Better known as Holy Island, it is easily reached by car at low tide via the three-mile causeway. The more energetic can follow the traditional pilgrim route and cross the sands using a clearly marked path, which takes about one-and-a-half hours.
Once on the island, even today, it is impossible not to feel the remoteness of the place or imagine the hardships faced by the early Celtic missionaries in this far-flung corner of north-east England. Nevertheless, it has a certain charm and there is a distinct feeling that you are treading upon holy ground - as indeed you are, for two of England's best-known saints preached the Gospel here.
St
Aidan arrived in AD 635 to establish a monastery at the request of King Oswald.
After a lifetime of devotion to God, he died at Bamburgh in AD 651 and was
buried under the altar in the monastery he had founded.In the same year that St, Aidan began his work on the island, a boy called Cuthbert was born. He grew up to be a shepherd and, according to one legend, was tending sheep in the Lammamuir Hills the night St. Aidan died. On seeing shooting stars, he believed them to be angels coming to take the dying saint to heaven and, at that, moment decided he, too, would become a monk and entered the monastery at Melrose on the Scottish Borders.
Cuthbert arrived on Holy Island in AD 664, where he stayed until AD 676 when, choosing the life of a hermit, he went to live in a cell on one of the Farne islands where he stayed until his death in AD 687, despite being appointed Bishop of Lindisfarne in AD 685.
When, more than a decade after his death, monks exhumed Cuthbert's body with the intention of moving it to a more honourable spot, it was found to be totally intact.
The uncorrupt body was then placed in a splendidly carved wooden coffin. When the monks were forced to flee the island to escape attacks by the Vikings, they took the saint's remains with them. Today, the coffin lies in a shrine at Durham Cathedral.
Lindisfarne
Priory was rebuilt in the latter part of the 11th century by the Benedictine
Monks as an extension of the priory at Durham. But after the dissolution of the
monasteries in the 16th century it was left abandoned.The Church of St. Mary the Virgin stands next to the priory ruins. Said to be the oldest building on the island, a small Saxon arch can still be seen in the wall that divides the nave from the chancel. Inside the church, you can see a copy of the Lindisfarne Gospels, completed by Eadfrith in the seventh century. The originals are kept in the British Library in London, although there are many that feel they should be returned to their original home.
Outside the church stands the quot;Petting Stone", said to have been part of St. Cuthbert's Cross. For centuries, it has been a tradition for brides to jump over it to ensure a happy marriage.
Close by is St. Aidan's winery, where Lindisfarne Mead is made. You may continue the short walk into the island's village, with its gift shops, tea room and public house.
Just beyond the village lies the small natural harbour, frequented by yachts
during the summer season. Fishing remains one of the island's main industries
and the catch is served in many of the local hotels and restaurants. Near the
water's edge upturned herring boats make useful and attractive storerooms.About a quarter of a mile offshore, you will see St. Cuthbert's Island, which can be reached on foot at low tide. It is said that the saint used this tiny island as a retreat and built a small chapel there. A cross marks the spot where the altar once stood.
Built in the 16th century from the stones taken from the abandoned priory, Lindisfarne
Castle, originally a fortress against the Scots, stands dramatically perched on
a basalt rock rising some 300 feet above the sea.It was bought in 1902 by Edward Hudson (the then owner of Country Life magazine) in a very bad state of repair. Looking for someone who would turn it into a home, but without spoiling the original design, he chose the young Edwin Lutyens.
At the start of what was to become a successful informal partnership, the architect joined forces with the artist and gardener Gertrude Jekyll, who laid out the walled garden there between 1906 and 1912.
Today the castle is in the hands of the National Trust, having been given to them by Edward de Stein and his sister in 1944. The garden is still lovingly tended, sheltered from the North Sea gales by the high walls. Part of the island is a nature reserve, attracting many rare birds, and has become an ornithologist's paradise.
But, if you are planning to visit Holy Island, let me give you a word of caution. Never attempt to cross the causeway if the tide has already started to turn. It approaches very fast and many people have found themselves stranded in the emergency huts - tiny wooden structures on stilts - for hours. Check the safe crossing times, displayed at each end of the causeway.
