B2B 2023 A Jetlag Day in Gloucester

We left the curtains open all night to let the moonlight shine in, and slept extremely comfortably—likely more soundly than King Charles III, whose Coronation Day it was. This was our "jetlag day" where we could take our time and adapt to the new time zone. We woke up early but had plenty of time to lay in bed and just relax before breakfast, which was lovely and filling—so much so that we took away some homemade muffins with us when we went out. It was raining, and we wandered through the Stroud Saturday market stalls before catching a train just before 11:00 a.m. for Gloucester and its beautiful cathedral. Ken in particular has been looking forward to seeing this cathedral for many years and has joined me in writing this post!

Gloucester Cathedral from the southwest

It was a short walk to the cathedral from the rail station, hearing the church bells playing the tune for "Rule Britannia" on the way. Because it was Coronation Day, the Cathedral was open for touring but there were only two staff, so unfortunately we were unable to buy a guidebook. How does one describe a cathedral apart from using the words inspiring and amazing? Here are three highlights, two aesthetic and one practical:

The choir vault

The Great East Window

The aesthetic highlights were both old and new. As for the old, the Choir and Cloisters at Gloucester are some of the earliest examples (14th century) of "perpendicular" architecture in England. This is a style typified by an emphasis on verticality with immense windows and a "walls of glass" feel as well as flambouyant architectural features such as "fan" vaulting. At Gloucester this was exemplified by the outstanding verticality of the east end as opposed the the older, Norman style of the west end, the intricate vaulting of the Choir and the amazingly large East Window, which basically is the entire east wall of the building, as well as the beautiful fan vaulting in the Cloisters. (For more on the cathedral's architectural heritage, click here.) It was all simply stunning and a pleasure to experience on a unique day with so few people touring the building. 

 

Fan vaulting in the cloisters

As for the new highlight, we were captivated and deeply moved by the modern stained glass windows created by Thomas Denny in memory of the poet Ivor Gurney (1890-1937) and the composer Gerald Finzi (1901-1956). We generally aren't fond of modern art and modern stained glass windows, but these windows were breathtakingly beautiful and well-conveyed a sense of both men's difficult, often troubled lives. (See some pictures of the Gurney windows at the end of this post, but the best pictures are those on Denny's website here for Gurney and here for Finzi.)

The Lady Chapel, another perpendicular masterpiece

The practical highlight was in the also-stunning perpendicular gothic Lady Chapel at the far east end of the building, beyond even the great East Window. It had stone benches against the wall, and beneath the benches were radiators that were turned on. It was a cold, rainy day, so I certainly enjoyed sitting on a bench with a radiator pumping out heat by my legs. One radiator was so close that I worried I would scorch my new hiking pants, so I switched benches. 

 

We took a late lunch break at 2:00 p.m. at the Comfy Pew Café and Bistro, almost next door to the cathedral. The food was good: I enjoyed a carrot and coriander soup, and Ken had a ham and cheese omelette.

The Comfy Pew

It was indeed comfy there, and the people who served us were friendly and kind. And respectful. There was a man who sat outside in the drizzling rain in order to have a smoke and a cup of coffee. He looked like he might not have a home. Near closing time, the young man who had waited on us carried out a carton of chips and gave it to the man sitting outside. The owner also kindly chatted with the man. It was one of those places that just felt welcoming.

A fun angle in the Norman nave

 

Choral evensong was at 4:30 p.m., sung by a girls' choir. It was a good service. Afterwards as we were leaving, the attendant asked us what we thought of the organ. Ken said it sounded "pretty good." The man told us that the organ was currently broken, and they were using an electronic organ with high-end speakers located behind the organ pipes. It was quite good, though lacking in some of the depth one would expect of a real live pipe organ.

 

We caught the train back to Stroud, picked up a spinach and ricotta canneloni from an Italian restaurant, and made our way "home" to eat dinner. After a quick visit with our hosts who were watching the Coronation Ceremony after the fact, we retired to our room to get some sleep. Tomorrow would be the first day of our walk!

 

 

 

 

The Ivor Gurney Memorial Windows in Gloucester Cathedral,

by Thomas Denney 

Windows 1 and 2

Windows 3 and 4

Windows 7 and 8

Windows 5 and 6

On a panel in the chantry chapel where the windows were installed, Gloucester Cathedral excerpted two poems to illustrate windows 7 and 8, which give a sense of the pain that Gurney's WWI service had caused. 

 

For window 7:

"Gone out of every bright thing from my mind, 

all lost that God ever designed.

Not half can be written of cruelty of man, on man,

Not often such evil guessed as between man and man."

 

– From: Collected Poems of Ivor Gurney

For window 8:

"Out of my sorrow I have made these songs,

Out of my sorrow;

Though somewhat of the making's eager pain

From Joy did borrow.

Some day, I trust, God's purpose of pain for me

Shall be complete,

And then – to enter in the House of Joy...

Prepare, my feet."

– From: "Severn and Song" (1917)

The complete Ivor Gurney panel is below, though somewhat hard to read and a bit blurry given the extremely low light levels in the chantry chapel: