As with all areas of Britain there are certain wells in Leicestershire and Rutland known as 'holy wells' and several dedicated to saints. Almost invariably such holy wells have reputations for clean water and for never running dry.
Leicestershire and Rutland once had over thirty documented wells called 'holy well' or dedicated to saints. But few survive. In addition there are some wells that were probably once thought of as holy but aren't reliably documented as such. In this video I'll explore some of these.
For a more substantial survey of Leicestershire and Rutland's holy wells please download this free PDF. www.hoap.co.uk/...
Thanks to Gillian Rawlins, Membership Secretary of the Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society, for commissioning a 'blog' which formed the basis for the script of this video (see lahs.org.uk/bl... )
Principal sources
Billson, C.J., 1895, _County Folklore: Leicestershire and Rutland_, Folk-Lore Society.
Cox, Barrie, 1994, _The Place-Names of Rutland_, English Place-Name Society.
Cox, Barrie, 1998-2016, The Place-Names of Leicestershire (seven volumes), English Place-Name Society.
Harte, Jeremy, 2008, English Holy Wells: A guide (three volumes), Heart of Albion.
Nichols, John, 1795-1815, History and Antiquities of the County of Leicester (eight volumes).
Palmer, Roy, 1985, _Folklore of Leicestershire and Rutland_, Sycamore Press; revised edition 2002 Tempus.
Potter, Clive, 1985, ‘The holy wells of Leicestershire and Rutland’, Source 1st series vol.1: p15-17.
Potter, T.R., 1842, _The History and Antiquities of Charnwood Forest_, Hamilton Adams.
Rattue, James, 1993, ‘An inventory of ancient, holy and healing wells in Leicestershire’, Transactions of the Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society Vol 67 pp59-69.
Richardson, Linsdall R., 1931, _Wells and springs of Leicestershire_, HMSO.
Trubshaw, Bob, 1990, _Holy Wells and Springs of Leicestershire and Rutland_, Heart of Albion.
Trubshaw, Bob, 2024, 'Leicestershire and Rutland's Holy Wells', Heart of Albion; www.hoap.co.uk/leics_rutland_holy_wells.pdf