Bede’s Ecclesiastical history of England

Bede’s Ecclesiastical History of England
by
The Venerable Bede

A REVISED TRANSLATION

WITH INTRODUCTION, LIFE, AND NOTES BY

A. M. SELLAR
LATE VICE-PRINCIPAL OF LADY MARGARET HALL, OXFORD

LONDON

GEORGE BELL AND SONS
1907

Bede’s Ecclesiastical History of England The Venerable Bede

EDITOR’S PREFACE

The English version of the "Ecclesiastical History" in the following pages is a revision of the
translation of Dr. Giles, which is itself a revision of the earlier rendering of Stevens. In the present
edition very considerable alterations have been made, but the work of Dr. Giles remains the basis
of the translation. The Latin text used throughout is Mr. Plummer’s. Since the edition of Dr. Giles
appeared in 1842, so much fresh work on the subject has been done, and recent research has brought
so many new facts to light, that it has been found necessary to rewrite the notes almost entirely,
and to add a new introduction. After the appearance of Mr. Plummer’s edition of the Historical
Works of Bede, it might seem superfluous, for the present at least, to write any notes at all on the
"Ecclesiastical History." The present volume, however, is intended to fulfil a different and much
humbler function. There has been no attempt at any original work, and no new theories are advanced.
The object of the book is merely to present in a short and convenient form the substance of the
views held by trustworthy authorities, and it is hoped that it may be found useful by those students
who have either no time or no inclination to deal with more important works.

Among the books of which most use has been made, are Mr. Plummer’s edition of the
Ecclesiastical History, Messrs’ Mayor and Lumby’s edition of Books III and IV, Dr. Bright’s "Early
English Church History," and Dr. Hunt’s "History of the English Church from its foundation to the
Norman Conquest." Many of the articles in the "Dictionary of Christian Biography " and the
"Dictionary of Christian Antiquities," Dr. Mason’s "Mission of St. Augustine," Dr. Rhys’s "Celtic
Britain," and a number of other books, mentioned in the notes, have been consulted.

For help received in different ways I wish to express my gratitude to various correspondents
and friends. I am particularly indebted to Mr. Edward Bell, who has kindly revised my proofs and
made many valuable suggestions. For information on certain points I have to thank the Rev. Charles
Plummer, Fellow of Corpus Christi College, Oxford, Professor Lindsay of St. Andrews University,
Miss Wordsworth, Principal, and Miss Lodge, Vice-Principal of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford; and
in a very special sense I wish to acknowledge my obligations to Miss Paterson, Assistant Librarian
at the University Library, St. Andrews, whose unfailing kindness in verifying references, and
supplying me with books, has greatly lightened my labours.

 

INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW

There are, it has been estimated, in England and on the Continent, in all about 140 manuscripts
of the "Ecclesiastical History." Of these, four date from the eighth century: the Moore MS.
(Cambridge), so called, because, after being sold by auction in the reign of William III, it came
into the possession of Bishop Moore, who bequeathed it to the University of Cambridge; Cotton,
Tiberius A, xiv; Cotton, Tiberius C, ii; and the Namur MS. A detailed account of these, as well as
of a great number of other manuscripts, will be found in Mr. Plummer’s Introduction to his edition
of Bede’s Historical Works. He has been the first to collate the four oldest MSS., besides examining
numerous others and collating them in certain passages. He has pointed out that two of the MSS.
dating from the eighth century (the century in which Bede died), the Moore MS. and Cotton, Tiberius
A, xiv, point to a common original which cannot be far removed from Bede’s autograph. We are
thus brought very near to our author, and may have more than in most cases the assurance that we
have before us what he actually meant to say.

The earliest editions were printed on the Continent; the "editio princeps" is believed to date
from 1475. A number of editions followed in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries; the first in
England was published by Abraham Whelock at Cambridge in 1643-4. Smith’s edition in 1722
marked a new era in the history of the book. It was the first critical edition, the text being based on
the Moore MS. collated with three others, of which two were eighth century MSS.; and succeeding
editors, Stevenson (1841), Giles (1842), Hussey (1846), the editor in the "Monumenta Historica
Britannica" (1848), Moberly (1869), Holder (1882), base their work mainly on Smith’s. Mr. Mayor
and Mr. Lumby together edited Books III and IV with excellent notes in 1878. Their text "reproduces
exactly the Moore MS." which they collated with some other Cambridge MSS. (cf. Mayor and
Lumby, Excursus II). In 1896 the Rev. C. Plummer published his edition of Bede’s Historical
Works, the first critical edition since Smith’s, and "the very first which exhibits in an apparatus
criticus the various readings of the MSS. on which the text is based." For the student of Bede this
admirable book is of the highest value, and the labours of all succeeding editors are made
comparatively light. Besides the most minute and accurate work on the text, it contains a copious
and interesting commentary and the fullest references to the various sources upon which the editor
has drawn.

The first translation of the "Ecclesiastical History" is the Anglo-Saxon version, executed either
by Alfred himself or under his immediate supervision. Of this version Dr. Hodgkin says: "As this
book had become a kind of classic among churchmen, Alfred allowed himself here less liberty than
in some of his other translations. Some letters, epitaphs, and similar documents are omitted, and
there is an almost complete erasure of the chapters relating to the wearisome Paschal controversy.
In other respects the king’s translation seems to be a fairly accurate reproduction of the original
work." Mr. Plummer, however, finds it "very rarely available for the settlement of minute differences
of reading."

The first modern English translation is Thomas Stapleton’s (1565), published at Antwerp. It is
a controversial work, intended to point out to Queen Elizabeth "in how many and weighty pointes
the pretended refourmers of the Church . . . have departed from the patern of that sounde and
Catholike faith planted first among Englishmen by holy S. Augustine, our Apostle, and his vertuous
company, described truly and sincerely by Venerable Bede, so called in all Christendom for his
passing vertues and rare lerning, the Author of this History." To save Elizabeth’s time "in espying out the particulars," the translator has "gathered out of the whole History a number of diversities
between the pretended religion of Protestants and the primitive faith of the English Church." If
charm and appropriateness of style were the only qualities to be aimed at in a translation, we might
well content ourselves with this rendering, which fills with despair the translator of to-day, debarred
by his date from writing Elizabethan English.

The work was again translated by John Stevens (1723), and a third time (with some omissions)
by W. Hurst in 1814. In 1840 Dr. Giles published a new edition of Stevens’s translation with certain
alterations; and a second edition of the same volume was published in 1842, and incorporated in
the collected works of Bede, edited by Dr. Giles. In 1870 a literal translation by the Rev. L. Gidley
was published. The present volume is a revision of the translation of Dr. Giles.

A brief analysis of the work may be of some use to the student in keeping distinct the different
threads of the narrative, as owing to the variety of subjects introduced, and the want of strict
chronological order, it is difficult to grasp the sequence of events as a coherent whole.

The sources from which Bede draws his material are briefly indicated in the dedication to King
Ceolwulf which forms the Preface, and in it he acknowledges his obligations to the friends and
correspondents who have helped and encouraged him. For the greater part of Book I (cc. 1-22),
which forms the introduction to his real subject, he depends on earlier authors. Here he does not
specify his sources, but indicates them generally as priorum scripta. These authors are mainly
Pliny, Solinus, Orosius, Eutropius, and the British historian Gildas. In the story of Germanus and
Lupus he follows closely the Life of Germanus by Constantius of Lyons. Prosper of Aquitaine also
supplies him with some materials. When he comes to his main subject, the History of the English
Church, he appears to rely but little upon books. Only a very few are referred to here and there,
e.g., The Life of St. Fursa, The Life of St. Ethelburg, Adamnan’s work on the Holy Places, and the
Anonymous Life of St. Cuthbert. That some form of annalistic records existed before his time, and
that these were consulted by him, we may infer from some of his chronological references (cf. iii,
I, 9). Local information with regard to provinces other than Northumbria he obtains from his
correspondents in various parts of England, and these are expressly mentioned in the Preface.

For the history of the Roman mission and of Kent generally, as well as some particulars with
regard to the conversion of other provinces, his chief source is the Church of Canterbury, which
apparently possessed, besides oral tradition, written documents relating to the first beginnings of
the Church. Moreover, Nothelm, who was the bearer of much important material, had been to Rome
and had permission to search the papal archives. But it is in dealing with the history of Northumbria,
as is natural, that Bede’s information is most varied and copious. Much of it is apparently obtained
directly from eye-witnesses of the events, much would doubtless be preserved in the records of the
Church of Lindisfarne, to which he had access, perhaps also in his own monastery. We know that
the monasteries kept calendars in which the death-days of saints and others were entered, and other
records of similar nature (cf. iv, 14), and that these were used as materials for history.

Passing to the history itself, we may trace a division of subjects or periods roughly analogous
to the division into books. Book I contains the long introduction, the sending of the Roman mission,
and the foundation of the Church; Books II and III, the period of missionary activity and the
establishment of Christianity throughout the land. Book IV may be said to describe the period of
organization. In Book V the English Church itself becomes a missionary centre, planting the faith
in Germany, and. drawing the Celtic Churches into conformity with Rome.

 

BOOK I.— In Book I, cc. 1-22, Bede sketches the early history of Britain, describing the
country and giving some account of the various races by whom it was inhabited. The story of the
Roman occupation is narrated at some length, the invasions of the Picts and Scots and consequent
miseries of the Britons, their appeals for help to the Romans, the final departure of their protectors,
and the coming of the ,Saxons are described. We have some shadowy outlines of British Church
History in the legendary account of the conversion of King Lucius, in the story of St. Alban,
affording evidence of a great persecution of Christians during the Roman occupation, in the allusions
to the Arian and Pelagian heresies, and in the mission of Germanus and Lupus. A brief allusion to
the mission of Palladius is all that we hear of the Irish Church at this period.

These chapters are introductory to the main subject, the History of the English Church, which
begins in Chapter 23 with the mission of St. Augustine in 597 AD. The reception of the Christian
faith in the kingdom of Kent and the foundation of a national Church occupy the remaining chapters
of the book. Various letters of Pope Gregory relating to the mission and his answers to the questions
of Augustine are given at length ;and the Book concludes with a piece of Northumbrian history,
Ethelfrid’s conquests of the Britons and the defeat of Aedan, king of the Dalriadic Scots, at Degsastan
in 603 A.D.

BOOK II.— Book II opens with a biographical sketch of Gregory the Great, the founder of
the Mission. This is followed by an account of Augustine’s negotiations with the leaders of the
British Church with regard to the Paschal question and some other matters, his failure to win them
over (a failure apparently largely due to his own want of tact in dealing with the susceptible Celtic
temperament), his alleged prophecy of disaster and its fulfilment some time after at the battle of
Chester. Then we have the consecration of Mellitus to London, as Bishop of the East Saxons, and
Justus to Rochester (604 A.D.); the evangelization of the East Saxons by Mellitus; the death of
Augustine and succession of Laurentius as Archbishop (no date is given; it may have been in 605);
fresh attempts at union with the Celtic Churches, in which again we can perceive a failure of courtesy
on the one side met by an obstinate pride on the other. The death of Ethelbert in Kent (616 A.D.)
and that of Sabert in Essex, soon after, lead to a pagan reaction in both provinces; Mellitus apd
Justus take refuge on the Continent; Laurentius, intending to follow them, is stopped by a vision
which leads to the conversion of King Eadbald and the recovery of Kent for Christianity. Essex,
however, continues to be pagan. On the death of Laurentius (619 A.D.), Mellitus succeeds to
Canterbury and is himself succeeded by Justus (in 624). In Chapter 9 we enter upon a new
development of the highest importance in the work of the mission. The marriage of Edwin, king
of Northumbria, and the Kentish princess, Ethelberg, brings about the conversion of Northumbria
through the preaching of Paulinus. The story is told in detail. Letters from Pope Boniface to Edwin
and his consort are quoted at length, Edwin’s early history with its bearing on the great crisis of
his life is related; finally we have the decisive debate in the Witenagemot at Goodmanham and the
baptism of the king at Easter, 627 A.D. Through the influence of Edwin on Earpwald, king of East
Anglia, that province is next converted, but on the death of Earpwald the people lapse into paganism
for three years, till Christianity is finally established by the labours of Bishop Felix, under the
enlightened King Sigbert, who had himself been drawn to the faith in Gaul.

Meanwhile, peace and prosperity reign in Northumbria, and Paulinus extends his preaching to
Lindsey. He receives the pall from Pope Honorius, in accordance with the original intention of
Gregory that the Bishop of York should rank as a metropolitan. At Canterbury, Justus is succeeded
by Archbishop Honorius. Parenthetically we have extracts from letters, probably of the year 640

A.D., addressed by the Roman see to the Irish clergy on the Paschal question and the Pelagian
heresy.

In Chapter 20 we have a dramatic climax to the book in the overthrow and death of Edwin at
the battle of Hatfield in 633 A.D.; the devastation of Northumbria by the British king, Caedwalla,
and Penda of Mercia; and the flight of Paulinus, taking with him Ethelberg and Eanfled to Kent,
where he ends his life in charge of the Church of Rochester. His work in Northumbria seems for
the time, at least, wholly overthrown. Only James the Deacon remains heroically at his post to keep
alive the smouldering embers of the faith.

BOOK III.—Book III opens with the story of the apostasy of the Northumbrian kings and the
miseries of the "Hateful Year," terminated by the victory of Oswald at Heavenfield in 634 A.D.
Christianity is brought again to Northumbria (635 A.D.) by the Celtic Mission, sent from lona at
the request of Oswald, who nobly cooperates with Aidan in the work of evangelization. Aidan fixes
his see at Lindisfarne. The mention of lona leads to a short account of the mission of St. Columba
to the Northern Picts in 565 A.D., and incidentally of St. Ninian’s mission to the Southern Picts
"long before the grant of Iona to St. Columba, and its constitution, the character of its monks and
their error with regard to Easter. The characters of Aidan and Oswald are described; and the union
of Deira and Bernicia under Oswald is briefly mentioned.

In Chapter 7 we pass to a fresh missionary enterprise. Birinus, sent to Britain by Pope Honorius,
converts the West Saxons. Their king, Cynegils, is baptized, and a see is established at Dorchester,
in Oxfordshire. Under Coinwalch, the successor of Cynegils, the province passes through various
vicissitudes, political and ecclesiastical, and finally the West Saxon see is fixed at Winchester.

In Kent, Earconbert succeeds Eadbald in 640 A.D., and takes vigorous measures for the
suppression of idolatry. His daughter, Earcongota, and many other high-born English ladies enter
the religious life in Gaul, for convents are still scarce in England.

In Chapter 9, reverting to the history of Northumbria, Bede tells us of the death of Oswald at
Maserfelth in 642, and relates at length various miracles wrought by his relics. Oswald is succeeded
by Oswy in Bernicia and in Deira by Oswin. The latter is treacherously murdered by Oswy; his
character is described. The death of Aidan (in 651) immediately follows that of his beloved king;
Aidan’s miracles are related, and a warm tribute is paid to his character, in spite of the inevitable
error with regard to Easter, which is severely condemned.

In Chapter 18, passing again to East Anglian history, we hear of King Sigbert’s services to
education, and of his retirement to a monastery from which he was forcibly drawn to fall in battle
against the Mercians. (The chronology is here very vague.) A vision of the Irish St. Fursa, who
founded the monastery of Cnobheresburg in East Anglia is told in detail. Changes in the episcopate
in East Anglia and elsewhere are mentioned. Deusdedit succeeds Honorius as Archbishop of
Canterbury in 654.

Again, a Northumbrian prince gives a fresh impulse to the spread of Christianity. In 653 the
Middle Angles (who occupied a part of Mercia) are converted, their prince, Peada, being persuaded
chiefly by his brother-in-law, Alchfrid, a son of Oswy. Four priests are sent to them to preach and
baptize, Cedd, Adda, Betti, and Diuma, and Diuma becomes bishop of the Middle Angles and
Mercians. Similarly, at this time, King Sigbert of Essex listens to the exhortations of his friend,
King Oswy, and, at the preaching of Cedd, the East Saxons receive the faith a second time. Cedd
becomes their bishop. Sigbert’s tragic death is related. His successor, Suidhelm, receives baptism at the hands of Cedd. The foundation of Lastingham by Ethelwald of Deira and its consecration by
Cedd are described. Cedd dies of the plague of 664.

Meanwhile, important political changes have taken place in the north: the defeat and death of
Penda at the Winwaed in 655 are followed by Oswy’s rule, which established Christianity in Mercia,
in spite of a successful rebellion after three years, when the Mercians threw off the yoke of
Northumbria and set up Penda’s son, Wuifhere, as their king.

