Cramp Rings

Cramp Rings were rings which were supposed to cure cramp and the 'falling-sickness.' They are said to have originated as far back as the middle of the 11th century, in a ring presented by a pilgrim to Edward the Confessor, which, after that ruler's death, was preserved as a relic in Westminster Abbey, and was applied for the cure of epilepsy and cramp. Hence appears to have arisen the belief that rings blessed by English sovereigns were efficacious in such cases; and the custom of blessing for distribution large numbers of cramp rings on Good Friday continued to exist down to the time of Queen Mary. The accomplished Lord Berners, ambassador to Spain in Henry VIII.'s time, writes from Saragossa to Cardinal Wolsey: 'If your grace remember me with some crampe ryngs ye shall doo a thing mucho looked for; and I trust to bestow thaym well with Goddes grace.' The metal the rings were composed of was what formed the king's offering to the cross on Good Friday, usually either gold or silver. The superstitious belief in the curative property of cramp rings made out of certain pieces of silver obtained in particular ways still lingers in some districts of England.