The Chapel of St Peter-on-the-wall – Anglo-Celtic Church / 2nd oldest in England
Yhana and I have travelled out to visit the Dengie Peninsula in Essex, England. This peninsula is formed by the River crouch to the south and the Blackwater to the North, both of which are tidal estuaries. The North Sea is located to the east of this area of land. The reason Yhana and I have brought you here to this location is to visit St Peter-on-the-wall Chapel which sits prominently on the tip of the Dengie Peninsula and on the site of the Roman Saxon Shore fort of Othona. Sadly the only thing left of this old Roman fort, is the earthworks, and we will be taking a look at those later in this video. So please keep watching, as the chapel and the area is very lovely. The ancient Roman fort of Othona is located close to the modern village of Bradwell-on-sea, Essex and is typically late 3rd century in style. The roman fort It is believed to have been constructed during the carausian revolt which ultimately led to the short-lived Britannic Roman Empire, this revolt occurred during the years 286 – 296 AD. Most of the fort has been swallowed by the sea, but some of the material was used to build the 7th century chapel of St Peter-on-the-wall. That’s right, the chapel we are visiting was built in the 7th century, between the years 660 – 662, making it close to 1400 years old. The chapel is among the oldest largely intact christian churches in England. And it’s still in use today, often by the nearby Othona community, which is a christian based community and retreat centre which was founded in 1946 by Norman Motley, who was a church of England priest who had served as an RAF chaplain during the second world war. The community welcomes people of all faiths. St Peter’s chapel belongs to the diocese of chelmsford cathedral, which is a site I have visited in a previous video, I will add the link above so feel free to give the video a visit. The chapel is also looked after by the parish church of St Thomas, Bradwell-on-sea. And the site is also a place of pilgrimage, which is held on the first Saturday of July. Okay everyone, we are coming up-to the St Peter’s Chapel now and whilst we explore the area and site we will take a look at the history of this incredible location. The Chapel of St. Peter-On-The-Wall is not an architectural masterpiece, nor is it well known for its ornamentation or the relics it hosts. This small, sober, and unpretentious chapel, located in Bradwell-On-Sea in Essex, is among the oldest mostly intact Christian churches in England. In fact, some sources claim this is the second oldest Christian building in all Great Britain still standing today (St. Martin’s Church in Canterbury being the first). The little we know about the man who built it, St. Cedd, we get from St. Bede’s Ecclesiastical History of the English People. According to Bede, Cedd was born in Northumbria, and was taken to the Holy Island of Lindisfarne (the great center of Celtic Christianity) by St. Aidan himself. Bede also relates that Cedd had three brothers: Chad, Cynibil, and Caelin. All four were priests, but only Cedd and Chad became bishops. By the year 653 Cedd was already a priest, so we can date his birth around the year 620. One year after his ordination, in 654, Cedd built St. Peter-on-the-Wall among the ruins of an abandoned Roman fort. Using some of the Roman bricks and stones he found in the place, he built this Anglo-Celtic church for the East Saxons living in the area, as he had been sent from Lindisfarne at the request of the then-king of the Saxons, Sigeberth the Good. Since that time the chapel has belonged to the London diocese, since Cedd served as bishop there. In 653 Cedd sailed down the east coast of England from Lindisfarne and landed at Bradwell. Here he found the ruins of an old deserted Roman fort. He probably first built a small wooden church but as there was so much stone from the fort he soon realised that would provide a much more permanent building, so he replaced it the next year with the chapel we see today! Cedd modelled his church on the style of churches in Egypt and Syria. The Celtic Christians were greatly influenced by the churches in that part of the world and we know that St. Antony of Egypt had built his church from the ruins of a fort on the banks of a river, just as Cedd did on the banks of the River Blackwater here in Essex (then known as the River Pant). #oldestchapel #stpeteronthewall #angloceltic
- Published: 7 April 2022
- Location: Bradwell-On-Sea, Essex
- Duration: 17:42
- Photography – Stephen Robert Kuta
- Written by – Stephen Robert Kuta
Music –
Music Licensed by Epidemic Sound
*** If you enjoy our content why not support our creative process on Patreon. *** ? http://www.patreon.com/stephenandyhana ***
