Bishops attempt to save one of Britain's only hermits from eviction

Senior clergy and bishops have launched a campaign prevent one of the country's few officially recognised hermits from losing her home. Karen Markham hoped to leave her worldly concerns behind to pursue a life of solitude and contemplation when she became one of Britain’s few officially recognised hermits. But Miss Markham has been forced to break into her daily routine of prayer, religious reading and gardening to engage in a public campaign to save her from becoming homeless. The 44-year-old former music teacher faces the prospect of being forced out of her secluded hermitage – a cottage in rural Shropshire – after its owner decided to sell up.

Senior clergy, including several bishops, have launched a campaign to try and save Miss Markham from losing her home and allow her to continue in the role which they describe as “invaluable”. The Church of England keeps no central record of the number of consecrated hermits in Britain. There are thought to be less than 200 of them, although numerous dioceses said they had never heard of one. Miss Markham has lived as a hermit for six years at the Hermitage of Divine Wisdom in Acton, Shropshire.



Last year she was consecrated to a solitary life of prayer and contemplation by the Rt Rev Michael Hooper, the former Bishop of Ludlow. She is distraught at the prospect of losing her home. “The stability of having somewhere to live has been very important and if I have to leave I will have nowhere to go,” Miss Markham said. “There are so few hermitages in England that it was hard enough to find this place.”

The Rt Rev Hooper is one of a number of bishops, including the bishops of Hereford, Warwick and Dudley, who are backing the campaign to raise funds to buy the cottage which is set to be put on the market in September for around £220,000. “It is of infinite value to have a solitary living in the community with this vocation, which supports us all and never allows us to forget God,” he said. Next week, Miss Markham will attend a meeting in the local church barn where she will talk to local parishioners and supporters about what she does, hoping that they will help to raise the funds to buy the cottage. Until now, Miss Markham has been allowed to live rent-free by the owner of the property – her benefactor.