WORCESTERSHIRE - CITY of WORCESTER
THE CATHEDRAL
Cathedral Church of  Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary 
Worcester Cathedral is a Cathedral of the New Foundation: at the Reformation it was a Benedictine Cathedral Priory.
The see was founded in 680
The Choir  The Cloisters  The Lady Chapel    Nave - North Aisle  Nave - South Aisle  North Choir Aisle   South Choir Aisle The Retrochoir  The Nave North Transept  South Transept

I apologize for the quality of the photographs on this page, which are little better than thumb nails. The originals were saved on the Philips Disc, which I have mentioned before, and which contained not only all the photographs from Worcester Cathedral but also all  those from York Minster as well as others. The disc became corrupted through no fault of my own and the photographs lost.
I have thus been unable to edit the original photographs but I have made an attempt to improve those which were saved on the web editing program on my computer. I will hopefully return to Worcester to retake all the photographs again. However not all is lost at this stage as the 19th century tomb artists did several etchings at Worcester and I have added these at the bottom of the page: I found they looked rather incongruous in the main text. I have added a † to those photographs which have corresponding drawings of effigies at the bottom of the page. I have also found a number of 35mm slides sent to me by Dr John Physick, which I have scanned and  also added at the bottom of the page, with a reference to where they may be found. These have an * added similar to before.

 
The Nave

Left :Bishop Thornborough ( 1641) Erected in 1627 (i.e well before his death) but never actually completed.
 Above left and centre: John Beauchamp of Holt, 1st Baron Beauchamp of Kidderminster (ex 1388) and his wife, Joan (FitzWith)

Above right: Robert Wilde (1608) & Wife
Right: Dean Eedes (1596)

John Beauchamp of Holt made to rapid a rise from esquire to baron in the reign of King Richard II and this was unacceptable to the Lords Appellant (who included John's kinsman, Thomas Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick), who were attempting to control the King and his Advisers as they considered the government was becoming too arbitrary and tyrannical. Baron John was arrested, impeached by the Merciless Parliament and sentenced to death.


Nave - South Aisle

Top: Mrs Warren (1792) by Ricketts  Above and right top :  A Prior of the 14th Century.
The effigy has been set in a late 13th Century recess.
Above bottom: Sir Thomas Lyttleton (1481) Bishop Parrie (1616)
His effigy is set in a 13th Century Recess
Left : John Bromley (1674) *
Those on the right I cannot identify
Sir Thomas Lyttelton (1650) and Catherine (Crompton)
his wife (1666)   B&W Marble by Thomas Stanton *
Bishop Thomas (1689)
 
Far left:
Col Sir Henry Walton Ellis (1815) * He was killed in the Battle of Waterloo. By Bacon Jnr.  Left: Richard Solly (1803) *By Bacon Snr.  Above Far left: Bishop Blandford (1675) .  Above centre left:  Richard Woolfe (1803)  Sgraffito plate Above centre:  Bishop Freake (1591) by Anthony Tolly (signed)
 Above centre right: Bishop Gauden (1662)*  Above far right: Bishop Johnson (1774) by Nollekens (signed)

 
Thomas James (1804)

Nave - North Aisle

Bishop Philpott (1892) by Sir Thomas Brock. This was originally in the South Transept but is now rather tucked away at the back of the aisle, surrounded by chairs c 1640 The main inscription was painted on the wreath; above the incription is in Greek Mrs Godfreye (1613) Bishop Hurd (1808) by W H Stephens Bishop Bollingham (1576)


North Transept   South Transept
 
Bishop Hough (1746) by Roubiliac. Dr Physick calls this the most important monument in the Cathedral Bishop Fleetwood (1683) Black & white marble Bishop Stillingfleet (1699)
with 2 putti heads
Sir Thomas Street (1696) *
by
Wilton 1775-80
  Mrs Hall (1794)
Bp Philpott's monument is now at the west end of the North Aisle

The Choir



Left and above: Chantry chapel and tomb chest  of Prince Arthur (1502), elder brother of Henry VIII; he was the first husband of Catherine of Aragon, who was to become Henry's first wife. This was the beginning of the 'King's Great Matter'. The work on this began in 1504




Left and above: King John (1216)* The Purbeck marble effigy is c. 1230 but the tomb chest c. 1529. Originally the effigy would have been floor level like those in the Temple Church. This is the earliest effigy in the country to an English king.