In Chapter 25 we come to the Synod of Whitby (664 A.D.), which settled the Easter question
for the English Church. Wilfrid comes to the front as a champion of the Catholic rules. The opposing
party either retire or conform. The self-denial and devotion of the Celtic missionaries are highly
praised, and some account of the life led by English students in Ireland follows, with the story of
the self-dedication of Egbert, who is destined to play a prominent part afterwards in the history of
the Church.

The consecration of both Wilfrid and Ceadda (664 A.D.), as bishops of Northumbria leads to
complications in the episcopate. An important step towards the unity of the English nation in
ecclesiastical matters is taken when Wighard is sent to Rome by the kings Oswy and Egbert, acting
in concert, to be consecrated as Archbishop of Canterbury (667 A.D.). Wighard dies there, and
Pope Vitalian undertakes to find an archbishop for the English Church.

The book ends with a fresh apostasy in Essex during the miseries of the great plague of 664.
Mercia, so lately itself evangelized, becomes a new missionary centre, King Wulfhere sending
Bishop Jaruman to recall the East Saxons to the faith.

BOOK IV.—In all but one of the kingdoms of England Christianity is now, at least in name,
established, and the Church settles down to the work of organization. The man for this task is found
in Theodore of Tarsus, consecrated Archbishop of the English in 668. He arrives at Canterbury in

669. We hear at once of the vigorous impulse given by him and Abbot Hadrian to the various
departments of education there. Finding an irregularity in Ceadda’s orders, he completes his
ordination and makes him Bishop of the Mercians (probably in 669), with his see at Lichfield.
Ceadda’s death (672 A.D.), his character, and the miracles and visions connected with him are
described. Parenthetically we get an account of Colman’s activity in Ireland after his retirement,
in consequence of the decision at Whitby. The most important political events at this time are the
death of Oswy and succession of Egfrid in Northumbria in 670 or 671, and the death of Egbert and
succession. of Hlothere in Kent in 673.
In the same year the Council of Hertford, the first English provincial council, is held, and marks
the strength and independence of the Church. Theodore proceeds with his reforms in the episcopate.
Various events of ecclesiastical importance follow; the East Anglian diocese is divided about this
time, and other changes are effected.

Essex, so long prone to lapses into paganism, becomes at this time a centre of religious life
under its Bishop Earconwald and its king Sebbi. Earconwald, whose holiness is attested by many
miraculous circumstances, was the founder of the monasteries of Chertsey and Barking, the latter
of which was ruled by his sister, the saintly Ethelburg. Various miracles are related in connection
with her and her monastery. The king of the East Saxons, Sebbi, is a man of unusual piety who
resigns his kingdom and receives the tonsure.

After a brief allusion to West Saxon history, the devastation of Kent by Ethelred of Mercia in
676, and certain changes in the episcopate, we come to an important step in the organization of the
Church taken by Theodore. In pursuance of his policy of increasing the number of bishops, he subdivides the great Northumbrian diocese. Wilfrid is expelled (678 AD.). From these events we
pass summarily to the evangelization of the South Saxons by Wilfrid, who extends his labours to
the Isle of Wight, and thus the last of the English provinces is won for the faith.

In the Council of Hatfield (68o A.D.) the English Church asserts its orthodoxy and unites with
the continental Churches in repudiating the heresy of the Monothelites. Turning to Northumbrian
history, we have the story of Egfrid’s queen, Ethelthryth, and a hymn composed in her honour by
Bede. The war between Mercia and Northumbria in 679 is ended by the mediation of Theodore,
and a miracle in connection with the battle of the Trent is related.

The remainder of the book is occupied mainly with Northumbrian history, the life and death
of Hilda, Abbess of Whitby, the story of the poet Caedmon, the destruction of Coldingham,
prophesied by the monk Adamnan, Egfrid’s invasion of Ireland (684 A.D.) and of the country of
the Picts (685 A.D.), his defeat and death in that year, the decline of Northumbria, the flight of
Bishop Trumwine from Abercorn, and the succession of Aldfrid to the kingdom. The death of
Hlothere of Kent (685 A.D.) is followed by anarchy in that province, till Wictred succeeds and
restores peace.

In Chapters 27-32 we have an account of the life of St. Cuthbert and stories of the miracles
wrought by his relics.

Book V.—Book V opens with the story of the holy Ethelwald, who succeeded Cuthbert as
anchorite at Fame, and a miracle wrought through his intercession. This is followed (cc. 2-6) by
an account of John of Beverley, Bishop of Hexham, and the miracles attributed to him. In Chapter
7 we have a piece of West Saxon history: Caedwalla, King of Wessex, after a life of war and
bloodshed, goes to Rome to receive baptism there, and dies immediately after his admission into
the Church (689 A.D.). He is succeeded by Ini, who in 725 likewise ended his days at Rome.

In 690 Theodore dies, after an episcopate of twenty-two years. Bertwald succeeds him at
Canterbury in 693.

At this time Englishmen begin to extend their missionary enterprise abroad. Various missions
are undertaken by men who have lived long in Ireland and caught the Celtic zeal for the work of
evangelization. The story is told of the attempted mission of Egbert to Germany and the unsuccessful
venture of Witbert. Wilbrord (in 690) and others plant the faith among the German tribes.

The vision of Drytheim is inserted here, probably on chronological grounds ("his temporibus"),
and other visions of the future world follow.

Apparently about the same time a change is effected in the attitude of the greater part of the
Celtic Church towards the Paschal question. The Northern Irish are converted to the Roman usages
by Adamnan, Abbot of lona, whose book on the "Holy Places" is here described.

The death of Aldfrid and succession of Osred in Northumbria in 705 are the next events narrated.

About this time the division of the West Saxon diocese is carried out, Aldhelm being appointed
to Sherborne and Daniel to Winchester; the South Saxons receive a bishop of their own for the first
time. In 709 A.D. Coenred of Mercia and Offa of Essex receive the tonsure at Rome, and in the
same year Bishop Wilfrid dies. The story of his life is told.

Not long after, Hadrian dies and is succeeded by Albinus as Abbot of St. Augustine’s. Bede’s
friend, Acca, succeeds Wilfrid as Bishop of Hexham. His services to the Church are enumerated.

An important step is taken at this time by the Northern Picts in the acceptance of the Roman
rules with regard to Easter and the tonsure. The letter of Abbot Ceolfrid of Wearmouth and Jarrow
to the Pictish king Naiton on this subject is quoted at length. Soon after, lona yields to the preaching of Egbert, and receives the Catholic usages. Egbert dies in 729. In Chapter 23 a number of events
are briefly mentioned; the death of Wictred of Kent in 725, and the succession of his sons, the death
of the learned Tobias, Bishop of Rochester, in 726, the appearance of two comets in 729, followed
by the devastation of Gaul by the Saracens, the death of the Northumbrian king Osric, and succession
of Ceolwulf in 729; finally, the death of Archbishop Bertwald in 731 and the succession of Tatwine.
Then follows an account of the state of the English episcopate in 731, the year in which Bede
finished the History. The relations of the English with Picts, Scots, and Britons are described, and
some allusion is made to the growth of monasticism in this time of external peace.

The book closes in Chapter 24 with a chronological summary of the whole work, an
autobiographical sketch of the author, and a list of his works.

 

LIFE OF BEDE

Few lives afford less material for the biographer than Bede’s; few seem to possess a more
irresistible fascination. Often as the simple story has been told, the desire to tell it afresh appears
to be perennial. And yet it is perhaps as wholly devoid of incident as any life could be. The short
autobiographical sketch at the end of the "Ecclesiastical History" tells us practically all: that he
was born in the territory of the twin monastery of Wearmouth and Jarrow; that at the age of seven
he was sent by his kinsfolk to be brought up, first under the Abbot Benedict, afterwards under
Ceolfrid; that in his nineteenth year (the canonical age was twenty-five) he was admitted to the
diaconate, and received priest’s orders in his thirtieth year, in both instances at the hands of John,
Bishop of Hexham, and by order of the Abbot Ceolfrid; that he spent his whole life in the monastery
in learning, in teaching, and in writing, and in the observance of the monastic rule and attendance
at the daily services of the Church. Of his family we know nothing; the name Beda appears to have
been not uncommon. The fact that he was handed over by kinsmen ("cura propinquorum") to Abbot
Benedict would seem to imply that he was an orphan when he entered the monastery at the age of
seven, but it was not unusual for parents to dedicate their infant children to the religious life, in
many cases even at an earlier age than Bede’s. We may compare the story of the little boy, Aesica,
at Barking, related by Bede, and of Elfied, the daughter of Oswy, dedicated by her father before
she was a year old.

The epithet "Venerable," commonly attached to his name, has given rise to more than one
legend. It was apparently first applied to him in the ninth century, and is said to have been an
appellation of priests. The best known of these legends is Fuller’s story of a certain "dunce monk"
who set about writing Bede’s epitaph, and being unable to complete the verse, "Hic sunt in fossa
Bedae . . . ossa," went to bed with his task unfinished. Returning to it in the morning, he found that
an angel had filled the gap with the word "venerabilis." Another account tells how Bede, in his old
age, when his eyes were dim, was induced by certain "mockers" to preach, under the mistaken
belief that the people were assembled to hear him. As he ended his sermon with a solemn invocation
of the Trinity, the angels (in one version it is the stones of a rocky valley) responded "Amen, very
venerable Bede."

The land on which Bede was born was granted by Egfrid to Benedict Biscop for the foundation
of the monasteries a short time after the birth of Bede. Wearmouth was founded in 674, Jarrow in
681 or 682. Bede was among those members of the community who were transferred to Jarrow
under Abbot Ceolfrid, and under his rule and that of his successor, Huaetbert, he passed his life.
With regard to the chief dates, the authorities differ, Simeon of Durham and others placing his birth
as late as 677. Bede himself tells us that he was in his fifty-ninth year when he wrote the short
autobiography at the end of the History. That work was finished in 731, and there seems to be no
good reason to suppose that the autobiographical sketch was written at a later time. We may infer
then that he was born in 673, that he was ordained deacon in 691 and priest in 702. For his death,
735, the date given in the "Continuation," seems to be supported by the evidence of the letter of
Cuthbert to Cuthwin (v. infra). From this it appears that he died on a Wednesday, which nevertheless
is called Ascension Day, implying, doubtless, that his death occurred on the eve, after the festival
had begun, according to ecclesiastical reckoning. It is further explained that Ascension Day was
on the 26th of May ("VII Kal. Junii") which was actually the case in the year 735.

Beyond the testimony borne to his exceptional diligence as a student in a letter from Alcuin to
the monks of Wearmouth and Jarrow, we hear nothing of his childhood and early youth. One
anecdote in the Anonymous History of the Abbots may perhaps refer to him, though no name is
given. It tells how, when the plague of 686 devastated the monastery, the Abbot Ceolfrid, for lack
of fit persons to assist at the daily offices, decided to recite the psalms without antiphons, except
at vespers and matins. But after a week’s trial, unable to bear it any longer, he restored the antiphons
to their proper place, and with the help of one little boy carried on the services in the usual manner.
This little boy is described as being, at the time the History was written, a priest of that monastery
who "duly, both by his words and writings, commends the Abbot’s praiseworthy deeds to all who
seek to know them," and he has generally been supposed to be Bede.

In the "Ecclesiastical History" (IV, 3) there is an allusion to Bede’s teachers, one of whom,
Trumbert, educated at Lastingham under Ceadda, is mentioned by name. The monastery of
Wearmouth and Jarrow must have offered exceptional facilities for study. Benedict had enriched
it with many treasures which he brought with him from his travels. Chief among these was the
famous library which he founded and which was enlarged by Abbot Ceolfrid. Here Bede acquired
that wide and varied learning revealed in his historical, scientific, and theological works. He studied
with particular care and reverence the patristic writings; his theological treatises were, as he says,
"compiled out of the works of the venerable Fathers." He must have had a considerable knowledge
of Greek, probably he knew some Hebrew. Though he is not wholly free from the mediaeval
churchman’s distrust of pagan authors, he constantly betrays his acquaintance with them, and the
sense of form which must unconsciously influence the student of classical literature has passed into
his own writings and preserved him from the barbarism of monkish Latin. His style is singularly
clear, simple, and fluent, as free from obscurity as from affectation and bombast.

Thus was the foundation laid of that sound learning upon which his widespread influence both
as a teacher and writer was reared. "I always took delight," he tells us, "in learning, or teaching, or
writing." Probably his writing was, as is so often the case, the outcome of his teaching; his object
in both is to meet "the needs of the brethren." One of his pupils was Archbishop Egbert, the founder
of the school of York, which gave a fresh impulse to learning, not only in England, but through
Alcuin in France, at a time when a revival was most to be desired.

It was to Egbert that he paid one of the only two visits which he records. In the "Epistola ad
Ecgbertum" he alludes to a short stay he had made with him the year before, and declines, on
account of the illness which proved to be his last, an invitation to visit him again. He visited
Lindisfarne in connection with his task of writing the life of Cuthbert. Otherwise we have no
authentic record of any absence from the monastery. The story that he went to Rome at the request
of Pope Sergius, founded on a statement of William of Malmesbury, is now regarded as highly
improbable. The oldest MS. of the letter of Sergius, requesting Ceolfrid to send one of his monks
to Rome, has no mention of the name of Bede. If such an event had ever disturbed his accustomed
course of life, it is inconceivable that he should nowhere allude to it. Still less is the assertion that
he lived and taught at Cambridge one which need be seriously debated by the present generation.
We may fairly assume that, except for a few short absences such as the visits to York and Lindisfarne,
his whole life was spent in the monastery. It must have been a life of unremitting toil. His writings,
numerous. as they are, covering a wide range of subjects and involving the severest study, can only
have been a part of his work; he had, besides, his duties as priest, teacher, and member of a religious
community to fulfil. Even the manual labour of his literary work must have been considerable. He did not employ an amanuensis, and he had not the advantages with regard to copyists which a
member of one of the larger monasteries might have had. "Ipse mihi dictator simul notarius
(=shorthand writer) et librarius (=copyist)," he writes. Yet he never flags. Through all the outward
monotony of his days his own interest remains fresh. He "takes delight" ("dulce habui") in it all. It
is a life full of eager activity in intellectual things, of a keen and patriotic interest in the wider life
beyond the monastery walls, which shows itself sadly enough in his reflections on the evils of the
times, of the ardent charity which spends itself in labour for the brethren, and, pervading the whole,
that spirit of quiet obedience and devotion which his own simple words describe as "the observance
of monastic rule and the daily charge of singing in the Church." We can picture him, at the appointed
hours, breaking off his absorbing occupations to take his place at the daily offices, lest, as he
believed, he should fail to meet the angels there. Alcuin records a saying of his, "I know that angels
visit the canonical hours and the congregations of the brethren. What if they do not find me among
the brethren? May they not say, ‘Where is Bede?’"

It is probably here, in this harmony of work and devotion, that we may find the secret of the
fascination in the record of his uneventful days. It reconciles the sharp antithesis between the active
and the contemplative life. It seems to attain to that ideal of "toil unsever’d from tranquillity" which
haunts us all, but which we have, almost ceased to associate with the life of man under present
conditions. Balance, moderation, or rather, that rare quality which has been well called "the sanity
of saintliness," these give a unity to the life of Bede and preserve him from the exaggerations of
the conventual ideal. With all his admiration for the ascetic life, he recognizes human limitations.
It is cheering to find that even he felt the need of a holiday. "Having completed," he writes, "the
third book of the Commentary on Samuel, I thought I would rest awhile, and, after recovering in
that way my delight in study and writing, proceed to take in hand the fourth." Intellectual power
commands his homage, but his mind is open to the appreciation of all forms of excellence. It is the
unlearned brother, unfit for study and occupied in manual labour, to whom, in his story, it is
vouchsafed to hear the singing of the angels who came to summon Ceadda to his rest. The life of
devotion ranks highest in his estimation, but he records with approval how St. Cuthbert thought
"that to afford the weak brethren the help of his exhortation stood in the stead of prayer, knowing
that He Who said ‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy God,’ said likewise, ‘Thou shalt love thy neighbour
as thyself.’" He tells us how St. Gregory bewailed his own loss in being forced by his office to be
entangled in worldly affairs. "But," adds the human-hearted biographer, "it behoves us to believe
that he lost nothing of his monastic perfection by reason of his pastoral charge, but rather that he
gained greater profit through the labour of converting many, than by the former calm of his private
life." Yet he holds that this immunity from the evil influence of the world was chiefly due to
Gregory’s care in organizing his house like a monastery and safeguarding the opportunities for
prayer and devotional study, even while he was immersed in affairs at the court of Constantinople,
and afterwards, when he held the most onerous office in the Church.

This quality of sanity shows itself again in an unusual degree of fairness to opponents. The
Paschal error, indeed, moves his indignation in a manner which is incomprehensible and distasteful
to the modern reader, but even in the perverse and erring Celts he can recognize "a zeal of God,
though not according to knowledge." Aidan’s holiness of life wins from him a warm tribute of
admiration. In the monks of lona, the stronghold of the Celtic system, he can perceive the fruit of
good works and find an excuse for their error in their isolated situation. In the British Church it is the lack of missionary zeal, rather than their attitude towards the Easter question, which calls forth
his strongest condemnation.

