active in Durham. He started the construction of the Romanesque-style cathedral which can be seen today, to replace the earlier, Northumbrian cathedral, and he re-organised the monastery in Durham, replacing the married monks who traced their history back to Lindisfarne, with a new group of monks brought in from Jarrow.

As well as being a powerful churchman, the Bishops of Durham were also princes and had a leading role in the administration of the region. Durham Castle was constructed to provide an impressive residence appropriate to an individual who had both secular and church powers. The construction of the castle and the cathedral, to the north and south of Palace Green underpinned the basic layout of buildings on the peninsula that can still be seen today.

Under the Normans, the immense power of the priory of Durham was maintained and even extended. Between them, the monks and the Bishops held land throughout County Durham, in north and south Northumberland as well as in Yorkshire, although their control of estates and churches in what is now Southern Scotland ebbed away as the new boundary between England and Scotland crystalised along the River Tweed.

An important facet of this assertion of Norman power was the spread of new forms of church architecture. Norman or Romanesque architecture was already well established across much of Europe, indeed some aspects of this architectural tradition, with the use of round-headed arches over doors, stone walls and small stone-headed windows, had already been adopted in the North-east in the later first millennium AD. In some cases, such as the lower stages of the tower at Heighington, as well as Jarrow, Norton, Billingham, Bywell and Ovingham, it is not easy to distinguish whether they are pre- or post-Conquest.

However, the Norman influence introduced new features such as an increased use of abstract and naturalistic carving on doors, windows and columns. In particular, doorways were often provided with multiple orders (frames) which could be elaborately decorated. The most spectacular example of this new Norman architecture can be found at Durham Cathedral itself, which is listed as a World Heritage Site in testament to the powerful and impressive use of Norman architectural designs. In this case, the earlier Anglian church was entirely replaced. Other cases of the complete replacement of earlier churches are known from sites such as Norham (Northumberland). However, the introduction of this architectural style could be more piecemeal, and in some cases only elements of Romanesque architecture survive, such as the chancel arch at Lanchester (Co. Durham), the central tower at Jarrow (Tyne and Wear) and the north arcade at Pittington (Co. Durham).

Parish Churches

Parish churches

The 11^th century was a period of church construction generally across Europe as the network of parishes became more formalised. In some cases, existing wooden churches may have been replaced in stone at this period, whilst in other cases, Norman-style additions may have been added to the earlier simple stone church or chapel.  However, over the medieval period, new architectural styles became dominant. From the late 12^th Gothic architecture began to replace Romanesque architecture – the most distinctive feature of this was the replacement of semi-circular arches above doors and windows by pointed arches. Gothic architecture evolved in complexity from the 12^th to the 16th century – with increased use of interlace and complex divisions between windows. This resulted in larger windows and lighter buildings.

The Gothic style arrived in the region in the late 12th century, perhaps under the influence of Hugh Le Puiset (Bishop of Durham, 1153-95), the earliest example possibly being the Collegiate church at Darlington (c. 1192). It was also adopted at other important churches in the region, such as Lanchester, Hartlepool, Chester-le-Street, Ryton, Auckland St Andrew, and Staindrop. In Northumberland, Brinkburn and Hexham are good early examples of this style, though it was also used with effect at Finchale Priory (Co. Durham) and the Chapel of the Nine Altars in Durham Cathedral. Tynemouth also has late 12th- and early-13th-century work

In some cases, where a local lord of other patron was able to invest large amounts of money in a church, it might be entirely rebuilt in a new style. However, more often churches were altered and expanded on an ad hoc basis. Most parish churches in the region contain a mix of styles reflecting their slow structural evolution over time. Expansion in size was particularly common. Often starting with just a two compartments – the nave for the congregation and the chancel for priest and altar – churches would gain further units, such as porches or additional aisles. Aisles could be used to both provide space for expanding congregations, but also to house additional altars and chantry chapels (see below).

An important sub-class of churches is the defensible church of the Anglo-Scottish border. A recent survey of the six historic border Marches found defensible features or elements at 96 churches or church sites. These show a high degree of local adaptation, with no evidence for broader campaigns of fortification and this probably reflects the lack of mainstream patronage in this unsettled area. Significant examples of defended churches include those at Bellingham, Elsdon and Kirk Newton. Defensive activity associated with churches also took place in County Durham, at Kirk Merrington for example, where a large defensive ditch was dug around it by William Cumyn c. 1143-44, although this is only attested in documentary evidence.

