Evensong at St Johns College

Walk through the gateway, into St Johns College, one of two colleges founded in the early 16th century by Lady Margaret Beaufort, mother of King Henry VII.

...pass below the arms of the college, with its mythical beasts called yales (with the head of a goat, the body of an antelope, and the tail of an elephant)...

..and head with us into the chapel, behind this impressive stone exterior...

Last week we ventured out to attend Evensong at St John’s College Chapel. Though not as well known as their King’s College counterparts, the choir at St John’s is also an excellent choir. The choir here is formed from boys who attend a dedicated choristers School run by the College, and also from older students who are attending Cambridge University.

Evensong at St John’s followed the order of the Book of Common Prayer, with sung psalms, the Magnificat, sung prayers, an anthem and a hymn. The college of St John’s pride themselves on the distinctive style of their choir, believing that the training undertaken produces a unique and beautiful sound. Whether they or truly unique is hard for a layperson like me to judge; certainly they sang beautifully.

The chapel of St John’s was rebuilt in 1869, on the site of a much smaller 13th chapel. The architectural effect is still predominantly mediaeval or Tudor rather than Victorian. Perhaps something of the spirit of the 13th century chapel lingered on the night we were there, but the shape of the interior building and the atmospheric and unobtrusive lighting created a space that was austere and aweful. Once the ethereal voices of the choir began to fill the space, this effect was intensified.

For me, sitting down in the rather uncomfortable wooden pews that faced each other across the chapel floor, this evensong evoked an understanding of what it might have been like to worship in mediaeval times.

In my mind’s eye I could see the spirits of those who had founded the early colleges of Cambridge, the monks, the kings, the queens and the wealthy benefactors entering a chapel such as this to worship. In this moment I caught something of the sense of piety and true belief that most of these worshippers would have possessed. Despite their manifold failings which included treachery, political manoeuvering, the promotion of war and a variety of immoral behaviour, most of these men and women of power were in fact, quite religious, something which is not always easy for us to understand today.

The daily prayer, the weekly confessions, and the churches and monastries they founded and funded are testament to their true belief in a God who was always watching, and who would not hesitate to punish impious behaviour should the necessary repentance not be shown appropriately.

Most of you reading this would know that John and I are keen family historians. One of the branches of my family that we have researched stretches back to mediaeval times – one actually has his name on the gate of Trinity College next door. Being in St John’s somehow brought these ancestors of mine closer to my 21st century understanding.

I felt St John’s had offered an experience that allowed me a glimpse into a time of simple faith and trust. Surrounded by dimly lit stone and the words of ancient psalms which expressed a gratitude to a God who cared enough to deliver frail humanity, it was easy to forget complex issues of theology and faith and to simply believe.

Autumn in Cambridge

Since our last post about Cambridge, the weather has settled in to a typical mid-Autumn pattern. The autumn began with beautiful blue skies and crisp sunny days, as this earlier photo shows.

Now, there is much less sunshine and a more regular cloud cover. The rainy periods have returned and the precipitation can be constant, even approaching 'heavy'. Tonight we attended the worship of the Cambridge Theological Federation (a fortnightly event) and found ourselves walking back through puddles of varying depths on the footpath. (No photo, I'm afraid.)

As it is Autumn, many of the leaves have started 'turning' and the more advanced ones are beginning to litter the ground, making walking a little bit more hazardous. Here's a photo of the same view as above, taken this past week. It is what we see as we look out from our lounge room, across Jesus Lane, into Sidney Sussex College. The leaves are more coloured in this shot.

Autumn marks the start of the academic year, and as well as events relating to the college, we have been to the first meeting of the New Testament Seminar. There were over 30 people present and the seminar included introductions to the research of three new staff members. No pictures from the event, but John has raided Google images to find these two pictures, showing early New Testament texts. The first is the earliest known fragment of a NT book, from the Gospel of John, and is dated to the middle of the 2nd century.

