Mouse Bishop of St Albans
@MouseBishop
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One of Hertfordshire’s leading ecclesiastical rodents, who enjoys sharing historical tidbits on his travels and tending to his mischief.
St Albans, Hertfordshire
Joined April 2021
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Pinned Tweet
Imagine you were a 22-year-old who helped to build St Albans’ abbey gateway in ~1365. You would’ve already survived the Black Death (twice) and seen the captured French King paraded through the town, with the Peasants’ Revolt still to come before you turned 40.
#History
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When this house was built in Hertford, the printing press hadn’t yet arrived in England and there would’ve been veterans of Agincourt still alive. It’s a rough contemporary of Machu Picchu.
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It’s impossible to walk past this door and not want to commit at least a little nuisance.
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This is the (empty) tomb of King Athelstan in Malmesbury. Athelstan was the first King of the English, yet he is a largely forgotten figure in our
#history
. Here’s a (long) thread about him… 🧵
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If you can walk past this door and not want to commit at least a little nuisance, then you’re doing better than me.
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These medieval effigies in Chichester cathedral inspired Philip Larkin to write the poem ‘An Arundel Tomb’. The last line is: “What will survive of us is love.”
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In Bury St Edmunds, there are houses built into the ruins of a medieval abbey wall, and it is, quite frankly, magnificent.
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Fantastic to see the high altar screen lit up in St Albans cathedral this weekend, giving us a teasing glimpse of how it might’ve looked before the English Reformation.
#History
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Epic trolling of Oliver Cromwell by Warwick Castle here, placing a waxwork of the man whose party banned Christmas celebrations right next to a massive, gloriously-decorated Christmas tree. 👏
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The Battle of Hastings was fought
#OnThisDay
in 1066. It’s the most famous date in English history for a reason, fundamentally changing our nation’s destiny. Join me on a journey going back 957 years in time… 🧵
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The perfect Christmas ornament doesn’t exi-
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The Sutton Hoo helmet is perhaps the single most iconic image of Anglo-Saxon England. Many people believe it belonged to King Rædwald of East Anglia… but did it? Let’s do a little investigating… 🧵
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And that, in a nutshell, is the story of Athelstan! Obviously a great simplification, for which I apologise, but this has already run to a 14 tweet thread! I hope you found it interesting; it is one of my favourite periods of history. 👑🐭
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The monks of Newstead Abbey threw this eagle lectern into a lake, rather than let it be plundered by Henry VIII. It was found when the lake was dredged 250 years later. After a bit of a cleaning and restoration, it now stands proudly in Southwell cathedral.
#History
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After the Battle of Hastings in 1066, the surviving English leaders refused to accept William the Conqueror as their king. In response, he ravaged the land, until they surrendered here at Berkhamsted in Hertfordshire. But that was not the end of the resistance… 🧵 (1/15)
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A view towards the shrine of St Alban, Britain’s first saint, in St Albans cathedral.
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This shell mosaic was laid in Roman Verulamium (St Albans) in ~150 AD. I can only imagine how delighted the original owner must’ve been when they first saw it. It was excavated by Sir Mortimer Wheeler in the 1930s, and can now be found in Verulamium Museum.
#History
#MosaicMonday
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The longest nave in England; the product of centuries of building, collapsing, and repairing from Norman times to the present.
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Today is my third
#Twitterversary
! Thank you for being so welcoming to a mitred rodent these last three years. It’s been great fun sharing photos and historical anecdotes with you. Now, onto my cake…
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With the longest nave in Britain, there’s plenty of space in St Albans cathedral for two mice bishops! It’s been a pleasure starting to show my knitted colleague around. Now, where shall we go next?
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A grief-stricken King Edward I erected monuments at all 12 places where his wife Eleanor’s body stayed on its final journey from Lincoln to London - including St Albans. Our ‘Eleanor cross’ stood here, in front of the clock tower, from 1293 until 1701.
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St Albans is blessed with some of the finest Roman mosaics in Britain. This is my own favourite, the so-called shell mosaic, which is ~1,875 years old. It was rediscovered by Tessa and Mortimer Wheeler during their excavations of the 1930s.
