Category: Saxon

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St Columba (St Colmcille) Day June 9th

St Columba st margarets chapel by Graham van der Wielen Edinburgh Lead glass
St Columba Stained Glass window in St Margaret’s Chapel Edinburgh Castle Photo by Graham van der Wielen Wikipedia CC BY 2.0

St Columba, or Colmcille is one of the most important saints for the early transmission of Christianity. He was born in 521 and said to be a descendant of the possibly legendary Irish King Niall of the Nine Hostages. But then again, there are legends that say he fathered a good proportion of the Irish.

Niall & the Nine Hostages

(Why do so many of my titles and subtitles sound like a 70/80s band?) The Hostages were a token of Niall’s power over Ireland as they came from the five provinces of Ireland. These are Ulster, Connacht, Leinster, Munster, and Meath. The other four hostages represented Scotland, the Saxons, the Britons, and the Franks.) His legend suggests he lived in the 5th Century (although some say 100 years earlier) and that he raided Britain and Brittany. It is also said that on one of his raids he captured St Patrick. (see my post on St Patrick) .

Iona

St. Columba was sent at an early age to be brought up as a Monk. He went on to set up Monasteries in Ireland at Derry and Durrow. In 563, he left Ireland, possibly because he got involved in a dispute that had a deadly outcome. He went into exile to Scotland and set up the famous Monastery on the island of Iona, Inner Hebrides. This is off the coast of what would one day be called Scotland. At the time, the west coast was under the control of the Kingdom of Dál Riata, which was, Gaelic, nominally Christian, and controlled parts of Ulster and Western Scotland. These people the Romans called the Scotti.

Picts

From Iona, Columba led the conversion of the Picts to Christianity. The Picts were Britons, speaking a different dialect of Celtic than the Gaels of Ireland and Dál Riata. Their name is said to have been given by the Romans and meant Painted Men. A shared religion, which St Columba brought from Ireland, helped towards the eventual union of the Gaels, the Picts and other British groups into the Kingdom of Alba.

Alba

Alba is the Gaelic name for Scotland – meaning white, and from which we also get Albion. Alba became Scotland, which is derived from the Roman word for the area which in Latin was “Scotia” (from the Scotti). Iona became the traditional burial place of early Scottish Kings such as Macbeth (Mac Bethad mac Findlaích). These Kings were crowned at Scone and buried in Iona. Alba was also able to take territory from the Anglian Kingdom of Northumbria, namely, the Scots-speaking areas South of the Firth of Forth. (Scots being a dialect of English). There were also Norse settlers in the Ireland so Scotland was made of a coalition of Gaelic, Brittonic, Norse, and Scots (English) speakers.

St Columba and the Loch Ness Monster

Much of the events of this part of Columba’s life are recorded by St. Adamnan in The Life of Saint Columba. This was written in the 7th Century, much of which is apocryphal. One notable story tells how he came across a group of pagan Picts who were mourning a child killed by a monster in the River Ness. St Columba revived the child. He then sent one of the Brothers to swim across the Loch to fetch a boat. The “water beast” pursued the Monk and was about to attack him when St Columba told the monster to stop. So it did, retreating to the depths of Loch Ness. Thus began the legend of the Loch Ness monster.

From Iona to Lindisfarne

St Columba died in 597AD. Iona continued to prosper and in, 634 sent St Aidan from Iona to found the Monastery at Lindisfarne. The island is on the Eastern coast of Britain in the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Northumbria. This Kingdom of the North Angles, was one of the most powerful at the time and Lindisfarne was instrumental in its conversion to Christianity. Also to the reconciliation between Celtic and Roman Catholic traditions, at the Synod of Whitby. The tradition of evangelism took hold in the British Isles, and it was from here that much of the German-speaking world was converted to Christianity.

This is St Columba’s legacy.

Northumbria’s Contribution to the development of Christianity

There is a developing understanding among scholars that this Irish inspired form of Christianity, fused with the Anglo-Saxon Northumbria took a leading role in ritual, art, scholarship in the Roman Catholic world. Just stop and think about that sentence for a moment. The northern parts of an out of the way set of islands off the edge of Europe took a leading role in the development of Western Christianity. This was highlighted in a recent exhibition of Anglo-Saxon art at the British Library.

British Library with Poster for Anglo-Saxons Kingdoms Exhibition, Photo K Flude
British Library with Poster for Anglo-Saxons Kingdoms Exhibition, Photo K Flude

A look at the Lindisfarne Gospel and the Book of Kells showcases the amazing art of this period. For a real treat, look through this scrollable virtual copy of the Lindisfarne Gospel. (Currently this is unavailable, I suspect since the BL was hacked. So instead, here is a slightly breathless online introductory video of the Gospel.)

https://smarthistory.org/the-lindisfarne-gospels

The Book itself has been missing from the displays of the British Library for a couple of years, but was on display in Northumberland in 2022. I’m not sure whether it is yet back on display at the British Library. I think not. You can see the Book of Kells at Trinity College, Dublin or look at their online offering here: Not quite as joyous an experience as the online Lindisfarne but beautiful enough.

