History of the harp in England

"And in his harping, when he had songe,

his eyen twinkeled in his head aright,

as don the starres in the frosty night."

Chaucer's Friar

Left, The shadowy external outline of a harper, parish church, Launceston, Cornwall, 16thC.

Right, Sarah with her reproduction English medieval harp

Much has been written and documented about the history of the harp in the Celtic areas of Britain, but not so much information has been made available, or time spent on research into the existence of harps and harpers specifically in England. Its a subject in which Sarah Deere-Jones has always been interested, and this page is an attempt to gather early historic information, references, photographs and depictions of harps and harpers in England. Contributions and corrections or enquiries will be gratefully received, please e mail info@cornwallharpcentre.co.uk if you can add to the collection, tip us off about any other harps hiding in churches or references about real harpers from history in England.

The harp has acquired great symbolic significance in Ireland Scotland and Wales, and also amongst their celtic descendants around the world. It has become a potent symbol of an exclusive 'Celtic' identity and its image and music is widely used as an attractive focus of nationalistic pride. But the original Celtic peoples came to the British Isles long before the Roman occupation, from central Europe, and colonised England before progressing to their northern and western outposts, leaving their settlements, graves, and hill figures scattered across the English landscape, and their genetics firmly imprinted on the present day English population! The harp came to the British Isles much later than the original 'Celts', appearing in crude stone carvings in Scotland and Ireland after the Roman occupation in what is commonly called the 'Dark Ages'- the 8th and 9th centuries, then arriving in England in the 12th century, and later in Wales. Many years later It flourished and developed uniquely both in shape and repertoire in all of the 'celtic' areas, but in England its development was curtailed particularly badly, due to the same forces of political and religious discrimination that threatened it in the 'celtic' areas. However the presence of the harp and harpers in England throughout history cannot be ignored, and we can now all celebrate and cherish together, the little traces we have left of this fascinating and beautiful instrument's history, wherever they may be found.

The Romans used a simple lap sized harp and as they lived in England for over 300 years it is not impossible that at some stage they brought a harp along with them! The vikings are also sometimes credited with having a harp, and although there is no evidence of a viking harp, as opposed to lyre, having been in England, it may well have existed here.

Much confusion is caused by the word 'harp' itself! In latin 'harpa' was also the word for a harrow, a corn sieve, an instrument of torture (I can go along with that one..) and a shelf for drying corn. In religious texts the latin word 'cithera' is normally used for what we mean as a harp. We are more likely to have got the word from the Germanic word 'harpa' which did refer to a musical instrument, although when used in England by the Saxons, there is a problem with translation here, as the Saxon word 'Harp' meant 'to play a stringed instrument' and cannot be assumed to be an actual harp as we would recognise it today. The writings of Beowulf contain some intriguing refences - "There was the noise of the harp, the clear song of the poet.......There was song and sound altogether before Healfdene's chieftains; the wood of joy was touched, the song was often sung.......The beast of war touched the joy of the harp, the wood of pleasure." It is very tempting to assume he is talking about a real harp but sadly no evidence exists that there were harps in Saxon England although certainly there was a type of lyre. The Sutton Hoo burial treasure, now in the British museum, that was discovered in the 1960s contained fragments of what is often described as a harp, but it is actually a Lyre and bears no resemblance to what is generally acknowledged today as a harp.

From Left to Right= Darenth (kent)1140, Riccall (yorks) 1160, Barfreston (kent) 1175, Portesham (Hare) 12thC (Dorset)

So when DID the harp first arrive in England? Any of the above theories are plausable, but when it comes to actual claims we have to stick to hard evidence. The earliest carvings of harps in England known to date, are from the12th century. St Margarets church, Darenth, in Kent has perhaps the ealiest example, a fine carving of a harpist on the Norman font dated 1140. Nearby in the church of St Nicholas, Barfreston, has a fantastic carved frieze around the south door, containing a fox harpist, dated 1175. Riccall Church near Selby in Yorkshire has this wonderful mythical beastie playing a harp and is described as 'viking' in style due to the beasts having beak-like mouths. Dorchester Museum contains a wonderful worn carving of a hare playing the harp from Portesham, also from the 12th century. These early carvings are all from Norman churches, the Normans having invaded and settled 100 years before and started drastically influencing church architectures and styles. The Normans were known to have a small triangular framed harp, and a similar instrument can be seen across medieval Europe.

