Early Christianity Gazetteer

The island is also known as the island of the currents and the saints. There are said to be the graves of 20,000 saints interred on the island, and legend suggests that anybody buried here will not go to hell no matter how wicked his deeds. Read More »

Bodmin means the house of the monks, and this was an ecclesiastical town until the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII.

The original monastery dedicated to St Petroc was founded in the 6th Century. St Petroc's bones are believed to be kept in an ivory casket in the crypt of St Petroc's Church. Read More »

Dating from 1280, this is one of only two churches dedicated to St Alkeda (Alkelda,Athilda, Alcelda) (the other being in Giggleswick) and is said to be her final resting place. St Alkeda was a chaste Saxon maiden, sometimes described as a princess and a nun. Read More »

The Yew trees in the church yard are said to be the relatives of an ancient tree which sprouted from a staff planted in the ground by St Congar. Yew trees grow very slowly and are often found in ancient churchyards. In many cases they are the descendants of ancient trees planted when the church was first built. The story may be a folk memory related to the original planting. Read More »

The ruins of this relatively little known abbey are remarkably intact, and stand in a part of Ayrshire steeped in history. As well as being historically interesting there are many enigmas associated with the abbey, which could well be worth further research. There may have been a Pictish site here, and some people suggest that the abbey may have a Templar connection. Read More »

The church may occupy a site on which a stone circle once stood, some of the stones can still be seen incorporated into the fabric of the church. In other stories the stones came from a circle on the other side of Dunino Den. It was quite common for churches to be built on much older pagan sites. Read More »

The Eo Rossa or Eó Ruis (Yew of Ross) was one of the five sacred trees of Ireland (the Bile* Trees or the Bileda) and said to grow by the River Barrow at Leighlinbridge. It grew from three natured berries from a branch born by the Irish God, Trefuilngid Tre-ochair (Triple Bearer of the Triple Key, Master of All Wisdom and consort of Macha, the triple goddess). Read More »

Ireland has a history of early Christian settlement dating as far back as the 6th century when monastic settlements were developed as bastions of the faith in the remote Irish countryside. Gallarus Oratory is the oldest and best preserved example of an early church that served one of these small settlements, and is probably one of the oldest intact buildings in Ireland. Read More »

Glastonbury has been identified with the mysterious Isle of Avalon from the twelfth century, its past has become steeped in myth and legend, and it is probably most famous for its Arthurian and early Christian traditions. Read More »

This is a reproduction of the cross said to have been found in Arthur's grave at Glastonbury Abbey. The actual grave seems to have been a very early burial but the Arthur link is tenuous. The actual cross disappeared many years ago and the only depiction is from a drawing by William Camden in 1607, from which this picture has been redrawn. Read More »

The Tor has been associated with magic and mystery for thousands of years. It seems likely that early man used the tor for rituals, and maze like path has been identified spiralling around the tor seven times. Professor Philip Rahtz dated the terraces to the Neolithic period, and concluded that they may have been part of a maze. Read More »

This must have been an important place of worship to the Norse invaders, and to later generations judging by the wealth of important early Christian relics here. The actual church has been renovated several times and much of the older structure has been destroyed. Read More »

The island was said to be the home of St Molaise who is reputed to have been born in Ireland in 570AD. He came to Holy Island to live as a hermit and Molaise's cave is one of his reputed abodes. Read More »

The healing waters of St Winifred’s (Winifride) Holy Well have attracted pilgrims for over 1300 years and the crypt in which the well lies was stacked with crutches left by the cured invalids until some time in the 1960’s, though can still be seen on display. Read More »

Situated on an island in the middle of Lake Menteith, the only 'Lake' in Scotland, Inchmahome Priory is a ruined Augustine (The Black Cannons) priory founded in 1238 by Walter Comyn, who was the Earl of Menteith. The Earl is likely to have founded the monastery for the good of his soul, and to show of his status as an important landowner. Read More »

There are two Celtic Crosses in Irton Churchyard, one is truly ancient and the other is a copy of the former incorporated into more modern grave. The ancient cross is thought to date from the early ninth century, before the Norsemen invaded the area. Read More »

Kilmichael is possibly the oldest house on the Isle of Arran and is associated with the Fullerton family who were one of the two major landowners on the island. The name itself indicates the location of the house may be on the site of an early Christian cell dedicated to St Michael. An apparition of a Grey Lady supposedly haunts the hotel.

Two granite slabs carved with latin inscriptions and intricate patterns, lie near the edge of Bodmin Moor.The stones are the remains of crosses, and are associated with King Doniert (Durngarth) of Cornwall who drowned in AD 875 in the river Fowey. Read More »

La Hogue Bie is a major Neolitic ritual site dating back to 3500BC and one of the best preserved cruciform passage graves in Europe. Its passage is twenty meters long and is covered by a 12.2 meter high earth mound. The mound istelf is 58 meters in diameter and covers an area of 2400 square meters. Read More »

This island is connected by a sandy beach to Anglesey, and was home in the Dark Ages to a religious community, founded by the female Saint Dwynwen. St Dwynwen is a patron saint of Welsh lovers, and after her death the island became an important place of pilgrimage. Read More »

Mullenakill is just one of several places that claim to be the birth place of St Moling. Read More »

