Christ in Cornwall

Christ in Cornwall?
(3RD EDITION)
With new and fuller Notes and Appendices.
AND
GLASTONBURY
THE HOLY LAND OF BRITAIN

(2nd E d i t i o n ) .
BY
Rev. H. A. LEWIS
("Gwas Maelgwn")
(Author of " T h e Child Christ at L a m m a n a " , " A b Antiquo

and " S t . Martin's, St. Helen's, and T e a n " ) .
" F o l k s say that J E S U S passed b y here, and blessed these p a r t s "

(A Cornish Woman).
" S o t h e l y Glastenbury is the holyest erth of england,

" R e d e saynt Dauydes lyfe, and there may ye se,
" T h a t our lorde it halowed with his owne hande;"
("The Lyfe of Ioseph of Armathia"—Anon—Pynson, 1520)
PRICE 2/- 1948

Christ in Cornwall?
(3RD EDITION)
With new and fuller Notes and Appendices.
AND
GLASTONBURY
THE HOLY LAND OF BRITAIN
(2nd E d i t i o n ) .
BY
Rev. H. A. LEWIS
("Gwas Maelgwyn")
(Author of " T h e Child Christ at L a m m a n a " , " A b Antiquo

and " S t . Martin's, St. Helen's, and T e a n " ) .
" F o l k s say that J E S U S passed by here, and blessed these p a r t s "

(A Cornish Woman).
" S o t h e l y Glastenbury is the holyest erth of england,

" R e d e saynt Dauydes lyfe, and there may ye se,
" T h a t our lorde it halowed with his owne hande;"
("The Lyfe of Ioseph of Armathia"—Anon—Pynson, 1520)
PRICE 2/- 1948

First Edition
Second Edition
T h i r d Edition
Christ in Cornwall?
I. L E G E N D S A N D HISTORY.
A talented authoress has lately published a booklet, i n which
she sets out to disprove most of the holy legends of Glastonbury
and Cornwall, and in particular that of the visit of Our L o r d to this
land. She has entitled it " G l a s t o n b u r y , T r u t h and F i c t i o n . " The
title alone shows the prejudiced attitude of the writer and her fellow-
sceptics. Since when has legend or oral tradition become identified
with fiction? Or truth confined to facts attested b y documents of
unimpeachable reliability? The utmost that the writer has proved is
that many of these holy legends have not the documentary support
which she and her kind require i n order that they should be classified
as " t r u t h , " or at any rate be removed from the realm of " f i c t i o n . "
I wonder in which category the writer would place the following, to
mention only three generally accepted traditions:—
The martyrdom of most of the Apostles. The episcopacy of
St. Peter at Rome. The residence of St. John at Ephesus.
If documentary proof is the only requisite of truth, and all
legend is fiction, then surely these, too are fiction.
The view taken by the present writer has always been that
legends often, perhaps generally, contain a germ of truth, and that
the probable degree of truth can be fairly gauged by such considera
tions as the source of origin; the localities where the legends had vogue;
the likelihood or otherwise of the influence of careless legend-mongers;
and finally the result of applying to the legends the acid test of history
and archaeology.
I claim that the legendary visit of Our L o r d to Britain, and to
Cornwall i n particular, comes through all these tests remarkably un
scathed, leaving all reasonable people with the conviction that it may
have been, and many of us who have given years of study to the
subject, the growing faith that it is probably true.
I shall presently record the various versions of the legend, mostly
in the very words i n which they were given me by m y informants, the
majority of whom are simple folk with no pretension to much " b o o k -
learning." It will be seen at once that it is almost exclusively associated
in Cornwall with the tin trade, i n the mining districts and the adjacent
ports from which British tin was exported before and during the first
4 Christ in Cornwall
century A . D . It is not usually found i n parts where monastic influence

was most pronounced. E v e n at Glastonbury the legend perpetuated
and embellished by the monks of the middle ages was about Joseph of
Arimathea, rather than about Our L o r d , as the holy visitor.
Y o u have to go to P r i d d y by the old lead mines of the Mendips,
or to Pilton, the reputed port from which much of the lead was
shipped, to hear the local traditions of the visit of Christ or the Christ
Child. I n Cornwall it is found at such widely separated places as
Marazion and D i n g Dong in Penwith, St. D a y and Falmouth in Carn
marth, St. Just-in-Roseland, and Lammana (Looe Island) in Wivel
shire, These are all either tin districts or adjacent havens. Only
Lammana can claim definite association with any of the big monastic
houses ( i ) : and, what is to me most striking, St. Michael's Mount,
while expressly mentioned in the tinners' version of the legend, did not
itself perpetuate it through the monastery, whose claim to pilgrimage
was based on supposed apparitions of the Archangel.
It will be seen, too, that this holy legend is given in the simplest
of language, without any of the " a r t i s t i c d e t a i l " so dear to legend
mongers, but so damaging to the value and credibility of many of
their stories. The legend of the H o l y Visit itself is not found in the
elaborate romances of the Arthurian cycle, though there is indirect
support for it in the claim of the greatest knights of the Round Table
to descent from Joseph of Arimathea, who is, as we shall see, closely
associated with the legend, and who provides an important clue to its
credibility.
A s regards the test of history and archaeology, I do not
propose here to give more than passing reference to the early
documents which tend to prove the existence of the legend at the time
they were written (2); but I claim with assurance that there is not
one word in the Gospel narrative which in any way disproves it. The
argument from silence leaves me cold. The omission of direct or
indirect reference is of little value, i n view of the fact that there is,
as I imagine, only one alternative legend with regard to the eighteen
years of Our Lord's boyhood and early manhood, v i z . , that he spent
all his time at Nazareth as a carpenter, and there is certainly no more
support for this belief i n the story of the Evangelists. O n the contrary,
I consider that the account of his visit to Nazareth during the ministry
fits i n far better with the possibility of a prolonged absence, for he
appears i n the Synagogue as at least a comparative stranger. Even if
he had made Nazareth his home for a l l those eighteen years, there
(1) Lammana was a tiny priory of Glastonbury before the Conquest. For its
history see my " A b Antiquo."
(2) See Appendices.
Christ in Cornwall 5
would still have been plenty of time for a visit to Britain if the
opportunity were there. We shall see that Joseph, the traditional tin
merchant, and supposed uncle, provides a simple and quite convincing
"opportunity."
It has often been objected that such an adventure would have
shown itself in his parables and discourses. If there is little or no
reference to travel abroad, there is equally little to carpentry and
Nazareth; and, as I pointed out in " T h e Child Christ at L a m m a n a , "
those of us who have lived abroad know that most people are not
much interested in hearing about our lives there. Our L o r d spoke about
the things in which his hearers were interested, and which he used to
point the moral of his teaching.
It has again been objected that such a voyage as this legend
suggests would be impossible for an ordinary Hebrew child or man.
I do not know the real grounds of this objection, unless it means that it
seems difficult to us. Y o u have only to study the writings of Diodorus
Siculus to see how accessible was Western Britain to the merchants, or
the Acts and Pauline Epistles to see that travel by land or sea, presented
no great difficulties to the Apostle and his friends.
Archaeology is showing us more and more the absurdity of the
old idea that the Britons in the time of Christ were wild painted
savages. The finds i n the Lake villages of Meare and Glastonbury
show a remarkable degree of culture and art, and so do the excavations
now going on in the old " C a s t l e s " of Cornwall. It is more than
possible that the Phoenician and Hebrew traders had many friends in
these islands of a culture little (if any) inferior to their own (1).
II. T H E L E G E N D AS T R A C E D .
Some sceptics are quite incorrigible. They would even deny
the existence of the legend at a l l . While anyone who really seeks
can find abundant evidence that it was a household tradition at
Priddy in the last generation that Christ came there, and while it is
certain that there is an age-old proverb i n parts of the Mendips " A s
sure as Our L o r d was at P r i d d y " ; yet a dignitary of Wells lately
suggested that the " l e g e n d of P r i d d y " was invented quite recently
by a schoolmistress, to afford a plot for a children's play! Miss
Hamilton Thompson was bold enough to assert i n the booklet already
referred to that two references to ancient writings which she could
not trace were, in her opinion, "deliberate fabrications." Y o u will
(1) On St. Martin's, Scilly, I have recently found much pottery of the Bronze
age (c. 1000 B.C.), which has decoration of high artistic merit together with an
exceptionally beautiful blue bead, which must have been made in Egypt or
Phoenicia, and been imported to Scilly by traders from the Mediterranean,
find them traced, analysed, and (at least partially) verified in the
Appendices. T r u l y " t h e r e are none so blind as those who won't see."
Before I proceed to show that the legend did actually exist in
Cornwall, and still survives i n parts, I throw out a word of warning
to casual searchers. It is no use tackling a l l and sundry with a bald
question " D i d you ever h e a r . . . ? " The probability is that
you would get a negative answer i n almost every case. The Cornish
folk are not fond of talking about their old legends and traditions to
us "foreigners." They are very sensitive to ridicule, and ridicule
has, alas, nearly killed the H o l y Legend. Once suggest that a tradition
is " r u b b i s h , " and no oyster can ever be closer than the Cornish man
or woman. F o r the same reason, the younger generation has not often
heard of it, because the parents have feared that their sophisticated
children would laugh at them.
In the course of some six years of rather intensive searching, I
have gathered the following, which, i n all cases of direct information,
I give as nearly as I can i n the actual words spoken. In no single
case has the theme been enlarged on or " dressed u p . "
(1) St. Just-in-Roseland. M y original informant here is the
late Rector, the R e v . J . V . Hammond, who has often told me that a
number of the older people still say that " Christ came to St. Just."
H e quoted one man of middle age as saying, " O f course we know
Christ came to St. Just." I proceeded to verify this for myself, and in
this case found confirmation much easier to obtain than had been
the case round Looe. I have had it confirmed by past inhabitants
of St. Just that it was a common tradition of their childhood that
Christ came there. One variant version was that " J o s e p h of Arimathea
and Our L o r d came i n a boat, and anchored i n St. Just Creek." I
know a man in Falmouth who, as a boy, used to go frequently to
St. Just, to visit the farmers i n their homes, when acting as a
local preacher. H e tells me that the older folk often talked about it,
and i n particular records how as a boy he used to sit with the farmers
on the beach below the Church, waiting for the tide to bring barges
of manure. H e tells how, " a s often as not," the conversation would
come round to the H o l y Legend, and he says that it was as much
as your life was w o r t h " to express any doubt about Christ coming
to St. Just. The period of which he is speaking cannot be more than
forty years ago. H e tells me also of a certain flat stone, with curious
but unintelligible markings on it, which they used to point out as
" t h e stone on which Christ stepped" when he landed. I hold no
brief at all for this part of the story, but I think I know which stone
it is, and where it stands to-day
(2) Falmouth. This is, of course, a comparatively modern
town, and I should not expect to find much material here, but I have
procured the following, which I value as highly as any i n my collection.

