Wine and Cheese brought about by my Cathedral talk research ...

 

Honestly … let's have a change … my health is still with challenges, the leak still not resolved … and my mental thoughts aren't very polite!!

Winchester Cathedral - longest medieval
church in the world

So now let's go towards Cathedrals … I did my talk on Cathedrals in the Medieval era (I based it around the 1100s AD) … not on the actual style of building etc … but from the workers point of view – how were they built etc etc …

Different – but I don't do what's expected of me – exactly … however it seems to have rung bells for many. I'd come across the Ken Follett book 'Pillars of the Earth' – the story of building a cathedral, and of those closely connected with its construction …

It is what it is - !

Ken Follett in his introduction explains how he wanted to write about Cathedrals, but 'knew nothing' about how to build, or the way of life back in the 1100s – he looked to Nikolaus Pevsner's An Outline of European Architecture, and then two by a French man Jean Gimpel – The Cathedral Builders, and The Medieval Machine.

Pevsner's Guide showing
interior of Chichester
Cathedral

Follett is an author of thrillers, of which actually I'm not sure I've read any?! … but I bought Pillars of the Earth (over 1000 pages!) … and drafted my talk mainly from it – I had to fill in odds and ends from elsewhere.

Jean Gimpel's book
on The Cathedral Builders

Medieval England in the 12^th century was a turbulent place – civil war, famine, religious strife and battles over royal succession … all of which tore lives and families apart …

Jean Gimpel's book
on The Medieval Machine

Building a cathedral back then would have taken over 30 years, and in some instances over 500 years (Winchester Cathedral) … the stones revealing the construction history – the stops and starts, the damage and reconstruction, extensions in times of prosperity, repairs when disaster struck … and ultimately the incremental improvements – as an example when stained glass started to be added … to tell the stories of the time …

Henry II and Thomas a Becket
(early 14th C representation of them)

But when I'm 'researching' and putting ideas to paper … I often come across titbits that amuse me and I think – ah ha for you all reading this blog … so here's a couple for you …

Henry's claims over lands in France
(at their peak in red) 1150s

I was looking at the year 1141 AD – when The Anarchy, a civil war in England and Normandy between 1138 and 1153 was ongoing … at that stage 'we' owned a fair amount of western France – well that's another story …

Ricasoli vineyard today - in the
mountainous region of Chianti - 
Tuscany

... but I spotted that the Italian winemaking company Ricasoli was founded … I had to look didn't I? They've even got a Chianti – Viticultori in Chianti Classico: Ricasoli 1141, named after that year.

Cheddar - so delicious

Oh – we need cheese don't we …? Another date I 'interrogated' was 1170 AD – when it is recorded in a pipe roll (financial records) Henry II apparently purchased 10,240 lbs (over 4.5 kgs) of Somerset cheddar … only available at court!

What's not to like after giving a talk on Cathedrals … but some wine and cheese – which in fact I didn't have … had some lunch though.

Live and learn – and that I certainly do … more tennis this week, when we have the counties down here competing in their Championships – excellent tennis to spend some time watching with a cousin who comes down to help with the admin of the tournament.

See you all soon – and thanks for visiting …

Hilary Melton-Butcher

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