St. Peter's Church, Sunderland

The Britons and Scots were apparently unfamiliar with stone building involving the use of squared stone and mortar.

 

The building of Hexham was commenced in 674, and it was not till that date that Benedict Biscop was in position to engage workmen for Wearmouth, so that Wilfrid was just beforehand with Biscop, who in consequence had to look elsewhere for his architects, and he set out for Gaul to engage them there.

 

Now it does not at all follow that because Biscop brought his masons from Gaul, therefore they were not Comacines. It was as easy to find Comacines in Gaul as in England. We find them settled there at later date, when they were called artifici Franchi. There is presumptive evidence of a settlement of a guild in Gaul at this time, and it was probably some of the French Comacines that Biscop employed, for Biscop insisted on a church built after the Roman manner, a Basilica; he would have nothing else, and no builders could build a Basilica better than successors to the Roman college of architecture.

 

The twined serpents with birds' beaks on the right doorpost of the doorway under the tower singularly characteristic of the style of the Basilicas in Rome. There is a similar design on the architrave of an ancient door in San Clemente, Rome.

 

 

 

St Bede wrote:

"After the interval of a year, Benedict crossed the sea into Gaul, and no sooner asked than he obtained and carried back with him some masons to build him a church in the Roman style, which he had always admired. ...When the work was drawing to completion, he sent messengers to Gaul to fetch makers of glass, (more properly artificers,) who were at this time unknown in Britain, that they might glaze the windows of his church, with the cloisters and dining-rooms. This was done, and they came, and not only finished the work required, but taught the English nation their handicraft, which was well adapted for enclosing the lanterns of the church, and for the vessels required for various uses.

All other things necessary for the service of the church and the altar, the sacred vessels, and the vestments, because they could not be procured in England, he took especial care to buy and bring home from foreign parts.

Some decorations and muniments there were which could not be procured even in Gaul, and these the pious founder determined to fetch from Rome..."

 

The church was built within a year between 674 and 675, and it was not a large building, although its nave proportions of 5.64m by 19.5m are not dissimilar to those of many Merovingian churches.

There are two medieval effigies. On the north side of the chancel, beneath the eastern arch of the arcade, is a canopied tomb containing a rather damaged effigy conjectured to be Sir William Hylton, builder of Hylton Castle. Hunter Blair dates the effigy to c1380-90 but the tomb itself to the 15th century. The table tomb on which the effigy rests has a panelled front to the north, with shields (now blank) within quatrefoils; this seems contemporary with the effigy, but the superstructure, which has a four-centred arch and rich panelling on the sides and arch soffit, and is surmounted by a moulded frieze with square flowers and a brattished top, looks largely restoration.

 

In the north aisle is a very worn and damaged effigy of an ecclesiastic, identified as a ‘Master of Wearmouth’, thought to be of the 14th century.

 

 

Headstones at St. Peter's Church, Sunderland

Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed, commencing with the year 1833 to the end of 1866

1839, June 13

The body of a man was found in the river Wear, at Sunderland, attached by a rope to a large stone. the skull was fractured into numberless pieces; and the body was naked, save a flannel shirt and stockings.

The body was removed to the workhouse at Monkwearmouth, where it was identified by two of the crew of the Phoenix, of Stettin, as that of their captain, Johann Friedrich Berckholtz, who was about 55 years of age.

No doubt being held as to the deceased having met his death unfairly, instant search was made, and the cabin was found to bear evident marks of the deed. Subsequent investigation led to the committal of Jacob Friedrich Ehlert, the mate of the ship, and Daniel Muller, aged 19, the cabin boy, and they both confessed being accomplices in the murder, but mutually charged each other with the deed.

From the statement of the boy, who was admitted a witness to the crown, it appeared that on the night of the 11th, the mate, after giving him some spirits, induced him to go into the cabin where captain slept, and while he (the boy) held a lantern, the mate struck the unfortunate master three heavy blows on the head with a hammer, by which death was caused immediately.

They then got into a boat and rowed near to the bridge, dragging theory body after them, and the mate having produced a stone, he tied it to the body, and let both sink into the middle of the stream.

There were several circumstances in the boy's story corroborated by the crew and others concerned in the matter.

The jury found Ehlert guity, and he was executed at Durham on the 16th August, persisting in his innocence to the last. He was native of Barth-Pomerania.