Exeter Photo Walk 8 The Exeter Rondels

This is a great way to finish my Exeter Photo Walk which I originally took back in June 2023. I have been drip feeding the various parts of that walk through my blog since then so it is quite satisfying to finally get there.

Along the south side of the cathedral nave is the largest artwork in Exeter, and that is my claim so if you know different let me know. It is longer than the Bayeux Tapestry and has 14,000,000 stitches.

In July 1989 the Exeter Rondels were unveiled at Exeter Cathedral. Combining the artistry of a leading expert in embroidery design (Marjorie Dyer), linked to the needlework skills of over seventy volunteers from the Cathedral’s own Company of Tapisers, the Exeter Rondels took many years and thousands of hours to complete.

The Exeter Rondels take the form of a series of embroidered cushions, over seventy metres in length, lining the sides of the nave in Exeter Cathedral. Greater in length than the famous tapestry at Bayeux, the Exeter Rondels are a magnificent achievement, stunning in the brilliance of their design and conception.

The Exeter Rondels form a chronological story of national, local and church history. Visitors walking through the nave will follow the main events of the past, told through the words and pictures interwoven on the Rondels. Every monarch is recorded along with the Deans and Bishops of Exeter (up until 1983) together with their dates. Battles, coronations and great events of British history are all revealed through a richly-coloured tapestry of over 14 million individual stitches. Exeter Cathedral

I am starting in 1478.

In this year Peter Courtenay became bishop of Exeter. This period was one of the most tumultuous and defining in British history and a dangerous time to be involved in politics. Two dynasties were vying for control of the English Crown. The Wars of the Roses as it was called, and how it was won, define the country we live in today.

Without going into too much detail here, the two dynasties Lancaster and York both had rival claims to the English throne. Both houses had a family claim through descendance from Edward III. The opposing houses had heraldic badges featuring a white rose for York and a red rose for Lancaster. The war which was really a series of wars ran from 1455 to 1487. King Richard III of York was fighting for his survival.

The fighting ended with his death at Bosworth field, the last Plantagenet King. Henry VII of Lancaster was the victor and the first of the Tudors, and he cleverly married Elizabeth of York uniting the two houses in peace. His heraldic mark symbolised the union with a double rose, or the Tudor Rose that we still see today.

Exeter played its part in the history as you can see here. Bishop Courtenay, dangerously changed allegiance from Richard to Henry and nearly came a cropper as a result, fleeing to France in exile. After Henry won at Bosworth he returned on the winning side and became Keeper of the Privy Seal. This was the fifth most important office of state. Bishop Courtenay attended the creation of Prince of Wales, Arthur, Henry's eldest son. Courtenay, however, never lived to see the death of Arthur from illness or his replacement by Henry his younger brother, who became Henry VIII.

This rondel features another interesting related piece of history. Once Henry VII was King there were still threats to his position and the most significant was by a man called Perkin Warbeck. This whole story is still shrouded in mystery but what we do know is that he did exist, he did raise armies and made a claim to the throne as the long missing Richard of Shrewsbury one of the legendary Princes in the Tower, supposedly long dead.

Warbeck made several landings in England backed by small armies but met strong resistance from the King's men and surrendered in Hampshire in 1497. After his capture, he retracted his claim, writing a confession in which he said he was actually Flemish and born in Tournai around 1474. He was executed on 23 November 1499. Dealing with Warbeck cost Henry VII over £13,000 (equivalent to £12,916,000), putting a strain on Henry's weak state finances. Wikipedia

The residents of Exeter may have shouted God Save the King, but the pardon announced below never took effect. Exeter was, however rewarded by Henry VII for their loyalty in repelling Perkin Warbeck's siege of the city. The King presented the city with a ceremonial sword and cap of maintenance as a reward. The sword and cap were to be carried in state before the Lord Mayor, a tradition that continues to this day. The privilege was a grant from the Crown to the loyal city, rather than the right of individual citizens to bear a sword.

Here they are more than 500 years later, on display at the Guildhall.

1551

We all know that Henry VIII fell out with the Pope and ushered in the new replacement Church of England, a protestant version of Christianity. Henry had crushed the Catholic power bases in England including the monasteries. In Exeter Bishop Vesey had Catholic sympathies and resisted the change, although he was forced to surrender many church possessions to the King.