Carpet Page from the Lindisfarne Gospel
Carpet Page from the Lindisfarne Gospel Photo Wikiepedia Eadfrith –
Lindisfarne evangeliarium, tapijtbladzijde op f26v, Matteüsevangelie

Click here to read my post on Scone and the emergence of Alba.

Here is a virtual tour of Iona

Here is a 360-degree panoramic photo tour of Lindisfarne Abbey

For a tour of virtual treats about Celtic art follow this link: https://harvardartmuseums.org/exhibitions/6342/celtic-art-across-the-ages

First Published in 2023, revised, 2024 and improved 2025, and Niall & the Nine Hostages added 2026

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St Kevin’s Day June 3rd

St Kevin of Glendalough (Wikipedia)

Thank you very much to my subscriber for alerting me to St Kevin’s Day, which is my Saint’s Day. I was aware of St Kev and that the name meant ‘of noble birth’ but that was the extent of my knowledge.

But a little research on Wikipedia while on the train to visit my Dad, revealed that Kev lived to the grand old age of 120, born in 498 and died in 628.  As my Dad is 98 and still going strong, maybe he and St Kevin will inspire my longevity?

Briefly, St Kevin met the great St. Columba; had a poem written about him by the marvelous Seamus Heaney (https://poetryarchive.org/poem/st-kevin-and-blackbird/); a song by the Dubliners; several mentions by James Joyce and a long-distance path, the St Kevin’s Way, part of the Camino de Santiago network, named after him. And St Kev can help us understand the weather for the rest of June :

‘The weather on St Kevin’s Day will last all month‘. 

So that means, sadly. rain for the rest of June.  At least in Edinburgh where I currently am.

Live recording of Dubliners’ Song about St Kevin

Coemgen, as he is known in Irish, was a hermit, living in a cave-like ledge above a lake.  His piety attracted followers and a monastic settlement.  He was known for his ascetic life and love for nature.  So, a role model for all us Kevins?

His hagiography was written very late, so little of it can be confirmed. But, like other saintly hermits, he is associated with being tempted by women or the devil disguised as a woman.  (St. Anthony the Great, St. Benedict of Nursia, Saint Chrysanthus, St. Vitus,  St. Bernard of Clairvaux, St. Hilary etc.)  Unfortunately, rather than just resisting his temptress, Coemgen is said to have drowned her. Not so good!

On the other hand, my sister sent me this photo of a souvenir from a shop in Northumberland.

That’s more like it! And oh so true! Clearly we, handsome, clever, positive, analytical Kevins have a lot going for us, despite the name.

For more on the Temptations of Hermits read this article:

Nechita, Andrea.“Offering Body, Pleasure, and Wealth: The Visual Representation of Women Tempting Saints (Fifteenth and Sixteenth Century).”Annual of Medieval Studies at CEU, 20 (2014): 96-112.

On This Day

1726 – Birth of James Hutton – Father of Geology. Today is his tercentenary. An observant farmer (but much more) he realised that ‘”a vast proportion of the present rocks are composed of materials afforded by the destruction of bodies, animal, vegetable and mineral, of more ancient formation” (John Playfair). For example, Sandstone is on hills, and erodes to sand which is taken down river to the delta where it is laid down in the sluggish water. Time changes it into Sandstone, which uplifted into hills, starts the cycle again. He realised that this process must take millions of years, and thought it was part of a never-ending cycle. Both showing that the Creation myth in the Bible was metaphorical at best. At Edinburgh, where he was born, he spotted a layer of Dolerite which once must have been molten and which had forced its way into an earlier strata of sedimentary Rocks. This was Salisbury Crags which takes its place as one of those places key to the development of modern science. For more on the Centenary look here.

First written in 2023. revised June 2024, 2025, On This Day added 2026

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St Augustine & the Origins of Christianity in Britain May 27th

Stained glass window showing Baptist of King Ethelred of Kent by St Augustine watched by Queen Bertha. In St Martins Church, Canterbury
Stained glass window showing Baptist of King Ethelred of Kent by St Augustine watched by Queen Bertha. In St Martins Church, Canterbury

This post is about St Augustine and Christianity in Roman and Post Roman Britain. But first:

On This Day

A satirical print of the duel by Charles Williams. showing the duel between Pitt and Tierney on Putney Heath

On May 27th 1798, Prime Minister Pitt, a Tory, meet George Tierney on Putney Heath for a two pistol duel. In the absence of the Whig Leader Charles James Fox, Tierney questioned the Prime Minister’s plan to increase the Royal Navy’s man power. Pitt suggested Tierney’s opposition came about through ‘desire to obstruct the defence of the country’. Tierney objected, the Speaker upheld his complaint. Pitt refused to withdraw the remark. Tierney sent his second to demand satisfaction. Pitt accepted. Both missed their first shots, Pitt shot his second shot vertically up. The seconds stopped Tierney responding. The King was furious that Pitt should put his own pride against the interests of the Country. The other two people are the seconds.