Little original stained-glass survives from the region, though important exceptions include the Jesse Window at St Mary’s in Morpeth (Northumberland), the 14^th-century glass at Ponteland and Bothal (Northumberland) and the 13th-century glass at Wycliffe (Co. Durham). Excavations at the Franciscan Priory in Hartlepool found evidence for the making of painted glass windows. Preserved later-medieval wall paintings are also rare. In Northumberland traces of decorative schemes can be found at Bothal, Morpeth and Pittington. The decorative scheme in the Galilee Chapel in Durham Cathedral is the most important survival in that county and includes a king and a bishop (Oswald and Cuthbert?). It dates to around 1175-85; later 13th/14th-century scenes include a crucifixion and the martyrdoms of the apostles. Other paintings associated with the Cathedral include a scene in the Refectory and a 15th-century ‘Hymn to the Virgin’ in the prior’s chapel in the Deanery. A number of tiled floors also survive. When the original floor level in the Refectory at Durham Cathedral was discovered in 1961, a pavement of glazed tiles of the early 16th century was revealed. A 13th-century floor also survives in the Abbot’s Chapel at Newminster Abbey (Northumberland), and an important collection of a similar date can be found at Gisborough Priory (Teesside).

Monasteries

Running parallel to the network of parishes and parish churches was the complex and interconnected world of monasteries, often founded by different groups of monks with different architectural styles and priorities. The most powerful monastery by far was Durham. The Priory here was in possession of the relics of Cuthbert, which attracted many pilgrims. They were also situated at the centre of a web of estates and depended monastic houses. For example, Durham oversaw the Priories at Lindisfarne, Finchale, Jarrow, Warkworth and Wearmouth along with a number of other subsidiary monasteries. This control strongly influenced the architectural styles used at these sites; for example, the great stone columns in the Priory church at Lindisfarne are very similar to those in Durham Cathedral itself.

Despite the dominance of Durham Priory and its estates, many other monastic sites existed in the region. These can be grouped by the particular Order of monks responsible for founding them. The various traditions of monasticism had different attitudes to art and architecture, and the lives of the monks could be governed in different ways. Durham Priory followed the Benedictine rule, and a Benedictine monastery was also founded at Tynemouth. The Cistercians were also a powerful monastic order who had monasteries at Newminster near Morpeth. The Premonstratensians, another important monastic order, had monasteries at Alnwick, Blanchland, Guyzance and Egglestone. There were also many houses of Friars; in some ways Friars were like monks in that they lived lives dedicated to the service of God, but they were able to move around and weren’t committed to living at one particular monastery, although they usually had connections with a local house where they could be based for some time. Whereas the lives of monks were primarily carried out within the boundaries of their monastery, friars were more outwards facing and worked in local communities to carry out their duties. Because of their connection with the wider world, their Houses were often based in towns – and Newcastle, Hartlepool and Berwick all had several groups of Friars living and working in them.

The extent to which these monasteries survive today varies widely. The most intact is Durham itself, where the cloister (the walled courtyard to the south of the church) still survives and incorporates ranges of rooms, which are now used by both the cathedral and the to provide facilities and exhibition space for visitors. However, in the mid-16^th century, Henry VIII instituted a series of religious reforms that ultimately resulted in the church in England leaving the Catholic Church, and becoming independent from Rome. As part of a sequence of changes, the king abolished all monasteries in England and Wales. The monks were usually paid off with a pension, and the monastic buildings underwent a range of fates. Some were converted into private houses, such as Hulne Priory. Others fell into ruin although their adjacent outer courtyards may have survived to become farms, such as Finchale Priory. In some cases, after an initial period of decline, the ruins were maintained and looked after as they became incorporated into carefully designed parks and gardens and the picturesque nature of their ruins became valued by a society, who from the 17^th century onwards became increasingly enamoured with the medieval past. A good example of this is Brinkburn Priory where the estate was bought by a local family who built their house next to the Priory church. Sometimes just the church remained in use, with the outer areas being turned over to other functions. This happened at Blancheland, where the outer courtyard was converted into domestic housing, or at Tynemouth, where the church remained as the parish church until the 19^th century, but the rest of the site was converted into a military garrison. However, in some cases, even major monastic sites have more or less entirely disappeared, with their buildings being used as sources for stone, glass and lead to be re-used in other structures. This happened to the once powerful monastery of Newminster, where little survives to be seen, and even the remaining walls are overgrown and inaccessible.

Death and Burial

An important aspect of religious belief that affected everyone, whether a baron or bishop, or simply a peasant, was death and burial. Whilst the churches provides important support throughout people’s lives including baptism and marriage, it is the relationship between the church and death that is most visible in the archaeological record. Medieval cemeteries have been excavated, and many churches contain one or more surviving examples of burial marker or memorial.

