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The Pictorial History of Bath Abbey
24 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1964
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
November 25, 2015
In 1497 King Henry VII paid a visit to Bath and he was instrumental in the present Bath Abbey being founded two years thereafter under the direction of his friend Oliver King, Bishop of Bath and Wells. It turned out to be the last church built in the Perpendicular period and was designed in the most English of architectural styles by the Vertue brothers, Robert and William, who were the King's master masons and old friends of the bishop.
But before all this work began a Christian church had stood many years earlier in the vicinity of the largest of the Bath hot mineral springs. And during the last part of the Roman occupation some element of Christian faith had infiltrated into the region.
Pope Gregory the Great had appointed Augustine to spread the faith across England and in 603, when on a missionary visit to the west country, Augustine passed through Bath. Then by the end of the seventh century the torch of Christianity had been well lit in the area and a stone church under the direction of Aldhelm was built around the hot springs.
Later a Saxon Abbey was built and on Whit Sunday, 11 May 973, Edgar had his coronation carried out there by Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury, and Oswald, Archbishop of York. The Abbey was expanded and the city of Bath developed in importance as a royal estate.
On the death of William the Conqueror the ownership of Bath and its Abbey passed to William Rufus. But his ownership was short lived for the wealthy barons of the west rose up against the king and they singled out the royal borough of Bath and destroyed it. However, there was a saviour, for John de Villula, a native of Tours and chaplain and physician to the king, was given the Abbey of St Peter and for the princely sum of £500 he purchased from the king the ruined city with its springs, royal rights and property.
As Bishop of Bath, de Villula orchestrated the building of a cathedral, so vast, 354 feet in length by 72 feet in width, that the present Abbey would stand on the nave only, which in itself was 210 feet long. Throughout the 14th century the condition of the cathedral was improved but around the middle of the 15th century people lost interest and the great church was 'ruined to its foundations'.
So the Abbey as we know it began life, slowly, in 1499 before the dissolution of the monasteries interrupted progress. The Abbey fell into debt and it was not until Elizabeth I visited the area and was distressed to see the state of the building that she ordered collections to be made throughout the kingdom for funds for the Abbey's restoration.
The progress of restoration was so favourable that by 1576 divine service had been resumed in the choir. But it was not all good news for the later scarcity of funds caused work to be suspended for 30 years. Numerous legacies and the liberality of James Montague, Bishop of the diocese, then helped make further progress.
Improvements continued to be made for many years and during the Civil War the Abbey was described as a 'fayre neat and lightsome building with large windows'. And in later years, 1833, the Bath Corporation funded an extensive restoration project and the Abbey survives to this day in good health.
As is often the case with Pitkin Pictorials, this one gives an excellent history of the Abbey with plentiful illustrations, which include artefacts that have survived from the earlier incarnations. After reading the book, it is not difficult to see why the expression of Henry William Watson, the naturalist, 'I haunted Bath Abbey and the more I saw of it the more I loved it' rings true.
But before all this work began a Christian church had stood many years earlier in the vicinity of the largest of the Bath hot mineral springs. And during the last part of the Roman occupation some element of Christian faith had infiltrated into the region.
Pope Gregory the Great had appointed Augustine to spread the faith across England and in 603, when on a missionary visit to the west country, Augustine passed through Bath. Then by the end of the seventh century the torch of Christianity had been well lit in the area and a stone church under the direction of Aldhelm was built around the hot springs.
Later a Saxon Abbey was built and on Whit Sunday, 11 May 973, Edgar had his coronation carried out there by Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury, and Oswald, Archbishop of York. The Abbey was expanded and the city of Bath developed in importance as a royal estate.
On the death of William the Conqueror the ownership of Bath and its Abbey passed to William Rufus. But his ownership was short lived for the wealthy barons of the west rose up against the king and they singled out the royal borough of Bath and destroyed it. However, there was a saviour, for John de Villula, a native of Tours and chaplain and physician to the king, was given the Abbey of St Peter and for the princely sum of £500 he purchased from the king the ruined city with its springs, royal rights and property.
As Bishop of Bath, de Villula orchestrated the building of a cathedral, so vast, 354 feet in length by 72 feet in width, that the present Abbey would stand on the nave only, which in itself was 210 feet long. Throughout the 14th century the condition of the cathedral was improved but around the middle of the 15th century people lost interest and the great church was 'ruined to its foundations'.
So the Abbey as we know it began life, slowly, in 1499 before the dissolution of the monasteries interrupted progress. The Abbey fell into debt and it was not until Elizabeth I visited the area and was distressed to see the state of the building that she ordered collections to be made throughout the kingdom for funds for the Abbey's restoration.
The progress of restoration was so favourable that by 1576 divine service had been resumed in the choir. But it was not all good news for the later scarcity of funds caused work to be suspended for 30 years. Numerous legacies and the liberality of James Montague, Bishop of the diocese, then helped make further progress.
Improvements continued to be made for many years and during the Civil War the Abbey was described as a 'fayre neat and lightsome building with large windows'. And in later years, 1833, the Bath Corporation funded an extensive restoration project and the Abbey survives to this day in good health.
As is often the case with Pitkin Pictorials, this one gives an excellent history of the Abbey with plentiful illustrations, which include artefacts that have survived from the earlier incarnations. After reading the book, it is not difficult to see why the expression of Henry William Watson, the naturalist, 'I haunted Bath Abbey and the more I saw of it the more I loved it' rings true.
December 2, 2025
I love the old versions of the Pitkin guides and this one, with concise historical accounts and clear photographs, is up to standard.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews