Pilgrims honour '˜Jerusalem' on walk through Midhurst

Members of the British Pilgrimage Trust walked from Haslemere to Chichester on their annual '˜micro-pilgrimage' in honour of '˜Jerusalem', the song of England, and the two men who created it, anthem composer Sir Hubert Parry and poet William Blake.
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They sang the song ten times in places along the route connected to its story, spending Saturday night in the Refectory at Easebourne and visiting the Temple of the Winds, the highest hill in Sussex, where Tennyson was inspired.

The pilgrims also visited the Cowdray Ruins, where they sang Jerusalem, and went on to Heyshott, where they visited the church for another rendition. They travelled to Charlton, where the first Women’s Institute was founded - the WI was given ownership of the song Jerusalem in 1928. The pilgrims drank the health of the WI in the Fox Goes Free, where the first meeting took place.

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They visited Chichester Guildhall - where Blake was acquitted of treason - and were given after-hours access to Chichester Bishop’s Palace and the Cathedral to give their last rendition of the weekend of ‘Jerusalem’.

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They were guided by Will Parsons and Guy Hayward, co-founders of the British Pilgrimage Trust.

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