The Cartoon above shows, skinny Pitt on the right, Tierney on the left under the shadow of the Gibbet. Britannia is horrified with the British Lion in the background. Behind them is one of the new Telegraph systems which is conveying news of the duel.

The Augustinian Mission

St Augustine brought Christianity to England, leading the mission sent by Pope Gregory to Canterbury in 597AD. He was the Abbot of a Monastery in Rome before the Pope sent him to convert the Angles. I tell the story of the mission in my post: March-12th-St-Gregory-Punster-Extraordinary/.

Augustine is the patron saint of England and the Anglican Communion. But he is not the person who brought Christianity to Britain. To England, maybe.  Britain. No. The Romans did this. I summarise the evidence in my post on St Lucius, who is claimed to have brought Christianity to Britain in the 2nd Century. Our first martyr was  St. Albans. (see my post on St Albans here.

Feast Day(s) of St Augustine.

We have a variety of days to celebrate St Augustine of Canterbury.  These are according to Google; 26 May (Anglican, Eastern Orthodox, and Catholic Extraordinary Form calendar in Great Britain). 27 May (Catholic Ordinary Form calendar). 28 May (Catholic Extraordinary Form calendar outside Great Britain).

Perhaps, like the Venerable Bede he died after Dusk?  (see yesterday’s post.)

Romano-Britain and Christianity

There is good reason to think Christianity was strong in Roman Britain, particularly in towns. There is also some evidence of non-Christian religious centres surviving in the countryside (the Roman word for non-Christians, pagans, comes from the Latin word paganus, which meant someone who lived in the country.)

After the Romans, the Christian Church continued to thrive, with a host of Saints particularly in Cornwall, and Wales. The first substantial eye-witness account of post-Roman Britain, dated to the early 5th Century, concerns the Catholic Bishop Germanus. This shows a battle for souls in Britain not between Christians and Pagans, but between Catholics and other Christians who the Catholic Church targeted as heretics. I talk about this in my post about St Germanus here.

The next insight comes from the conversion of the Irish to Christianity later in the 5th Century. St Patrick’s account gives an eyeyewitness view. What is interesting is that St Patrick’s family were living in a town where aspects of Roman life were still continuing.  After being kidnapped by Irish raiders, St Patrick went on to lead the conversion of the Irish (with the help of St Bridget).  See my post on St Patrick here, St Bridget here.

I cannot see any sense of personality or charisma in the story of St Augustine.  But Welsh history shows him to be an unsympathetic hierarchical character.

Clashes with Celtic Christianity

What many people forget is that St Augustine came to a country with over two hundred years of Christian belief.  So, meetings were held between the British Church and St Augustine, culminating in the Synod of Chester in the early 7th Century.   Seven British Bishops and others prepared for their response to St Augustine’s insistence on the primacy of the Roman Catholic Church. One of the contentious issues was the ‘computus’ for deciding the date of Easter. Another was the style of the monks’ tonsure.  But it was a major step for the British churches to align themselves with a foreign ecclesiastical structure.

The delegates were advised by a wise hermit to arrive late at the planned meeting with St Augustine to see how he reacted.  If he got up and welcomed them, then he was a fit leader to follow. If he acted imperiously, then he was not worthy.  St Augustine failed the test, the meeting was a failure. And St Augustine cursed the British, which was said to have led to  a military campaign against them by the Anglo-Saxons.  The British lost the subsequent battle of Chester.  It was said that 2000 monks from the nearby monastery of Bangor-in-Dee were slaughtered. This seems like a huge exaggeration, unless the definition of a monk was just loosely people associated with the Monastery..

The battle severed the connections between the British Kingdoms in Cumbria and Scotland from the Kingdoms in Wales and made it very unlikely that the British would ever regain control of Britain from the English.

The two churches were reconciled at the Synod of Whitby (664AD).  For more about the calculations for Easter and the Synod of Whitby look at my post here.

First written on 27th May 3025, revised On This Day added 2026

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The Venerable Bede Died – May 26th 735AD

A Scribe – possibly the Venerable Bede. Late 12th Century from Lives of St Cuthbert.

He died on the evening of what we would call the 25th. In ancient times, the Day changed at dusk. So for his contemporaries, he died on 26th May. But, as he shares his day with St Augustine, some celebrate the Venerable Bede on May 27th!

Called the Father of English History, the Venerable Bede was an excellent historian. He set the tone and standard for many centuries of English Historiography.  Mostly remembered for the ‘Ecclesiastical History of the English People’. This provides the most trusted account of the events of the Post Roman, Migration, and Anglo-Saxon periods. But he also wrote on time and bible commentaries. (see below). He is said to be the only Medieval Englishman, other than Chaucer to be read by every generation.

Dante’s Bede

So well regarded is he that he is the only Englishman mentioned in Dante’s Paradiso.  (I have just discovered that there is another Englishman mentioned. But he is the murderer Guy de Montfort, who fled after the battle of Evesham. He then murdered his cousin in a church, and is in hell according to Dante.)

Bede is in Heaven and in the fourth sphere of Prudence. This is the Sun. Dante and Beatrice are surrounded by bright sparks which are the souls of 12 men. These the wise, who illuminate the earth intellectually.

Dante and Beatrice meet twelve wise men in the Sphere of the Sun (miniature by Giovanni di Paolo), Canto 10. (Public Doman via Wikipedia). Pictured are: Thomas Aquinas, Albertus Magnus, Gratian, Peter Lombard, King Solomon, Dionysius the Areopagite, Orosius, Boethius, Isidore of Seville, Bede, Richard of Saint Victor, Siger of Brabant.

‘Next, see the glowing breath of Isidore of Seville flame out, of Bede, and Richard of SaintVictor, who in contemplation exceeded Man. The one from whom your glance returns to me, is the light of a spirit, who, of profound thought, seemed to himself to reach death too slowly: it is the eternal light of Sigier, who, lecturing in the Rue du Fouarre, syllogised truths that brought him hatred.’

https://www.poetryintranslation.com/PITBR/Italian/DantPar8to14.php#anchor_Toc64099872Bene

Venerable?

He is Venerable. But not only in the general sense of being wise, old and respected, but also in the technical Catholic sense:

‘ a title given to a deceased person who has attained a certain degree of sanctity but has not been fully beatified or canonized.‘ (Oxford Languages)

In 1899, the Catholic Church honoured him with the title of Doctor of the Church. This title is given to someone holy who has contributed to the theology of the Church.

He is considered by some to be the best historian in olden times, only equalled by Herodotus (said Thomas Carlyle). Thucydides surely says I! (Note: Herodotus is known as the ‘Father of History’ for his storytelling and breadth of the scope of his attention. While Thucydides didn’t tell tales, he concentrated on empirical evidence and so is known as the Father of Scientific History).

A Good Historian?

Bede is so good because he checked his sources and had access to a wide range of books. He even had a line to the Vatican so he could check his facts with Vatican records. This in the 8th Century! The Venerable Bede is the polar opposite of Geoffrey of Monmouth, (writing in the 12th Century). If Bede mentions a person or an event then they are accepted as part of the story of the English. By contrast, if Geoffrey of Monmouth mentions a person or event, without further corroboration, then historians tend to consider it a story, myth or simply made up by Geoffrey.

But, the truth is not so straightforward. Bede is not without his biases. Nor were his sources always reliable. And he is not above accepting myth, legends and miracles as fact.  Geoffrey also has access to some, probably, oral traditions. So that some (but which?) of his many tales of the Kings of Britain may hold considerable historical information.

Bede’s Influence on English History

Bede followed Gildas (A British Monk writing in the 6th Century) in wondering why God allowed the native Christian Britons to be defeated by the foreign Pagan English.  Gildas assumed God was punishing the Britons because of the evil deeds of their so-called Christian Kings.  Bede extends this to argue that God is punishing the Britons for not trying to convert the English to Christianity. God knows that the English, when converted, will be much better Christians than the Britons seems to be Bede’s understanding.

This starts a histographical trend for the English to think of themselves as the chosen people. By contrast, the Britons (Welsh, Scots and Irish) are feckless Barbarians (they thought).  Bede concentrates on the English. Countless generations of Historians have either left out the Britons, or demeaned them in their histories of England and indeed of Britain.

For example, most histories of Kings, deal only with England. They either begin with William the Conqueror or Alfred the Great and omit any British, Welsh, Scots or Irish Kings. Except, of course, for my book on the Kings and Queens of Britain. This starts with the largely legendary Kings of Britain, and includes some Welsh and Scottish Kings.  To buy it, you will find details of it here.

So Bede is a great historian without whom we would have an even less clear idea about what happened in the centuries following the Roman Period.  He also, contributed to an Anglo centric view of history. He was writing in Northumberland at the Monastery of Jarrow. So is more sympathetic to Northumbria than to Wessex, Mercia, and the British Kingdoms.

Bede’s Books

He wrote over 60 books. One was about the theological science of computus. In particular, the dating of Easter. The British Church had one method, the Catholic Church another. This contributed to a series of confrontations between the 2 Churches. And was only finally resolved at the Synod of Whitby in the favour of the Catholic Church.

Bede was instrumental in making Dionysius Exiguus idea of dating from the birth of Christ as the standard system. He also thought the Catholic calculation that Jesus was born 5000 years ago was wrong. He used the Bible to calculate the more ‘correct’ date was was 3952 BC.  Archbishop Ussher in the 17th Century took Bede’s calculation and improved it and suggested the proper date was 4004 BC.

For more about Dionysius Exiguus and the division of time, see my post here.

First Written on May 26th 2025, revised and Dante expanded 2026

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St Pancras May 12th

Ruins of St Pancras, Canterbury Photo: K Flude (note the reused Roman Bricks.)

St Pancras and the Ice Saints

It has been unusual cold in the last few days. You can blame this on the St Pancras and the Ice Saints.  These are saints with feast days from May 11th to May 14th.  They are: St. Mamertus, St. Pancras, and St. Servatius (and in some countries, Saint Boniface of Tarsus – Wikipedia). They represent a medieval belief that there was often a cold snap in early May.   So  the idea of the Ice Saints was probably to help persuade farmers to delay sowing until later in May. But modern statistics disprove this, but it is true that a late frost can cause havoc with crops.

St Pancras in Rome

He was a 14 year old who refused to give up his Christian Faith during the persecution of Christians by the Emperor Diocletian. He was beheaded on the Via Aurelia, in Rome, traditionally, on 12 May 303 AD. His body was buried in the Catacombs, but his head is kept in a reliquary in the Church of Saint Pancras in Rome.

Pancras means ‘all-powerful’ in Greek. His youth makes him the Patron Saint of children, but he is also the patron saint of jobs and health. He is ‘invoked’ against cramps, false witnesses, headaches, and perjury.

St Pancras in Canterbury

Pope Gregory is said to have given St Augustine relics from St Pancras when his mission came to Kent in 597AD. They built a church dedicated to St Pancras in Canterbury. The ruins still survive in the grounds of what is now St Augustine’s, Canterbury (see picture at top of this post).

St Pancras in London

St Pancras, Old Church, London (Photo: Kevin Flude)

This story is partly responsible for the claims that St Pancras Old Church, in Camden (pictured above) is a very old foundation. It is claimed there was a late Roman place of worship here. But there is very little solid evidence for this. It is also argued that, if it isn’t late Roman, then it dates to just after 604AD. This is when St Mellitus, sent by St Augustine, established St Pauls Cathedral. It is suggested that Mellitus also founded St Pancras Church. St Pancras’ Church was a Prebend of St Pauls Cathedral (a Prebend provides the stipend (pay) to support a Canon of a Cathedral). But this is not evidence it was established as early as the Cathedral was, and there really isn’t any other credible evidence for a 604 date.

When the Church was restored, the architects said it was mostly Tudor work with traces of Norman architecture. However, it was reported that a Roman tile or two were reused in the fabric. This is about the only evidence, but it helps keep the legend going.

If you read the Wikipedia page, you will see evidence of two strands to the contributions. One is playing down the legends of its early foundation. The other trying to keep hold of its place as among the ‘earliest sites of Christian worship’. Read the wikipedia page here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Pancras_Old_Church to make up your own mind.

It is a lovely Church, on an impressive site, with links to Thomas Hardy, and Sir John Soane whose tomb is the design inspiration for the iconic Red Telephone Box.

The End of Hardy’s tree

Headaches

As Patron Saint of Headaches, St Pancras Day is a good day to make worms come out of your head. Or so say the Fairfax Household Book of the 17th/18th Century as quoted in Charles Kightly’s ‘The Perpetual Almanac’:

‘To make a worm come out of the head. Take, in May, the marrow of a bull or cow, and put it warm into the ear, and the worm will come forth for sweetness of the marrow.’

Generally,willow bark was used for headaches. We know this would have worked as the bark contains salicin, which is converted by the body into salicylic acid. This is a precursor to aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid). But it is not as effective.

On This Day

113 – Trajan’s Column is finished in Rome. Reliefs sculptures on the Column celebrate his victory over the Dacians. There is a copy made of plaster on display at the V&A. The sculptures provide a prime document on the Roman army.

1593 – London playwright Thomas Kyd is arrested and tortured. He lived with Christopher Marlowe. In the search of their rooms, it was claimed they found evidence of atheism and blasphemous documents, including the claim that Jesus was homosexual. Kyd claimed the documents were Marlowe’s. Marlowe was awaiting news of whether he was going to prosecuted, when he was murdered in a tavern in Deptford, possibly by Government agents.

