Rodmas – Rood screen in St. Helen’s church, Ranworth, Norfolk by Maria CC BY-SA 3.0
Rood is another word for the Cross. Parish Churches used to have a Rood Screen separating the holy Choir from the more secular Nave. This screen was topped with a statue of the Crucified Jesus nailed to a Rood. So, Roodmas, is the festival of the Holy Cross. Roodmas is celebrated on May 3rd and September 14th, although the Church of England aligned has itself with the Catholic Church’s main celebration on September 14th.
See my post on September 14th here for more on the True Cross.
Object of the Week
Mechanical Celestrial Globe, 1575 (Holburne Museum Bath) Photo K Flude
I spent a couple of days in Bath and revisited the Holburne Museum. Here I saw this amazing object from the 16th Century. The Globe is a model of the universe, and built to show the movement of the constellations, but it also tells the time and date. So the user can see when a constellation appears above the horizon and where it will be in real time. The mechanics are designed to be seen from inside the Globe, so reading it from the outside requires a mental adjustment to the mirror image of the stella sphere. It also show a pre-Copernican view as the stars were imagined as if on the inside of a huge sphere circulating around the earth. For more information please read the label below.
Museum Label for Celestial Globe.Close up of the surface of the Globe showing Orion. Photo K Flude
The Shropshire News reported that two pieces of the True Cross were given to Charles III by the Pope for the Coronation. They were installed into a cross called the Welsh Cross. This was part of the Coronation Procession. The King gave the Cross (I assume with the pieces of the Holy Cross) to the Church in Wales. Let the Shropshire News tell the story:
It is a clear reminder that we are subjects not citizens and news, as a nation, we still set store by superstitions.
The Duke of Buckingham and the True Cross
The Duke of Buckingham had a piece of the True Cross in his collection, which he kept at York House in the early 17th Century. How he got it, I don’t know. But I think he must have acquired it in the aftermath of the destruction of the Reformation. John Tradescant, who looked after the Duke’s collection until Buckingham was murdered, had a piece of the True Cross. Tradecant created Britain’s first Museum, Tradescant’s Ark. Again, I suspect (without any evidence) that he got the fragment from Buckingham. Was he gifted it? Did he acquire it after the murder? Or shiver off a timber fragment hoping no one would notice?
First Written on May 3rd 2023, revised 2024, 2025, Object of the Day added 2026
Flora (Floralia festival named after her) on a gold aureus of 43–39 BC Wikipedia photot by АНО Международный нумизматический клуб
On the 28th of April began the Floralia. It continued to the Kalends (15th) of May. According to Ovid in the ‘Fasti’ Book IV, the Romans celebrated Flora, the Goddess of Spring. The Floralia celebrated flowering, blossoming, budding, planting and fertility.
Flora was one of the 15 Roman Deities offered a state-financed Priest. Her home in Rome, was on the lower slopes of the Aventine Hill near the Circus Maximus.
The Circus Maximus is the large long arena in the middle of Rome. Model Musee Arte et Histoire, Brussels, photo K Flude
Celebrations began with theatrical performances, at the end of which the audience were pelted with beans and lupins. Then there were competitive games, and spectacles. The latter, in the reign of Galba, including a tight-rope walking animal. A monkey you might guess but no, it was a tight-rope walking elephant!
The Year of the Four Emperors
Incidentally, Galba only survived for 7 months as Emperor. A little longer than our Liz Truss’s 44 days. But then she was not murdered by a rampaging mob at the end of her reign. It was the year known to history as the year of the 4 Emperors. (great description by Tacitus here).
Spectacles and Battles
Juvenal records that prostitutes were included in the celebration of Floralia by dancing naked, and fighting in mock gladiatorial battles. There is a raging debate about the existence of female gladiators. A burial in Southwark has been said to be one such. To hear what Natalie Haynes has to say on the subject look here🙂
Fauns, Satyrs, Goats and Hares
Hares and goats were released as part of the ceremonies. These animals were both considered to be very fertile and have a ‘salacious’ reputation! (Satyrs or Fawns were, famously, obsessed with sex and were half man half goat. A man can still be referred to, normally behind his back, as an ‘old goat’). Fauns were Roman, Satyrs Greek. The one half man half goat, the other half man half horse. It all got a little mixed up and fauns became very similar to satyrs.
1792 – France invaded the Spanish Netherlands to begin the French Revolutionary Wars which begin a period of near continuous European War until the defeat of Buonaparte in 1815.
1945 – Mussolini and mistress are shot by the Italian Resistance.
1967 – Muhammed Ali refuses his induction into the US Army on moral grounds. ‘I ain’t got no quarrel with them Viet Cong’. He said.
Written in 2023 revised April 2024, 2025, On This Day 2026
St Mellitus (Source: from saint-mellitus-of-canterbury-died-624
St Mellitus was the first Bishop of London (AD604) and the third Archbishop of Canterbury. But was he really? No, he was the first Bishop of London of the English Church. There were many before him. We know there were bishops of London from Britannia during the Roman period. And, according to John Stow, London’s first history. there were also post-Roman bishops. That line of Bishops ended, in 584 AD, when the 14th Bishop, Theanus, fled London. He headed for Wales to escape the Anglo-Saxon threat. However, even Stow was uncertain whether the list was genuine.
In 314 a Church Council or Synod was called at Arles, in France. Amongst those attending were three bishops from Britain, (and a Deacon and a presbyter) :
Adelfius “de civitate Colonia Londenensium” – that is, from the “colonia of the people of London”.
(Wikipedia)
The fact that two came from London suggests to some a mistake. Adelfus, perhaps, was either from Lincoln or Colchester which were Colonies. The Synod was called by the Emperor Constantine. Amongst its acts were to order that Easter should be held at the same time throughout the Empire. (See also my post on the Synod of Whitby which fixed the date of Easter in Britain as late as 684). They also banned Races, and Amphitheatre Games. and excommunicated all actors and charioteers. But it gives us our first certain facts about the origins of Christianity in Britain.
The Augustinian Mission and Mellitus
St Mellitus Burial Place, St Augustine’s Abbey, Canterbury. Photo K. Flude
In 597, the Augustinian Mission came to Kent. Mellitus was sent by Pope Gregory to join St Augustine’s mission in 601AD,. He was then sent to London to set up St Pauls and become its bishop (604). London was under the control of the Kingdom of Essex in those days. The King was Saberht, who was the nephew of St Ethelred, King of Kent. Saberht accepted Christianity but when he died. His heirs reverted to paganism and kicked Mellitus out. Mellitus went into exile in Gaul but came back to become the third Archbishop of Canterbury. He was buried in St Augustine’s Abbey in Canterbury. He is known as St Mellitus of Canterbury. St Mellitus had gout so is the go-to Saint for sufferers of gout.