#MosaicMonday
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Behind me is King Edward the Confessor’s shrine in Westminster Abbey. He’s best known for dying in 1066, triggering the crisis that led to the Norman Conquest. But there’s so much more to him than that. Here’s a (long) thread about how he became king. 🧵
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Yorkshire craftsman Robert Thompson became known as ‘Mouseman’ because he carved a mouse on almost everything he made. This one’s in Southwell Minster. As you can imagine, he is very popular amongst my kind…
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“Here lies poor but honest Bryan Tunstall; he was a most expert angler until Death, envious of his Merit, threw out his line, hook’d him, and landed him here, the 21st day of April 1790.” This is one the most amazing old gravestones I’ve ever come across! 🎣🪦
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This is Mayburgh Henge. One of the most important events in English history took place near here
#OnThisDay
in 927 - indeed, you could say the
#history
of “England” as a political entity begins then. Yet it’s largely forgotten. Here’s a (long) thread… 🧵 (1/15)
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For over 450 years, the clock tower bell in St Albans rang the daily curfew, warning people to cover their fires for the night. Indeed, the word curfew comes from the French couvre-feu (“cover-fire”). The last curfew was rung here in 1863.
#History
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This is the door to the medieval watching loft in St Albans cathedral. From the loft, monastic officials could keep an eye on anyone visiting the saint’s shrine to prevent any mischief.
#History
#AdoorableThursday
#SpotTheHiddenMouse
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This stunning Roman mosaic and hypocaust can still be found in their original location, where a wealthy family lived 1,800+ years ago. Entry to this jewel of Verulamium (St Albans) is FREE!
#MosaicMonday
#History
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Any nuisance committed here will be logged…
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A splendid medieval wall painting of the crucifixion, tucked away in an alcove in Lichfield Cathedral. How it survived the Reformation and Civil War is a mystery.
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In 686, a plague took the lives of all the educated monks at Jarrow bar two - the abbot, and a young boy. That boy was Bede, who went on to become the first English historian and one of the great scholars of the Middle Ages. He is buried here at Durham.
#SpotTheHiddenMouse
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I’m 99% sure these knights don’t come alive at night, but that 1% is enough to keep me out of Temple Church after dark…
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The words lord and lady come from the Old English hlaford (“loaf guardian”) and hlæfdige (“loaf kneader”). Aristocrats are well bread, you see…
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One of the phenomenal mosaics discovered in Roman Verulamium (St Albans). It’s believed to depict either Oceanus (a Roman god of seas and rivers) or Cernunnos (a Celtic god of animals and nature).
#History
#MosaicMonday
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Thousands of messages of hope are currently dangling down from the cathedral crossing tower, as part of an exhibit called ‘Peace Doves’ by the artist Peter Walker. It really does take your breath away to see it! 🕊️
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King Æthelfrith was the first man to rule both Bernicia and Deira - the two areas that fused to create the great kingdom of Northumbria. His wife was called Bebba, and it’s from her that we get the name Bamburgh (aka Bebbanburg - as fans of The Last Kingdom will know!).
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At school, I was taught that Christianity was introduced to England by St Augustine in 597 - but that’s only part of the story. It took almost a century for the religion to spread to all the English kingdoms, and many more men and women played a key role… 🧵
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A doorway into Vintry Gardens in St Albans; the area within used to be a cemetery for the abbey’s monks.
#SpotTheHiddenMouse
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In medieval times, pilgrims flocked to see the shrine of St Alban. But the monks had to be careful, because people would try to steal donations and even relics. Hence they built this ‘watching loft’ in the early 1400s to keep an eye out for any pilfering.
#AdoorableThursday
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To get 2024 off to a good start, here’s a photo of St Albans cathedral, which has England’s longest nave and the only 11th-century Norman great crossing tower left standing in the country. Happy new year everyone!!
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A doorway into England’s only surviving medieval town belfry, here in St Albans.
#AdoorableThursday
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Me: Well, looks like Christmas is pretty much over then.
Wise Men: You’ve got to be kidding! We literally only just got here!! 😤
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The High Altar Screen in St Albans cathedral, flanked by two Christmas trees. The screen was built during the reign of Richard III and incorporates some Yorkist symbols - yet only a year after it was unveiled, he was dead and the Tudors were in power.
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In 1361 a monk at St Albans Abbey created a recipe for “sweet spiced cakes, marked with a cross”, and made them for the poor every Good Friday. His name was Thomas Rocliffe, and you can buy one of his ‘Alban Buns’ in the Abbot’s Kitchen today!
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Bosham church in Sussex appears in the Bayeux Tapestry - and, excitingly, some Saxon parts still stand, such as the tower wall you see here. The font in the foreground is a relatively modern addition, being a mere 850 or so years old…
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Behold the nave of St Albans cathedral. Built by the Normans. Extended and repaired by the Plantagenets. Sold to the local people by the Tudors. Saved by the Victorians. Enjoyed by us today. Truly, the great survivor.
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I’m devastated to learn the Sycamore Gap tree has been felled overnight, in what appears to be a horrific act of environmental and cultural vandalism. What awful news; I hope the police are able to find those responsible.