The second is a full page, also from John's Gospel, showing how it was written entirely in capital letters and without any punctuation. The trained eye can detect certain 'clues' or 'hints' which help with separating words and sentences. This aspect of reading ancient manuscripts was actually part of one of the lectures we heard at the NT Conference while we were in Exeter in September.

In between our walks and visits, John has been working away regularly at the introductory book that is his main project for this time of study leave...although he is writing in English, not Greek! Here's where it all happens:

On the weekend just past, we took our usual wander through Midsummer Common and Jesus Green, along the sided of the river Cam, and we saw some 'new' scenes. You might enjoy them:

...the changing foliage...

...a cluster of swans...



...some rowers on the river, starting their training...



...a group of 'supporters'

at one of the rowing clubs

on the other side of the river...



...and a circus with its Big Tent

pitched on Midsummer Common.

On Thursday we are heading north to our old stamping grounds at Durham, where we will catch up with friends and do more sightseeing for two weeks while we are there. We are also going to visit the New Testament Seminar whilst there. (We have great memories of Durham from our year there in 1997.)

We plan to visit the graveyard where Elizabeth's great-great-great-grandmother, Dinah Raine, is buried--we didn't know about her in 1997. And, we have just discovered that there is an existing and readable tombstone where her 7 times great grandparents are buried in the Romaldkirk churchyard. Christopher Raine and his wife Eleanor were buried there in 1739.

On the way back we will stop over in Derbyshire for two days and visit some Cokayne tombs (Sir Thomas is Elizabeth's 14th great grandfather on the Lowe side, and the tombs of his father and grandfather are also there) in both Youlgrave and Ashbourne church.

So stay tuned for photos of rugged Pennine mountains, dry stone walls, rolling paddocks, church towers and spires, and ancient tombstones!!!

Out and About in Cambridge – more things of interest

Come for another walk around Cambridge...

Though many of its buildings are of mediaeval origin, Cambridge is notable for its diverse architectural styles that span a number of centuries. There are a number of quite interesting “modern” ones, some of which we have snapped when out and about.

This building, which is home to our bank, was built around 1890-93, is considered an unusual building for Cambridge. It was originally part of Foster’s Bank, which was founded by Richard and Ebenezer Foster, who were wealthy mill owners at the time.

The interior is quite striking, as it is beautifully tiled throughout, and has a dome slightly reminiscent of St Paul’s Cathedral.

This inscription is found on the wall of the old London County Bank, which was built in 1867. No longer a bank, it has been taken over by Corpus Christi College.


The Grafton Centre, which is a place we regularly visit for various household supplies, is described by the Cambridge 2000 project as a shopping centre that, like other shopping centres, is one of a group that is largely the same all over the world, and although popular, lacks character! We thought we would include it as a regular place for the regular people of Cambridge to shop. You can see it at the very end of the mall in the photo below. It does, however, house a very atmospheric Italian restaurant that makes excellent duck confit.

One of the oldest places in Cambridge is Cambridge Castle. Originally an iron age fort, it was first used as a garrison by the Romans and then fortified by William the Conqueror. Under Edward I, it was rebuilt in stone and contained a garrison, gaol, and a nominal residence for the king. By Tudor times, it was considered redundant, and much of its stone was removed by Henry VIII and used for the building of King’s College. What was left was then sold off to various Cambridge Colleges and churches by Elizabeth I. Now it looks much like an overly large grass hill, guarding the entrance to the current County Hall.

Another fairly ancient building is that of St Bene’ts Church, which has an intact Saxon tower from the original church building. The earliest part is dated from around 1025; the latest was built in the 19th century. The Saxon tower was made largely of river stones, and is quite distinct from its surrounding Norman (and later) counterparts.




To return to Cambridge’s Tudor heritage, we have discovered a number of Tudor buildings throughout the city which we like very much. And what better way (person?) to introduce these than the redoubtable Henry VIII, who stands in perpetual guard over the famous King’s College?

Below are two tudor houses, one which is covered in a delightful autumn-coloured vine.

We also discovered colourful floral displays in this street (Mill Rd), which we visited last Saturday. For Elizabeth, the best discovery (apart from the antique stores) was a decent Chinese restaurant, which we had lunch at.

