Day 8 - 24 August 2011 - Hawker - what a cheeky fellow!

Hello chaps! not a long post this evening as been very busy today! so just to post the email that I got back from Alan this morning with some more information about St.Morwenna's church and Hawker. The more I learn about him - the more I like him. If he wasn't up to some high jinks he was causing some kind of a stir!


Info obtained today:

in 1296, the "ancient" church of St John was passed to the monks of Bridgewater.  When Hawker became incumbent in 1834 he decided that Morwenstow was derived from St Morwenna - Morwenna's station, rather than place on the moor. He then constructed and elaborate fiction which you can read about in his book "Footprints of men in far Cornwall"  There are more details about him and his life in "The Life and Letters of RS Hawker" written by his son-in-law Byles.

Hawker was a poet and romantic. It was he than adopted and added to all the imagery in the church, the books mentioned detail some of this.

On page 24 of the guide is some information about the window.  There is a bench end in Sheepstor church which depicts (a Victorian ideal) of St Morwenna where the picture itself came from, I have no idea, but it must be conjectural.

I suggest you obtain copies of books about Hawker which will lead you into his thinking and some of his ideas about Morwenna.  If you find out the origin of the picture, I would be intrested.

-end-


So books about Hawker I will read ;-) oh and a visit to Sheepstor church at some point...which is in....(quick look on the old google maps)........Dartmoor!

Day 7 - 23 August - Feast date proves a mystery

Well, I've heard back from the lovely Alan at Morwenstow and have discovered that they don't actually celebrate St. Morwenna there at all! (poor thing!) they do celebrate St.John though on the 24th June...(who the church is also dedicated to). 
You know I'm not actually sure why it is dedicated to two saints, but according to Alan, it was Hawker who introduced St. Morwenna to the church. So was it only know as St. John' before Hawker arrived? I find this hard to believe - so have asked the question and will see what comes out of that. He also couldn't help me with what her feast day is and said that they were planning on organising an annual pilgrimage out to the cliffs where her well is on this date, but as they couldn't actually agree on a date no such event has ever taken place......yet..:-)  So I've offered to share what I learn (haven't mentioned that I'm planning on following her journey yet? Should I?) yeah I think I should>


brrr it's just got really cold here....!


I've also fished out some books that I bought way back (love the charity shops!) that I thought might be useful. The books might actually be too late in history - but I expect they will give me some information about life during that time. They are:

• The Medieval Cookbook by Maggie Black
• Medieval Lives by Terry Jones
• Old school history books by Myself!! ;-) 

Have also decided to create a special loaf and call it Saint Morwenna's loaf  (I know I mentioned bread earlier - but just had that idea today) - which will be eaten on her feast day (once I've found out when that is...)  Any ideas about the shape of the bread? ah what about in the shape of her cross? There's one in the churchyard there. Or one that represents learning or teaching?

Ah before I forget I did also read that she was....wait for it....a PRINCESS (this just keeps getting better and better - so before she became a Saint she was Princess Morwenna - which of course makes sense if she was the daughter of a king. Never actually occurred to be before. However, there is a dispute about whether she was actually his daughter or his granddaughter. 


She also studied in Ireland before going to Cornwall - along with a lot (I don't know how many) of her brothers and sisters. She was also a teacher.


I've also asked Alan if he knows who designed the Hawker Memorial window that features St. Morwenna and if the original drawings exist and if I can see them. I also want to know where the image of Saint Morwenna came from. Was it just the artists imagination? or was she based on an actual lady from Morwenstow at that time? ooh that would be exciting if that was the case and I could find out who she was! 


until tomorrow...

Day 6 - 22 August 2011 - The Bude Mermaid

I haven't got that much further with my research today, other than uploading my letter from the Bard of Cornwall and watching an episode of Coast (Series 6, episode 2 - Devon and Cornwall)  that shows Morwenstow (right near the end of the programme) and Hawkers hut. It also mntions Rev Hawker once dressed up as a mermaid and the fact that he had a pet pig! I like this fellow. 

Sadly, I couldn't find any photos of him dressed as a mermaid - but did find this really funny account of the event...so picture this....

Rev. Hawker

The Bude Mermaid

The following text is taken from The Vicar of Morwenstow: A Life of Robert Stephen Hawker, M.A. By Sabine Baring-Gould. Which you can read online by using the link.

