Glastonbury Thorn

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The tree on Wearyall Hill that was destroyed in 2010. In the background Glastonbury Tor .

As Glastonbury Thorn a variant of is hawthorn referred that in the area of Glastonbury in Somerset found in England. The botanical name is Crataegus monogyna 'Biflora', occasionally Crataegus oxyacantha var. Praecox . The plants, however, belong to the species Crataegus monogyna, so the latter name is misleading. In contrast to the normal hawthorn, these trees bloom twice a year (hence the addition of the name biflora ), in winter and in spring. As far as is known, there are only copies increased through refinement . Twice-blooming Crataegus monogyna , which are morphologically very similar to Holy Thorn, are known to be found in the wild from North Africa.

history

Lore

The plants are regularly associated with the legends of Joseph of Arimathea and the spread of Christianity in Britain . Afterwards Joseph visited Glastonbury, took the Holy Grail with him, built a first chapel there and stuck his staff into the ground on Wearyall Hill, from which the first of the trees grew overnight. The first surviving literary references to this legend can be found in manuscripts from the 12th century. They take up the motif of the sprouting and blooming staff, which is also found in the Old Testament about Aaron , in the Proto-Gospel of James about Joseph of Nazareth , and in some of the legends of the saints .

Historical texts

One of the most frequently referenced texts is the poetry Lyfe of Joseph of Arimathea from the early 16th century. Here the unknown author already mentions the two flowering phases, one on "old wood" in spring and one with significantly smaller flowers on "new wood" (which should mean the shoots from spring) in winter. The second bloom around the winter solstice was often considered a miracle . During the UK's switch to the Gregorian calendar in 1752, newspapers and magazines reported visitors to Glastonbury curious whether the tree would stick to the old or new calendar.

“A vast concourse of people attended the noted thorn on Christmas day, new style; but, to their great disappointment, there was no appearance of its blowing, which made them watch it narrowly the 5th of January, the Christmas-day, old style, when it blowed as usual. "

“A great number of people came to the aforementioned tree on New Calendar Christmas Day; but to their great disappointment there was no sign of bloom, so they also observed the tree on January 5th, Christmas Day according to the old calendar, when the tree bloomed as usual. "

- Gentleman's Magazine January 1753

Royal tradition

A flowering branch of the tree has been known to have been sent to the British royal family for Christmas since 1929 . James Montague, Bishop of Bath and Wells , who is said to have sent a branch to Anna of Denmark , the wife of Jacob I , is said to have originated this tradition . The flowers of the tree appeared as a motif of the British Christmas stamps to 12 p and 13p in 1986.

Destruction of the trees

The tree, described as "original", is said to have been felled and burned by Oliver Cromwell's troops during the English Civil War . The specimen on Wearyall Hill, which became famous in the 20th century, was only planted there in 1951 and sawed off by strangers on December 9, 2010. In the following March reports were made of new shoots from the remaining tree stump, which, however, disappeared again a short time later. On April 1, 2012, the Glastonbury Conservation Society replanted a specimen on Wearyall Hill that was derived from the ancestors of the tree planted in 1951. This too was completely destroyed 16 days later. Two further attempts to plant new trees in public places in Glastonbury after this time also ended with destroyed or dead specimens after a short time.

Multiplication

Glastonbury Thorn in the courtyard of the former Glastonbury Abbey , 1984

The tree on Wearyall Hill has been propagated several times, with two of the better-known specimens in the grounds of Glastonbury Abbey and in the churchyard of St John the Baptist Congregation. All attempts to preserve the special properties of the trees when they were propagated by seeds or saplings failed. By the second half of the 20th century, all of these attempts had evolved into normal hawthorn bushes that only bloomed in spring. Only specimens that have been propagated through grafting show the characteristic two flowering phases. Trees have been traded since the 17th century and there have been reports about the cultivation of trees since the 18th century at the latest:

"There is a person about Glastonbury who has a nursery of them, who, Mr. Paschal tells us he is informed, sells them for a crown a piece, or as he can get."