When Henry died his young ten year old son Edward VI reigned briefly. He was Britain's first monarch raised as a protestant. Being only ten years of age it was a period of regency and the country was ruled by a regency council until Edward was of age. Edward never made it, dying at sixteen. During the regency in 1551 Vesey finally had to hand over the see of Exeter, and his powers as bishop were removed. He was granted a pension though, a generous £485 per year (£134,000 today).

Edward only reigned for just over six years and was followed by his older sister Mary who was Catholic. Vesey was restored to his former position by Mary but died soon after. During the regency Myles Coverdale took over as Bishop. Coverdale had already translated the Bible into English in 1535. He produced the first printed translation of the full Bible into Early Modern English, completing the translations of William Tyndale.

A point of interest that many don't realise is that in nearby Paignton stood the Bishop of Exeter's Palace, the ruins of which are still visible, including the Coverdale Tower, also called the Bible Tower, where people once thought the Bishop translated the Bible. It is now thought that this happened earlier while he was in Antwerp.

Mary I ruled for only five years during which time she tried to undo the Reformation and return England to Catholicism.

When Edward became terminally ill in 1553, he attempted to remove Mary from the line of succession because he supposed, correctly, that she would reverse the Protestant reforms that had taken place during his reign. Upon his death, leading politicians proclaimed their Protestant cousin, Lady Jane Grey, as queen instead. Mary speedily assembled a force in East Anglia and deposed Jane.

Mary was—excluding the disputed reigns of Jane and the Empress Matilda—the first queen regnant of England. In July 1554, she married Philip of Spain, becoming queen consort of Habsburg Spain on his accession in 1556. After Mary's death in 1558, her re-establishment of Roman Catholicism in England was reversed by her younger half-sister and successor, Elizabeth I.

The political intrigue of her short reign is remarkable and well worth reading about, but far too complex to cover here. She is, however, now mostly remembered for her nickname, Bloody Mary.

Mary I (Mary Tudor) had around 300 Protestants burned at the stake during her reign as a result of her campaign to restore Catholicism in England. These executions were carried out under heresy laws and are referred to as the "Marian Persecutions".

Most notoriously Thomas Cranmer, the imprisoned archbishop of Canterbury, was forced to watch Bishops Ridley and Latimer being burned at the stake. He recanted, repudiated Protestant theology, and re-joined the Catholic faith. Under the normal process of the law, he should have been absolved as a repentant, but Mary refused to reprieve him. On the day of his burning, he dramatically withdrew his recantation. Wikipedia

1558 saw the start of the reign of Elizabeth I.

One of Mary's final victims at the stake was however, Agnes Prest, an independent minded woman from Cornwall, who died for her faith only fifteen months before Elizabeth became Queen.

Agnes started her protest against Catholicism by leaving her Catholic husband. She later returned to him whereupon she was arrested and indicted and put in Launceston Jail from where she was transferred to Exeter.

After Bishop Vesey's death James Turberville became bishop. Agnes had the misfortune to be brought before him when she took the opportunity to deny Catholic doctrine. She was let free for a month during which time she doubled down as we would say now and went out of her way to return to Exeter Cathedral. At the cathedral, stonemasons were repairing the statues of the saints, no doubt repairing damage done during the Reformation.

According to Foxe's Book of Martyrs she said to him "What a madman art thou, to make them new noses, which within a few days shall all lose their heads". After that point she was returned to jail where she had many visitors, including Walter Raleigh's mother, Catherine Raleigh, who praised her for her "godly life."

She was then tried for heresy by the Mayor of Exeter, refused to recant her beliefs and was executed by being burnt to death on 15 August 1557. Wikipedia

Mary I only survived another fifteen months, when Protestantism was secured during Elizabeth I's long reign, right up until today. Only since 2013 has it been legal for a Catholic to marry a monarch, but the monarch can still not be a Catholic, as the monarch is also the Head of the Church of England.

1569 and the Great Plague.

Actually, according to my research this event was not a confirmed case of plague but became called the "Black Assize". A deadly disease suspected to be plague swept the city. The outbreak began with Portuguese prisoners who had been captured at sea and brought to Exeter, and the resulting chaos and death, documented by John Hooker, led to the term "Black Assize" to describe the catastrophe.

Why the "Black Assize"?

During a court session (assize), the disease spread rapidly to the judges, legal professionals, and other attendees who were in the crowded, unsanitary conditions of the courtroom. From the courtroom, the illness spread throughout the West Country for many months, infecting the local population.

