I had a lovely day yesterday visiting a few of the ancient Church Yews scattered across Shropshire with my friend (and ink-making mentor) Carolyn Morton. We began by consulting a lovely little artefact provided by ancient-yew.org that documents the Churchyard Yews of Shropshire through the paintings of Rev. Edward Williams, who painted the area’s parish churches between 1787-1791. See document here.
I mapped out the 29 churches from this document; starred my top eight, and we settled on three for the day. You really don’t realise the time it takes to get between places on those tiny, albeit, adorable country roads. At least the weather was with us; it really was a beautiful day.
The first church we visited was St. Mary’s Church Billingsley. Here, there were two magnificent Yews and a sign posted by Caring for God’s Acre, which I learned is a conservation charity for Burial Grounds across the UK. They help to ‘preserve rare species of plants and wildflowers and advise on management of grassland to encourage wildlife whilst still allowing access to visitors and relatives.’
The trees of St. Mary’s are documented on the Ancient Yew database.
According to St. Mary’s website:
“The church was present by 1140 but the use of the churchyard as a sacred space may be much older than that. The two ancient yews could easily be 1000 years old. Yew, as an evergreen and a symbol of rebirth, was regarded as sacred long before Christianity. There also was a well just outside the churchyard, in the lane. Wells, if they are shallow, are also often considered as holy places, communicating with the underworld and may be associated with the ritual deposition of precious objects. A bronze age axe head was found not far from the well. We also know from aerial photographs that there was an iron age or Roman farm close to the church. Thus it is certain people were living close to the churchyard long before the church was built and this spot may long have been considered as special.”
I’ve heard different stories about why Yew Trees are part of Church graveyards. King Edward I of England ordered yew trees to be planted in churchyards to protect the buildings, and possibly to deter grazing animals with the toxic tree. The Christian church commonly overtook pre-existing sacred sites and often yew trees pre-date their neighbouring chapels, churches, and cemeteries. It is believed that since ancient times, the yew has been a symbol of the transcendence of death. Their branches may grow long and replant themselves. Their internal bark can die whilst the outer regenerates. They are poisonous but also have healing properties. They are still, quiet and dark. They are hollow, allowing for sanctuary, and their branches fold you in like a tiny chapel.
The second church we visited was St. John the Baptist, Kenley. This site has five yews, including one in which the wall was built around. It can be seen in Rev. William’s painting. The site is also listed in the Ancient Yew Database.
After taking in the sights and collecting our bits of bark for future ink-making, we ventured on to our last site: St. Mary Magdalene Church in Ashford Carbonell, where we fell completely in awe.
The photos don’t quite capture how big these beauties truly are. They appear like giant shrubs, but walking beneath them, we were completely engulfed. A woman walking by with her dog- stopped to see what we were up to and said that she had lived there 30 years and never thought to venture into the branches. We showed her the magnificent hollow and she too was awestruck. We could suddenly see how these trees could be sacred sites, as we stood wrapped in their silent embrace.
After exploring the site, we sat on the soft grass, drank Carolyn’s home-made chai and listened to the birds.