First Published in 2024, revised 2025 OnThis day added in 2026

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Walpurgis Nacht & St Erconwald’s Day April 30th

Walpurgis Nacht. Screen Shot of https://astromagicklounge.com/2021/04/30/celebrating-walpurgis-night-with-black-sabbath-aleister-crowley/

Walpurgis Nacht is the eve of the Feast of St Walpurga. On May 1st 870AD, St. Walpurga remains were ‘translated’ to Eichstätt. St Walpurgis Day is her feast day. Walpurga’s brother St Williibald had set up Eichstätt as the Diocesan centre of this part of Bavaria. Walpurga and her two brothers, Willibald and Winibald were Anglo-Saxon Saints who helped convert Germany to Christianity in the 8th Century. But, I wrote about the Saint and her brothers in on my page on St. Walpurga.

The Celtic Day began at Dusk, so May Day and the Feast of St Walpurga begins on 30th April. The Christian Church took over many local traditions and adapted them to the calendar of the Church. So a Saint’s Day, is preceded by an Eve. For example, All Hallows’ Day and Halloween, and May Day and May Eve.

Eve of Beltane

The evening of April 30th is also the beginning of Beltane. Beltane is one of the principal Celtic Festivals, dedicated to the God Belinus. It is a Celtic Fire Ceremony and the traditional beginning of Summer. It is 6 months before Halloween, (see my post of Halloween here.) Walpurgis Nacht is also halfway between the Spring equinox and the Summer solstice. So, a very important day in the Celtic Calendar. (see my post on May Day).

In Sweden it is known as Valborg and as Čarodejnice in the Czech Republic.

A day of Uncanny Weirdness?

As May Day was an uncanny period dedicated to Pagan Deities, Walpurgis Nacht became a time when all the weird things are alive in the world. In response, the Christian Church associated a saint to the day to be a focus for defeating witchcraft. So, it is a popular tradition for this Night to see the burning of an effigy of a witch on a bonfire.

Walpurgis Nacht has really been taken over by Heavy Metal, and I refer you this page to begin your journey down a dark rabbit hole of head-banging rock. https://astromagicklounge.com/2021/04/30/celebrating-walpurgis-night-with-black-sabbath-aleister-crowley/

St Erconwald’s Day

Tomb of St Erconwald, destroyed by the Great Fire of London.
Tomb of St Erconwald, destroyed by the Great Fire of London. By Wenceslaus Hollar – Artwork from University of Toronto Wenceslaus Hollar Digital CollectionScanned by University of TorontoHigh-resolution version extracted using custom tool by User:Dcoetzee, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6235771

It is also the Feast Day of St Erconwald. He was a Royal Prince but no one can agree of which Saxon Kingdom. He became one of the most famous Bishops of London (675 and 693). Chertsey Abbey and Barking Abbey were founded by the Saint. His sisterwhich his sister, St Ethelburga, became Abbess of Barking. Not only that, but he was known as the light of London and was responsible for rebuilding St Pauls Cathedral. And helping to complete the conversion of the Kingdom of Essex.

You might enjoy reading this alliterative poem, of the 14th Century about his life. He is one of the patron saints of London, associated with early pilgrimage and many miracles. Here is more information on the poem.

First Published in 2024, revised in April 2025, 2026

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St Mellitus Day And the Birth of the Chocolate Digestive April 24th

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.

I tell this story in my post on St Lucius.

The Synod of Arles

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) :

  • Eborius “de civitate Eboracensi” – from the city of Eboracum (York);
  • Restitutus “de civitate Londenensi” – from the city of Londinium (London);
  • 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.

I tell the story of the Augustinian misson in my post here

On this day

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.

First published in April 2025, revised in 2026

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St Beuno and a Poem to the Vagina April 20th


Drawing of a Stained glass window depicting Saint Beuno. D A R C 12345 – Own work

Today is St Beuno’s Day. St Beuno is also known as St Bono. He was an 8th Century Welsh Abbot of some power. The grandson of a prince of Powys in Wales who was descended from Vortigern. (see my post on Vortigern here.) Vortigern was a predecessor to King Arthur. Beuno was educated in Bangor Monastery, one of the foremost Celtic monasteries in Wales. During his ministry he restored 7 dead people to life including St Winifred (or Winefred).

Winifred & St Beuno

St Winifred’s Holywell, from Facebook.

She was Beuno’s niece, a virgin who refused the advances of a certain Caradog. Furious at her taking vows, Caradog tried to seduce her, but she refused. So, he chopped her head off.

Where her head landed a spring sprung amd became a holy spring.  The spot, in Flintshire is still called Holywell. It has been described as the Lourdes of Wales and one of my tours go past it . This is how I heard about St Beuno.

Anyway, the story goes that Beuno put his niece’s head back on her shoulders and restored her to life. How he did that, is a mystery.

