The name is believed to come from Theoc, a Saxon missionary monk, who
founded a hermitage here. The abbey was originally a dependency of
Cranbourne Abbey in Dorsetshire, but being richly endowed, Tewkesbury
became the leading monastic establishment. Fitz-Hamon, Earl of
Gloucester, began the rebuilding of the church. The choir was
reconstructed in 1350 in Gothic style, but the nave and massive central
tower are Norman. The whole building is cruciform, and the choir, having
an hexagonal end, is surrounded by an ambulatory and numerous beautiful
chapels as in Westminster. The nave is extraordinarily long, and the
height of its columns has led to a squat appearance in the triforium,
but the choir has short columns and plenty of height in the triforium.
The colossal arch over the perpendicular window of the west front
forcibly reminds one of Peterborough. The Duke of Clarence and Isabel
his duchess, the king-maker's daughter; the Duke of Somerset, executed
after the battle of Tewkesbury; Abbot Alear, Becket's friend, are all
buried here. There is a fine gatehouse near the west end of the church.
At the battle of Tewkesbury in 1471, which proved so disastrous to the
Lancastrian cause, Prince Edward, Henry III.'s son, was slain while
fleeing from the field.
[Illustration: _Photochrom Co., Ltd._
TEWKESBURY ABBEY.
Its chief feature is the huge arch over the west window, just appearing
above the trees in the picture.]
EXETER AND ITS CATHEDRAL
=How to get there.
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