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Question

I have heard that there was a 'flying monk' of Malmesbury. Could you give me some information about him please?

Question asked on

04 July 2011

Answer

This was Elmer, a monk of Malmesbury Abbey, whose name was later anglicised into Oliver. He believed that man could learn to fly and somewhen between 1000 and 1010 he made himself some sort of glider, doubtless modelled on his observations of birds, and carried it up to the top of the west tower of the Abbey. Here he attached it to himself and bravely dived off. He covered 200 metres until, “agitated by the violence of the wind and the swirling of the air as well as awareness of his own rashness, he fell and broke his legs and was lame ever after”. Elmer himself thought that his failure was due to the fact that he had “not put a tail on the back part”. The words are those of William of Malmesbury, c.1095-1143, the great historian and librarian of Malmesbury Abbey. Elmer wanted to try again but his abbot refused to allow him, so he turned to the study of astronomy.

There is a modern stained glass window in St. Aldhelm's Chapel, in the restored part of the Abbey, which records Elmer's attempt at man-powered flight.

Bibliography

Register of Malmesbury by William of Malmesbury