Of course the presence of carvings may not equate to evidence that harps were there locally at the time, among the populace. It is true that in the case of some large ecclesiastical establishments, craftsmen were imported from abroad during the construction, and stone carvers may have come from Europe and be carving musicians they had seen thousands of miles away! So we have to be careful with our interpretation of these little characters and what they mean. However, where there are many examples and where these examples are found on smaller more humble buildings too, the craftsmen are unlikely to have been imported, and local craftsmen were known to depict characters they had seen, sometimes even in their own communities. Dr Ian Mortimer, author of 'The time traveller's guide to medieval England' re-assured me on this subject however, with the following comment-

'If Chaucer describes common people playing harps in his tales, and if the royal family bought harp strings and taught a royal prince to play, and if Englishmen at Exeter Cathedral were carving harps for the citizens to look at as regularly as all those other common instruments, you can be sure that the harp was not uncommon and certainly not unknown'

In her book 'The Harp' Roslyn Rensch when referring to European manuscript illustrations says "In English examples particularly the harps may vary in decoration and in number of strings, but certain basic characteristics are evident. The instruments are depicted with increasing attention to detail, and the various representations leave little doubt that a known musical instrument served as the original prototype for many of the drawings".

Left to right, Beverley minster carving 14thC, Beverley minster misericord 1505, Exeter cathedral minstrels gallery 14thC, Manchester cathedral misericord 1505

(Both the porcine harpists above were made by the same craftsmen in Ripon and installed in the seperate buildings above.)

It can be seen that many early medieval carvings of harpists are animals, and there are several theories for this. It could be the medieval tendancy to joke about a 'topsy turvy' order of things, it could be that instrumental music (as opposed to choral) was sometimes seen as Satanic and so were animals, or it could be that the animals were representing the Pagan mind, which was thought to be ignorant, and that an animal playing an instrument was portraying an ignorant person listening to the word of God but not understanding it.

The number of the stone and wooden carvings of harpers from the 12th century onwards that can be found at Christchurch and Portesham in Dorset, Broad Chalke Wiltshire, York minster, Beverly minster, Hexham Abbey, Manchester, Barfreston & Darenth in Kent, Adderbury Oxfordshire, Ware Herts, March Cambs, Lincoln, Salisbury, Winchester & Exeter Cathedrals, Tewksbury Abbey, Norwich and Canterbury, seem to suggest the instrument was fairly widespread in England during the middle ages, and there are probably many more yet to be discovered!

The above English harps are interesting due to their unusual shapes. From left to right-The carving from Christchurch Priory in Dorset (14thc) appears to show the harp the wrong way round! This may either be a one-off unusual harp, or it may be a case of the carver working from memory and getting confused! This is quite common in early illustration and there are several examples of dodgy looking harps in medieval manuscripts and woodcuts where the harps are wildly inaccurate. The next carving from Lincoln Cathedral dated 1275 shows what is often described as the 'Irish' shape, with the bigger soundbox and more pronounced curve of the pillar. This shape is sometimes claimed to be uniquely Irish, but here it is in England in back in 1275! The angel (3rd from left), from Tewkesbury Abbey -14thc, is also described as 'Irish shaped' - and there are at least two other 'Irish' shaped harp carvings at Lincoln, and another one at Ware, Hertfordshire dated 1380. The wooden angel is from the ceiling of Buckland Monachorum in Devon (15thc) and show a quite large instrument, whilst the final photo os of another 'harpist' in Beverley Minster, although this instrument is slightly obscure, it may perhaps be a type of psaltery?

