Now I know that pilgrimages are not unique to Europe or to the Christian religion, but this offering from the In Our Time series on Radio 4 will be interesting.
They are part of the Middle Ages, feature in the Canterbury Tales, and remain a fascinating topic, mixing as they do piety, with adventure, penance for a judged misdemeanor or crime and an opportunity to make money from the pilgrim, who was happy to buy a souvenir and perhaps less happy to pay for guided tours and the entrance fee to some holy places.
All of which brings me to the programme which went out just after 9 am today, but I always listen to later, because the editor always adds a “bonus ten minutes” of bits that were missed out.
“Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the idea and experience of Christian pilgrimage in Europe from the 12th to the 15th centuries, which figured so strongly in the imagination of the age.
For those able and willing to travel, there were countless destinations from Jerusalem, Rome and Santiago de Compostela to the smaller local shrines associated with miracles and relics of the saints.
Meanwhile, for those unable or not allowed to travel there were journeys of the mind, inspired by guidebooks that would tell the faithful how many steps they could take around their homes to replicate the walk to the main destinations in Rome and the Holy Land, passing paintings of the places on their route.
With, Miri Rubin, Professor of Medieval and Early Modern History at Queen Mary, University of London, Kathryn Rudy, Professor of Art History at the University of St Andrews, and Anthony Bale, Professor of Medieval Studies and Dean of the School of Arts at Birkbeck, University of London
Producer: Simon Tillotson”.
Pictures; pilgrim badge from the shrine of St Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral, late 15th century, Museum of London, https://www.museumoflondon.org.uk/discover/thomas-becket-life-and-death-badges#/ and badges from Kent, 12th – 15th Century, Pilgrim Badges, Canterbury Museums & Galleries, https://canterburymuseums.co.uk/beaney/explore/people-places/pilgrim-badges/
*Medieval Pilgrimage, https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000s9qp
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