Anchorites at
churches and elsewhere
Niall C.E.J. O’Brien
In the middle of the fourth
century a holy man called Bgoul went out into the Western Desert of Egypt.
There on a ridge of the Libyan chain he settled to live the life of an
anchorite. His life of prayer and simple living attracted others to the place.
Soon a monastery was established after the example of Pachomius.[1] Much
later in medieval Ireland a
female anchorite in Cork
decided to follow the example set by Bgoul. After years as a recluse, in 1297
she established a convent for nuns.[2]
Bgoul died about 385 and was
succeeded by his nephew called Schenoudi. This man of great zeal and iron will
transformed the small monastery of about thirty monks into a great
establishment with hundreds of monks. New buildings were built along with a
large church. Later a convent for nuns was built for women wishing to live
under the abbot’s rule. The community became known as the White Monastery or
Deir-el-Abiad.
Keeping the memory of his
uncle alive, Schenoudi considered the anchorite tradition to be the highest
form of asceticism. With this in mind he allowed fervent monks to go out and
lead a anchorite life. The gardener of the monastery was to provide vegetables
for his sustenance. Later the anchorites were allowed to return four times a
year to spend a few days with the community. Sometimes Schenoudi would go on
soldiery retreat. In his absence his harsh rules kept the monastery in check.
But some monks and nuns rebelled against such conditions and left with licence
or were expelled. Yet many appreciated his intentions and their names were
written on a tablet after their death as a special honour to their memory.
Schenoudi lived on until about 451 when he was said to be 118 years.[3]
Others less well known shared
these doubts. An Egyptian monk called John became an anchorite. In the desert
he was filled with heavenly thoughts and spiritual truths such that he forgot
at eventide if he had already eaten that day or not. The rule of one meal a day
served at eventide was a highly regarded rule and holy people endeavoured to
keep it. The flow of visitors also began to disturb John’s peace. In the end he
returned to the monastery as a cenobite for he said that he wished to live as a
good coenobite rather than a bad anchorite.[4]
Further west the Gauls were
more active than contemplative by nature. If some Egyptians found the anchorite
life too hard, the Gaulish monks of Lérins and Lero found it more difficult. Yet
on these Mediterranean islands with its acclaimed monastery the life of an
anchorite was seen as a high honour.[5] The
history of monasticism on the islands was much similar to that of the White
Monastery in Egypt .
A young man in southern Gaul called Honoratus had set his thoughts in the
religious life. He travelled to the Holy Land
where he lost his brother and companion yet was disheartened. On returning home
he set up residence near Frejus where he was helped by the local bishop. But
Honoratus sought a quieter place and left for the island of Lero Arles in 426.[6]
When Christianity and later
monasticism came to Ireland
many favoured the anchorite life. Abbots had difficulty enforcing discipline as
monks desire to leave for a quiet place with or without permission.[7]
Anchorites in England
In the earlier part of this
paper we saw an anchorite leaving solitude to become an abbot or bishop. Yet
there were also occasions when a public figure left it all to become an
anchorite. Following the synod of Whitby (664) the
celebrated saint of Lindisfarne abbey, St. Cuthbert,
was prior of that house. He was also a bishop of the Celtic church. But in 676
he left public life as he found it difficult to manage the abbey. He went to
live on Farne Island Northumbria
sent many delegations asking Cuthbert to come back to public life but to no
avail. In 685 the king got a bishopric for St. Cuthbert with a seat at Lindisfarne . St. Cuthbert gave up his anchorite life but
he retired a year later in poor health. He died in 687 on Farne Island
In later centuries anchorites
and anchoresses continue to appear in the records. The most celebrated
anchoress was Julian of Norwich who lived in the second half of the fourteenth century.