A characteristic akin to this is his love of truth. As a historian, it shows itself in his scrupulous
care in investigating evidence and in acknowledging the sources from which he draws. Nowhere
is his intellectual honesty more apparent than in dealing with what he believes to be the miraculous
element in his history. In whatever way we may regard these anecdotes, there can be no doubt that
Bede took the utmost pains to assure himself of their authenticity. He is careful to acquire, if
possible, first-hand evidence; where this cannot be obtained, he scrupulously mentions the lack of
it. He admits only the testimony of witnesses of high character and generally quotes them by name.

These are but a few of the glimpses afforded us of the personality of Bede, a personality never
obtruded, but everywhere unconsciously revealed in his work. Everywhere we find the impress of
a mind of wide intellectual grasp, a character of the highest saintliness, and a gentle refinement of
thought and feeling. The lofty spirituality of Bede, his great learning and scholarly attainment are
the more striking when we reflect how recently his nation had emerged from barbarism and received
Christianity and the culture which it brought with it to these shores.

The letter in which he declines Egbert’s invitation on the plea of illness is dated November,

734. If we may assume that his death took place on the eve of Ascension Day in 735, no long period
of enfeebled health clouded the close of his life, and weakness never interrupted his work. His
death has been described by his pupil, Cuthbert, who afterwards became Abbot of Wearmouth and
Jarrow in succession to Huaetbert, in the letter quoted below. He was first buried at Jarrow but,
according to Simeon of Durham, his relics were stolen by the priest, Elfred, and carried to Durham.
In 1104, when the bones of Cuthbert were translated to the new Cathedral, those of Bede were
found with them. Not long after, Hugh de Puisac erected a shrine of gold and silver, adorned with
jewels, in which he placed them, along with the relics of many other saints. The shrine disappeared
at the Reformation, and only the stone on which it rested remains.
Letter of Cuthbert to Cuthwin.

"To his fellow-lector, Cuthwin, beloved in Christ, Cuthbert, his fellow-student, greeting and
salvation for ever in the Lord. I have very gladly received the gift which thou sentest to me, and
with much joy have read thy devout and learned letter, wherein I found that which I greatly desired,
to wit, that masses and holy prayers are diligently offered by you for our father and master Bede,
beloved of God. Wherefore I rejoice, rather for love of him than from confidence in my own power,
to relate in few words after what manner he departed out of this world, understanding also that thou
hast desired and asked this of me. He was troubled with weakness and chiefly with difficulty in
breathing, yet almost without pain, for about a fortnight before the day of our Lord’s Resurrection;
and thus he afterwards passed his time, cheerful and rejoicing, giving thanks to Almighty God
every day and night, nay, every hour, till the day of our Lord’s Ascension, to wit, the twenty-sixth
day of May, and daily gave lessons to us, his disciples; and whatsoever remained of the day he
spent in singing psalms, as far as he was able; he also strove to pass all the night joyfully in prayer
and thanksgiving to God, save only when a short sleep prevented it; and then he no sooner awoke
than he straightway began again to repeat the well-known sacred songs, and ceased not to give
thanks to God with uplifted hands. I declare with truth that I have never seen with my eyes, or heard
with my ears, any man so earnest in giving thanks to the living God. O truly blessed man! He
repeated the words of St. Paul the Apostle, ‘It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living
God,’ and much more out of Holy Scripture; wherein also he admonished us to think of our last hour, and to arise out of the sleep of the soul; and being learned in our native poetry, he said also
in our tongue, concerning the dread parting of souls from the body:

Fore then neidfaerae
naenig uiuurthit
thonc suotturra
than him tharf sie
to ymb hycggannae
aer his hin iongae
huaet his gastae
godaes aeththa yflaes
aefter deothdaege
doemid uueorthae.

Which being interpreted is: ‘Before the inevitable journey hence, no man is wiser than is needful
that he may consider, ere the soul departs, what good or evil it hath done and how it shall be judged
after its departure.’

"He also sang antiphons for our comfort and his own. One of these is, ‘O King of Glory, Lord
of all power, Who, triumphing this day, didst ascend above all the heavens, leave us not comfortless,
but send to us the promise of the Father, even the Spirit of Truth—Hallelujah.’ And when he came
to the words, ‘leave us not comfortless,’ he burst into tears and wept much. And an hour after, he
fell to repeating what he had begun. And this he did the whole day, and we, hearing it, mourned
with him and wept. Now we read and now we lamented, nay, we wept even as we read. In such

rapture we passed the fifty days’ festival till the aforesaid day; and he rejoiced greatly and gave
God thanks, because he had been accounted worthy to suffer such weakness. And he often said,
‘God scourgeth every son whom He receiveth; and the words of St. Ambrose, ‘I have not so lived
as to be ashamed to live among you; but neither do I fear to die, because we have a merciful Lord.’
And during those days, besides the lessons we had daily from him, and the singing of the Psalms,
there were two memorable works, which he strove to finish; to wit, his translation of the Gospel
of St. John, from the beginning, as far as the words, ‘But what are they among so many?’ into our
own tongue, for the benefit of the Church of God; and some selections from the books of Bishop
Isidore, saying, ‘I would not have my boys read a lie, nor labour herein without profit after my
death.’

"When the Tuesday before the Ascension of our Lord came, he began to suffer still more in his
breathing, and there was some swelling in his feet. But he went on teaching all that day and dictating
cheerfully, and now and then said among other things, ‘Learn quickly, I know not how long I shall
endure, and whether my Maker will not soon take me away.’ But to us it seemed that haply he
‘knew well the time of his departure; and so he spent the night, awake, in giving of thanks. Andwhen the mornino dawned, that is, on the Wednesday, he bade us write with all speed what we had
begun. And this we did until the third hour. And from the third hour we walked in procession with
the relics of the saints, according to the custom of that day. And there was one of us with him who
said to him, ‘There is still one chapter wanting of the book which thou hast been dictating, but I
deem it burdensome for thee to be questioned any further.’ He answered, ‘Nay, it is light, take thy
pen and make ready, and write quickly.’ And this was done. But at the ninth hour he said to me, ‘I
have certain treasures in my coffer, some spices, napkins and incense; run quickly and bring the
priests of our monastery to me; that I may distribute among them the gifts which God has bestowed
on me.’ And this I did trembling, and when they were come, he spoke to every one of them,
admonishing and entreating them that they should diligently offer masses and prayers for him, and
they promised readily. But they all mourned and wept, sorrowing most of all for the words which
he spake, because they thought that they should see his face no long time in this world. But they
rejoiced for that he said, ‘It is time for me, if it be my Maker’s will, to be set free from the flesh,
and come to Him Who, when as yet I was not, formed me out of nothing. I have lived long; and
well has my pitiful judge disposed my life for me; the time of my release is at hand; for my soul
longs to see Christ my King in His beauty.’ Having said this and much more for our profit and
edification, he passed his last day in gladness till the evening; and the aforesaid boy, whose name
was Wilbert, still said, ‘Dear master, there is yet one sentence not written.’ He answered, ‘It is well,
write it.’ Soon after, the boy said, ‘Now it is written.’ And he said, ‘It is well, thou hast said truly,
it is finished. Take my head in thy hands, for I rejoice greatly to sit facing my holy place where I
was wont to pray, that I too, sitting there, may call upon my Father.’ And thus on the pavement of
his little cell, chanting ‘Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost,’ and the rest,
he breathed his last.

"And without doubt we must believe that inasmuch as he had always been devout and earnest
on earth in the praise of God, his soul was carried by angels to the joys of Heaven which he desired.
And all who heard him or beheld the death of our father Bede, said that they had never seen any
other end his life in so great devotion and peace. For, as thou hast heard, so long as the soul abode
in the body, he chanted the ‘Gloria Patri’ and other words to the glory of God, and with outstretched
hands ceased not to give thanks to God.

"But know this, that much could be told and written concerning him, but my want of learning
cuts short my words. Nevertheless, with the help of God, I purpose at leisure to write more fully
concerning him, of those things which I saw with my own eyes and heard with my own ears."

 

BOOK I

CHAP. I. Of the Situation of Britain and Ireland, and of their ancient inhabitants

Britain, an island in the Atlantic, formerly called Albion, lies to the north-west, facing, though
at a considerable distance, the coasts of Germany, France, and Spain, which form the greatest part
of Europe. It extends 800 miles in length towards the north, and is 200 miles in breadth, except
where several promontories extend further in breadth, by which its compass is made to be 4,875
miles. To the south lies Belgic Gaul. To its nearest shore there is an easy passage from the city of
Rutubi Portus, by the English now corrupted into Reptacaestir. The distance from here across the
sea to Gessoriacum, the nearest shore in the territory of the Morini, is fifty miles, or as some writers
say, 450 furlongs. On the other side of the island, where it opens upon the boundless ocean, it has
the islands called Orcades. Britain is rich in grain and trees, and is well adapted for feeding cattle
and beasts of burden. It also produces vines in some places, and has plenty of land and water fowl
of divers sorts; it is remarkable also for rivers abounding in fish, and plentiful springs. It has the
greatest plenty of salmon and eels; seals are also frequently taken, and dolphins, as also whales;
besides many sorts of shell-fish, such as mussels, in which are often found excellent pearls of all
colours, red, purple, violet and green, but chiefly white. There is also a great abundance of snails,
of which the scarlet dye is made, a most beautiful red, which never fades with the heat of the sun
or exposure to rain, but the older it is, the more beautiful it becomes. It has both salt and hot springs,
and from them flow rivers which furnish hot baths proper for all ages and both sexes, in separate

places, according to their requirements. For water, as St. Basil says, receives the quality of heat,
when it runs along certain metals, and becomes not only hot but scalding. Britain is rich also in
veins of metals, as copper, iron, lead, and silver; it produces a great deal of excellent jet, which is
black and sparkling, and burns when put to the fire, and when set on fire, drives away serpents;
being warmed with rubbing, it attracts whatever is applied to it, like amber. The island was formerly
distinguished by twenty-eight famous cities, besides innumerable forts, which were all strongly
secured with walls, towers, gates, and bars. And, because it lies almost under the North Pole, the
nights are light in summer, so that at midnight the beholders are often in doubt whether the evening
twilight still continues, or that of the morning has come; since the sun at night returns to the east
in the northern regions without passing far beneath the earth. For this reason the days are of a great
length in summer, and on the other hand, the nights in winter are eighteen hours long, for the sun
then withdraws into southern parts. In like manner the nights are very short in summer, and the
days in winter, that is, only six equinoctial hours. Whereas, in Armenia, Macedonia, Italy, and other
countries of the same latitude, the longest day or night extends but to fifteen hours, and the shortest
to nine.

There are in the island at present, following the number of the books in which the Divine Law

was written, five languages of different nations employed in the study and confession of the one
self-same knowledge, which is of highest truth and true sublimity, to wit, English, British, Scottish,
Pictish, and Latin, the last having become common to all by the study of the Scriptures. But at first
this island had no other inhabitants but the Britons, from whom it derived its name, and who, coming over into Britain, as is reported, from Armorica, [Editor’s note: In Caesar’s time, the whole district
lying along the northwestern coast of Gaul, afterwards narrowed down to the modern Brittany.
That the Britons (or Brythons)came from Gaul is doubtless a fact. Another branch of the Celtic
race, the Goidels or Gaels, appears to have been in possession in Britain before them. They possessed
themselves of the southern parts thereof. Starting from the south, they had occupied the greater

part of the island, when it happened, that the nation of the Picts, putting to sea from Scythia, as is
reported, in a few ships of war, and being driven by the winds beyond the bounds of Britain, came
to Ireland and landed on its northern shores. [Editors note: By Scythia Bede means Scandinavia.
He only mentions this account as a tradition. The problem of the Picts has not been solved yet.
According to one view, they belonged to the pre-Aryan inhabitants of Britain, pushed westward
and northward by the Celtic invaders. In Scotland they held their own for a considerable time in a
wide tract of country, and they may have to some extent amalgamated with the Celts who
dispossessed them (Rhys). Others regard them as Celts of the same branch as Welsh, Cornish, and
Britons, being probably nearest to Cornish. The absence of all but the scantiest remains of their
language makes the question of their origin one of great difficulty.] There, finding the nation of
the Scots, they begged to be allowed to settle among them, but could not succeed in obtaining their
request. Ireland is the largest island next to Britain, and lies to the west of it; but as it is shorter than
Britain to the north, so, on the other hand, it runs out far beyond it to the south, over against the
northern part of Spain, though a wide sea lies between them. The Picts then, as has been said,
arriving in this island by sea, desired to have a place granted them in which they might settle. The
Scots answered that the island could not contain them both; but "We can give you good counsel,"
said they, "whereby you may know what to do; we know there is another island, not far from ours,
to the eastward, which we often see at a distance, when the days are clear. If you will go thither,
you can obtain settlements; or, if any should oppose you, we will help you." The Picts, accordingly,
sailing over into Britain, began to inhabit the northern parts thereof, for the Britons had possessed
themselves of the southern. Now the Picts had no wives, and asked them of the Scots; who would
not consent to grant them upon any other terms, than that when any question should arise, they
should choose a king from the female royal race rather than from the male: which custom, as is
well known, has been observed among the Picts to this day. In process of time, Britain, besides the
Britons and the Picts, received a third nation, the Scots, who, migrating from Ireland under their
leader, Reuda, either by fair means, or by force of arms, secured to themselves those settlements
among the Picts which they still possess. From the name of their commander, they are to this day
called Dalreudini; for, in their language, Dal signifies a part.

Ireland is broader than Britain and has a much healthier and milder climate; for the snow scarcely
ever lies there above three days: no man makes hay in the summer for winter’s provision, or builds
stables for his beasts of burden. No reptiles are found there, and no snake can live there; for, though
snakes are often carried thither out of Britain, as soon as the ship comes near the shore, and the
scent of the air reaches them, they die. On the contrary, almost all things in the island are efficacious
against poison. In truth, we have known that when men have been bitten by serpents, the scrapings
of leaves of books that were brought out of Ireland, being put into water, and given them to drink,
have immediately absorbed the spreading poison, and assuaged the swelling. The island abounds
in milk and honey, nor is there any lack of vines, fish, or fowl; and it is noted for the hunting of stags and roe-deer. It is properly the country of the Scots, who, migrating from thence, as has been
said, formed the third nation in Britain in addition to the Britons and the Picts.

There is a very large gulf of the sea, which formerly divided the nation of the Britons from the
Picts; it runs from the west far into the land, where, to this day, stands a strong city of the Britons,

called Alcluith. The Scots, arriving on the north side of this bay, settled themselves there.

CHAP. II. How Caius Julius Caesar was the first Roman that came into Britain. [54 AD]

Now Britain had never been visited by the Romans, and was entirely unknown to them before
the time of Caius Julius Caesar, who, in the year 693 after the foundation of Rome, but the sixtieth
year before the Incarnation of our Lord, was consul with Lucius Bibulus. While he was making
war upon the Germans and the Gauls, who were divided only by the river Rhine, he came into the
province of the Morini, whence is the nearest and shortest passage into Britain. Here, having
provided about eighty ships of burden and fast-sailing vessels, he sailed over into Britain; where,
being first roughly handled in a battle, and then caught in a storm, he lost a considerable part of his
fleet, no small number of foot-soldiers, and almost all his cavalry. Returning into Gaul, he put his
legions into winter-quarters, and gave orders for building six hundred sail of both sorts. With these
he again crossed over early in spring into Britain, but, whilst he was marching with the army against
the enemy, the ships, riding at anchor, were caught in a storm and either dashed one against another,
or driven upon the sands and wrecked. Forty of them were lost, the rest were, with much difficulty,
repaired. Caesar’s cavalry was, at the first encounter, defeated by the Britons, and there Labienus,
the tribune, was slain. In the second engagement, with great hazard to his men, he defeated the
Britons and put them to flight. Thence he proceeded to the river Thames, where a great multitude
of the enemy had posted themselves on the farther side of the river, under the command of

Cassobellaunus, and fenced the bank of the river and almost all the ford under water with sharp
stakes: the remains of these are to be seen to this day, apparently about the thickness of a man’s
thigh, cased with lead, and fixed immovably in the bottom of the river. This being perceived and
avoided by the Romans, the barbarians, not able to stand the charge of the legions, hid themselves
in the woods, whence they grievously harassed the Romans with repeated sallies. In the meantime,

the strong state of the Trinovantes, with their commander Androgius, surrendered to Caesar, giving
him forty hostages. Many other cities, following their example, made a treaty with the Romans.

