HISTORY OF GLASTONBURY
Glastonbury dates back more than 4,000 years, and the historical background of the town is interwoven with worldfamous legends and folklore. It is these legends for which Glastonbury is best known, and perhaps the most enduring is that which identifies the area as Avalon, the fabled isle said to be the resting place of King Arthur. Modern Glastonbury is not an island but it is believed that originally the settlement did lie among lakes and marshland. The town's links with Arthurian mythology were strengthened further by a discovery at Glastonbury Abbey in 1191, when the monks claimed to have found the burial site of Arthur and Guinevere within the grounds. Legends dating back further suggest Glastonbury may have been visited by Joseph of Arimathea, possibly on more than one occasion. One tale has it that Joseph was Christ's uncle, and had once brought his young nephew on a trip to Somerset, inspiring William Blake's "Glastonbury Hymn", more commonly known as Jerusalem. More widely-known is the story of Joseph's arrival in Glastonbury following the Crucifixion, when he was said to have buried the Holy Grail at the base of the Tor, and planted his staff on Wearyall Hill to create the Holy Thorn.
The truth of these stories is open to interpretation, but it is true that thorn trees continue to grow in Glastonbury, and at Christmas flowers are cut from the plants and sent to the Queen by the vicar of St John's Church. However, Glastonbury has an intriguing history beyond these tales.
The first inhabitants of the area were Stone Age farmers, who constructed primitive wooden tracks across the boggy landscape. Preserved examples of early dwellings were discovered near Glastonbury in the 1890s, consisting of about 90 huts built above wet ground with wooden platforms. Evidence of Roman occupation in the area is scarce, and it is thought the growth of Glastonbury into a town only began when the Abbey was founded, some time in the seventh century. Patronage and wealth were bestowed upon the Abbey by Saxon kings, taking it from strength to strength, and this laid the foundations for the expansion of the settlement.
The Saxons called the place Glaestingsburgh, meaning hill fort of the Glaestings, who were probably the first settlers - and the town's current name is derived from this. Sadly, the construction of the Abbey was not fully realised until a few years before the dissolution of the monasteries in the mid1500s. King Henry VIII, having set himself up as head of the Church of England, seized the wealth and estates of monasteries across the country. Glastonbury resisted the takeover, but was punished, and the destruction of the site followed shortly afterwards. Glastonbury became a simple market town, but gradually the town began to increase in prosperity.
In the 19th century, Glastonbury became wellknown for making gloves and stockings, and leatherworking became another important industry. A canal and a railway were opened, and although the leather and sheepskin trade eventually went into decline, the town had by this time grown in other lucrative directions, thanks to improved farming techniques. © Mid Somerset Newspapers
|