“There is one person in Glastonbury who owns a breed of them who, as informed Mr. Paschal told us, sells them for a krona apiece, or whatever price he can get. "

- The Book of Days , 1869

The specimen in the churchyard of St. John the Baptist is said to have been planted in the 1930s by George Chislett, then chief gardener of Glastonbury Abbey. The process of refinement with sloes comes from him , in which the two flowering phases are retained. His son, Wilf Chislett, also commercialized the breed and sold specimens to Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

Existing copies

The oldest known specimen still in Glastonbury is in the churchyard of St. John the Baptist, as the tree was declared dead in the grounds of Glastonbury Abbey in June 1991 and felled the following February. The traditional flowering branch sent to the British royalty at Christmas has been from the tree in the parish of St. John since 1988.

There are other specimens scattered in the Glastonbury area, in addition to those already mentioned in one dedicated to St. Benedict Church, at Bride's Mound and in Chalice Well Gardens . Some specimens grow in the rest of England and in various parts of the earth's temperate climates.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d Glastonbury thorn (Crataegus monogyna'Biflora ') ( Memento from March 10, 2015 in the web archive archive.today ), description with a focus on botany on the VanDusen Botanical Gardens homepage . Retrieved March 12, 2015.
  2. ↑ a b Knud Ib Christensen (1992): Revision of Crataegus Sect. Crataegus and Nothosect. Crataeguineae (Rosaceae-Maloideae) in the Old World. Systematic Botany Monographs Vol. 35, 199pp., On p.103
  3. ↑ a b c /Glastonburys-2000-year-old-Holy-Thorn-Tree-hacked-vandals.html Were anti-Christians behind pilgrimage site attack? 2,000-year-old Holy Thorn Tree of Glastonbury is cut down , article by Luke Salked, on Daily Mail Online December 9, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  4. ↑ a b Historic Holy Thorn tree cut down at Glastonbury , on BBC News December 9, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  5. ↑ a b Vandals destroy sacred thorn tree by Emma Hallett, in The Independent, December 9, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  6. ↑ Oxford, Bodleian Library, Laud Misc. 108 - Table of contents of the manuscript MS Laud 108 from the Oxford Bodleian Library , text collection of spiritual legends from the 15th century. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
  7. ↑ Glastonbury Abbey The Legends of King Arthur and Joseph of Arimathea ( February 20, 2019 memento in the Internet Archive ), on britannia.com . Retrieved March 10, 2015.
  8. ↑ Introductory chapter by William Schmidt: About the style of the legends of the MS Laud 108 . Hall / S. 1893 ( archive.org [accessed March 10, 2015]).
  9. ^ A b Robert Chambers: Legend of the Glastonbury Thorn . In: The Book of Days . 1869 ( thebookofdays.com [accessed February 24, 2015]).
  10. ↑ Bowman, The Holy Thorn Ceremony ... , names the former parish priest of Glastonbury as initiator and Queen Mary as recipient .
  11. ↑ Sprig of Holy Thorn in Glastonbury is cut for the Queen. , BBC dated December 8, 2010. Retrieved March 9, 2015.
  12. ^ British Christmas stamps 1986 , Collect GB Stamps. Retrieved January 12, 2015.
  13. ^ Glastonbury Thorn chopped down as town rages over attack on famous tree. , Article by Maev Kennedy: In: The Guardian, December 9, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  14. ↑ Vandalized Holy Thorn in Glastonbury has a new shoot on BBC News, March 28, 2011. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  15. ↑ a b c The Glastonbury Thorn. Retrieved January 29, 2020 . on the Glastonbury Reception Center and Sanctuary website. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  16. ↑ Visitors - Brief Tour ( Memento from April 2, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) - Description of the Church of St. John on the parish homepage. Retrieved March 9, 2015.
  17. ↑ The Gilpin Thorn , Incomplete List of Known Specimens at the end of the article, on the Houghton Heritage Society website. Retrieved February 25, 2015.

literature

  • Marion Bowman: The Holy Thorn Ceremony: Revival, Rivalry and Civil Religion in Glastonbury . In: Folklore . No. 117 , 2006, p. 123-140 , doi : 10.1080 / 00155870600707805 ( tandfonline.com [accessed March 11, 2015]).
  • Muriel V. Searle: West Country History: Somerset . Venton Publications, Bristol 2002, ISBN 1-84150-802-0 , pp. 16 .

Web links

Commons : Holy Thorn, Glastonbury  - collection of images, videos and audio files