A collection of essays on pilgrimage, a central feature of medieval and Renaissance English life.Pilgrimage was a central feature of medieval English life which affected history, politics, art and literature. The shrines were destroyed during the Reformation and pilgrimage stopped, yet the idea of pilgrimage continued--refashioned - in Protestant theology. By reaching beyond the Reformation to explore the transformation of the idea of the pilgrim, this book confronts the religious experience of the English laity over half a millennium. In a series of ground-breaking studies the contributors challenge many orthodox assumptions about English pilgrims and their history.Pilgrimage was a central feature of medieval English life which affected history, politics, art and literature. The shrines were destroyed during the Reformation and pilgrimage stopped, yet the idea of pilgrimage continued--refashioned - in Protestant theology. By reaching beyond the Reformation to explore the transformation of the idea of the pilgrim, this book confronts the religious experience of the English laity over half a millennium. In a series of ground-breaking studies the contributors challenge many orthodox assumptions about English pilgrims and their history.Pilgrimage was a central feature of medieval English life which affected history, politics, art and literature. The shrines were destroyed during the Reformation and pilgrimage stopped, yet the idea of pilgrimage continued--refashioned - in Protestant theology. By reaching beyond the Reformation to explore the transformation of the idea of the pilgrim, this book confronts the religious experience of the English laity over half a millennium. In a series of ground-breaking studies the contributors challenge many orthodox assumptions about English pilgrims and their history.Foreword Peter Roberts; Introduction Colin Morris; 1. The pilgrimages of the Angevin kings of England, 11541272 Nicholas Vincent; 2. The early imagery of Thomas Becket lóÅ