A man of about 75 who used to live near the Strand (the oldest
part of Falmouth, by the old village of Smithick) said his father
always used to say that "Joseph" of Arimathea landed at the Strand,
crossed the stream, and went up Smithick-hill." This could hardly
have been invented by a modern schoolmistress, as there are few
living who even know of the stream which used to flow over the site
of the Moor to-day.
A dear old lady, but very illiterate, who recently died at the age
of over 80, came out with this, when I was talking about the song
" J o s e p h was a t i n - m a n " (1), " O f course, we know Our Saviour
preached to the miners. H e was very fond of the miners."
Last, but far from least, a marvellous old saint, who has just
found rest from long and painful cancer, said once i n the dreamy
voice with which she brought out a l l her bright " g e m s " : " F o l k s
say that Jesus passed by here, and blessed these parts."
(3) Mining District of St. Day, Redruth, etc. A well-known
Falmothian, who was brought up near Chacewater, says he often heard
the old people, when he was a boy, say that " J o s e p h of Arimathea
and the Child Christ worked (sic) at Creeg Brawse." This is a very
ancient tin mine between Chacewater and St. D a y .
Another exceptionally well-informed person tells me that at
St. D a y the miners always used to say that Christ came to the mines.
I always suspect that this was also the original tradition about Gwennap
Pit, but if so it has been obliterated by the recent connection with
John Wesley. It may well have been one of the reasons why
Wesley chose it as his open-air chapel.
The son of a prominent business man i n Penryn says that, as a
boy, he was somewhere between Cowlands Creek and Come-to-Good,
when a village woman, i n the course of conversation, said something
like this: " S o m e people say that Our L o r d came to these parts, but
I don't know if it be true or not." These places are between the
ancient tin-streaming district of Carnon Downs, and the creeks of the
F a l river, from which the tin would be shipped.
Several informants from Redruth have said they had heard
something about the legend, and one i n particular knew the song
" J o s e p h was a t i n - m a n " very well.
(4) Marazion and Penwith District. Canon Jennings, i n his
" M a d r o n , Morvah and Penzance," refers with confidence to the
existence, at any rate i n the past, of the tradition that Christ came
(1) An old song, once well-known among mining people in Cornwall.

to Mount's B a y , and suggests this legend as a possible basis for the

name " P e n z a n c e " (Holy Headland).
A very prominent Falmouth lady, who lived in her childhood
in Penwith, says she was always told that Christ visited D i n g Dong
mine, which is reputed to be one of the oldest i n Cornwall.
(5) Looe, Talland, and Polperro. Several informants had
memories, albeit sometimes faint, of the H o l y Legend. One in
particular gave it as follows:—" M y grandmother often used to say
that Joseph of Arimathea and Our L o r d landed at Looe Island."
Another told how her mother would say to her father " Y o u must go
and get your hair cut, or folks will say it is Joseph of Arimathea
come back!" Others said that scoffers of Looe would point to the
arms of East Looe, which show a boat, with two figures, and say
" T h e r e is your Joseph of Arimathea." While the remark seems to
have been made in jest, yet it must have reflected a story actually
told and believed by others. The arms in question have no connection
at a l l with the Legend, but that does not affect the implication of the
words. One illustration will show the difficulty of collecting material.
A n old man who had lived all his life at Port Looe (the old Lammana),
used to deny stoutly that he had ever heard about the tradition. I
persisted, because this was the very land mentioned as the scene of the
landing. A t last I was able to confront him with evidence that his
late wife had often spoken of it. A final question elicited the following,
" O h yes, I've 'eared 'er talk of i t . " Another old man who was born
on Looe Island was as close as can be. H e would say he never
talked of anything he did not believe, or believe anything he did
not see, etc., but he talked vaguely of " a l l kinds of stories." He
remembered an old inscription on stone, now alas, lost. H i s wife,
now nearly a centenarian, who came from Porthallow, spoke myster
iously of a piece of cloth which, they said, " was part of the cloth
in which Our Saviour's body was buried," and of other " r e l i c s " of
the sepulchre. These might have been " r e l i c s " from the old Chapel
of Lammana, and, whether genuine or not, would then reflect an
old Arimathean tradition, i n line with that of Glastonbury, the parent
Community. ( i )
(1) In reply to Mr. Painter of Glastonbury and Miss Twycross of Menheniot,

both of whom would discount the existence of the tradition at Looe, Mrs.
A. Jeffery of the latter place, in a letter written to " T h e Cornish Times"
(May 21st, 1948) says " A n aged Looe couple kept alive for 70 years the
lovely Island story, but were reluctant to speak of it for fear of ridicule."
Mrs. Jeffery, whom I quoted in my " T h e Child. Christ at Lammana," told
me her grandmother spoke of " T h e Child Jesus and his uncle landing on
Looe Island." She was undoubtedly one of the aged couple to whom she
now refers.
I wish sceptics would realise that they are the last people to whom the
old folks of Cornwall would disclose their treasured memories.
A t Talland, a late incumbent, according to his sister, often used

to talk with conviction of Our L o r d having come to Cornwall, and
a family who later inhabited the Vicarage said that, i n their childhood,
they had often heard the story.
Polperro seemed to contain few memories of the legend, but
one woman said she had always heard that Our L o r d came to Cornwall,
" a n d why not?"
(6) Elsewhere. In Somerset I have definitely traced the legend

at Priddy, in other parts of the Mendips, and at Pilton, where O u r
L o r d and Joseph are said to have landed i n the old harbour. At
Glastonbury we saw that it was chiefly concerned with Joseph i n
popular memory, but the various Appendices show that the holier
version undoubtedly existed once. I n ancient Gaul D r . Taylor i n
his " C o m i n g of the S a i n t s " tells how he has traced the stories of
Joseph in Morlaix, Limoges, and the Rhone Valley. Anatole le Braz,
in " A u Pays des P a r d o n s " records the beautiful and traditional
Breton legend, in equally beautiful language, that St. Anne was a.
" d u c h e s s e " of " C o r n u a i l l e , " and was visited there by Our L o r d
before her death. (1) Whether the original legend referred to the present
Cornuaille in Brittany, or to the old home of the Breton Colonists in
our own Cornwall is really immaterial. If Christ could come as far as
Brittany, he could quite well have come on here, and these legends of
France, along the old tin-trade route, form a definite connecting link
in a story which is entirely woven round the tin trade.
Since issuing the second edition, I have now traced the story at
the following additional places. A Welsh woman told me she had been
told by her school-teacher that Christ came to Caerleon. The vicar
of Glastonbury tells me that Our L o r d is said to have walked along
the Pilgrims' Way to Winchester, which was very likely the old
tin-trade route. A lady has recorded the existence of the tradition
of Our L o r d landing at Hordle, near Bournemouth. I have myself
traced a tradition, albeit faint, that Christ came with Joseph on
one of his trading voyages to Merchants' Point on Tresco in Scilly,
which is said to have been so-named from the Phoenician traders.
Perhaps the most interesting is a statement b y M r . E . V . Duff,
Count of the H o l y Roman Empire (per the vicar of Glastonbury)
that among the Maronite Christians of the Lebanon district of Northern
Galilee " t h e r e lingers a tradition that Our L o r d as a youth came
to Britain as a shipwright aboard a trading ship of Tyre; and that
he wintered on the shores of the West of England, owing to bad
weather." We note the close proximity of these tribesmen to Tyre,
and their probable racial connection with the Phoenicians.
(1) See Appendix 7.

