They are an utterly unique relic from medieval times, but Chester Rows are as relevant as they have ever been, as an exhibition at the Grosvenor Museum reveals
If anything gives Chester a sense of its medieval past it’s the Rows, the covered upper and lower walkways that are one of the most-visited attractions in the city.
Who hasn’t sheltered there when it has rained? Or stayed cool on The Rows during sweltering summer days.
The Rows create a double-deck street, with steps leading up from ground level to long, covered balconies that cut through an eye-catching network of buildings shaped by every architectural style of the past 800 years.
These galleried walkways run down the four streets that meet at the High Cross and are named after the traders who carried on their business there – Shoemakers’ Row, Ironmongers’ Row, and so on.
While you might find covered walkways in many other cities and towns there is nothing else like the Rows in the world. No place like it dates back 700 years and still remains an integral part of city life, as the Rows do today.
An exhibition celebrating these unique structures attempts to answer some of the questions that have been puzzling archaeologists and historians for centuries.
On Another Level: Exploring the unique Rows of Chester, which runs until April 30 at the Grosvenor Museum also brings the Rows into the 21st Century with exhibits designed to inspire people to go out and explore them armed with their newly acquired knowledge. It is also hoped visitors will make use of Marketing Cheshire’s new, downloadable guided walk of the Rows at visitchester.com/discover-the-rows.
Interest in conserving the Rows and ensuring their future remains secure has been boosted by a £1m four-year programme. The Chester High Street Heritage Action Zone, which since 2020 has continued to improve access and stimulate economic activity in the city by upgrading lighting, repairing property frontages, and introducing pop-up shops, meet-and-greet children’s characters, children’s trails and innovative arts projects.
Ambitious plans mooted several years ago to secure the Rows with World Heritage Status, are being backed by Chester’s new MP Samantha Dixon.
Councillor Louise Gittins, leader of Cheshire West and Chester Council says: ‘As we move into the last year of the programme, alongside the continued upgrading of the physical environment there will be a big focus on celebrating the Rows as part of the Heritage Festival, which starts on June 17.
‘We recognise the ambition to explore World Heritage Status and support any proposal that would help our city heritage and economy to thrive. Over the coming months, we will be looking to understand the criteria for World Heritage Status, and how this could impact local businesses and residents.’
The Chester Rows Exhibition has been curated by archaeologist and senior curator Liz Montgomery, who drew together the exhibitors including Rachel Davies, designer of the exhibit entitled The Ellen Dress.
Another fascinating exhibit explores A Victorian Lady’s Guide to Chester. featuring the picturesque street scenes of the Rows, created by Louise Rayner in the 1860s, which beautifully capture the character of Chester. A donation of Watergate Rows by the artist, gifted to the Museum by Big Heritage is also on display for the first time.
The exhibition complements the extensive work of Chester High Street Action Zone’s Refresh programme that has funded Ellen’s Dress and a zine featuring previous Rows projects, such as Estelle Wooley’s Fashion on the Rows.
Refresh brings together the cultural aspect of the Chester High Street Heritage Action Zone (CHS HAZ), which is funded by Historic England and covers the area around the Rows, and a Reopening and Recovery programme for Chester, funded by the government’s additional restrictions grant to Cheshire West and Chester Council.
Peter Boughton the former keeper of art at the Grosvenor, who died in 2019, exhibited Louise Rayner’s works every few years, so it was decided to use these as a key exhibit. Liz Montgomery says: 'We wanted to show the Louise Rayners but include other collections so we could bring the paintings to life. A lot of work has been going on to make sure the Rows stay with us and to make sure they are useable and visitor friendly but then we also got a great portion of money to help us to inspire people to look at the Rows more closely and bring out more stories about them
'My colleagues in the Arts team have managed a series of projects under the banner of Refresh Chester. Some of the ones we are focusing on in the exhibition are Ellen’s Dress, which is inspired by the mayor’s daughter Ellen who eloped through the city gates before her father was about to shut them. And there’s a project by Estelle Woolley focusing on fashion, particularly Victorian millinery because the Rows, from Georgian times onward, have been the place to promenade and be seen and show off your fashion sense. Like today. they were the place to be seen.’
No one quite knows how the Rows came about but the exhibition explores fresh thinking about their origins. Says Liz: ‘The current school of thought is that within the confines of the city walls there was a lot of rubble – those imposing Roman buildings would have fallen down, but instead of clearing the sites the debris the medieval builders just pushed it away from the front of the roads because they wanted to build their own structures. If you go out of the back of their buildings, you’re on raised ground because there’s this false level created by the debris.’
In times past the ground floor was unused while the upper floor consisted of shops, with the areas above used as homes or businesses.
‘The interesting thing was that all the shops on the upper level were linked by a walkway. A set of unique circumstances created what we have today.’ says Liz
Ellen’s Dress by Rachel Davies
Taking inspiration from the strong visual lines of Chester’s historic buildings and from local folklore, Rachel created an exquisite conceptual piece that combines the symbolism and status of Tudor garments with architectural patterns. The dress was made from second-hand shirts and blouses from Chester charity shops. Rachel also held workshops with students at Cheshire College, creating a variety of textile installations using upcycling skills.
The owner of the dress was Ellen Aldersey, the daughter of the mayor of Chester who, in 1573, defied her father and eloped through Pepper Gate with her penniless beau. Her father ordered that the gate be locked, and thereafter, instead of locking the stable door after the horse, Cestrians talk about ‘locking a gate after a daughter has flown’.
On Another Level: Exploring the Unique Rows of Chester
Until April 30
Grosvenor Museum,
27 Grosvenor Street, Chester, CH1 2DD
01244 972197
events.westcheshiremuseums.co.uk
