Since Clay (Reference Clay1914) published her seminal work on English hermits and anchorites, various authors have produced studies of different aspects of this topic. Roffey’s approach is different from that of his predecessors as he focuses on sites that either survive as standing structures or have been archaeologically investigated. Part one of his book is devoted to an overview of pre-Christian and early Christian hermits and hermitages in Asia and the Middle East. Part two is an overview of hermitages in early medieval Europe.
Part three starts with a consideration of the physical setting and religious context of British hermitages, before moving on to a discussion of the hermits and hermitages of late medieval Britain. It is a pity that the latter topic, which in my opinion constitutes the most important section of the book, is covered in one relatively short chapter of twenty-three pages and is restricted to England. Many late medieval English hermits undertook a variety of civic duties to support themselves and help the community, instead of devoting their lives to solitary prayer and contemplation in geographically remote and sometimes hostile locations as their predecessors had done for a thousand years. These civic or community hermits lived and worked in a range of coastal, rural and urban environments. Hermits managed or maintained beacons, lighthouses (assisting maritime navigation), city gates, ferries, fords, roads and bridges. Sometimes they collected alms or tolls. Some also managed or staffed associated chapels. Through acts of Christian charity, these hermits were improving infrastructure, making travel safer, saving lives and helping people, thereby emulating St Christopher, a legendary hermit and popular medieval saint who devoted his life to helping pedestrians safely ford a river. The phenomenon of civic hermits merited greater discussion than it receives here, as it represented a new and radically different eremitic tradition (see Davis Reference Davis and Sheils1985; Jones Reference Jones2019, 106–13, 119–20, 139–42). Unfortunately, the surviving architectural and archaeological evidence directly connected with these civic hermitages in England is rather limited. The two best known examples are St Catherine’s lighthouse on the Isle of Wight and St Mary’s bridge chapel in Derby (both of which are mentioned). The connection between two other hermitage sites (both of which are discussed) and local infrastructure was omitted. Firstly, at Redstone in Worcestershire a community of hermits apparently ran a ferry across the River Severn (Clay Reference Clay1914, 57; Jones Reference Jones2019, 204–5). Secondly, in 1336 the hermit at Knaresborough in North Yorkshire was recorded as the keeper of the adjoining bridge (Calendar Patent Rolls 1334–38, 318).
The next chapter discusses institutional or monastic hermits and anchorites. The latter were individuals who were voluntarily immured inside tiny dwellings, often attached to churches. The following chapter considers English hermits after the Reformation and contemporary hermits in the UK, who can be Buddhist as well as Christian. Roffey concludes that ‘the search for solitude was the pre-eminent model and universal paradigm for the perfected spiritual life. The hermitage resided at the heart of an authentic religious life and experience’.
Despite occasional omissions, this book has many strengths: each chapter is a concise and informative overview of a particular topic, based on original research. There are a lot of black and white photographs of hermitages (both internal and external views) almost entirely taken by the author, but few very few plans, which is a shame.
