Easter and Lichfield Cathedral

Friday 18 Apr

Met some nice folk at the Good Friday service - one lovely little old lady informed me with a twinkle that she had won the war for me, as she had been in the WAAFs. Of course I thanked her profusely! We stayed for a cuppa and hot cross bun afterwards. 

Later we had afternoon tea with Val, who is 93 & acts like a young 70. She is interested in family and local history, and one line of her family came to NZ. She was also in the WAAFs, so had some good war stories, and was just fascinating to talk to. Sheila thought I might like her, and was so right.

Reading: Royal Flush by Rhys Bowen

Sat 19 Apr

Lichfield Cathedral. Sheila wanted me to see it, so we drove over but could not find a close enough park for her, so she dropped me off, and said she would be back in three hours. Then she drove home and had lunch there and a rest before returning to collect me – two hours driving just so I could visit a cathedral I have never seen. What a friend!

The bad news is that I left my camera behind - duh!

From a personal point of view it was totally worth it. I visited the café across the road first, and had a delicious mushroom soup, then found the main entrance at the West End. The first building, dedicated in the year 700, held the bones of Saint Chad, and was a place of pilgrimage. The current building has been here for over 800 years, and is the third one on the site. There are Gothic arches everywhere, and when they ran out of spaces to arch over, they created ‘blind arcading’ – arches set against blank walls. Along the lower edges of the arch the carvers made faces, probably of some of the worshippers of the time. These are called 'head stops', as opposed to ordinary 'stops' which are any other sort of carved ends. Although the more worn of these were replaced by the Victorians, there are many of the old ones still surviving, and they are a delight.  

The chapter house holds some of their real treasures. The book of St Chad’s Gospels has been dated to 730, and is one of the oldest books in Britain. The stone 'Lichfield Angel' was dug up during the recent excavations to install a new altar, and the surviving mediaeval paintings here are stunning.

One of the delights for me was to come across a memorial to Bishop Selwyn, who is buried just outside. There is a tiled wall around his monument which shows scenes from his time in NZ – a Maori chief, canoe and Whare. Not exactly great art, but neat to see. I nearly said to the folk nearby ‘That’s my home’ but managed to restrain myself. I suppose I knew that he had returned to England, but certainly had not remembered it. 

The Quire has been extensively restored by the Victorian architect Sir George Gilbert Scott. The Victorians liked things very ornate, which makes for a great display but is not really my taste. 

I picked up the obligatory book and bookmark from the shop, and then walked across the Close to have a look at the home of Erasmus Darwin, Granddad of Charles. Turns out that Charlie got his brains from Gramps, who was a leading physician, scientist, inventor and poet.
Among other things, he studied evolution, weather patterns, and windmills – even inventing a horizontal windmill for Josiah Wedgewood to use in his Potteries. He was also ahead of his time in the matter of advocating education for girls – I must find a good bio of him when I get home.

Next door is a larger shop for the cathedral, with a wide range of gifts, memorabilia and books. I confess that I succumbed to temptation and picked up two interesting looking books on architecture, one with great drawings to illustrate all the different points, and one called A Lust for Windowsills – who could resist a title like that. I do like an author with a sense of humour. 

Reading: Set To Music by Constance White (one of the hundreds of Sheila’s that I want to read … )

Sunday 20 Apr 

Sheila gets a cheap rate for calls to NZ, as she has a daughter in Auckland, so with her permission I rang Mum to say Happy Birthday – 85 today, and doesn’t look a day over 70!

After the Easter Service at church, we enjoyed a delicious lunch with Sheila’s other daughter and family. It was a real family affair – Gavin cooked the chicken, while daughter Isi did the veg. Toby set the table – without being asked, I noticed - poured our drinks and cleared the plates afterwards. Ruth made an amaizing Lemon Meringue Cake for dessert. Gavin bakes cakes for a living, but is obviously not the only talented one in the family.

Monday 21 Apr

Travelled to Taunton. One change at Birmingham New Street, then a direct cross-country trip to a familiar place. Yay!

Staying at Holly Lodge in Castlegrove Rd, a rather nice eighteenth century house.

Reading: Royal Blood by Rhys Bowen

Evening: Lichfield Cathedral and Carvings of Lichfield