From Facebook

She lived a full life with a brilliant Church career. Of course, she is the patron of those who have suffered unwanted advances (but believe me there are many other candidates for that particular honour amongst the female Saints! Have a look at my post on St Agatha for another example of male sexual abuse).

Stained glass depiction of St Winifred, designed by William Burges, at Castell Coch, Cardiff. Wikipedia Hchc2009 – Own work

More on St Winefride’s on her feast day on 3rd November.

Medieval Powys, & Neglected Parts of the Female Anatomy

I drafted this in January 2025, when I came across a reference to St Beuno in a fabulous exhibition at the British Library.  The show was called ‘Medieval Women – In their own Words’.

On display amongst the many wonderful manuscripts and books of the 11th – 15th Century was a Welsh poem.  The author was Gwerful Mechain (1460–1502), the only female medieval Welsh poet with a surviving and a substantial body of work. She is known for her erotic poetry, in which she praised the vulva among other things.

What is extraordinary is that I should, by complete chance, be publishing this the day after posting about the statue of the erect Minotaur! So, you can see how even-handed I am? Erect penises one day, love poem to the Vagina the next!

Here it is in full, in a modern translation:

To the Vagina by Gwerful Mechain

Every poet, drunken fool
Thinks he’s just the king of cool,
(Every one is such a boor,
He makes me sick, I’m so demure),
He always declaims fruitless praise
Of all the girls in his male gaze.
He’s at it all day long, by God,
Omitting the best bit, silly sod:
He praises the hair, gown of fine love,
And all the girl’s bits up above,
Even lower down he praises merrily
The eyes which glance so sexily;
Daring more, he extols the lovely shape
Of the soft breasts which leave him all agape,
And the beauty’s arms, bright drape,
Even her perfect hands do not escape.
Then with his finest magic
Before night falls, it’s tragic,
He pays homage to God’s might,
An empty eulogy: it’s not quite right:
For he’s left the girl’s middle unpraised,
That place where children are upraised,
The warm bright quim he does not sing,
That tender, plump, pulsating broken ring,
That’s the place I love, the place I bless,
The hidden quim below the dress.
You female body, you’re strong and fair,
A faultless, fleshy court plumed with hair.
I proclaim that the quim is fine,
Circle of broad-edged lips divine,
It’s a valley, longer than a spoon or hand,
A cwm to hold a penis strong and grand;
A vagina there by the swelling bum,
Two lines of red to song must come.
And the churchmen all, the radiant saints,
When they get the chance, have no restraints,
They never fail their chance to steal,
By Saint Beuno, to give it a good feel.
So I hope you feel well and truly told off,
All you proud male poets, you dare not scoff,
Let songs to the quim grow and thrive
Find their due reward and survive.
For it is silky soft, the sultan of an ode,
A little seam, a curtain on a hole bestowed,
Neat flaps in a place of meeting,
The sour grove, circle of greeting,
Superb forest, faultless gift to squeeze,
Fur for a fine pair of balls, tender frieze,
A girl’s thick glade, it is full of love,
Lovely bush, blessed be it by God above.

From: Gramich, Katie, Orality and Morality: Early Welsh Women’s Poetry, 2005, Cardiff University: Cardiff, pp. 8-9.
(http://www2.lingue.unibo.it/acume/acumedvd/Essays%20ACUME/AcumeGramichfinal.pdf)

Date: c1480 (original in Welsh); 2003 (translation in English) By: Gwerful Mechain (1462-1500) Translated by: Katie Gramich

For more about St Beuno https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beuno

First published on April 20th 2025, revised 2026

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Murder of St Alphage April 19th 1012

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 Wall
St Alphage Roman and Medieval Wall
The Crenelated Red Brick Section dates to 1477, during the War of the Roses
The Crennelated Red Brick Section dates to 1477, during the War of the Roses
St Alphage Wall explained in an information plaque.
St 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
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 position
The Minotaur on the High Walk

On This Day

1775 – Battles of Lexington and Concorde begin the American Revolutionary War.

First Written on April 19th 2025, revised 2026

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Anglo-Saxon Easter

Lullingstone Mosaic representing Spring
Easter – Lullingstone Roman Mosaic representing Spring

The German name for Easter is Ostern. The English name is Easter which the Venerable Bede, in the 8th Century, derived from the Goddess Eostra. They probably have the same derivation. But this is all the evidence there is for the Goddess, despite many claims for the deep history of Easter traditions.

Easter, Estry and Canterbury

Philip A. Shaw has proposed that the name of Eastry in Kent might derive from a local goddess, called Eostra. Canterbury had a leading place in the development of the early Church both in England and Germany. So, perhaps, this led to the adoption of a local cult name in these two countries. Otherwise, the name for Easter in Europe derives from Pascha which comes from the Hebrew Passover and Latin. In French it’s Pâques, in Italian Pasqua, Spanish Pascua; Dutch Pasen, Swedish Påsk; Norwegian Påske and so on.

