Another fabulous day dawned, and we were intent on making the most
of it in the Liverpool area, believing it might be our last full day here. We
set off in our little courtesy car to Maghull, this morning on a very
roundabout route because the road workers had randomly closed the access roads,
as they do here. It was early and we were charged peak travel rates, still a
reasonable £4.15 if you forget about converting it to NZ dollars.
Realising that we were too early for museum opening, we set off up
the hill to the Catholic Cathedral, or more correctly, the Metropolitan
Cathedral of Christ the King Liverpool. The Catholic Diocese of Liverpool was
established in 1850, to cater no doubt to the spiritual needs of the many Irish
settled in the city. Until 1829 practice of the Roman version of the faith was
prohibited, although there were many who persisted quietly, as had the owners
of both Speke Hall and Rufford Old Hall. By 1900 there were one hundred and
sixty two churches in the Catholic Diocese of Liverpool which at the time
included Lancashire north of the River Ribble.
The cathedral was begun in 1933 after eleven years of planning, on
Brownlow Hill, the site of the demolished workhouse. However only the crypt was
built, finally completed in 1958. The
war delayed further progress and it was not until 1960 when a competition for a
new concept was won by Sir Frederick Gibberd, designer of Heathrow Terminal 3
and Harlow New Town, a practising Anglican, and work began again two years
later, completed and consecrated in 1967.
The Cathedral is supported by sixteen reinforced concrete ribs
which anchor it to the ground and carry both the cone roof and the enormous
stained glass lantern that gives height and light to the altar beneath it. The
original construction materials were reinforced concrete, aluminium, Portland
stone, granite composite, glass, resin and marble, most of which were set in
place with the aid of a central tower crane around which the Cathedral was
built. The structure is topped by 16 metre pinnacles rising 86 metres from
pavement level, appropriately reminiscent of a crown. From a distance the
building appears to be circular but it’s actually made up of a circle of
independent buildings which are all different shapes. Normal seating is
provided for 2,220 people, though over 3,000 have been accommodated on special
occasions.
Together with the Anglican Cathedral and the Liver Building down
on the river bank, this innovative and startling building became a famous
landmark.
Appallingly this great structure was not to pass its twentieth
anniversary before there was talk of demolition and rebuild. In fact it was far
sooner that the first structural and leakage problems were detected. The flat piazza over the Crypt and around the
main Cathedral leaked and the aluminium roof of the main cathedral began to
crack; for several years the Clerk of Works clambered round the roof sticking
flash-band on the worst cracks.
The walls surrounding the podium began to lean outward due to
thermal movement and water penetration, the glass mosaic cladding the concrete
buttresses began to peel and the resin holding the glass of the lantern tower
deteriorated. Initially a survey suggested £6 million was required for
necessary repairs, which the Archdioceses sought in damages from the architect,
engineer and builder. (All this brings to mind the on-going saga of “leaky
houses” in New Zealand!)
The case was settled out of court, with the Archdiocese accepting
a considerably lower amount plus costs. A fund raising campaign begun in 1987
raised £3 million, still far short of that required.
The list of work finally undertaken is unbelievable and one can
only wonder that repair was the better choice after all. The bill came to £8
million; English Heritage came up with a further £2 million and the rest was
put on tick.
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| The Metropolitan Cathedral |
We spent some time tip-toeing around the circumference of the main
room, the side chapels in use by reflective parishioners, and agreed that it
was certainly an impressive building. But
as we had entered through the automatic glass doors, Chris had sniffed the
dankness and remarked that “this was a sick building”. He also added to the
statement regarding the expected longevity of the structure, that it was not
likely to last even another twenty years. Time will tell whether his
predictions are true.
Emerging from the Cathedral high on the hill, we looked across at
the sister Cathedral, and used that as our guide as we headed down to the river
where our next destination lay.