London reverted to paganism until 654AD when St Cedd became its next Bishop.
1925 – McVitie’s Chocolate Digestive was created. There were made in Stockport and in Harlesden, London. I have moored my narrowboat outside the factory and been kept awake by the churning of chocolate in vast vats. News stories suggest that the Digestive was meant to be eaten with the chocolate on the bottom side. This is one of the most ridiculous things I have heard! But apparently it helps the chocolate get to your taste buds that bit quicker. But judge for yourself and read this page for the facts. And this one for more on the history of the Chocolate Digestive.
St Alphage. Church Tower on right, City Wall to left. Photo K Flude
I first came across St Alphage when I was working at the Museum of London. The Museum was built on the High Walk at London Wall. The raised Courbusian Walkway looked down on a ruin of a Gothic Church Tower, almost destroyed during the Blitz. This was St Alphage, a Church dedicated to the Saxon Archbishop of Canterbury. (Alphage is also spelt Alphege or Alfege or Ælfheah.)
On the other side of the Walkway was the old graveyard of the Church. This preserved one of the very best sections of the old London Wall. Special because on one side its full height was displayed. On the other, the only crenelated bit of the City Wall survived. And the only surviving part of the Wall dating to the War of the Roses.
St Alphage Roman and Medieval WallThe Crennelated Red Brick Section dates to 1477, during the War of the RosesSt Alphage Wall explained on an information plaque.
In the 1980s fellow Museum of London Archaeologist, Paul Herbert and I set up a Guided Walks company (Citisights of London). Our walks started from outside the Museum of London, and so St Alphage formed a big part of our success. It led to Guided Walks and tours being a big part of my life. So, St Alphage, thank you!
A Citisights Day Tour the Peasants Revolt (1980s)
St Alphage, Elsyng Spittle and St Mary
The Church was previously a monastic settlement called Elsyng Spittle (aka St Mary within Cripplegate). The Augustinian Canons looked after 100 blind men. It was refounded by Williain Elsing, and dissolved by Henry VIII in 1536. The Church was kept for a Parish Church. But the Puritans were not keen on dedications to St Mary. So, they renamed it after a London based Christian Martyr.
It remained a Parish Church until damaged in an air raid in World War One. (possibly on 8th September 1916 in a Zeppelin Raid – but I am speculating). The Church was partly demolished in 1923, leaving the Tower. The lower part of the Medieval Tower survived bombing in the Blitz. At 12.15 am on 25th Aug 1940, the first bombs on the City of London fell nearby in Fore Street. But the tower was hit in 1940. It was listed Grade 1 in 1950. Kept by the rebuilding of London Wall, and the Barbican area. Then substantially benefitting from a remodelling of the area in an excellent scheme of 2022.
St Ælfheah of Canterbury and Greenwich
StAlfege Greewich – Doyle own work Wikipedia CC BY-SA 4.0
St Ælfheah was captured during a Viking attack on Canterbury. The Viking hoard relocated to Greenwich where they tried to negotiate a fat ransom for him. He was one of the richest men in the Kingdom. This is what the Anglo Saxon Chronicle says:
.. the raiding-army became much stirred up against the bishop because he did not want to offer them any money, and forbade that anything might be granted in return for him. Also they were very drunk, because there was wine brought from the south. Then they seized the bishop, led him to their “hustings” on the Saturday in the octave of Easter, and then pelted him there with bones and the heads of cattle; and one of them struck him on the head with the butt of an axe, so that with the blow he sank down and his holy blood fell on the earth, and sent forth his holy soul to God’s kingdom.
St Alfege Greenwich, which is now a lovely Hawksmoor Church is said to be on the site of St Ælfheah‘s death. Thorkell the Tall tried to save the Archbishop, but failed and subsequently changed sides and joined the English King. Thrum, who was converted by Alphage, ended his agony by hitting him on the head with the butt of an axe. This seems like a strangely Viking form of mercy!
St Alphage’s body was taken to St Pauls Cathedral where it became venerated and brought income to St Pauls. His remains were removed in suspicious and violent circumstances by soldiers of King Cnut who translated the Saint’s bones to Greenwich. It is suggested King Cnut was punishing London for their opposition to him.
The Minotaur by Michael Ayrton
Also, part of the experience of visiting St Alphage from the High Walk was the statue of the Minotaur. I first came across this phallic Bull in Postman’s Park and am very fond of him. Then it disappeared and reappeared on the High Walk. Now it is on the ground level near the garden of St Alphage.
I understand that Michael Ayrton wanted to make a point about the destruction of London. He felt that the developers were more destructive than the Luftwaffe. They were like a Bull in a China Shop! So he created this statue of a very vigorous Bull (represented by the Minotaur). It is a very unusual work of art in that it sports a fully erect penis. Art History is full of naked women, but the erect male organ has largely not been seen to be a fit subject for art. For more about Ayrton follow this link.
The Minotaur in its present positionThe Minotaur on the High Walk
On This Day
1775 – Battles of Lexington and Concorde begin the American Revolutionary War.
Sketch from an old print. Francis Drake being knighted by Queen Elizabeth I. In fact, the Queen delegated the dubbing to a French Diplomat
The Queen’s half share in the profits of the Golden Hind’s circumnavigation of the world, amounted to more than her normal annual income. So it is no wonder she knighted the Captain, Sir Francis Drake. The ceremony took place in the dock in what is now South East London at Deptford.
The Spanish were furious that a Pirate should be so honoured. The Queen may have given a French man the honour of dubbing Sir Francis. She did this, perhaps to encourage the French to support the English against the Spanish?
The annual Royal Income for King Charles III is £86.3 million. This is paid in the Sovereign’s Grant. It gives you an idea of Drake’s booty. But I imagine she had a greater share of the nation’s wealth than Charles, as she was the Government not just a honorific cutter of ribbons.
Francis Drake. Hero or Bloodthirsty Pirate?
Francis Drake was one of the British heroes I read about as a child. I had a thick book with stories about people King Alfred the Great, Hereward the Wake, Robin Hood, Drake, Charles II, Bonny Prince Charlie, Flora MacDonald, Florence Nightingale, David Livingstone etc. Some of them horrifically Imperialist and racist!
Drake is remembered for being the first English person to sail around the world. And his exploits in ‘singeing the beard of the King of Spain’ on his piratical raids on the Spanish Main.
In the books I read, the Spanish were the bad guys, and we were on the side of the Angels. Drake was one of the swash-buckling heroes who turned Britain from a not very important country on the edge of Europe, to one of the World’s Great Powers.
Portrait of Francis Drake with Drake Jewel given to him by Queen Elizabeth I
On the other hand, he was also a pioneer of the Slave Trade, was involved in atrocities in Ireland and in the Spanish Territories. He summarily executed one of his crew in dubious circumstances. Perhaps more significantly, his contemporaries did not entirely trust him.