Guided by them, Caesar at length, after severe fighting, took the town of Cassobellaunus, situated
between two marshes, fortified by sheltering woods, and plentifully furnished with all necessaries.
After this, Caesar returned from Britain into Gaul, but he had no sooner put his legions into winter
quarters, than he was suddenly beset and distracted with wars and sudden risings on every side.

CHAP. III. How Claudius, the second of the Romans who came into Britain, brought the
islands Orcades into subjection to the Roman empire; and Vespasian, sent by hint, reduced
the Isle of Wight under the dominion of the Romans. [44 AD]

In the year of Rome 798, Claudius, fourth emperor from Augustus, being desirous to approve
himself a prince beneficial to the republic, and eagerly bent upon war and conquest on every side,
undertook an expedition into Britain, which as it appeared, was roused to rebellion by the refusal
of the Romans to give up certain deserters. No one before or after Julius Caesar had dared to land
upon the island. Claudius crossed over to it, and within a very few days, without any fighting or
bloodshed, the greater part of the island was surrendered into his hands. He also added to the Roman

empire the Orcades, which lie in the ocean beyond Britain, and, returning to Rome in the sixth
month after his departure, he gave his son the title of Britannicus. This war he concluded in the
fourth year of his reign, which is the forty-sixth from the Incarnation of our Lord. In which year
there came to pass a most grievous famine in Syria, which is recorded in the Acts of the Apostles
to have been foretold by the prophet Agabus.

Vespasian, who was emperor after Nero, being sent into Britain by the same Claudius, brought
also under the Roman dominion the Isle of Wight, which is close to Britain on the south, and is
about thirty miles in length from east to west, and twelve from north to south; being six miles distant
from the southern coast of Britain at the east end, and three at the west. Nero, succeeding Claudius
in the empire, undertook no wars at all; and, therefore, among countless other disasters brought by
him upon the Roman state, he almost lost Britain; for in his time two most notable towns were there
taken and destroyed.

CHAP. IV. How Lucius, king of Britain, writing to Pope Eleutherus, desired to be made a
Christian.

In the year of our Lord 156, Marcus Antoninus Verus, the fourteenth from Augustus, was made
emperor, together with his brother, Aurelius Commodus. [Editor’s note: Marcus Antoninus Verus,
commonly called Marcus Aurelius, succeeded in 161 A.D. His colleague in the empire was his
adopted brother, Lucius Verus, whose full adoptive name was Lucius Aurelius Antoninus Verus
Commodus. He died in 169. Eleutherus became Pope between 171 and 177. Bede’s chronology is
therefore wrong.] In their time, whilst the holy Eleutherus presided over the Roman Church, Lucius,
king of Britain, sent a letter to him, entreating that by a mandate from him he might be made a

Christian. He soon obtained his pious request, and the Britons preserved the faith, which they had
received, uncorrupted and entire, in peace and tranquillity until the time of the Emperor Diocletian.

CHAP. V. How the Emperor Severus divided from the rest by a rampart that part of Britain
which had been recovered.

In the year of our Lord 189, Severus, an African, born at Leptis, in the province of Tripolis,
became emperor. He was the seventeenth from Augustus; and reigned seventeen years. Being
naturally of a harsh disposition, and engaged in many wars, he governed the state vigorously, but
with much trouble. Having been victorious in all the grievous civil wars which happened in his
time, he was drawn into Britain by the revolt of almost all the confederated tribes; and, after many
great and severe battles, he thought fit to divide that part of the island, which he had recovered,

from the other unconquered nations, not with a wall, as some imagine, but with a rampart. For a
wall is made of stones, but a rampart, with which camps are fortified to repel the assaults of enemies,
is made of sods, cut out of the earth, and raised high above the ground, like a wall, having in front
of it the trench whence the sods were taken, with strong stakes of wood fixed above it. Thus Severus
drew a great trench and strong rampart, fortified with several towers, from sea to sea. And there,
at York, he fell sick afterwards and died, leaving two sons, Bassianus and Geta; of whom Geta
died, adjudged an enemy of the State; but Bassianus, having taken the surname of Antonius, obtained
the empire.

CHAP. VI. Of the reign of Diocletian, and how he persecuted the Christians. [286 AD]

In the year of our Lord 286, Diocletian, the thirty-third from Augustus, and chosen emperor by
the army, reigned twenty years, and created Maximian, surnamed Herculius, his colleague in the

empire. In their time, one Carausius, of very mean birth, but a man of great ability and energy,
being appointed to guard the sea-coasts, then infested by the Franks and Saxons, acted more to the
prejudice than to the advantage of the commonwealth, by not restoring to its owners any of the
booty taken from the robbers, but keeping all to himself; thus giving rise to the suspicion that by
intentional neglect he suffered the enemy to infest the frontiers. When, therefore, an order was sent
by Maximian that he should be put to death, he took upon him the imperial purple, and possessed
himself of Britain, and having most valiantly conquered and held it for the space of seven years,

he was at length put to death by the treachery of his associate Allectus. The usurper, having thus
got the island from Carausius, held it three years, and was then vanquished by Asclepiodotus, the
captain of the Praetorian guards, who thus at the end of ten years restored Britain to the Roman
empire.

Meanwhile, Diocletian in the east, and Maximian Herculius in the west, commanded the churches
to be destroyed, and the Christians to be persecuted and slain. This persecution was the tenth since
the reign of Nero, and was more lasting and cruel than almost any before it; for it was carried on
incessantly for the space of ten years, with burning of churches, proscription of innocent persons,
and the slaughter of martyrs. Finally, Britain also attained to the great glory of bearing faithful
witness to God.

CHAP. VIII. How, when the persecution ceased, the Church in Britain enjoyed peace till the

time of the Arian heresy. [325 AD]

When the storm of persecution ceased, the faithful Christians, who, during the time of danger,
had hidden themselves in woods and deserts and secret caves, came forth and rebuilt the churches
which had been levelled to the ground; founded, erected, and finished the cathedrals raised in honour
of the holy martyrs, and, as if displaying their conquering standards in all places, celebrated festivals
and performed their sacred rites with pure hearts and lips. This peace continued in the Christian
churches of Britain until the time of the Arian madness, which, having corrupted the whole world,
infected this island also, so far removed from the rest of the world, with the poison of its error; and
when once a way was opened across the sea for that plague, straightway all the taint of every heresy
fell upon the island, ever desirous to hear some new thing, and never holding firm to any sure belief.

At this time Constantius, who, whilst Diocletian was alive, governed Gaul and Spain, a man of
great clemency and urbanity, died in Britain. This man left his son Constantine [Constantine the
Great] born of Helena, his concubine, emperor of the Gauls. Eutropius writes that Constantine,
being created emperor in Britain, succeeded his father in the sovereignty. In his time the Arian

heresy broke out, and although it was exposed and condemned in the Council of Nicaea, nevertheless,
the deadly poison of its evil spread, as has been said, to the Churches in the islands, as well as to
those of the rest of the world.

CHAP. IX. How during the reign of Gratian, Maximus, being created Emperor in Britain,
returned into Gaul with a mighty army. [377 AD]

In the year of our Lord 377, Gratian, the fortieth from Augustus, held the empire for six years
after the death of Valens; though he had long before reigned with his uncle Valens, and his brother
Valentinian. Finding the condition of the commonwealth much impaired, and almost gone to ruin,
and impelled by the necessity of restoring it, he invested the Spaniard, Theodosius, with the purple

at Sirmium, and made him emperor of Thrace and the Eastern provinces. At that time, Maximus,
a man of energy and probity, and worthy of the title of Augustus, if he had not broken his oath of
allegiance, was made emperor by the army somewhat against his will, passed over into Gaul, and
there by treachery slew the Emperor Gratian, who in consternation at his sudden invasion, was
attempting to escape into Italy. His brother, the Emperor Valentinian, expelled from Italy, fled into
the East, where he was entertained by Theodosius with fatherly affection, and soon restored to the
empire, for Maximus the tyrant, being shut up in Aquileia, was there taken by them and put to
death.

CHAP. X. How, in the reign of Arcadius, Pelagius, a Briton, insolently impugned the Grace
of God. [395 AD]

In the year of our Lord 394, Arcadius, the son of Theodosius, the forty-third from Augustus,
succeeding to the empire, with his brother Honorius, held it thirteen years. In his time, Pelagius,
[Pelagius, the founder of the heresy known as Pelagianism, was probably born in 370 A.D., and is
said to have been a Briton. His great opponent, St. Augustine, speaks of him as a good and holy
man; later slanders are to be attributed to Jerome’s abusive language. The cardinal point in his
doctrine is his denial of original sin, involving a too great reliance on the human will in achieving
holiness, and a limitation of the action of the grace of God] a Briton, spread far and near the infection
of his perfidious doctrine, denying the assistance of the Divine grace, being seconded therein by

his associate Julianus of Campania, who was impelled by an uncontrolled desire to recover his
bishopric, of which he had been deprived. St . Augustine, and the other orthodox fathers, quoted
many thousand catholic authorities against them, but failed to amend their folly; nay, more, their
madness being rebuked was rather increased by contradiction than suffered by them to be purified

through adherence to the truth; which Prosper, the rhetorician, has beautifully expressed thus in
heroic" verse :—

"They tell that one, erewhile consumed with gnawing spite, snake-like attacked Augustine in
his writings. Who urged the wretched viper to raise from the ground his head, howsoever hidden
in dens of darkness? Either the sea-girt Britons reared him with the fruit of their soil, or fed on
Campanian pastures his heart swells with pride."

CHAP. XI. How during the reign of Honorius, Gratian and Constantine were created tyrants
in Britain; and soon after the former was slain in Britain, and the latter in Gaul. [407 A.D.]

IN the year of our Lord 407, Honorius, the younger son of Theodosius, and the forty-fourth
from Augustus, being emperor, two years before the invasion of Rome by Alaric, king of the Goths,
when the nations of the Alani, Suevi, Vandals, and many others with them, having defeated the
Franks and passed the Rhine, ravaged all Gaul, Gratianus, a citizen of the country, was set up as
tyrant in Britain and killed. In his place, Constantine, one of the meanest soldiers, only for the hope
afforded by his name, and without any worth to recommend him, was chosen emperor. As soon as
he had taken upon him the command, he crossed over into Gaul, where being often imposed upon by the barbarians with untrustworthy treaties, he did more harm than good to the Commonwealth.

Whereupon Count Constantius, by the command of Honorius, marching into Gaul with an army,
besieged him in the city of Arles, took him prisoner, and put him to death. His son Constans, a
monk, whom he had created Caesar, was also put to death by his own follower Count Gerontius,
at Vienne.

Rome was taken by the Goths, in the year from its foundation, 1164. Then the Romans ceased
to rule in Britain, almost 470 years after Caius Julius Caesar came to the island. They dwelt within
the rampart, which, as we have mentioned, Severus made across the island, on the south side of it, as the cities, watch-towers, bridges, and paved roads there made testify to this day; but they had a
right of dominion over the farther parts of Britain, as also over the islands that are beyond Britain.

CHAP. XII. How the Britons, being ravaged by the Scots and Picts, sought succour from the
Romans, who coming a second time, built a wall across the island; but when this was broken
down at once by the aforesaid enemies, they were reduced to greater distress than before.
[410-420 AD]

FROM that time, the British part of Britain, destitute of armed soldiers, of all military stores,
and of the whole flower of its active youth, who had been led away by the rashness of the tyrants
never to return, was wholly exposed to rapine, the people being altogether ignorant of the use of
weapons. Whereupon they suffered many years from the sudden invasions of two very savage
nations from beyond the sea, the Scots from the west, and the Picts from the north. We call these
nations from beyond the sea, not on account of their being seated out of Britain, but because they
were separated from that part of it which was possessed by the Britons, two broad and long inlets
of the sea lying between them, one of which runs into the interior of Britain, from the Eastern Sea,
and the other from the Western, though they do not reach so far as to touch one another. The eastern has in the midst of it the city Giudi. On the Western Sea, that is, on its right shore, stands the city of Alcluith, which in their language signifies the Rock Cluith, for it is close by the river of that
name.

On account of the attacks of these nations, the Britons sent messengers to Rome with letters
piteously praying for succour, and promising perpetual subjection, provided that the impending
enemy should be driven away. An armed legion was immediately sent them, which, arriving in the
island, and engaging the enemy, slew a great multitude of them, drove the rest out of the territories
of their allies, and having in the meanwhile delivered them from their worst distress, advised them
to build a wall between the two seas across the island, that it might secure them by keeping off the
enemy. So they returned home with great triumph. But the islanders building the wall which they
had been told to raise, not of stone, since they had no workmen capable of such a work, but of sods,
made it of no use. Nevertheless, they carried it for many miles between the two bays or inlets of

the sea of which we have spoken; to the end that where the protection of the water was wanting,
they might use the rampart to defend their borders from the irruptions of the enemies. Of the work
there erected, that is, of a rampart of great breadth and height, there are evident remains to be seen

at this day. It begins at about two miles distance from the monastery of Aebbercurnig, west of it,
at a place called in the Pictish language Peanfahel, but in the English tongue, Penneltun, and running
westward, ends near the city of Aicluith.

But the former enemies, when they perceived that the Roman soldiers were gone, immediately
coming by sea, broke into the borders, trampled and overran all places, and like men mowing ripe
corn, bore down all before them. Hereupon messengers were again sent to Rome miserably imploring aid, lest their wretched country should be utterly blotted out, and the name of a Roman province,
so long renowned among them, overthrown by the cruelties of foreign races, might become utterly
contemptible. A legion was accordingly sent again, and, arriving unexpectedly in autumn, made
great slaughter of the enemy, obliging all those that could escape, to flee beyond the sea; whereas
before, they were wont yearly to carry off their booty without any opposition. Then the Romans
declared to the Britons, that they could not for the future undertake such troublesome expeditions
for their sake, and advised them rather to take up arms and make an effort to engage their enemies,
who could not prove too powerful for them, unless they themselves were enervated by cowardice.
Moreover, thinking that it might be some help to the allies, whom they were forced to abandon,
they constructed a strong stone wall from sea to sea, in a straight line between the towns that had
been there built for fear of the enemy, where Severus also had formerly built a rampart. This famous
wall, which is still to be seen, was raised at public and private expense, the Britons also lending
their assistance. It is eight feet in breadth, and twelve in height, in a straight line from east to west,
as is still evident to beholders. This being presently finished, they gave the dispirited people good
advice, and showed them how to furnish themselves with arms. Besides, they built towers to
command a view of the sea, at intervals, on the southern coast, where their ships lay, because there
also the invasions of the barbarians were apprehended, and so took leave of their allies, never to
return again.

After their departure to their own country, the Scots and Picts, understanding that they had
refused to return, at once came back, and growing more confident than they had been before,
occupied all the northern and farthest part of the island, driving out the natives, as far as the wall.
Hereupon a timorous guard was placed upon the fortification, where, dazed with fear, they became
ever more dispirited day by day. On the other side, the enemy constantly attacked them with barbed
weapons, by which the cowardly defenders were dragged in piteous fashion from the wall, and
dashed against the ground. At last, the Britons, forsaking their cities and wall, took to flight and
were scattered. The enemy pursued, and forthwith followed a massacre more grievous than ever
before; for the wretched natives were torn in pieces by their enemies, as lambs arc torn by wild
beasts. Thus, being expelled from their dwellings and lands, they saved themselves from the
immediate danger of starvation by robbing and plundering one another, adding to the calamities
inflicted by the enemy their own domestic broils, till the whole country was left destitute of food
except such as could be procured in the chase.

CHAP. XIII. How in the reign of Theodosius the younger, in whose time Palladius was sent
to the Scots that believed in Christ, the Britons begging assistance of Aetius, the consul, could
not obtain it. [446 A.D.]

In the year of our Lord 423, Theodosius, the younger, the forty-fifth from Augustus, succeeded
Honorius and governed the Roman empire twenty-six years. In the eighth year of his reign, Palladius
was sent by Celestinus, the Roman pontiff, to the Scots that believed in Christ, to be their first

bishop. In the twenty-third year of his reign, Aetius, a man of note and a patrician, discharged his
third consulship with Symmachus for his colleague. To him the wretched remnant of the Britons sent a letter, which began thus :—"To Aetius, thrice Consul, the groans of the Britons." And in the
sequel of the letter they thus unfolded their woes:—" The barbarians drive us to the sea; the sea
drives us back to the barbarians: between them we are exposed to two sorts of death; we are either
slaughtered or drowned." Yet, for all this, they could not obtain any help from him, as he was then
engaged in most serious wars with Bledla and Attila, kings of the Huns. And though the year before

this Bledla had been murdered by the treachery of his own brother Attila, yet Attila himself remained
so intolerable an enemy to the Republic, that he ravaged almost all Europe, attacking and destroying
cities and castles. At the same time there was a famine at Constantinople, and soon after a plague
followed; moreover, a great part of the wall of that city, with fifty-seven towers, fell to the ground.
Many cities also went to ruin, and the famine and pestilential state of the air destroyed thousands
of men and cattle.

