New insights link caves to a ninth century king

EXPERTS BELIEVE THEY WERE HOME TO EARDWULF

A STRANGE landmark on a river’s edge close to Leicestershire’s borders has had a new chapter of its history uncovered.

The ancient Anchor Church caves sit overlooking the banks of the River Trent in Ingleby, a hamlet close to Melbourne.

The network of caves has now been linked to a ninth century king, Eardwulf, buried five miles away at Breedon on the Hill.

The grade II-listed site was originally thought to have been from the 18th century, but the cave is now thought by researchers to be the oldest surviving domestic interior in the UK, once with doors, floor, roof and windows.

Edmund Simons, principal investigator of the project and a research fellow at the Royal Agricultural University (RAU), has linked the dwelling to “a king who became a saint.”

Although often associated with anonymous medieval hermits, Anchor Church has had a legendary link to Saint Hardulf.

A fragment of a 16th century printed book states that at “that time Saint Hardulph has a cell in a cliff a little from the Trent” and local folklore identifies these caves as those Hardulph occupied.

Modern scholarship identifies

Saint Hardulph with King Eardwulf, who was deposed as king of Northumbria in 806 and later buried in Leicestershire.

Researchers from the RAU’s newly-formed Cultural Heritage Institute have said the narrow doorways and windows of the rooms in the dwellings closely resemble

Saxon architecture.

Mr Simons said: “The architectural similarities with Saxon buildings, and the documented association with Hardulph, make a convincing case that these caves were constructed, or enlarged, to house the exiled king.

“It was not unusual for deposed or retired royalty to take up a religious life during this period.”

The archaeologists believe that the caves may have been modified in the 18th century including changes to brickwork and window frames, and the opening up of some of the walls.

Mark Horton, professor of archaeology at the RAU, said: “It is extraordinary that domestic buildings over 1,200 years old survive in plain sight, unrecognised by historians, antiquarians and archaeologists.

“We are confident that other examples are still to be discovered to give a unique perspective on Anglo Saxon England.”