1603 The Union of the Crowns

I covered some of the events associated with this union between the English and Scottish crowns in my previous post. Lawyer John Doddridge who played a part in the political debate is buried in the Lady Chapel here in Exeter.

England and Scotland had both had a Reformation and were both Protestant countries. Mary Queen of Scots was a Catholic so she fled to France and married the French King. When she was widowed she returned to Scotland and governed for a period as a Catholic monarch in a Protestant country. She remarried and had a son James. There was much intrigue and plotting which resulted in the murder of her second husband. The man accused of his murder proceeded to marry Mary and this was the final straw for the Scots who turned against her. There was an uprising and she was forced to abdicate in 1567. James VI her son became King at the ripe old age of thirteen months and four regents ruled during his minority, during which time James was brought up as a Protestant.

When Elizabeth I died childless in 1603, James VI of Scotland was next in line to the English throne as the great great grandson of Henry VII. He automatically became James I of England and Lord of Ireland. At 57 years and 246 days, James's reign in Scotland was the longest of any Scottish monarch. He achieved most of his aims in Scotland but faced great difficulties in England, including the Gunpowder Plot in 1605.

The Gunpowder Plot of 1605 was an unsuccessful attempted regicide against King James VI of Scotland and I of England by a group of English Roman Catholics, led by Robert Catesby. The plan was to blow up the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament on Tuesday 5 November 1605, as the prelude to a popular revolt in the Midlands during which King James's nine-year-old daughter, Princess Elizabeth, was to be installed as the new head of state. At their trial on 27 January 1606, eight of the surviving conspirators, including Fawkes, were convicted and sentenced to be hanged, drawn and quartered.

1616

One of Devon's most famous men came to a sticky end, as many involved in politics did back then. It was difficult to know whose side to take most of the time. Leaders always felt vulnerable and loyalty was always demanded.

Raleigh had family connections in nearby Modbury and Dartmouth. His mother Catherine Champernowne lived in Modbury while his younger half brother was born in Greenway House near Dartmouth.

While Raleigh was a favourite of Elizabeth I who knighted him, he made a dangerous mistake, marrying one of Elizabeth's Ladies in Waiting without her permission. Both of them ended up in the Tower of London. They escaped the chopping block. After Elizabeth died Raleigh was implicated in a plot against the new King James. He was sent to the Tower again.

On his release the very lucky Raleigh was allowed to lead a second expedition in search of "El Dorado" the lost and legendary City of Gold. This time he pushed his luck too far and sacked a Spanish outpost. James had made a peace treaty with Spain and he was thus cornered into arresting and executing Raleigh to appease the Spanish. Raleigh was arrested at the Exeter Inn in Ashburton where you can still have a pint and a pie today in a building dating back to 1130.

1616 The Birdall Bell that still hangs in the south tower of the cathedral was cast in bronze. It is the oldest surviving bell at the cathedral. In April 1616 it is recorded that John Birdall was to be paid £38 6s 8d to “newe cast and make tuneable” the bells. (The sum of £5,041 today)

The Dean, Chanter, Chancellor and residentiary canons had agreed in May or June 1612 that “the ring of eight bells in the south tower (then and now untuneable and imperfect)” should be made perfect and tuneable at the Dean & Chapter’s expense. John Birdall was to be employed to recast four of the eight bells, and the new bell metal was to be paid for within six months. Exeter Cathedral

1621 Valentine Cary appointed bishop. More on this bishop in my previous post.

James I died in 1625. He was buried in Westminster Abbey. It is hard to credit but his body was then lost for over 200 years. How do you lose a King and his coffin? In any case

he was rediscovered in the 19th century sharing the same vault as his great great grandfather Henry VII.

1643 King Charles I comes to Exeter. This was the Civil War, and in 1643 Prince Maurice a nephew of Charles captured the city of Exeter for the Royalist forces. The West Country had been one of the world's largest sources of silver for hundreds of years and 1643 was no exception. Kings and armies needed cash, lots of it.

As soon as Exeter had been secured the Truro Mint was moved to Exeter and by the end of 1643 the King was literally making a mint as the silver poured in. The primary purpose of the Exeter Mint was to strike coins, particularly silver, to pay the Royalist troops. The King lodged in Bedford House where his daughter Henrietta was born.

The Civil War was not going well and Princess Henrietta was baptised in Exeter Cathedral from where she and her mother the Queen, soon fled to France. Her mother, also Henrietta was Louis XIV's cousin.

