Ashingdon Church - Nordic Connections
By Helen Barnard
Ashingdon, as many know, is the reputed site of the Battle of Ashingdon at which the invading Danes under King Cnut defeated the Anglo-Saxon armies of Edmund Ironside.
The site of the current church at Ashingdon Minster church is claimed to be the place where Cnut built a church to commemorate those slain in the battle. This church was, in turn, built on the site of a Saxon church dating from c. 970AD.
Suspended from the roof of the church is a model of a Viking longship, donated by the people of Denmark (who also donated money for repairs to the roof inside the nave). The Prince of Denmark attended the consecration service and presented the church with a Danish flag.