A key aspect of medieval Christian belief was that on death the soul did not go straight to heaven or hell, rather it spent time in an intermediate place known as purgatory. It was believed that the soul’s time in purgatory could be reduced and its final destination modified by prayers and other actions carried out by the living. The most effective way of supporting the souls of the dead was by paying priests to celebrate the mass – the more masses celebrated, the quicker the dead would move on from purgatory. Many people would leave money to the church to pay for this after their death. This had a very practical impact on the architecture of churches through the construction of subsidiary chapels dedicated for masses for the dead. These were often known as chantry chapels. These might be found in parish churches, where they were usually located at the east end of the side aisles. Whilst the chapels have often been removed, the location of the altar is usually detectable through the survival of the small wall cupboards known as aumbries which were used to store the items needed for saying mass. In larger churches, these side chapels might be more substantial and be located in the transepts of the church, substantial projecting arms to the north and south of the main body of the church that gave it a cross shape. A good example of such transept chapels can be seen in the ruins of Finchale Priory. Sometimes chantry chapels could be in other locations, for example at Tynemouth Priory, the chantry known as the Percy Chapel was located at the far east end of the church behind the high altar. The most spectacular addition of extra altars intended for masses for the dead, can be found at Durham Cathedral where the entire eastern end of the Romanesque cathedral was reconstructed in the later 13^th century to provide the nine new altars that gives this part of the cathedral its names.

The most common burial practice was to place the body, either in a coffin or simply wrapped in a shroud, in a dug grave in a cemetery close to a church. For the overwhelming majority of the people, they would not be accompanied by grave goods, although occasionally priests had chalices or other ecclesiastical items placed in their graves. Whilst medieval manuscript illustrations suggest that some graves were marked by wooden crosses or markers, these do not survive. However, it is clear that the graves of lords or churchmen might be marked by a carved stone slab placed over the grave. This was particularly common in the 12^th and 13^th century, when the slab was usually decorated with an incised stone cross. Later in the medieval period, more elaborate slabs might include an image of the departed either carved directly onto the stone or shown on a brass plate sunk into the stone slab. A small number of individuals might also be remembered by the placement of a stone effigy, usually life-size. These might be relatively simple and have been placed in simple niches in the church walls, whilst others might have been placed on elaborately decorated stone plinths, such as can still be seen at Chillingham (Northumberland) or Staindrop (County Durham). Around 60 effigies survive in Durham, mainly of 13th- and 14th-century date. Most are carved in sandstone, though some are made from Frosterley marble, such as those at Pittington (Co. Durham). Alabaster was also used, and one of the best examples is the effigy of Ralph Neville (d. 1425) and his two wives at Staindrop church. Wooden effigies are known from South Church and Brancepeth (destroyed in the recent fire). In Northumberland an important group of effigies survive at Warkworth, Hexham (e.g. the effigy of Prior Leschman d. 1491) and most importantly at Chillingham, where the tomb chest carrying the effigies of Sir Ralph Gray (d. 1443) and his wife is particularly noteworthy for its sculpture. In general, effigies are more common south of the Tyne than north, perhaps reflecting the greater relative wealth and stability in this region. A number of brasses also survive, again mostly south of the Tyne. In Newcastle, the brass to Roger Thornton (d. 1429) is important. Significant groups of brasses can also be found in Wycliffe and Sedgefield (Co. Durham).

Wayside Crosses and Holy Wells

Whilst the religious landscape of the north-east of England in the middle ages was dominated by stone churches and monasteries, these were not the only places were religious beliefs were expressed. Stone crosses and holy wells were commonly found in the wider landscape. Crosses have a range of purposes. Some may have marked the boundary of estates or blocks of land owned by churches or monasteries. Others may have partly acted as markers for roads crossing remote or difficult landscapes, providing the lonely traveller with both practical and spiritual support. Many simply seem to have been placed at crossroads or where roads met as a focus for religious devotion. Crosses might also act as a memorial or commemoration of an important political or military event; a good example of this is the remains of the once elaborate Neville’s Cross that was erected to mark the location of a major battle, which took place close to an earlier, possibly Anglo-Saxon cross. Most crosses were relatively simple and undecorated, often all that survives today is the stone cross base that supported the upright element of the cross

Holy Wells were also important parts of the landscape. There is a long history of treating wells and springs as having religious or ritual importance that goes back into prehistory. In the middle ages, they were often given the names of saints or other religious figures. At Holystone in Northumberland, one holy well is named after Our Lady (although it was also recorded as being called St Ninian’s Well), whilst elsewhere in the village is a well dedicated to Saint Mungo. Wells could be a focus for a range of devotional practices, such as depositing pennies or a tying rags to a nearby tree. A holy well near Wooler was particularly associated with the practice of placing a bent pin in it and making a wish. With changes in belief in the post-medieval period and more formally structured systems of water supply many holy wells became neglected and fell out of use. However, a small number still survive, even if in an overgrown state, and occasionally may still be used.