This woman lived in a specially built cell in the church of St. Julian in
Norwich. There she mediated and gave advice to those seeking help. She also
wrote two books recounting her visions. An account of her life and work appears
in this blog link. [Article link = http://thefreelancehistorywriter.com/2014/02/14/julian-of-norwich-mystic-theologian-and-anchoress/]
Elsewhere we find in 1425,
Thomas Dunham, rector of Little Torrington in the diocese of Exeter, made a
number of bequests in his will. Apart from the usual gifts to religious houses
and personal bequests, he gave support to seven bridges. Thomas then bequeathed
20 shillings to Alice, an anchorite in Exeter
along with a book of sermons written in English.[9]
By his will of 1427 Roger
Bachiler, rector of Churchstow, diocese of Exeter
bequeathed 40d to the anchorite at Exeter
and 6 shillings 8 pence to the anchorite at Wille.[10]
In his will of 1435 William
Fylham, canon of Exeter , bequeathed three legal
bread loafs to the anchorite cell by St. Leonard ’s
in Exeter .[11]
Sometimes an Irish saint would
go to England
to live an anchorite life. St. Cainnech was
one such person. He went to live on the east side of the Grampian
Mountains . As with other anchorites he was not left alone for long.
Delegations were sent from Ireland
calling St. Cainnech to come home. He eventually did leave. On the journey over
the Grampians he saved a mother and daughter who suffered near death from a
snow storm.[12]
Another Irish saint, St. Fursa
founded a monastery near Lowestoft where one
of his monks called Ultan (and also his brother) left to live an anchorite
life. St. Fursa was excited by Ultan’s move
that he too decided to become an anchorite and left the monastery to Ultan’s
brother, Foilan. The two lived together for some time before St. Fursa was
called out of retirement to help the king of East Anglia against an invasion.
His assistance was unsuccessful and he left for France in around 644.[13]
Anchorites in medieval Ireland
The early Irish church was
organised into parishes under bishops as in mainland Europe
but in a short time the whole organisation changed into that controlled by the
great monasteries. The abbots of these chief houses controlled a group of
smaller monasteries, single churches and anchorite cells.[14]
Some anchorites lived in a
small stone cell attached to a church. Here the anchorite could listen to the
prayers and songs within the church and continue same along after the church
was empty. To further help the anchorite in his heavenly thoughts, his
predecessors lay buried beneath the floor of the cell and where he hoped to
rest someday.
The small cell allowed
visitors to come and consult the anchorite without disturbing him with human
contact. It also helped the anchorite avoid the distractions of the outside
world. To give assistance to the anchorite a Rule for Anchorites, Ordo Iclusorum, was published more than
once. But this severe rule was not followed by all anchorites in medieval Ireland .[15]
The early Irish annals and
saint’s lives record a number of anchorites. Cenn-fáelad (died 821) was abbot
of Trim, a scribe of that abbey and an anchorite. He additionally held the
office of tánaise abbot at Clonard.[16]
In the year 930 there died a certain Máel-Éoin, bishop and anchorite of Trim
after living a good life.[17]
On 12 June 1244 a mandate was
issued to the treasurer of Ireland
to pay three half-pence a day to the anchorite living in the church of St
In June 1250 Henry III issued
a mandate to the treasurer of Ireland
to have payment of the ancient alms of the king’s predecessors paid to the
recluse of St. Mary de Dame. The recluse, who is mentioned as a female, was to
also receive her wanted allowances.[19]
In the exchequer accounts for
1270-1272 the recluse of St. Mary de Dame got
£4 11 shillings 4 pence to cover her alms for Michaelmas 1270 with the full year of 1271 and
1272. She further got 20 shillings for clothing.[20] In
the exchequer accounts for 1274-1275 the recluse of St.
Mary de Dame got 45 shillings 7 pence in alms at a rate of 1½d per day. She also got 10 shillings for
a new robe.[21]
In the exchequer accounts for
1275-1276 the recluse of St. Mary de Dame got
55 shillings 7½ pence in the king’s alms. In the same account the doorkeeper of the exchequer
received 47 shillings 9¾ pence while one hogshead of wine cost 60 shillings.[22]
The recluse of St. Mary les Dames was still active in 1281. In that year she
received 22 shillings 9 pence as her fee for the two terms of Easter and St. John the Baptist.[23]
Sometime after this the
recluse or anchoress died and affairs at the church of St . Marychurch of St. Mary
Another female anchoress called Roesia de Nangle lived in Louth around 1300 and was possibly a member of
the local Anglo-Irish family of that name.[26]
One of the best known
anchorites in Ireland lived
in a cell attached to St. Doulagh’s church, near Dublin .
Here he led a life of prayer while employing a proctor to travel the
country collection alms for his maintenance.[27]
Other churches with attached
anchorite cells for which we have little other information are at Okyle and
Kilronan in County Waterford. See an extended article on Okyle church with this
link. [Article
link = http://celtic2realms-medievalnews.blogspot.ie/2014/02/okyle-parish-church-and-people-in.html]
In 1434 an anchorite called
Thomas Scrope of Norwich was so well respected that he was asked to join the
Carmelite Order and was later appointed bishop of Dromore.[28]
The last anchorite in Ireland lived at Fore, in County Westmeath
===============
End of post
===============
[1] Rev. John Ryan, Irish
Monasticism: Origins and Early Development (Talbot Press, Dublin, 1931), p.
39
[2] Ven. Archdeacon Seymour, ‘Sidelights on the medieval church’, in
the History of the Church of Ireland:
From the Earliest Times to the Present Day, edited by Walter A. Phillips
(Oxford University Press, 1934), vol. 2, p. 164
[3] Rev. John Ryan, Irish
Monasticism: Origins and Early Development (Talbot Press, Dublin, 1931),
pp. 39-41
[4] Rev. John Ryan, Irish
Monasticism: Origins and Early Development, pp. 257-9
[5] Rev. John Ryan, Irish
Monasticism: Origins and Early Development, p. 260
[6] Rev. J.E.L. Oulton, ‘The church of Gaul’, in the History of the Church of Ireland, edited
by Walter A. Phillips (Oxford University Press, 1933), vol. 1, p. 23
[7] Rev. John Ryan, Irish
Monasticism: Origins and Early Development, p. 260
[8] A.E. Redgate, ‘St. Cuthbert’, in The Oxford
[9] G.R. Dunstan (ed.), The
Register of Edmund Lacy bishop of Exeter, 1420-1455, Registrum Commune, volume
4 (Devon and Cornwall Record Society, New Series, vol. 16, 1971), vol. IV,
pp. 3, 4
[10] G.R. Dunstan (ed.), The
Register of Edmund Lacy bishop of Exeter, 1420-1455, Registrum Commune, volume
4 (Devon and Cornwall Record Society, New Series, vol. 16, 1971), vol. IV,
p. 7
[12] Rev. J.L. Gough, ‘The mission work and expansion of Celtic Christianity’,
in the History of the Church of Ireland,
edited by Walter A. Phillips, vol. 1, p. 243
[13] Rev. J.L. Gough, ‘The mission work and expansion of Celtic
Christianity’, in the History of the
Church of Ireland, edited by Walter A. Phillips, vol. 1, p. 272
[14] Rev. J.L. Gough, ‘Constitution and character of the Irish church’,
in the History of the Church of Ireland:
From the Earliest Times to the Present Day, edited by Walter A. Phillips,
vol. 1, p. 158
[15] Ven. Archdeacon Seymour, ‘Sidelights on the medieval church’, in
the History of the Church of Ireland,
edited by Walter A. Phillips, vol. 2, p. 163
[16] Michael Potterton, Medieval Trim: History and Archaeology (Four Courts Press, Dublin , 2005), p. 56
[18] H.S. Sweetman (ed.), Calendar
of documents relating to Ireland
(5 vols. Kraus-Thomson , Liechtenstein
[22] H.S. Sweetman (ed.), Calendar
of documents relating to Ireland
[26] Ven. Archdeacon Seymour, ‘Sidelights on the medieval church’, in
the History of the Church of Ireland,
edited by Walter A. Phillips, vol. 2, p. 164
[27] Ven. Archdeacon Seymour, ‘Sidelights on the medieval church’, in
the History of the Church of Ireland,
edited by Walter A. Phillips, vol. 2, p. 163
[28] Ven. Archdeacon Seymour, ‘Sidelights on the medieval church’, in
the History of the Church of Ireland,
edited by Walter A. Phillips, vol. 2, p. 164
[29] Ven. Archdeacon Seymour, ‘Sidelights on the medieval church’, in
the History of the Church of Ireland,
edited by Walter A. Phillips, vol. 2, p. 164
Very interesting Niall. And thank you for including the link.
ReplyDeleteThanks Susan - those links save a lot of one finger typing!
Delete