Francis Drake and the Spanish Armada
As the Spanish Armada sailed along the southern coast of England, the English Navy sniped at the heels of the Spanish ships. Drake was tasked with leading the nighttime harrying of the Armada up the Channel. The idea was to stop them landing and to drive them away and into the hostile waters of the North Sea. Drake in the Revenge was leading the pursuit, and the other ships were told to follow. He was to keep a single lantern alight in the stern of his ship. But the Lantern went out, and the British pursuit was disrupted.
The next morning, Drake comes back having captured the Spanish galleon Nuestra Señora del Rosario, flagship of Admiral Pedro de Valdés. The ship contained the gold to pay the Spanish Armada, which Drake seized. Was this a fortuitous accident which rebounded to Drake’s considerable financial advantage or something more deliberate?
In the end, the lantern incident did not stop the British forcing the Spanish to flee around the North of Scotland. On this perilous voyage only about 60 of their ships returned to Spain out of about 130. And Britain was saved from the Spanish Armada.
Nuestra Señora del Rosario and Agatha Christie
I used to lead an Agatha Christie program which included a visit to Torre Abbey in Devon. And it was here that the Spanish ship’s crew were imprisoned after Francis Drake took the ship.
The Abbey was a Premonstratensian Abbey. Its tithe barn was used to hold the prisoners of war from the ship of whom there were 397.
The Spanish Barn, Torre Abbey. Photo 2012 Kevin Flude
Sir John Gilbert, who was Sheriff of Devon at the time, used 160 Spanish Prisoners of War to develop his estate above the River Dart. The Estate is in a magnificent position, overlooking the drowned valley of the Dart. It is now enjoyed by those millions of visitors to what became the summer home of Agatha Christie (Greenway). The Poison Garden in the Garden of the Abbey is themed around poisons used in Agatha Christie’s books.
View of the River Dart from Greenway, photo KFludeView of Greenway from the River Dart. Photo KFlude
The Golden Hind & Deptford
Queen Elizabeth I decided that the Golden Hind should be permanently docked in Deptford. So the ship was placed in a ‘dry’ dock filled with soil. The ship decayed and by 1660 nothing much was left.
I remember as a young archaeologist that some of our team took time out to work with Peter Marsden. He is one of the great experts in Naval archaeology, and he led a search to find Drake’s ship. There was a huge fanfare in the London newspapers. ‘Find the Hind’ I think must have been the hopeful Headlines. But, rather embarrassingly, given the build up, they failed to find anything of significance.
Further exploratory excavations took place in 2012, with no greater success.
Panorama biew of the Spanish Army from an old history book
Golden Hind souvenirs
Chair made from timbers of the Golden Hind in the Dinity Hall, Oxford, photo K Flude
The Keeper of the Naval Stores at Deptford made chairs from the ruins of Drake’s ship, and one of them is on display at the Divinity Hall, Oxford.
Information panel on the Chair made from the ruins of the Golden Hind, photo K Flude
Sir Francis Drake and Middle Temple Hall
In London, Sir Francis Drake visited Middle Temple Hall, off of Fleet St regularly. A table (called the cupboard) is reputedly made from the hatch cover of the Golden Hind. This is where the newly qualified barristers stood to have their registration entered into the Inn’s books. Sadly, it did not survive the bombing of 1941.
Middle Temple Hall. Photo K Flude 2021
The lantern which hung in the entrance Hall allegedly came from the ship’s poop deck (so not the one he failed to keep lit!). Other famous mariners associated with the Middle Temple include Sir Martin Frobisher and Sir Walter Raleigh. Shakespeare’s company performed Twelfth Night in the Middle Temple Hall
The Romans celebrated the Great Mother, the Cybele in the festival of the Megalesia. To celebrate bringing a meteorite of Cybele to her temple in Rome in 204BC. Celebrated by the Games of the Great Mother
1660 – Declaration of Breda by King Charles II promises a general pardon to all royalists and opponents of the monarchy for crimes committed during the English Civil War. Excluded were the Regicides who signed Charles I’s death warrant.
1814 – Napoleon abdicated and on April 11 ordered into exile in Elbe.
1949 Twelve nations sign the North Atlantic Treaty creating NATO. They were the Western Union – ( France, UK, Belgium, Netherlands, and Luxembourg) and the United States, Canada, Portugal, Italy, Norway, Denmark, and Iceland
1968 – Martin Luther King Jr. assassinated by James Earl Ray in Memphis, Tennessee
First published 2024, revised 2025, On This Day added 2026
The expression ‘Mad as a March Hare’ comes from the displays of hare boxing that takes place as the Hare mating season begins. And no, it’s not the male March Hare fighting in the spirit of romantic rivalry. It is the female hares fighting off unwanted attention from the males. Hares are solitary creatures, and the mating season is, perhaps, particularly difficult for them. The Country File website has more on the subject. www.countryfile.com
Not only March Hares but March Kittens too
There are also March Kittens and March Chickens. Edward Topsell in his ‘History of Four-footed Beasts‘ 1607 says the best Kittens to keep are those born in March. ‘The Closet of Sir Kenelm Digby Opened‘ 1669 says:
‘Keep a black cock hatched in March as a protection against evil spirits: his crowing terrifies them.’
He also gives a recipe for Cock Ale:
Eight gallons of Ale, a boiled March Cock, four pounds of stoned Raisins, half a pound of dates, nutmegs, mace. Beat the ingredients in a mortar, add to two quarts of Sherry. Add to the ale. Stop it in a container for 6 or 7 days. Bottle it, drink after a month.
Very weird. I challenge my readers to try it and let me know how it goes?
Was the March Hare Sacred?
But it’s not only March Hares because the hare itself was a sacred animal. It was sacred to Aphrodite because of their prodigious ability to have offspring:
‘For you know, I imagine, what is said of the hare, that it possesses the gift of Aphrodite to an unusual degree. At any rate it is said of the female that while she suckles the young she has borne, she bears another litter to share the same milk; forthwith she conceives again, nor is there any time at all when she is not carrying young.’
Classical Texts Library. Philostratus the Elder, ‘Imagines’ Book 1.1-15 c 3rd Century AD. Translated by Arthur Fairbanks.
Divine Celtic & Neolithic Hares
Research reported by Exeter University suggests that hares were worshipped in pre-Roman Britain. Julius Caesar wrote:
“The Britons consider it contrary to divine law to eat the hare, the chicken, or the goose.”
‘The Battle for Gaul’ Translation by Wiseman, Anne, Wiseman, T. P. Published by Penguin Random House, 1980 ISBN 10: 0701125047 (TP Wiseman was my professor for Classical Studies at Leicester University).