The carving of the 'Launceston harper' at the very top of this page, can be seen on the outside of the parish Church in Launceston, Cornwall, it dates from the 16th century and is fairly typical of the quality of minstrel carvings across England on the outside of parish churches and cathedrals. They are vague to put it mildy, and unless you know what you are looking for, and are indeed looking for it, it is not at all obvious what they are! Generations of people have filed in and out of their parish churches every sunday and not realised a little musician was looking down at them from the tower or porch! For this reason until recently so many have remained undiscovered.

From left to right, Angel roof boss Tewkesbury Abbey, 14thc. Angel harpist-13th century quire screen, Morning chapel, Salisbury cathedral, Monkey harpist at Winchester Cathedral 14thc, and another roof boss angel from Tewkesbury. Interestingly all the Tewkesbury Abbey harpists show their harps nestling in the covers!

In his book 'The story of the harp in Wales' Ossian Ellis says "Because of the lack of specific verbal and pictorial evidence on the history of the harp in Wales the musicologist and scientific researcher will, no doubt, insist that the harp came from England; yet the circumstantial evidence of the early poets, of the laws of Hywel Dda, and of the stories in the Mabinogion literature, suggest that the harp was known in Wales since time immemorial." Again the problem with the early Welsh literary references mentioned above, is exactly what instrument is meant by the word 'harp' which is, without accompanying illustration, difficult to confirm.

	Wall painting on Longthorpe tower, Cambridge, 1330 Watercolour copy by E Clive Rouse
	Angel playing harp, Gloucester Cathedral choir- circa1340
	Harper with Crowder, (wooden panel) this piece of furniture however originated in Wales as the Edgcumbe family had strong links - Sir Piers’ wife was Welsh, her first father-in-law, Sir Rhys ap Thomas was one of the great patrons the arts in Wales Cotehele House Cornwall, 1550-70
	St Breage church- Cornwall, wall painting, detail of Christs hand with small harp illustrated above thumb, 15thC

It is wise to be cautious when you discover one of these little harpists in a church, the Victorians loved the harp as an image and often reproduced them in a medieval style fooling many a casual observer! If you find a harpist, always look up the history of the building and check the carving is truly medieval, and not a victorian or later re-production! The images below are an example of how confusing it can be-

Medieval stained glass harpists from Tavistock church, Devon, these are beautiful but not that old, being Victorian.

(Medieval stained glass is rare in general, but there are older depictions of harpers in medieval stained glass at Fairford church in Gloucestershire - unfortunately the harpists were very small and high up, and too dark for me to photograph successfully!)

The 7th century Saint Aldhelm, bishop of Sherborne, is said to have played a harp to his flock, and here is a lovely bronze of him doing that outside the present abbey in Dorset, but this sculpture is a modern interpretation, again no evidence exists that he really played a harp. Later in the 10th century, St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury, was apparently charged with sorcery, because his 'harp' would play by itself when taken out in the wind! Exactly what instrument he had is again unknown.

There are beautiful illustrations of harps in the English psalter (c1050), St Albans psalter (12thC), and the York psalter (c1170).

In the Vita Sancti Dunstani (Saintly life of St Dunstan, the archbishop of Canterbury 910-88) which was presumably written around the year 1000, there is a statement which appears to refer to a harp specifically as opposed to any other string instrument- The author says that Dunstan 'as usual took up his cithara which we call hearpa in our language'. This intriguing quote may be the first reference to the harp as we know it, in England.

In his 'Ancient music of Ireland' Edward Bunting quotes an often repeated English legend "In A.D. 878 when the great Alfred, assuming the character of a harper, with an attendant to carry his instrument according to the custom of the minstrels, entered the Danish camp, where he played before their princes". The same legend is repeated in the 10th century with Aulaff king of Northumberland who disguised as a harper played to King Athelstan. King Arthur is said to have done it too, and even the legendary character Tristan also disguised himself as a harper - it seemed to be a popular hobby here in the dark ages, and indeed the way this story keeps repeating leads it into the realm of popular legend rather than historical fact!

In a volume of church music dated from 1774 by Martin Gerbert there appears several illustrations of instruments copied from a 12th century manuscript which was lost in a fire in 1768. These include a drawing of a harp labelled 'Cythera Anglica' distinguished from another illustration labelled 'Cythera Teutonica'.

