St Edmunds Cathedral, Abbey ruins, Catholic church, Bury St Edmunds

A royal shrine drew mass pilgrimage to Bury, a tradition continued with the 79-mile St Edmund Way, a short part of which can be walked from West Stow in a day.

Highlights

• Possible grave of St Edmund
• Monastery ruins
• Anglican cathedral in former abbey buildings
• Possible relic of St Edmund in Catholic church

The former patron saint of England might lie buried in an unknown grave in this pretty market town. If so, he is somewhere among the ruins of its mighty abbey, which is now an attractive town-centre park alongside its fine cathedral. The ruins are extensive but have weathered over the centuries into molten piles of rubble and mortar, their expensive stone cladding removed for building material. The church was colossal at 150m in length, comparable to surviving cathedrals at Ely and Norwich. Today you can still pick out most of the building’s layout, including the chancel area. There are no visible remains of the altar, let alone the saint’s magnificent gold and marble shrine. Even the chancel floor was removed following the abbey’s dissolution in 1539.

Despite such complete destruction, there is no record of any desecration or scattering of St Edmund’s saintly bones. For this reason many believe they were discreetly reburied in the abbey grounds before the reformers turned up. Even with such extensive ruins, it takes some imagination to believe this was one of England’s most powerful institutions, playing host to parliaments in days gone by. The atmosphere today is as democratic as any town-centre park. The park is managed by the borough council and open all day. The grounds are beautifully laid out with flower beds and a sensory garden for the visually impaired. A Pilgrims’ Herb Garden keeps alive the monastic tradition of growing medicinal plants and is tended by volunteers from the adjacent St Edmundsbury Cathedral.

This cathedral is housed in one of the former abbey churches, which survived the Reformation intact. Its grand structure is right next to the abbey ruins, and is also open to visitors daily. The building dates mainly from 1503 onwards but is on the site of an 11th-century building. It was converted into a cathedral in 1914. The cathedral’s church was first dedicated to St James in the 12th century. It remained that way up until 2009 when it was rededicated to St James and St Edmund, and is usually referred to as St Edmundsbury Cathedral. A peaceful side chapel to St Edmund has been set aside for private prayer and a place to light candles. Sitting as it does in a former abbey building, the decision to rededicate the cathedral to St Edmund is eminently appropriate.

Elsewhere in town, one of England’s largest parish churches, St Mary’s, was originally built by the monks on the south side of the monastic complex. It has a beautiful hammer-beam roof decorated with angels (directions at the end).

St Edmund’s rise as national hero St Edmund died 22 miles from here in 869/870 (at Hoxne, overleaf). Within 20 years coins were minted declaring him a saint. His holy body was moved to Bury in 903, and the town name was soon changed to honor its most important resident.

Subsequent kings outdid one another to endow the abbey with greater wealth and power, no doubt mindful of the fact that a popular royal hero lay at its heart. He was the patron saint of England until the 12th century when St Edward the Confessor was chosen – himself ousted by St George in the 14th century.

Even the saint’s miracles are on a national scale. One colorful legend describes how the Danish invader King Sweyn was preparing to ransack the abbey in 1014. He received a terrifying vision of St Edmund and promptly dropped dead. His son Canute became king of England and wisely decided to endow the abbey with even greater riches, refounding it as a Benedictine monastery in 1020.

By the 13th century, local townspeople started to protest at the civic power wielded by the monks. A three-day riot in 1327 saw much of the complex burned down. The abbey dominated life for miles around. After Canterbury Cathedral and the shrine at Little Walsingham, it was England’s third busiest pilgrim site.

Other relics venerated here include the body of St Jurmin of Blythburgh and some of St Botolph’s remains (Iken). The original monastery at Bury was built by another canonized king, St Sigebert of the East Angles. He died in 635, but there is no record of his shrine, here or anywhere else.

St Edmund’s body may yet turn up, as St Edward’s did in Shaftesbury. One theory among many is that he lies under the tennis courts near the eastern end of the abbey ruins. A long-lost manuscript discovered in France in the 19th century indicated where 18 abbots were buried in the abbey grounds. Archaeologists went to investigate and discovered the graves as described. A line of their modern grave slabs can be seen in the chapter house ruins.

There are other claims about the location of St Edmund’s body. Arundel in West Sussex is one famous contender, and the Catholic church in Bury St Edmunds has a fragment from these supposed relics. In the absence of any definitive evidence, the town park seems the most likely resting place for the martyred king. But if either story is correct, his remains are definitely here.

Directions

The Abbey of Bury St Edmunds (cathedral), Angel Hill, Bury St Edmunds IP33 1LS

www.stedscathedral.org

W3W: poet.about.universal

GPS: 52.2438N 0.7166E 

Abbey Gardens and abbey ruins, Angel Hill, Bury St Edmunds IP33 1LS

W3W: tour.such.tutorial

GPS: 52.2449N 0.7163E 

Catholic Church of St Edmund, 21 Westgate Street, Bury St Edmunds IP33 1QG

www.stedmundkm.org.uk

W3W: blog.diggers.consoles 

The park and ruins are open every day from 7:30 am until dusk, apart from Sundays when they open at 9 am. There are several entrances, but the grandest is through the original abbey gateway on Angel Hill, right next to the Anglican cathedral. The cathedral is also open daily, no charge but donations welcome. St Mary’s Church is on Honey Hill, Bury St Edmunds IP33 1RT. As you leave the Anglican cathedral, turn left along Angel Hill, then first left down Honey Hill, a couple of minutes’ walk. Its website is www.stmarystpeter.net. The Catholic Church of St Edmund, housing his possible relic, is on Westgate Street opposite the junction with Whiting Street. To walk here from the cathedral, simply turn left as you leave the cathedral and walk along Angel Hill. Keep going until you reach Westgate. Turn right and the church is up here on the left, 600m in total.