15th August 1819, Carlisle, cathedral, bridge, castle, session house, evening service

Sunday 15th August 1819

August 15 we went to the Cathedral in the morning, the service is well performed the Cathedral is nice but not very striking part of it is converted into

a parish church the only one in Carlisle; we then inspected the objects worthy of notice which appears the bridge the Castle and the session house part of the castle have been rebuilt at different times Mary Queen of Scots was confined in one of the towers for nearly 2 years It was founded by William 2nd the session house and bridge are built by Smirke in the evening we again attended the Cathedral

OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:

Carlisle Cathedral was begun in 1122, during the reign of King Henry I, as a community of Canons Regular, influenced by the ascetic practices of the Cistercians. Many large churches of Augustinian foundation were built in England during this period as the Archbishop of Canterbury, William de Corbeil, was a member of this order, but Carlisle is one of only four Augustinian churches in England to become a cathedral, most monastic cathedrals being Benedictine. The church was begun by Athelwold, an Englishman, who became the first prior. In 1133, the church was raised to the status of cathedral and Athelwold became the first Bishop of Carlisle.

1803: Carlisle Cathedral. Nth. Wt. Cumberland. Engraved by J Noble after R Carlisle, published Vernor & Hood, Poultry http://www.rareoldprints.com/z/14265

During the time of the English Civil War, a portion of the nave of the cathedral was demolished by the Scottish Presbyterian Army in order to use the stone to reinforce Carlisle Castle.

2014: The exterior of Carlisle Cathedral as viewed from the West by David Iliff and published under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Carlisle_Cathedral_Exterior,_Cumbria,_UK_-… — 2014: The exterior of Carlisle Cathedral as viewed from the West by David Iliff and published under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Carlisle_Cathedral_Exterior,_Cumbria,_UK_-_Diliff.jpg

Between 1853 and 1870 Carlisle Cathedral was restored by Ewan Christian. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlisle_Cathedral

The bridge over the River Eden was built in 1815 to a design by Sir Robert Smirke, with five long arches.

The width was doubled in 1932. https://www.visitcumbria.com/car/eden-bridge/

Carlisle Castle, still relatively intact, was built in 1092 by William Rufus, and once served as a prison for Mary, Queen of Scots.

2007: Carlisle Castle Panorama by David P from Lancaster and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Carlisle_Castle_Panorama.jpg

The castle now houses the Duke of Lancaster's Regiment and the Border Regiment Museum. Excavations have dated the Roman timber fort constructed at the site of present Carlisle Castle to the winter of AD 73, Until 400, the Roman occupation fluctuated in importance. At one time, it broke off from Rome when Marcus Carausius assumed power over the territory. He was assassinated and suffered damnatio memoriae, but a surviving reference to him has been uncovered in Carlisle. Coins excavated in the area suggest that Romans remained in Carlisle until the reign of Emperor Valentinian II, from 375 to 392. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlisle and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlisle_Castle

Session House: There is no specific reference to the Session House, but Joseph Massey, Curator of The Wordsworth Trust and Tullie House., in Carlisle’s Historic Buildings refers to Smirke: “The Citadel was in poor condition by the early 19th century and so it was rebuilt to the plans of Robert Smirke.

1803: The Citadel at Carlisle, Cumberland. Engraving by T. Noble after R. Carlisle. Published in 1803. https://antique-prints-maps.com/acatalog/ref1.php?imagefile=../largeimages/SECitadelCarlisleBeau11.jpg

J. Noble’s engraving of 1803 (above) shows the old Citadel in its dilapidated but romantic state, while Edward Finden’s engraving of 1828 shows the new Citadel, built in the Gothic style to maintain a connection to the previous building and which still survives today.” https://wordsworth.org.uk/blog/2016/02/09/carlisles-historic-buildings/

2008: The Court Buildings, Carlisle. Photograph by Bill Henderson. This image was taken from the Geograph project collection. The copyright on this image is owned by Bill Henderson and is licensed for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution-Sha… — 2008: The Court Buildings, Carlisle. Photograph by Bill Henderson. This image was taken from the Geograph project collection. The copyright on this image is owned by Bill Henderson and is licensed for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 license.w:en:Creative Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Court_Buildings,_Carlisle_-_geograph.org.uk_-_

According to Wikipedia, “these buildings were originally the gates at the south eastern end of the City Wall of Carlisle.”

Visit Cumbria has an excellent article on Smirkes’ contribution to Cumbrian architecture https://www.visitcumbria.com/robert-smirke/.

A record of listed buildings shows a picture of the citadel and states: “The court replaces the west tower of the Citadel and was rebuilt by Robert Smirke.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Listed_buildings_in_Carlisle,_Cumbria.

Can you help us?

Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.

New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?

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