In his poem 'Parzival' completed in 1210, the poet Wolfram of Eschenbach explicitely uses the term 'swalwe' (swallow) to indicate an English harp. -

'The woman Bene took the chief gift of his rich merchandise out of the hands of Gawan, namely a swallow,

(No-one understands why a harp would have been called a 'swallow' it may be a reference to sweet sound, or it may perhaps refer to the gentle curves in the frame of some harps, either way it is a charming association.)

Historical houshold records are also intriguing - for example there is a record of a harper being paid at the abbey of Hyde, near Winchester in 1180, his name was Galfrid, or sometimes referred to as 'jeffrey', but nothing more is known about him. Another famous story tells us of Blondel, the minstrel of Richard 1st, who it is said as his 'harper' found the king during his imprisonment in Austria, by playing outside the castle walls, and hearing the king answering the tune (in the style of a modern aural test no doubt!!) confirmed his presence. There are records from 1271 that Henry 3rd paid Richard his harper, 40 shillings and a pipe of wine, and Edward 1st in 1271 took his harper to the holy land with him, where apparently his minstrel saved him from an attack by an assasin. In the records of Durham Priory, a payment is made to 'Thomas Harpour' in 1335. In the household records of Alice de Bryene, a Suffolk heiress of the late 14th century, mention is made of a payment to a harper who came to a feast at her manor -Acton Hall, on shrove tuesday one year to entertain the household for a few days. Henry 4th is known to have played the harp, and indeed taught his son Henry 5th how to play, accounts still exist which refer to the acquisition of a 'cover' and 'strings' for his harps. An account of the coronation of Henry 5th in 1413 at westminster by Elmham, includes the passage "The harmony of the harpers, drawn from their instruments, struck with the rapidest touch of the fingers, note against note, and the soft angelic whispers of their modulations, are gratifying to the ears of the guests."

There are also references to the tuning of harps, Pierre of Peckham incorporated tuning details in his poem 'La Lumiere as Lais' completed in Oxford in 1267, which explains how harps were tuned in octaves and fourths. Another one by Willelmus, written in about 1400 refers to tuning a five stringed cythera, and another 15th century one 'The Western Manuscript', in Trinity college library Cambridge seen here below, seems to be explaining how to tune in fifths and octaves.

To set a harpe fact’ per [made by] J Stowell] Ffirst ye shall begyn to set your harpe at the iiij^th [4^th] stryng and let hym stond [stand] still for your chef [chief] tenor and set all the harpe to hym .Then shall ye set ye v^th [5^th] above to hym Then remeve [remove] your fynger to ye same stryng[er] that your thombe stondes upon and remeve your thombe to the v^th above your fynger and set hym to the fynger Then toche [touch] ye viij^th [8^th] to the thombe and set hym to the thombe Then remeve the thombe to the v^th fro [from] the fynger and set hym to the fynger. Then taketh hede and set your fynger upon the chef tenor and that is next string bynethe [beneath] the place that he stondes on and remeve the thombe up to the x^th [10^th] to hym and set the thombe to the fynger Then remeve the fynger up to the viij^th fro ye thombe and set the fynger to the thombe Then remeve the thombe to the v^th fro the fynger and set the 5^th to ye fynger Then remeve the fynger to the chef tenor and set the thombe to the viij^th to hym and set the thombe to the fynger and then remeve the fynger up to the v^th fro the thombe and set hym to ye thombe Then remeve the thombe up to the viij^th fro the fynger and set hym to the fynger And then set [up?] viij up up up till ye come to the ende then shall ye set the next stryng bynethe your chef tenor to the viij above hym and so to the next benethe till ye come to the end and than [i.e. ‘then’] shall your harpe be well set.

