Born a Princess, Osyth was part of the Hwicce people who lived in Mercia. Betrothed to Sigehere the King of the East Saxons, in a political marriage arranged by the powerful King of Mercia. The couple shared a faith in Christianity which no doubt helped bring them together. Wuflhere, the King of Mercia, wanted to establish the faith across the land. However, before their marital breakfast, the King decided to go hunting for a stag seen the night before. Upon his return, triumphant in his kill, Sigehere found that Osyth was gone. Confused and upset, Sigehere, King of the East Saxons went out looking for his new bride. When he found her, she had taken refuge with two local bishops. Seeing that she was not happy in the marriage, Sigehere gave Osyth some land and permission to start a nunnery. The location, however, was very exposed and indefensible. It was not long until Danish raiders arrived and ransacked the buildings in 653. When they tried to take Osyth away for their sinister purposes, she refused to move. It was then that she was beheaded on the field. It is said a natural spring began to flow at the exact spot her head touched the ground. Even though this miracle occurred, Sigehere renounced his Christianity during the pestilence of 665. It is said the the ghost of St. Osyth can sometimes be seen, bearing her own head.
During the reign of Queen Mary Tudor, 1553-1558, the Protestant faith was illegal. Anyone who practiced it or who was identified as belonging to a Protestant group was burned alive for heresy. Edmund Tyrell played a vital role in this procedure and gained the nickname The Informer. Living in Rawreth, Essex, he occupied a large manor house at Beeches Farm. Present at several burnings, Edmund Tyrell has been mentioned in Foxe's Book of Martyrs. A story tells of the time when he passed by two strangers on his way home. Through cunning, he was able to determine that they were Protestants and promptly reported them as such. Of course, they were burned. A woodcut of the day depicts Edmund Tyrell holding a candle beneath the hand of Rose Allen of the Munt family. As the sinews cracked, she did not cry and she is said to have praised the devil for putting his plan to work. On Tyrells own gravestone, the inscription reads "God grant him a blessed resurrection", a wish which almost none of the locals shared. His legacy lived on with the rumour that a barren patch of field where nothing ever grew was where he had a local woman burned.
In the Essex town of Loughton, the ghost of famed highwayman Dick Turpin is rumoured to ride through the streets three times per year. On each occasion, the ghostly horseman passes by the house of an old widow who lived in his day. Once, upon hearing of her fortune, he held her face over a fire in order to make her tell where her treasures were hidden. In what has been called the only written example of one ghost tormenting another, when ever the phantom of Dick Turpin passes by her house, he slows down. Then, at some point in the area, the old woman jumps out from hiding and mounts his horse behind him. The pair then gallop off and cause chaos in the town until they both disappear. Perhaps even today you might see the famous rider and one of his tormentors acting out this immortal foray.
Once, many generations ago, there was a double oak in the woodland near Hockley. The tree had grown into two independent trunks that sprouted from the same base. Unusual for oaks, the tree was cloaked in superstition. It was a common children's game to pass between the two trunks as the gap was just wide enough for a small child. It was common practice to purposefully split ash trees then bind them together again, allowing children to pass through this gap was a folk cure for rickets. The oak had completely different connotations, however. Soon the tree was considered haunted or as a gateway, and evidence to this was given in the sound of a shrieking boy that seemed to disappear when followed. The phenomenon became so widely known that visitors would come and listen, and at this time ventriloquists and entertainers were paid to give them what they came for. This didn't stop the hauntings, however, and locals still claimed to be tormented by the terrible sound. Eventually they discovered the sound was coming from an owl, which they then shot. But owls were plentiful in those days and it wasn't long before the shrieking boy returned another night.
During the reign of King Edward the Confessor between 1042 and 1066, it became widely known that the king would not refuse a person who asked in the name of St. John the Evangelist. This was his chosen Patron Saint who he regularly prayed to for guidance and protection. One day, a pilgrim was granted an audience with the king and he asked for alms in the name of the Saint. The King was unable to find coins on his person and his treasury was far away. At this, the King removed a golden ring from his finger and handed it over. A while later, an English soldier was fighting in the Holy Land. Getting lost and separated from his companions, it was then that a white-haired old man approached. Guiding the soldier back to his camp, he passed him the golden ring. At this he said "Give this ring to King Edward, for the one he loves is returning this to him". When the ring was returned, King Edward was certain the pilgrim was a manifestation of his Patron Saint, St. John the Evangelist. To this day the ring is kept at Westminster Abbey in a shrine to the late King of England.
