The Forgotten Crypt of Mercian Kings- St. Wystan’s Church, England

Beneath the church of St Wystan in Repton England lies a crypt that at one time held the great kings and royalty of the Anglo Saxon Kingdom of Mercia. People would come here by the thousands just to be able to be in the presence of the bones of those who were buried within. It was so popular that the crypt had to be altered with stairs in and stairs out so there could be an orderly procession for people coming on pilgrimage.
It wasn't until 1779 when workman who was digging a new grave in the chancel literally fell through the floor and in to the crypt. No one had any idea that it had ever been there. St.
Wystan's Church is featured in Assasin's Creed Valhalla.
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ABOUT ME
Evelyn Edwards is a successful American actress and photographer. She has appeared on such shows as National Geographic’s Hydrogen vs. Hindenburg, Bosch, Criminal Minds, Castle, The Mentalist, Parenthood, The Thundermans, The Kicks, Marry Me, Outsourced, the Academy Award winning film Her, and the Ridley Scott Associates film Loom.
Evelyn began her career in opera. She has performed with some of the opera industry’s leading conductors and singers including: Placido Domingo, Valery Gergiev, Kent Nagano, Eva Marton, Vladimir Chernov, Goesta Winburg, and others.
She has had the privilege of working with such famed directors as Oscar winner Maximilian Schell, Julie Taymor, Gian-Carlo Del Monaco, and Lotfi Mansuri during her tenure with Los Angeles Opera. Ms. Edwards made her professional singing debut at the age of 13, operatic debut at 19, and national television commercial debut at six months.
She holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree and Master of Music degree from UCLA and a Professional Studies Diploma from Mannes College of Music. She and her husband Chris love exploring the world and sharing their passion and love for castles and photography together.

[@EvelynEdwards]

For the BEST picture quality don’t forget to change your RESOLUTION SETTINGS! Head to the SETTINGS WHEEL on the right and put it at the highest resolution possible. 💚🏰

[@Prfdt3]

May the long and glorious history of England be preserved.

[@CTibbels]

*Adds ANOTHER place to visit to the long list I've created from Evelyn's history videos.... Outstanding! I learned a lot. Thank you!

[@EvelynEdwards]

This place is so amazing. You can feel the history when you walk in the crypt.

[@BORN-to-Run]

Wow! I RELISH ancient Anglo and Saxon history! Stories like these cause me to EMBRACE my own Anglo-Saxon ancestry. WHAT A TREASURE!

[@EvelynEdwards]

💚💚💚 love this time period and the stories from it!

[@Chris.Brisson]

Pybba, King of Mercia, was my 40th great grandfather. Pybba was the great grandfather of Æthelbald. The family is patiently awaiting the return of their remains to St. Wystan.

[@EvelynEdwards]

😉💚

[@vegetariansuniteworldwide8091]

That’s very cool!! How did find this information? I love genealogy. My maternal side has a lot of English ancestry.🎉❤

[@pilijones4801]

@@EvelynEdwards Oh wow… that’s fantastic !

[@ECWAlex]

How can you prove that?

[@ambrosius]

Lol riiiiiight. 😂

[@FrankHopkins-by1bx]

This was so good! Thank you for sharing places and stories I've never heard of. I learn so much from your channel.

[@EvelynEdwards]

This makes my day. Thank you Frank. 💚🏰

[@anthonyfranklin5228]

The excitemrnt one must feel sends goosebumps up my spine! Thank you so much for all you do !! 😊❤

[@EvelynEdwards]

🥰🥰🥰 wish I could do this place on a live. But it’s underground 😫

[@ThankYou-bn6bp]

Such amazing storytelling! You got me completely hooked with the Anglo Saxon history, and I just bought two books on this subject, all because of you! Thank you!

[@EvelynEdwards]

Ahhh yay!!! WIN!! It’s such an interesting time period!! I love this!!!

[@vegetariansuniteworldwide8091]

I have Anglo-Saxon ancestry and I love your content about them!

[@EvelynEdwards]

@@vegetariansuniteworldwide8091 💚💚💚💚

[@user-fl8gt8yk3b]

Thank you. I love these old historic videos especially of the beautiful old churches. In fact any English history.

[@EvelynEdwards]

💚💚💚🙏🏻

[@TheJoan48]

Wow! The fear of the Vikings stopped the long held traditions of the people and happenstance did its best to preserve what was sacred to them. Thank you so much for this!

[@EvelynEdwards]

💚💚💚💚💚💚 I would have been scared of the Vikings too! 😉

[@fghjjjk]

Went a few months ago, defo has a feeling to it down there. I, myself am decended from a thousand year Mercian family started in Derbyshire

[@EvelynEdwards]

It does, doesn’t it! An amazing place. 💚

[@williamturner6366]

evelyn wonderful narration totally magical please keep up your great work.

[@EvelynEdwards]

Thank you William. That means so much! 💚🙏🏻

[@aurorarose1098]

Thank you so much for these videos! If this is your voice, it is very soothing and wonderful to listen to. Thank you!

[@EvelynEdwards]

It better be my voice!! Otherwise my throat is doing crazy magic tricks! 😉😉 thank you so much!! 💚💚🙏🏻

[@kevedwards83]

This is a great video. I live 30 minutes from this church and been here many times. You're right, the atmosphere in the crypt is very very special.

[@EvelynEdwards]

Love this area and church so much. How wonderful you have access to it all the time.

[@kevedwards83]

Absolutely Evelyn. If you're ever back this way you really should visit Breedon on the Hill. The church there has some of the best Saxon carvings in the country.

[@EvelynEdwards]

@@kevedwards83 ooohhh I may need to take. A road trip! Thank you for the suggestion!

[@kevedwards83]

@@EvelynEdwards You're very welcome! The church in Melbourne (not the one in Australia lol) is amazing too and again not far from Repton.

[@Eva-vv2ln]

This place is incredible! I can only imagine how it feels inside.

[@EvelynEdwards]

The history literally hits you as you walk down the stairs. The air is colder… it’s such an amazing poignant place.

[@fghjjjk]

Certainly has a feeling to it when you walk down those tiny stairs.

[@metteode815]

Thank you Evelyn 💚🏰💚

[@EvelynEdwards]

Thank YOU friend!!

[@pammiie]

Thank you for the video ❤😊

[@EvelynEdwards]

Always! Thank you for watching friend!

[@heatherm4555]

Thanks!

[@EvelynEdwards]

🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰

[@ChrissyG_on_Drums]

Incredible crypt. Great story 😊♥️

[@EvelynEdwards]

Thank you for watching friend! It’s such an amazing place. Sooooo glad we have it.

[@sixeses]

Thanks, very interesting. For some reason KZbin won't let me see the pages with your older videos on it.

[@EvelynEdwards]

If you head to my main profile they are all there. There is no way for any to not be seen. There are two videos that are for members only, you may possibly have tried to watch one of those? Otherwise they are all very much watchable. 💚🏰

[@zonabrown9241]

❤❤very interesting luv this stuff

[@EvelynEdwards]

💚💚💚

[@CLEMANSJK]

Oh my goodness, your historical stories give me chills ❤

[@EvelynEdwards]

🥰🥰🥰🥰 yay! We like history goose bumps!

[@melindalopez3978]

Fantastic! (Every time I hear, "Mercia" I think of the series The Last Kingdom on netflix.)

[@EvelynEdwards]

💚💚💚 thank you Melinda! Love love the Last Kingdom. Such a great show!

[@user-wj5sc4iz6c]

Funny… i think of offa and diary products when Mercia is mentioned.

[@EvelynEdwards]

@@user-wj5sc4iz6c 😂

[@user-cd4mo7rw5b]

What an excellent commentary 👍

[@EvelynEdwards]

Thank you so much Ralph! So glad you enjoyed!

[@simonevans2876]

Perfect video. Thanks. I visited this place three times last year. I can’t keep away even though I live south of London. I wish I had seen this first!

[@EvelynEdwards]

Thank you so so much! It’s a bit of a trek for us too. But isn’t it an amazing place?! 💚

[@simonevans2876]

Sure is! We are honoured that you travel so far to see our historical sites@@EvelynEdwards

[@EvelynEdwards]

@@simonevans2876 I live in the UK 💚😉

[@stephenburns3678]

Thank you

[@EvelynEdwards]

My absolute pleasure! Thank you!💚💚

[@ludo9234]

Been there a few times as i lived in Willington one mile away.

[@EvelynEdwards]

Ahhh amazing!

[@curiousman1672]

Very cool.

[@EvelynEdwards]

😉💚

[@MichaelTheStuart]

I am going to save this for Saturday after work, after my house work, after I make supper. I want to take this all in as it should be. With undivided attention.

[@EvelynEdwards]

😁😁😁😁 let me know what you think!!

[@Ripcurl552002]

Love your all of your videos Evelyn! 💚⚔️🏰

[@EvelynEdwards]

Thank you so much Layne! You’re the best!

