Mother Shipton

The year is 1488 and England is under the rule of Henry VII. A furious thunderstorm (so legend has it) is sweeping through the north of England. It is during this, in a cave on the banks of the river Nidd in Knaresborough+ Yorkshire, a teenage girl gives birth to a baby. Many agree the child was severely deformed; accusations of having relations with the Devil waged against the new mother. The child was named Ursula. It is said that the mother, Agatha, would raise Ursula in that cave for two years. Far from the judgement of the local populace. A family would eventually take this child in and send her mother to a nunnery far away. Separating Ursula from Agatha, never to see each other again. Ursula was teased as a child due to her appearance. She had a long-crooked nose with twisted legs that bent back; some records even stating she was born with a full set of teeth. This forced Ursula to spend much of her time in solitude. Seeking comfort from the cave that she was raised in, she was typically alone with only her own thoughts for company. Ursula grew familiar with herblore, studying flowers and plants of the surrounding forest. People came from far and wide to hear her prophecies, seek council or for healing. Ursula was named ‘Mother’ Shipton later in old age due to the amount of people she would help. Prophecies are what gave Shipton notoriety throughout England. She began by making small premonitions which grew larger, including such things as the great fire of London in 1666 (105 years after her death) and the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588 (27 years after her death). Another prophecy, she famously stated that the Cardinal Wolsey would see York but not reach it. Sure enough, in 1530, Cardinal Wolsey fell out of favor with the king and fled to the north. He got within view of York when Lord Percy caught up to him with a summons from the king to head back to London to face charges. Many of Shipton’s premonitions took the form of poems. One of the most famous prophecies has left many perplexed to this day with how accurate it truly is (listed above). The 500-year-old verse quite clearly references the internet, aircrafts, submarines and automobiles. Yet, Shipton would have no access to any information foreshadowing these claims. Shipton was routinely blackmailed with threats of exposure of witchcraft. In response, she quite calmly prophesized the negative consequences of what would happen to these naysayers if they were to accuse her. That alone was enough to put a stop to any more extortion and Shipton was never formally accused of or brought to trial for witchcraft. This was quite peculiar for an age when the persecution of witches was commonplace. Never in the history of England has a witch gained such infamy. Much of Mother Shipton’s life has become legend and is obscured between myth and truth. Yet to this day, you can visit Mother Shipton’s cave where many still leave offerings to the wise crone and visit the petrifying well which was said to have been bewitched to turn things to stone.
(This is a free article that is available online that I wrote. Unlike my book that is being pirated and shared illegally in this website's library and apparently we are all okay with that?)