The Traveller's Guide to
Sacred England

A guide to the legends, lore and
landscape of England's sacred places

John Michell

There are many good guidebooks to England and its various regions and aspects, and this one is not intended to rival or replace any of the others. Its aim is to provide a quietly informative companion to those travellers seeking the ancient spirit of the land.

Recognised as the world authority on ancient science and religion and the symbolism of ancient landscapes, John Michell takes us on an unforgettable journey to ruined abbeys and cathedrals, pagan sites and megalithic temples, shrines of saints and visionaries, holy wells, island sanctuaries, and to a host of other places where peace and sanctity are almost tangible. Some of them are famous, others quiet and secluded, but all are centres of spiritual energy and renewal.

We begin in London with the glories of Westminster Abbey, St Paul's Cathedral and all the tiny churches in the City of London. Then on to Canterbury, Durham, Ely and other historic cathedrals; to Glastonbury - 'the holiest ground in England' - where Jesus is said to have visited and Arthur and his queen are buried; to shrines of St Catherine in the south and Saxon lady saints in the Fen Country; to Stonehenge, Avebury and other stone circles; to the holy island of Lindisfarne.

With this guide, travellers can trace ancient patterns in the landscape and discover the wisdom of local legend and lore. A fascinating introduction to centuries of history and tradition, it also shows how much of sacred England has survived, remarkably, despite the depredations of time.

This classic best-selling guidebook is now revised and substantially updated to make a completely new edition. In the same series as The Traveller's Guide to Sacred Ireland, it is an endlessly delightful companion for the 21st Century pilgrim.

Over a period of 40 years JOHN MICHELL wrote more than 22 books before his death in 2009. He was certainly no armchair traveller, and travelled the highways and byways of his native England mainly on foot. He lived in Notting Hill Gate, London, where he tirelessly pioneered new ideas and research. Other books of his published by Gothic Image include The Temple of Jerusalem and New Light on the Ancient Mystery of Glastonbury.

CONTENTS

Introduction
Hints to Pilgrims
Tourist Information
General Map

LONDON - City of Brutus

Westminster Abbey
St Paul's Cathedral
The City of London Churches
Some other London places of worship

AROUND LONDON

St Albans
Waltham Abbey
The Chiltern Hills
Jordans
Milton's Cottage
Stoke Poges
Stonor Park
Winchester
Canterbury

THE SOUTHWEST

Avebury
Stonehenge
Old Sarum
Salisbury
Knowlton
Wimborne Minster
Milton Abbas
Dorchester
Abbotsbury
Cerne Abbas
Sherborne
Glastonbury
Wells
Bath

THE WESTERN PENINSULA

Exeter
A la Ronde
Darrtmoor
Cornish Holy Wells
Morwenstow
Tintagel
St Michael's Mount
Land's End

THE WELSH BORDER

Gloucester
Cotswold Long Barrows
Chedworth
Deerhurst
Worcester
Hereford
Kilpeck
Chester
St Winifred's Wells

THE NORTH

Stone Circles of Cumbria
Carlisle
Arthurian Cumbria
Lindisfarne
Bamburgh
Warkworth
Hexham
Durham

YORKSHIRE

York
Ruined Abbeys of Yorkshire
Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal
Rievaulx Abbey
Byland Abbey
Jervaulx Abbey
Mount Grace Priory
Ripon
Sacred and Curious Rocks
Knaresborough
Brimham Rocks
Boroughbridge

EASTERN ENGLAND

Lincoln
The Isle of Ely
Peterborough
Island Sanctuaries of Fenland
Walsingham
East Dereham
Bury St Edmunds

Index