A Medieval Bishop Found Beneath a Lawn and the Recovery of the Altar of Old St Paul’s
Soulton Hall has been pleased to host James Wenn and James Syrett of Byrga Geniht at the manor around this extended BBC coverage, shining a well-deserved spotlight on their meticulous research that brought these discoveries to light.
Following the morning release of The Rest Is History bonus edition, the estate has spent the afternoon recording a series of BBC interviews.
These will be, we gather, rolled out over several days across BBC Shropshire, featured on the BBC News website, and broadcast on television in various formats.
The focus of these media sessions centers on the deeper understanding of Saint Erkenwald and the recovered cathedral altar stone preserved on the estate.
This broadcast interest builds directly upon the wider public conversation sparked by the podcast, where historian Tom Holland remarked on the profound nature of the findings:
“Something… a little unexpected, a little bit mysterious… We are going to be exploring the nearest to a Tudor ‘Da Vinci Code’ I have ever come across… A story in the process of being told.”
Uncovering Tudor Secrets
During the broadcast recordings, attention turned to the role of Sir Rowland Hill, who served as Lord Mayor during intense sixteenth-century iconoclasm. As Tom Holland noted:
“He is the Lord Mayor at a time of violent iconoclasm under Edward VI when the bones of saints are being tipped out…”
“There is one kind of final mystery, isn’t there? And that is perhaps the most intriguing aspect of your research – Rowland Hill was the Lord Mayor at the height of the iconoclasm in the capital … Woah! So, he brought the High Altar and what? And what of Saint Erkenwald’s tomb do you think he might have brought?”
“So, the relics of Saint Erkenwald – the first Bishop of London – and the Altar Stone of St Paul’s Cathedral – both dismantled when he had civic responsibility for St Paul’s… you think he brought them to Soulton Hall.”
Architecture and Reconciliation
The interviews also explored the architectural and philosophical design of the manor house, reflecting on why the structure holds such enduring fascination:
“One of the most amazing houses you will find anywhere in England.”
“It is a house FULL of mysteries.”
“Soulton Hall with its cuboid form… what kind of messages are being conveyed in it? [It presents as] A physical chest… the idea that it contains ideas… a mixture of Biblical and Classical…”
“It is clearly an incredibly complicated building that embodies all kinds of rich Renaissance ideas about Platonism, about the Temple of Solomon, the Classical, the Biblical… a kind of profoundly Humanist response to what has been going on – the sectarianism…”
“Soulton Hall is basically a monument to the idea, no matter the doctrinal or denominational difference, these differences may be reconciled… [is that] the message he is making? … Is he operating on a dimension of Ideals?”
“Once you understand [Soulton Hall], it talks to you…”
A Continuing Journey
The discussions highlight the legacy of the estate’s builder and his literary resonance:
“Sir Rowland Hill lives to a ripe old age. By the time he died, he is a figure of immense authority, and to a degree – I guess – of mystery. Perhaps a sense that he has been embroiled in great things. And adding to the aura around him is the fact that there is a Shakespearean connection… His name appears in one of Shakespeare’s plays.”
“A big moment in the story of the Tudor monarchy — and England more generally — that is amazing.”
“It is an amazing story, obviously an amazing ongoing process of discovery with perhaps further surprises awaiting to be found…”
As media interest continues to develop, the household remains focused on presenting these findings with quiet care, sober grounds, and full openness to ongoing academic scrutiny.
The Erkenwald feretory sculpture now rests within the Epidaurus Court of Soulton Hall.