There are some fascinating records of harp makers in England although little detail is known about them. The records are small snippets taken from registers of freemen, payments, wills and even arrests! Whilst it is still wise to be cautious about such small extracts (for example the word 'harpmaker' could have been a surname and not necessarily an indication of occupation) however these individuals were living in cities where it is known a fairly vibrant musical culture existed, so it makes sense that they were indeed harp makers. All the following are listed as 'harp makers' - John de Toppclyf, York, 1366; William Moreton, Oxford, 1380; Roger, Oxford, 1384; Radulphus, Oxford, 1384; Robert Somerton, London, 1416; John Scot, London, 1416; John Bore, London, 1435; Robert Smyth, Oxford, 1452, John Harryes, Oxford, 1462; Thomas Briker, Oxford, 1467. Many of these harp makers are listed in manuscripts from various universities of Oxford, instrumental music was known as a popular pastime for scholars, indeed the 'Statutes of Queens College' 1340 explicitly restricts the playing of musical instruments at certain occassions! John Bore of London was known to have supplied harps to Henry Vth.

Interestingly in the 1970s a house was excavated in Oxford by the Oxfordshire archeological unit which was thought to be a tenement occupied by Thomas Briker harp maker mentioned above, and in it were found substantial remains of instrument pegs made from bone and coils of wire possibly for use as strings.

Records in Oxford also include an account of the inquest of Gilbert de Foxlee (1306) which hints at the common use of harps at the time -

" On thursday last, the vigil of the nativity of St John the baptist; the tailors of Oxford and others of the town with them, were keeping the vigil in their shops, singing and making merry all night with harps, fiddles and other kinds of instruments".

Durham priory paid a fee to buy a new harp for Thomas Harpour in 1335, and the English wool merchant George Cely himself a harpist, lent Thomas Rede, harper of Calais some money to buy a harp in 1474. In the inventories of students from Oxford there is further confirmation of harps in common use- The goods of John Hosear included 'an harpe' valued at four pence in 1463 (those were the days) and Reginald Stone left 'one harp' among his effects at Vine hall in 1468. Thomas Cooper in 1438 had 'one old harp and a broken lute' . Friars were also among the harp players of the city of Oxford at this time, in 1383 they were attacked in Wyclif's 'Leaven of Pharisees' for playing music on holy days -

' they indulge in veyn songs and knackynge and harpynge' he writes complainingly.

Far left, unusual wooden screen carving from Tiverton in Devon showing a harpist in what looks like the costume of a Wait or town musician of the Elizabethan era.

Near left, sarah in Tudor costume with her reproduction Gothic harp,

Right, Henry VIII with his harp, from the Henry's Psalter in the British Library, both Henry and his ill fated wife Anne Boleyn were harpists.

Harps are mentioned in Wills and legacies of this time too - John Bount a Bristol landowner left a 'great harp' in 1404, John Parker a doctor in York left a 'Cithera' in 1406, Thomas Cooper left an 'old cithera' in 1438, John Hosear left 'a harp' in 1463, Reginald Stone a bachelor of canon and civil law left 'a harp' in 1468, and Robert Moreton a gentleman left 'an old harp' in 1488. Later In Cornwall a Richard Cleere of Calstock bequeathed his harps to two blind boys in 1606. In 1619 an Irish harp was left in the will of Richard Connocke of Calstock.

There is a reference in Cornwall to a 'wandering' harper called 'Tristram' who by 1574 had a permenant position at Lanherne.

The poet John Lydgate c.1410 in 'The churl and the bird' uses an ass listening to a harp as a simile for someone who will not listen to good advice-

(When it comes to listening to wisdom your ears are half dead, like an ass listening to a harp: you might as well go whistling in an ivy leaf.)

Chaucer's Canterbury Tales are littered with references to Harpers, they are mentioned in the 'Wife of Bath's tale', the General Prologue, The Friar's tale, The Manciple's tale, The tale of Sir Topaz, and the House of Fame. They also turn up in other medieval works such as those examples below-

Elizabeth 1st is often credited with being reponsible for wiping out the Irish harpers, and funnily enough she seemed to be even better at it on her home ground. An extract from Buntings 'ancient history of Ireland' states-

"towards the end of the 16th century, AD 1596 the 39th year of Elizabeth, a statute was passed by which 'minstrels wandering abroad' were punishable in the same manner as 'rogues vagabonds, and sturdy beggars'. This act, Dr Percy (in his admirable essay on the ancient English minstrels) considers as having put an end to the profession in England." The queens view evidently was that wandering minstrels could broadcast unfavourable views about her rule, they were the internet of their time, - unregulated, unmonitored, and able to move around the country spreading news, information and rumour with freedom. It stands to reason that if this act had such a detrimental effect on harpers in ireland, it would have made life even more difficult for the wandering harpers in England to carry on with their profession under the more immediate threat of the guardians of her court.

