Relhan Collection : 151 Ely Cathedral. SW view

Relhan, Richard, 1782-1844

Relhan Collection

1799Engraving by T Cartwright for R HarradenThe Cathedral was and is the dominant building in the Fens, visible for miles around. Even at a distance this side-view shows off the major exterior elements of the Cathedral perfectly – the high W tower and the SW transept, the exceptional and dramatic Octagon and all the pinnacles, and the massive scale of the building (164m length, 66m high at the W tower). The surviving claustral buildings which front the High Street just appear at the E end. The picture includes the motte of the Norman castle known as Cherry Hill that was later used for a windmill, for, peaceful as it seems, the Isle of Ely had great strategic importance for controlling the whole Fenland area and was involved in many wars. The castle may have been the one ordered by William the Conqueror in 1071 after taking the Isle from Hereward, or used by Geoffrey de Mandeville against King Stephen during the C12 Anarchy period, or by rebellious barons in King John’s reign or even by Edward I who had to re-capture Ely from more rebels. Any or all of the protagonists could have used this motte, but the basic design and location is typical of an C11 Conquest structure by King William or his Bishop. The engraving also shows the spire of the parish church of St Mary’s and the parkland landscape of the slope up to the cathedral, where monks had grown vines and kept large fishponds. The image published is by Richard Harraden (1756-1838). He and his son Richard Bankes Harraden (1756-1838) were topographical draughtsmen and printmakers, eventually trading as Harraden and Son of 6 Kings Parade, Cambridge. Harraden began in London but opened premises in Great St Mary’s Lane in 1797 and published six views of Cambridge that were very successful. A larger series, Cantabrigia Depicta, followed in 1809-10 and his son’s Illustrations of the University of Cambridge in 1830. It seems inconceivable that as contemporary Cambridge tradesmen Relhan would not have known them.Bradley and Pevsner 2014; ODNB (Harraden) 2004; Saunders P pers comm