[@srichardson1963]

Hi Evelyn. loved this thank you. but you said the crypt was rediscovered in 1779. were the old kings still there then? or were they already lost?

[@EvelynEdwards]

They were not. Bones were gone/lost when the Vikings came. 💚

[@srichardson1963]

@@EvelynEdwards Ok thanks

[@maryannwilson6425]

thank you for such a beautiful video. are there also Catholic Masses said in the church today, as they would have been originally? just curious

[@EvelynEdwards]

No. This place, since the reformation, is Church of England. 💚💚

[@michelebowman7124]

Another great video.

[@EvelynEdwards]

Thank you so much Michele!! 💚🏰💚

[@morganmarty]

What a great video, thank you for sharing

[@EvelynEdwards]

My privilege and pleasure! So glad you enjoyed!

[@debbiecurtis4021]

This looks good. I might go next week. Can I visit the Angli-Saxon crypt.

[@EvelynEdwards]

You can!! And you’ll LOVE it!! Check hours…sometimes they lock up early.

[@Radiantstorm9]

Hi Evelyn, i follow you on tik Tok and i clicked on this video without even realizing it was your channel until the narration started🤦

[@EvelynEdwards]

Awww I LOVE that! KZbin knew!! 💚 Hi friend!!

[@simonevans2876]

Let me know if you need any help with local research

[@mikemyers8064]

Thank you .🇬🇧👍🏻

[@EvelynEdwards]

💚🙏🏻

[@brigidbrown6881]

I love me a creepy crypt!!!

[@EvelynEdwards]

Me tooooooo! ☠️☠️☠️

[@bahoonies]

The best crypts are creepy.

[@karlheeren8727]

So what happened to the remains now?

[@EvelynEdwards]

Long gone. The remains were lost when the Vikings came.

[@RedcoatsReturn]

Are the bones of the Mercian Kings still there?

[@EvelynEdwards]

They are not. Gone since the Vikings came.

[@GothosRedux]

Please excuse if I missed certain things, but I’m unclear as to whether the remains of Ethelbald et alia are still in the crypt or not.

[@EvelynEdwards]

There are no remains in the crypt at all. Just the crypt.

[@GothosRedux]

@@EvelynEdwards Thank you. When were they removed and where are they now?

[@EvelynEdwards]

@@GothosRedux they were removed/destroyed when the Vikings came.

[@GothosRedux]

@@EvelynEdwards I misunderstood that part. Thank you for the clarification.

[@heatherm4555]

You have out done your self again 🏰 🥰

[@EvelynEdwards]

FFFFFRRRRRIIIIEEEENNNNDDD! Thank you! So so appreciate you!! 💚💚💚🏰🙏🏻

[@JacquesMare]

Very well narrated...... ❤

[@EvelynEdwards]

Thank you so much! 💚🙏🏻

[@huw3851]

Interesting, I don't think I knew of this place before. But it's hard to see why it was supposedly forgotten when there appears to be a couple of windows in to the space?

[@EvelynEdwards]

Did you watch the video? Those weren’t there.

[@huw3851]

@@EvelynEdwards I did watch the video and there seemed to be windows. Then I googled the site and found the floor plans which showed windows. So I'm confused now - what am I missing?

[@EvelynEdwards]

@@huw3851there were no windows in the original crypt. It was modified to have stairs. watch the last part of the video. That whole section was completely covered and only found when the charnel house was removed.

[@sandraswift3489]

❤thank god vikings were pagans.didnt know that had crypts

[@EvelynEdwards]

This crypt wasn’t for Vikings. This was for Mercian nobility and important people.

[@benjaminzedrine]

They dead.

[@EvelynEdwards]

Dead people are indeed what usually goes in a crypt.

[@srandell]

It’s Wistan not Wigstan ….

[@EvelynEdwards]

You are both wrong and right. It is both. Thank you for trying to keep me honest though. Just like the church is now called Wystan…the spellings have changed and have been inconsistently written.

[@YellowRose08]

Just discovered your channel….I am in love! 😍 Your content is incredible and speaks directly to my undying love of Historical Royalty & Architecture . 🤍🤍🤍

[@EvelynEdwards]

Yaaaayyy! So glad you found me!! We can be history and architecture nerds together!!

[@YellowRose08]

@@EvelynEdwards let be best friends forever and Tavel all the most incredible castles together. I’ll be your protege 😍🏰🤣 ❤️YOUR CONTENT

[@EvelynEdwards]

@@YellowRose08 😂😂😂 done. Castles besties.