THE RETURN OF THE G R E AT T O W E R G AT E By David Phillips If, in 1523, you had walked along what we call Trinity Street you would have seen an imposing one-storey gateway nearing completion, with wooden gates of the latest design. Clearly, no expense was being spared to create a building which reflected its ancient royal patronage. Today we know this development as the Great Gate. Started in 1518, in pre-Trinity days, it was bound to be expensive. Given the absence of local rock, one had either to rob old stone from some defunct Cambridge building or bring it in new by river, from King’s Cliff quarry, between Corby and Peterborough. The Willow Brook leads from the quarry to the River Nene. Since, before the great fen drainage, the fenland rivers that joined Nene to Cam were shallow, the stone was carried in flat-bottomed boats not unlike today’s punts, and propelled in the same way. Several were tied together to form a train. The weight of stone meant that many journeys were needed—a costly business. Bucston, the carpenter, was contracted to finish the gates by All Saints Day 1523. A blacksmith, one Smith of Thaxted, supplied the ironwork and nails for tuppence farthing (2 and 1/4 old pence) per pound of nails and tuppence per pound for all other ironwork. The total cost, for both carpenter and smith, was £6, 13sh, 4d, or14 Marks. The gates were made up in layers and nailed to a strong frame, like fitting planks to the
ribs of a wooden ship. The sharp ends of the nails, which went right through the wood, were hammered flat to create rivets. The outer wooden layer was hand-carved into the linenfold pattern (illustrated) which was then a la mode. The gatehouse, then called the Great Tower, was finally completed in 1535. The upper storeys were added later. Weather and time had their effect on the gates; and the 600-kilogram weight of each eventually caused them to droop. In 2011, while the Porters’ Lodge was being modernised, the North Gate was removed and taken to the West Country for restoration. A lightweight temporary gate, covered in a facsimile print, disguised its absence. Once horizontal, the dire state of North Gate was confirmed. Some of the original wood had been of poor quality. Also, the way in which the front panels had been fitted had allowed them little room to expand and contract. This caused damage. Engineers took the gate to pieces and reconstructed it with a steel plate between the front panelling
and the backing layer. Front and back were then re-fixed to the wooden frame using the old nails, still in excellent condition. A stainless steel frame in the lower part of the gate fitted into a bearing in the ground so that the weight of the gate no longer hangs on its hinges. Meanwhile, dendrochronology confirmed the gate’s age. On 9 May 2012 the gate made a triumphant return but proved tricky to re-install. Even with two cranes it took eight hours. Its original installation, probably using block and tackle, must have been trickier still. The photograph shows how, to prevent damage, the gate was held in a steel frame and straps; these were removed only when the gate was finally slotted into place. With one gate replaced it was time to remove the other for restoration. When it returns the gates should continue to impress for another five hundred years. David Phillips, Senior Porter, has served in the Porters’ Lodge since 1978.
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