Sacred Britain: A Guide to the Sacred Sites and Pilgrim Routes of England, Scotland and Wales

by Martin Palmer, Nigel Palmer

A guide to places in Britain that have a strong spiritual association and are interesting to visit. This text describes 12 well-known pilgrimage routes and how to follow them. The routes include, Ely to Walsingham, the Canterbury pilgrimage and Stonehenge to Glastonbury.

Genres: Travel, Religion, British Literature, Scotland, Reference, History

Paperback

First published November 1, 1999

Reviews

[Stephen Hayes · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book looked interesting, but I was a little bit suspicious of it, because such books sometimes tend to be full of New Age tosh. But as it was a library book it would cost nothing to look at and there was no compulsion to read it. There was no mention of ley lines in the index, and that seemed to be a good sign.

It dealt with things like sacred groves and holy wells, and that was interesting, as my great grandfather grew up in the vicinity of a holy well, which I was able to visit. But though the book was informative, it seemed rather shallow. The main aim seemed to be to encourage people to go on pilgrimages, and to create a lot of pilgrimage routes, old and new.

I also learnt a few things I hadn't known about history in general. One was that there had two periods of major ecological collapse in Britain.

First was a mini-Ice Age about 1000 BC, caused by a massive volcanic eruption in Iceland

Before this, the inhabitants had built stone circles, such as Stonehenge (the biggest) which seem to have served ritual and astronomical purposes, though very little is known about them or the people who built them. After the mini-Ice Age, the inhabitants were more warlike, and the henges were abandoned. There were invasions of new groups, like the Celts, and instead of henges, hill forts were built.Overpopulation led to competition for scarce resources.

The second ecological disaster was caused by the Romans, who ruled southern Britain from 44BC to around AD 410. They went in for big agri-business, needed to feed the cities of their empire, and they exhausted the soil, chopped down the forests, and created an ecological disaster. Britain got off relatively lightly, though, as the Romans' activities in North Africa turned those parts of the world into the deserts they are today.

The coming of Christianity enabled the land to recover somewhat, and the authors have an interesting notion of Christian town planning, which was lost around the time of the Enlightenment when secular town planning took over. They not the Chinese art of Feng Sui, and the Christian equivalent that developed in Russia, but give interesting examples of how it appeared in England too, and it can be seen in the placement of churches dedicated to particular saints -- St Michael and St Catherine on hill tops, churches dedicated to St Helen were often placed close to one reputed to hold a relic of the true cross, and so on.

One rather disappointing thing was that it repeated the hoary old legend of Eostre being a Celtic goddess. Though first published in 1997 the authors did not make use of books like The pagan religions of the ancient British Isles by Ronald Hutton, which had already been published in 1991, and might have saved them from such errors.

[Erwin Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Spiritual Traveler: England, Scotland, Wales by Martin Palmer and Nigel Palmer is an interesting resource book for pilgrims. It’s a guide to the sacred sites and routes in Britain. On its cover is depicted a map of the English and Welsh counties, and Scottish regions where these sites and routes could be found. The book consists of the following: 1. The Epic of Sacred Britain, 2. The Sacred Landscape - Pilgrim Routes through Sacred Britain, and 3. A Multi-faith Pilgrimage and Places to stay along the Way. Included also for readers are a bibliography, general index, index of places, credits, and more maps of sacred Britain.
The story of this land began thousands of years ago. When the great ice age ended the by 4500 BCE the Mesolithic peoples began to infiltrate Britain by crossing over from continental Europe via a land bridge. These peoples could be described as the first religious ones to settle the land and establishing spiritual centers. Their burial mounds were long barrows and megalithic tombs. Following was the Bronze Age in that transformed Britain. Metal technology came from Europe and stone-using farming began. Trade started with other European countries. The Bronze Age left its marks on the fields. And this human activity was responsible for the Mesolithic’s influence to decline.
Around 1000 BCE an ecological and religious collapse further ensued with a major climatic change due to volcanic activity. Agriculture collapsed in many parts of the country. This led to the rejection of the old egalitarian beliefs and systems. There was an emphasis on patriarchy and the rise of the warrior class. Darkness and death descended upon the landscape. But soon the Iron Age around 750 BCE revolutionized the land. The establishment of forts protected the communities. The smithy blacksmith became legendary. The Celtic ascendancy shifted the tenure of communities with communal homes that soon became places for storytelling. Houses’ entrances were changed from the west to the east to the rising sun of new life. The Celts had cleared the land but had centered their religion on the forest.
The sacred yew groves of the druids left virtually no mark. The Celtic worship and ritual sites came not from buildings or standing stones, but from sacrifice lakes such as the one at Llyn Cerrig Bach on Anglesey – one of the greatest centers of druid training. But with the coming of the Romans and by the late 5th century CE England was left devastated. The southern half of Britain was transformed into a semi-urban agricultural landscape. With the Romans appeared the first true towns and cities. Many of the temples sites from the period were built to house Celtic deities after the power of the druids was destroyed. Celtic temples were later transformed into Christian churches. Around 450 CE the Roman period ended. With warring tribes what eventually evolving about 180 CE saw Christianity later coming to Britain. Later was ushered in the scientific revolution and the Age of Enlightenment that were to impact Britain’s Christian lifestyle.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

On the one hand, an excellent guide book to many British sites that carry some "sacred" significance, historical or contemporary from the latter Stone Age onwards, including caves, ancient yews and even whole cities, alongside the more famous buildings and monuments
On the other, the inclusive and counter cultural tone that seeks to uncover and regain people's spiritual connection with the land upon which they live; whether that connection be corporate or personal, still active or in memorial, is also great starting point for thought or debate.

To illustrate this, a quote from the introduction;

"Sacred Britain is a reality. There are places in this land where Heaven and Earth have, touched, changed lives and transformed landscapes. some of these places are famous, great cathedrals, mighty stone circles; others are so personal that they might only be known to a few.
In searching for Sacred Britain, we need to listen for stories which make places special to others as well as to honour those that are special perhaps to individuals or families. The more overtly historical ones - henges, churches and holy wells, we can find marked on ordinance survey maps. what are not marked are the sites on the mental and spiritual maps which are carried in people's heads"

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really interesting look at pilgrimage routes throughout Great Britain. I found several pieces of information that relate to my WIP, regarding stone circles, yew trees, and tombs. I like the idea that it is written as a guide book, with specific directions.
This edition is a little old, so doesn't include some of the newer finds (the Ness of Brodgar among them) and some of the routes might have changed slightly due to construction and so on. But I think this is such a cool thing that I'm going to look for a copy to buy, as my library loan is up!
I didn't read every page of this, but I can see how it would be a very useful thing to have along on a trip. Would love an updated edition!

[Graham · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting look at various "sacred" sites around our country - ranging from the expected (churches) to the more unusual (ancient woodland, barrows, megaliths, holy wells). Apparently released on the back of a special project designed to get more people engaging with Britain's sacred sites, this is hardly in-depth but makes for a fine introduction to the topic.

There are plenty of photographs and a gazetter exploring some of the touristy type destinations. In a bid to include Britain's multi-cultural heritage, destinations important to other faiths are included such as mosques and synagogues. It's a well laid-out book and a nice addition to the bookshelf.

[Fortheloveofdanes · Rating 5 out of 5]

So far it has given me lots of great information on sites I wish to visit, lots of background information.