Jealous for the honor of his diocese, the
prelate instantly applied himself to rebuild the cathedral; but he lived
to see only a small progress made in his work. It was finished by a
prelate of still greater, though evil celebrity, the unruly Odo, brother
to the Conqueror, who, for more than fifty years, continued bishop of
this see, and by his unbounded liberality and munificence in the
discharge of his high office, proved himself worthy of his princely
descent. The Conqueror and his queen, attended by their sons, Robert and
William, and by the archbishops of Canterbury and York, as well as by
the various bishops and barons of the province, were present at the
dedication of the church, which was performed in 1077, by John,
Archbishop of Rouen. Odo, on the occasion, enriched his church with
various gifts, one of which has been particularly recorded. It was a
crown of wood and copper, sixteen feet high and thirty-eight feet in
diameter, covered with silver plates, and diversified with other crowns
in the shape of towers; the whole made to support an immense number of
tapers, that were lighted on high festivals. This crown was suspended in
the nave, opposite the great crucifix; and it continued to hang there
till it was destroyed by the Huguenots, in 1562.
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