The last attraction we wished to explore in Liverpool itself was
the Museum of Liverpool, the newest addition to the National Museums Liverpool
group, opened as recently as 2011. The purpose built building on Pier Head with
a construction budget of £72 million provides 8,000 square metres of exhibition
space, housing more than 6,000 objects. This museum concentrates on Liverpool’s
own stories, celebrating its greatness, documents its history both great and
not-so-great, its people and its contribution to the country’s history, by
dividing the displays into four sections: the Great Port, Global City, People’s
Republic and Wondrous Place.
It is well curated and we spent almost three hours absorbing its
treasures including a ten minute “Beatle’s Show”, a film show in a small
circular room showering the audience with lights, pictures, text and noise. One
would do better to visit the Beatle’s Museum over in Albert Port although I
accept there is an entry fee there. However I do not wish to dismiss the
general exhibitions in this part of the museum, the Wondrous Place, which does
include static displays celebrating the Fab Four along with hundreds of other
contributors to music, theatre, film and sport.
Most of our time was spent in the Great Port, some of it mirroring
that learned in the Museum of Slavery. But here there was greater emphasis on
the industry and workers here in Liverpool. Sugar played a major part in
Liverpool industry, imports of raw sugar growing from 750 tonnes per year in
1704 to 45,000 tonnes in 1810. By the late 1700s there were eight sugar refineries
in Liverpool. After 1807, the sugar trade continued unaffected by the abolition
of the slave trade in British territories. Ways and means can always be found
to work around political mores, and throughout the 19th century,
Irish and the German and Polish immigrants laboured in Liverpool’s sugar
refineries.
Small refineries were absorbed by larger enterprises, one of the
last left standing Tate & Lyle, who finally closed in 1981. This Tate is he
who was the benefactor of the art galleries here, in London and St Ives in
Cornwall.
In this section we also learned about the first timetabled
railway, the Liverpool to Manchester line opened in 1830. On the inaugural
journey, the steam engine pulled an elaborately decorated carriage in which the
Prime Minister, the Duke of Wellington, travelled. The occasion was marred by
the death of one of the railway’s greatest supporters, William Huskisson MP. He
was the first person to be killed on the modern passenger railway when he left
his carriage to speak with the Prime Minister, and was run over by the engine.
This engine, named Rocket, which managed the incredible speed of 30 miles an
hour, is now on display in the museum and is quite a remarkable looking
machine.
Here too is explanation of the demise of the old port and the rise
of the new. Containerisation transformed Liverpool’s docks in the 1960s, and in
1972 the Mersey Docks and Harbour Company closed most of the city’s traditional
docks. Within about a decade, 10,000 dockers and associated trades lost their
jobs, which lead to much social and political upheaval in the city.
The passing of time and new development has established an even
larger port, although fewer men are required to handle greater cargo. Liverpool
is now the major UK port for trade with North America, handling 700,000
containers every year.
Here too there was more about the workhouse once standing on Brownlow
Hill, where the Catholic Cathedral now stands. The workhouse which operated
between 1771 and about 1931 became one of the largest workhouses in the country. At
its most crowded it housed up to 5,000 paupers. Homeless people were treated
harshly and were made to undertake hard labour, like breaking rocks.
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| Fine old buildings of Pier Head |
We left the museum with plenty to think about and headed back up
through the vibrant shopping centre, pausing from time to time to listen to so
many talented buskers, before catching the train back to Maghull. From the car
park we phoned the garage for progress on the repair and were told that the car
was still in the workshop and would not be ready today.
Satisfied we had the rest of the afternoon clear, we drove around
to the laundry checked out on Sunday, to find the big roller door down. Disappointed
we called into the little Maghull shopping centre on the hunt for a few bits
and pieces, then headed home. Back on the farm, we found all our fellow campers
gone, and harvesting machinery noisily working behind the high hedges out of
sight. The fine weather has hastened great activity; we noted yesterday the
rows of straw left in fields where the grain has already been harvested.
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