Hares are thought to be the original Easter Bunny. But finding good evidence before Germany in the early modern period is difficult. There is a tradition that witches can be scared away at Easter. Exactly, how this works is not at all clear to me. But it has been said that witches could take on the form of a hare. So eating Hare Pie at Easter helps rid the land of the witches.
Jugged Hares
You could have a jugged hare. Jugging is cooking a whole animal in a container over water. Follow this link for a recipe for jugged wild hare. Remember, you are not allowed to shot or trap them on a Sunday or on Christmas Day! For a discussion of hares and folklore, click here:
Hare’s Feet Totems
A jointed hare’s foot was considered very lucky and a remedy against gout, stomach pains and insomnia. (The Perpetual Almanack of Folklore by Charles Kightly, which I have used several times in this piece.) You can buy one on eBay. (Don’t click the links, it’s not an advert but a picture of an advert). I remember friends having rabbit feet which they carried around with them for luck. The foot would often be on a key rings.
Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire (Johann Heinrich Hurter after Angelica Kaufman). Photo by K Flude of the miniature at the Victoria and Albert Museum
The Gilbert Collection has been re-displayed in the V&A in London. It has just opened, and is one of the most opulent displays you could hope to see! But, I loved this miniature of Georgiana. She was one of the richest women in Britain, a compulsive gambler, and a powerful political force for the Whig Party. And despite the Georgian Hairstyle the artist has contrived to make a very down to earth portrait. I can imagine bumping into her at the local Overground Station! She became better known after the bio graphy by Amanda Foreman, followed by the Film starring Keira Knightly. The Museum label says the portrait is ‘after Angelica Kaufman’. But I cannot find a Kaufman of Georgiana, that has this charming informality.
I have just heard news that the Arts Council wants to charge overseas visitors to visit our wonderful free national Museums, while allowing British Citizens free entry. Now, there are lots of arguments to be made about it, particularly in a time where money is in short supply. But, one result will be longer waits to get into Museums and Galleries. I am not sure how we Brits, are going to be asked to prove our nationality. If they have to inspect our Electricity Bills, Drivers Licenses, Passports, Library Cards, or Bank Statements, expect chaos.
One more object from the Collection is made of minature mosaics, and the V&A has several, But I have chosen this fabulous image of the Colosseum in Rome:
Colosseum by Domenico Moglia c1851
First published March 28th 2023, revised 2024, 2025. 2026 Object of the Day added and post revised 2026
The day after the Equinox we look at the cardinal points of the compass:
“chief, pivotal,” early 14c., from Latin cardinalis “principal, chief, essential,” (online etymological dictionary).
The Importance of South
On its annual cycle, the Sun is always on the move. At the Equinox the Sun now rises due East, and sets due West. It then rises every day further towards the north and sets further to the South until the Solstice. The Solstices mark the extreme Northerly and Southerly rising and settings. Dawn and Dusk vary accordingly.
So, the only real fixed point in the Sun’s entire journey (as seen from Earth) is Noon. Every day of the year, every day of our lives, the Sun is at the highest point at Noon. And this is the definition of South. But the Sun never strays into the North. So the North is the polar opposite of the South- cold, remote, more mysterious.
To my mind, it makes, of the Cardinal Points, the South very special. At Stonehenge, there are two exits. The biggest is aligned to the Midsummer Sunrise and Midwinter Sunset axis. But there is a smaller second entrance and this aligned due South. There is also a uniquely small standing stone in the main circle of Sarsens, which is aligned to the South. (Although we don’t know if this stone is original). However, there was some sort of corridor heading South through the mysterious wooden phase which precedent the stone Stonehenge. So, we can be sure South was important at Stonehenge.
Sketch of Stonehenge showing the smallest Sarsen stone near the Southern Entrance
Noon, derives from ‘nona hora’ in Latin and is ‘one of the seven fixed prayer times in traditional Christian denominations.’ (Wikipedia)
The Predominance of the North?
And yet, North, has come to be the principal of the cardinal points. It is shown on virtually all modern maps. It is the direction that people of my generation and hemisphere think of as being ‘up’.
The Google generation sees things differently. There are countless tourist maps on walls or plinths where North is no longer at the top. Up is shown as being the way you are facing. Users have to fight with Google Maps to put North at the top of the map. My children mock me when I say ‘Out of the Tube station, turn up the High street northwards.’ Their view of maps is completely contextual. They do not see any reason to know where the cardinal points are. I point out that the Tube probably has two exits on either side of the road. So, it doesn’t work to say ‘turn left out of the tube’.
There may also be an element of sexual difference, with men more likely to have a cardinal point view while women navigate more by landmarks. ‘Walk past the M&S, turn left to the Park and straight on’. One paper says: ‘during spatial navigation, women typically navigate an environment using a landmark strategy, whereas men typically use an orientation strategy.’
Although I see this decline of the north as being part of the Decline of the West. I also ‘things were better in my day’. But in fact it is simply returning to the way maps were produced in the past. Here is an example below, which has East at the top.
Representation of a Roman Map with the top being roughly East.
I have since looked further on this subject of North and Maps, particularly finding my answers on this web site: why-is-north-up-on-maps. It tells me that the earliest map the Turin Papyrus, has South at the top. This is probably because the Nile was the fount of all things in Egypt so it is in pride of place at the top of the Map. Other maps tend to have East at the top. The thinking is that the North was cold and who would want to go there?, The West was where the Sun went down, so the Sunrise direction should be at the Top. Often Jerusalem was in the middle with the East at the top. To this day, we talk about orienting ourselves, which means literally means finding your direction eastwards. But the 16th Century things flipped, and North became the top of the map. Was this because the Age of Exploration depended on the North Star? Maybe not because it was used for navigation for a long time before the 16th Century. Was it because of the use of the compass which pointed North? Perhaps not because the compass was first used in the 10th Century. The answer seems to be that Flemish geographer and mapmaker Gerardus Mercator in 1569 put North on top of the map. His projection became the most used map, and everyone started to follow suit.
Mercator projection of the world between 85°S and 85°N. Note the size comparison of Greenland and Africa, and the massive inflation of Antarctica’s landmass. CC BY-SA 3.0
The Magnetic Poles
Of course, there is another version of the cardinal points: the magnetic cardinal points. The magnetic North wanders over time. It does not necessarily coincide with geographic north. In recent times they are close enough. But in the past there have been huge variations. Occasionally, the earth has had geomagnetic reversals when the North Pole has pointed in different directions, including south. The last one was 780,000 years ago. On average, they take place very roughly every 500,000 years.
The magnetic pole is caused by the molten iron in the earth’s core and mantle, which creates a dipole. Fluctuations in the dynamo flow of the molten iron cause occasional reverses. The science is very complicated and, even now, not entirely understood. Is it a random consequence of flow dynamics? Or do external events, like sinking continents, or meteor strikes cause the reversal?