After being on the losing side Charles was tried for treason, "by using his power to pursue his personal interest rather than the good of the country. The charge stated that he was devising "a wicked design to erect and uphold in himself an unlimited and tyrannical power to rule according to his will, and to overthrow the rights and liberties of the people".

It was not even clear that trying the King for treason was legal, it was such a novel idea at the time. In fact Charles himself said the following in his trial, "I would know by what power I am called hither, by what lawful authority...?" He claimed that no court had jurisdiction over a monarch, and that his own authority to rule had been given to him by God. The court, by contrast, challenged the doctrine of sovereign immunity and proposed that "the King of England was not a person, but an office whose every occupant was entrusted with a limited power to govern 'by and according to the laws of the land and not otherwise'."

This was the first ever rejection of absolute rule by monarchy and set in train future events that created Britain as a constitutional monarchy.

1649 Charles I was executed. He walked under guard from St James's Palace, where he had been confined, to the Palace of Whitehall, where an execution scaffold had been erected in front of the Banqueting House. According to observer Philip Henry, a moan "as I never heard before and desire I may never hear again" rose from the assembled crowd, some of whom then dipped their handkerchiefs in the King's blood as a memento.

1667 Anthony Sparrow becomes Bishop of Exeter. Sparrow was yet another man caught up in the rivalries of those who wanted to rule England. He was an academic and was cancelled as we say today, for his opinions, finding himself unable to work as an academic. His university had Royalist loyalties you see.

Ultimately the Royalists won the day when the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660 placed Charles II on the throne. Charles II was Charles I's oldest surviving son. The Convention Parliament of 1660 proclaimed that King Charles II had been the lawful monarch since the execution of Charles I on 30 January 1649. Charles returned from exile, leaving The Hague on 23 May and landing at Dover on 25 May. He entered London on 29 May 1660, his 30th birthday. To celebrate his return to his Parliament, 29 May was made a public holiday, popularly known as Oak Apple Day.

Not far from Exeter is the small village of St. Neot in Cornwall. During the English Civil War St Neot was staunchly Royalist. To commemorate this, each year on Oak Apple Day, an oak branch is mounted on the top of the church tower to symbolise the historical allegiance. You can see my post on St Neot here.

1685 - 89

Charles II died suddenly in 1685 from what is believed today to be kidney dysfunction, probably not assisted by his doctors who tried to save him with bloodletting, purging and cupping, which more likely finished him off.

Hi son James II became King. The tumult and Catholic threats were still not over though. James was a Catholic and at first the nation was prepared to overlook this after all of the previous upheavals of the Civil War. Nobody wanted to kick all that off again. But James pushed his ideas of divine right which had increasingly fallen out of favour and this did him no favours. The last straw was the birth of his son, another James, which raised the fear of a new Catholic dynasty rather than an interim period of a Catholic monarch.

The birth of the latest James pushed his protestant daughter Mary down a notch in the succession. The country was not going to have that. James's failed prosecution of seven bishops, seen as an attack on the Church of England, tipped the scale against him.

Mary was married to William of Orange and both had direct claims to the throne of England. Leading members of the English political class invited William to assume the English throne. When William landed in Brixham on 5 November 1688, James's army deserted and he went into exile in France on 23 December. In February 1689, a special Convention Parliament held James had "vacated" the English throne and installed William and Mary as joint monarchs, thereby establishing the principle that sovereignty derived from Parliament, not birth.

William's army arrived in Brixham, no accident, as here we are back in the Royalist West Country. William of Orange entered Exeter on November 9, 1688, during the Glorious Revolution, to rally support against King James II. After landing at Brixham, he stayed in the deanery of Exeter Cathedral for 12 days, consolidating his forces and receiving a warm welcome and pledges of support from local noblemen. His presence in Exeter was a key moment in the revolution, marking a turning point where the local gentry and inhabitants sided with the Protestant cause and his campaign to claim the throne.

William entered the city on the old medieval bridge, the remains of which can still be walked over in part. See the earlier part of this walk here.

1689 William and Mary are crowned as joint monarchs. Mary had a better claim than William but refused to take up the position as Queen without her husband being King. William was the grandson of Charles I, while Mary was the daughter of James II.

1702 Queen Anne. Anne was the sister of Mary. Mary had died in 1694 while William reigned alone until his death in 1702. Both Mary and Anne had been brought up as Protestants.