Rosslyn Chapel is touted as being one of the most mysterious places in Scotland, especially with the current gloat of books purporting to show how hidden secrets lurk within every crack of stone at this venerated place. Anybody who has ever visited the chapel may feel that it deserves its current status, and I must confess the atmosphere even on a busy day is something to be experienced. Read More »

Underneath the streets of Royston, below the ancient Icknield way lies a secret cave, rediscovered in 1702 and dating back perhaps a thousand years. The cave, which is a bell shaped hole carved from the solid chalk, has a multitude of early Christian carvings depicting saints and religious scenes. Read More »

The cross is thought to date back to the late seventh century, an early period in the development of Christianity in the area, which spread here from Northumberland. It has been recognised as one of the most important early Christian crosses in Britain. Read More »

Spynie Palace was the seat of the bishops of Moray for over 500 years; the atmospheric ruins now a shell of its former glory. The Palace - like many old historical buildings - has its share of traditions and ghost stories. Read More »

St Albans has a multitude of ghosts and strange stories, many of which are attached to the magnificent abbey. St Albans has been occupied from very early in its history, the Roman town of Verulamium once stood in the valley, in the area where the public park now lies. Read More »

Kilrimont changed its name to St Andrews when relics of the saint were brought here by Bishop Acca of Hexam in 732AD, although there is a folklore tradition that suggests the relics found there way to Read More »

The atmospheric church at St Bees is all that remains of a small Benedictine monastery closed down during the reformation. The priory is associated with the legend of St Bega, who is said to have fled here to escape an arranged marriage in Ireland. Read More »

This gloomy atmospheric church, dating from the sixteenth century, is dedicated to St Clement, who was a bishop of Dunblane parish. Read More »

Around 794AD, the pagan King Offa of Mercia demanded the head of the Christian King Ethelbert of East Anglia whilst he was making arrangements to marry Offa's daughter. Not far from the location of Marden Church the young king was assassinated and his body hidden. After rumours of Ethelbert's ghost being seen in the marden area, Offa asked the Pope for absolution. Read More »

Today St George’s Day is not celebrated in England with anywhere near the vigour it was in past centuries, and is actually celebrated more in other countries that share his patronage, with traditions that have not been broken for hundreds of years. Read More »

This tiny chapel hidden in a deep ravine in the rocks dates from the thirteenth century. There may have been a chapel or religious structure here in the fifth century making it one of the earliest places of Christian worship. It has been suggested that the chapel was part of a larger Hermitage but its history is unclear. Read More »

Still referred to as a Cathedral, St Machar's has not held a Bishop's seat since the Reformation and is in reality a high kirk. Read More »

St Michael's Mount is a picturesque rocky island that has been described as the 'Jewel in Cornwall's crown' - perhaps a reason for its popularity with visitors. Read More »

According to tradition, St Moling was descended from Catahair Már (a Prince of Leinster) and was born in Sliabh Luachra, County Kerry in 614AD. Read More »

This small and ancient church has a plethora of legends and traditions associated with it, making it one of the most important mysterious sites on the Isle of Lewis. Read More »

Originally known as Rinn Ros Broic (Badgers Wood Point), Kennedy’s Field and Achadh-Cainidh, St Mullins is the site where St Moling built his monastery during the 7th Century. Read More »

St David's Peninsula is supposedly the landing place of Twrch Trwyth, the magical boar told in the story of Culhwch and Olwen in the Mabinogion, King Arthur features heavily in the story. It is also the place where St Patrick is said to have sailed for Ireland to convert them to Christianity. Read More »

Around 450AD St Patrick, patron saint of Ireland is supposed to have preached on the banks of Ullswater in Cumbria. The whole Patterdale area is named after him. In Glenridding a Holy Well dedicated to St Patrick can still be found roughly one mile outside of the village of Glenridding. Read More »

St Patrick’s Chair and Well (also known as the Druids Chair and Well or St Brigid’s Well or St Brigit’s Well) lies within Altadeven Wood, not far from the Ulster Way footpath. The chair is a huge 2m high stone block, shaped like a throne. Read More »

St Peters Church in Llanbedr is where you can find, behind the rear pew, an ancient engraved stone that stands two foot nine inches in height and two foot wide. The engraving is that of a seven turn spiral measuring twelve inches in diameter. It is said to be similar to those associated with the Irish Boyne culture. Read More »

According to Edmund Bogg in “From Eden Vale to the plains of York or A Thousand Miles in the Valleys of the Nidd and Yore" (1894) ”In the township of East Scrafton is a spring of water known as St. Simon's Well. Near it once stood an oratory called St. Simon's Chapel; not a vestige of this remains. The well was formerly used as a bath. Tradition says that St. Read More »

St Trinian's church is the ruined shell of a 14th Century building standing at the foot of Mount Greeba on the Isle of Man. The chapel was the haunt of a Buggane: a fearsome creature of Manx folklore that appears in a number of folktales from the island. Read More »

The abbey was founded in early part of the 13th century by the Cistercian monks, and was one of the grandest in Wales at its height. It was seen as a centre of education and political activity. The abbey was destroyed during the reformation. Read More »

The Chalice Well has been associated with healing and with the Holy Grail for many years. According to legend Joseph of Arimethea placed the cup that held the blood of Christ into the well. The waters run red with Iron Oxide another association with blood. Read More »

Whitby Abbey is one of the most atmospheric locations in England. The desolate ruins stand stark above steep cliffs overlooking the old whaling village of Whitby in North Yorkshire, a testament to the town's former religious significance. Read More »