129-612: Wilfrid ( c. 633 – 709 or 710) was an English bishop and saint . Born a Northumbrian noble, he entered religious life as a teenager and studied at Lindisfarne , at Canterbury , in Francia , and at Rome; he returned to Northumbria in about 660, and became the abbot of a newly founded monastery at Ripon . In 664 Wilfrid acted as spokesman for the Roman position at the Synod of Whitby , and became famous for his speech advocating that
258-575: A disc-binding notebook system Circa Theatre , in Wellington, New Zealand Clandestine Insurgent Rebel Clown Army , a UK activist group Circa News , an online news and entertainment service Circa Complex , twin skyscrapers in Los Angeles, California Circa (album) , an album by Michael Cain Circa Resort & Casino , a hotel in downtown Las Vegas Topics referred to by
387-506: A Frankish ceremony in his consecration of churches later in his life, as well as in his employment of Frankish masons to build his churches. Wilfrid would also have learned of the Rule of Saint Benedict in Gaul, as Columbanus' monasteries followed that monastic rule. After Wilfrid's return to Northumbria in about 658, Cenwalh , King of Wessex , recommended Wilfrid to Alhfrith , Oswiu's son, as
516-489: A bishop, and Colmán of Lindisfarne , the Bishop of Lindisfarne . Wilfrid was chosen to present the Roman position to the council; he also acted as Agilbert's interpreter, as the latter did not speak the local language. Bede describes Wilfrid as saying that those who did not calculate the date of Easter according to the Roman system were committing a sin. Wilfrid's speech in favour of adopting Roman church practices helped secure
645-687: A church at Melrose on a pagan site. Contemporaries said of him that he was the first native bishop to "introduce the Catholic way of life to the churches of the English". He did not neglect his pastoral duties in his diocese, making visits throughout the diocese to baptise and perform other episcopal functions, such as consecrating new churches. Some of the monasteries in his diocese were put under his protection by their abbots or abbesses, who were seeking someone to help protect their endowments. In ruling over such monasteries, Wilfrid may have been influenced by
774-520: A church in an abandoned Roman fort at Reculver . When Theodore, the newly appointed Archbishop of Canterbury, arrived in England in 669 it was clear that something had to be done about the situation in Northumbria. Ceadda's election to York was improper, and Theodore did not consider Ceadda's consecration to have been valid. Consequently, Theodore deposed Ceadda, leaving the way open for Wilfrid, who
903-491: A cleric well-versed in Roman customs and liturgy. Alhfrith was a sub-king of Deiria under his father's rule, and the most likely heir to his father's throne as his half-brothers were still young. Shortly before 664 Alhfrith gave Wilfrid a monastery he had recently founded at Ripon, formed around a group of monks from Melrose Abbey , followers of the Irish monastic customs . Wilfrid ejected the abbot, Eata, because he would not follow
1032-554: A close companion. Wilfrid introduced the Rule of Saint Benedict into the monasteries he founded. It appears likely that he was the first to introduce the Benedictine Rule into England, as evidence is lacking that Augustine 's monastery at Canterbury followed the Rule . He also was one of the first Anglo-Saxon bishops to record the gifts of land and property to his church, which he did at Ripon. Easter tables, used to calculate
1161-654: A contributing factor in Wilfrid's expulsion from York in 678. Kirby believes that Ecgfrith felt Wilfrid was promoting Oswald's branch of the Northumbrian royal family over his own. One of Wilfrid's protégés, Willibrord, became a missionary to the Frisians in 695, perhaps inspired by Wilfrid's example. Willibrord may have felt it expedient to leave Northumbria, where he was known as one of Wilfrid's followers. Wilfrid's network of monasteries extended across at least three of
1290-412: A council, as well as fears that if dissent over the date of Easter continued in the Northumbrian church it could lead to internal strife. The historian Richard Abels speculates that the expulsion of Eata from Ripon may have been the spark that led to the king's decision to call the council. Regional tensions within Northumbria between the two traditional divisions, Bernicia and Deira, appear to have played
1419-515: A council, which declared that the King of Northumbria should follow the earlier papal decrees restoring Wilfrid to his see. Wilfrid was disconcerted to find that the papal court spoke Greek, and his biographer noted that Wilfrid was displeased when the pope discussed the appeal with advisers in a language Wilfrid could not understand. The pope also ordered another council to be held in Britain to decide
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#17327913927021548-603: A few months before he was expelled to make way for Aldfrith's son Osred , to whom Wilfrid acted as spiritual adviser. Wilfrid may have been one of Osred's chief supporters, along with Oswiu's daughter Abbess Ælfflæd of Whitby, and the nobleman Beornhæth . Once Osred was secure on the throne Wilfrid was restored to Ripon and Hexham in 706. When Bosa of York died, Wilfrid did not contest the decision to appoint John of Beverley to York. This appointment meant John's transfer from Hexham, leaving Wilfrid free to perform episcopal functions at Hexham, which he did until his death. Sometime after
1677-556: A letter of introduction to pass to her cousin, King Eorcenberht , to ensure that Wilfrid was received by the king. While in Kent, Wilfrid's career was advanced by Eanflæd's cousin Hlothere , who was later the King of Kent from 673 to 685. The Kentish court included a number of visiting clergymen at that time, including Benedict Biscop , a noted missionary. Wilfrid appears to have spent about
1806-512: A monk on the island of Lindisfarne. The monastery on the island had recently been founded by Aidan , who had been instrumental in converting Northumbria to Christianity. At Lindisfarne Wilfrid is said to have "learned the whole Psalter by heart and several books". Wilfrid studied at Lindisfarne for a few years before going to the Kentish king's court at Canterbury in 652, where he stayed with relatives of Queen Eanflæd. The queen had given Wilfrid
1935-713: A number of small kingdoms. Traditionally the English people were thought to have been divided into seven kingdoms, but modern historiography has shown that this is a simplification of a much more confused situation. A late 7th-century source, the Tribal Hidage , lists the peoples south of the Humber river; among the largest groups of peoples are the West Saxons (later Wessex ), the East Angles and Mercians (later
2064-518: A number of territories south of the Humber, which has been variously dated from the mid-7th to the second half of the 8th century". Most of the kingdoms of the Heptarchy are included. Mercia, which is assigned 30,000 hides, is at the top at the list, followed by a number of small tribes to the west and north of Mercia, all of which have no more than 7000 hides listed. Other named tribes have even smaller hidages, of between 300 and 1200 hides: of these