Since the first use of compasses for navigation in the 11th/12th Centuries, the magnetic pole hasn’t wandered enough to be of concern to navigation. It has wondered a few hundred miles over the last 500 years. Now, it is speeding up, from 9km a year to 52km (since 1970). This Wikipedia page is pretty good at an explanation.
My Job Tracking the Cardinal Points
My first proper job after university was as a technician then research assistant at Oxford University studying these phenomena. I say ‘proper’ because when I left University, I became an itinerant archaeologist. This led me to digs in Switzerland, Northampton, East Anglia and Nottingham. Then, I got the job at the Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, at Keble College, Oxford.
I worked for Dr. Mike Barbetti who was an expert on the wanderings of the Magnetic Pole. His interest was firstly in the pure science of the subject. But he was keen to explore the applied uses in Archaeology as well. So, after being appointed as a Research Fellow at Oxford, he set up an epic journey from his native Australia to Oxford. It went via some of the iconic sites of Palaeolithic Archaeology, including Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania. The site of excavations by Mary and Louis Leakey.
To plot the movements of the magnetic north, scientists needed dated samples. Early human sites provided dated sites over a long time span. Also, archaeomagnetism, as the discipline became known, offered the possibility of dating sites. Another application was to determine whether deposits were fired or not. One of the sites Mike sampled was a candidate for the first evidence of fire in human existence.
Cutting up Samples
As I said, Mike’s interest was discovering how the magnetic field of the earth changed over time. And, more importantly, what was the mechanism. He shipped back to Oxford samples of soil cast in Plaster of Paris. My job was to cut the samples up. I cut them up with an electric saw in a shed in the backyard of the Laboratory. Then we measured the direction and intensity of the magnetic field in the samples.
Soil contains particles of iron, and they align randomly. So a sample of soil has a low magnetic intensity and a random direction of magnetic field. But once heated up, the iron particles align to the current direction of the magnetic pole. Its intensity is proportional to the intensity of the Earth’s magnetic field. These measurements provide a method of plotting the changes of the magnetic field over time. And from these data, models can be constructed explaining how the iron in the earth’s core worked as a giant magnet.
Once we had built a reference curve for the movements and intensity of the magnetic pole over time, we hoped to develop another dating method. Other methods such as radio carbon, thermoluminescence, and tree ring dating, were being developed at the Research Laboratory in Oxford at the same time.
My part in Digital Heritage Part 1
Having got the results, I took them to the Oxford University Computer Centre. There, I typed them up onto machine-readable cards. Added a copy on cards of our computer programme written in Fortran, and gave them to the Computing Staff. The program and data were run through the Centre’s mainframe computer. (probably an IBM or ICL computer, the size of a house!) 24 hours later, I received a print-out to proofread.
I located mistakes, ran an editing run of punched cards, essentially instructing the computer: ‘on card two replace 2.5 with 2.6, and run the programme again’. I would pick up the results 24 hours later. It seems extraordinarily primitive now, but then it was an enormous saving of time.
And that, patient reader, was my early contribution to Digital Heritage and pure science. Mike published many articles of which I was joint author of three articles, two in the prestigious Science Journal Nature. And it is annoying that my citations in the groves of academia are still dominated by articles I co-wrote in the late 1970s/80s!
Mike’s work was important in the development of the study of the earth’s magnetic field. However, the use of archaeomagnetism has never risen above strictly limited. Occasionally, in specific circumstances, it can be useful. But those circumstances tend to be times when no other methods have worked. Most often, it is used in attempting to date kilns.
These are the papers:
Barbetti. M and K. Flude, ‘Palaeomagnetic Field Strengths from Sediments baked by Lava flows of the Chaine des Puys, France.’ Nature, Vol. 278 No 5700. 1979
Barbetti M., Y. Taborin, B. Schmider and K. Flude ‘Archaeomagnetic Results from Late Pleistocene Hearths at Etoilles and Marsangy, France’. Archaeometry 22. 1980
More on my contribution to Digital Heritage in posts to come.
OnThis Day
630 – Emperor Heraclius returns the True Cross, one of the holiest Christian relics, to Jerusalem. (see my post on the True Cross and Roodmas)
1152 – Annulment of the marriage of King Louis VII of France and Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine. She went on to marry Henry II of England which makes this one of the most amazing events of the medieval period. The transfer of lands from French control to English control as a result was huge. She eventually was imprisoned by her new husband for supporting their children’s rebellion.
1556 – Former archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Cranmer executed for heresy in Oxford. He had recanted, but recanted his recantation when he discovered there were still going to burn him. By rights, he should have been reprieved, but Queen Mary was determined to make an example of the man who help Henry VIII and Thomas Cromwell make England a Protestant state. The fire was on Broad Street, and he is said to have thrust his arm that signed the recantation into the fire, calling it ‘that unworthy hand.’
1829 – Duel Day is celebrated at Kings College when the Duke of Wellington fought a duel against George Finch-Hatton, 10th Earl of Winchilsea, because of disagreement about Roman Catholic Emancipation. The duel took place in an asparagus fields which would later become Battersea Fields. Wellington shot first and either missed or deliberately shot wide, and Winchilsea aimed high. He then apologised to Wellington. For more details see www.kcl.ac.uk/duel-day.
First written March 2023, revised 21st March 2024, Revised and Mercator added 2026
Video by Heike Herbert of Druids at the Spring Equinox at Tower Hill, London
New content will be found at the bottom in the ‘On This Day section.’ So, Spring has sprung, not only meteorologically speaking but also astronomically. We are 20 days into the meteorological Spring which started on 1 March (see my post here.) Today, we are starting the astronomical or solar Spring.
The 20th of March is the Spring Equinox, or Vernal Equinox, midway between the Winter Solstice and the Summer Solstice. The sun has been rising further north each day since December 21st. Today it rises due East, and sets due West. The day and night are roughly equal in length (although by no means exactly). At 14:45 today, the Sun is directly overhead at the Equator.
The term vernal comes from the Latin for Spring, and today is the Primavera, the first day of Spring. The Anglo-Saxons originally used the word lencthen (Lent) for Spring. But later adopted the idea of the ‘springing’ of the year when the plants bud. In Middle English, the word Spring is also used for sunrise, the waxing of the moon and the rising tides. These are called spring tides. But also for the sprouting of the beard and the first appearance of pubic hair! Happy Spring Time!
Printemps
Up to the 15th Century, the English also used the French term ‘prime-temps’ in the sense of ‘first times’. This follows the idea that the year is young, while Winter represents old age. As we shall see, on March 25th, there was also a belief that the world was created in Spring at the Equinox. Jesus was also conceived at this point of the annual cycle. (see my post /march-25th-the-beginning-of-the-universe-as-we-know-it-birthday-of-adam-lilith-eve-conception-of-jesus-start-of-the-year)
Zodiacally, if that is a word, Spring is Aries (brave and impulsive); Taurus (sensual and stubborn), and Gemini (dynamic and talented).