In view of the above, it is not at all surprising to find strong

trace of the legend among the traditions of the miners and tin workers.
The late M r . H . Jenner, F . S . A . , Chief B a r d of Cornwall, and a great
authority on all things Cornish, was much impressed by this. H e wrote
twice at least to the " W e s t e r n Morning N e w s " about it, and con
tributed a masterly article about St. Joseph of Arimathea to " P a x , "
the organ of the Benedictines, in 1916, i n which he points out the
difficulty of finding an "adequate r e a s o n " why Joseph should be
singled out i n tradition as the Apostle of Britain, "unless it happened
to be the literal and actual t r u t h " (1). H e then goes on to tell how a
certain " i n v o c a t i o n " among tin workers, who say quietly to them
selves " J o s e p h was in the tin trade," may afford some ground for
the legend. H e quotes M r . Bailie Hamilton, through M r . H a l l a m (a
master at H a r r o w ) , as having heard from the foreman of these workers
the following explanation of the invocation. " O n e of these (traditions
of metal workers) is that St. Joseph of Arimathea, the rich man of the
Gospels, made his money in the tin trade between Phoenicia and
Cornwall. W e have also a story that he made several voyages to
B r i t a i n in his own ships, and that on one occasion he brought with
h i m the Child Christ and his Mother as passengers, and landed them
at St. Michael's Mount i n Cornwall."
While many have told me that they have heard of this " i n v o c a
t i o n , " and I have been positively assured by one informant that it
is still used by some workers in tin, I should rather doubt whether
the modern tinners who use it are aware of all its original import, as
given above.
I have already referred to the old song beginning " J o s e p h was a
t i n m a n . " It is known to many, but, unfortunately, I have so far
failed to find anyone who can remember the rest. One informant
said it went on " A n d the miners loved h i m w e l l . " Beyond that it
still remains a blank, apart from one woman who was sure it was about
" h i s coming i n a s h i p . "
It w i l l be noted that the tinners' tradition, as given through
M r . Jenner, includes the Blessed Virgin Mary. E v e n this is not so
impossible as appears at first sight, at least if we feel that there is any
basis at all for the Breton tradition given above (2).
III. T H E T I N T R A D E W I T H BRITAIN.
W e have abundant evidence that the tin trade with Britain
was flourishing long before the Christian era. Posidonius (3) quoted
(1) " P a x , " Summer 1916, p. 135.

(2) This subject is dealt with fully in the Glastonbury Supplement, Part 2.
(3) Circa 80, B . C . There seems to be divided opinion among experts as to
whether Diodorus was quoting from Posidonius in this passage, or whether it
was from his own experience. Diodorus wrote shortly before the Christian era.
by Diodorus Siculus (v. 21, 22, 31), comments on the friendliness

and good manners of the people of Damnonia (Devon and Cornwall),
because of their intercourse with the traders. Britain was the principal,
and, at times, almost the only place where tin was obtainable for the
ancients. The Phoenicians came here for it, and it is practically
certain that among the traders would be found Hebrews as well, for
this race has always known where and how to find profitable trade.
There are names in Cornwall suggestive of Hebrew origin, or
at least of a Hebrew tradition, notably Marazion and its counter
part Market Jew-street, in Penzance. A considerable part of
Cornish folk-lore deals with " J e w s ' H o u s e s " and the " K n o c k e r s , "
who were said to be the spirits of Jewish miners. If, as we
are told i n the Gospels, Joseph of Arimathea was an exceptionally
wealthy man, he might well have made his fortune i n tin. The fact
that the Evangelists, who all mention him, have so little to say about
him, surely suggests that he may have been a trader whose visits to
his " h o m e l a n d " were intermittent and short.
Among other things which we learn from Posidonius are details
about some of the trading posts round the coast, the way i n which
the tin was brought there by the natives i n ingots, and the route
taken by the traders to the Mediterranean. This was over the Channel
to Morlaix, or some adjacent port i n Brittany, and thence across
Gaul to the Rhone estuary at Marseilles and Narbonne. I n Britain,
he speaks of a certain " I c t i s , " a sort of high-water island, as a great
trading post. He speaks as though this sort of place (an island at high
water) was a common feature i n the trade, and any one, or a l l , of
the following suit his description quite well:—Looe Island, St. Michael's
Mount, or the one-time " i s l a n d s " round G[l]astonbury. Ptolemy and
others speak of Voliba as a chief port of Britain, and this has been
identified by many with the F a l estuary, which is the chief natural
harbour of Britain. It is directly opposite Morlaix, and a rock off
the adjacent coast is pointed out as the nearest land to Brittany. The
inference that the present Falmouth was the port from which the tin
was shipped across the channel is too obvious to need elaboration.
It was in Falmouth harbour that the only identifiable ingot of tin of the
period was dredged up, and Falmouth and St. Just-in-Roseland are,
as we have seen, two of the places where the name of Joseph is
mentioned i n legend. O n the other side of the channel, the tin trade
route is traced across Gaul by Limoges and the Rhone Valley. It is
at least suggestive that the name of Joseph is found i n local tradition
at all these places I have mentioned, and, as far as I am aware,
nowhere else except i n the mining districts of North-West Spain. The
Rhone Valley legends, while dealing principally with the reputed
settlement there of Martha, Mary and Lazarus, mention Joseph as
their " c o m p a n i o n " i n emigration, but distinctly suggest that he
moves on elsewhere. Where should that be, except to his eventual

legendary home at Glastonbury?
The lead mines near P r i d d y in the Mendips were certainly in

existence before the Romans began to exploit them about 50 A . D . ,
and the need for this metal would account for Joseph's connection
with Glastonbury and the district. If I were to venture to recon
struct a trading voyage of the tin merchants from materials available,
I should say that it probably began at Tyre or Joppa, that the
merchants disembarked at Narbonne, that they travelled overland
from thence to Morlaix, re-embarked for the crossing of the Channel
to the F a l , and, after calling at various trading places along the
Cornish coast, proceeded to their terminus in the Severn estuary.
In connection with Joseph, we must remember that he was

almost certainly a decurion i n the Roman Empire. " N o b i l i s decurio"
is St. Jerome's translation in the Vulgate of St. Mark's "honourable
counsellor" ( A . V . ) , and I believe he meant what the L a t i n words
mean, not a member of the Jewish Sanhedrim, but a member of a
provincial R o m a n Senate. W e hear of decurions i n charge of mining
districts (1), which is very striking. It is interesting to see how this
title has been misunderstood, not only by most modern Biblical
commentators, but also by the Arthurian romancers, who, thinking
it was a purely military term, call Joseph "that noble soldier of
Pilate." Hence K i n g Arthur and his nearest of k i n boast of their
reputed ancestor, not as the wealthy trader that he was, but as
the founder and paragon of chivalry, and, according to John
Hardyng (c.1450), the original bearer of the " a r m s of St. G e o r g e " (2).
IV. T H E H O L Y VISIT—WHEN A N D WHY?

When I wrote " T h e Child Christ at L a m m a n a , " I was going
on one aspect of the legend only, that which I traced at Looe, and
that which is enshrined in the tinners' tradition, v i z . , that our L o r d
came as a Child with Joseph of Arimathea. It will be noticed,
however, that in other versions, notably those at Priddy and St.
Just, I find no suggestion at all that they are about a child. I am
indebted to the R e v . C . C . Dobson ( " D i d our L o r d Visit Britain?")
for the suggestion which I now accept, that Christ first visited our
shores as a Child, and that he later sojourned here for a longer or
(1) Dr. Davey Biggs' "Ictis and Avalon"—pp. 32 & 41.

(2) " A n d thus this armes, by Josephes' creation,
Full long afore Sainct George was generate,
Were worshipt heir, of mykell elder date."
(Ed'n H. Ellis 1812 Cap. 48).
shorter time as a Man. (1) If this sounds too bold and fantastic an idea,
I ask you to bear in mind the following points:—
(1). If, as legend suggests, and as the story of the Entomb

ment surely confirms, Joseph was an uncle or some older relative of
the Blessed Virgin, he might well have brought the H o l y Child to
Britain, and given h i m his first introduction to Glastonbury and the
Lake villages then existing near there. Archaeology, as I have
said, pictures the villagers as possessing a high degree of culture, and
living a simple, quiet life of fishing and husbandry. The growing
Child would naturally fall i n with any chance of seeing the greater
world—all the more if he realised it then as the world he came to
save. Later, when he was grown up, he would surely look for a
peaceful retreat i n which to prepare for his life's work. Is it so
remarkable that he would remember the Vale of Avalon, and find it
there? The most cursory study of Josephus and contemporary writers
must convince us that, whatever we may think of the suitability or
otherwise of Avalon, it could not have been more unsuitable for
quiet preparation than Galilee, whose claim to notoriety at that time
appears to have been that it was the breeding-ground of sedition and
lawlessness. W i t h his " u n c l e ' s " frequent trading voyages, there
would be no difficulty whatever about transport there and back.
(2). H i s chief friends and acquaintances there would be

in the Lake villages, and archaeology distinctly concludes that the
one at Glastonbury did not survive till the R o m a n occupation, and
that the one at Meare did not outlive that occupation for long. Small
wonder then that such a faint memory should survive of that holy
visit. B u t it did survive more by the mines of Priddy, which con
tinued to be worked without a break for long after the Romans came
to Bath. It probably survived also in the deep veneration felt for
that building which men may have believed to have been constructed
by the very hands of the Carpenter of Nazareth. (2)
(3). Some friendly critics have raised the question of language,

if Christ were living in a foreign land, but I cannot really see that
difficulty. H e came from Galilee, where the population was very
mixed, and where probably most people had some knowledge of
Greek and other languages. A n d I cannot imagine that he would
have found greater difficulty i n making friends with folk of another
tongue than many people find today, who go and settle i n foreign
parts, with no preliminary knowledge at a l l of the language.
(1) For Our Lord's supposed residence here. See Glastonbury Supplement—
Part I.
(2) The Wattle Church at Glastonbury.
V. INDIRECT SUPPORT FOR T H E L E G E N D .