CHAP. XIV. How the Britons, compelled by the great famine, drove the barbarians out of
the their territories, and soon after there ensued, along with abundance of corn, decay of
morals, pestilence, and the downfall of the nation.

IN the meantime, the aforesaid famine distressing the Britons more and more, and leaving to
posterity a lasting memory of its mischievous effects, obliged many of them to submit themselves
to the depredators; though others still held out, putting their trust in God, when human help failed.
These continually made raids from the mountains, caves, and woods, and, at length, began to inflict
severe losses on their enemies, who had been for so many years plundering the country. The bold
Irish robbers thereupon returned home, intending’ to come again before long. The Picts then settled
down in the farthest part of the island and afterwards remained there; but they did not fail to plunder
and harass the Britons from time to time.

Now, when the ravages of the enemy at length abated, the island began to abound with such
plenty of grain as had never been known in any age before; along with plenty, evil living increased,
and this was immediately attended by the taint of all manner of crime; in particular, cruelty, hatred
of truth, and love of falsehood; insomuch, that if any one among them happened to be milder than
the rest, and more inclined to truth, all the rest abhorred and persecuted him unrestrainedly, as if
he had been the enemy of Britain. Nor were the laity only guilty of these things, but even our Lord’s
own flock, with its shepherds, casting off the easy yoke of Christ, gave themselves up to drunkenness,
enmity, quarrels, strife, envy, and other such sins. In the meantime, on a sudden, a grievous plague
fell upon that corrupt generation, which soon destroyed such numbers of them, that the living
scarcely availed to bury the dead: yet, those that survived, could not be recalled from the spiritual
death, which they had incurred’ through their sins, either by the death of their friends, or the fear
of death. Whereupon, not long after, a more severe vengeance for their fearful crimes fell upon the
sinful nation. They held a council to determine what was to be done, and where they should seek
help to prevent or repel the cruel and frequent incursions of the northern nations; and in concert

with their King Vortigern, it was unanimously decided to call the Saxons to their aid from beyond
the sea, which, as the event plainly showed, was brought about by the Lord’s will, that evil might
fall upon them for their wicked deeds.

CHAP. XV. How the Angles, being invited into Britain, at first drove off the enemy; but not
long after, making a league with them, turned their weapons against their allies.

In the year of our Lord 449, Marcian, the forty-sixth from Augustus, being made emperor with

Valentinian, ruled the empire seven years. Then the nation of the Angles, or Saxons, being invited
by the aforesaid king, arrived in Britain with three ships of war and had a place in which to settle
assigned to them by the same king, in the eastern part of the island, on the pretext of fighting in
defence of their country, whilst their real intentions were to conquer it. Accordingly they engaged
with the enemy, who were come from the north to give battle, and the Saxons obtained the victory.
When the news of their success and of the fertility of the country, and the cowardice of the Britons,
reached their own home, a more considerable fleet was quickly sent over, bringing a greater number
of men, and these, being added to the former army, made up an invincible force. The newcomers
received of the Britons a place to inhabit among them, upon condition that they should wage war
against their enemies for the peace and security of the country, whilst the Britons agreed to furnish
them with pay. Those who came over were of the three most powerful nations of Germany—Saxons,
Angles, and Jutes. From the Jutes are descended the people, of Kent, and of the Isle of Wight,
including those in the province of the West-Saxons who are to this day called Jutes, seated opposite
to the Isle of Wight. From the Saxons, that is, the country which is now called Old Saxony, came
the East-Saxons, the South-Saxons, and the West Saxons. From the Angles, that is, the country
which is called Angulus, and which is said, from that time, to have remained desert to this day,
between the provinces of the Jutes and the Saxons, are descended the East-Angles, the
Midland-Angles, the Mercians, all the race of the Northumbrians, that is, of those nations that dwell
on the north side of the river Humber, and the other nations of the Angles. The first commanders
are said to have been the two brothers Hengist and Horsa. Of these Horsa was afterwards slain in

battle by the Britons, and a monument, bearing his name, is still in existence in the eastern parts of
Kent. They were the sons of Victgilsus, whose father was Vitta, son of Vecta, son of Woden; from
whose stock the royal race of many provinces trace their descent. In a short time, swarms of the
aforesaid nations came over into the island, and the foreigners began to increase so much, that they
became a source of terror to the natives themselves who had invited them. Then, having on a sudden
entered into league with the Picts, whom they had by this time repelled by force of arms, they began
to turn their weapons against their allies. At first, they obliged them to furnish a greater quantity
of provisions; and, seeking an occasion of quarrel, protested, that unless more plentiful supplies
were brought them, they would break the league, and ravage all the island; nor were they backward
in putting their threats into execution. In short, the fire kindled by the hands of the pagans, proved
God’s just vengeance for the crimes of the people; not unlike that which, being of old lighted by
the Chaldeans, consumed the walls and all the buildings of Jerusalem. For here, too, through the
agency of the pitiless conqueror, yet by the disposal of the just Judge, it ravaged all the neighbouring
cities and country, spread the conflagration from the eastern to the western sea, without any
opposition, and overran the whole face of the doomed island. Public as well as private buildings
were overturned; the priests were everywhere slain before the altars; no respect was shown for
office, the prelates with the people were destroyed with fire and sword; nor were there any left to
bury those who had been thus cruelly slaughtered. Some of the miserable remnant, being taken in the mountains, were butchered in heaps. Others, spent with hunger, came forth and submitted
themselves to the enemy, to undergo for the sake of food perpetual servitude, if they were not killed
upon the spot. Some, with sorrowful hearts, fled beyond the seas. Others, remaining in their own
country, led a miserable life of terror and anxiety of mind among the mountains, woods and crags.

CHAP. XVI. How the Britons obtained their first victory over the Angles, under the command
of Ambrosius, a Roman. [456 A.D.]

When the army of the enemy, having destroyed and dispersed the natives, had returned home to their own settlements, the Britons began by degrees to take heart, and gather strength, sallying
out of the lurking places where they had concealed themselves, and with one accord imploring the
Divine help, that they might not utterly be destroyed. They had at that time for their leader,

Ambrosius Aurelianus, a man of worth, who alone, by chance, of the Roman nation had survived
the storm, in which his parents, who were of the royal race, had perished. Under him the Britons
revived, and offering battle to the victors, by the help of God, gained the victory. From that day,

sometimes the natives, and sometimes their enemies, prevailed, till the year of the siege of Badon-hill,
when they made no small slaughter of those enemies, about forty-four years after their arrival in
England. But of this hereafter.

CHAP. XVII. How Germanus the Bishop, sailing into Britain with Lupus, first quelled the
tempest of the sea, and afterwards that of the Pelagians, by Divine power. [429 A.D.]

Some few years before their arrival, the Pelagian heresy, brought over by Agricola, the son of
Severianus, a Pelagian bishop, had corrupted with its foul taint the faith of the Britons. But whereas
they absolutely refused to embrace that perverse doctrine, and blaspheme the grace of Christ, yet
were not able of themselves to confute the subtilty of the unholy belief by force of argument, they
bethought them of wholesome counsels and determined to crave aid of the Gallican prelates in that
spiritual warfare. Hereupon, these, having assembled a great synod, consulted together to determine
what persons should be sent thither to sustain the faith, and by unanimous consent, choice was
made of the apostolic prelates, Germanus, Bishop of Auxerre, and Lupus of Troyes, to go into
Britain to confirm the people’s faith in the grace of God. With ready zeal they complied with the
request and commands of the Holy Church, and put to sea. The ship sped safely with favouring
winds till they were halfway between the coast of Gaul and Britain. There on a sudden they were
obstructed by the malevolence of demons, who were jealous that men of such eminence and piety
should be sent to bring back the people to salvation. They raised storms, and darkened the sky with
clouds. The sails could not support the fury of the winds, the sailors’ skill was forced to give way,
the ship was sustained by prayer, not by strength, and as it happened, their spiritual leader and
bishop, being spent with weariness, had fallen asleep. Then, as if because resistance flagged, the tempest gathered strength, and the ship, overwhelmed by the waves, was ready to sink. Then the
blessed Lupus and all the rest, greatly troubled, awakened their elder, that he might oppose the
raging elements. He, showing himself the more resolute in proportion to the greatness of the danger,
called upon Christ, and having, in the name of the Holy Trinity, taken and sprinkled a little water,
quelled the raging waves, admonished his companion, encouraged all, and all with one consent
uplifted their voices in prayer. Divine help was granted, the enemies were put to flight, a cloudless
calm ensued, the winds veering about set themselves again to forward their voyage, the sea was
soon traversed, and they reached the quiet of the wished-for shore. A multitude flocking thither
from all parts, received the bishops, whose coming had been foretold by the predictions even of
their adversaries. For the evil spirits declared their fear, and when the bishops expelled them from
the bodies of the possessed, they made known the nature of the tempest, and the dangers they had
occasioned, and confessed that they had been overcome by the merits and authority of these men.

In the meantime the bishops speedily filled the island of Britain with the fame of their preaching
and miracles; and the Word of God was by them daily preached, not only in the churches, but even
in the streets and fields, so that the faithful and Catholic were everywhere confirmed, and those
who had been perverted accepted the way of amendment. Like the Apostles, they acquired honour
and authority through a good conscience, learning through the study of letters, and the power of
working miracles through their merits. Thus the whole country readily came over to their way of
thinking; the authors of the erroneous belief kept themselves in hiding, and, like evil spirits, grieved
for the loss of the people that were rescued from them. At length, after long deliberation, they had
the boldness to enter the lists. They came forward in all the splendour of their wealth, with gorgeous
apparel, and supported by a numerous following; choosing rather to hazard the contest, than to
undergo among the people whom they had led astray, the reproach of having been silenced, lest
they should seem by saying nothing to condemn themselves. An immense multitude had been
attracted thither with their wives and children. The people were present as spectators and judges;
the two parties stood there in very different case; on the one side was Divine faith, on the other
human presumption; on the one side piety, on the other pride; on the one side Pelagius, the founder
of their faith, on the other Christ. The blessed bishops permitted their adversaries to speak first,
and their empty speech long took up the time and filled the ears with meaningless words. Then the
venerable prelates poured forth the torrent of their eloquence and showered upon them the words
of Apostles and Evangelists, mingling the Scriptures with their own discourse and supporting their
strongest assertions by the testimony of the written Word. Vainglory was vanquished and unbelief
refuted; and the heretics, at every argument put before them, not being able to reply, confessed
their errors. The people, giving judgement, could scarce refrain from violence, and signified their
verdict by their acclamations.

CHAP. XVIII. How the same holy man gave sight to the blind daughter of a tribune, and
then coming to St. Alban, there received of his relics, and left other relics of the blessed
Apostles and other martyrs. [429 A.D.]

After this, a certain man, who held the office of tribune, came forward with his wife, and brought
his blind daughter, a child of ten years of age, to be healed of the bishops. They ordered her to be brought to their adversaries, who, being rebuked by their own conscience, joined their entreaties
to those of the child’s parents, and besought the bishops that she might be healed. They, therefore,
perceiving their adversaries to yield, poured forth a short prayer, and then Germanus, full of the
Holy Ghost, invoking the Trinity, at once drew from his side a casket which hung about his neck,
containing relics of the saints, and, taking it in his hands, applied it in the sight of all to the girl’s
eyes, which were immediately delivered from darkness and filled with the light of truth. The parents
rejoiced, and the people were filled with awe at the miracle; and after that day, the heretical beliefs
were so fully obliterated from the minds of all, that they thirsted for and sought after the doctrine
of the bishops.

This damnable heresy being thus suppressed, and the authors thereof confuted, and all the people
settled in the purity of the faith, the bishops went to the tomb of the martyr, the blessed Alban, to
give thanks to God through him. There Germanus, having with him relics of all the Apostles, and
of divers martyrs, after offering up his prayers, commanded the tomb to be opened, that he might
lay therein the precious gifts; judging it fitting, that the limbs of saints brought together from divers
countries, as their equal merits had procured them admission into heaven, should find shelter in
one tomb. These being honourably bestowed, and laid together, he took up a handful of dust from
the place where the blessed martyr’s blood had been shed, to carry away with him. In this dust the
blood had been preserved, showing that the slaughter of the martyrs was red, though the persecutor
was pale in death.’ In consequence of these things, an innumerable multitude of people was that
day converted to the Lord.

CHAP. XIX. How the same holy man, being detained there by sickness, by his prayers
quenched a fire that had broken out among the houses, and was himself cured of his infirmity
by a vision. [429 A.D.]

AS they were returning thence, the treacherous enemy, having, as it chanced, prepared a snare,
caused Germanus to bruise his foot by a fall, not knowing that, as it was with the blessed Job, his
merits would be but increased by bodily affliction. Whilst he was thus detained some time in the
same place by his infirmity, a fire broke out in a cottage neighbouring to that in which he was; and
having burned down the other houses which were thatched with reed, fanned by the wind, was
carried on to the dwelling in which he lay. The people all flocked to the prelate, entreating that they
might lift him in their arms, and save him from the impending danger. But he rebuked them, and
in the assurance of his faith, would not suffer himself to be removed. The whole multitude, in terror
and despair, ran to oppose the conflagration; but, for the greater manifestation of the Divine power,
whatsoever the crowd endeavoured to save, was destroyed; and what the sick and helpless man
defended, the flame avoided and passed by, though the house that sheltered the holy man lay open
to it, and while the fire raged on every side, the place in which he lay appeared untouched, amid
the general conflagration. The multitude rejoiced at the miracle, and was gladly vanquished by the
power of God. A great crowd of people watched day and night before the humble cottage; some to
have their souls healed, and some their bodies. All that Christ wrought in the person of his servant,
all the wonders the sick man performed cannot be told. Moreover, he would suffer no medicines
to be applied to his infirmity; but one night he saw one clad in garments as white as snow, standing by him, who reaching out his hand, seemed to raise him up, and ordered him to stand firm upon
his feet; from which time his pain ceased, and he was so perfectly restored, that when the day came,
with good courage he set forth upon his journey.

CHAP. XX. How the same Bishops brought help from Heaven to the Britons in a battle, and
then returned home. [430 A.D.]

IN the meantime, the Saxons and Picts, with their united forces, made war upon the Britons,
who in these straits were compelled to take up arms. In their terror thinking themselves unequal to
their enemies, they implored the assistance of the holy bishops; who, hastening to them as they had
promised, inspired so much confidence into these fearful people, that one would have thought they
had been joined by a mighty army. Thus, by these apostolic leaders, Christ Himself commanded
in their camp. The holy days of Lent were also at hand, and were rendered more sacred by the
presence of the bishops, insomuch that the people being instructed by daily sermons, came together
eagerly to receive the grace of baptism. For a great multitude of the army desired admission to the
saving waters, and a wattled church was constructed for the Feast of the Resurrection of our Lord,
and so fitted up for the army in the field as if it were in a city. Still wet with the baptismal water
the troops set forth; the faith of the people was fired; and where arms had been deemed of no avail,
they looked to the help of God. News reached the enemy of the manner and method of their
purification, who, assured of success, as if they had to deal with an unarmed host, hastened forward
with renewed eagerness. But their approach was made known by scouts. When, after the celebration
of Easter, the greater part of the army, fresh from the font, began to take up arms and prepare for
war, Germanus offered to be their leader. He picked out the most active, explored the country round

about, and observed, in the way by which the enemy was expected, a valley encompassed by hills
of moderate height. In that place he drew up his untried troops, himself acting as their general. And
now a formidable host of foes drew near, visible, as they approached, to his men lying in ambush.
Then, on a sudden, Germanus, bearing the standard, exhorted his men, and bade them all in a loud
voice repeat his words. As the enemy advanced in all security, thinking to take them by surprise,
the bishops three times cried, "Hallelujah." A universal shout of the same word followed, and the
echoes from the surrounding hills gave back the cry on all sides, the enemy was panic-stricken,
fearing, not only the neighbouring rocks, but even the very frame of heaven above them; and such
was their terror, that their feet were not swift enough to save them. They fled in disorder, casting
away their arms, and well satisfied if, even with unprotected bodies, they could escape the danger;
many of them, flying headlong in their fear, were engulfed by the river which they had crossed.
The Britons, without a blow, inactive spectators of the victory they had gained, beheld their
vengeance complete. The scattered spoils were gathered up, and the devout soldiers rejoiced in the
success which Heaven had granted them. The prelates thus triumphed over the enemy without
bloodshed, and gained a victory by faith, without the aid of human force. Thus, having settled the
affairs of the island, and restored tranquillity by the defeat of the invisible foes, as well as of enemies
in the flesh, they prepared to return home. Their own merits, and the intercession of the blessed martyr Alban, obtained for them a calm passage, and the happy vessel restored them in peace to
the desires of their people.