"At full moon in the July of 1825 or 1826, he swam or rowed out to a rock at "some little distance from the shore, plaited seaweed into a wig, which he threw over his head, so that it hung in lank streamers halfway down his back, enveloped his legs in an oilskin wrap, and, otherwise naked, sat on the rock, flashing the moonbeams about from a hand-mirror, and sang and screamed till attention was arrested. Some people passing along the cliff heard and saw him, and ran into Bude, saying that a mermaid with a fish's tail was sitting on a rock, combing her hair, and singing.

A number of people ran out on the rocks and along the beach, and listened awe-struck to the singing and disconsolate wailing of the mermaid. Presently she dived off the rock, and disappeared.

Next night crowds of people assembled to look out for the mermaid; and in due time she re-appeared, and sent the moon flashing in their faces from her glass. Telescopes were brought to bear on her; but she sang on unmoved, braiding her tresses, and uttering remarkable sounds, unlike the singing of mortal throats which have been practised in do-re-mi.

This went on for several nights; the crowd growing greater, people arriving from Stratton, Kilkhampton, and all the villages round, till Robert Hawker got very hoarse with his nightly singing, and rather tired of sitting so long in the cold. He therefore wound up the performance one night with an unmistakable "God save the King," then plunged into the waves, and the mermaid never again revisited the "sounding shores of Bude."

Source:

http://alisongraham.hubpages.com/hub/Undiscovered-Cornwall-Reverend-Hawker-Morwenstow-Tidna-Valley

I've also just read that apparently:


St Morwenna's holy well was not located on the cliffs of Morwenstow as a source of water but as a means of tapping into the energy of Mother Earth. 


I like the thought of that - although I'd read elsewhere that it was where Saint Morwenna rested that a 'spring sprung forth'. I guess it really means the same thing. So was she very connected to nature. Did she know the secrets of the healing plants?


http://www.camelot-hotel.co.uk/heritage-breaks-in-cornwall/hidden-cornwall.html

Day 5 - 21 August 2011 - My lack of history shows!

Well, now I know why St. Morwenna couldn't have possibly been 120 when she died. I didn't know how centuries worked....(This did make me laugh!) So as she was born in AD.480 this was the 5th Century and the 6th Century would have started in AD.500 (apologies to those who know this!!) So this would mean that if she died in the early 6th Century is more than likely that she was in her twenties and possibly early thirties when she died - I don't have an exact year at the moment, so I'm just making assumptions here. I also don't know what she died of - but it appears one of the most common ways to go back then was Plague. Or maybe it was natural causes as I think it might have mentioned somewhere if she had died of The Bubonic Plague. Nasty.


I also had a random thought this morning about the Canterbury tales and envisaged a merry troupe of us  (Momins?) on donkey's travelling St. Morwenna's path with at least one person playing a musical instrument as we traveled - like having our own 'theme tune' as we traveled along!!


After talking to Richard about this, it appears this would be 'Very Monty Python' and rather like their film The Holy Grail (which I must admit to never watching all the way through...so I feel a need to watch it for research purposes!!


Thoughts also today about the type of bread they would have eaten - so am off to find an authentic recipe to recreate. Will let you know how I get on....


You might notice that there is no particular order to my thoughts  - I will try and group things together but I often find things just pop into my head.


Also heard back from Morwenna the physic on the Isle of Wight - next step is to arrange a skype call with her to have my reading. How exciting. She has a different understanding of the translation again and said our name means 'white maiden.'


Another random thought - What language would St. Morwenna have spoken?
A quick google reveals she would properly have spoken a Celtic language. So something like Welsh and Cornish. (http://www.englishclub.com/english-language-history.htm) as English as we know it today didn't start to eveolve until the 5th Century when the Germanic invasions took place - The Saxons, Anglos and Jutes. 


Back to the route details - assuming at the moment that I would walk from Minehead after being dropped of there by my sailing boat...(!)  with or without my donkey, to Morwenstow is approx 115 miles.  So at the moment it's looking like the journey could be about 170 miles (this is just approx at the moment). I'm going to need good shoes ;-)

• And where would St. Morwenna have stayed on her journey? 
• Were there 'rest houses' at this time? 

This was during the Middle Ages and the time of the Saxons. The Romans had left Britain by this point. 

