Here's a heartwarming family Christmas season tale from the Dark Ages: 
Long long ago, when England was divided into several Saxon kingdoms, in the Kingdom of Mercia there was a ruthless woman called Quendreda. She wanted to be Queen of Mercia, but in her way stood her little brother Kenelm.
This wasn't going to stop Quendreda, so she bribed Kenelm's tutor, Askbert, to take Kenelm on a hunting trip to Clent in Worcestershire, far from his home in Winchcombe, and whilst he was there to murder the boy. And so Askbert and Kenelm set out and when they got there Askbert took out his sword to do the ghastly deed. But Kenelm said "This is not the place ordained for you to kill me." and stuck his walking stick in the ground which turned into a thorntree. This would have scared most men, but not Askbert who managed to slice off the boy's head. A dove flew out of the boy's head and flew away. Askbert buried the boy's body and went to tell the triumphant Quendreda of his success.
The dove flew to the Rome and dropped a letter into the lap of the Pope. The message read:
<DIR>
"In Clent cow-pasture under a thorn;
Of head bereft lies Kenelm, king-born."
</DIR>
The Pope sent to England to find what had happened and sure enough the searchers were led to the grave under a thorn by a white cow. When the body was lifted from the grave a light shone and healing water sprang from the ground. The monks of Winchcombe Abbey carried the body back to his home and everywhere they put down the body healing waters sprang. Eventually the bearers brought the body into Winchcombe. Quendreda was standing at her window when they arrived. She swore that "May God blind me, if ever I harmed my brother", whereupon her eyes fell out.
Kenelm was made a Saint and buried at Winchcombe Abbey and Quendreda was executed for her crime. For many hundreds of years pilgrims would come to the town to worship at the Saint's tomb and ask for healing. You can see a coffin, said to be that of Kenelm in Winchcombe Church to this day.
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