CHAP. XXI. How, when the Pelagian heresy began to spring up afresh, Germanus, returning
to Britain with Severus, first restored bodily strength to a lame youth, then spiritual health
to the people of God, having condemned or converted the Heretics [447 A.D.]

NOT long after, news was brought from the same island, that certain persons were again
attempting to teach and spread abroad the Pelagian heresy, and again the holy Germanus was
entreated by all the priests, that he would defend the cause of God, which he had before maintained.
He speedily complied with their request; and taking with him Severus, a man of singular sanctity,
who was disciple to the blessed father, Lupus, bishop of Troyes, and at that time, having been
ordained bishop of the Treveri, was preaching the Word of God to the tribes of Upper Germany,
put to sea, and with favouring winds and calm waters sailed to Britain.

In the meantime, the evil spirits, speeding through the whole island, were constrained against
their will to foretell that Germanus was coming, insomuch, that one Elafius, a chief of that region,
without tidings from any visible messenger, hastened to meet the holy men, carrying with him his
son, who in the very flower of his youth laboured under a grievous infirmity; for the sinews of the
knee were wasted and shrunk, so that the withered limb was denied the power to walk. All the
country followed this Elafius. The bishops arrived, and were met by the ignorant multitude, whom
they blessed, and preached the Word of God to them. They found the people constant in the faith
as they had left them; and learning that but few had gone astray, they sought out the authors of the
evil and condemned them. Then suddenly Elafius cast himself at the feet of the bishops, presenting
his son, whose distress was visible and needed no words to express it. All were grieved, but especially
the bishops, who, filled with pity, invoked the mercy of God; and straightway the blessed Germanus,
causing the youth to sit down, touched the bent and feeble knee and passed his healing hand over
all the diseased part. At once health was restored by the power of his touch, the withered limb
regained its vigour, the sinews resumed their task, and the youth was, in the presence of all the
people, delivered whole to his father. The multitude was amazed at the miracle, and the Catholic
faith was firmly established in the hearts of all; after which, they were, in a sermon, exhorted to
amend their error. By the judgement of all, the exponents of the heresy, who had been banished
from the island, were brought before the bishops, to be conveyed into the continent, that the country
might be rid of them, and they corrected of their errors. So it came to pass that the faith in those
parts continued long after pure and untainted. Thus when they had settled all things, the blessed
prelates returned home as prosperously as they had come.

But Germanus, after this, went to Ravenna to intercede for the tranquillity of the Armoricans,
where, after being very honourably received by Valentinian and his mother, Placidia, he departed
hence to Christ; his body was conveyed to his own city with a splendid retinue, and mighty works
attended his passage to the grave. Not long after, Valentinian was murdered by the followers of

Aetius, the patrician, whom he had put to death, in the sixth year of the reign of Marcian, and with
him ended the empire of the West.

CHAP. XXII. How the Britons, being for a time at rest from foreign invasions, wore themselves
out by civil wars, and at the same time gave themselves up to more heinous crimes.

IN the meantime, in Britain, there was some respite from foreign, but not from civil war. The
cities destroyed by the enemy and abandoned remained in ruins; and the natives, who had escaped
the enemy, now fought against each other. Nevertheless, the kings, priests, private men, and the
nobility, still remembering the late calamities and slaughters, in some measure kept within bounds;
but when these died, and another generation succeeded, which knew nothing of those times, and
was only acquainted with the existing peaceable state of things, all the bonds of truth and justice
were so entirely broken, that there was not only no trace of them ‘remaining, but only very few
persons seemed to retain any memory of them at all. To other crimes beyond description, which
their own historian, Gildas, mournfully relates, they added this—that they never preached the faith
to the Saxons, or English, who dwelt amongst them. Nevertheless, the goodness of God did not
forsake his people, whom he foreknew, but sent to the aforesaid nation much more worthy heralds
of the truth, to bring it to the faith.

CHAP. XXIII. How the holy Pope Gregory sent Augustine, with other monks, to preach to
the English nation, and encouraged them by a letter of exhortation, not to desist from their
labour. [596 A. D.]

IN the year of our Lord 582, Maurice, the fifty-fourth from Augustus, ascended the throne, and
reigned twenty one years. In the tenth year of his reign, Gregory, a man eminent in learning and
the conduct of affairs, was promoted to the Apostolic see of Rome, and presided over it thirteen
years, six months and ten days. He, being moved by Divine inspiration, in the fourteenth year of
the same emperor, and about the one hundred and fiftieth after the coming of the English into

Britain, sent the servant of God, Augustine, and with him divers other monks, who feared the Lord,
to preach the Word of God to the English nation. They having, in obedience to the pope’s commands,
undertaken that work, when they had gone but a little way on their journey, were seized with craven
terror, and began to think of returning home, rather than proceed to a barbarous, fierce, and
unbelieving nation, to whose very language they were strangers; and by common consent they
decided that this was the safer course. At once Augustine, who had been appointed to be consecrated
bishop, if they should be received by the English, was sent back, that he might, by humble entreaty,
obtain of the blessed Gregory, that they should not be compelled to undertake so dangerous, toilsome,
and uncertain a journey. The pope, in reply, sent them a letter of exhortation, persuading them to
set forth to the work of the Divine Word, and rely on the help of God. The purport of which letter
was as follows:

"Gregory, the servant of the servants of God, to the servants of our Lord. Forasmuch as it had
been better not to begin a good work, than to think of desisting from one which has been begun, it
behoves you, my beloved sons, to fulfil with all diligence the good work, which, by the help of the
Lord, you have undertaken. Let not, therefore, the toil of the journey, nor the tongues of evil-speaking
men, discourage you; but with all earnestness and zeal perform, by God’s guidance, that which you have set about; being assured, that great labour is followed by the greater glory of an eternal reward.
When Augustine, your Superior, returns, whom we also constitute your abbot, humbly obey him
in all things; knowing, that whatsoever you shall do by his direction, will, in all respects, be profitable
to your souls. Almighty God protect you with His grace, and grant that I may, in the heavenly
country, see the fruits of your labour, inasmuch as, though I cannot labour with you, I shall partake
in the joy of the reward, because I am willing to labour. God keep you in safety, my most beloved
sons. Given the 23rd of July, in the fourteenth year of the reign of our most religious lord, Mauritius
Tiberius Augustus, the thirteenth year after the consulship of our lord aforesaid, and the fourteenth
indiction."

CHAP. XXIV. How he wrote to the bishop of Arles to entertain them. [596 A.D.]

THE same venerable pope also sent at the same time a letter to Aetherius, archbishop of Arles,’
exhorting him to give favourable entertainment to Augustine on his way to Britain; which letter
was in these words:

‘To his most reverend and holy brother and fellow bishop Aetherius, Gregory, the servant of
the servants of God. Although religious men stand in need of no recommendation with priests who
have the charity which is pleasing to God; yet because an opportunity of writing has occurred, we
have thought fit to send this letter to you, Brother, to inform you, that with the help of God we have
directed thither, for the good of souls, the bearer of these presents, Augustine, the servant of God,
of whose zeal we are assured, with other servants of God, whom it is requisite that your Holiness
readily assist with priestly zeal, affording him all the comfort in your power. And to the end that
you may be the more ready in your help, we have enjoined him to inform you particularly of the
occasion of his coming; knowing, that when you are acquainted with it, you will, as the matter
requires, for the sake of God, dutifully dispose yourself to give him comfort. We also in all things

recommend to your charity, Candidus, the priest, our common son, whom we have transferred to
the administration of a small patrimony in our Church. God keep you in safety, most reverend
brother. Given the 23rd day of July, in the fourteenth year of the reign of our most religious lord,
Mauritius Tiberius Augustus, the thirteenth year after the consulship of our lord aforesaid, and the
fourteenth indiction."

CHAP. XXV. How Augustine, coming into Britain, first preached in the Isle of Thanet to the
King of Kent, and having obtained licence from him, went into Kent, in order to preach
therein. [597 A. D.]

Augustine, thus strengthened by the encouragement of the blessed Father Gregory, returned to
the work of the Word of God, with the servants of Christ who were with him, and arrived in Britain.
The powerful Ethelbert was at that time king of Kent; he had extended his dominions as far as the
boundary formed by the great river Humber, by which the Southern Saxons are divided from the
Northern. On the east of Kent is the large Isle of Thanet, containing, according to the English way of reckoning, 600 families, divided from the mainland by the river Wantsum, which is about three
furlongs in breadth, and which can be crossed only in two places; for at both ends it runs into the

sea. On this island landed the servant of the Lord, Augustine, and his companions, being, as is
reported, nearly forty men. They had obtained, by order of the blessed Pope Gregory, interpreters

of the nation of the Franks, and sending to Ethelbert, signified that they were come from Rome,
and brought a joyful message, which most undoubtedly assured to those that hearkened to it
everlasting joys in heaven, and a kingdom that would never end, with the living and true God. The
king hearing this, gave orders that they, should stay in the island where they had landed, and be
furnished with necessaries, till he should consider what to do with them. For he had before heard
of the Christian religion, having a Christian wife of the royal family of the Franks, called Bertha;
whom he had received from her parents, upon condition that she should be permitted to preserve

inviolate the rites of her religion with the Bishop Liudhard, who was sent with her to support her
in the faith. Some days after, the king came into the island, and sitting in the open air, ordered
Augustine and his companions to come and hold a conference with him. For he had taken precaution
that they should not come to him in any house, lest, by so coming, according to an ancient
superstition, if they practised any magical arts, they might impose upon him, and so get the better
of him. But they came endued with Divine, not with magic power, bearing a silver cross for their
banner, and the image of our Lord and Saviour painted on a board; and chanting litanies, they
offered up their prayers to the Lord for the eternal salvation both of themselves and of those to
whom and for whom they had come. When they had sat down, in obedience to the king’s commands,
and preached to him and his attendants there present the Word of life, the king answered thus:
"Your words and promises are fair, but because they are new to us, and of uncertain import, I cannot
consent to them so far as to forsake that which I have so long observed with the whole English
nation. But because you are come from far as strangers into my kingdom, and, as I conceive, are
desirous to impart to us those things which you believe to be true, and most beneficial, we desire
not to harm you, but will give you favourable entertainment, and take care to supply you with all
things necessary to your sustenance; nor do we forbid you to preach and gain as many as you can
to your religion." Accordingly he gave them an abode in the city of Canterbury, which was the
metropolis of all his dominions, and, as he had promised, besides supplying them with sustenance,
did not refuse them liberty to preach. It is told that, as they drew near to the city, after their manner,
with the holy cross, and the image of our sovereign Lord and King, Jesus Christ, they sang in concert
this litany: "We beseech thee, Lord, for Thy great mercy, that Thy wrath and anger be turned away
from this city, and from Thy holy house, for we have sinned. Hallelujah."

CHAP. XXVI. How St. Augustine in Kent followed the doctrine and manner of life of the
primitive Church, and settled his episcopal see in the royal city. [597 A. D.]

AS soon as they entered the dwelling-place assigned to them, they began to imitate the Apostolic
manner of life in the primitive Church; applying themselves to constant prayer, watchings, and fastings; preaching the Word of life to as many as they could; despising all worldly things, as in
nowise concerning them; receiving only their necessary food from those they taught; living
themselves in all respects conformably to what they taught, and being always ready to suffer any
adversity, and even to die for that truth which they preached. In brief, some believed and were
baptized, admiring the simplicity of their blameless life, and the sweetness of their heavenly doctrine.
There was on the east side of the city, a church dedicated of old to the honour of St. Martin, (Note:
St. Martin was regarded with special reverence in Britain and Ireland. Possibly some of the earliest
missionaries may have been his disciples, e.g., St. Ninian and, St. Patrick. The Roman church of
St. Martin at Canterbury has been frequently altered and partly rebuilt, so that "small portions only
of the Roman walls remain. Roman bricks are used as old materials in the parts rebuilt") built whilst
the Romans were still in the island, wherein the queen, who, as has been said before, was a Christian,
was wont to pray. In this they also first began to come together, to chant the Psalms, to pray, to
celebrate Mass, to preach, and to baptize, till when the king had been converted to the faith, they
obtained greater liberty to preach everywhere and build or repair churches.

When he, among the rest, believed and was baptized, attracted by the pure life of these holy
men and their gracious promises, the truth of which they established by many miracles, greater
numbers began daily to flock together to hear the Word, and, forsaking their heathen rites, to have
fellowship, through faith, in the unity of Christ’s Holy Church. It is told that the king, while he
rejoiced at their conversion and their faith, yet compelled none to embrace Christianity, but only
showed more affection to the believers, as to his fellow citizens in the kingdom of Heaven. For he
had learned from those who had instructed him and guided him to salvation, that the service of
Christ ought to be voluntary, not by compulsion. Nor was it long before he gave his teachers a
settled residence suited to their degree in his metropolis of Canterbury, with such possessions of
divers sorts as were necessary for them.

CHAP. XXVII. How St. Augustine, being made a bishop, sent to acquaint Pope Gregory with
what had been done in Britain, and asked and received replies, of which he stood in need.
[597-601 A.D.]

IN the meantime, Augustine, the man of God, went to Aries, and, according to the orders
received from the holy Father Gregory, was ordained archbishop of the English nation, (Note:
Augustine was not consecrated as archbishop either of London or Canterbury, but by the general
title of "Archbishop of the English." According to Gregory’s original scheme, London, not
Canterbury, was to have been the seat of the primacy of southern England. London and York being
doubtless the most important cities of south and north known to him from their history during the
Roman occupation. But Christianity was not permanently established in London till it was too late
to remove the see from Canterbury, which would obviously commend itself to Augustine as the most suitable place to be the metropolitan city) by Aetherius, archbishop of that city. Then returning

into Britain, he sent Laurentius the priest and Peter the monk to Rome, to acquaint Pope Gregory,
that the English nation had received the faith of Christ, and that he was himself made their bishop.
At the same time, he desired his solution of some doubts which seemed urgent to him. He soon received fitting answers to his questions, which we have also thought meet to insert in this our
history:

The First Question of the blessed Augustine, Bishop of the Church of Canterbury.—Concerning
bishops, what should be their manner of conversation towards their clergy? or into how many
portions the offerings of the faithful at the altar are to be divided? and how the bishop is to act in
the Church?

Gregory, Pope of the City of Rome, answers.—Holy Scripture, in which we doubt not you are
well versed, testifies to this, and in particular the Epistles of the Blessed Paul to Timothy, wherein
he endeavours to show him what should be his manner of conversation in the house of God; but it
is the custom of the Apostolic see to prescribe these rules to bishops when they are ordained: that
all emoluments which accrue, are to be divided into four portions ;—one for the bishop and his
household, for hospitality and entertainment of guests; another for the clergy; a third for the poor;
and the fourth for the repair of churches. But in that you, my brother, having been instructed in
monastic rules, must not live apart from your clergy in the Church of the English, which has been
lately, by the will of God, converted to the faith, you must establish the manner of conversation of
our fathers in the primitive Church, among whom, none said that aught of the things which they
possessed was his own, but they had all things common.

But if there are any clerks not received into holy orders, who cannot live continent, they are to
take wives, and receive their stipends outside of the community; because we know that it is written
concerning the same fathers of whom we have spoken that a distribution was made unto every man
according as he had need. Care is also to be taken of their stipends, and provision to be made, and
they are to be kept under ecclesiastical rule, that they may live orderly, and attend to singing of
psalms, and, by the help of God, preserve their hearts and tongues and bodies from all that is
unlawful. But as for those that live in common, there is no need to say anything of assigning portions,
or dispensing hospitality and showing mercy; inasmuch as all that they have over is to be spent in
pious and religious works, according to the teaching of Him who is the Lord and Master of all,
"Give alms of such things as ye have over, and behold all things are clean unto you."

Augustine’s Second Question—Whereas the faith is one and the same, are there different
customs in different Churches? and is one custom of Masses observed in the holy Roman Church,
and another in the Church of Gaul?

Pope Gregory answers.—You know, my brother, the custom of the Roman Church in which
you remember that you were bred up. But my will is, that if you have found anything, either in the
Roman, or the Gallican, or any other Church, which may be more acceptable to Almighty God,
you should carefully make choice of the same, and sedulously teach the Church of the English,
which as yet is new in the faith, whatsoever you can gather from the several Churches. For things
are not to be loved for the sake of places, but places for the sake of good things. Choose, therefore,
from every Church those things that are pious, religious, and right, and when you have, as it were,
made them up into one bundle, let the minds of the English be accustomed thereto.

Augustine’s Third Question.—I beseech you, what punishment must be inflicted on one who
steals anything from a church?

