Apparition
Vision of the Holy House at Walsingham
Private revelation · Walsingham, Norfolk, United Kingdom, 1061
The tradition of Walsingham holds that in 1061 the widowed noblewoman Richeldis de Faverches, praying to be given some work in Our Lady's honour, was shown in spirit the house at Nazareth where the Annunciation took place, and was asked to build its likeness in Norfolk. The Holy House she raised made Walsingham 'England's Nazareth' and one of the great pilgrimage places of medieval Europe.
Background
The Church has never issued a decree on Richeldis's vision; what she has approved and cherished is the shrine and its devotion. The medieval shrine was destroyed under Henry VIII in 1538. Catholic pilgrimage was restored in the nineteenth century and the Slipper Chapel a mile from the village became the Catholic National Shrine of Our Lady; an Anglican shrine also flourishes in the village, and Walsingham has become a place of ecumenical prayer. The feast of Our Lady of Walsingham is kept in England on 24 September.
Location
Walsingham, Norfolk
Country
United Kingdom
Approved status
Private revelation
Year of apparition
1061
Visionaries
- Richeldis de Faverches
Subject
marian
Feast day
September 24
Content subtype
unapproved_apparition