England no longer deserves its history

Glastonbury Thorn

The Glastonbury Thorn before the infamy



Big—and shocking—news in the world of legend and fantasy today. The Glastonbury Thorn, which according to legend was planted by Joseph of Arimathea himself, has been cut down by vandals. Various motives have been suggested. The second most shocking thing in the article, to me, is that apparently the tree enjoyed no legal protection whatever, and even if those responsible are identified, nothing is likely to happen to them.

Who knew the only legal act left in hyper-regulated England is to destroy a national treasure?

The legend of the thorn is that Joseph of Arimathea (identified as the uncle of Jesus) was a tin merchant who voyaged frequently to England (bringing Jesus with him once; hence the hymn “England’s Mountains Green”). While there he thrust his thorn staff into the earth one day, and it budded like Aaron’s rod and took root. For centuries it was revered by pilgrims to Glastonbury (a famous Arthurian site), until Oliver Cromwell’s men chopped it down. But the roots were saved, and nurtured by the faithful. The tree which stood there till now was cultivated from one of those roots. One hopes the same sort of thing can be done again.

What’s intriguing is that the Glastonbury thorn is indeed an exotic. It’s not a native English tree. It’s been identified as a Middle Eastern variety.

8 thoughts on “England no longer deserves its history”

  1. Christianity did take root in that part of Britain very early on, even in the first century. Perhaps it really was from Joseph of Arimathea’s garden or something, though not necessarily his staff – though that is possible, would you make a staff from a thorn tree? That he could have been in the tin trade – or any trade to Britannia is certainly possible. No doubt legends grew up around it, but why would they pick that particular individual of all they could have claimed, unless there was some tradition that it was him?

  2. On the list of things that bring my blood to a boil, vandalism is in the top 10.

    I will say no more, because the things I want to say are Anglo-Saxon monosyllables.

  3. I asked an English author, John Lambshead, about this. Here is his response:

    I suspect Lars is getting mixed up because the tree wasn’t ‘listed’ like a listed building. We have so much history in Britain that we don’t get round to listing everything. However, normal laws apply. If someone comes in to my garden and tramples my flower bed then he has committed a criminal offense. The thorn tree is on privately owned land so the same applies. Then there are all sorts of catch alls like committing a breach of the peace.

    He said this is a better summary of the situation.

  4. Well that makes more sense. I took the article to mean that no crime of any kind had been committed. Although as an ignorant American, I would have thought the Thorn would qualify for some kind of landmark status.

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