Gregory answers.—You may judge, my brother, by the condition of the thief, in what manner
he is to be corrected. For there are some, who, having substance, commit theft; and there are others,
who transgress in this matter through want. Wherefore it is requisite, that some be punished with
fines, others with stripes; some with more severity, and some more mildly. And when the severity is greater, it is to proceed from charity, not from anger; because this is done for the sake of him
who is corrected, that he may not be delivered up to the fires of Hell. For it behoves us to maintain
discipline among the faithful, as good parents do with their children according to the flesh, whom
they punish with stripes for their faults, and yet they design to make those whom they chastise their
heirs, and preserve their possessions for those whom they seem to visit in wrath. This charity is,
therefore, to be kept in mind, and it dictates the measure of the punishment, so that the mind may
do nothing beyond the rule prescribed by reason. You will add to this, how men are to restore those
things which they have stolen from the church. But let not the Church take more than it has lost of
its worldly possessions, or seek gain from vanities.

Augustine’s Fourth Question. — Whether two full brothers may marry two sisters, who are of
a family far removed from them?

Gregory answers.—Most assuredly this may lawfully be done; for nothing is found in Holy
Writ on this matter that seems to contradict it.

Augustine’s Fifth Question.—To what degree may the faithful marry with their kindred? and
is it lawful to marry a stepmother or a brother’s wife?

Gregory answers.—A certain secular law in the Roman commonwealth allows, that the son

and daughter of a brother and sister, or of two full brothers, or two sisters, may be joined in
matrimony; but we have found, by experience, that the offspring of such wedlock cannot grow up;
and the Divine law forbids a man to "uncover the nakedness of his kindred." Hence of necessity it
must be the third or fourth generation of the faithful, that can be lawfully joined in matrimony; for
the second, which we have mentioned, must altogether abstain from one another. To marry with
one’s stepmother is a heinous crime, because it is written in the Law, "Thou shalt not uncover the
nakedness of thy father:" now the son, indeed, cannot uncover his father’s nakedness; but in regard
that it is written, "They twain shall be one flesh," he that presumes to uncover the nakedness of his
stepmother, who was one flesh with his father, certainly uncovers the nakedness of his father. It is
also prohibited to marry with a sister-in-law, because by the former union she is become the brother’s
flesh. For which thing also John the Baptist was beheaded, and obtained the crown of holy
martyrdom. For, though he was not ordered to deny Christ, and it was not for confessing Christ
that he was killed, yet inasmuch as the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, said, "I am the Truth," because
John was killed for the truth, he also shed his blood for Christ.

But forasmuch as there are many of the English, who, whilst they were still heathens, are said
to have been joined in this unholy union, when they attain to the faith they are to be admonished
to abstain, and be made to known that this is a grievous sin. Let them fear the dread judgement of
God, lest, for the gratification of their carnal desires, they incur the torments of eternal punishment.
Yet they are not on this account to be deprived of the Communion of the Body and Blood of Christ,
lest they should seem to be punished for those things which they did through ignorance before they
had received Baptism. For in these times the Holy Church chastises some things with zeal, and
tolerates some in mercy, and is blind to some in her wisdom, and so, by forbearance and blindness
often suppresses the evil that stands in her way. But all that come to the faith are to be admonished
not to presume to do such things. And if any shall be guilty of them, they are to be excluded from
the Communion of the Body and Blood of Christ. For as the offence is, in some measure, to be
tolerated in those who did it through ignorance, so it is to be rigorously punished in those who do
not fear to sin knowingly.

Augustine’s Sixth Question.—Whether a bishop may be consecrated without other bishops
being present, if there be so great a distance between them, that they cannot easily come together?

Gregory answers.—In the Church of England, of which you are as yet the only bishop, you
cannot otherwise ordain a bishop than in the absence of other bishops. For when do bishops come
over from Gaul, that they may be present as witnesses to you in ordaining a bishop? But we would
have you, my brother, to ordain bishops in such a manner, that the said bishops may not be far
asunder, to the end that there be no lack, but that at the ordination of a bishop other pastors also,
whose pretence is of great benefit, should easily come together. Thus, when, by the help of God,
bishops shall have been ordained in places near to one another, no ordination of a bishop is to take
place without assembling three or four bishops. For, even in spiritual affairs, we may take example
by the temporal, that they may be wisely and discreetly conducted. For surely, when marriages are
celebrated in the world, some married persons are assembled, that those who went before in the
way of matrimony, may also partake in the joy of the new union. Why, then, at this spiritual
ordinance, wherein, by means of the sacred ministry, man is joined to God, should not such persons
be assembled, as may either rejoice in the advancement of the new bishop, or jointly pour forth
their prayers to Almighty God for his preservation?

Augustine’s Seventh Question.—How are we to deal with the bishops of Gaul and Britain?

Gregory answers.—We give you no authority over the bishops of Gaul, because the bishop of
Aries received the pall in the old times of my predecessors, and we must by no means deprive him
of the authority he has received. If it shall therefore happen, my brother, that you go over into the
province of Gaul, you are to concert with the said bishop of Aries, how, if there be any faults among
the bishops, they may be amended. And if he shall be lukewarm in keeping up discipline, he is to
be fired by your zeal; to whom we have also written, that aided by the presence of your Holiness
in Gaul, he should exert himself to the utmost, and put away from the behaviour of the bishops all
that is opposed to the command of our Creator. But you shall not have power to go beyond your
own authority and judge the bishops of Gaul, but by persuading, and winning them, and showing
good works for them to imitate, you shall recall the perverted to the pursuit of holiness; for it is
written in the Law, "When thou comest into the standing corn of thy neighbour, then thou mayest
bruise the ears with thine hand and eat; but thou shalt not move a sickle unto thy neighbours’
standing corn." For thou mayest not apply the sickle of judgement in that harvest which thou seest
to have been committed to another; but by the influence of good works thou shalt clear the Lord’s
wheat of the chaff of its vices, and convert it by exhortation and persuasion in the body of the
Church, as it were, by eating. But whatsoever is to be done by authority, must be transacted with
the aforesaid bishop of Aries, lest that should be omitted, which the ancient institution of the fathers

has appointed. But as for all the bishops of Britain, we commit them to your care, that the unlearned
may be taught, the weak strengthened by persuasion, and the perverse corrected by authority.

Augustine’s Eighth Question.—Whether a woman with child ought to be baptized? Or when
she has brought forth, after what time she may come into the church? As also, after how many days
the infant born may be baptized, lest he be prevented by death? Or how long after her husband may
have carnal knowledge of her? Or whether it is lawful for her to come into the church when she
has her courses, or to receive the Sacrament of Holy Communion? Or whether a man, under certain
circumstances, may come into the church before he has washed with water? Or approach to receive the Mystery of the Holy Communion? All which things are requisite to be known by the ignorant
nation of the English.

Gregory answers.—I do not doubt but that these questions have been put to you, my brother,
and I think I have already answered you therein. But I believe you would wish the opinion which
you yourself might give and hold to be confirmed by my reply also. Why should not a woman with
child be baptized, since the fruitfulness of the flesh is no offence in the eyes of Almighty God? For
when our first parents sinned in Paradise, they forfeited the immortality which they had received,
by the just judgement of God. Because, therefore, Almighty God would not for their fault wholly
destroy the human race, he both deprived man of immortality for his sin, and, at the same time, of
his great goodness and loving-kindness, reserved to him the power of propagating his race after
him. On what ground, then, can that which is preserved to human nature by the free gift of Almighty
God, be excluded from the privilege of Holy Baptism? For it is very foolish to imagine that the gift
can be opposed to grace in that Mystery in which all sin is blotted out. When a woman is delivered,
after how many days she may come into the church, you have learnt from the teaching of the Old
Testament, to wit, that she is to abstain for a male child thirty-three days, and sixty-six for a female.
Now you must know that this is to be received in a mystery; for if she enters the church the very
hour that she is delivered, to return thanks, she is not guilty of any sin; because the pleasure of the
flesh is a fault, and not the pain; but the pleasure is in the copulation of the flesh, whereas there is
pain in bringing forth the child. Wherefore it is said to the first mother of all, "In sorrow thou shalt
bring forth children." If, therefore, we forbid a woman that has brought forth, to enter the church,
we make a crime of her very punishment. To baptize either a woman who has brought forth, if there
be danger of death, even the very hour that she brings forth, or that which she has brought forth
the very hour it is born, is in no way prohibited, because, as the grace of the Holy Mystery is to be
with much discretion provided for those who are in full life and capable of understanding, so is it
to be without any delay administered to the dying; lest, while a further time is sought to confer the
Mystery of redemption, if a small delay intervene, the person that is to be redeemed be dead and
gone. Her husband is not to approach her, till the infant born be weaned. An evil custom is sprung
up in the lives of married people, in that women disdain to suckle the children whom they bring
forth, and give them to other women to suckle; which seems to have been invented on no other
account but incontinency; because, as they will not be continent, they will not suckle the children
whom they bear. Those women, therefore, who, from evil custom, give their children to others to
bring up, must not approach their husbands till the time of purification is past. For even when there
has been no child-birth, women are forbidden to do so, whilst they have their courses, insomuch
that the Law condemns to death any man that shall approach unto a woman during her uncleanness.
Yet the woman, nevertheless, must not be forbidden to come into the church whilst she has her
courses; because the superfluity of nature cannot be imputed to her as a crime; and it is not just that
she should be refused admittance into the church, for that which she suffers against her will. For
we know, that the woman who had the issue of blood, humbly approaching behind our Lord’s back,
touched the hem of his garment, and her infirmity immediately departed from her. If, therefore,
she that had an issue of blood might commendably touch the garment of our Lord, why may not
she, who has her courses, lawfully enter into the church of God? But you may say, Her infirmity
compelled her, whereas these we speak of are bound by custom. Consider, then, most dear brother,
that all we suffer in this mortal flesh, through the infirmity of our nature, is ordained by the just
judgement of God after the fall; for to hunger, to thirst, to be hot, to be cold, to be weary, is from the infirmity of our nature; and what else is it to seek food against hunger, drink against thirst, air
against heat, clothes against cold, rest against weariness, than to procure a remedy against
distempers? Thus to a woman her courses are a distemper. If, therefore, it was a commendable
boldness in her, who in her disease touched our Lord’s garment, why may not that which is allowed
to one infirm person, be granted to all women, who, through the fault of their nature, are rendered
infirm?

She must not, therefore, be forbidden to receive the Mystery of the Holy Communion during
those days. But if any one out of profound respect does not presume to do it, she is to be commended;
yet if she receives it, she is not to be judged. For it is the part of noble minds in some manner to
acknowledge their faults, even when there is no fault; because very often that is done without a
fault, which, nevertheless, proceeded from a fault. Thus, when we are hungry, it is no sin to eat;
yet our being hungry proceeds from the sin of the first man. The courses are no sin in women,
because they happen naturally; yet, because our nature itself is so depraved, that it appears to be
defiled even without the concurrence of the will, a defect arises from sin, and thereby human nature
may itself know what it is become by judgement. And let man, who wilfully committed the offence,
bear the guilt of that offence against his will. And, therefore, let women consider with themselves,
and if they do not presume, during their courses, to approach the Sacrament of the Body and Blood
of our Lord, they are to be commended for their praiseworthy consideration; but when they are
carried away with love of the same Mystery to receive it according to the custom of the religious
life, they are not to be restrained, as we said before. For as in the Old Testament the outward works
are observed, so in the New Testament, that which is outwardly done, is not so diligently regarded
as that which is inwardly thought, that the punishment may be with discernment. For whereas the
Law forbids the eating of many things as unclean, yet our Lord says in the Gospel, "Not that which
goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man."
And afterwards he added, expounding the same, "Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts." Where
it is abundantly shown, that that is declared by Almighty God to be polluted in deed, which springs
from the root of a polluted thought. Whence also Paul the Apostle says, "Unto the pure all things
are pure, but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure." And presently, declaring
the cause of that defilement, he adds, "For even their mind and conscience is defiled." If, therefore,
meat is not unclean to him whose mind is not unclean, why shall that which a woman suffers
according to nature, with a clean mind, be imputed to her as uncleanness?

A man who has approached his own wife is not to enter the church unless washed with water,
nor is he to enter immediately although washed. The Law prescribed to the ancient people, that a
man in such cases should be washed with water, and not enter into the church before the setting of
the sun. Which, nevertheless, may be understood spiritually, because a man acts so when the mind
is led by the imagination to unlawful concupiscence; for unless the fire of concupiscence be first
driven from his mind, he is not to think himself worthy of the congregation of the brethren, while
he sees himself burdened by the iniquity of a perverted will. For though divers nations have divers
opinions concerning this affair, and seem to observe different rules, it was always the custom. of
the Romans, from ancient times, for such an one to seek to be cleansed by washing, and for some
time reverently to forbear entering the church. Nor do we, in so saying, assign matrimony to be a
fault; but forasmuch as lawful intercourse cannot be had without the pleasure of the flesh, it is
proper to forbear entering the holy place, because the pleasure itself cannot be without a fault. For
he was not born of adultery or fornication, but of lawful marriage, who said, "Behold I was conceived in iniquity, and in sin my mother brought me forth." For he who knew himself to have been conceived
in iniquity, lamented that he was born from sin, because he bears the defect, as a tree bears in its
bough the sap it drew from the root. In which words, however, he does not call the union of the
married couple iniquity, but the will itself. For there are many things which are lawful and permitted,
and yet we are somewhat defiled in doing them. As very often by being angry we correct faults,
and at the same time disturb our own peace of mind; and though that which we do is right, yet it is
not to be approved that our mind should be disturbed. For he who said, "My eye was disturbed with
anger," had been angry at the vices of sinners. Now, seeing that only a calm mind can rest in the
light of contemplation, he grieved that his eye was disturbed with anger; because, whilst he was
correcting evil actions below, he was obliged to be confused and disturbed with regard to the
contemplation of the highest things. Anger against vice is, therefore, commendable, and yet painful
to a man, because he thinks that by his mind being agitated, he hag incurred some guilt. Lawful
commerce, therefore, must be for the sake of children, not of pleasure; and must be to procure
offspring, not to satisfy vices. But if any man is led not by the desire of pleasure, but only for the
sake of getting children, such a man is certainly to be left to his own judgement, either as to entering
the church, or as to receiving the Mystery of the Body and Blood of our Lord, which he, who being
placed in the fire cannot burn, is not to be forbidden by us to receive. But when, not the love of
getting children, but of pleasure prevails, the pair have cause to lament their deed. For this the holy
preaching concedes to them, and yet fills the mind with dread of the very concession. For when
Paul the Apostle said, "Let him that cannot contain have his own wife;" he presently took care to
subjoin, "But this I say by way of permission, not of commandment." For that is not granted by
way of permission which is lawful, because it is just; land, therefore, that which he said he permitted,
he showed to be an offence.

It is seriously to be considered, that when God was about to speak to the people on Mount Sinai,
He first commanded them to abstain from women. And if purity of body was there so carefully
required, where God spoke to the people by the means of a creature as His representative, that those
who were to hear the words of God should abstain; how much more ought women, who receive
the Body of Almighty God, to preserve themselves in purity of flesh, lest they be burdened with
the very greatness of that inestimable Mystery? For this reason also, it was said to David, concerning
his men, by the priest, that if they were clean in this particular, they should receive the shewbread,
which they would not have received at all, had not David first declared them to be clean. Then the
man, who, afterwards, has been washed with water, is also capable of receiving the Mystery of the
Holy Communion, when it is lawful for him, according to what has been before declared, to enter
the church.

Augustine’s Ninth Question—Whether after an illusion, such as is wont to happen in a dream,
any man may receive the Body of our Lord, or if he be a priest, celebrate the Divine Mysteries?

