Some part of the power of the stories of the saints, I think, comes from the range of the characters and of their life stories. In the words of Henry James, in a different context, “All human life is there”.
This is particularly evident in the stories of the various Saint Margarets. Before starting this catalogue of the derivation of Salisbury’s street names I would have expected the stories of the female saints to be a little, well, samey – stories of sweet, pious grils thrust into the spotlight – with due respect, a little like the story of Saint Therese of Lisieux.
The stories of the various Saint Margarets, though include:
