Saint Alkelda | |
|---|---|
 St Alkelda's Church,Giggleswick | |
| Died | c. 800 Middleham,North Yorkshire |
| Feast | 28 March |
Saint Alkelda (Old English:Hǣlcelde, "healing spring"; died on 28 March c. 800), also speltAlcelda orAlchhild, was ostensibly anAnglo-Saxonprincess of whom almost nothing is known and whose existence has been questioned.[1]
Legend has it that she was an Anglo-Saxon princess,[2] and probably also anun, who was strangled by paganViking women duringDanish raids in about 800 atMiddleham inYorkshire. She is patron of thechurch atGiggleswick and also of that ofMiddleham, thechurch there having a holy well, but of no others. She may have been in additionabbess of a monastery at Middleham. In 1389, the Lord of Middleham Manor received a crown grant to hold a weekly market and yearly fair on the feast of St Alkelda.
The area is known for its many springs, some very near the sites of thesechurches. With no documentary reference to thissaint until the lateMiddle Ages, it has been surmised that the nameAlkelda is a corruption of anAnglo-Saxon word,haligkelda, meaningholy spring.[3] However, this has been contested,[4] also with claims that she may actually have beenIcelandic, fromÖlkelda, and her reputation brought toYorkshire inNorthern England byVikings, where she became associated with holy springs such asGiggleswick.[4]
Her feast day is 28 March.
St Alkelda’s Way is a self-guided pilgrimage walk of 33 miles that runs from Giggleswick to Middleham through theYorkshire Dales National Park,[5] and pass the remains ofCoverham Abbey.[6]