Lindisfarne or Holy Island
Holy Island has a very special place in history as the birthplace of the Lindisfarne Gospels, among the most celebrated illuminated books in the world.
According to an inscription added in the 10th century at the end of the original text, the manuscript was made in honour of God and of St. Cuthbert by Eadfrith, Bishop of Lindisfarne, who died in 721.
Eadfrith played a major part in establishing Cuthbert's cult after his relics had been raised to the altar of the monastery church on 20th March, 698, the eleventh anniversary of his death. The Gospels may have been made in honour of that event.
The book's original leather binding was provided by Ethelwald, who followed Eadfrith as bishop and died about 740. He had been associated with Cuthbert in his lifetime. An outer covering of gold, silver and gemstones was added by Billfrith the Anchorite, probably about the middle of the 8th century.
Both covers have long since vanished but the manuscript itself has survived the thirteen centuries associated with Cuthbert's relics at Durham during the Middle Ages and preserved from destruction after the Reformation through the scholarly interest of Tudor antiquaries.
The Lindisfarne Gospels is now part of the collection of Sir Robert Cotton, (d. 1631), in the British Library in London, where it is seen by visitors from all over the world.
Lindisfarne Castle is really two buildings; the comfortable Edwardian holiday home with the Lutyens features and the cosy atmosphere is the obvious one as it is what we see today. But hiding behind all this is the old fort, dating from Tudor times and taking up three quarters of the Castle's history.
Lindisfarne Castle as we know it first appears in about 1550, but wasn't in any completed state until 1570. For the next three hundred years, the fort (as it was known then) was home to temporary garrisons of soldiers on detachment from the larger force based at nearby Berwick. Their main job was to man the guns, watch the horizon for trouble, and try and stave of boredom with gunnery practice. Aside from a couple of incidents, the Castle could be said to have had a quiet military history through this period. The fact it was still standing when Edward Hudson discovered it in 1901 is testament to that. His friend the architect Edwin Lutyens was soon to dramatically change the building over the next few years, from a fort to a holiday home.
Another view of the castle.
On the grass area near the sea, we stumbled upon, what looks like the work of many busy children! Near the castle entrance, there are also some fascinating sheds, now owned by the National Trust. See BELOW
Local fishermen on Holy Island apparently considered it a sin to send boats to the junkyard. They instead found a way to transform their old herring boats into perfect little storage sheds for their nets, tools, and other equipment. Tip them over and use them as sheds!
Very clever indeed.
Looking toward the ruins of the Priory.
Why Holy Island? Lindisfarne was the name given to the Island by the first Anglo-Saxons to live here and we don`t know the meaning of the word. But the monks of Durham, after the Norman conquest, added the words Holy Island when they looked back over the story which began with the coming of Saint Aidan and the building of the first monastery in 635 AD, continued with the ministry of the "very popular" Saint Cuthbert and then received a staggering blow from the Viking attack in 793.
The period of the first monastery is referred to as the "Golden Age" of Lindisfarne. Aidan and his monks came from the Irish monastery of Iona and with the support of King Oswald (based at nearby Bamburgh) worked as missionaries among the pagan English of Northumbria. In their monastery they set up the first known school in this area and introduced the arts of reading and writing, the Latin language and the Bible and other Christian books (all in Latin). They trained boys as practical missionaries who later went out over much of England to spread the Gospel. Aidan also encouraged women to become nuns and girls to receive education but not in this monastery. In time Lindisfarne became known for its skill in Christian art of which the Lindisfarne Gospels are the most beautiful surviving example.
After the Norman Conquest (1066) the Benedictine monks of Durham possessed the undecayed body (?) of St.Cuthbert and saw themselves as the inheritors of the Lindisfarne tradition. Here on the Island they built the second monastery, a small Benedictine house staffed by Durham monks. This monastery was beset by a number of troubles, especially during the border wars between England and Scotland. It was finally dissolved by Henry VIII in 1536.
The ruins of the second monastery can be seen on the Island today. The first monastery, originally built entirely in wood, has disappeared.
Let's have lunch, watched over by St Cuthbert.
A manuscript copy of the Gospel of St John, the St Cuthbert Gospel was produced in the North East of England in the late 7th century and was placed in St Cuthbert’s coffin on Lindisfarne, apparently in 698. The Gospel was found in the saint’s coffin at Durham Cathedral in 1104. It has a beautifully worked original red leather binding in excellent condition, and it is the only surviving high-status manuscript from this crucial period in British history to retain its original appearance, both inside and out.
In 2012 The British Library has announced that it has successfully acquired (For £9 million) the St Cuthbert Gospel, a miraculously well-preserved 7th century manuscript that is the oldest European book to survive fully intact and therefore one of the world’s most important books.
Comments