Anne was plagued by poor health throughout her life, and from her thirties she grew increasingly ill and obese. Despite 17 pregnancies, she died without surviving issue and was the last monarch of the House of Stuart. The eventual loss of her young son, Prince William, precipitated a potential succession crisis. Under the Act of Settlement 1701, which excluded all Catholics, Anne was succeeded by her second cousin George I of the House of Hanover.

Exeter Flying Post - Friday 19 November 1897

On the night of November 26-27 1703, the southern half of Britain was ravaged by a tempest which exhibited the worst features of the tropical cycIones. Whole forests of trees are said to have been uprooted, more than a dozen men-of-war were wrecked, eight hundred houses, four hundred windmills, seven church steeples, and Eddystone Lighthouse were blown down.

1703 The elm trees in the cathedral close were all blown down. Limes were used in their place but they failed so new elms were used once again.

1724

Daniel Defoe, author of Robinson Crusoe, visited Exeter during his three-year tour of Great Britain in 1724–1727, recording his impressions of the city as a prosperous hub of both gentry and trade. He noted Exeter's significant trade and manufacturing industries, calling it a city "full of gentry and good company, and yet full of trade and manufacturers also. The serge market held here every week is very well worth a strangers seeing, and next to the Brigg-Market at Leeds in Yorkshire, is the greatest in England. The people assur'd me that at this market is generally sold from 60 to 70 to 80, and sometimes a hundred thousand pounds value in serges in a week. I think 'tis kept on Mondays. ".

If that figure was true it would run to £11.7 million per week today. Serge was a significant export commodity from England, with ports like Exeter and Topsham growing in importance to handle the trade.

A Tour Thro' the Whole Island of Great Britain is an account of his travels by English author Daniel Defoe, first published in three volumes between 1724 and 1727. Other than Robinson Crusoe, Tour was Defoe's most popular and financially successful work during the eighteenth century.

1746 Bishop Lavington started the worlds first known "Me Too Movement", maybe.

He was an ardent opponent of Methodism. On being appointed bishop of Exeter, which included Cornwall, one of his first acts was to close the pulpits of North Cornwall to Methodists. He also produced a stream of letters and pamphlets attacking Methodism and John Wesley. One of these pamphlets contained an accusation against Wesley concerning his conduct with women, and in particular that he had made indecent advances to the maid of a Mrs Morgan at Mitchell in Cornwall. When Wesley investigated he found that Mrs Morgan was merely a gossip, and that Lavington had never troubled to verify the truth of the statements.

It cannot have been the first time that scandal was weaponised against a foe who was otherwise difficult to defeat. Non conformism was by now thriving and a great threat to the established church. See my post on Ford Independent Chapel.

1789 Another Royal Visit

King George III and Queen Charlotte visited Exeter in August 1789 during their "Tour of Pleasure" after the King's recovery from a serious illness. During the visit, which included a stay at the Deanery and attendance at a levée (social gathering) at the Bishop's Palace, the King's presence was commemorated with souvenir rosettes.

By now we were getting through Georges on the throne. George III ruled for sixty years and has only recently been knocked into third place for longest reigns, by Elizabeth II and Victoria. This was the George depicted in The Madness of King George, who had suffered several periods of serious illness during his reign..

Bath Journal - Monday 10 August 1789

Extract of a Letter from Exeter July 30th.

" We can from good authority assure our numerous readers, that this city will shortly be honoured with a visit from our most beloved Sovereign, and the Royal Family; his Majesty during his stay here, which it is expected will be at least two days, will reside at the Deanery, where he has signified his most gracious intention of receiving the congratulation of his loyal and affectionate subjects residing in this city and county. Great preparations are making by the Right Worshipful the Mayor and Chamber, for his reception, and various emblematical paintings and transparencies are preparing for a most general and magnificent illumination, to testify the heart-felt pleasure of a dutiful and affectionate people, at the sight of the best of Sovereigns, recovered from a dangerous illness."

1785 The first mail coach with all passengers under cover started a service between London and Exeter. It was travelled in a record breaking 24 hours, down from four days in 1658.

The first mail coach service from Exeter to London was established in late 1784, following the successful trial of the first mail coach route between Bristol and London in August 1784, which drastically cut delivery times and was later authorized by the government for expansion. This innovative postal system, inspired by John Palmer's idea of using rapid post-chaises, improved mail delivery by significantly increasing its speed and reliability. An armed guard was employed to protect the mail and ensure punctuality, with a timepiece to keep track of the schedule. The coaches travelled at a speed of about 7-8 miles an hour, stopping only for postal business to maintain strict delivery times.

