It is believed to have been built in 870,
and consists of three pointed arches rising steeply in the centre to
permit the rush of water in flood times. It is too steep to admit of its
use by any sort of vehicle, and one ascends by steps to the top. At the
end of one portion of the bridge there is a stone image of a Saxon
king--possibly Ethelbert--with a loaf in one hand.
In the time of Ethelbald, King of Mercians, a young noble named Guthlac,
weary of life's rough way, sought peace in the ascetic life. He drifted
in a boat to Crowland Isle, and there lived a hermit's life till his
death in 817. On the spot where he died Ethelbald founded and endowed a
monastery on the island, and it flourished exceedingly. The larger part
of the conventual church is now destroyed, but the north aisle is used
as the Parish Church of Crowland.
[Illustration: _Photochrom Co., Ltd._
CROWLAND ABBEY.
The building rises above the little thatched village, which stands on
slightly raised ground in the midst of the fens.]
PETERBOROUGH
As was the case with Wells, Peterborough would have had no existence but
for its cathedral, which was reared in the midst of the fertile fen
country near the slow-flowing river Ness. But the coming of the railways
has roused the country town, and in the last fifty years its population
has increased fivefold. It is situated in a rich agricultural district,
and has a good trade in farm products. Its annual wool and cattle
markets are well known in the eastern counties.
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