Some indirect support for the legend, which will weigh heavier
or lighter, according to the prejudices of the reader, is afforded by
the following:—
(1). Place Names.—In Cornwall we have Penzance ( " H o l y
H e a d l a n d " ) , Marazion (suggesting Hebrew connection), Jesus Well,
opposite Padstow (an unique well-dedication, I believe), St. Saviour's
Chapel, Polruan (a dedication dating from the 13th century), Essa, at
Saltash and Polruan (which might suggest the H o l y Name in Hebrew)
and the so-called " A e s o p ' s B e d , " a rock near Talland, which cer
tainly has nothing to do with the fabler, and might, with some
probability, be also a corruption of the Hebrew " Y e s u . " (1).
In Somerset, there is Christon, near Cheddar, on the old route
from the lead mines of P r i d d y to U p h i l l , another reputed port of the
old merchants.
(2) . The Wattle Church, called in Saxon time "the Ealde

Chirche."—I have mentioned the reverence i n which it was held
from the earliest times of which we have any record. W i l l i a m of
Malmesbury, by no means a credulous writer (2) speaks of it with
reverential awe, and, in describing some curious stones on the floor,
says, " I f I were to suppose that they concealed a holy secret, I should
do no harm to religion." A n d he is our only historian of repute who
saw the Ealde Chirche before the fire i n 1184. H e also quotes, with no
apparent misgivings, the story of St. David's vision, with its supposed
message from our L o r d about the old church, " I have dedicated it long
ago to m y mother." It is, indeed, hard to find any justification for
such language and such reverence, unless we seek for a supposed
origin far holier than its building by an early disciple. The dedica
tion to the Blessed Virgin certainly dates back before the Conquest,
when, as the present vicar of Glastonbury points out in his " S t . Joseph
of Arimathea at Glastonbury," such dedications were probably
unknown (6th edition p. 43).
(3) The Holy Cemetery. This was held in a reverence as great

as, if not greater than that accorded to the Wattle Church. I have
shown i n the Glastonbury Supplement that this may be due to the belief
that the Blessed Virgin had been laid to rest here. It is interesting
(1) Pronounced locally "Essa's Bed," or by obvious corruption, "Ace-o'-

spades."
(2) At the end of " The Child Christ at Lammana" I expressed the opinion
that William of Malmesbury rejected the story of the coming of Joseph to
Glastonbury. I now think that the word "rejected" was much too forcible,
but he was certainly inclined to be suspicious of legends as a whole. He
undoubtedly knew of the tradition and referred to it.
also to note that in the " N o v a L e g e n d a " and other medieval stories
events are frequently dated from the Assumption, even when the Year
of Our L o r d is given as well. A t the same time, if this supposition
be rejected, the reverence i n which it was held suggests some holier
connection than the burial place of Joseph of Arimathea and subse
quent saints. It was, apart from the old Church, the holiest part of
the H o l y L a n d of Britain.
(4) Folk Lore and Folk Songs. I can see the smile of sceptics,
when I include these. B u t they often contain a germ of truth, and
more often reflect old legends and traditions. A t Looe I traced a
pretty bit of folk lore in connection with the Giant's Hedge. According
to this version, from a centenarian of Looe, " T h e piskies of Cornwall
heard that a little boy and his uncle had landed at Looe Island, and
they were so anxious to protect them, that they went to the giants, and
got them to build a hedge." Note the entire absence of names, and
yet the obvious reference to our holy legend.
Of songs and so-called carols, popular now or once in Cornwall,
I mention
" J o s e p h was a T i n - m a n . "
" I saw Three Ships."
"Jerusalem."
T h e second of these is most obscure, and has been sadly corrupted
in later nursery versions. In the oldest form I can trace, the three
ships bring, among others, " J o s e p h and his fair ladye." Of course,
this might mean Joseph of Nazareth, but in view of the fact that the
rhyme is about ships, I think it is quite probable that it first referred
to the holy legend, and that " h i s fair l a d y e " was originally " o u r
fair L a d y e . " Blake's " J e r u s a l e m " is still a prime favourite, with
its haunting and challenging question, never yet answered i n the affirm
ative or negative:—
" D i d the countenance divine
Shine forth upon these clouded hills?" (1)
VI. LIGHT F R O M ANCIENT DOCUMENTS.

Critics of all times have harped on the everlasting theme that the
legends " h a v e no documentary support," at any rate before the 13th
century. If by this they mean cast-iron proof, of course they have not.
I never expect to find such.
We are dealing with a time which falls within the darkest period of
(1) It has been suggested that Blake was simply drawing on his fancy when
he wrote these words. H o w are we then going to explain that i n 1773, when
he was 16. he did a drawing entitled " Joseph of Arimathea among the rocks
of Albion"?
I am told that one branch of Blake's family lived i n or near Glastonbury.
the " d a r k a g e s " of history. Take the years 8 to 25 A . D . Search

the writings of the Evangelists, Josephus, the Roman historians, and
Gibbon, and, apart from the defeat of Varus and his legions in
Germany i n A . D . 9, you find next to nothing recorded. Josephus is
never so short and uninformative as during this period, when, appar
ently, he was short of any reliable source of information. Of our
old " h i s t o r i a n s " i n Britain, Gildas and Nennius are fragmentary
to a degree, and never attempt to show how and when Christianity
was first introduced into Britain. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, as its
name suggests, deals principally with the Anglo-Saxons, and the
compilers were probably woefully ignorant (as St. Augustine was) of
the early history of Celtic Christianity. Our own Celtic saints are little
more than names, around which, as the late Canon Doble showed, rever
ence has woven beautiful and totally incredible legends. But, as Canon
Doble again insisted, they were real men and women, who lived
saintly lives i n the districts where their names are commemorated. The
reason we know so little about them is the same reason why we know
so little of Glastonbury and Cornwall in the first centuries of the
Christian era. They lie i n almost impenetrable darkness.
I have collected and transcribed in the various Appendices all
the pertinent ancient documents which, in my opinion, tend to confirm
the truth of the H o l y Legend. Meanwhile I append the Supplement
dealing with the holiest traditions of Glastonbury itself. After that
I leave the documents to face the scrutiny of experts and await the
final verdict of History on the possibility, likelihood, or truth of the
wonderful story I believe i n and tell.
G L A S T O N B U R Y
THE HOLY L A N D OF BRITAIN.
In this Supplement to " C h r i s t i n Cornwall?" I return to the
spot whence I started on " T h e Quest." It had its origin in a short
reference to the H o l y Legend of Our Lord's visit to Britain i n an
early edition of Rev. Lionel Lewis' " S t . Joseph of Arimathea at
G l a s t o n b u r y " . A t Talland I traced the beautiful story of the visit
of ' A little boy and his u n c l e ' (The Child Christ and Joseph) to
Lammana (Looe Island in Talland parish). This was the subject
of my first booklet " T h e Child Christ at L a m m a n a " . A t Falmouth
I traced a more definite, and rather different version of the H o l y
Visit. Here it was rather of a grown man (The Saviour) visiting,
with or without Joseph, most of the old mining districts of Cornwall.
This part of the Quest is dealt with in " Christ in Cornwall?" I
have since traced the wonder story in places further afield, but still
connected with early trade in metals. I always thought it should
be found on the Welsh side of the Severn estuary, and I now hear
definitely from a woman of Welsh extraction that she was told by
her teacher at school that " i t was said that Our L o r d came to
C a e r l e o n " . Caerleon can trace its history as an important centre
for trade before the time of the Romans and the later times of K i n g
Arthur. Now, in the Isles of Scilly, I hear that Merchants' Point
o n Tresco is said to be so named because the Phoenicians came
here to barter for tin brought over from the mainland by the Britons.
Some add the belief that Joseph of Arimathea also came, and there
is a faint but quite definite memory that Our Lord's name was also
mentioned. This is referred to i n my " S t . Martin's, St. Helen's,
and T e a n " , with comments on the possibility of Scilly as a place
of trade or barter.
B u t Glastonbury, Priddy, and the Mendips have always been
the focal point of it a l l . Here, on the ' h o l y est erth of E n g l a n d '
I have looked for, and I believe I have found, the culmination of
the whole story. Here it is the legend, not of a visit, either by a
Child or a Man, but of a retreat for the Saviour of the world during
the hidden years of early manhood. A n d , hardly less wonderful, of
another hidden retreat, the final home and grave of his blessed
Mother.
W i l d as these ideas may seem, I beg you to suspend judgment
while I unfold the grounds on which the growing conviction has
been forced on me that they are both true, and that the dear anon
ymous writer whom I quote on the cover had all this i n mind
when he called, and rightly called, Glastonbury ' t h e holyest e r t h '
in our beloved land.
To begin with, we must rid ourselves of all prejudices and

