In London’s Westminster Cathedral stands a strikingly beautiful statue of Our Lady of Walsingham, emanating timeless grace, peace, and compassion.
The Marian shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham, located in Norfolk, England, traces its origins back to the early 11th century. Known as “England’s Nazareth,” it became one of the most significant and ancient pilgrimage sites in the country.
Known as the „Walsingham Way,” countless pilgrims visited the Holy House with a wooden statue of the Virgin Mary as a focal point of contemplation. It was a time when monasteries and shrines connected medieval pathways in a powerful matrix throughout Europe.
But in 1538 Henry VIII ordered the Walsingham statue to be taken to London and destroyed. As part of his break from Catholicism, monasteries were dissolved, pillaged and pilgrimages prohibited.
Only in recent times, the Walsingham pilgrimage path has been revived now officially forming part of the network of pilgrimage paths to Santiago de Compostela in Spain.
The shrine in Walsingham has regained its medieval significance, often referred to as the “English Lourdes” because of its central place in Catholic and Anglican devotion in England.
Pilgrims to Walsingham seek healing, spiritual guidance, and a deepened relationship with the Virgin Mary. It remains a place of great spiritual renewal for many, with visitors walking the Holy Mile, a traditional part of the pilgrimage route.
The beautiful statue of the Walsingham Lady in Westminster Cathedral was commissioned by Cardinal Griffin in 1954 and sculpted by Pius Dapre. For many years it remained hidden and almost unknown in the Cathedral Crypt until it was recovered.
Mystery still surrounds the original wooden shrine which may have never been burned and destroyed as ordered by Henry VIII.
An article recently published in The Catholic Herald quoted art historians as saying that The Langham Madonna, a battered 13th-century English statue in London’s Victoria and Albert Museum, is in fact the original statue of Our Lady of Walsingham.
There were no eyewitness accounts that the statue was actually destroyed in London, according to the historians but hidden by Catholic loyalists until it reappeared centuries later in the museum.
Throughout history, countless myths, legends, and mysteries have surrounded the figure of the Goddess—whether Mary, Brigid, Kali, Isis or others—appearing and reappearing in various forms. At times, she has been revealed as a beautiful statue, carved from wood, stone, or marble, inspiring the creation of shrines, monasteries, or cathedrals at the place of her discovery.
Mary, in particular, has been known to appear in sacred apparitions at sites like Walsingham, Lourdes, and Fatima—places where the veil between worlds seems thin. Regardless of whether one is a believer, agnostic, or of another faith, her presence has been tied to stories of miracles that defy logic. Yet, time and again, she has brought comfort, solace, and peace to those facing pain and confusion.
Reino Gevers – Author – Mentor – Speaker
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