R. W. Southern and Two Little Known Tidbits about Robert Grosseteste

I’ve been reading R. W. Southern’s Robert Grosseteste: The Growth of an English Mind in Medieval Europe.  And I have to ask, is there anything Southern wrote that is not excellent?  The vast scholarship of this late great historian combined with his ability to write very readable books from his storehouse of scholarship amazes me.

Having said that, two tidbits about Robert Grosseteste in this book stand out to me, one for its amusement, the second for its encouragement.

The first is a Royal Mandate of June 23^rd, 1234 that directed Grosseteste and two other Oxford worthies “to supervise the arrest of all prostitutes in Oxford who had disobeyed a royal order to leave the town.” As Southern put it, the king regarded the three men “as peculiarly qualified for this hopeless task.” (p. 71, 1986 edition)

The second is that Grosseteste’s career was obscure and is not very well documented until he reached about age 55 when he suddenly rose to prominence.  Southern thinks this might have occurred because he was among those who assisted the 15 year old Henry III in getting a papal declaration that he was old enough to rule on his own in 1223.  Henry immediately rewarded those who assisted him. (p. 80, 81)

In any case, being around 55 and still somewhat obscure, I find this aspect of Robert Grosseteste’s career encouraging, although I will never be as brilliant as the man . . . or as R. W. Southern. 

All Saints North Street, York

The touring part of my trip has ended, and I am happily in the haven where I would be, Oxford.

A highlight of my trip and certainly my favorite parish church so far is All Saints North Street in York. I visited it first chiefly to see the medieval interior, particularly its renowned stained glass.

And the medieval stained glass is outstanding. At York Minster and elsewhere, much medieval glass is quite a puzzle after enduring time and questionable, if not “indifferent” restorations. (One window in the Minster even contains a 20th c. confession of “indifferent” restoration in 1789.) But in All Saints, the old glass is in wonderful condition and easy to interpret.

The windows that stand out are the Prick of Conscience window, which portrays the last fifteen days of the world. Yes, medievals were into horrific end times, too. Nearby is the warm Acts of Corporal Mercy window. Another window portrays a miracle of Christ appearing in the Mass. At the bottom of it is the remains of an indulgence for those who gaze reverently at the window. Yes, such a window surviving the ravages of the Reformation and Civil War is very rare indeed.

All Saints also has a long history of anchoresses and anchorites, even in the 20th century!

As I visited, I noticed they were having a special mass the following Sunday evening for their Dedication Day. So I decided to go to that.

When I arrived early for the Mass, their change ringers were joyfully busy pulling their church bells. Much of the small congregation was already there.

This is very much an Anglo-Catholic parish. The rector wore an actual biretta when he processed then began with Asperges. Later, the Canon was silent – the first time I have seen that in an Anglican setting. Although I read the Canon in my mass booklet because I wanted to know what the priest was praying, I actually did like the silence during the Canon. It added an appropriate reverence and sense of holiness after the Consecration. The service ended with a Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, complete with a procession around the interior of the church!

I very much enjoyed the service, and it certainly enabled me to worship personally. But that was not all. The rector invited me to join others in the congregation to proceed to a nearby pub afterwards. This is a godly parish indeed! Thus concluded an excellent evening this past Sunday.

BIG

Although I’ve been to England before and explored cathedrals and abbey ruins, on this trip I cannot get over how . . . well, how big some high medieval houses of worship were/are.

York Minster, which I am presently spending a lot of time exploring, is huge. It claims to be the largest cathedral in Northern Europe. Even the chapter house is imposing. And the famous East Window (now under a massive reconstruction. I do hope I get to see it one day.) is bigger than a tennis court.

But it’s not just York Minster. Close by are the ruins of St. Mary’s Abbey. The size of that impresses.

Earlier from Durham, I made a walking pilgrimage to the ruins of Finchale Priory. I had never heard of the place until my last day in Durham and decided on the spur of the moment to go there. It is a mostly pleasant walk through countryside. I ate blackberries by the path to keep my energy up.

The ruins of the abbey were both more intact and larger than I expected. It is a beautiful and imposing place. And, yes, the priory was big.





The size of such houses of worship speaks still to medievals’ powerful desire to glorify God. And it certainly discredits any delusion that the middle ages were a backward time. Centuries later, the work and technology that went into constructing York Minster and a multitude of cathedrals and abbeys still astounds.

Medieval Whimsy in Serious Places

Today at the Treasures of Cuthbert in Durham Cathedral, I saw a 13th century copy of Gratian’s Decretum complete with an illumination of some odd imaginary creature, a friendly dragon perhaps?

Since Gratian was the dominant canon law reference of the time, that’s a bit like seeing a modern lawyerly tome illustrated with Spongebob.

Now I am certainly aware that many medieval manuscripts, even of religious import, are whimsically illustrated. The Luttrell Psalter, which I intend to study in some detail, stands out in that regard. But I certainly did not expect such in a medieval law book.

Such can also be found in English cathedrals and churches. In Hexham Abbey is stone carving of a jester and of a fox preaching to other animals. And this on a chantry near the altar no less. At the crossing of Wells Cathedral is the famous stone carving of a man with a toothache.

I have not yet come across much scholarly commentary on frequent medieval whimsy in illuminated manuscripts and in places of grave, even holy import.

But I have a theory . . . which I may promulgate at a later time.

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Housekeeping: I did promise you a surprise about this time. I am studying in England again. And my posts will focus mainly on that experience for a while.