The Church’s Choice for the Date of Easter

The timing of Easter is the first full moon after the Spring Equinox. I have already explained that Spring was the time the Church set for the Creation, the Crucifixion and other key points in the Christian Calendar. See my post the-beginning-of-the-universe-as-we-know-it-birthday-of-adam-lilith-eve-conception-of-jesus-start-of-the-year.

Eleanor Parker in her lovely book ‘Winter in the World’ gives a lyrical insight into how the dates were chosen. The Anglo-Saxons held the belief that God would only choose the perfect time for the Creation and the events of Easter. The Creation began with the birth of the Sun and the Moon. So it was fixed to the Equinox, when the days were of equal length, and the fruits of the earth were stirring into life. But Holy Week also needed to be in harmony with the Moon. Therefore, Easter was tied, like Passover, to the first full moon after the Equinox, which is also when the events take place in the Gospels.

Winters in the World by Eleano Parker

The quotations Parker uses from early English religious writing and poetry shows a profound interest in nature and the universe. It is a very appealing viewpoint. It seems to me that this is something the Church lost in later times, and replaced with a fixation with dogma and ‘worship’ of the Holy Trinity, rather than a spiritual sense of wonder at the Universe.

Celtic & Roman Churches in Conflict

At the time, fixing the date of Easter was very controversial as the Celtic Church in Britain had a different calendar to the Roman Catholic Church. Easter fell on a different day. The Anglian King of Northumberland, for example, celebrated Easter on a different day to that of his wife. King Oswiu was exiled to Ireland where he was influenced by Celtic Christianity. His wife, Eanflæd, from Northumberland, had been baptised by the Roman Catholic missionary, Paulinus.

Easter and the Synod of Whitby

Oswiu, became King of Northumberland and ‘Bretwalda’ (ruler of all Britain). He encouraged a reconciliation. This culminated at the Synod of Whitby (664AD), between the two churches. The Celtic Church finally agreed to follow the Catholic calendar and other controversial customs. The Abbess at Whitby during the Synod was Hilda of Whitby. The Celtic position was defended by Bishop Colmán and the Roman position by St Wilfred. Bishop Colmán resigned his position as Bishop of Lindisfarne, returned to Iona and then set up a monastery back in Ireland. Wilfrid studied at Lindisfarne, Canterbury, France and Rome. After her husband’s death, Queen Eanflaed became Abbess of Whitby,

The antagonism between the two churches went back to the time of St Augustine in the early 7th Century. In a meeting between St Augustine and Celtic churchmen, St Augustine was judged to have been arrogant, unwilling to listen. So agreement was not reached. Sometime afterwards, the Anglo-Saxons attacked the Celts at the Battle of Chester. Hundreds of monks from the Abbey at Bangor were slaughtered.

Days off at Easter & Rituals

Ælfric of Eynsham gives a powerful commentary on the rituals of the Church over Easter. They were full of drama and participation. These included Palm leaf processions on Palm Sunday, feet washing and giving offerings to the poor on Maundy Thursday. Then followed three ‘silent days’ with no preaching. Instead there were rituals and services aiming to encourage empathy for the ordeal of Jesus. This included the nighttime service of Tenebrae. All lights were extinguished in the Church while the choir sang ‘Lord Have Mercy’. The darkness represented the despair that covered the world after Jesus’ death. Good Friday was the day for the adoration of the Cross. The Cross would be decorated with treasures and symbolised turning a disaster into a triumph.

It seemed to me that I saw a wondrous tree
Lifted up into the air, wrapped in light,
brightest of beams. All that beacon was
covered with gold; gems stood
beautiful at the surface of the earth,….

The Dream of the Rood quoted in Eleanor Parker’s ‘Winter in the World’

The Harrowing of Hell

The days before Easter Sunday are known as the ‘Harrowing of Hell’. This was a very popular theme in the medieval period (featuring in Piers Plowman for example). Jesus went down to hell to free those, like John the Baptist, who had been trapped. Becauase when he died the world had no saviour until the first Easter. The name ‘Harrowing’ comes from ‘Old English word hergian ‘to harry, pillage, plunder’. The ‘Clerk of Oxford’ Blog provides more information on the Harrowing of Hell on this page,

The Clerk of Oxford Blog is written by Eleanor Parker. She started in 2008, whilst an undergraduate student at Oxford. The blog won the 2015 Longman-History Today award for Digital History‘.

The above is but a very poor précis of Eleanor Parker’s use of Anglo-saxon poetry and literature. She brings an Anglo-Saxon Easter to life. So if you are interested to know more please get a copy of her book.

Easter Days off

King Alfred’s law code gave labourers the week before and after Easter off work. This made it the main holiday of the year.

First Published in 2023 and republished in 2025, 2026