16. Of cups and plate

“You have chosen wisely,” the Grail knight tells the hero in the film 'Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.'  Terrible things befall those who choose poorly and drink from the wrong communion cup.

And so it was during the turbulent years of religious wars brought about by the Reformation in Europe during the 16^th and 17^th centuries, when Protestant ‘Leavers’ struggled to break from what they saw as the tyranny of Rome. ‘Remainers’ fought equally hard to keep the Catholic traditions to which they were so accustomed.

The replica communion cup in display in Budleigh Salterton's Fairlynch Museum is an exact copy of the 16^th century silver vessel from which both Sir Walter Ralegh and Roger Conant may have drunk during services at East Budleigh’s All Saints Church.

The cup tells the story of how a clever Queen of England steered a path between the two groups of extremists to ensure that her kingdom would not follow France’s example with its tragic Wars of Religion. 

‘The greatest and most grievous calamity that can come to any state is civil war,’ wrote Ralegh in his ‘History of the World’, published in 1614. He had had direct experience of such a calamity, having fought as a teenager on the Huguenot side in France.  

Left: A chalice with the inscription: 'My blood truly is a libation', made in 1549 for the church of St John the Baptist in Salinas, Spain.  © Victoria and Albert Museum, London; 
right: wooden communion cups, Bernisches Historisches Museum, Bern, Switzerland dated 1718  
https://www.reforc.com

Countries which broke from Rome and embraced Protestantism rejected the decorative, sometimes bejewelled chalices which were characteristic of the Catholic tradition.


In Europe, the most extreme example of the tendency to reject such Catholic practices was seen as early as April 1525 when the reformer Ulrich Zwingli celebrated Maundy Thursday with wooden rather than silver cups. 

Was such Protestant extremism seen in English parishes? 'It is hard to be sure what was happening, especially since there was such variation on the ground,' says Dr Laura Sangha, of the University of Exeter’s Department of History.

'We do know from churchwarden accounts that many parishes either sold their communion chalices during Edward VI's reign, or they had them confiscated by the authorities. There is also evidence that some parishes bought wooden cups at around the same time, so certainly they were in use in some places.'

Goldsmiths and silversmiths benefited enormously  from changes brought about by English Reformation.  Much church treasure was confiscated by Henry VIII, with plate being melted down and reworked to conform to the new Protestant liturgy.  The process was even more marked in the 1550s, which saw the seizure of most church gold and silver ornaments by officials of Edward VI’s government.  

In the West Country, up to and including the 16th century, silversmiths relied heavily upon the Church for business. Two notable Exeter craftsmen of the 16th century were John Jones and Richard Hilliard, father of Nicholas the famous miniaturist. 

One of the most productive silversmiths of his age, John Jones (d.1583-84) was a Bailiff of the city in 1567 and Churchwarden at St. Petrock's in 1570. 

A silver gilt communion cup and cover from St Petrock’s church, Exeter, made by John Jones in about 1572. The churchwarden’s account records that in 1571 Jones was paid one pound, 15 shillings and five pence for converting this piece from a Roman Catholic chalice into a Protestant communion cup. From the RAMM collection

You can see examples of communion cups made by both Jones and Hilliard on display at the Royal Albert Memorial Museum (RAMM) in Exeter.  More than a hundred of Jones's communion cups have survived. They made his fortune.

Queen Mary I, Portrait by Antonis Mor, 1554 Museo del Prado

The brief period of Mary Tudor’s reign saw a return to Catholic practices, welcomed by those who wanted to remain with Rome.  But by 1559 when her half-sister Elizabeth ascended the throne England was ready to ready to accept compromises in matters of religion.

The new Queen evidently shared his view. “Away with those torches, for we see very well,” she is supposed to have exclaimed at her coronation, when greeted by the Abbot of Westminster and his monks.

Queen Elizabeth I. The 'Darnley' portrait 
National Portrait Gallery

Elizabeth’s apparent rejection of the Catholic practice of lighted candles, a relic from the previous reign, would have been interpreted by Protestants as a sign of her Reformist tendencies.

Equally, the queen wanted to reassure Catholics that she respected elements of the old tradition. “The coronation was a typical Elizabethan compromise with something to confuse and offend everyone,” concludes Professor Richard McCoy in an article about the ceremony, which was keenly watched by contemporaries for hints of the government’s religious policy in the new reign.

The Elizabethan Settlement deliberately encompassed a range of preferences when it came to religious worship, and this included more decoration and ceremonial that would have been tolerated during the Edwardian regime, writes Laura Sangha.  

Fairlynch Museum’s copy of the 1570s chalice made by John Jones, moderately decorated, but not too decorated,  reflects perfectly the spirit of compromise which characterized the Virgin Queen’s reign. 

Photo of the 16th century original artefact

And that Tudor rose on the paten – the lid of the chalice - told English people that London, not Rome, was in control.  

Beautifully crafted by Birmingham pewterers A.E. Williams – probably the oldest firm of its kind in the world – Fairlynch Museum's replica of one of East Budleigh’s treasures tells a fascinating story from a crucial period in British history. 

It may give a clue as to Roger Conant's East Devon background, which would form his moderate views in matters of religion. 

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