Walsingham - A Place of Pilgrimage

Those that know it well cherish the area around Wells-next-the-Sea. The expansive sandy beaches, the salt marshes and pinewoods; and the charm of the town itself, combine, to make this place special to many people. A first time visitor can quickly become a devotee. However, apart from these attractions there is something else that makes this area notable. Just inland of Wells lies a village that is one of the most important sites of Anglican and Catholic pilgrimage in the United Kingdom: Little Walsingham.

Before the year 1061, Walsingham Parva, as it was then known, was an unremarkable Saxon settlement situated on the banks of the River Stiffkey; the fact that the Lord of the Manor was a Norman was not that unusual either. Immigration was quite common even then; the head of the family, named de Faverches, had settled and made his home at Walsingham. Then in 1061 something remarkable did occur that would elevate Walsingham to a position as one of the most important sites of Christian pilgrimage in England; Lady Richeldis de Faverches reported seeing a vision of the Virgin Mary.

Why was the report believed? Should such a claim be made today I suspect that the majority of the general public would meet it with cynical indifference. These however, were very different times. The word of Richeldis was not doubted; at the site of the vision, in the village, she ordered that a small house be built. This is thought to have been a simple wooden building. Word of the mystical event soon spread and visitors started to arrive at Walsingham. They were allowed to view the house, and the image of the Virgin that was placed by the altar. Richeldis obtained permission for Mass to be said, and the flow of pilgrims increased steadily.

In 1152 Augustinian Canons took responsibility for the shrine and work was commenced at the site to build a Priory Church that would become one of the wealthiest and best known in the Christian world. The completed building was some 250 feet in length; the ruin of the east window - in what are now the Abbey grounds - gives a clear impression of the scale of what was once a magnificent building.

The pilgrims came in their thousands. Most Kings of England made the journey, including Henry VIII, who ultimately would cause the demise of pilgrimage to the shrine. The wealthy came on horseback, the poor on foot. Many travelled hundreds of miles over many weeks, carrying the minimum of belongings in a sack, using a stout wooden staff for support and personal protection. Often travelling in groups -for companionship and security - they made their way, staying at monasteries and inns, en-route. The favoured route, known as the ‘Palmers’ Way’ - from the tradition of bringing a palm leaf back from a pilgrimage to the Holy Land - was via Newmarket, Brandon, Swaffham and Fakenham. They also came by sea using the port of King’s Lynn. Some made the journey in the hope of a ‘miracle’ cure for a physical ailment, many for spiritual purposes and many, no doubt, for the adventure of the trek. Whatever the reasons they came in great numbers between the creation of the shrine and the start of the Reformation in England during the reign of Henry VIII.

In 1534 the establishment at Walsingham came firmly under the control of the King. The treasures were removed and in 1538 the statue of the Virgin Mary was taken to London and publicly burned by the reformers. Much of the church was destroyed and by 1738 only the ruins that we see today remained. The great Christian centre of pilgrimage that had flourished for five hundred years was destined to lie dormant for almost a further four hundred years.

A man called Alfred Hope Patten, who arrived upon appointment to the parish in 1921, ended this dormancy. Patten was born in Devon in 1885 and was the son of a brewer. Whilst living at Hove he had become involved in the Anglo-Catholic movement; this prompted him to study and he was ordained in 1914. Early in his ministry at Walsingham he decided to attempt the re-establishment of the parish as a centre of pilgrimage. He commissioned a statue of the Virgin, which he placed in the parish church of St Mary. The first pilgrimage to the shrine was held in 1923. (Sadly St Mary’s was severely damaged by fire in 1961. It was rebuilt between 1962 and 1964 and is a credit to the craftsmen involved.)

Fr.Patten’s great ambition then became the re-creation of a Holy House as had existed in Walsingham many centuries before. He set to work to find a site and raise money for the project. A garden at the corner of Holt Road and Knight Street was selected as the most suitable position for the new building. Work commenced, and on the 15th October 1931, the Anglican Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham was blessed by Bishop O’Rorke. The building was in an Italianate style, and, it must be said, was not liked by all. Nikolaus Pevsner (The Buildings of England) was rather dismissive: likening it to a minor suburban church. However the architectural style was of little consequence to the faithful, who came in ever increasing numbers.

This new shrine had to be extended over the following years to cater for the growing number of pilgrims. Since 1931 the numbers visiting Walsingham have increased to hundreds of thousands a year. They now come from all corners of the Christian World, travelling on from airports and railway stations by car and motor coach. The parking for the vehicles, and facilities for the care and accommodation of the individuals, has had to be increased accordingly.

The Roman Catholic Shrine at Little Walsingham is known as the Slipper Chapel; it is situated approximately a mile from the village centre. The first building on the site was erected in 1325 and was used as the last stopping place for pilgrims before they made their way barefoot - hence the name - to the original Holy House. The building was reopened in 1934 and is now the centre for Roman Catholic pilgrimage to Walsingham. It incorporates a modern building, the Chapel of Reconciliation, consecrated in 1982.

On Spring Bank Holiday Monday each year the National Pilgrimage to Walsingham is held. This event has been marked in recent years by the attendance of a group of protestors who feel very strongly that the veneration of a religious statue, or as they refer to it, ‘idolatry,’ is wrong. They assemble at the Common Place around the redbrick village pump, where, prior to the procession they preach to the crowd. Holding placards aloft, they put their point of view to the watchers. When the pilgrimage procession passes, the two groups, singing at their loudest, try to drown each other out. This is generally light hearted, and although extra police are on duty they do not need to intervene.

A visit to Walsingham can be a very interesting and rewarding experience for anyone, not just for those with strong religious convictions. The village has a relaxing ambience and much of interest to see. Commercialism has thankfully been restrained at an acceptable level. A walk in the beautiful Abbey grounds at snowdrop time is highly recommended; or why not visit on the day of the National Pilgrimage and experience the atmosphere of this event the origins of which date back over nine hundred years.