Uncover the controversial ‘Dark Ages’ as we investigate the history of Northumbria during the Early Middle Ages
Follow in the footsteps of pilgrims, exploring the early Christian monasteries at Lindisfarne and Monkwearmouth-Jarrow as well as Escomb church
Marvel at the architecture of Durham Cathedral, containing shrines to St Cuthbert and St Bede
“[Imogen] has a very wide grasp of all aspects of Saxon life including liturgy and the interrelationship between theology, liturgy and both ecclesiastical and secular life. A rare combination”
ACE customer on the Northumbria in the First Millennium 2024 tour led by Imogen Corrigan
Our tour will transport travellers back to the Early Middle Ages as we explore glittering Anglo-Saxon England, illuminated by artefacts and manuscripts as well as an abundance of personalities. Controversially termed the ‘Dark Ages’, the Middle Ages dominated the period between the fall of the Roman Empire in the west and the Renaissance, encompassing Viking invasions from the east as well as the wider spread of Islam and Christianity. They witnessed the reign of Charlemagne, the first Holy Roman Emperor, as well as the lives of the Venerable Bede and St Cuthbert, who would become the most powerful saint in the north.
Our journey to the Holy Island of Lindisfarne will follow in the footsteps of pilgrims as we explore one of the most important centres of early Christianity. Founded by St Aidan, the island was a Christian stronghold and bishopric housing many important figures, including St Cuthbert and St Wilfrid, until it became the first to succumb to Viking invasions.
Benedict Biscop founded the double monastery at Monkwearmouth-Jarrow, the second to be seized, and marked it as a centre of learning and scholarship. Its continued development produced one of the greatest Anglo-Saxon scholars, Bede.
From June 793, the Vikings inflicted terror and misery on the northern kingdom, but they also brought with them their own culture which influenced church art until roughly 1200; and some of the results can still be seen today.
Our itinerary will unearth clues about our Anglo-Saxon past in a range of contexts, including at parish churches, such as Escomb – one of northern Europe’s finest examples of early Christian architecture. We will also spend time at the glorious cathedral in Durham, examining the building’s interior and exterior, and enjoying the cathedral’s collections in its dedicated museum.
We will stay at the four-star Delta Hotels by Marriott Durham Royal County, with splendid views of Durham’s cathedral and historical quarter.
Imogen Corrigan
In 2022 Imogen was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and is the Memorials and Monuments Specialist for the Diocesan Advisory Committee for Canterbury.
This tour will be led by medieval historian Imogen Corrigan. Following almost 20 years in the army, Imogen obtained a first-class degree in Anglo-Saxon and Medieval History from the University of Kent and subsequently an MPhil from the University of Birmingham. Her first book, Stone on Stone: The Men who Built the Cathedrals, was published in 2019 and The Green Man: Myth & Reality was published in 2025. She is an accredited Arts Society lecturer, and a Freeman of the Company of Communicators.
5
£1495
NFMN-26
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