(In 1792 in Belfast a meeting was held to gather all the remaining harpists of ireland together, this meeting of a handful of elderly harpers that were left was attended by a music student - Edward Bunting, who notated the music played saving it for posterity, and left us one of the most interesting sources of historical information on the harp we have today.)

There are many examples across England of how the harp was used in domestic entertainment of the wealthy in the late 18th and 19th centuries, perhaps the most obvious ones being the instrument's appearances in novels such as those by Jane Austin, Thackeray, George Elliot and Thomas Hardy. I have two antique prints of gothic style harps, probably dating from around 1830 with their very feminine looking owners posing next to them in a domestic setting. Manuscripts survive of dance tunes, both for solo harp and arrangements with other instruments under the common phrase 'for harp or piano'. I have in my possesion an undated manuscript but probably from the early 19th century of arrangements and original pieces by John Parry, Oliver Davies, Augustus Giani and John Hughes, which would have been perfect soiree pieces for evening entertainment. I also have a manuscript of similar date, containing short 'Quadrilles'- dance tunes, arranged for harp and published by a Mr Paine of Bond Street London, who apparently directed a dance orchestra that performed at a club there known as 'Almacks'. This book also shows instructions for dancers under the notes.

Sarah Deere-Jones with her late Regency Erat harp and harp-lute and Phil with his English guitar.

Harps in dance bands were known across the country, here in Cornwall a Mr John Old of Par, was a music and dance teacher in the 19th century, his manuscript of pieces which contain well known English dance tunes, some local variations and some which appear to be originals, has particular reference to one as a 'Harp solo'.

But the most impressive contribution that England and in particular, the West country, has to offer the world of the harp, has to be that of the birthplace of Elias Parish Alvars in Teignmouth, Devon in 1808. He was the second child of Joseph Parish, organist of St James' church in the town, a music teacher and music shop owner. Elias Parish, had harp lessons from his father at the age of 3, and when he was 10, performed his first solo concert at Totnes. He eventually started travelling to London to have lessons with Nicholas Boscha the famous French Harp virtuoso who was the first harp professor at the Royal Academy of Music (although he was later sacked for bigamy and bankruptsy!). Elias travelled and studied across Europe and obtained a phenomenal technique, becoming the foremost harpist of his day. He began writing fiendishly difficult solo pieces for harp which are still considered an important addition to the harp repertoire today, and which earned him the nickname the 'Liszt of the harp'. Elias died in 1849 at the age of forty and is buried in Vienna.

Elias' pupils included Gottleib Kruger, who in turn was teacher to Hasselmans, leading to the French school - Salzedo, Tournier, Jamet, Zabaleta, Grandjany, & Laskine and therefore the very establishment of modern classical harp technique! A fascinating booklet about his life has been written by John Wilson Smith, and is available from Teignmouth Museum.

This page is in continual construction as research is ongoing, please do contribute any comments or information you know of particularly of early history of the harp in England. We are not historians but unlike some websites, we do try to be realistic and accurate!

Many thanks to contributors and photographers!- Phil Williams, Mike O'Connor, Sean Stewart, Eric Johnson, John Wilson Smith, Katrina Wood, Eve Edwards, Dr Ian Mortimer, Keith Sanger.

Bibliography:- 'Minstrels and Angels' by Jeremy and Gwen Montagu, published by Fallen Leaf Press in California. 'Music and Instruments of the middle ages' by Christopher Page. 'The harp in the middle ages' by Martin Van Schaik. 'Music in the age of Chaucer'. 'The Ancient Music of Ireland' Bunting. The 'Real middle ages' . 'Medieval Lives' . So many more yet to be listed....