The Herb Journal

Prior to 1881, the Noble Hermitage was renowned within the local community for its Herb Journal. For centuries, Hermitage Brothers had been writing down lots of information about the herbs and plants used in the Hermitage kitchens, as well as practical tips like recipes, and things that could be traded at the Saturday Market. However, in 1881 there was a fire at the Hermitage, and although it was not so serious that the building had to be rebuilt, nevertheless, several important items were burnt, and lost forever.

One of the young noviciates had lit his night candle as usual, but had not realised he had left the door to the library ajar, and, as the wind rose outside, a draft caused a wall hanging, in the library, to billow towards the candle flame. Everybody, except the Abbot, was lying asleep, but he was so involved with his work in his study he was oblivious to what was happening around him. No-one noticed the flames slowly eating up the tapestry. It was only when the Abbot sniffed the smoky air that he knew anything was amiss. By the time he arrived at the source of the fire, part of the library and the kitchen was well alight. Rousing the Brothers and the Noviciates, the Abbot began to draw water from the well. As more of the residents joined him, they all worked swiftly, dousing the flames. It took some time, but they were lucky - the damage, although serious, was limited to only a small part of the building.

As the Brothers surveyed the damage, one Noviciate noticed that the Herb Journal had been partially destroyed, along with the Groundplan of the Noble Hermitage. Several writing utensils, and reading stands had also been badly burnt, the wood crumbling in one Brother's hands as he tried to lift it up from the floor.Next to these items, several books which the Brothers had written were unrecognisable, and it was only after they had taken a very careful inventory of the books that remained, a list of the priceless works could be formed. Writings by Brother Joseph on the subject of English Folklore were completely missing; drawings by Brother Michael, who was continually sketching the Northumberland countryside were beyond redemption; several early editions of the Hermitage Chronicles had also been seriously burnt, but it was hoped a good portion of the work could be rewritten, both from the memory of the young Noviciates who had been studying the works, the elder Brothers whose memory of the events would still be clear, and careful deduction of the fragments remaining.

The Herb Journal, was badly scorched, some pages being nothing more than blackened ash. But luckily, one part of the journal, near the back, had been only superficially scorched, and, later, the Noviciates worked with determination and dedication, to rewrite the damaged pages, with the Brothers dictating what they remembered to the young Noviciates so that those pages which had been totally destroyed were replaced. Today's Herb Journal may be a recent version, but it still contains vital information for the running of the Herb Garden, and Kitchens.

No doubt, you would suggest that there are many good and informative books around for the Brothers to use with access to more information than they have ever had. However, this would detract from the purpose of the Herb Journal. The original journal was created to enable the Brothers and the Noviciates to record their observations whilst they worked with the herbs, and the results that they encountered. What is written down in the Journal is not only historical, and practical, but has great relevance to the way the Hermitage is run. Certain recipes were created by the Brothers and cannot be found in other books; in fact writers of cookery books have often asked us for specific recipes to write about them. There are also small snippets of information which relate only to the surrounding countryside and its links with the Hermitage. This sort of information is not held elsewhere, so you see, the Herb Journal has always been an important document for us. It is all very well having lots of information to look at, but how much to do you actually use? If you don't use it, do you really need it? If you don't need it why are you burdening yourself with it? No we decided a long time ago, to keep on the premises, only what we think is important to us, and nothing more.

We have had further copies made of certain items, such as the Groundplan of the Noble Hermitage, since the fire. The layout of the building has changed since 1881, and it is important that we keep a record of what changes have occurred. However, there are other items which are unique, and can never be truly replaced, only modified, and the fire has made us much more cautious about the security of these items.

Meanwhile, if you would like to see some of the scorched fragments from the original Herb Journal, or the charred Groundplan of the Noble Hermitage, click on the name of the items below.

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