1799 saw the founding of CMS or The Church Missionary Society. The Society was founded in Aldersgate Street in the City of London on 12 April 1799. The group included people like William Wilberforce, John Venn and John Newton. Together, they worked to abolish the slave trade, they fought for the rights of oppressed people at home and they launched out onto dangerous seas to share Jesus with the world.

The Exeter Rondel history is so all encompassing that even I enter the story here. Not in 1799 I hasten to add. 160 years later at the age of two, I along with my family boarded a P&O liner, the S.S. Chusan bound for India via the Suez Canal. My father was a missionary in CMS and we were to spend eight years between Poona as it was then and Bangalore. Most of my childhood memories are from that period. My father was both a parish vicar and a college lecturer during that time.

1832 The Cholera Epidemic

Exeter and Plymouth Gazette - Saturday 21 July 1832

EXETER, SATURDAY, July 21, 1832. It is our painful duty again to draw the public attention to the fearful spread throughout England, Ireland, and Scotland, of that alarming disease which has carried its destructive ravages to every quarter of the Globe. We observe, from the last official report of the Central Board of Health, that (exclusive of London, where the cases are increasing,) the Cholera is now in nearly fifty towns and districts in England and Scotland alone, and we regret to find that it has been thought necessary to insert Plymouth in the list.

We do not mention this distressing circumstance, for the purpose of causing unnecessary uneasiness in the minds of our fellow citizens, but that we may all be on our guard, for as it has pleased Providence to visit us with this calamity, we are also induced, from the exaggerated accounts respecting this frightful malady, which have been circulated in our city, to publish the real facts, which, trust, will tend to lessen anxiety, rather than promote it, at the same time creating that due caution, attention to cleanliness, and temperance, which ought to be observed by all classes.

1914 Your Country Needs You

Exeter and Plymouth Gazette - Friday 31 July 1914

FRIDAY, JULY 31, 1914 Europe is on the verge of a war more general and more terrible even than the "Great War" of a hundred years ago. In the words employed by the Prime Minister, in the House of Commons, yesterday, we are face to face with conditions of gravity almost unparalleled, the issues of peace and war hanging in the balance. The outbreak of hostilities between Austria-Hungary and Servia opens up the gravest possibilities for the whole Continent, for it brings nearer to the catastrophe that all the world apprehends. The reports which hourly come to hand show that extensive precautions are being taken by the Powers, troops being mobilised, fleets concentrated, and every step taken to guard against that contingency which all sincerely hope may be avoided. Passions and prejudices among others than the actual combatants have been inflamed, and the question of whether or not other nations will become involved as actual participants hangs by a thread.

The statement made in the House of Commons, yesterday, by Mr. Asquith, must bring home to the people of Great Britain the possibility that even they may become involved. Russia having declared that she will see Servia crushed, relations between her and Austria have become dangerously strained, and the Czar's troops are being hurried to the frontier, while reservists are being recalled to the colours. Germany has rejected the English proposal for a Peace Conference, and will support Austria if Russia attacks her; while France is bound, by a strict alliance, to join forces with Russia under such circumstances. The situation is further complicated by the fact that Italy is allied to Germany and Austria, and, though not in reality friendly to the latter, has engaged to support her in a European conflict. Italy is friendly to Britain, and we are joined by close ties, though not by a formal alliance, to France and Russia, who count on our backing, while we, of course, are bound to defend the neutrality of Belgium if her territory is invaded during a, Franco-German war.

1919 The Atomic age is born.

In 1919, Ernest Rutherford performed experiments at the University of Manchester that resulted in the first deliberate "splitting" of an atom, a man-made nuclear reaction. He bombarded nitrogen gas with alpha particles, which caused the nitrogen nucleus to eject a hydrogen nucleus (which he named the proton), transforming the nitrogen into oxygen. This groundbreaking work demonstrated that one element could be changed into another, a feat previously only imagined by alchemists.