Druids at Tower Hill
Druids at the Spring Equinox Tower Hill London, Photo by Heike Herbert
The Druids have a ceremony at Tower Hill every year on the Spring Equinox. When I last attended I remember the druid costumes were often made with nylon sheets, and their footware was mostly tennis shoes. I see from the photos the nylon has at least been replaced with cotton, and the plimsolls with trainers. Not quite sure what that pair of black trainers are doing in the picture!
As my photos are getting long in the teeth, I have used photos by Heike Herbert. She attends most years. The ones above from 3 years ago. In 2025, she reported that the atmosphere has been affected by a street food market,. This restricted the space for the Druid Circle. The food stalls are there every Thursday, so it only impacts the Druid assembly once every 7 years! In 2026 the Druids meet at Tower Hill at 12 noon.
Tower Hill, Spring Equinox, 2025 and street food, Photo by Heike Herbert
Modern Druids
I say modern druids because there is no convincing evidence that the modern fellowships of Druids can trace their origins back to prehistory. Druidry was reinvented in the 18th Century — for example, the Ancient Order of Druids was formed in 1781. They were set up as societies in the tradition of the Freemasons. They held to belief in the fundamental importance of nature. However, one group, the British Circle of the Universal Bond, claim descent from a group persecuted by the Bishop of Oxford in 1166. Look at their website for more details and for an idea of their beliefs.
Prehistoric Spring Equinox
When did the Equinox first had importance for human society? The answer is, probably, at least as long as we have been reasoning creatures. On January 14th, I draw attention to a recent discovery by an amateur ‘citizen scientist’. He suggested there was evidence in Cave Painting for the use of a Palaeolithic Calendar. Follow this link to see the post.
Stonehenge and the Sun
At Stonehenge, in the old Car Park, they found three huge Pine post-holes in a line. Dating evidence shows they were erected in the Mesolithic period, thousand of years before Stonehenge. They align to the direction of the Mid-Summer Sunrise and Mid-Winter Sunset (NNE/SSW). If, and it’s a big if, you were sighting from Stonehenge itself, which was built some 5000 years in the future.
Imaginary reconstruction of the Carpark Postholes
It is a bit of a stretch using two pieces of evidence so far apart in time. But recent excavations have revealed that there are natural periglacial striations in the soft chalk bedrock at Stonehenge. These lines point to the Solstices. They not only predate Stonehenge but also the three post holes. The striations may well have been visible from the time they were created when the glaciers melted.
Around 12,000 years ago (date from my memory so approximate), the climate changed and the glaciers melted. This left a lot of water rushing around the landscape. At Stonehenge, it gouged out striations in the chalk. By chance, or as ordered by the Gods/Goddesses/Divine Nature, the striations pointed to the Solstice Axis. Richard Jacques excavations in the Stonehenge area revealed that the aurochs came to the Stonehenge area for grazing and water. Aurochs are huge wild cows with enough meat on them to feed 200 people. So, the solar axis is near a place where the Gods/Goddesses/Divine Nature provided super-abundance in the guise of herds of Aurochs.
Foreground shows the periglacial striations aligned on the Solstice. Source Current Archaeology?
Burial Mounds aligned to the Equinox
That the major movements of the Sun were of interest to Neolithic and Bronze Age society is confirmed by the alignment of many megalithic monuments dating from 3,600 BC onwards, including, of course, Stonehenge. All around the UK are long barrows and other burial mounds, many of which are indeed sited/sited E-W to the Equinoxes. Many are fairly approximate. But at Loughcrew, County Meath in Ireland the Vernal Equinox shines right into the burial chamber. The sun’s light shines onto a stone marked by stone carvings. Similar alignments exist at Knowth and Dowth in the Boyne Valley. More about Loughcrew in my post here)
Harmony & the Spring Equinox.
The Equinox also has another role, which is to be the anchor of the cardinal points. The world is orientated to North, South, East, West. The Equinox is a time when there is a harmony, a balance in the universe. Therefore, it is a fortunate, a lucky time, a time to fall in love or undertake notable undertakings. But, in the Christian world marriage traditionally had to wait a little longer, until after the commemoration of the death of the Messiah,
On This Day
Today, is The International Day of Happiness. This was set up by the UN on 28 June 2012. This year’s theme:
‘explores the relationship between social media and happiness, highlighting thepotential challenges for our wellbeing as well as ways we can all use tech for good.‘
Go to the web site for more information. But these are the three steps they suggest: (I’ve cut and pasted them from the site)
Step 1: Choose
Be mindful of if, when and how much you are on social media.
Pause and ask yourself, “What do I really want to do right now?” Keep a list of analogue activities you can do instead, like playing music, drawing, gardening or going outside for a walk.
Set a timer so scrolling is a short snack rather than a wormhole.
Give your mind space to think, keep the bedroom phone free, try a ‘digital sabbath’.
Step 2: Connect
Don’t let scrolling be a substitute for real connection.
Phone a friend for a chat, or send some voice notes, instead of scrolling.
Make plans offline, get excited about your next adventure with loved ones.
Use social media to connect with supportive friends and communities that are meaningful to you.
Step 3: Curate
Personalise your experience to support your wellbeing.
Share and amplify uplifting stories, messages and ideas, be aware of misinformation.
Be kind in the comments, it matters more than you think.
If you have found this useful, spread the word and encourage others to do the same. Use the hashtag #InternationalDayOfHappiness.
The World Happiness Report
This is published annually by the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford. More details here. Finland is top for the 9th year in a row. US is 23rd, UK is 29th. These are the top 25 happy countries:
Stained Glass window depicting St Patrick (source of image, lost in the mists of time!)
St Patrick
St. Patrick has a very interesting autobiography (Confession), because it is one of the only personal reminisces of life in post-Roman Britain. He wrote in the form of a letter. In it, he explains that he was captured by Irish pirates while living in a Romano-British Town. His father we discover was a Decurion and a Deacon which suggests elements of Roman political organisation continued. No one knows the dates of St Patrick’s life, but he lived in the 5th Century. The use of Roman titles suggests, to some, an earlier rather than a later date. Perhaps in the early 400s. Unless, of course, you want to propose that Roman life continued later into the 5th Century than the first few decades. (which, increasingly, people are proposing.)
The town he lived in was called Bannavem Taburniae. Many places have been proposed for it. The closest linguistically is Bannaventa in Northamptonshire, but this seems a very unlikely place for Irish raiders to land, being about as far away from the sea as it is possible to get in Britain!
