IMC 2015: Sessions
Session 536: Pilgrimage, III: England and Wales
Tuesday 7 July 2015, 09.00-10.30
| Sponsor: | Lancaster University |
|---|---|
| Organisers: | Philip Booth, Department of History, Lancaster University Adrian Cornell du Houx, Department of History, Lancaster University |
| Moderator/Chair: | Paul Hayward, Department of History, Lancaster University |
| Paper 536-a | The Pilgrim's Journey in Medieval Wales (Language: English) Index terms: Ecclesiastical History, Lay Piety, Local History, Religious Life |
| Paper 536-b | Dedicated Followers of Fashion?: The Origins and Popularity of Medieval East Anglian Cults (Language: English) Index terms: Ecclesiastical History, Lay Piety, Local History |
| Paper 536-c | Pilgrims and Miracle Stories: Comparing Shrines' Influence and Longevity (Language: English) Index terms: Ecclesiastical History, Hagiography, Lay Piety, Religious Life |
| Abstract | This session explores pilgrimage routes and the changing popularity of shrines within England and Wales. Kathryn Hurlock investigates pilgrim roads through Wales, showing how devotional journeys across a busy sacred landscape left their trace in place-names, written works and physical remains, using a variety of sources to demonstrate how pilgrims travelled, the places they chose to visit, and the ways in which they were accommodated. Two papers then focus on the changing spheres of influence of shrines over a long period. Michael Schmoelz discusses the numerous ways in which East Anglian cults could gain popularity and a long-lasting foothold in the popular imagination, finding why some destinations proved much more successful than others. Ian Styler uses miracle stories among other sources to ask whether and in what ways they can supply evidence for a shrine’s shifting influence and longevity throughout the medieval period, raising critical questions about the power of oral transmission in the promotion of cults. |