2193-631: A part, as churchmen in Bernicia favoured the Celtic method of dating and those in Deira may have leaned towards the Roman method. Abels identifies several conflicts contributing to both the calling of the council and its outcome, including a generational conflict between Oswiu and Alhfrith and the death of the Archbishop of Canterbury, Deusdedit . Political concerns unrelated to the dating problem, such as
2322-557: A question mark over Wilfrid's appointment as bishop. Before Wilfrid's return Oswiu had appointed Ceadda in his place, resulting in Wilfrid's retirement to Ripon for a few years following his arrival back in Northumbria. After becoming Archbishop of Canterbury in 668, Theodore of Tarsus resolved the situation by deposing Ceadda and restoring Wilfrid as the Bishop of Northumbria. For the next nine years Wilfrid discharged his episcopal duties, founded monasteries, built churches, and improved
2451-571: A record of native English custom". The other two are a century older: one is flawed and may have been a scribe's exercise, and the other was part of a set of legal texts. Historians disagree on the date for the original compilation of the list. According to Campbell, who notes the plausibility of it being produced during the rise of Mercia, it can probably be dated to the 7th or 8th century. Other historians, such as J. Brownbill, Barbara Yorke , Frank Stenton and Cyril Roy Hart , have written that it originated from Mercia at around this time, but differ on
2580-596: A short time in the kingdom of the Middle Angles and at Wessex, but soon took refuge in Sussex with King Æthelwealh of Sussex . Wilfrid spent the next five years preaching to, and converting the pagan inhabitants of Sussex, the South Saxons. He also founded Selsey Abbey , on an estate near Selsey of 87 hides , given to Wilfrid by Æthelwealh, king of the South Saxons. Bede attributes Wilfrid's ability to convert
2709-435: A time he acted as administrator of the see of Lindisfarne after Cuthbert's death in 687. In 691, the subdivision issue arose once more, along with quarrels with King Aldfrith over lands, and attempts were made to make Wilfrid either give up all his lands or to stay confined to Ripon. A proposal to turn Ripon into a bishopric was also a source of dispute. When no compromise was possible Wilfrid left Northumbria for Mercia, and Bosa
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#17327913927022838-519: A tribute list created for Offa, but acknowledges that no proof exists that it was compiled during his rule. Higham notes that the syntax of the text requires that a word implying 'tribute' was omitted from each line, and argues that it was "almost certainly a tribute list". To Higham, the large size of the West Saxon hidation indicates that there was a link between the scale of tribute and any political considerations. James Campbell has argued that if
2967-409: A year in Kent, but the exact chronology is uncertain. Wilfrid left Kent for Rome in the company of Benedict Biscop, another of Eanflæd's contacts. This is the first pilgrimage to Rome known to have been undertaken by English natives, and took place some time between 653 and 658. According to Wilfrid's later biographer, Stephen of Ripon, Wilfrid left Biscop's company at Lyon , where Wilfrid stayed under
3096-692: Is a list of thirty-five tribes that was compiled in Anglo-Saxon England some time between the 7th and 9th centuries. It includes a number of independent kingdoms and other smaller territories, and assigns a number of hides to each one. The list is headed by Mercia and consists almost exclusively of peoples who lived south of the Humber estuary and territories that surrounded the Mercian kingdom, some of which have never been satisfactorily identified by scholars. The value of 100,000 hides for Wessex
3225-584: Is a valuable record for historians. It is unique in that no similar text has survived: the document is one of a very few to survive out of a great many records that were produced by the administrators of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, a "chance survivor" of many more documents, as Campbell has suggested. Hart has observed that "as a detailed record of historical topography it has no parallel in the whole of western Europe". The Tribal Hidage lists several minor kingdoms and tribes that are not recorded anywhere else and
3354-404: Is assessed at 100,000 hides. The round figures of the hidage assessments make it unlikely they were the result of an accurate survey. The methods of assessment used probably differed according to the size of the region. The figures may be of purely symbolic significance, reflecting the status of each tribe at the time it was assessed. The totals given within the text for the figures suggest that
3483-561: Is based on the wording used in the founding charters resembling wording used by Wilfrid in other charters, not on any concrete statements that Wilfrid was involved. In 686 Wilfrid was recalled to Northumbria after the death of Ecgfrith in battle with the Picts. During the 680s Theodore had created two more dioceses in Northumbria, at Ripon, and at Abercorn in the Pictish kingdom, but both were short-lived. After Ecgfrith's death, Theodore wrote to
3612-467: Is by far the largest: it has been suggested that this was a deliberate exaggeration. The original purpose of the Tribal Hidage remains unknown: it could be a tribute list created by a king, but other purposes have been suggested. The hidage figures may be symbolic, reflecting the prestige of each territory, or they may represent an early example of book-keeping. Many historians are convinced that
3741-549: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Tribal Hidage Pontic Steppe Caucasus East Asia Eastern Europe Northern Europe Pontic Steppe Northern/Eastern Steppe Europe South Asia Steppe Europe Caucasus India Indo-Aryans Iranians East Asia Europe East Asia Europe Indo-Aryan Iranian Indo-Aryan Iranian Others European The Tribal Hidage
3870-401: Is generally agreed to be the earliest fiscal document that has survived from medieval England. Historians have used the Tribal Hidage to provide evidence for the political organisation of Anglo-Saxon England and it has been "pressed into service by those seeking to interpret the nature and geography of kingships and of 'peoples' in pre-Viking England", according to N. J. Higham. In particular,
3999-588: Is held to have been transferred to Hexham. Wilfrid became involved in the missionary efforts to the Frisians , which he had started in 678 during his stay in Frisia. Wilfrid helped the missionary efforts of Willibrord , which were more successful than his own earlier attempts. Willibrord was a monk of Ripon who was also a native of Northumbria. Wilfrid was present at the exhumation of the body of Queen Æthelthryth at Ely Abbey in 695. He had been her spiritual adviser in
Wilfrid - Misplaced Pages Continue
4128-473: Is highly influenced by the contemporary concerns of its writer, but does attempt to provide some new material besides reworking Bede. Many historians, including the editor of Bede's works, Charles Plummer , have seen in Bede's writings a dislike of Wilfrid. The historian Walter Goffart goes further, suggesting that Bede wrote his Historia as a reaction to Stephen's Vita Sancti Wilfrithi , and that Stephen's work