• Would she have camped? (don't think it would have been Glamping..). If so what kind of tent would she have had and what would she have slept on? 
• Did she travel on her own or with a group? (like my idea of a troupe of us plus music to journey by..;-).  Oh and of course - 
• When did she travel?
• Is the feast day actually the date she arrived in Morwenstow? Or her birthday? 

More investigating is required.


OK feeling peckish now. Time for a spot of lunch.

Day 4 - 20 August 2011 - Learning more things..

Have found out today that there is a 55mile path all the way from the Breacon Becons to Cardiff - called 'The Taff Trail' which is great news! Haven't looked at it in detail yet but have found a link:

http://www.brecon-beacons.com/taf-trail-long-distance-footpath.htm

It takes in Castle Coch, among other sites on route - I LOVE this castle. It's just the perfect fairy tale castle. So looks like a really beautiful route.

Also learnt today that St. Morwenna might have died in the early part of the 6th Century on the 24th July, so she could have been about 120 when she passed?? hang on that can't be right can it? The expected age for around that time was 30 - and that was if you were lucky. So something isn't adding up here.

Other things I've learnt so far:

• Morwhenna - translates as Sea Maiden and is often used as the celtic name for a mermaid
• There is a book about the Rev Stephen Hawker called 'Hawker Of Morwenstow: Portrait of a Victorian Eccentric' by Dr Piers Brendon. So going to hunt down a copy
• Whisky didn't exist then, so St. Morwennna would have had to make do with weak beer. This is rather dissapointing as I was *hoping* to include a trip to the Penderyn Distillery...http://www.welsh-whisky.co.uk/the-distillery.aspx. They produce a very fine whisky indeed.
• I've found my original letter from The Bard of Cornwall - who says "a name to be very proud of" among other things.
• Also found in an old research folder from collage reference to the font at St. Morwenna's Church as it's Saxon and still in use (so again that's been in my posession for years - but I'd never noticed it before)
• Have emailed 'Morwenna the psychic' for a reading!

There also seem to be some confusion around the date of her feast day. My plan is to travel her route and to arrive at Morwenstow on her feast day - which I had read as being on the 5th July - But I've seen a few different websites say it's the 8th July. So I've emailed the curate again to find out what date they celebrate in Morwenstow, as I asked when I was at the tearooms if they held any celebrations there - they said no, but that they do in the village. 

st. Morwenna - Taken from Catholic Online Website (http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=5168)

Cornish virgin, the titular patron of several sites in the region. Her emblem was always a tall cross. She was also depicted teaching children how to read.

hmmm guess the virgin bit puts paid to any ideas I had about her having been married and having children. But we'll see what else comes up during my investigations!


and what does titular mean? here we go:  "Holding or constituting a purely formal position or title without any real authority: "the queen is titular head of the Church of England".

ah laptop just decided to turn it's self off and on again, so think it's now time for bed...well it is 03.20..;-0


Nos dha

Day 3 - 19 August 2011 - Planning continues..(there will be lots of these I think)

Having a bit of a rest from reading about St. Morwenna etc... when I got an email from my good friend Ines, who lives in London. She's been on the train this morning and whilst reading The Metro (Free London Paper) she came across an article about Cornwall, The Rev Hawker (who I haven't actually mentioned yet) and St. Morwenna's church at Morwenstow. I took this as a sign to continue with my plans for a mini adventure. 


After a quick search, I found the article online:


http://www.metro.co.uk/lifestyle/872791-exploring-the-landscapes-and-hidden-gems-of-cornwall


It didn't really say that much about St. Morwenna, but did talk about the rather eccentric Reverand Robert Stephen Hawker, who was the vicar there for 40 years (from 1834-1874). He was from Oxford and had won the Newdigate Prize for poetry.  He penned 'Trawlney' the unofficial Cornish National anthem.  He could often be found at his hut, smoking his opium pipe and writing prose. (I sat in his hunt when I visited Morwenstow - minus the pipe though. Amazingly inspiring views.

Popped into the library in the afternoon and picked up a couple of useful books to help with my planning (along with a few I liked the look of):

• Collins Camping and hiking manual - The essential guide to comfortable (this was the key word for me) walking, cooking and sleeping
• South West Coast Path - Minehead to Padstow
• The South West Coast Path 2010 Guide (the full 630 mile guide)
• Eat my Globe - One year to go everywhere and eat everything by Simon Majumdar (not relevant but looked interesting).
• The Geography of Bliss - The grumpiest man on the planet goes in search of the happiest place in the world by Eric Weiner (same as above!) Lets see if I actually read these and not end up accruing more library fines...!

Day 2 - 18 August 2011 - Planning begins

After my adventures to Morwenstow the previous day, I was keen to continue my research and develop my idea of retracing her footsteps and at the same time learning more about this time in history. 


It also got me thinking about modern day saints, a) if there were any and b) what their role is in today's modern society.


I'd also been thinking about how she might have travelled and I suddenly had an idea! Donkey!


I could do it by foot and Donkey (for when I got tired) - now that would be cool (and different) but I have no idea how authentic that is - so need to ask some clever historians about that. I think I'll call my Donkey Horace though if we do get to travel together....(Also thought about a Lama, but knew that would be totally out of the question as they hadn't made it over to these shores yet...)


I also wondered if she might have got a boat to cross the Bristol Channel rather than walking all the way around?


That made me think about sailing ships, and I remembered that there is in fact a sailing bat called Morwenna. So googled her and found this:


http://www.traditional-sailing.com/

Now then, How cool would it be to travel from the Brecon Beacons to say, Cardiff, and get my sailing ship to pick me (and Horace?? - do Donkey's like sailing?) and transport us across to Minehead - as I'd also learnt that there is a South West Coast Path that runs all the way from Minehead to Poole, so right past Morwenstow!! Of course if they could drop me off any closer to Morwenstow that would be better for my feet...but I'd like to know which way she might have travelled. 


These are still just thoughts at the moment...


Also discovered, whilst googling, a medium called Mowenna who lives on the Isle of Wight!! so might ask her to do a reading for me...;-)

Day 1 - 17 August 2011 - Trip to Morwenstow

I woke up on Monday (15 August), with a strong urge to go and visit Morwenstow in North Cornwall and the church of St. Morwenna. I'd only heard about her a few weeks ago and was extremely interested in this saint as we share the same name. OK, my name is a slight variation of the traditional spelling as I'm Morwhenna. But a Morwhenna still the same. 

So after doing a spot of research, which involved checking google maps and emailing the church curate to check it would actually be open (Is open all the time) I decided to make the trip from Bristol to my church and check this lady out!

All I knew at this point was that she was the daughter of a Welsh King - Brychan Brycheiniog who lived in the Brecon Beacons and that she was born around c.AD 480. (That's 1,531 years ago! WOW). She travelled to a place called Hennacliff - which was later renamed Morwenstow and built a church there. Apparently she chose that spot as on a clear day she could see her home land of Wales. I'd also discovered that her feast day was 5th July - so had decided to adopt this as my 'summer birthday' (my 'official' birthday being 23 November)......

When I arrived it was quite busy so I went to the Rectory tearooms first for a spot of lunch after my long journey (took about 21/2 hrs in my little Henry!). Wow what a fantastic place. 13th century and amazingly good food. This was the original rectory - A new one was built in the 1800s by Rev. Hawker as he didn't like the original.

After having my fill, it was time to walk down to the church. I was very excited!

There were a few other people there, but they left fairly soon after I entered, so I had the place to myself.  It's a lovely old church and it felt very calm and peaceful. The only sounds to be heard was a family of swallows that had taken up residence in the roof. I had to be careful where I sat...

I must have been in there for at least an hour before anyone else came in to the church, so I was very lucky. While I was there it got me thinking about actually following in her footsteps and making the journey from her homeland in the Breacon Becons all the way down to Morwenstow. I could feel an adventure in the making....

I should add though that I did know my name had links to a Welsh king and I always belived it to mean 'girl from across the sea' as I had a letter from the Bard of Cornwall, which my Mum was given on the 28 February 1975. Obviously I'd never really read it properly, as St. Morwenna is mentioned - along with Morwenstow. I just think I wasn't ready (or that interested!!) before to find out more. But now I was - and more than ready!

On the way back I had so may questions buzzing through my head like:

• How old was she when she travelled to Morwenstow? 
• Did she marry - can Saints even get married? 
• Were there any children (if that was also allowed - I had no idea)? 
• How would she have travelled - all by foot?
• How long would it have taken?
• What would she have eaten?
• What would she have worn? 
• Was she a saint of 'something' like St. Perrin - Patron Saint of Tin Miners etc. 
• Was she  healer? 
• How old was she when she died?

So, yes, lots of questions...!

Nearly there!

There I am!!