Longed for place

Saewulf's pilgrimage account is the first to survive after the Crusaders' conquest of Jerusalem. Little is known of the author beyond his name and the dates of his pilgrimage; he commonly has been associated with the merchant and monk Saewulf described by William of Malmesbury. The evidence of the Saewulf's account, though, suggests that the text was composed in Latin by an ecclesiastic, probably a monk or abbot, who wrote an account of his travels to the Holy Land, inserting an independent description of Jerusalem. Saewulf describes the experience of pilgrimage to the Holy Land, with all its accompanying dangers, and the guidebook he incorporates highlights the most important sites within Jerusalem for the pilgrim, while its descriptions of the holy places help to shape their greater religious significance. Through comparisons of Saewulf's pilgrimage account and guidebook to contemporary pilgrimage accounts and guidebooks, as well as pilgrimage narratives from hagiography and sagas, this thesis describes the nature and intent of early twelfth-century pilgrimage, as well as the place and significance of the Holy Land within the wider context of contemporary religious belief and practice