preconceptions. I have dealt with some of these as regards Our
L o r d in " C h r i s t in Cornwall?". I would add a word about travel
and emigration among Hebrew men and women. I said before that
the story of Our L a d y coming here was harder to conceive, but
that it could not be discounted altogether i n view of the tinners'
tradition. A s regards women, we know that there was a large
and early settlement of Hebrew folk i n the Rhone valley, whither
the Bethany family is said i n local legend to have migrated en
masse after Our Lord's Ascension; and Priscilla, a Jewess, is known
from the story of the Acts to have travelled, apparently without
much difficulty, between Rome, Ephesus, and Corinth.
Again, i n considering the credibility of one legend, we must
weigh it against that of alternative ones. W i t h regard to Our L o r d ,
the alternative is a permanent residence at Nazareth. I can conceive
of no place less suitable in those turbulent times i n which to prepare
for his life's work. The same applies with still greater force to the
idea of Jerusalem or Ephesus as a final home of rest for Our L a d y
of Sorrows. B o t h these alternatives are purely legendary, and if
they are more generally accepted, there are very palpable flaws.
Our Lord's visit to Nazareth at the beginning of his ministry does
not fit i n with the story of a village carpenter who has only been
away for a few weeks or months. The chief flaw in the case of
the Blessed Virgin is the site of her grave. The place now pointed
out to pilgrims near Jerusalem was never mentioned by St. Jerome,
who, i n the 4th century, explored and described all the holy places
of Judaea. H e r alternative residence at Ephesus is faced with the
glaring omission of all reference to her by St. Paul in his Epistles
and by St. L u k e i n the Acts.
H a v i n g thus cleared the ground, let us see what clues have

led me to the conclusions outlined above. I have acknowledged my
debt to R e v . C . C . Dobson for the suggestion that Our L o r d came
to Britain twice at least, first as a child or youth, on a visit with
Joseph, and secondly as a man, to reside for some years at or
near Glastonbury. The two fit in quite well. The first visit would
introduce h i m to the peace and, as I believe, the friendly atmosphere
of Avalon and the Lake villages of the neighbourhood. In seeking
a retreat in preparation for his work, what more likely than that he
should choose this spot?
While of course I can produce no documentary evidence in
any way proving this surmise, it is confirmed in my own mind by
the following passages from authors of the 12th century and earlier.
These passages suggest that the writers were conversant with, and
did not altogether discredit, ancient traditions which attributed a

mysterious and holy origin to the spiritual Church i n Britain, and
to the material Wattle Church at Glastonbury i n particular. The
critics will find the passages quoted, analyzed, and discussed i n the
Appendices, on which I claim to have bestowed a little research,
study, and care. Meanwhile i n this Supplement I use the conclusions
I have formed without comment, and translations which I claim to
have justified i n the said Appendices.
(1) The old wattle Church of Glastonbury was held i n a vener
ation which far transcended that which would be accorded to an early
Christian sanctuary, even if it were supposed to have been erected
by or i n the time of the Apostles. W i l l i a m of Malmesbury, who has
never been accused of being a credulous legend-monger, i n describing
the holy fane as he saw it, mentions i n particular some strange stones
in the pavement, and suggests that they concealed a holy secret.
The same writer records a traditional vision of St. D a v i d , where
Our Lord appeared and told the saint that he had already dedicated the
building to his Mother.
He also quotes a far older unknown historian, quoted, as he
says, already by St. Augustine, as saying that the 'Ealde Chirche'
was built by no human art.
(2) While no writer can be quoted as saying explicitly either
that Our L o r d lived there, or that he built the Wattle Church, yet
Gildas in the 6th century said that the ' t r u e Sun' first shed his beams
on these islands at the height of Tiberius' reign (14—37 A . D . ) .
(3) In the great Register of Glastonbury of the Middle Ages
occur two titles, ' D o m u s D e i ' , and ' Secretum D o m i n i ' , which bear
the obvious meaning of ' T h e House or home of God' and ' T h e Secret
or retreat of the Lord! N o special pleading or sophistry will ever
make me believe that they had such mundane meanings as Domesday
Survey and the Abbot's private note-book.
Fire-side stories of the H o l y visit still linger at Glastonbury,
and far more so at Priddy i n the Mendips. W h y the tradition was not
more emphasised at Glastonbury has always puzzled me. (1) That it
(1) A lady who tells me that her ancestors lived i n Somerset, and some time
near Glastonbury, but who would rather remain anonymous, says i n a letter
to m e : — " m y family (on both sides) have lived i n Somerset for many genera
tions, and have always believed that when Joseph of Arimathea came to trade
in tin, he brought the boy Jesus with h i m to " t h e " S u m m e r l a n d " to continue
his education on the Isle of Avalon, and that after the Crucifixion Joseph of
Arimathea, M a r y , and other disciples lived, and died, there." She says
also that she was brought up by her grandmother, who " n e v e r questioned
these legends. A s my correspondent can hardly be less than middle-aged, and
as she says that her grandmother had been told the Story by her grandmother,
we have here no mean link i n the long chain of oral tradition round Glastonbury.
existed is beyond doubt, but the monks of the Middle Ages appear to
have elaborated the cult of Our L a d y and St. Joseph, almost to the
exclusion of the holier tradition of Our L o r d . Perhaps even then there
were doubters, as to-day, who would say " O h ! That is going a bit too
far." B u t what of that stone i n the South wall of the L a d y Chapel,
with the two mysterious and isolated names ' I E S U S — M A R I A ' ? N o
explanation. A monk called E d w a r d Stourton wrote about them in the
abbacy of A d a m de Sodbury (1312—1334), but his work, alas, is lost.
Is i t too fantastic a flight of fancy to picture the O l d Church, " B u i l t
by no human art," but by the human hands of the Son of God, and
inscribed with those names by him, in dedication, as he told St. David
later, to his own Blessed Mother? I know they were carved in stone in
the 12th century. B u t they may have reproduced what an earlier
generation remembered carved in the rough woodwork of the original
building. (1) A n d , while they did not blazon it in their writings, may
not the monks of later years have deliberately enshrined the H o l y
Tradition i n their name " D o m u s D e i " ? The " Secret of the L o r d "
too had, perchance, a more momentous import than they even knew.
It was not only his retreat, but his deliberate secret as well. Has
the time at last arrived foretold by the old bard Melchinus in the
dim ages of Glastonbury's story, when " long ere the day of Judgment
all will be open and plain to the w o r l d " ?
A t Priddy the precious tradition of Christ's visit remained as a
treasured belief to within living memory, and modern scepticism has
failed to destroy it entirely to-day. The comings of Christ there have
always sounded to me more like the visits of a teacher. It was a
schoolmaster of recent years who used to recall his pupils to their
task with the admonition " S u p p o s e you saw Jesus coming up the
hill now?" surely a memory of far-off days when the children gathered
to watch for the coming of the beloved Teacher up the long coulee
to the crest of Mendip.
The other amazing conclusion I have reached is that Our L a d y
lived and died at Glastonbury. Again, first consider the alternatives,
which all presume that she lived all her latter life with the " B e l o v e d
disciple." A l l that has Biblical support is that Our L o r d entrusted her
to St. John from the Cross, and that from that hour that disciple
took her to his own (home)." It nowhere says that she was expected
to or actually did live with h i m a l l the rest of her life. Indeed, an
early tradition of the 14th century, recorded by Capgrave in the " N o v a
Legenda Angliae," says explicitly that while the blessed John was
labouring at Ephesus, he handed her over to the care of Joseph as
(1) I am inclined to accept Mr. Bligh Bond's idea that the original building
was a circular hut, which was enclosed in a rectangular Church of wood
at a somewhat later date.
her " b r i d e s m a n " ( " p a r a n y m p h u s " ) , and that Joseph was present
at her Assumption. So another legend had come into existence
before the 14th century, showing that there was no universal belief
in the Church then that she lived a l l the rest of her life with St. John.
To return to the New Testament story, she is curiously missing in
St. John's own account of Easter morning, and our last reference shows
her after the Ascension living with a l l the Apostles and the other
women in Jerusalem.
A s regards the alternative places where she is supposed to have
lived, Jerusalem was a scene of incessant turmoil, with revolts against
the Romans alternating with persecutions of the Christians; Ephesus
lacks any confirmation either from local legend or New Testament
writings; Mount Carmel is only mentioned i n legend as, perhaps, a
temporary refuge; and Nazareth was the place which had rejected and
tried to kill her Blessed Son.
As to her death, we have a most fanciful story i n the " T r a n s i
tus Mariae," telling how all the Apostles came at divine bidding to
be present at her passing. This story is not, I believe, taken seriously
by any branch of the Church to-day. The story of the Assumption
is generally located in or near Jerusalem, but St. Jerome's silence
makes such a tradition sadly lacking in a firm foundation. A l l the
alternative legends of Our L a d y ' s later life are purely legendary,
unsubstantiated, and, in my opinion, unlikely.
The main basis of my " a m a z i n g " surmise lies in striking
phrases in old documents more than in folk memories and oral tradition.
We shall see that such oral tradition did exist in 1502, and I have
traced a dim echo of it in living memory. After I had just returned from
Glastonbury, a lady said to me " D i d you ever hear that Our L a d y
came to England and died here?" I was amazed. I had just returned
from the spot outside the walls of the L a d y Chapel at Glastonbury,
where the surmise had first caught and stunned me, but I had said no
word of it to her. I then asked where she had heard it, and she said
she had been at school in Alexandria with Nuns who were all con
nected with the old aristocracy of France, and " i t might have been
t h e y " who told her. A Roman Catholic friend of mine has just pointed
out how remarkable it would be for Nuns of the French aristocracy
to attribute such a story to England rather than to France, if it were
pure invention.
Outside the L a d y Chapel at Glastonbury I had been pondering
over two passages which I had often read, but perhaps had never suffi
ciently studied. One day as I sat looking at the " I E S U S — M A R I A "
stone it all came back, and staggered me by the implication. First
there was the passage from the old bard Melchinus, where he speaks
of the early disciples building the Wattle Church over ( " s u p e r " )
the powerful, adorable virgin. The present vicar of Glastonbury said

