Deep Time in England

[H/T: Survive the Jive]

How England Lost Its Mythology

"Frith" is an Old English term denoting peace, security, and sanctuary, often linked to social stability and kinship. In a modern context, it refers to a Heathen concept of mutual, trust-based peace.

The ‘Frith Stool’ dates back to the beginnings of Hexham Abbey, and has played an important part in the Abbey’s history, as well as the turbulent history of Hexham itself.

It is possible that St Wilfrid had this stone seat made when he first founded the monastery there in 674. He had travelled through France on his way to Rome, and it is possible that he took his inspiration for the Frith Stool from examples on the continent.

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Ethelburga Street in Battersea (London SW11) is named after Saint Æthelburh (also spelled Ethelburga or Ethelburga), a 7th-century Anglo-Saxon saint.

She was the founder and first abbess of Barking Abbey (a double monastery in Essex, established around the late 660s or early 670s). She was the sister of Saint Earconwald (or Erkenwald), who became Bishop of London, founded Barking Abbey for her, and also established Chertsey Abbey in Surrey.

This connection to Earconwald (a significant figure in early London and Surrey religious history) likely explains the choice of her name for a street in Battersea, which was historically in Surrey before becoming part of London.

The street appears to have been laid out and named in the 1870s during Battersea's major Victorian-era suburban development (previously, the area was known as something like Marsh Lane in older records). It's part of a pattern in Battersea where some streets and estates draw on Anglo-Saxon or early Christian/saintly names, possibly reflecting local historical or ecclesiastical ties.

The name is also linked to other London sites dedicated to her, such as the small City of London church of St Ethelburga the Virgin (near Bishopsgate, with possible Saxon origins).

Today, Ethelburga Street is a residential road near Battersea Bridge Road, and the surrounding area includes the post-war Ethelburga Estate.

St Francis and the Wolf

[H/T: Of Werewolves and Bishops - Soothsayer]