|
I will
start with the basic story which is the background for all of the
stories on the Lincoln Imp. The basic story is that Satan sent the
Imp to the cathedral to cause trouble and the imp was destroying
the angel choir when an angel appeared but the imp jumped up onto
a pillar and started throwing rocks at the angel. The angel then
turned the imp to stone as he is today.
The
above story is the general story and is the most commonly told version
but there are other versions. This next story is practically the
same just more detailed. The story goes back in the 14th Century
Satan sent two Imps down to earth to do evil work. Firstly the two
Imps went to Chesterfield and sat on the church spire twisting it(that
is why it chesterfield still has a crooked spire). After vandalising
the spire the two imps headed to Lincoln Cathedral. When they arrived
the devil instructed them to cause as much mayhem as possible. The
Imps started by smashing up tables and chairs and tripping up the
Bishop and then they started destroying the angel choir. Then an
angel appeared and told them to stop. One of the imps was brave
and started throwing rocks at the angel but the other imp cowered
under the broken tables and chairs. The the angel turned the first
imp to stone and this gave the second imp a chance to escape.
Another
story is that the imp was blown into the cathedral by strong winds
and because we was one of the devils creatures he began causing
mischief such as dancing on the alter and annoying the angel choir
until they could take no more and turned him into stone and he sits
at the top of a column near the angel choir with a mischievous grin
on his face.
Another
version of the story with two imps is that they were sent by the
devil to cause trouble in the cathedral and they soon started to
annoy the angel choir. The angels told the two imps to leave but
the first started to throw things at the angels and the second hid.
The angels turned the first imp to stone but this gave the second
imp a chance to escape. The second imp is said to have escaped with
the help of a witch. The imp went off with the witch on her broomstick
but the witch was so found of the imp she turned the imp into a
black cat.
This
account gives more details to the story. The Lincoln Imp is said
in legend to have been sent by the devil to plague the clergy in
the cathedral. He was blown in the great west doors by the west
wind and blew out the candles, scattered the hymn sheets and attacked
the choristers. He flew into the angel choir and when he threatened
to pluck out the angels feathers the smallest angel turned him into
stone.
Another
story is that the imp travelled around the country blown by the
wind looking for places to cause mischief and then he came to Lincoln
cathedral and started destroying the angel choir. He then went up
to the top of the nearest pillar to admire his handy work where
an angel turned him into stone. This is why the imp is sat cross-legged
and has a evil grin on his face.
All
of the stories do seem to have the same basic details however there
are some big differences between the stories which is most likely
due to fact that the legend has been around for hundreds of years.
No matter what stories people hear thousands of people come to see
the imp and it has been used for company logos and the Lincoln City
football club. It is now recognised as a triumph of good over evil.
| 