afterwards that he believed I was the first person who had dared to
translate the simple L a t i n word literally. W h y not? It is at least a
simpler translation than Dean Armitage Robinson's " f o r the adoring
of a powerful v i r g i n . " W h a t Melchinus said, rightly or wrongly, was
that the Ealde Chirche was built over the grave of the Blessed Virgin.
F o r my other passage, we must jump perhaps 900 years, and we
find that, while oral tradition on this subject is practically defunct
now, it was not so when the anonymous bard of 1502 wrote of the
coming of Joseph of " A r m a t h i a " to Britain.
" N o w here how Ioseph came into englande;
" B u t at that tyme it was called brytayne.
" T h a n . x v . yere with our lady, as I understande,
" I o s e p h wayted styll, to serve hyr he was fayne;"
The meaning is obvious, and though he does not expressly say that
she died here, he goes on to quote from " the b o k e " about what
happened after " h y r assumpcyon." A n d note that the story of her
residence with Joseph is from oral tradition ("as I understande"), and
not from " t h e boke."
I now proceed to reconstruct the story as I see it. St. John took
Our L a d y away from the cross "at that very hour," that she might be
spared the horror of the three hours of darkness. She lived with him,
or under his charge, for a comparatively short while. H e then trans
ferred his trust to Joseph, who, after seeing the Bethany family safe
in the Rhone valley, brought the Blessed Virgin to A v a l o n . This was
to be her secret refuge, beside the little building which her Blessed
Son had built and already bequeathed to her. Here she died, probably
about 48 A . D . Here they buried her, and here the " f i r s t neophytes of
Catholic l a w " ( 1 ) erected the Vetusta Ecclesia over her resting place.
Joseph now went to join St. Philip in France. Commissioned, and
perhaps ordained b y him, he returned about 63 A . D . with his band
of twelve hermits to take up their abode around the same sacred spot.
This reconstruction would solve some puzzling problems. O n
Weary-all h i l l is a stone placed by John Clark (1801—1809) with the
inscription " J . A . A N O . D . x x x i . " The Vatican M . S . (2) dated Joseph's
coming as 35 A . D . The dates are near enough for rough chronology.
Either would allow approximately for 15 years here with Our Lady,
and then for time with St. Philip before his final return to Avalon. In
the claim for precedence put forward by the British Church i n the
15th Century Councils, the date of Joseph's coming is given as
(1) See Appendix 2. The Latin phrase for those who found the old " C h u r c h "
is " p r i m i neophytae," which would hardly be used of any missionaries
after the first century A . D .
(2) See Appendix 2.
"immediately after the passion." ("statim post passionem"). It also

fits in with the very ancient dedication of the Church to the Blessed
Virgin, perhaps the earliest on record; the strange, haunting Breton
Legend of St. Anne's original connection with Britain or Brittany;
and most notably with the two following references, with which I
close;
(1) W h y is England called " O u r L a d y ' s D o w r y " ? A l l our
Roman Catholic friends know of the title, and pray for us under it.
It was assuredly her dowry, if it had been bestowed on her as her final
home by her Son. A n d Joseph was then indeed her " b r i d e s m a n , "
who was to conduct her to her inheritance.
(2) Lastly, I return to the subject of reverence. We noted this
in connection with the Wattle Church. It is perhaps even more
striking with regard to the H o l y Cemetery. W i l l i a m of Malmesbury
( " G e s t a R e g u m , " i , 2) tells how acts of irreverence, seemingly trivial,
met dire retribution, how the H o l y Cemetery was the haunt of countless
pilgrims, and how large numbers of holy men and women craved to
be buried here, and here "especially chose to await the day of resur
rection under the protection of the Mother of GOD." (1).
(1) Deipara.—A common medieval title of Our Lady.

APPENDICES.
NO. 1. GILDAS (560—600 A . D . ) .

"De Excidio"—Section VI.
(ex M . S . Cod. Cantab. E d . Gale).
" V e r u s ille Sol, non de firmamento temporali, sed de summa
etiam coelorum arce tempora cuncta excedente, universo orbi praeful
gidum sui coruscum ostendens; tempore, ut scimus, summo Tiberii
Caesaris . . . . radios suos primum indulget."
" H e the true Sun . . . . revealing his excellent brightness to
the whole world, . . . . first bestows his rays (on this island), as we
know, at the height of the reign of Tiberius Caesar."
The translation of "tempore s u m m o " may be disputed. In
any case Gildas says it was during the reign of Tiberius, who died
A . D . 37. That he referred to Britain is defined i n earlier words
( " g l a c i a l i frigore i n s u l a e " ) , a truly Roman estimate of our climate.
I claim that it is more likely that Gildas meant that Christ
came here himself, than that some disciples reached our shores before
A . D . 37. The traditional date of the arrival of Joseph of Arimathea
with his twelve companions is A . D . 63. M y own surmise of an earlier
visit with the Blessed Virgin could only be at the extreme end of
Tiberius' reign, when the emperor had retired into semi-insane obscur
ity. I cannot believe that Gildas would have used the words "tempore
s u m m o " of such a period.
NO. 2. T H E " A N C I E N T BRITISH HISTORIAN."

W i l l i a m of Malmesbury, who plainly says he is shy of the
legendary, is yet constrained to write thus—
After referring to the twelve disciples, said to have been sent
to Britain by St. Philip and St. James, he goes on:—
" H o c autem ita se habere turn ex carta Beati Patricii,
tum ex scriptis seniorum cognoscimus. Quorum unus Britonum
Historiographus, prout apud Sanctum Edmundum, itemque
apud Sanctum Augustinum Anglorum Apostolum vidimus, ita
exorsus est." (Gale's transcript. " H i s t o r i a e B r i t a n n i c a e " pp.
292—293). H e goes on to quote, approximately, the words
given below, from the " V i t a Sancti Dunstani."
W i l l i a m distinctly says here that this passage had already been
quoted by St. E d m u n d and St. Augustine. This at least shows its great
antiquity. I cannot actually trace St. Augustine's reference, but I
would note a certain mysterious Vatican M S , mentioned by Cardinal
Baronius as his authority for an assertion that Joseph of Arimathea

was a companion of St. Philip, Lazarus, etc., in their flight to Gaul
in A . D . 35, and later preached in Britain. Baronius' actual words in
the margin are " e x manuscripta Historia A n g l . quae habetur in B i b l .
Vaticana," (Lansdown M . S . 255.f.364. British Museum). Baronius
was librarian of the Vatican.
Now we turn to the " V i t a Sancti D u n s t a n i . " Bishop Stubbs,
("Memorials of St. Dunstan," 1874), gives the following version of
the passage by the anonymous writer called Saxon Priest " B , " which
he says is probably the oldest and most accurate. H e thinks the writer
was perhaps a contemporary of St. Dunstan.
TEXT.
Quern, (St. Dunstan), p i i parentes sacri baptismatis undis
renatum Dunstanum vocaverunt. Crevit itaque puer et effectus
est tam Deo quam hominibus carus, Erat autem quaedam regalis
in confinio ejusdem praefati viri ( K i n g Athelstan) insula,
antiquo vicinorum vocabulo Glastonia nuncupata, latis locorum
dimensa sinibus, piscosis aquis stagneisque circumducta flumin
ibus, et plurimis humanae indigentiae apta usibus, atque sacris,
quod maximum est, Dei dicata muneribus. I n ea siquidem
ipsius loca (sic) primi catholicae legis neophitae antiquam Deo
dictante repperunt aecclesiam, nulla hominum arte(1) construc
tam, immo humano saluti coelitus paratam; quam postmodum
Ipse coelorum fabricator multis miraculorum gestis multisque
misteriorum virtutibus(2) hanc(3) Sibi sanctaeque genetrici
Suae(4) Mariae consecratam fore demonstravit. H u i c etiam
aliud addiderunt opere(5) lapideo(6) oratorium quod Christo
ejusque Sancto Petro Apostolo dedicaverunt."
FOOTNOTES (Stubbs')—
(1) arte) ut ferunt, ins. B . i n marg.
(2) misteriorum virtutibus) virtutum misteriis. B .
(3) hanc) om. B .
(4) Suae) Dei. B .
(5) opere) operes. A .
(6) lapideo) lapideos. A .
The important footnote is (1), which shows that the version
accepted by Bishop Stubbs did not have the words " u t f e r u n t " i n
the text, and that " B " . only had it i n the margin. W i l l i a m of
Malmesbury includes it i n the text. This gradual insertion of " s o
they s a y " is a very interesting commentary on the growth of scepticism.
Note also the sudden and abrupt change from the account of St.
Dunstan's boyhood to this amazing story of the " e a l d e chirche."
The writer is clearly copying an older M S .
FREE TRANSLATION.
" N o w there was a certain royal island within the confines of
the realm of Athelstan, called i n the old language of the vicinity
Glastonia, embracing broad tracts of country, surrounded by waters
abounding in fish, and river-beds rich i n lead; adapted to the satisfac
tion of every human need. Also, best of all, consecrated by the gifts
of God himself. Indeed, when they came into these parts, the first
neophytes of catholic law, under the guidance of God, found a Church,
constructed by no human art, but actually prepared divinely for the
salvation of man. W h i c h Church the Creator of Heaven himself, by
many miraculous acts and mysterious virtues, showed was to be
consecrated to Himself and to Mary his Mother."
NO. 3. " D O M U S D E I " — " S E C R E T U M DOMINI

