Lucy de Newchurch (
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
: ''Lucia de New Chirche'') was an
anchoress from the
diocese of Hereford
The Diocese of Hereford is a Church of England diocese based in Hereford, covering Herefordshire, southern Shropshire and a few parishes within Worcestershire in England, and a few parishes within Powys and Monmouthshire in Wales. The cathedral ...
who lived in a chapel dedicated to
St. Brendan
Brendan of Clonfert (c. AD 484 - c.577), is one of the early Celtic Christianity, Irish monastic saints and one of the Twelve Apostles of Ireland. He is also referred to as Brendan the Navigator, Brendan the Voyager, Brendan the Anchorite, Br ...
on
Brandon Hill
Brandon Hill () is the highest mountain in County Kilkenny, Ireland, with an elevation of and prominence at . The South Leinster Way, a long-distance trail, meandering through the Barrow Valley and traverses Brandon Hill. The village of ...
in
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
and who later became of interest to antiquarians, historians of Bristol, and writers of Bristol guide books.
She was the first known of four hermits who lived on Brandon Hill at various times between 1314 and 1480.
Life
Little is known about Lucy's life except that she was from Herefordshire and was the first known of a series of hermits who inhabited a cell on Brandon Hill, Bristol, in a chapel owned by
St. James Priory.
In November 1349, two years before she entered her cell at the hermitage, Lucy obtained an
indult
In Catholic canon law, an indult is a permission or privilege, granted by the competent church authority – the Holy See or the diocesan bishop, as the case may be – for an exception from a particular norm of church law in an individual case ...
from the pope allowing her to "choose a confessor who should give her plenary remission at the hour of death."
At this time, she was living in the diocese of Hereford, as opposed to the
diocese of Worcester where Brandon Hill was then located.
After obtaining the papal indult, Lucy petitioned the
bishop of Worcester
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
,
John of Thoresby
John of Thoresby (died 6 November 1373) was an English clergyman and politician, who was Bishop of St David's, then Bishop of Worcester and finally Archbishop of York. He was Lord Chancellor of England under King Edward III starting from 134 ...
, multiple times, to allow her to take up residence as an anchoress in the
hermitage and chapel of St. Brendan.
The bishop wrote that Lucy had approached him "with earnest and humble devotion, as was clear to us from her appearance and demeanour, asking to be enclosed in the hermitage of St. Brandan at Bristol in our diocese."
William Barrett, the historian of Bristol, concluded that Lucy's request had been granted after "due inquiry into her conduct and purity of life and possession of the necessary virtues." This view was supported by the antiquarian
Rotha Mary Clay, who described the bishop as being "impressed by Lucy's earnestness" and who identified Lucy as probably the same individual described in a deed from 1351 as an anchoress who held land on Brandon Hill.
The ritual of enclosure and Lucy's blessing may have been carried out by John de Severle, the
archdeacon of Worcester
The Archdeacon of Worcester is a senior clergy position in the Diocese of Worcester in the Church of England. Among the archdeacon's responsibilities is the care of clergy and church buildings within the area of the Archdeaconry of Worcester.
Hi ...
, or a "deputy" of his choosing, as the bishop had written to him, bestowing the power to perform it.
In the 15th century, the antiquarian
William Worcester
William Worcester, also called William of Worcester, William Worcestre or William Botoner (1415) was an English topographer, antiquary and chronicler.
Life
He was a son of another William of Worcester, a Bristol whittawer (worker in white leather ...
described the chapel that had contained Lucy's hermitage as being 8 and a half yards long and 5 yards wide and "like in form to
Mount Calvary by
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
."
Worcester also claimed it was the highest structure in Bristol, having been erected on a hill that ""
Later references to Lucy
Various Bristol histories and guide books of the 19th and early 20th centuries have included ironic references to Lucy and have speculated about her desire to become an anchoress, attributing it to a "satiety"
or "disappointment with the world." One guide book written "for strangers" on the "curiosities of Bristol" described Lucy as the first of a series of hermits who had "wasted their lives
n the hermitage down to the days of the Reformation."
In 1885, a poem appeared in the antiquarian
James Fawckner Nicholls' guide book ''How To See Bristol'' mocking Lucy's decision to enclose herself in a cell rather than engage in domestic work, child care, or moral reform efforts.
The poem, which follows a description of Brandon Hill, reads as follows:
Lucy de Newchurch here sat in her cell
A patching her soul, and stopping each hole
That the world or the devil could enter. 'Twas well
For a woman that knew no better.
But she'd ''dout'' the sun with a half-penny squirt,
Or mop up the sea with the tail of her skirt,
Convince all maids that 'twas wicked to marry,
Before she could outmanoeuvre Old Harry,
Or before he alone would let her.
Had she handled a broom in some humble room,
Or crooned babe's ''"Babel"'' while rocking her cradle,
Or scalded her hand with the iron ladle
Whilst giving soup to some hungry group;
Or sopped a crust for some toothless gum,
Or kissed the blood from a child's cut thumb,
Or said to some fallen sister, 'O come!
This way of life abandon!'
She'd have been much nearer to kingdom come,
Than here by herself on Brandon.
Excavations on Brandon Hill
In 1897, Dr. Alfred C. Fryer, a member of the
Clifton Antiquarian Club
The Clifton Antiquarian Club is an archaeology, archaeological society founded in 1884 in Bristol to investigate antiquities in the surrounding areas of western England and southern Wales. The 28 years of research undertaken by the members and as ...
, published a paper in the
''Journal of the British Archaeological Association'' on the discovery of buried walls, bones, and a "well-made," east–west–oriented grave during excavations for the foundations of
Cabot Tower.
According to James R. Bramble, the president of the club, Dr. Fryer believed the "walls found several feet below the surface of the summit of the hill to have been remains of a 'crypt belonging to the Chapel of St. Brandon,' and that the skeletons were those of 'some of the poor hermits who once occupied the hermitage.'"
Alfred Hudd, the club's secretary, who visited the site, believed the walls were more likely to be those of the hermitage chapel itself rather than a crypt.
Historic England
Historic England (officially the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked wit ...
has described the findings as follows:
See also
*
Anchorite
In Christianity, an anchorite or anchoret (female: anchoress) is someone who, for religious reasons, withdraws from secular society so as to be able to lead an intensely prayer-oriented, ascetic, or Eucharist-focused life. While anchorites are ...
*
Brandon Hill, Bristol
Brandon Hill, also known as St Brandon's Hill, is a hill close to Bristol city centre, between the districts of Clifton, Bristol, Clifton and Hotwells, in south west England.
At the summit is the Cabot Tower (Bristol), Cabot Tower, opened in 1 ...
*
History of Bristol
Bristol is a city with a population of nearly half a million people in south west England, situated between Somerset and Gloucestershire on the tidal River Avon. It has been among the country's largest and most economically and culturally impo ...
References
{{reflist
People from South West England
People from Bristol
History of Bristol
People from Herefordshire
Hermits
English hermits
English Christians