O'Sullivan, A. (2009) 'On pilgrimage to Glendalough' In Joe Fenwick (eds). Lost and Found II: Rediscovering Ireland's Past. Bray: Wordwell. 285-294. (original) (raw)

In the Middle Ages, people went on pilgrimage to the shrines of saints or the distant sites of miracles for different reasons. They walked long roads to their pilgrimage destinations to see and touch the relics of a saint and to seek his or her blessing. They travelled along long-established pilgrimage routes as penance for their sins; in the hope of finding a cure for an illness or injury; to fulfil a sacred vow; or to give thanks for good fortune. It is even known that some medieval criminals—particularly from the thirteenth century onwards—were expelled from their communities and sent on pilgrimage for their crimes, and their experience would have been less pleasant. Sometimes, too, people travelled the pilgrims' path—and we know this because bad-tempered medieval clerics condemned them for their frivolity—merely out of curiosity. For a time, they could escape from their ordinary lives in close-knit villages, become strangers (the literal meaning of the word 'pilgrim'), and seek out new places and experience new things beyond the horizon. Since the early medieval period—and undoubtedly before—people in western Europe equipped themselves with a staff, scrip (a leather pouch) and hat and set out on long journeys to a range of different pilgrimage centres. The most famous destinations were probably Jerusalem in the Holy Land, Rome (the city of Peter and Paul, with its graves of the martyrs) and Santiago de Compostela in northwest Spain, which was probably the most popular destination in medieval Europe, while Canterbury, Cologne, Aachen and Trondheim in Norway were also significant. Along the way, they would stay in some of the countless hostels and lodgings devoted to them, and stop at churches and convents. In the Middle Ages, pilgrims were entitled to expect lodgings for the night and food while on their journey. This hospitality was provided by the Church and, in particular, the various significant monastic establishments associated