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One dictionary definition of pilgrimage is "a journey made to a place as a mark of respect", but why is pilgrimage seen as so important to so many people of faith? Where do they go and why? How has pilgrimage changed over the generations?

Many faiths have a long tradition of pilgrimage – visiting the locations where significant events happened in the history of their beliefs.

Dr Marian Boreman, Senior Lecturer in Religious Studies for the Open University, has noticed a growing trend:Ìý"One of the most interesting things to have happened in the late 20th century onwards is that there has been a huge renewal of interest in pilgrimage."

Hindu women at The Ganges

For Hindus it is the River Ganges, as well as revered temples, that draw them.

"Taking a dip in the River Ganges is very, very religious because it is said that taking a dip in there takes away all your sins," Dr Sushil Soni explains.

"It's a very pure river and its water, when collected and taken home, never gets dirty or smelly."

In Islam, millions of Muslims dream of undertaking the fifth and final Pillar of Islam, making the once in a lifetime trip to Mecca.

Moshid Ali, also from Suffolk, remembers the awesome site of thousands of people praying together - an experience which changed how he views his religion: "I think I've become a better person (not that I wasn’t before!).

"I've become stronger in my faith. I've started reading more books about Islam and I’'e gained knowledge."

Within Christianity it has traditionally been Roman Catholic shrines that have featured as locations of pilgrimage. Although a trip to Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus, and to other places mentioned in the Bible is the dream of most Christians, others plan visits to Lourdes in search of healing, or to Canterbury or Walsingham.

The history of the pilgrimage

In Britain Catholic sites ofÌýpilgrimage were to change in the 16th Century.

Father Haley Dosser.

Henry VIII decided that the only way to defy the Pope and be allowed to marry his chosen bride, and have the heir he craved,Ìýwas to declare himself head of the Church of England, close the monasteries and destroy the symbols of Catholicism.

As across England Henry's men wreaked havoc, Suffolk churches were included in their destruction and the signs are still to be seen.

Retired Priest Haley Dosser explains: "St Mary at the Elms in Ipswich lost all its statues and finery.

"On the three niches above the door, which are still there today, you can see the axe marks on the stone. And all over Suffolk you'll see the same desecration that took place."

Many of England's medieval shrines were also destroyed, including a famous one in Suffolk's county town.

The medieval town of Ipswich was a busy maritime centre of trade and shipbuilding. Ships came into the town after sailing down the River Orwell and unloaded their cargoes of wines, furs, pottery and luxury goods into the dockside warehouses that were built behind the merchants' grand timber-framed houses.

Friars in their rough brown cassocks could be spotted preaching, hurrying to minister at the bedside of the sick or begging for alms. The inns and taverns of the town were full of pilgrims who flocked to the shrine of Our Lady of Grace in Lady Lane, near St Mary the Elm Church.

They would join with the town elders, bailiffs, the port men, Members of Parliament, and sometimes members of royalty in huge processions that would gather to worship at the shrine of the Madonna and child.

Queues of people waited to touch Our Lady's silver slippers, peeping from below her flowing robes.

But one night around 1535, under cover of darkness, the statue of Our Lady with her ornaments and jewels was removed from the shrine by Henry's men and was smuggled out of town destined for London and destruction.

But before she could be consigned to the bonfires she disappeared!

A journey to Italy

Fast forward to the Second World War and to Nettuno, a town in Italy that was heavily bombed before being liberated by the Allies. There, a statue of Our Lady of Grace, known locally as The English Lady, was discovered.

Lovingly cared for over 400 years, could it be the same statue that had disappeared from Ipswich centuries before?

In Nettuno the local children are taught the story of how Our Lady is believed to have arrived in their town, how a ship had set sail from England carrying the precious statue that had been rescued by sailors from Henry's fires and smuggled on board.

The ship was heading for Naples where the Madonna would be safe in the hands of devote Catholics.

Just as the ship reached the north east coastline of Italy a huge storm blew up and the ship had to hurry for shelter into the small port of Nettuno. Three times she tried to leave port and each time another storm blew up, forcing the ship to return.

The wooden replica of Our Lady Of Grace.

It was obvious to all that Our Lady of Grace intended to stay and the remainder of her journey to Naples was abandoned.

For the past few years a group of pilgrims has gone from Ipswich to join with the Italians celebrating Our Lady of Grace. This year the ecumenical pilgrimage was organised by The Society of Mary and included Catholics, members of the Church of England and Methodists and was led by Rt Revd Robert Ladds, Bishop of Whitby and Superior-General of the Society.

The Confraternity of Nettuno, the men and women who undertake to care for the shrine, raise thousands of euros each year to fund the annual week-long festivities.

They have developed strong links to the group in Suffolk who work to raise awareness of the history of the shrine of Our Lady, a history that is almost forgotten among Ipswich people.

As part of the Nettuno celebrations, thousands watch as the statue is taken down from high above the alter in the Basilica and, dressed in her finery, is taken in a grand procession through the streets for a week-long stay at the church of St. Giovanni.

The British pilgrims are now treated as honoured guests, but the Italians were initially rather worried by the party of Ipswich pilgrims, concerned they had come to claim back "their" Madonna. Once it was understood that was not the purpose of the pilgrimage all was well.

The 50 pilgrims visiting Nettuno this year obviously included many Suffolk people, but also in the party were members of the Society of Mary from London, Essex, York, Surrey and Lincolnshire.

Bishop Robert thought the pilgrimage to Italy demonstrated the wholeness of the Church: "That is, the Church worldwide, this sort of bond of friendship. Pilgrimage is just a moment in the pilgrimage of the whole journey of faith and of life and the Church."

The Madonna from Ipswich

So Ipswich lost her Madonna, and in 2007 just a replica statue in plain wood in St Mary at The Elm church, and a small plaque on the wall of a walkway remain to remind local people of the famous shrine that was once visited by pilgrims that included royalty.

So is the statue that is so revered in Nettuno really the one that was saved from Henry VIII and his bonfires?

Amongst the party of pilgrims was Simon Watney from London, who teaches conservation history and is a member of the Church Monuments Society.

"Precisely what date it is I wouldn’t like to say," Simon says. "I don't know what wood she's made of.

"I think she's had a new head and the baby looks to be a couple of hundred years younger than the body of the Madonna. Since in England we have such a gift for destroying our religious heritage all over the country, I think we should be grateful to the people of Nettuno for looking after our historic statues for us.

"As I understand it, when the statue was conserved earlier in the 20th Century they found an inscription at the base of the statue, in English, describing her as "Our Lady of Grace".

"From the middle of the 16th Century she was known as the English Madonna. Why would they have called her that if she hadn't come from England? It's feasible at least."

Each faith has its own beliefs and really the issue of any proof is immaterial to worshippers. Whether it is Muslems visiting Mecca to pray, Hindus going toÌýwash in the River Ganges, or Christians visiting important historic shrines, all report that they return to their normal lives with a renewed sense of belief and contentment, having re-evaluated their lives and faith.

So what of Our Lady of Grace and Ipswich? A few weeks after the 50 pilgrims from across England joined the tens of thousands of Italians in Nettuno to honour the statue of the Madonna and Child, a small group came to Ipswich to see her medieval home.

A small group processed from Lady Lane, now an alleyway between two shopping arcades, to St Mary of the Elms church proudly carrying banners and accompanied by one of the Prioresses from Nettuno.

There may not have been fireworks, stunning archways of lights or a multitude watching, but an important link between Christians of two countries was strengthened. I wonder what King Henry VIII would have thought?