This sycamore tree stands right on top of Hadrian’s Wall. It was voted English Tree of the Year in the Woodland Trust’s awards of 2016, and features in the film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.
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This building was St Albans’ jail for over 50 years, but today it’s where you go to register a birth… WHICH IS WHY I WAS THERE!!!
Yes, I’m delighted to announce that we were blessed with the arrival of a baby boy a couple of months ago! All are doing well. 😊🐭
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One of the splendid medieval wall paintings in the nave of St Albans cathedral to get your week off to a good start.
#SpotTheHiddenMouse
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‘Tis the night before Christmas,
And all through the house,
Not a creature is stirring,
Not even me.
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Behind me is the tomb of Edward the Confessor, who became king after Harthacnut died
#OnThisDay
in 1042. He lived an extraordinary life, and few have had a bigger impact on the course of English history. Join me on a quick canter through his amazing story… 🧵
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‘Tawdry’ is hardly a word you’d associate with beautiful Ely, and yet… the word is a corruption of St Audrey, the 7th-century saint who founded the abbey here. It came about from the poor quality merchandise sold at a local fair named after her.
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The Roman walls of Verulamium (St Albans) are ~1,750 years old - but they’re still youngsters next to this ditch on the other side of the road. It dates back several centuries earlier to the Iron Age, when the town was called Verlamion.
#History
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A small door into a crypt in Roskilde Cathedral. Many Danish kings and queens are buried in the cathedral, including one who was also King of England… Sweyn Forkbeard.
#History
#AdoorableThursday
#SpotTheHiddenMouse
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The St Albans postbox toppers are back and better than ever before - just look at this one of the clock tower and Boot pub!! The toppers are part of an amazing fundraising campaign to support
@CancerHair
and
@HertsMind
. More details in the thread below.
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The door up to the medieval watching loft in St Albans cathedral.
#History
#AdoorableThursday
#SpotTheHiddenMouse
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The door to the medieval watching loft in St Albans cathedral. From the loft, monastic officials could keep a beady eye on any visitors trying to steal donations from the saint’s shrine.
#AdoorableThursday
#SpotTheHiddenMouse
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The Lady Chapel in St Albans. The chapel was built in the early 1300s, then later used as a school for over 300 years from the dissolution until its Victorian restoration. It is many people’s favourite part of the cathedral.
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On the one hand, artificial intelligence may come to threaten our way of life - indeed, our very existence. But on the other hand, just look! AI made this cool mouse bishop picture for me! Give it full control of the world now!
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This passageway used to lead to the Christopher Inn; a once respectable place that turned into a den of iniquity under the gloriously-named Neptune Smith. Note the figure at the top right - she’s a succubus, and recently restored to her original black colouring.
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After King Harold died at Hastings in 1066, no English monarch spoke English as their first language until Henry IV seized the throne in 1399 - which is about when the oldest part of the Tudor Tavern was built in St Albans.
#History
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Hertfordshire Puddingstone is one of the rarest rocks in the world, and exceedingly hard. It takes its name from how the embedded flint resembles plums in a pudding, and people used to believe it could scare away evil spirits.
#History
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According to local tradition, King Cnut’s daughter died after falling into a millstream in Bosham in 1020. When a small coffin was found under the church nave in 1865, it was assumed to be hers. It was reburied with due ceremony, showing how empathy can reach across centuries.
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The ‘Alban Way’ is a 6-mile route connecting St Albans and Hatfield. It was a railway line between 1865 and 1968, used more for freight than passengers, and is now a great place to go for a walk, jog or cycle.
#History
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The oldest cathedral tower in Britain, built by the conquering Normans (and plenty of Saxon labourers, no doubt) between 1077 and 1088.
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This is the old verger’s house in Hertford, which was built around 1450 and is the oldest surviving domestic building in our county town. My apologies for the lack of recent posts but it’s been very busy at work - I hope things will improve shortly, enabling more tweeting!!
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The medieval city of St Albans was built some distance away from its Roman predecessor, Verulamium, which has greatly aided archaeological discovery. This incredible shell mosaic was rediscovered by Tessa and Mortimer Wheeler in the 1930s. It is ~1,875 years old.
#MosaicMonday
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The writer John Higgs said of St Albans: “It is the sort of place where you might encounter a badger wearing a waistcoat and walking upright, who tips his hat as he wishes you good morning.” Is there any greater praise than that?! 🦡🎩
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This door used to stand at the west entrance to St Albans abbey; the monks could open the whole thing for large services but just use the smaller inner door themselves the rest of the time. It dates to the late 1400s.
#SpotTheHiddenMouse
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The shrine of St Amphibalus, the priest who converted Alban to Christianity. It was destroyed in the Reformation but the pieces rediscovered and patched up by the Victorians, with further restoration during the covid pandemic.
#SpotTheHiddenMouse
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This is the oldest surviving structure of any cathedral in the country - the Saxon crypt at Ripon, which was built by St Wilfrid in 672. There would’ve been people whose lifespans overlapped the death of the Prophet Muhammad and the building of this crypt. Astonishing.
#History
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The “Jew’s House” in Lincoln is one of the oldest surviving domestic houses in Britain, which dates to ~1170 and has been in continuous use for over 850 years. It sits at the bottom of the aptly-named Steep Hill.
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The first person to be imprisoned in the Tower of London was Ranulf Flambard.
The first person to escape imprisonment in the Tower of London was… Ranulf Flambard.
😬
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This spectacular medieval wall painting in St Albans was hidden for centuries. It depicts St William of York - but may originally have been of St Hugh of Lincoln, and repurposed after the Yorkist victory in the Battle of St Albans in 1455.
#History
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May your weekend be as wonderful as the view across Verulamium Park towards St Albans cathedral.
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The geometric staircase in St Paul’s cathedral in London, designed by Sir Christopher Wren. Amongst its many claims to fame, it featured as the route to the divination classroom in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban!
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A door into the medieval St Mary’s church in Hitchin.
#AdoorableThursday
#SpotTheHiddenMouse
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Like many others, I’m spending the time between Christmas and New Year with extended family, consuming absurd amounts of cheese.
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The crypt in Hexham abbey was built by St Wilfrid around the time of the Venerable Bede’s birth in ~674. The Black Death of 1348-50 then lay as far in the future as it now does in the past.
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Beautiful light flooding down Waxhouse Gate in St Albans. Traders have been selling their wares here for centuries, from wax gifts for pilgrims visiting the abbey in medieval times through to tasty Indian street food today!
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Happy Candlemas! In France, Candlemas is celebrated with the eating of crepes, an innovation attributed to the 5th-century Pope Gelasius I and one I heartily endorse.
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This is believed to be Britain’s oldest wooden door, dating back to when Edward the Confessor’s Westminster Abbey was under construction in the 1050s. It was carved from a single oak tree from eastern England.
#History
#AdoorableThursday
#SpotTheHiddenMouse
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This parish poor box dates all the way back to the 1650s. There was a separate key for each lock, held by three different people as a way to prevent pilfering.
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There was a surge of interest in the Virgin Mary in the 13th-14th centuries, which led to many spectacular Lady Chapels being built across the country. Many were despoiled in the Reformation, and we’re lucky that the one in St Albans survived by becoming a school.
#History
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The Lady Chapel in St Albans cathedral was built in the early 1300s. After the abbey was dissolved in 1539, the Lady Chapel was used as a school for over 300 years until restored by the Victorians.
#History
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Work began to construct the tower of St Albans cathedral in 1077 - but the bricks you see within it are centuries older. They’re Roman bricks, which were reused from the old town of Verulamium.
#History
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In Tudor times, saffron was an expensive dye reserved for the nobility, which could be readily grown in south Cambridgeshire thanks to the soil and climate there. And that’s how the beautiful town of Saffron Walden got its name in the 16th century.
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The ‘night stair’ in Hexham abbey. Dating to the 1200s, the staircase allowed the canons here to travel directly between their dormitories and the heart of the church.
#History
#SpotTheHiddenMouse
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The tithe barn in Bradford-on-Avon was built in the 1330s, and thus predates the Black Death, Peasants’ Revolt, and Battle of Agincourt. You might think it’s therefore the oldest building in the town. But no, it’d need to be more than 300 years older for that…
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‘Tis the night before Christmas,
And all through the house,
Not a creature is stirring,
Not even me.
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The knitted mouse asked me if this was a medieval entrance to the abbey? Or a castle? Or a jail? Or a printing press? Or a school? Or a local icon?
And I said yes. 😉
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In 1361 a monk at St Albans Abbey created a recipe for “sweet spiced cakes, marked with a cross”, and made them for the poor every Good Friday. His name was Thomas Rocliffe, and you can buy one of his ‘Alban Buns’ in the Abbot’s Kitchen today!
#History
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Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! With love from the mice of ❤️fordshire.
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A view down through the Quire and Presbytery towards the High Altar Screen in St Albans cathedral.
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Q: What river runs through Luton?
A: The River Lea.
The clue’s in the name; Luton = Lea Town. And here is that wonderful waterway, at nearby Wheathampstead.
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