1942 Another war and a bomb falls on the cathedral.

Daily News (London) - Monday 01 June 1942

Bombs Blasted Treasures Of Exeter Cathedral

Damage to the 800-year-old Exeter Cathedral in the recent raid was generally confined to the south side of the building, although practically every window was shattered. The beautiful marble recumbent effigy of Bishop Marshall, Bishop of Exeter from 1194-1206, is intact apart from some finely chiselled fingers which were found amid tons of debris. Another ancient relic which escaped was the Bishop's Throne, considered by many to be one of the finest of its kind. It was dismantled and removed 12 months ago.

Illustrated London News - Saturday 06 June 1942

"A Hun bomb struck the south choir aisle, and caused considerable devastation. The lectern and its eagle stands unmoved amid the debris all around."

"Irreparable loss was sustained to famous fifteenth century stained-glass windows in the cathedral, many of which were destroyed by blast."

1989 The Exeter Rondels are exhibited for the first time.

Country Life - Thursday 13 July 1989

The beauty of Exeter Cathedral has been enhanced by the placing of 700 rondels-painstakingly embroidered cushions telling a chronological story of national, local and church history from Roman times - on the stone seating around the knave. At nearly 230 ft in length, the work is longer than the Bayeux tapestry.

The rondels took 66 workers six years to make, under the direction of Mrs. Marjorie Dyer. She chose the name Exeter Rondels to echo the architecture of the cathedral's triforium, and carefully researched the design, then drew in every stitch - around 14 million.

1983 and the late Queen Elizabeth II came to the cathedral for the Royal Maundy service.

Torbay Express and South Devon Echo - Saturday 26 February 1983

Royal handout at Exeter Cathedral

THE Queen will be in Exeter Cathedral next month to distribute the traditional Maundy gifts. In the March issue of the Diocesan News the Bishop of Plymouth the Rt Rev Kenneth Newing outlines the origins and history of the monarch's connection with the day before Good Friday.

From earliest times, he tells us, a ceremony of feet-washing has been performed in many cathedrals monasteries and churches all over the world as part of the Holy Week worship. This has been carried out both in imitation of what Jesus Christ did at the Last Supper and because it was what He wanted His followers to do "It was not uncommon for kings, queens and emperors as well as bishops and abbots to perform this service. The number of people whose feet were washed was usually 12 or 13 "It was in the time of Henry VIII that the number of people had become the same as the king's age. James II was the last of our sovereigns actually to do the feet-washing" The service in its present form was revived by George V and nowadays purses of specially-minted money called Maundy money are given to as many men and women as the sovereign has years of age.

The end of my Exeter walk takes me past this statue at the front of the cathedral.

The statue, which stands prominently on Exeter Cathedral Green, dates from 1907 and is sculpted from white Pentilicon marble from Greece. The artist was Alfred Drury RA (1856-1944), whose work can be seen also at the entrance to the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, and in other towns and cities. The statue was paid for by a distant descendant of Hooker’s uncle. Richard Hooker is seated holding an open book depicting his famous work, Of the Laws of Ecclesiastical Politie. The base is made from granite from Blackingstone Quarry, Moretonhampstead. Exeter Civic Society

The cathedral green is bordered by some beautiful ancient buildings not the least of which is the Devon and Exeter Institution, seen here on the right. You can read my post about it here.

Leaving the open space in front of the cathedral there is a narrow alley which I will cover more at some future date as news has just been announced that the restoration of the hotel on the left is now underway.

The Royal Clarence Hotel on Exeter's Cathedral Green was destroyed by a significant fire in October 2016, gutting much of the building. The site has undergone scaffolding and hoardings since the fire, but restoration and redevelopment began in April 2025 with the goal of a 2027 completion.

This building below, takes us back full circle to the start of this walk.

This is an extract from that first post Exeter Photo Walk 1

The Guildhall Shopping Centre is therefore the only Shopping Centre in the world to house a 12th Century Church at its heart! What we see today is a conglomeration of buildings of different ages and styles, not least St Pancras right at its heart. The development which pulled all the elements together took place in the early 1970's. Apart from the church the oldest part was the original Higher Market building in Classical style as you can see here. The main Classical section fronts onto Queen Street and the architect also designed Covent Garden Market in London.

Higher Market is Grade 2 * listed by English Heritage. Originally designed by George Dymond, completed by Charles Fowler 1838. Long front faced with Bath stone. Central Greek Doric portico with pediment. Two subsidiary porticos, that on right hand side leading to Civic Hall. Queen Street shop fronts were inserted later C19. We'll see the main surviving sections at the front of the building at the end of the walk.

And here it is as promised.