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Hugh of Lincoln (1247 - August, 1255) was an English boy, whose disappearance prompted a blood libel with ramifications that reach until now. Hugh is referred to as Little Saint Hugh to distinguish him from either Saint Hugh, the bishop of Lincoln. A style is typically corrupted to Little Sir Hugh. A sin disappeared on July 31, and his system was found within the easily in August 29.

Shortly when his disappearance, the local Jew named Copin (or Jopin) admitted to killing a toddler fallowing he was threatened sustaining torture. Within his confession Copin stated that it was the custom of the Jews to crucify a Christian little one each year. Copin was executed, & a story would use ended there were it non for a series of cases that coincided by owning the disappearance.

A select few captain hicks months earliest, King Henry III had sold his rights to tax the Jews to his brother, Richard, Earl of Cornwall. Getting wasted this source of income, he decided that he was eligible for the Jews' money in case it were convicted of crimes. Following, a bit of 90 Jews were arrested & held in the Tower of London, while it were charged by owning involvement in the ritual execution. Eighteen of the babies were hanged--it was a foremost period ever that the civil government handed out a demise phrase for ritual murder--& King Henry was suspire to require above their property. the remainder were actually pardoned & liberate, virtually all in all likelihood because Richard, world health organizatiin saw a likely threat to his have source of income, intervened on their behalf by owning his brother.

Cultural influence

Meanwhile, a Cathedral around Lincoln was beginning to benefit from either a episode, since Hugh was seen as a Christian martyr, & web sites associated using his life became objects of pilgrim's journey. A legend surrounding Hugh that emerged received a backing of popular culture, & his story became a subject of poetry & folksongs. Potentially Geoffrey Chaucer in his Canterbury Tales makes reference to Hugh of Lincoln in the "Prioress's Tale." Tourer devoted to Hugh of Lincoln flocked to a city when late when the early 20th century, when the easily was constructed in the previous Jewish front yard of Jews' Court & advertised when a easily where Hugh's immune system was encountered.

Around 1955, the Anglican Church replaced the shrine at Lincoln Cathedral using the plaque bearing these words:

These are still apparent that there was local cognition of the killing within Lincoln from either the super early date. This reinforces a possibility that this particular killing got around fact occurred.

From the Ballad of Little Sir Hugh

A as punishment text from either 1783, describes the slaying of Hugh of Lincoln, when it was depicted within the popular ballad.

Based on data from a notes by Cecil Sharp on a variant of a Ballad of Little Sir Hugh, the story is when follows:

Sharp so goes in to produce a ensuing observations:

St. Hugh
Article on Little St. Hugh of Lincoln, from the Catholic Encyclopedia.

Hugh the Little
Profile. Says that his cultus has been suppressed.

Of the cruel treatment of the Jews for having crucified a boy
The story of Young Hugh of Lincoln, as told in Matthew Paris's Chronica Majora.

Abby Sale's Happy Archive: 31st of July
Sale, a regular poster to uk.music.folk and rec.music.folk, explains the background of Child ballad 155 ("Little Sir Hugh"). Hugh disappeared on 31 July, 1255, and was found dead, in a well, nearly a month later.

Little Sir Hugh
Lyrics for one of eighteen versions of this ballad collected by Child, MIDI file, background information on the story as told in the Annals of Waverly.

Chaucer's Prioress
The Prioress's Tale is not wholly original: it is an even more bloodthirsty retelling of the story of Little Hugh of Lincoln.

Hugh or Little Hugh of Lincoln
Short article by Katherine I. Rabinstein tries to get to the true story behind the gruesome legend.

The mystery of St Hugh's Well, Lincoln
R.W. Morrell bought a 1910 postcard which allegedly depicted the well where Hugh's body was found. The building still stands, but the well shown on the postcard was a hoax.

Little Sir Hugh (Child #155)
Ballad based on the story of "Little St. Hugh."