Divine Importance Of The City Of Durham
Durham is located in the North East of England and is very well known for its castle and cathedral. The name actually translates to island or hill home. This spot has been settled since 2000BC and the current cities history goes as far as 995 AD, Monks decided that the high peninsula was the perfect spot for a church as it was strategically advantageous.
There is a bit of a legend with how the monks found the spot for the city. They were told in a dream to take the bier of Saint Cuthbert to Dun Holm, but they had never heard of the place.
Many individuals made pilgrimages to Durham because of its associated with saint and other religious objects. The shrine of St Cuthbert is found here and he was a very well known saint. Cuthbert could heal anything which in turn extended a person's life. His body was also later on to be found incorruptible. Many individuals traveled from afar to see his final resting place.
Religion was very important to the city as many saints last resting place is here and there are many relics and other artifacts of religious importance. You can visit the shrine of St Cuthbert as he was quite famous for being able to stem off death as well as the fact that his body was discovered to be incorruptible. Many pilgrims visited the city just to visit the shrine.
The strategic location of the city also made it important in the struggle between the British and the Scots. The castle at Durham is the only one that has never been breached and was very important to defending the north of the country. The Battle of Neville's Cross was fought nearby and was one of the most famous battles of its time.
The castle is a typical example of an early Norman castles, a motte and bailey castle. This castle managed to quell many of the rebellions that occurred in the northern part of the country. This was the residence of the Bishop for many years until they moved to London.
The castle at Durham was built to show power as much of the surrounding are saw plenty of rebellions. This castle is very traditional of Normal designs as it is a motte and bailey castle. The Bishop used the castle as his residence until it was given over the university to be used as a form of accommodation. The great hall of the castle is one of the largest and is very famous.