Nicholas Fuentes
Scholars have suggested South Wales and the Scottish borders most commonly. But my favourite suggestion, but about as unlikely as Northampton, is Battersea in London. This suggestion was made in the pages of the London Archaeologist by then editor Nicolas Fuentes.
Fuentes was one of a pioneering group of archaeologists when Rescue Archaeology first began a campaign to record the archaeology being destroyed by massive redevelopment of town centres in the 1970s.
He changed his name from the anglicised Nicholas Farrant back to its original Fuentes. He then wrote a magnificent series of papers, in London Archaeologist, which located St. Patrick in Battersea; St Alban’s execution in London and all 12 battles of King Arthur around Greater London.
St Albans Martyrdom in London
All were well argued, but as a set they do raise an eyebrow, being unsupported by any clear evidence. And, as far as I know, without much scholarly support. The one I really like is locating St Alban’s Martyrdom in London rather than in St Albans. It reminds everyone that the first reference to St Alban, which is by Gildas in the 6th Century, places the execution of the Saint firmly in London. It also makes sense of the story that Alban, keen for martyrdom, gets God to part the River so he can go quickly to the execution spot. The bridge it was said was full of people going to see the execution.
In Gildas’s case, the execution is in London, probably at the Amphitheatre, up a hill from the the mighty Thames. So God parted the Thames for Alban. Anglo-Saxon historian, the Venerable Bede places St Alban’s death firmly in St Albans, but the river that God needs to part there- the River Ver, is a piddle. Alban could have crossed it easily, hardly requiring even Wellington boots! Not much of a miracle compared with parting the Thames. The likely site of execution in both cases would have been the Amphitheatre, rather than the side of the hill where the St Albans execution site is located. But Gildas did mention the hill, which makes sense in the case of London and not in St Albans, as it is outside of the Roman City. away from the amphitheatre.
To my, unscholarly mind, when we worship people we tend to venerate them, at their birthplace and death place. So to me, it makes sense that St Alban’s main shrine was at Verulamium where he was born (now known as St Albans) and London where he died.
St Germanus
There is some supporting evidence from the hagiography of St Germanus of Auxerre. This tells us that Germanus came to an amphitheatre for a religious debate about 15 years after the end of the Roman occupation of Britain. After the debate, he went to a nearby shrine dedicated to St Alban. Unfortunately, the writer of the memoir is not really interested in post-Roman Britain, so does not tell us whether it was in London or St Albans. But there is an early church dedicated to St Alban just by the Roman Amphitheatre in London. For more on St Germanus follow this link to my post.
However, archaeology does not reveal any evidence early enough to support the idea that the Church is that early. Fuentes, argued that London as the Capital was likely to have been the place where capital punishments were carried out, particularly in the case of a Roman Citizen like Alban. I must note that in placing any credibility to Fuentes theory, I am standing largely alone.
Stained glass window of St Patrick and St Germanus
The Twelve London Battles of King Arthur
I’m not so convinced by the 12 Battles of King Arthur were fought in the London Area. They are more likely to have been spread throughout Britannia. But the place name evidence is never going to be identify most of the locations.
St Patrick From Battersea?
So, to the point – St Patrick in Battersea? The evidence, as I remember it, is really only place name evidence. the suggestion that Battersea was derived from: Badrices īeg, ‘Badric’s Island’ and later Old English: Patrisey (Wikipedia), So, Patrick’s Island. The word ‘sea’ is used in that sense along the River Thames. For example in Chelsea, Thorney, Putney derived from ey which is short for eyot (island). Also spelt ait.’
St Patrick lived as a teenage slave for 6 years, then escaped from captivity in Ireland and returned home. Trained as a priest, in perhaps Auxerre (home to St. Germanus who is another crucial witness to post Roman Britain. (See my post here.) and returned to Ireland to begin the conversion to Christianity. He is the Patron Saint of Ireland, with St. Brigitte and St. Colomba.
St Patrick from Banwell?
Another candidate for Bannavem Taburniae’ comes from Andrew Breeze FSA. I read about this in Salon IFA, the newsletter of the Society of Antiquaries. Also you can read more about it in this History First article. Breeze has revived a theory that the Saint comes from the West Country, and that the ‘Bannavem Taburniae’ is Banwell, near Weston-super-Mare in North Somerset. He suggests that ‘Bannaventa was a Latinisation of a Brittonic name that included banna, for a bend’, crook or peak. Venta is a well known word for an area of local administration or marketplace. For example, Venta Bulgarum, was the name for Winchester in the Roman period.) . He suggests that these ‘elements, as well as the Berniae element of ‘Taburniae’, can be found in the name Banwell, itself a compound name of the Brittonic ‘Banna’ and the Old English wylle, both meaning pool, or in the names of surrounding villages.’ I’m sure Fuentes did something similar for Battersea.
Image credit: Looking south from Winthill, near Banwell, Somerset, Colin S Pearson; Banwell in Somerset, Google Street View
What Banwell has over the London theory is that it is more likely to have been subject to Irish Raiders than London. But, for me, it is just another theory based on placename evidence that might or might not be true. I have read any number of Archaeology books where arguments about placenames are deployed to add some solidity to some theory about King Arthur, or a tale from Geoffrey of Monmouth. I therefore distrust them all. They essentially create circular arguments.
St Gertrude’s Day
And least we forget, today is also St Gertrude’s Day, patron saint of Cats.
Facebook post, posted by a friend, and about St Gertude patron saint of cats.
On This Day
45 BC – Julius Caesar consolidated his power by defeating his main rival Pompey the Younger, and allies, at the the Battle of Munda. He went on to establish his Dictatorship, which led to his assassination on March 15th (see my post on the Ides of March)
1845 – The Rubber Band patented by Stephen Perry of St Johns Wood, London, for Messers Perry and Co,. Rubber Manufacturers of London.
Specification of the Patent granted to Stephen Perry, of Woodland’s-place, St. John’s-wood, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, and Thomas Barnabas Daft, of Birmingham, Manufacturer, for Improvements in Springs to be applied to Girths, Belts, and Bandages, and Improvements in the Manufacture of Elastic Bands. —Sealed March 17, 1845.
1861 – The Kingdom of Italy proclaimed with Victor Emmanuel as King. The unification of Italy was the culmination of the Risorgimento, led by Garibaldi, Cavour, Mazzini and Victor Emmanuel. It survived until 18 June 1946 when Italy became a Republic.