4257-543: Is highly partisan. Another concern is that hagiographies were usually full of conventional material, often repeated from earlier saints' lives, as was the case with Stephen's work. It appears that the Vita Sancti Wilfrithi was not well known in the Middle Ages, as only two manuscripts of the work survive. Bede also covers Wilfrid's life in his Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum , but this account
4386-529: Is more measured and restrained than the Vita . In the Historia , Bede used Stephen's Vita as a source, reworking the information and adding new material when possible. Other, more minor, sources for Wilfrid's life include a mention of Wilfrid in one of Bede's letters. A poetical Vita Sancti Wilfrithi by Frithegod written in the 10th century is essentially a rewrite of Stephen's Vita , produced in celebration of
4515-687: The Gregorian mission , a group of Roman missionaries who arrived in Kent in 597 and who mainly influenced southern Britain. Others had been converted by the Hiberno-Scottish mission, chiefly Irish missionaries working in Northumbria and neighbouring kingdoms. A few kingdoms, such as Dál Riata, became Christian but how they did so is unknown. The native Picts, according to the medieval writer Bede, were converted in two stages, initially by native Britons under Ninian , and subsequently by Irish missionaries. The main sources for knowledge of Wilfrid are
4644-612: The Herefinna , Noxgaga , Hendrica and Unecungaga cannot be identified, whilst the others have been tentatively located around the south of England and in the border region between Mercia and East Anglia . Ohtgaga can be heard as Jute gaga and understood as the area settled by Jutes in and near the Meon Valley of Hampshire . The term'-gaga' is a late copyist mistranscription of the Old English '-wara' (people/ men of)
4773-567: The Kingdom of Strathclyde , survived as an independent power into the 10th century in the area which became modern-day Dunbartonshire and Clydesdale . To the north-west of Strathclyde lay the Gaelic kingdom of Dál Riata , and to the north-east a small number of Pictish kingdoms. Further north still lay the great Pictish kingdom of Fortriu , which after the Battle of Dun Nechtain in 685 came to be
4902-477: The liturgy . However his diocese was very large, and Theodore wished to reform the English Church, a process which included breaking up some of the larger dioceses into smaller ones. When Wilfrid quarrelled with Ecgfrith , the Northumbrian king, Theodore took the opportunity to implement his reforms despite Wilfrid's objections. After Ecgfrith expelled him from York, Wilfrid travelled to Rome to appeal to
5031-499: The "Celtic" party at Whitby, or been trained by those who were. Eata had also been ejected from Ripon by Wilfrid. The new bishops were unacceptable to Wilfrid, who claimed they were not truly members of the Church because of their support for the "Celtic" method of dating Easter, and thus he could not serve alongside them. Another possible problem for Wilfrid was that the three new bishops did not come from Wilfrid's monastic houses nor from
5160-417: The 11th century and is part of a miscellany of works; another is contained in a 17th-century Latin treatise; the third, which has survived in six mediaeval manuscripts , has omissions and spelling variations. All three versions appear to be based on the same lost manuscript: historians have been unable to establish a date for the original compilation. The Tribal Hidage has been used to construct theories about
5289-857: The 11th century. It is included in a miscellany of works, written in Old English and Latin, with Aelfric 's Latin Grammar and his homily De initio creaturæ , written in 1034, and now in the British Library . It was written by different scribes, at a date no later than 1032. Recension B, which resembles Recension A, is contained in a 17th-century Latin treatise, Archaeologus in Modum Glossarii ad rem antiquam posteriorem , written by Henry Spelman in 1626. The tribal names are given in Old English. There are significant differences in spelling between A and B (for instance Spelman's use of
Wilfrid - Misplaced Pages Continue
5418-452: The 670s, and had helped the queen become a nun against the wishes of her husband King Ecgfrith of Northumbria. The queen had joined Ely Abbey, where she died in 679. The ceremony in 695 found that her body had not decayed, which led to her being declared a saint. Wilfrid's testimony as to the character and virginity of Æthelthryth was recorded by Bede. In about 700, Wilfrid appealed once more to Pope Sergius I over his expulsion from York, and
5547-588: The Irish model of a group of monasteries all ruled by one person, sometimes while holding episcopal office. Wilfrid was criticised for dressing his household and servants in clothing fit for royalty. He was accompanied on his travels by a retinue of warriors, one of whom, while at York, Wilfrid sent to abduct a young boy who had been promised to the church but whose family had changed their mind. Wilfrid also educated young men, both for clerical and secular careers. In 677 or 678, Wilfrid and Ecgfrith quarrelled, and Wilfrid
5676-663: The Kingdom of Mercia), and the Kingdom of Kent . Smaller groups who at that time had their own royalty but were later absorbed into larger kingdoms include the peoples of Magonsæte , Lindsey, Hwicce , the East Saxons , the South Saxons, the Isle of Wight, and the Middle Angles . Other even smaller groups had their own rulers, but their size means that they do not often appear in the histories. There were also native Britons in
5805-590: The Pictish regions is provided by the establishment for the Picts in 681 of a diocese centred on Abercorn , in the old territory of the British kingdom of Gododdin. The grants of land to Wilfrid west of the Pennines testify to Northumbrian expansion in that area. The Vita Sancti Wilfrithi claims that Wilfrid had ecclesiastical rule over Britons and Gaels. In 679, while Wilfrid was in Rome, he claimed authority over "all
5934-456: The Roman calculation for the date of Easter should be adopted, and that bishops should act only in their own dioceses. During the middle 670s Wilfrid acted as middleman in the negotiations to return a Merovingian prince, Dagobert II , from his exile in Ireland to Gaul. Wilfrid was one of the first churchmen in Northumbria to use written charters as records of gifts to his churches. He ordered
6063-428: The Roman customs; Cuthbert , later a saint, was another of the monks expelled. Wilfrid introduced the Rule of Saint Benedict into Ripon, claiming that he was the first person in England to make a monastery follow it, but this claim rests on the Vita Sancti Wilfrithi and does not say where Wilfrid became knowledgeable about the Rule , nor exactly what form of the Rule was being referred to. Shortly afterwards Wilfrid
6192-410: The Roman method for calculating the date of Easter should be adopted. His success prompted the king's son, Alhfrith , to appoint him Bishop of Northumbria. Wilfrid chose to be consecrated in Gaul because of the lack of what he considered to be validly consecrated bishops in England at that time. During Wilfrid's absence Alhfrith seems to have led an unsuccessful revolt against his father, Oswiu , leaving
6321-544: The Selsey area and Wilfrid built his cathedral church near the entrance to Pagham Harbour , believed to be what is now Church Norton . Cædwalla sent Wilfrid to the Isle of Wight , which was still pagan, with the aim of converting the inhabitants. The king also gave Wilfrid a quarter of the land on the island as a gift. In 688, the king relinquished his throne and went on a pilgrimage to Rome to be baptised, but died shortly after
6450-507: The South Saxons to his teaching them how to fish, and contrasts it with the lack of success of the Irish monk Dicuill. Bede also says that the Sussex area had been experiencing a drought for three years before Wilfrid's arrival, but miraculously when Wilfrid arrived, and started baptising converts, rain began to fall. Wilfrid worked with Bishop Erkenwald of London, helping to set up the church in Sussex. Erkenwald also helped reconcile Wilfrid and Theodore before Theodore's death in 690. The mission
6579-507: The Tribal Hidage in his first volume of Glossarium Archaiologicum (1626) and there is also a version of the text in a book written in 1691 by Thomas Gale , but no actual discussion of the Tribal Hidage emerged until 1848, when John Mitchell Kemble 's The Saxons in England was published. In 1884, Walter de Gray Birch wrote a paper for the British Archaeological Association , in which he discussed in detail
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#17327913927026708-451: The Tribal Hidage is unknown. Over the years different theories have been suggested for its purpose, linked with a range of dates for its creation. The Tribal Hidage could have been a tribute list created upon the instructions of an Anglo-Saxon king such as Offa of Mercia , Wulfhere of Mercia or Edwin of Northumbria — but it may have been used for different purposes at various times during its history. Cyril Hart has described it as
6837-591: The Tribal Hidage originated from Mercia, which dominated southern Anglo-Saxon England until the start of the 9th century, but others have argued that the text was Northumbrian in origin. The Tribal Hidage has been of importance to historians since the middle of the 19th century, partly because it mentions territories unrecorded in other documents. Attempts to link all the names in the list with modern places are highly speculative and resulting maps are treated with caution. Three different versions (or recensions ) have survived, two of which resemble each other: one dates from
6966-490: The Tribal Hidage was perhaps used as a form of book-keeping. Frank Stenton describes the hidage figures given for the Heptarchy kingdoms as exaggerated and in the instances of Mercia and Wessex, "entirely at variance with other information". A manuscript, now lost, was originally used to produce the three recensions of the Tribal Hidage, named A, B and C. Recension A, which is the earliest and most complete, dates from
7095-527: The Whitby decision left Northumbria, some going to Ireland and others to Iona. After the supporters of the Celtic dating had withdrawn following the Council of Whitby, Wilfrid became the most prominent Northumbrian cleric. As a result, and because of his performance at Whitby, Wilfrid was elected to a bishopric in Northumbria about a year after the council. It is unclear where his diocese was located, although he
7224-480: The antiquity of Spelman's document and used historical texts (such as Bede 's Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum ) to assess its date of origin. He proposed locations for each tribe, without attempting to locate each one, and suggested that some Anglo-Saxon peoples were missing from the document. Birch, in his paper An Unpublished Manuscript of some Early Territorial Names in England , announced his discovery of what became known as Recension A, which he suggested
7353-518: The cathedral's roof was on the point of collapse; he had it repaired and covered in lead, and had glass set in the windows. The historian Barbara Yorke says of Wilfrid at this time that he "seems to have continued a campaign against any survival of 'Irish errors' and distrusted any communities that remained in contact with Iona or other Irish religious houses which did not follow the Roman Easter". He also worked to combat pagan practices, building
7482-532: The ceremony. Wilfrid was probably influential in Cædwalla's decision to be baptised in Rome. During his time in Sussex Wilfrid was reconciled with Archbishop Theodore; the Vita Sancti Wilfrithi says that Theodore expressed a desire for Wilfrid to succeed him at Canterbury. Wilfrid may have been involved in founding monasteries near Bath as well as in other parts of Sussex, but the evidence backing this
7611-464: The citation itself gives a date, but the letter has been assigned to Wilfrid's exile under Aldfrith in the 690s. During his stay in Mercia Wilfrid acted as bishop with the consent of King Æthelred. Information on Wilfrid's life at this time is meagre, as the Vita Sancti Wilfrithi says little of this period. He is generally considered to have been Bishop of Leicester until about 706, when he
7740-434: The clergy. Bede is silent on the subject of Wilfrid's monastic status, although Wilfrid probably became a monk during his time in Rome, or afterwards while he was in Gaul. Some historians, however, believe that Wilfrid was never a monk. While in Gaul, Wilfrid absorbed Frankish ecclesiastical practices, including some aspects from the monasteries founded by Columbanus . This influence may be seen in Wilfrid's probable adoption of
7869-481: The communities where the bishops' seats were based. This was contrary to the custom of the time, which was to promote bishoprics from within the locality. Wilfrid's deposition became tangled up in a dispute over whether or not the Gregorian plan for Britain, with two metropolitan sees, the northern one set at York, would be followed through or abandoned. Wilfrid seems to have felt that he had metropolitan authority over
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#17327913927027998-509: The continent, and ended up in Frisia according to some historians. Others state that he intended to journey via Frisia to avoid Neustria , whose Mayor of the Palace , Ebroin , disliked Wilfrid. He wintered in Frisia, avoiding the diplomatic efforts of Ebroin, who according to Stephen attempted to have Wilfrid killed. During his stay, Wilfrid attempted to convert the Frisians, who were still pagan at that time. Wilfrid's biographer says that most of
8127-558: The correct date to celebrate Easter, were brought in from Rome where the Dionysiac Easter tables had been recently introduced. He set up schools and became a religious advisor to the Northumbrian queen Æthelthryth , first wife of Ecgfrith . Æthelthryth donated the land at Hexham where Wilfrid founded a monastery and built a church using some recycled stones from the Roman town of Corbridge . When Wilfrid arrived in York as bishop
8256-483: The creation of a listing of all benefactions received by Ripon, which was recited at the dedication ceremony. Wilfrid was an advocate for the use of music in ecclesiastical ceremonies. He sent to Kent for a singing master to instruct his clergy in the Roman style of church music, which involved a double choir who sang in antiphons and responses. Bede says that this singing master was named Æddi (or Eddius in Latin) and had
8385-455: The decision. His opponents in Northumbria excommunicated him, but the papacy upheld Wilfrid's side, and he regained possession of Ripon and Hexham , his Northumbrian monasteries. Wilfrid died in 709 or 710. After his death, he was venerated as a saint. Historians then and now have been divided over Wilfrid. His followers commissioned Stephen of Ripon to write a Vita Sancti Wilfrithi (or Life of Saint Wilfrid ) shortly after his death, and
8514-520: The decline of Oswiu's preeminence among the other English kingdoms and the challenge to that position by Mercia, were also factors. Wilfrid attended the synod, or council, of Whitby, as a member of the party favouring the continental practice of dating Easter, along with James the Deacon , Agilbert, and Alhfrith. Those supporting the "Celtic" viewpoint were King Oswiu, Hilda , the Abbess of Whitby, Cedd ,
8643-425: The diocesan bishops. Wilfrid returned to England after the council via Gaul. According to Stephen of Ripon, after the death of Dagobert II, Ebroin wished to imprison Wilfrid, but Wilfrid miraculously escaped. In 680 Wilfrid returned to Northumbria and appeared before a royal council. He produced the papal decree ordering his restoration, but was instead briefly imprisoned and then exiled by the king. Wilfrid stayed for
8772-445: The discrepancies between the two sources. One is that Alhfrith wished the seat to be at York, another is that Wilfrid was bishop only in Deira, a third supposes that Wilfrid was never bishop at York and that his diocese was only part of Deira. At that time the Anglo-Saxon dioceses were not strictly speaking geographical designations, rather they were bishoprics for the tribes or peoples. Wilfrid refused to be consecrated in Northumbria at
8901-459: The eclipse of the "Celtic" party in 664, although most Irish churches did not adopt the Roman date of Easter until 704, and Iona held out until 716. Many of the Irish monasteries did not observe the Roman Easter, but they were not isolated from the continent; by the time of Whitby the southern Irish were already observing the Roman Easter date, and Irish clergy were in contact with their continental counterparts. Those monks and clergy unable to accept
9030-420: The figures in the Tribal Hidage and used his own calculations to conclude that the figures were probably exaggerated. John Brownbill advised against using Latin versions of the document, which he described as error-prone. He determined that the Old English manuscript was written in 1032 and was a copy of an original Mercian manuscript. Chadwick attempted to allocate each tribe to one or more English shires , with
9159-613: The 💕 [REDACTED] Look up circa in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Circa is a Latin word meaning "around, approximately". Circa or CIRCA may also refer to: CIRCA (art platform) , art platform based in London Circa (band) , a progressive rock supergroup Circa (company) , an American skateboard footwear company Circa (contemporary circus) , an Australian contemporary circus company Circa District , Abancay Province, Peru Circa,
9288-465: The hands of Anglo-Saxon bishops. Deusdedit had died shortly after Whitby, and as there were no other bishops in Britain whom Wilfrid considered to have been validly consecrated he travelled to Compiègne , to be consecrated by Agilbert, the Bishop of Paris . During his time in Gaul Wilfrid was exposed to a higher level of ceremony than that practised in Northumbria, one example of which is that he
9417-449: The identity of the Mercian ruler under whom the list was compiled. Wendy Davies and Hayo Vierck have placed the document's origin more precisely at 670-690. There is near universal agreement that the text originates from Mercia, partly because its kings held extensive power over other territories from the late 7th to the early 9th centuries, but also because the list, headed by Mercia, is almost exclusively of peoples who lived south of
9546-416: The issue, and ordered the attendance of Bosa, Berhtwald and Wilfrid. On his journey back to England Wilfrid had a seizure at Meaux , but he had returned to Kent by 705. Aldfrith died soon after Wilfrid's arrival back in England. The new king, Eadwulf , had been considered one of Wilfrid's friends, but after his accession to the throne he ordered Wilfrid to stay out of Northumbria. Eadwulf's reign lasted only
9675-412: The kingdoms of England in his day. They included Hexham, Ripon, Selsey, and Oundle , as well as possibly Peterborough , Brixworth , Evesham , Wing , and Withington . At his monasteries and dioceses he built churches in a style akin to that of the continent and Rome, travelling between them with a large entourage of up to 120 followers. He made many contacts and friends, not only in Northumbria and
9804-615: The lands Wilfrid used to found Hexham Abbey, and the historian N. J. Higham argues that they had been part of the queen's dower lands , which, when Ecgfrith remarried, his new queen wanted to recover. The historian Eric John feels that Wilfrid's close ties with the Mercian kingdom also contributed to his troubles with Egfrith, although John points out that these ties were necessary for Wilfrid's monastic foundations, some of which were in Mercia. Wilfrid not only lost his diocese, he lost control of his monasteries as well. Theodore took advantage of
9933-637: The letter forms of 'w' wynn and the long-tailed ' r ' being read as 'g'. A number of territories, such as the Hicca , have only been located by means of place-names evidence. The list concludes with several other kingdoms from the Heptarchy: the East Angles (who are assessed at 30,000 hides), the East Saxons (7,000 hides), Kent (15,000 hides), the South Saxons (7,000 hides) and Wessex, which
10062-407: The list is of Northumbrian origin, which would account for the inclusion of Elmet and the absence of the Northumbrian kingdoms of Deira and Bernicia . Mercia would not have been listed, as "an early mediaeval king did not impose tribute upon his own kingdom": it must have been a list produced by another kingdom, perhaps with an altogether different purpose. N. J. Higham has argued that because
10191-438: The list served any practical purpose, it implies that tributes were assessed and obtained in an organised way, and notes that, "whatever it is, and whatever it means, it indicates a degree of orderliness, or coherence in the exercise of power...". Yorke acknowledges that the purpose of the Tribal Hidage is unknown and that it may well not be, as has been commonly argued, an overlord's tribute list. She warns against assuming that
10320-530: The location of each of the tribes. The term Tribal Hidage was introduced by Frederic William Maitland in 1897, in his book Domesday Book and Beyond . During the following decades, articles were published by William John Corbett (1900), Hector Munro Chadwick (1905) and John Brownbill (1912 and 1925). The most important subsequent accounts of the Tribal Hidage since Corbett, according to Campbell, are by Josiah Cox Russell (1947), Hart (1971), Davies and Vierck (1974) and David Dumville (1989). Kemble recognised
10449-434: The medieval Vita Sancti Wilfrithi , written by Stephen of Ripon soon after Wilfrid's death, and the works of the medieval historian Bede, who knew Wilfrid during the bishop's lifetime. Stephen's Vita is a hagiography, intended to show Wilfrid as a saintly man, and to buttress claims that he was a saint. The Vita is selective in its coverage, and gives short shrift to Wilfrid's activities outside of Northumbria. Two-thirds of
10578-560: The medieval historian Bede also wrote extensively about him. Wilfrid lived ostentatiously, and travelled with a large retinue. He ruled a large number of monasteries, and claimed to be the first Englishman to introduce the Rule of Saint Benedict into English monasteries. Some modern historians see him mainly as a champion of Roman customs against the customs of the British and Irish churches , others as an advocate for monasticism . During Wilfrid's lifetime Britain and Ireland consisted of
10707-495: The minor peoples (of 7000 hides or less) possessed any "means of defining themselves as a distinct gentes ". Among these, the Isle of Wight and the South Gyrwe tribes, tiny in terms of their hidages and geographically isolated from other peoples, were among the few who possessed their own royal dynasties. P. H. Sawyer argues that the values may have had a symbolic purpose and that they were intended to be an expression of
10836-442: The mostly favourable outcome was that Agatho wished for Wilfrid's support and testimony that the English Church was free of the monothelete heresy. Although Wilfrid did not win a complete victory, he did secure a papal decree limiting the number of dioceses in England to 12. Wilfrid also secured the right for his monasteries of Ripon and Hexham to be directly supervised by the pope, preventing any further interference in their affairs by
10965-542: The movement of Wilfrid's relics to Canterbury. Wilfrid is also mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , but as the Chronicle was probably a 9th-century compilation, the material on Wilfrid may ultimately have derived either from Stephen's Vita or from Bede. Another, later, source is the Vita Sancti Wilfrithi written by Eadmer , a 12th-century Anglo-Norman writer and monk from Canterbury. This source
11094-598: The new Northumbrian king, Aldfrith , to allow Wilfrid's return. Aldfrith agreed to do so, but in 691 he expelled Wilfrid again. Wilfrid went to Mercia, where he helped missionaries and acted as bishop for the Mercian king. Wilfrid appealed to the papacy about his expulsion in 700, and the pope ordered that an English council should be held to decide the issue. This council, held at Austerfield in South Yorkshire in 702, attempted to confiscate all of Wilfrid's possessions, and so Wilfrid travelled to Rome to appeal against
11223-492: The new archbishop of Canterbury, and the decision of the council was that Wilfrid should be deprived of all his monasteries but Ripon, and that he should cease to perform episcopal functions. When Wilfrid continued his appeal to the papacy, his opponents had him and his supporters excommunicated . On his way to Rome Wilfrid stopped in Frisia to visit Willibrord. Following Wilfrid's arrival in Rome Pope John VI held
11352-435: The new king of Northumbria, Aldfrith, and to Æthelred , king of Mercia and the Abbess of Whitby, Ælfflæd, suggesting that an agreement be made allowing Wilfrid's return to Northumbria. Aldfrith agreed, Wilfrid returned to the north, and Bosa was removed from York. Wilfrid did not recover the whole of his previous bishopric however, as Hexham and Lindisfarne remained separate sees. Wilfrid appears to have lived at Ripon, and for
11481-628: The nobles converted, but the success was short-lived. After Frisia, he stopped at the court of Dagobert II in Austrasia, where the king offered Wilfrid the Bishopric of Strasbourg , which Wilfrid refused. Once in Italy, Wilfrid was received by Perctarit , a Lombard king, who gave him a place at his court. Pope Agatho held a synod in October 679, which although it ordered Wilfrid's restoration and
11610-522: The northern part of Britain, Ireland and the islands, which are inhabited by English and British peoples, as well as by Gaelic and Pictish peoples". Wilfrid did not attend the Council of Hertford held in September 672, but he did send representatives. Among the council's resolutions was one postponing a decision on the creation of new dioceses, which affected Wilfrid later. Another ruling confirmed that
11739-601: The northern part of England, but Theodore never acknowledged that claim, instead claiming authority over the whole of the island of Britain. Wilfrid went to Rome after his expulsion to appeal against Theodore and Ecgfrith's decisions, the first Englishman to challenge a royal or ecclesiastical decision by petitioning the papacy. On the way he stopped at the court of Aldgisl , the Frisian king in Utrecht for most of 678. Wilfrid had been blown off course on his trip from England to
11868-474: The original information cannot be dated and the largest Northumbrian kingdoms are not included, it cannot be proved to be a Mercian tribute list. He notes that Elmet, never a province of Mercia, is on the list, and suggests that it was drawn up by Edwin of Northumbria in the 620s, probably originating when a Northumbrian king last exercised imperium over the Southumbrian kingdoms. According to Higham,
11997-540: The other English kingdoms, but also in Gaul, Frisia, and Italy. Nobles sent their sons to him for fostering , and Wilfrid was known to help his protégés, no matter if they became clerics or not. The historian Peter Brown speculated that one reason for Wilfrid's exile in 678 was that he was overshadowing the king as a patron. His contacts extended to the Lombard kingdom in Italy, where they included King Perctarit and his son Cunipert . circa#English From Misplaced Pages,
12126-544: The papacy. Pope Agatho ruled in Wilfrid's favour, but Ecgfrith refused to honour the papal decree and instead imprisoned Wilfrid on his return to Northumbria before exiling him. Wilfrid spent the next few years in Selsey , now in West Sussex , where he founded an episcopal see and converted the pagan inhabitants of the Kingdom of Sussex to Christianity. Theodore and Wilfrid settled their differences, and Theodore urged
12255-474: The patronage of Annemund , the archbishop. Stephen says that Annemund wanted to marry Wilfrid to the archbishop's niece, and to make Wilfrid the governor of a Frankish province, but that Wilfrid refused and continued on his journey to Rome. There he learned the Roman method of calculating the date of Easter , and studied the Roman practice of relic collecting. He developed a close friendship with Boniface Consiliarius during his time in Rome. After an audience with
12384-579: The political organisation of the Anglo-Saxons, and to give an insight into the Mercian state and its neighbours when Mercia held hegemony over them. It has been used to support theories of the origin of the listed tribes and the way in which they were systematically assessed and ruled by others. Some historians have proposed that the Tribal Hidage is not a list of peoples, but of administrative areas. The Tribal Hidage is, according to historian D. P. Kirby, "a list of total assessments in terms of hides for
12513-401: The pope referred the issue back to a council in England. In 702 King Aldfrith held a council at Austerfield that upheld Wilfrid's expulsion, and once more Wilfrid travelled to Rome to appeal to the pope. The Vita Sancti Wilfrithi gives a speech, supposedly delivered by Wilfrid there, in defence of Wilfrid's record over the previous 40 years. The council was presided over by Berhtwald ,
12642-476: The pope, Wilfrid returned to Lyon. Stephen of Ripon says that Wilfrid stayed in Lyon for three years, leaving only after the archbishop's murder. However, Annemund's murder took place in 660 and Wilfrid returned to England in 658, suggesting that Stephen's chronology is awry. Stephen says that Annemund gave Wilfrid a clerical tonsure , although this does not appear to mean that he became a monk, merely that he entered
12771-420: The rebellion happened shortly after Whitby, perhaps while Wilfrid was in Gaul for his consecration. Because Oswiu knew that Alhfrith had been a supporter of Wilfrid's, Oswiu prevented Wilfrid's return, suspecting Wilfrid of supporting his rivals. That Ceadda was supported by Oswiu, and Wilfrid had been a supporter of Oswiu's son, lends further credence to the theory that Alhfrith's rebellion took place while Wilfrid
12900-466: The return of the monasteries to his control, also directed that the new dioceses should be retained. Wilfrid was given the right to replace any bishop in the new dioceses to whom he objected. The council had been called to deal with the Monothelete controversy , and Wilfrid's concerns were not the sole focus of the council. In fact, the historian Henry Chadwick thought that one reason Wilfrid secured
13029-472: The river Humber. Featherstone concludes that the original material, dating from the late 7th century, was used to be included in a late 9th century document and asserts that the Mercian kingdom "was at the centre of the world mapped out by the Tribal Hidage". Frank Stenton wrote that "the Tribal Hidage was almost certainly compiled in Mercia", whilst acknowledging a lack of conclusive evidence. In contrast to most historians, Nicholas Brooks has suggested that
13158-407: The same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Circa . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Circa&oldid=1229862730 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
13287-503: The situation to implement decrees of some councils on dividing up large dioceses. Theodore set up new bishoprics from Wilfrid's diocese, with seats at York , Hexham, Lindisfarne, and one in the region of Lindsey . The Lindsey see was quickly absorbed by the Diocese of Lichfield , but the other three remained separate. The bishops chosen for these sees, Eata at Hexham, Eadhæd at Lindsey, and Bosa at York, had all either been supporters of
13416-505: The status of each kingdom and province. To Sawyer, the obscurity of some of the tribal names and the absence from the list of others points to an early date for the original text, which he describes as a "monument to Mercian power". The 100,000 hides assigned to Wessex may have reflected its superior status at a later date and would imply that the Tribal Hidage in its present form was written in Wessex. The very large hidage assessment for Wessex
13545-630: The strongest power in the northern half of Britain. The Irish had always had contacts with the rest of the British Isles, and during the early 6th century they emigrated from the island of Ireland to form the kingdom of Dál Riata, although exactly how much conquest took place is a matter of dispute with historians. It also appears likely that the Irish settled in parts of Wales, and even after the period of Irish settlement, Irish missionaries were active in Britain. Christianity had only recently arrived in some of these kingdoms. Some had been converted by
13674-417: The surname Stephen. Traditionally historians have identified Æddi as Stephen of Ripon, author of the Vita Sancti Wilfrithi , which has led to the assumption that the Vita was based on the recollections of one of Wilfrid's long-time companions. Recent scholarship has come to believe that the Vita was not authored by the singing master, but by someone who joined Wilfrid in the last years of Wilfrid's life, not
13803-582: The three years from 665 to 668 as abbot of the monastery at Ripon. He occasionally performed episcopal functions in Mercia and Kent, but never did so north of the river Humber . The historian James Fraser argues that Wilfrid may not have been allowed to return to Northumbria and instead went into exile at the Mercian court, but most historians have argued that Wilfrid was at Ripon. Wilfrid's monasteries in Mercia may date from this time, as King Wulfhere of Mercia gave him large grants of land in Mercia. Wilfrid may have persuaded King Ecgberht of Kent in 669 to build
13932-412: The translation of the relics of Oswald of Northumbria to Bardney Abbey by Osthryth between 675 and 679, Wilfrid, along with Hexham Abbey, began to encourage and promote the cult of the dead king. Barbara Yorke sees this advocacy as a major factor in the prominence given to Oswald in Bede's Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum . Historian D. P. Kirby regards Wilfrid's championing of Oswald as being
14061-492: The use of key passages from historical texts. In 1971, Hart attempted a "complete reconstruction of the political geography of Saxon England at the end of the 8th century". Assuming that all the English south of the Humber are listed within the Tribal Hidage, he produced a map that divides southern England into Mercia's provinces and outlying dependencies, using evidence from river boundaries and other topographical features , place-names and historical borders. The Tribal Hidage
14190-402: The values assigned to each people are likely to be specific to the events of 625-626, representing contracts made between Edwin and those who recognised his overlordship, so explaining the rounded nature of the figures: 100,000 hides for the West Saxons was probably the largest number Edwin knew. According to D. P. Kirby, this theory has not been generally accepted as convincing. The purpose of
14319-417: The west, in modern-day Wales and Cornwall , who formed kingdoms including those of Dumnonia , Dyfed , and Gwynedd . Between the Humber and Forth the English had formed into two main kingdoms, Deira and Bernicia, often united as the Kingdom of Northumbria. A number of Celtic kingdoms also existed in this region, including Craven , Elmet , Rheged , and Gododdin . A native British kingdom, later called
14448-466: The word hidas ), indicating that the text he copied was not Recension A, but a different Latin text. According to Peter Featherstone, the highly edited form of the text suggests that Spelman embellished it himself. Recension C has survived in six Latin documents, all with common omissions and spellings. Four versions, of 13th-century origin, formed part of a collection of legal texts that, according to Featherstone, "may have been intended to act as part of
14577-430: The work deals with Wilfrid's attempts to return to Northumbria, and is a defence and vindication of his Northumbrian career. Stephen's work is flattering and highly favourable to Wilfrid, making its use as a source problematic; despite its shortcomings however, the Vita is the main source of information on Wilfrid's life. It views the events in Northumbria in the light of Wilfrid's reputation and from his point of view, and
14706-577: Was a 10th or 11th century copy of a lost 7th-century manuscript. He methodically compared all the publications and manuscripts of the Tribal Hidage that are available at the time and placed each tribe using both his own theories and the ideas of others, some of which (for instance when he located the Wokensætna in Woking , Surrey ) are now discounted. Maitland suspected that the accepted number of acres to each hide needed to be reconsidered to account for
14835-425: Was a monk there. Bede hardly mentions the relationship between Ceolfrith and Wilfrid, but it was Wilfrid who consecrated Ceolfrith a priest and who gave permission for him to transfer to Wearmouth-Jarrow. The Roman churches and those in Britain and Ireland (often called "Celtic" churches) used different methods to calculate the date of Easter. The church in Northumbria had traditionally used the Celtic method, and that
14964-528: Was about 14 years old drove Wilfrid to leave home, probably without his father's consent. Wilfrid's background is never explicitly described as noble, but the king's retainers were frequent guests at his father's house, and on leaving home Wilfrid equipped his party with horses and clothes fit for a royal court. Queen Eanflæd became Wilfrid's patroness following his arrival at the court of her husband, King Oswiu. She sent him to study under Cudda, formerly one of her husband's retainers, but by that time in about 648
15093-561: Was blown ashore on the Sussex coast, the inhabitants of which were at that time pagan. On being attacked by the locals, Wilfrid's party killed the head priest before refloating their ship and making their escape. The historian Marion Gibbs suggests that after this episode Wilfrid visited Kent again, and took part in the diplomacy related to Wigheard 's appointment to the see of Canterbury. Wilfrid may also have taken part in negotiations to persuade King Cenwalh of Wessex to allow Agilbert to return to his see. Denied episcopal office, Wilfrid spent
15222-424: Was carried to his consecration ceremony on a throne supported by nine bishops. Wilfrid delayed his return from Gaul, only to find on his arrival back in Northumbria that Ceadda had been installed as bishop in his place. The reason for Wilfrid's delay has never been clear, although the historians Eric John and Richard Abels theorise that it was caused by Alhfrith's unsuccessful revolt against Oswiu. They suggest that
15351-544: Was considered the "bishop of the Northumbrian peoples"; Bede records that Wilfrid's diocese was contiguous with the area ruled by Oswiu. The diocese was restricted to north of the Humber, however. Wilfrid may also have sought to exercise some ecclesiastical functions in the Pictish kingdom , as he is accorded the title "bishop of the Northumbrians and the Picts" in 669. Further proof of attempted Northumbrian influence in
15480-441: Was considered to be Alhfrith's bishop. The Vita Sancti Wilfrithi states that, nominated by both Oswiu and Alhfrith, he was made bishop at York , and that he was a metropolitan bishop , but York at that time was not a Metropolitan Diocese . Bede says that Alhfrith alone nominated Wilfrid, and that Oswiu subsequently proposed an alternative candidate, "imitating the actions of his son". Several theories have been suggested to explain
15609-410: Was considered to be an error by the historian J. Brownbill, but Hart maintains that the value for Wessex is correct and that it was one of several assessments designed to exact the largest possible tribute from Mercia's main rivals. Of the first or primary part of the list contained several recognized peoples: This part of the list seems to have been added: Sir Henry Spelman was the first to publish
15738-457: Was expelled from his see. Abbess Hilda of Whitby was a leader in a faction of the Northumbrian church that disliked Wilfrid, and her close ties with Theodore helped to undermine Wilfrid's position in Northumbria. Another contributory factor in Wilfrid's expulsion was his encouragement of Æthelthryth's entry into a nunnery; he had personally given her the veil, the ceremony of entering a nunnery, on her retirement to Ely Abbey. Æthelthryth had donated
15867-443: Was finally installed in his see in 669, the first Saxon to occupy the see of York. Wilfrid spent the next nine years building churches, including at the monastery at Hexham, and attending to diocesan business. He continued to exercise control over his monastic houses of Ripon and Hexham while he was bishop. Oswiu's death on 15 February 670 eliminated a source of friction and helped to assure Wilfrid's return. While at York, Wilfrid
15996-466: Was in Gaul. Stephen of Ripon reported that Wilfrid was expelled by " Quartodecimans ", or those who supported the celebration of Easter on the 14th day of the Jewish month Nisan , whether or not this was a Sunday. However, as the Irish church had never been Quartodecimans, Stephen in this instance was constructing a narrative to put Wilfrid in the best light. During his return to Northumbria Wilfrid's ship
16125-428: Was jeopardised when King Æthelwealh died during an invasion of his kingdom by Cædwalla of Wessex . Wilfrid previously had contact with Cædwalla, and may have served as his spiritual advisor before Cædwalla's invasion of Sussex. After Æthelwealh's death and Cædwalla's accession to the throne of Wessex, Wilfrid became one of the new king's advisors, and the king was converted. Cædwalla confirmed Æthelwealh's grant of land in
16254-488: Was ordained a priest by Agilbert , Bishop of Dorchester in the kingdom of the Gewisse, part of Wessex. Wilfrid was a protégé of Agilbert, who later helped in Wilfrid's consecration as a bishop. The monk Ceolfrith was attracted to Ripon from Gilling Abbey , which had recently been depopulated as a result of the plague. Ceolfrith later became Abbot of Wearmouth-Jarrow during the time the medieval chronicler and writer Bede
16383-595: Was returned to York. Something of the reception to Wilfrid's expulsion can be picked up in a Latin letter which has survived only in an incomplete quotation by William of Malmesbury in his Gesta pontificum Anglorum . We have it on William's authority that the letter was written by Aldhelm of Malmesbury and addressed to Wilfrid's abbots. In it, Aldhelm asks the clergymen to remember the exiled bishop "who, nourishing, teaching, reproving, raised you in fatherly love" and appealing to lay aristocratic ideals of loyalty, urges them not to abandon their superior. Neither William nor
16512-535: Was the date observed by King Oswiu. His wife Eanflæd and a son, Alhfrith, celebrated Easter on the Roman date, which meant that while one part of the royal court was still observing the Lenten fast, another would be celebrating with feasting. Oswiu called a church council held at Whitby Abbey in 664 in an attempt to resolve this controversy . Although Oswiu himself had been brought up in the "Celtic" tradition, political pressures may have influenced his decision to call
16641-481: Was written as part of a propaganda campaign to defend a "Wilfridian" party in Northumbrian politics. Some historians, including James Fraser , find that a credible view, but others such as Nick Higham are less convinced of Bede's hostility to Wilfrid. Wilfrid was born in Northumbria around 633. James Fraser argues that Wilfrid's family were aristocrats from Deira, pointing out that most of Wilfrid's early contacts were from that area. A conflict with his stepmother when he
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