ANGELA YOUNGMAN attended last weekend’s celebrations surrounding the 1000th anniversary of the Abbey of Bury St Edmunds…
Norwich, UK
A massive black wolf howls amid icy cold rain on St Edmunds Day (Sunday, 20th November), and giant images of St Edmund’s martyrdom are flashed against an abbey gateway, followed by medieval style images telling the story of a 1,000 year old cathedral. It marked the culmination of celebrations that have proved memorable in more ways than one.
The ruined abbey of St Edmund with St Edmundsbury Cathedral tower in the background. PICTURE: Karis Youngman
The martyrdom of St Edmund depicted in an illumination on the former abbey’s gateway. PICTURE: Karis Youngman
“Two years of a pandemic didn’t rate much against that long time span – it just gave us more time to prepare and add in more activities to raise awareness of the role of abbey and town…”
– Libby Ranzetta, of Abbey 1000
It was in 2020 that the Abbey of Bury St Edmunds announced its millennium celebrations – only to have them postponed for two years due to COVID.
Libby Ranzetta, of Abbey 1000, told Sight that the celebrations “offered an opportunity to think about how the abbey rose to be an impressive entity, a town within a town, and how for centuries people came from all over Europe to visit the shrine”.
“Two years of a pandemic didn’t rate much against that long time span – it just gave us more time to prepare and add in more activities to raise awareness of the role of abbey and town such as creating a medieval murder mystery, and installing murals within the town. We have done a lot more interpretation and made people more aware of the abbey and the story of St Edmund. The intention is continue to promote the abbey, heritage and the importance of the place so that people will come and engage with it.”
Last weekend’s dramatic light show retelling St Edmund’s story along with the history of the abbey attracted large crowds. Others followed a pilgrimage route through the ruined abbey grounds complete with a giant statue of a monk highlighted against the abbey walls taking visitors back through time.
This was an event that pulled together all the threads of ‘Abbey 1,000’ which has included pilgrimages, art, music, drama and ecumenical services in which members of the Benedictine order returned to an abbey from which they had been dismissed over 500 years ago by Henry VIII.
A giant monk amid the abbey ruins. PICTURE: Karis Youngman
Reflecting on the year, Rev Canon Matthew Vernon of Bury St Edmundsbury Cathedral, said the celebrations had raised the profile of the abbey.
An illuminated image of a wolf guarding St Edmund’s head. PICTURE: Karis Youngman
“It has enabled us to look back at our heritage and how we plan to take it forward. It embodies continuity and there are plans for the creation of a visitor interpretation centre linking the heritage, history of the abbey and town together with the work of the cathedral today.”
He added that ultimately the legacy of these celebrations will be much wider than bricks and mortar.
“We have gained greater awareness of our Benedictine legacy and what it means to us and the cathedral. We are now thinking this through and exploring the possibilities for the future. We have started adding Evensong on a regular basis. As an organisation we are exploring how we can become more Benedictine in our culture, our dealings with each other and how to listen more as well as developing links with the Benedictine order.”
Attention is also being given to the site’s pilgrim legacy. In medieval times, the shrine of St Edmund was one of the biggest pilgrimage sites throughout Europe. The continued importance of St Edmund is seen by the fact that there are many churches dedicated to him within the UK ass well as in other countries, particularly Norway.
Vernon said the cathedral planned to focus “much more on our pilgrimage work”.
“We are planning to establish links with other churches dedicated to St Edmund, and will be attending a pilgrimage church network in Norway,” he said.
“This year has give much more momentum to pilgrimage work as it has led to greater recognition of the importance of pilgrimages with people of all denominations and none due to the wellness aspect. We plan to develop the cathedral as a pilgrimage centre, appealling to an international audience.”