North Choir Aisle South Choir Aisle
Above:Randolf Marriott (1807) and his wife, Elizabeth (Wilson) (1821) * Sig by T. King of Bath
Left:
Bishop Maddox (1759) by Prince Hoare. Black & white marble *
Above:William Burslem (1820) by Westmacott Jnr. It is unfortunate that this monument is partly hidden behind a screen containing steps to the organ console
Right:
Mrs Margaret Rae (1772) by I F Moore

Retrochoir



 Charlotte Elizabeth Digby (1825)* White marble by Chantrey


Earl of Dudley (1888) White Marble on alabaster base; by J Forsyth


Said to be Prior Moore (1525)

 In alcove at back of high altar.

Also at the back of the high altar shown farright is:

Dean Peel (1877) Alabaster, incised cross with Signs of Evangelists


Lord Lyttelton (1878) White Marble on alabaster base; by J Forsyth

North Retrochoir Aisle and North-East Transept



 Knight of early 14th Century Purbeck Marble


Alcove containing the above Bp Cobham's effigy


 Bishop de Cobham (1327)


Lady of mid 13th Century Purbeck Marble 


Bishop de Braunsford (1394)


 Bishop c. 1300 Purbeck Marble


Alcove containing Bp de Braunsford's effigy

 South Retrochoir Aisle & South-East Transept



 

Above left: Knight - mid 13th Century. The arms shield have been painted in much later times
Above right:Sir Gryffyth Ryce (1523) On the tomb chest are two modern brasses by Hardiman
Right:  Bishop Gifford (1302) & Lady of the Gifford family (c 1300) .  These two effigies are set in the substructure  of  Prince Arthur's Chantry and difficult to photograph. Below are Hollis's remarkable etchings of them.
I did not locate two Purbeck ladies referred to in Pevsner (2009)

Lady Chapel  

   
Bishop William de Blois   (1236)   Bishop Walter de Cantelupe (1266)
Two Purbeck marble effigies of early medieval bishops but with uncertain indentifications. Note the higher relief on the later effigy

Cloisters

 The photograph is of a possible ecclesiastic effigy in cloisters. Is this really the effigy Hollis saw?  

Details of Some of the Monuments Above
By Dr John Physick

 Bishop Maddox (1759)
N.Ch.A.
Sir Thomas Lyttelton (1650) and Catherine (Crompton)
his wife (1666) 
N. SA
 Bishop Gauden (1662) 
N. SA
John Bromley (1674) 
N. SA
Col Sir Henry Walton Ellis (1815)
N.SA
 Charlotte Elizabeth Digby (1825)
R-Ch
John Moore (1613) and his wife, Anne. The other figures probably represent their children.
N.NA (Not recorded above)
Sir Thomas Street (1696)
N.T
 Richard Solly (1803)
N.SA
Margaret Rae (1772)
S.ChA
Mrs Godfreye (1613)
N.NA
Randolf Marriott (1807) and his wife, Elizabeth (Wilson) (1821) N.ChA
Above: King John (1216) 
Ch

 
Etchings of Effigies in Worcester Cathedral
By C A Stothard and T & G Hollis

Bishop Gifford An Unknown Ecclesiastic
Left and above: Wife of Lord John Beauchamp of Holt, 1st Baron Beauchamp of Kidderminster (who was beheaded in 1388)'. She was Joan FitzWith

Right: A Lady of the Clifford Family

How Thomas Hollis managed to draw the effigies of Bishop Gifford and the Clifford Lady completely amazes me!


King John

The etchings od the tomb of King John are by C A Stothard; the others by Thomas and George Hollis.
The 'thumb nail' photographs are unfortunayely by the Web Master
The 'normal' size photographs are from slides send to me by Dr John Physick CBE DrRCA, FSA,
Sometime Deputy Director of the V & A Museum and President of the Church Monuments Society
A
true gentleman and a really nice guy.

 
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