I have seen the names " D o m u s D e i " and " Secretum D o m i n i "
applied to Glastonbury by several writers, and have done my best to
trace their origin. Ussher, i n his " Britannicarum Ecclesiarum Antiqui
t a t e s " (Chap. 2), gives the following footnote to the word " D o m e s
d a y , " " D o m u s Dei; i n magno Glastoniensis Monasterii Registro, quod
Secretum Domini vocatur: fol.249b."
Certain authorities at the Bodleian Library tell me there is no
doubt that " S e c r e t u m D o m i n i " is an abbreviation of " R e g i s t r u m
Secretum Domini A b b a t i s , " and it is certainly true that one such
register of the time of Walter de Monyton, (Abbot 1341—1374), was
called " S e c r e t u m A b b a t i s , " (MS. B o d l . Wood. empt. 1). B u t there
were earlier registers. D r . Oliver mentions an " O r i g i n a l Survey
of the Property of Glastonbury Abbey in the time of Abbot A d a m de
Sodbury (1308—1326), and Ussher may have got his "Secretum
D o m i n i " from one of these.
W i t h the utmost deference to the experience of the Bodleian
librarians on the subject of the ways of monastic scribes, I do find
it very hard to believe that the " P r i v a t e Register of the L o r d A b b o t "
was shortened by them to the most ambiguous form of " T h e Secret
of the L o r d . " Is it not at least equally possible that the original
" G r e a t R e g i s t e r " of Glastonbury was called, with no intentional
ambiguity, the " S e c r e t u m D o m i n i , " and that later Abbots, not under
standing its original purport, altered it to " Secretum Domini Abbatis,
and later again quietly dropped the " D o m i n i " ?
The problem of the words " D o m u s D e i " is still more obscure.
On fol.249b, (the same reference as Ussher's above), of the "Secretum
A b b a t i s " is the following:—
" T e r r a sancte Marie Glastonie sicut continetur in libro scaccarii
Londoniensis qui dicitur domus dei quem componi fecit rex Willelmus
primus subacto sibi et pacificato regno A n g l i e . "
On the face of it, this certainly seems to give " D o m u s D e i " as

a fourteenth century name for Domesday, and Stuart Moore, quoted
by Dove i n " D o m e s d a y Studies," says that, " according to the
compiler of the R e d Book of the Exchequer," it was called " D o m u s
D e i , " or " t h e R o l l of Winchester." B u t is this " l i b e r s c a c c a r i i "
identical with the Domesday Survey? The usual title of the latter is
" L i b e r Judicialis vel Censualis Angliae." A book of laws and customs,
now lost, existed i n the time of K i n g Alfred, called " D o m b o k , " and
" L i b e r J u d i c i a l i s " is a remarkably close rendering of the old Saxon
word.
Here again, the experts, though with less certainty, would
attribute the name " D o m u s D e i " to careless monastic scribes, trying
to put into Latin the vulgar names " Dome-book," "Domesday-book,"
or " D o m e s d a y . " They may have been poor latinists, but were they
really as poor as all this? " D o m u s D e i " has such an obvious mean
ing, even for the poorest L a t i n scholar, and it is a very different
meaning to either " D o m - b o k , " " D o m e s d a y , " or " D o o m s d a y . "
Others again have apparently given up the attempt to derive
"Domus D e i " from " D o m e s d a y , " and have attributed this name
to the supposed circumstance of its having been kept i n some room
or chapel, which was called " D o m u s D e i . " B u t they do not even
seem sure whether this was at Winchester or Westminster. It looks
very much like a surmise, and nothing more. Was any room or
chapel ever called " D o m u s D e i " ? The cathedrals themselves would
of course have the right to the name, but so would the humblest
" H o u s e of G o d . " Y o u might as well call the Survey a " C h u r c h , "
and be done with it! The explanation sounds forced and unreal.
Once again, I humbly put forward my suggestion. It is that the
name " D o m e s d a y " may well have been the vulgar name for the
Survey, based on the Saxon " D o m - b o k . " B u t that " D o m u s D e i "
must have a different explanation, in which case the vulgar " D o m e s
d a y " might equally well be a corruption of this. Something, some
place, or the whole realm, may have been known as " D o m u s
D e i , " the " H o m e of G o d . " A n d those to whom it was thus
known may well have been the old monks of Glastonbury in whose
registers the name has been preserved. In other words, I suggest that
they regarded either Glastonbury itself, or the whole of Britain, as in
some sense " G o d ' s H o m e . " Through them the name might easily
become transferred to the Survey of the Conqueror, and have been
copied by others, who perhaps never understood its original sacred
import.
This may sound fantastic to some readers. I wonder if it is
more so than any of the other explanations of the name " D o m e s d a y "
which are put forward b y more learned students.
Nor do I see that my theory about " Secretum D o m i n i " is

seriously affected by the fact, which I acknowledge above, that the
folio reference given by Ussher from what he calls "Secretum
D o m i n i " is the same apparently as that in " Secretum A b b a t i s " at
the Bodleian. It is clear that these registers were recopied and
brought up to date from time to time, but a great part of them would
probably be a verbatim transcript, and therefore have the same folio
references. The same words might well be on the same page, both in
the known " S e c r e t u m A b b a t i s , " and in Ussher's "Secretum D o m i n i . "
Since the above was written I have found confirmation of my
concluding argument in A d a m de Domerham (circa 1300). T r i n . Coll.
Camb. M S . R.5.33. fol. 131a. A d a m de Domerham here quotes a
document called " S e c r e t u m domini," and gives the identical passage
as that i n the Bodleian " S e c r e t u m abbatis," with the same folio
number (249b). There can be little doubt that this is the document
which Ussher quotes from, and note that the date of this is certainly
older than the " S e c r e t u m a b b a t i s " (1341—1374).
Since the second edition was issued, the controversy over the
meanings of these two phrases was resumed in the columns of the
"Somerset County H e r a l d , " and in the issue of 19th A p r i l , 1947,
under N o . 4264, Abbot Horne quotes, with apparent approval, the
comments of D o m . Aelred W a t k i n . I give the exact words of the
latter's pertinent summary in each case. (1) Secretum Domini. "On
account of the fact that it was copied out for the private use of the
L o r d Abbots of Glastonbury, (it) went by the name of Secretum Domini
—a nick-name implying that it was set apart for the use of the L o r d
Abbot."
I should like confirmation of that word " fact." A s for the
" n i c k - n a m e , " I ask any intelligent reader to judge for himself as
to its suitability! (2) Domus Dei. "The scribe attempting to find
some Latin form for the word Domesday, invents the somewhat ridicu
lous Domus Dei, perhaps as a rather laboured witticism."
" C u r i o u s e r and curiouser," to quote Alice. " Ridiculous"!
"Laboured witticism"!
Surely for the poorest L a t i n scholar, both nickname and witticism
verge perilously on the profane.
NO. 4. MELCHINUS.
Melchinus or Melkinus (Celtic Maelgwyn?). H e is most obscure
in origin and date. John of Glastonbury, following Glastonbury tradi
tion, says he was "before M e r l i n . " Pits ( " D e illustribus Britanniae
scriptoribus"—1619), describes h i m as an " A v a l o n i a n , " and calls him
a British bard, historian, and astronomer." H e dates h i m with assur-
ance as A . D . 560. Leland (c. 1530), noted the document here quoted
as a very treasured possession i n the old L i b r a r y of the Abbey. H e
calls it " a fragment of history written by Melchinus an A v a l o n i a n . "
Apart from tradition, the language suggests great antiquity, and, what
ever else we may call it, it does not sound in the least monastic. The
passage is quoted, apart from John of Glastonbury, i n the " N o v a
Legenda Angliae," and the following translation is from the text as
given by Skeat ( " J o s e p h of Arimathie," p. 70—71).
" T h e Isle of Avalon, hungry for the burial of the natives, once
adorned, above all others in the world, by oracular circles ('sperulis
vaticinantibus') of prophecy, will for the future also be furnished
with worshippers of the Highest. Abbadare, mighty i n judgment,
noblest of natives, with one hundred and four knights ( ' m i l i b u s '
for ' m i l i t i b u s ' ) fell asleep there. A m i d whom, Joseph of Marmor,
named of ' A r m a t h i a , ' found his perpetual rest. A n d he lies
inside the forked line near the southern angle of the oratory
erected there (of wattles prepared before), over ( " s u p e r potentem
adorandam v i r g i n e m " ) the powerful adorable virgin, by that circle
of thirteen inhabiting the spot. Joseph forsooth, has with him in
his sepulchre two cruets, white and silvery, filled with the blood and
sweat of the prophet Jesus. W h e n his sepulchre shall be found, it will
be seen in future years complete and undamaged, and it will be open to
the whole world. Thenceforth, neither dew nor rain shall ever fail
those who inhabit this most noble island. L o n g before the judgment
day in Josaphat, these things will be open and manifested to living
people."
I have always felt that this document, though quoted by sceptics
like Dean Armitage Robinson, has never had the consideration it
deserves. The language stamps it as far earlier than the Conquest,
and the phraseology as native or even Hebrew in origin.
NO. 5. ST. DAVID'S VISION.

