Once I was a clever boy learning the arts of Oxford... is a quotation from the verses written by Bishop Richard Fleming (c.1385-1431) for his tomb in Lincoln Cathedral. Fleming, the founder of Lincoln College in Oxford, is the subject of my research for a D. Phil., and, like me, a son of the West Riding. I have remarked in the past that I have a deeply meaningful on-going relationship with a dead fifteenth century bishop... it was Fleming who, in effect, enabled me to come to Oxford and to learn its arts, and for that I am immensely grateful.


Thursday 5 May 2022

Marian Pilgrimage - Our Lady of Grace by the Pillar in St Pauls


The statue of Our Lady of Grace by the Pillar in the nave of St Pauls appears to have been the principal devotional image of her in the cathedral. I wrote about it in Our Lady of Grace by the Pillar in St Paul’s

It was by the statue of Our Lady of Grace that the body of King Henry VI was laid in its open coffin in May 1471 on the day after his death in the Tower of London before being taken to Chertsey Abbey for burial. The choice of this statue in St Paul’s may well have been because, as I quote in my post above, the statue was one with a tradition of prayers for the departed. Being close to the crossing it was a prominent place to display the late King for the crowds to see that he was indeed dead. I will hopefully write more about this later on this month at the time of the anniversary.

Our Lady of Grace Pray for us


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