A tall and plain-looking oak door with a metal frame has been dated back to the days of Danes and Anglo-Saxons. Both newcomers to the British Isles, the two groups fought for the right to govern the farms and villages that had sprung up since the end of the Roman occupation. In fact the visible ruins of Roman architecture were then believed to be the result of churches damned to Hell for the misdeeds of their congregation. The religious conviction of the locals at the time was so strong that people could be killed for thinking different thoughts. Known as heresy and sacrilege, these totalitarian crimes saw many meet their end because they would rather speak their hearts than pretend to agree.
The door has been repaired many times as it has been in continual use for a thousand years however it was tested for authenticity in the 1970s. The true originality of the oak panelling was confirmed and so was a legend that has endured as long as the door itself. Once, when it was a new door, a Dane was condemned to be flayed to death because of his beliefs. A possibility much more certain now that a fair skinned individual has has skin fragments identified in the grain. Flaying sinners against church doors has been a common punishment in the past. In that often the judge and jury were made of a parish council, the churches buildings must have been central to village justice. In Anglo-Saxon times there was little central authority to govern the national legal system and so it was often left completely in the hands of the victims and their companions. The first time that flaying was mentioned in a national document was not until Henry I in 1100 AD and this then was intended as the punishment for slaying one's lord. This being a much higher crime than sacrilege, the practice of flaying people against church doors seems to have stopped shortly after the end of the Viking period. The door has been removed in recent years however the pieces of skin are kept by the Saffron Walden Museum.
A Rochford man, James Murrell was a London chemist's assistant in the early nineteenth century. Wanting to further his career, he also began working as a shoemaker in Hadleigh. It was here that his fortunes began to change. As local people chatted to him while he mended their shoes, they realised that James was incredibly intelligent and carried great insights into people's lives. Soon, townspeople began to visit James for his advice and help. He charged a penny each for his various potions and tinctures, that were mostly made from herbs. Soon, his reputation grew far beyond the reach of Hadleigh and Cunning Murrell (for that is what he became known by) soon received sacks of letters from all over the land. People would ask him for advice on a large number of things from medical questions to spiritual emergencies. Cunning Murrell seemed to always know the right thing to say or do which helped everyone feel better. Perhaps his most famous attribute is that people would come to him to help recover lost items. Cunning Murrell often located lost belongings, including money, simply by talking to their rightful owner. Some people accused him of devilry and witchcraft, as Cunning Murrell always seemed to be able to resolve problems of this nature. He is reported to have replied with "I am the Devil's master" when ever accused of working for him.
Long ago, in the village of Canewdon, there once lived a giant. Having decided to be Christian, the giant decided to live a life of charity. He moved to live near a large river where he would carry people across on his back. When ever anyone wanted to cross the river, they just asked the giant to carry them over. After doing his work for many years, one night a small child asked for passage. As the giant made his way through the waters, wading through the rushing currents with the child on his back, he was tired and bowed his head. The child then said, "you have carried the weight of the world and of Him who made the world." Ever since this night, it became known that the giant's name was Christopher which means Christ bearer.
Visitors to St Nicholas Canewdon church will find a painting on the wall that depicts a giant man. On his shoulder is the image of the small child, which if you look closely is actually the Christ child. Remembered for all time, this gentle giant remains a fond memory for those who know his tale. Mostly now lost to time, Ambresbury Banks were a significant hill-fort in what was once a huge forest, now called Epping Forest. The trees used to go on for miles in all directions, right up to the Essex coast from the River Thames. Created around 300 BC, the hill-fort at Ambresbury Banks was a plateaux defended by seven foot high walls with a ten foot deep ditch that was twenty feet wide. Some of these embankments can still be seen. It is widely believed that the last battle between the invading Romans and Iceni Queen Boudica took place here. After Boudica had sacked Colchester, a Roman centre of power, she headed to London. Although not the capital during this time, London was a vital port from the continent. The city-town had become a vibrant community based on this trade. As the Britons attacked London, the Roman governor was forced to return from campaigning in Wales without a victory. It was then that the main Roman force met with the Britons as they moved North. The Romans waited for the Tribes to move forward, which they did in disarray. Using cavalry, they forced them into the defended ground. Wedging Boudica's army between the fort and a chain of ox-drawn waggons, with the high banks to each side, the Roman soldiers used their legionary tactics to overcome the scattered and disordered tribes-people. Once the army had been pinned up against the waggons, the legionaries slaughtered the oxen which meant the blockade would not move. At this point, the soldiers moved in and killed the entire Iceni force. Official statistics point to 80,000 Britons killed to 400 Romans. Boudica decided to take poison in order to escape the brutal punishment and execution she faced for standing up to the stronger force. |
Fantastic Britain: Myths And LegendsWritten by Rowan Blair Colver Categories
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