St. David's Vision and William of Malmesbury. W i l l i a m of
Malmesbury (12th century), who actually saw the old Wattle Church,
is, by his own confession, very cautious i n repeating unsubstantiated
legends, yet he records, with no apparent suspicion, the following sup
posed vision of St. D a v i d ( " D e Antiquitate," Hearne, p. 25). The
translation here is by M r . H . F . Scott-Stokes, a sceptic on Glastonbury
legends: —
" I n what reverence the great D a v i d , Archbishop of the Mene
vesians, held the place is so well-known, that it needs no report of
mine to elucidate it. Through him a divine miracle corroborated the
antiquity and sanctity of the Church. F o r , thinking to consecrate it,
he came with seven Bishops, of whom he was the primate, to Glaston

bury. B u t when a l l was ready for the ceremony, on the night before
it was to take place (as he thought), he bade sleep welcome. A n d
having relaxed a l l his senses to rest, he saw the L o r d Jesus standing
by, and courteously inquiring why he had come. H e at once
explained, but the L o r d recalled h i m from his intention by saying that
he himself had long ago dedicated the Church i n honour of his Mother,
and the sacrament ought not to be profaned by human repetition."
NO. 6. T H E E A L D E CHIRCHE.
The following gives W i l l i a m of Malmesbury's own description
of the Wattle Church, with the feelings which it inspired in him:—
"Gesta Regum Anglorum," I., 20. " I n it the bodily relics
of many saints are preserved, some of whom we shall note in due
course; nor is there any space around the shrine which does not contain
the ashes of the blessed. Indeed, the tesselated pavement of polished
stone, yes, even the sides of the altar, and the very altar itself, both
above and below, are piled with the crowded relics. In places also one
may note i n the pavement on either side stones carefully placed, in
alternate triangles and squares, and sealed with lead; beneath which, if
I believe some holy secret to be held, I am doing no harm to religion."
NO. 7. T H E BRETON LEGEND.

I append i n full the legend current in Brittany, connecting St.
Anne, the mother of the Blessed Virgin, with that land. While it is
obvious that the Bretons themselves locate the scene of the legend in
their own country, it is at least possible that it was transplanted from
Cornwall, with many of their place names, at the time of the great
migration. The district with which the legend is connected is called
" C o r n u a i l l e . " The version which I append is my own translation of
an extract from Anatole le Braz' " S a i n t e Anne de la P a l u d e " in
" A u Pays des Pardons."
The writer tells how he was struck by the likeness of a poor
peasant woman to the figure of St. Anne, before which she had been
praying.
" D o you k n o w , " I said, " t h a t St. Anne and you look like
sisters?"
" I am, like her, a grandmother," she replied, " a n d , like me,
thank God, she is a B r e t o n . "
" S t . Anne—a Breton? Are you quite sure about that, my
worthy woman?"
She turned her dreamy eyes on me, and answered i n a pitying
tone: " H o w easy to see that you are from the town! The townsfolk
are ignorant; they despise us country folk, because we cannot read their
books. B u t they! What would they know of their land, if we were
not there to tell them? O h yes, St. Anne was a Breton. G o to the
Château de Moëllien, and they will show you the room she inhabited,
in the days when she was Queen of that country. F o r a Queen she
was; nay, she was even " D u c h e s s e , " a far more beautiful title. They
blessed her i n the streets, because of her goodness and her boundless
pity for the humble and unhappy. H e r husband, i n turn, passed for
a very hard man. H e was jealous of his wife, and did not want
her to bear children. When he discovered that she was with child, he
flew into a violent passion, and drove her out like a beggar, i n the
middle of the night, i n the depth of winter, half naked, into the icy
storm. A piteous wanderer, she walked blindly on. I n the bay of
Tréfentec, under this dune, a barque of light rode placidly, though the
sea was rough, and at the stern stood an angel in white, his wings
spread out like sails. ' E m b a r k , ' said the angel, ' t h a t we may take
care of you; for the time is short.' ' W h i t h e r would you take me?' she
asked, and he replied, ' T h e wind will direct us; the will of G o d is i n
the wind.'
" T h e y passed along the coast of Judaea, and landed in the
port of Jerusalem. Some days later Anne gave birth to a daughter,
destined by God to be the Virgin. She brought her up piously, taught
her her letters in a book of Psalms, and made her wise i n body and
spirit; meet to become the mother of Jesus. H e r task ended, as she felt
herself growing old, she prayed Heaven, saying, ' I am pining for m y
Bretons. If only, ere I die, I may see again m y parish, and the beach,
so sweet to my eyes, of la Palude i n Plounévez Porzay!' H e r prayer
was answered. The barque of light returned to take her, with the
same angel at the helm, only now he was robed i n black, to show the
saint of her widowhood, for the Seigneur de Moëllien had died mean-
while. The castle folk, gathered on the shore, received their châtelaine
with transports of joy, but she immediately hushed them. ' G o , ' she
commanded, ' a n d distribute all my goods among the poor.' She was
resolved to end her earthly days i n penitence. Henceforth she lived
here, under this barren dune, in one perpetual orison. The light of
her eyes radiated far over the waters like a moonbeam. O n stormy
nights she was the saviour of the fishers. W i t h one gesture she calmed
the sea, and drove the clouds back to bed, like a flock of sheep to
the fold.
" J e s u s , her grandson, undertook for her sake the voyage to
Basse-Bretagne. Before he was to climb Calvary, he went to ask her
blessing, accompanied b y the disciples Peter and John. Their parting
was a bitter one. Anne wept tears of blood, and Jesus tried in vain to
console her. A t last he said to her, ' T h i n k , grand-mère, of your
Bretons. Speak, and i n thy name I will grant them whatever they
ask.'
" T h e saint checked her tears. ' A h ! then,' she cried, ' M a y
a Church be dedicated here to me, and as far as its steeple shall be
seen, as far as its bells shall be heard, may a l l sickness be healed, and
every soul, living or dead, find peace!' .... " There, my gentleman,
is the true history of Anne of la Palude, in Plounévez Porzay. There it
is, just as I had it from my mother, who had it from hers, at a time
when families transmitted piously, from memory to memory, the things
of the past."
These simple words of the Breton peasant woman sum up the
whole case for the credibility of oral tradition. Allowing for all possible
embellishments i n the course of time, the fundamental basis of the
tradition dates back to those far-off ages when, in the beautiful words
of the original " l e s families se transmettaient pieusement de mémoire
en mémoire les choses du passé."
This booklet is procurable from W . H . Smith and Son, Glastonbury;

J . A . Gilbert, Gazette Office, Glastonbury; J . A . D . Bridger, Penzance;
J . H . Lake & Co., Falmouth; Oscar Blackford, L t d . , Truro; or from
the author, at The Parsonage, St. Martin's, Isles of S c i l l y . "

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With new and fuller Notes and Appendices.

THE HOLY LAND OF BRITAIN

(Author of " T h e Child Christ at L a m m a n a " , " A b Antiquo

" F o l k s say that J E S U S passed b y here, and blessed these p a r t s "

" S o t h e l y Glastenbury is the holyest erth of england,

PRICE 2/- 1948

With new and fuller Notes and Appendices.

(Author of " T h e Child Christ at L a m m a n a " , " A b Antiquo

" F o l k s say that J E S U S passed by here, and blessed these p a r t s "

" S o t h e l y Glastenbury is the holyest erth of england,

PRICE 2/- 1948

century A . D . It is not usually found i n parts where monastic influence

procured the following, which I value as highly as any i n my collection.

(1) An old song, once well-known among mining people in Cornwall.

to Mount's B a y , and suggests this legend as a possible basis for the

(1) In reply to Mr. Painter of Glastonbury and Miss Twycross of Menheniot,

A t Talland, a late incumbent, according to his sister, often used

(6) Elsewhere. In Somerset I have definitely traced the legend

(1) See Appendix 7.

In view of the above, it is not at all surprising to find strong

(1) " P a x , " Summer 1916, p. 135.

by Diodorus Siculus (v. 21, 22, 31), comments on the friendliness

moves on elsewhere. Where should that be, except to his eventual

The lead mines near P r i d d y in the Mendips were certainly in

In connection with Joseph, we must remember that he was

IV. T H E H O L Y VISIT—WHEN A N D WHY?

(1) Dr. Davey Biggs' "Ictis and Avalon"—pp. 32 & 41.

(1). If, as legend suggests, and as the story of the Entomb­

(2). H i s chief friends and acquaintances there would be

(3). Some friendly critics have raised the question of language,

V. INDIRECT SUPPORT FOR T H E L E G E N D .

(2) . The Wattle Church, called in Saxon time "the Ealde

(3) The Holy Cemetery. This was held in a reverence as great

(1) Pronounced locally "Essa's Bed," or by obvious corruption, "Ace-o'-

VI. LIGHT F R O M ANCIENT DOCUMENTS.

the " d a r k a g e s " of history. Take the years 8 to 25 A . D . Search

To begin with, we must rid ourselves of all prejudices and

H a v i n g thus cleared the ground, let us see what clues have

did not altogether discredit, ancient traditions which attributed a

the powerful, adorable virgin. The present vicar of Glastonbury said

"immediately after the passion." ("statim post passionem"). It also

(1) Deipara.—A common medieval title of Our Lady.

NO. 1. GILDAS (560—600 A . D . ) .

NO. 2. T H E " A N C I E N T BRITISH HISTORIAN."

Baronius as his authority for an assertion that Joseph of Arimathea

NO. 3. " D O M U S D E I " — " S E C R E T U M DOMINI

On the face of it, this certainly seems to give " D o m u s D e i " as

Nor do I see that my theory about " Secretum D o m i n i " is

NO. 5. ST. DAVID'S VISION.

he came with seven Bishops, of whom he was the primate, to Glaston­

NO. 7. T H E BRETON LEGEND.

This booklet is procurable from W . H . Smith and Son, Glastonbury;

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(1). If, as legend suggests, and as the story of the Entomb

he came with seven Bishops, of whom he was the primate, to Glaston