1951 – First Appearance of Dennis the Menace in the boy’s Comic the Beano. Published in Dundee, by DC Thomson. I read the Beano as a boy, along with the Robin, the Eagle, Topper, the Dandy, The Hotspur, and Whizzer and Chips. What made Dennis great was that he was a bad boy and didn’t get any better. Always at war with the ‘Softies’ – basically well-educated boys. And made us laugh with his antics. For more comic nostalgia read: nostalgiacentral.com/pop-culture/books-comics/british-comics-of-the-50s-60s-and-70s/
Dennis the Menace By DC Thomson – The Beano 3671, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=38472209
1973 – The Pulitzer Prize–winning photograph Burst of Joy is taken and symbolised the end of the US involvement in the Vietnam War
‘Burst of Joy’ By Slava “Sal” Veder”, Associated Press – https://www.columbiatribune.com/picture-gallery/news/2020/03/17/today-in-history-march-17/67299331007/, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=153972466
First Published in 2024, republished in 2025, On This Day augmented 2026
Gregorius I is known as Saint Gregory the Great. Pope from 3 September 590 to his death on 12th March 604. So 12th March is traditionally his feast day. It was changed to September 3rd, the date of his elevation to Pope because 12th March was often in Lent.
His is the 2nd most popular name for Popes. This is the top 18. I guess St Peter was too hard an act to follow, but then there are only 6 Pauls? I can’t help feeling there should be six Sixtus’s?
St Gregory is the patron saint of musicians, singers, students, and teachers. It is traditionally believed he instituted the form of plainsong known as Gregorian Chant. However, he was also a formidable organiser and reformer. He made changes that helped the Catholic tradition survive Arian and Donatist challenges. To read more about the Arian Heresy look at my post on St. Hilary and the Arians. (St Gregory and the Angles – why do these all sound like 80’s post punk bands?)
In the UK, St Gregory is venerated with St Augustine for bringing Christianity to the largely pagan Anglo-Saxons. The caption to the illustration above tells the story of how he came to send a mission to the pagan Angles in Briton. It includes his two most famous puns, riffing on the similarity of the words Angles/Angels and Aella/Alleluia. But in between these two he also punned on the name of Aella’s kingdom. This was called Deira which later joined with Bernicia to become the Kingdom of Northumbria. St Gregory said he would save them from the wroth of God which is ‘de ira’ in Latin. The ire of God. Deira. No? Not hitting your funny bone?
St Augustine’s Mission
In 597AD St Gregory sent St Augustine to Canterbury. His mission to convert the Germanic peoples of the former Roman Province of Britannia. Canterbury was chosen because its King was the ‘Bretwalda’ of Britain. And he, was married to Bertha, a French Princess who was already a Christian. The enigmatic title of Bretwalda was given to Britain’s most powerful King. At the time, it was Ethelbert of Kent. So, it was a relatively safe haven for St Augustine’s mission. The King was baptised, shortly, after in Canterbury.
Stained glass window showing the Baptism of King Ethelbert of Kent by St Augustine watched by Queen Bertha. In St Martins Church, Canterbury
Archbishop of London?
The mission came with a plan to recreate the ecclesiastical arrangements set up in the Roman period. From the early 4th Century there were archbishops in the two main capitals at London and York. (We know because they attended the Synod of Arles in 314). After Kent was converted, St Augustine sent St Mellitus to London. London was part of the Kingdom of Essex, ruled by St Ethelbert’s nephew, Sæberht. Mellitus was the first Anglo-Saxon bishop of London and he established St Pauls Cathedral in 604. St Paulinus was sent to convert Northumbria and established a Cathedral in York.
Unfortunately, for the plan, Sæberht died. His sons returned to paganism and Mellitus was kicked out. He returned to Canterbury, where he, eventually, became Archbishop. Ever since we have had an Archbishop of Canterbury and York and never had an Archbishop of London.
St Martin’s Church, Canterbury – where the Church of England began. Note the Roman tiles in the wall.
St Gregory and England
It is possible to argue (and I do) that St Gregory’s encounter with the Angles is why we are called English, not Saxons, nor Wessexians. Gregory sent Augustine to set up the Church of the Angles, not the Church of the Saxons. Saxon was the normal name used by the Romans for Germanic barbarians. The old Roman province of Brittania was by now divided into 3 Saxon Kingdoms. Essex, Wessex, and Sussex. (East, West, and South Saxons). 3 Anglian Kingdom, Mercia, East Anglia and Northumbria. (Middle, East and North Angles). And Kent, which the Venerable Bede says was a Jutish King of Germans from Jutland. These Kingdoms were often at war., sometimes allied, or subjected.
The Vikings then conquered most of these Kingdoms, except parts of Wessex and Mercia. After the attacks of the Vikings were beaten back, Alfred and his son, daughter and grandson reconquered or ‘liberated’ the ex-Viking areas. Alfred renamed the united kingdoms of Wessex and Mercia, the Kingdom of the Anglo-saxons. Athelstan his son liberated Northumbria and other areas, and in joining it to the Kingdom of the Anglo-Saxons renamed it Angeland or England.
The Church of England had made the term Anglish/English became a unifying term to unite Angles, Saxons and Jutes. Otherwise, the ‘liberated’ Angles and Jutes would have to swallow being part of Greater Wessex, rubbing in their loss of independence. Of course, it was all a bit more complicated, but it gives a summary of the formation of England, which was created by the end of the 10th Century.
St Gregory in Amsterdam
On a visit to Amsterdam and the Rijksmuseum I came across this painting which features Pope Gregory the Great. He is in the left hand part of the Triptych, shown in green kneeling at the altar. It shows Utrecht in the background.
Triptych of the Crucifixion. Showing the vision of the Crucifixion that St Gregory had while celebrating Mass (left). Crucifixion centre. St Christopher (right)
What is fascinating is all the paraphernalia of the Crucifixion above Gregory’s head. You’ll see 30 pieces of silver, dice to decide who gets Jesus’ robes, flails and torture devices, sponge and spear etc. Close up below.
Lazy Day in Anglo-Saxon Times. In the Laws of King Alfred the Great, this day was a day off for freemen. For more on Days off in the Anglo Saxon Calender see my post on August 15th.
1689 – Catholic King James II landed at Kinsale, County Cork, Ireland, in an attempt to regain the Kingdom from his daughter and son-in-law, William and Mary. James had fled to the continent following riots against his rule. William defeated James II at the Battle of the Boyne. James II returned to France never to return. Mary ruled jointly with her husband until she died of Smallpox, and he ruled alone until he fell off his horse.
1930 – Mahatma Gandhi begins the Salt March, a 200-mile march to protest the British monopoly on salt in India. One of the defining moments in non-violent civil disobedience. Offering the world a possible alternative to violent revolution, or military regime change.
1999 – Former Warsaw Pact countries, Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland join NATO. Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovenia and Slovakia joined in March 2004; Croatia and Albania joined on 1 April 2009. Montenegro 2017. North Macedonia. 2020: (Ukraine) can forget about (NATO membership). That’s probably the reason the whole thing (war) started,” said U.S. President Donald Trump on February 26, 2026
First published in 2024, republished in 2025. On This Day added 2026
