St Aidan’s, Bamburgh

St Aidan, called to Bamburgh from Iona by King Oswald to establish Christianity in the kingdom of Northumbria, founded a place of worship on this spot in 635 AD. The only visible trace of that building now is said to be a beam that St Aidan was leaning against when he died. The current building dates from the 12th century, contains a shrine to St Aidan and has been a place of pilgrimage for centuries. Bamburgh was the Anglo-Saxon capital of Northumbria and St Aidan’s is obviously steeped in its history. In 2016, the bones of over 100 Anglo-Saxons uncovered near the castle were laid to rest under the church. The Victorian heroine Grace Darling is buried in the churchyard; adjacent to the family plot is an ornate memorial to her.