Another small tudor building with lots of character is one of the pubs close to our street.

Named “Cambridge of the Thames” it puts itself forward as a traditional gentleman’s pub. We were very taken by the sign on its left hand side, which reads:

“This HOUSE is dedicated to those splendid FELLOWS who make DRINKING a pleasure, who reach CONTENTMENT before CAPACITY, and who, whatever the DRINK, can TAKE it, HOLD it, ENJOY it, and still remain GENTLEMEN.”

Another fine example of Tudor architecture (built 1600s) is the old Guild Hall building, which sits amidst some of the more recent buildings near the centre of the city. It was formerly an inn, but has been the home of the Cambridge University Catholic Chaplaincy since 1924.

(Information from Cambridge 2000 website at http://www.cambridge2000.com/cambridge2000/html/0009/P9112494.html)

The new Guildhall is descried on the Cambridge 2000 website as “not a very interesting building, occupied by the city government. It was built in two stages. The only reason most people would go inside is to visit the planning application department.” Well, we actually went inside it for another reason – to visit the Tourist Information Centre!! It is certainly more modern and sleek in its design, and looks quite different in comparison to the largely ancient buildings that surround it.

The Guildhall is close to the Cambridge marketplace, and one interesting landmark that certainly doesn’t lack character is the Cornish Pasty Co. Pub man, who stands on his balcony day and night observing the market place of Cambridge. This pub is famous for its Cornish pasties, and on weekends the queues to purchase these wind through the pub and out the door.

During one of our many forays into the marketplace we discovered two unusual things. One is the Romanesque cauliflower, which is grown in Cambridgeshire on the local fen farms. This seriously weird-looking brassica actually tastes quite delicious, though it was intimidating to have to actually cook one for the first time.

Our other unusual discovery was at the market fishmonger. Two of the biggest prawns I have ever seen were behind his counter. Variously known as jumbo prawns, giant tiger prawns and Madagascan prawns, these prawns were nearly a foot long. Apparently this species (Penaeus Monodan) can grow to 36cm long. On the advice of the fishmonger, we cooked them in garlic and cream, and they were delicious.

Our last photo has nothing to do with buildings or food (unless you are a Southern American and like certain southern fried small animals). It is one of Cambridge’s non-human inhabitants, the grey squirrel. We found this one foraging under a tree in Christ’s Pieces in the autumn sun. He was quite affable until we tried to get too close to snap his photo.

An English Country Garden

Peckover House in Wisbech, north Cambridgeshire, is a National Trust property. We explored the house before venturing into the garden.


The walled garden is listed as having “many fine Victorian features, an orangery, summerhouses and fernery”. It also had a croquet lawn, many fruit trees and the most magnificent English garden.

For all of you garden lovers (especially those who have recently toured the gardens of the UK and may be missing them), we present some photos of the Peckover gardens below.


This is a tulip tree which was the feature of the croquet lawn.

Here is the croquet lawn immediately at the back door of the house...

...a cotton lavendar border...

...some dainty crocuses...

...and a purple herbaceous border.

Below is a water feature in the Pool Garden, which apparently was reconstructed from a photo of the original pool.

Here is the water lily in the pond.

...more assorted flowers...

...dahlias...

...and a view of the whole Pool Garden:

This quince tree stands in the corner of a triangular section of the garden...its fruit is what the Romans called golden apples.

On one of the dividing walls in the middle of the garden we found this espaliered pear tree:

...and nearby, some sunflowers...

...a walkway which separates the formal garden

from the fern house...

...a feature in the formal garden...

...and a double begonia.

Towards the rear of the walled garden we found a thatched summer house which Laurel and Elizabeth enjoyed exploring.

In another shaded corner towards the bottom of the garden, was a cat cemetery. There seems to have been at least ten cats who have lived at Peckover House.

And here is the latest feline resident of Peckover House...

He was given a thorough patting by John, who seemed to have been reminded of how much he was missing our cat, Miffy (pictured here in Canberra, courtesy of Brendon and Jo who have been looking after him.)