[MR] Ancient Origins: St. Margaret's Well and Lewis Carroll

[Garth Groff and Sally Sanford]

Noble Friends,

I'm always fascinated by stories of holy wells, and England was covered
with them. It might seem that almost every spring that rose there was
dedicated to some saint and was ascribed miraculous healing powers.

One such otherwise obscure holy well is in Bensey, a village near Oxford,
which was dedicated to Saint Margaret of Antioch. An early priory was built
on this site, supposedly by another saint, the 7th century Frithuswith. Not
much is known about this saint, save the usual legend of being pursued by a
suitor who wouldn't take no for an answer. He was later struck blind for
his obstinacy, only to have his sight restored by Frithuswith. The well at
the priory was thought to have special healing powers, and became a minor
place of pilgrimage. The well remains today, restored in the 19th century
after decades of neglect. Adjacent to the well is Saint Margaret's church,
which has changed very little since the 13th century.

You can read the story of the well and church at
https://www.ancient-origins.net/ancient-places-europe/saint-margarets-well-0014090
.

More about Saint Frithuswith is at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frithuswith
.

And the Lewis Carroll connection? Saint Margaret's Holy Well is often
associated with the "Treacle Well" in ALICE IN WONDERLAND. Quite plausible,
as Carroll was known to have included many references to real people,
places and objects in his stories. Another example is the Vorpal blade in
the Jabberwocky poem. It is thought to be based on the Conyers Falchion, a
medieval sword preserved at Durham Cathedral:
https://durhamcathedral.wordpress.com/2018/02/22/open-treasure-spotlight-the-conyers-falchion/

Yours Aye,


Lord Mungo Napier, Laird of Mallard Lodge  🦆