Pilgrimages: The Great Adventure of the Middle Ages

by John Ure

'There are three things that can neither be recommended nor discouraged -- marriage, war and a voyage to the Holy Sepulchre - they may begin well and end very badly' - Medieval pilgrim, Eberhard, Count of Wurtemburg, on his return from Jerusalem in 1480. From his starting-point of travel and adventure, using contemporary accounts, John Ure relates the stories of medieval Christian pilgrimage during the 500 years of its peak between 1066 and 1536. Through the often forgotten contemporary records of Erasmus, John of Gaunt and Margery Kempe among others, he brings to life a colourful cast of characters. Embracing also military expeditions described as religious journeys, Ure recounts tales of armed expeditions such as the Albigensian Crusade and the Pilgrimage of Grace. And considers pilgrimage's literary and allegorical manifestations via Sir John Mandeville and John Bunyan. Ultimately, he uses his practised skills as a travel writer to give vignettes of these pilgrim routes today, some accessible and popular, others as remote and haunting as in medieval times.

Genres: History

288 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[Karen Brooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

For anyone interested in why and how so many kings, nobles, adventurers, religious people and laypeople left the relative safety of home and hearth to go trooping across countryside and continents on pilgrimages to various shrines throughout the Middle Ages, then this is a book you will thoroughly enjoy.
Taking each of the major shrines/destinations – from Santiago de Compostela, to Jerusalem, Walsingham, Canterbury, Lindisfarne and Cologne etc. - as well as some famous pilgrims (John of Gaunt, Canon Casola, the weeping and wailing Margery Kemp, the plagiariser, Sir John Mandeville and a few others), John Ure captures the essence of pilgrims and their journey, immersing readers in historic time and place.
Creating a context for each place and individual, Ure explores the nature of a particular site and what drew followers there. Explaining the type of pilgrims who ventures forth – the penitent, the militant, the tourist (though that word didn’t exist then, of course!) and even the secular, he describes the landscape and culture through which they would have travelled and the ways in which spiritual expectations might have been met or confounded. Ure also doesn’t hesitate to describe the less pleasant aspects and dangers of pilgrimages in the Middle Ages – everything from bandits and cutthroats, to conmen and women ready to rip foreigners off, to racism, sexism, and the dangers of losing baggage, succumbing to sea-sickness, disease and even death. The trade in relics and how and why these were so important to these sites is also dealt with. He also discusses the religiously-led pilgrimages from the Crusades, to the horrific Albigensian Crusade (when thousands of Cathars were brutally killed), to the so-called Pilgrimage of Grace in England.
I particular enjoyed his chapter on Margery Kempe, a figure I knew well from other reading. I can only imagine what a chore it would have been having her company on a pilgrimage and the lengths some of her fellow travellers went to in order to rid themselves of her is humorous but also understandable. As for those souls who succoured and protected her, I can only hope they earned extra pardons for their forbearance! But what an amazing character she was.
Each chapter offers the reader a new place and person and thus additional insights into these medieval journeys. The writing is fresh and vivid and the examples so well drawn.
The final chapter is dedicated to Ure’s own pilgrimages – not so much spiritual (though he acknowledges one cannot help but be affected by these locales and the history contained therein), but certainly physical as he visits all the holy sites mentioned in the book. I was deeply affected by the last story he tells when he visits the Monastery of St George in Syria. A fitting conclusion to a marvellous and very interesting book.

[Rachel Kopel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just arrived in the mail today from Amazon Marketplace. Now the dilemma, I have bought this to take on vacation in June, but want to start reading it now. I have also acquired all five books from the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy trilogy to take on that same one week trip. Likely something is going to have to stay home. In which case I could start reading it now~! Not that I am not already reading a bunch of books.....

I couldnt wait, started it and am now 2/3 through. Really a nice survey of the subject, learning lots of small details. Just my kind of book.

I have finished it and glad I read it. Has led to another Medieval history.

[Willa Guadalupe Grant · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pleasant overview of pilgrimages in the middle ages. If you are looking for specifics (clothing, food, shelter, etc)this is not the book for you.

[Craig Bolton]

Pilgrimages: The Great Adventure of the Middle Ages by John Ure (2006)