Gregory answers.—The Testament of the Old Law, as has been said already in the article above,
calls such a man polluted, and allows him not to enter into the church till the evening, after being
washed with water. Which, nevertheless, a spiritual people, taking in another sense, will understand
in the same manner as above; because he is imposed upon as it were in a dream, who, being tempted
with uncleanness, is defiled by real representations in thought, and he is to be washed with water,
that he may cleanse away the sins of thought with tears; and unless the fire of temptation depart
before, may know himself to be in a manner guilty until the evening. But a distinction is very
necessary in that illusion, and one must carefully consider what causes it to arise ‘in the mind of the person sleeping; for sometimes it proceeds from excess of eating or drinking; sometimes from
the superfluity or infirmity of nature, and sometimes from the thoughts. And when it happens either
through superfluity or infirmity of nature, such an illusion is not to be feared at all, because it is to
be lamented, that the mind of the person, who knew nothing of it, suffers the same, rather than that
he occasioned it. But when the appetite of gluttony commits excess in food, and thereupon the
receptacles of the humours are oppressed, the mind thence contracts some guilt; yet not so much
as to hinder the receiving of the Holy Mystery, or celebrating Mass, when a holy day requires it,
or necessity obliges the Mystery to be shown forth, because there is no other priest in the place;
for if there be others who can perform the ministry, the illusion proceeding from over-eating ought
not to exclude a man from receiving the sacred Mystery; but I am of opinion he ought humbly to
abstain from offering the sacrifice of the Mystery, but not from receiving it, unless the mind of the
person sleeping has been disturbed with some foul imagination. For there are some, who for the
most part so suffer the illusion, that their mind, even during the sleep of the body, is not defiled
with filthy thoughts. In which case, one thing is evident, that the mind is guilty, not being acquitted
even in its own judgement; for though it does not remember to have seen anything whilst the body
was sleeping, yet it calls to mind that, when the body was awake, it fell into gluttony. But if the
illusion of the sleeper proceeds from evil thoughts when he was awake, then its guilt is manifest
to the mind; for the man perceives from what root that defilement sprang, because what he had
consciously thought of, that he afterwards unconsciously endured. But it is to be considered, whether
that thought was no more than a suggestion, or proceeded to delight, or, what is worse, consented
to sin. For all sin is committed in three ways, viz., by suggestion, by delight, and by consent.
Suggestion comes from the Devil, delight from the flesh, and consent from the spirit. For the serpent
suggested the first offence, and Eve, as flesh, took delight in it, but Adam, as the spirit, consented.
And when the mind sits in judgement on itself, it must clearly distinguish between suggestion and
delight, and between delight and consent. For when the evil spirit suggests a sin to the mind, if
there ensue no delight in the sin, the sin is in no way committed; but when the flesh begins to take
delight in it, then sin begins to arise. But if it deliberately consents, then the sin is known to be
full-grown. The seed, therefore, of sin is in the suggestion, the nourishment of it in delight, its
maturity in the consent. And it often happens that what the evil spirit sows in the thought, in that
the flesh begins to find delight, and yet the soul does not consent to that delight. And whereas the
flesh cannot be delighted without the mind, yet the mind struggling against the pleasures of the
flesh, is after a manner unwillingly bound by the carnal delight, so that through reason it opposes
it, and does not consent, yet being bound by delight, it grievously laments being so bound. Wherefore
that great soldier of our Lord’s host, groaned and said, "I see another law in my members warring
against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin, which is in my
members." Now if he was a captive, he did not fight; but he did fight; wherefore he was a captive
and at the same time therefore fought against the law of the mind, which the law that is in the
members opposed; but if he fought, he was no captive. Thus, then, man is, as I may say, a captive
and yet free. Free on account of justice, which he loves, a captive by the delight which he unwillingly
bears within him.

CHAP. XXVIII. How Pope Gregory wrote to the bishop of Aries to help Augustine in the
work of God. [601 A.D.]

Thus far the answers of the holy Pope Gregory, to the questions of the most reverend prelate,
Augustine. Now the letter, which he says he had written to the bishop of Aries, was directed to
Vergilius, successor to Aetherius, and was in the following words:

"To his most reverend and holy brother and fellow bishop, Vergilius; Gregory, servant of the
servants of God. With how much kindness brethren, coming of their own accord, are to be
entertained, is shown by this, that they are for the most part invited for the sake of brotherly love.
Therefore, if our common brother, Bishop Augustine, shall happen to come to you, let your love,
as is becoming, receive him with so great kindness and affection, that it may refresh him by the
benefit of its consolation and show to others how brotherly charity is to be cultivated. And, since
it often happens that those who are at a distance first learn from others the things that need correction,
if he bring before you, my brother, any sins of bishops or others, do you, in conjunction with him,
carefully inquire into the same, and show yourself so strict and earnest with regard to those things
which offend God and provoke His wrath, that for the amendment of others, the punishment may
fall upon the guilty, and the innocent may not suffer under false report. God keep you in safety,

ndmost reverend brother. Given the 22 day of June, in the nineteenth year of the reign of our most
religious lord, Mauritius Tiberius Augustus, the eighteenth year after the consulship of our said
lord, and the fourth indiction."

CHAP. XXIX. How the same Pope sent to Augustine the Pall and a letter, along with several
ministers of the Word. [601 A.D.]

Moreover, the same Pope Gregory, hearing from Bishop Augustine, that the harvest which he
had was great and the labourers but few, sent to him, together with his aforesaid envoys, certain
fellow labourers and ministers of the Word, of whom the chief and foremost were Mellitus, Justus,
Paulinus, and Rufinianus, and by them all things in general that were necessary for the worship
and service of the Church, to wit, sacred vessels and altar-cloths, also church-furniture, and vestments
for the bishops and clerks, as likewise relics of the holy Apostles and martyrs; besides many
manuscripts. He also sent a letter, wherein he signified that he had despatched the pall to him, and
at the same time directed how he should constitute bishops in Britain. The letter was in these words:

"To his most reverend and holy brother and fellow bishop, Augustine, Gregory, the servant of
the servants of God. Though it be certain, that the unspeakable rewards of the eternal kingdom are
reserved for those who labour for Almighty God, yet it is requisite that we bestow on them the
benefit of honours, to the end that they may by this recompense be encouraged the more vigorously
to apply themselves to the care of their spiritual work. And, seeing that the new Church of the
English is, through the bounty of the Lord, and your labours, brought to the grace of God, we grant
you the use of the pall in the same, only for the celebration of the solemn service of the Mass; that
so you may ordain twelve bishops in different places, who shall be subject to your jurisdiction. But
the bishop of London shall, for the future, be always consecrated by his own synod, and receive the pall, which is the token of his office, from this holy and Apostolic see, which I, by the grace of
God, now serve. But we would have you send to the city of York such a bishop as you shall think
fit to ordain; yet so, that if that city, with the places adjoining, shall receive the Word of God, that
bishop shall also ordain twelve bishops, and enjoy the honour of a metropolitan; for we design, if
we live, by the help of God, to bestow on him also the pall; and yet we would have him to be subject
to your authority, my brother; but after your decease, he shall so preside over the bishops he shall
have ordained, as to be in no way subject to the jurisdiction of the bishop of London. But for the
future let there be this distinction as regards honour between the bishops of the cities of London

and York, that he who has been first ordained have the precedence. But let them take counsel and
act in concert and with one mind dispose whatsoever is to be done for zeal of Christ; let them judge
rightly, and carry out their judgement without dissension.

"But to you, my brother, shall, by the authority of our God and Lord Jesus Christ, be subject
not only those bishops whom you shall ordain, and those that shall be ordained by the bishop of
York, but also all the prelates in Britain; to the end that from the words and manner of life of your
Holiness they may learn the rule of a right belief and a good life, and fulfilling their office in faith
and righteousness, they may, when it shall please the Lord, attain to the kingdom of Heaven. God
preserve you in safety, most reverend brother.

nd"Given the 22 of June, in the nineteenth year of the reign of our most religious lord, Mauritius
Tiberius Augustus, the eighteenth year after the consulship of our said lord, and the fourth indiction."

CHAP. XXX. A copy of the letter which Pope Gregory sent to the Abbot Mellitus, then going
into Britain. [601 A.D.]

The aforesaid envoys having departed, the blessed Father Gregory sent after them a letter worthy
to be recorded, wherein he plainly shows how carefully he watched over the salvation of our country.
The letter was as follows:

"To his most beloved son, the Abbot Mellitus; Gregory, the servant of the servants of God. We
have been much concerned, since the departure of our people that are with you, because we have
received no account of the success of your journey. Howbeit, when Almighty God has led, you to
the most reverend Bishop Augustine, our brother, tell him what I have long been considering in
my own mind concerning the matter of the English people; to wit, that the temples of the idols in
that nation ought not to be destroyed; but let the idols that are in them be destroyed; let water be
consecrated and sprinkled in the said temples, let altars be erected, and relics placed there. For if
those temples are well built, it is requisite that they be converted from the worship of devils to the
service of the true God; that the nation, seeing that their temples are not destroyed, may remove
error from their hearts, and knowing and adoring the true God, may the more freely resort to the
places to which they have been accustomed. And because they are used to slaughter many oxen in
sacrifice to devils, some solemnity must be given them in exchange for this, as that on the day of
the dedication, or the nativities of the holy martyrs, whose relics are there deposited, they should
build themselves huts of the boughs of trees about those churches which have been turned to that
use from being temples, and celebrate the solemnity with religious feasting, and no more offer animals to the Devil, but kill cattle and glorify God in their feast, and return thanks to the Giver of
all things for their abundance; to the end that, whilst some outward gratifications are retained, they
may the more easily consent to the inward joys. For there is no doubt that it is impossible to cut
off every thing at once from their rude natures; because he who endeavours to ascend to the highest
place rises by degrees or steps, and not by leaps. Thus the Lord made Himself known to the people
of Israel in Egypt; and yet He allowed them the use, in His own worship, of the sacrifices which
they were wont to offer to the Devil, commanding them in His sacrifice to kill animals, to the end
that, with changed hearts, they might lay aside one part of the sacrifice, whilst they retained another;
and although the animals were the same as those which they were wont to offer, they should offer
them to the true God, and not to idols; and thus they would no longer be the same sacrifices. This
then, dearly beloved, it behoves you to communicate to our aforesaid brother, that he, being placed
where he is at present, may consider how he is to order all things. God preserve you in safety, most
beloved son.

th"Given the 17 of June, in the nineteenth year of the reign of our most religious lord, Mauritius
Tiberius Augustus, the eighteenth year after the consulship of our said lord, and the fourth indiction."

CHAP. XXXI. How Pope Gregory, by letter, exhorted Augustine not to glory in his miracles.
[601 A.D.]

At which time he also sent Augustine a letter concerning the miracles that he had heard had
been wrought by him; wherein he admonishes him not to incur the danger of being puffed up by
the number of them. The letter was in these words:

"I know, dearly beloved brother, that Almighty God, by means of you, shows forth great miracles
to the nation which it was His will to choose. Wherefore you must needs rejoice with fear, and fear
with joy concerning that heavenly gift; for you will rejoice because the souls of the English are by
outward miracles drawn to inward grace; but you will fear, lest, amidst the wonders that are wrought,
the weak mind may be puffed up with self-esteem, and that whereby it is outwardly raised to honour
cause it inwardly to fall through vain-glory. For we must call to mind, that when the disciples
returned with joy from preaching, and said to their Heavenly Master, ‘Lord, even the devils are
subject to us through Thy Name;’ forthwith they received the reply, ‘In this rejoice not; but rather
rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.’ For their minds were set on private and temporal
joys, when they rejoiced in miracles; but they are recalled from the private to the common joy, and
from the temporal to the eternal, when it is said to them, ‘Rejoice in this, because your names are
written in heaven.’ For all the elect do not work miracles, and yet the names of all are written in
heaven. For those who are disciples of the truth ought not to rejoice, save for that good thing which
all men enjoy as well as they, and in which their joy shall be without end.

"It remains, therefore, most dear brother, that amidst those outward actions, which you perform
through the power of the Lord, you should always carefully judge yourself in your heart, and
carefully understand both what you are yourself, and how much grace is bestowed upon that same
nation, for the conversion of which you have received even the gift of working miracles. And if
you remember that you have at any time sinned against our Creator, either by word or deed, always call it to mind, to the end that the remembrance of your guilt may crush the vanity which rises in
your heart. And whatsoever gift of working miracles you either shall receive, or have received,
consider the same, not as conferred on you, but on those for whose salvation it has been given you."

CHAP. XXXII. How Pope Gregory sent letters and gifts to King Ethelbert. [601 A.D.]

The same blessed Pope Gregory, at the same time, sent a letter to King Ethelbert, with many
gifts of divers sorts; being desirous to glorify the king with temporal honours, at the same. time
that he rejoiced that through his own labour and zeal he had attained to the knowledge of heavenly
glory. The copy of the said letter is as follows:

"To the most glorious lord, and his most excellent son, Ethelbert, king of the English, Bishop
Gregory. Almighty God advances good men to the government of nations, that He may by their
means bestow the gifts of His lovingkindness on those over whom they are placed. This we know
to have come to pass in the English nation, over whom your Highness was placed, to the end, that
by means of the blessings which are granted to you, heavenly benefits might also be conferred on
your subjects. Therefore, my illustrious son, do you carefully guard the grace which you have
received from the Divine goodness, and be eager to spread the Christian faith among the people
under your rule; in all uprightness increase your zeal for their conversion; suppress the worship of
idols; overthrow the structures of the temples; establish the manners of your subjects by much
cleanness of life, exhorting, terrifying, winning, correcting, and showing forth an example of good
works, that you may obtain your reward in Heaven from Him, Whose Name and the knowledge of
Whom you have spread abroad upon earth. For He, Whose honour you seek and maintain among
the nations, will also render your Majesty’s name more glorious even to posterity.

"For even so the most pious emperor, Constantine, of old, recovering the Roman commonwealth
from the false worship of idols, brought it with himself into subjection to Almighty God, our Lord
Jesus Christ, and turned to Him with his whole mind, together with the nations under his rule.
Whence it followed, that his praises transcended the fame of former princes; and he excelled his
predecessors in renown as much as in good works. Now, therefore, let your Highness hasten to
impart to the kings and peoples that are subject to you, the knowledge of one God, Father, Son,
and Holy Ghost; that you may surpass the ancient kings of your nation in praise and merit, and
while you cause the sins of others among your own subjects to be blotted out, become the more
free from anxiety with regard to your own sins before the dread judgement of Almighty God.

"Willingly hear, devoutly perform, and studiously retain in your memory, whatsoever counsel
shall be given you by our most reverend brother, Bishop Augustine, who is trained up in the monastic
rule, full of the knowledge of Holy Scripture, and, by the help of God, endued with good works;
for if you give ear to him when he speaks on behalf of Almighty God, the sooner will Almighty
God hear his prayers for you. But if (which God forbid!) you slight his words, how shall Almighty
God hear him on your behalf, when you neglect to hear him on behalf of God? Unite yourself,
therefore, to him with all your mind, in the fervour of faith, and further his endeavours, by that
virtue which God has given you, that He may make you partaker of His kingdom, Whose faith you
cause to be received and maintained in your own.

"Besides, we would have your Highness know that, as we find in Holy Scripture from the words
of the Almighty Lord, the end of this present world, and the kingdom of the saints, which will never
come to an end, is at hand. But as the end of the world draws near, many things are about to come
upon us which were not before, to wit, changes in the air, and terrors from heaven, and tempests
out of the order of the seasons, wars, famines, pestilences, earthquakes in divers places; which
things will not, nevertheless, all happen in our days, but will all follow after our days. If, therefore,
you perceive that any of these things come to pass in your country, let not your mind be in any way
disturbed; for these signs of the end of the world are sent before, for this reason, that we may take
heed to our souls, and be watchful for the hour of death, and may be found prepared with good
works to meet our Judge. Thus much, my illustrious son, I have said in few words, with intent-that
when the Christian faith is spread abroad in your kingdom, our discourse to you may also be more
copious, and we may desire to say the more, as joy for the full conversion of your nation is increased
in our mind.

"I have sent you some small gifts, which will not appear small to you, when received by you
with the blessing of the blessed Apostle, Peter. May Almighty God, therefore, perfect in you His
grace which He has begun, and prolong your life here through a course of many years, and in the
fulness of time receive you into the congregation of the heavenly country. May the grace of God
preserve you in safety, my most excellent lord and son.

"Given the 22 day of June, in the nineteenth year of the reign of our most religious lord,
Mauritius Tiberius Augustus, in the eighteenth year after his consulship, and the fourth indiction."

CHAP. XXXIII. How Augustine repaired the church of our Saviour, and built the monastery
of the blessed Peter the Apostle; and concerning Peter the first abbot of the same.

Augustine having had his episcopal see granted him in the royal city, as has been said, recovered
therein, with the support of the king, a church, which he was informed had been built of old by the
faithful among the Romans, and consecrated it in the name of the Holy Saviour, our Divine Lord
Jesus Christ, and there established a residence for himself and all his successors.’ He also built a
monastery not far from the city to the eastward, in which, by his advice, Ethelbert erected from the
foundation the church of the blessed Apostles, Peter and Paul, and enriched it with divers gifts;
wherein the bodies of the same Augustine, and of all the bishops of Canterbury, and of the kings
of Kent, might be buried. Nevertheless, it was not Augustine himself who consecrated that church,
but Laurentius, his successor.

The first abbot of that monastery was the priest Peter, who, being sent on a mission into Gaul,

was drowned in a bay of the sea, which is called Amfleat, and committed to a humble tomb by the
inhabitants of the place; but since it was the will of Almighty God to reveal his merits, a light, from
Heaven was seen over his grave every night; till the neighbouring people who saw it, perceiving
that he had been a holy man that was buried there, and inquiring who and whence he was, carried
away the body, and interred it in the church, in the city of Boulogne, with the honour due to so
great a person.

 

CHAP. XXXIV. How Ethelfrid, king of the Northumbrians, having vanquished the nations
of the Scots, expelled them from the territories of the English. [603 A. D.]

At this time, the brave and ambitious king, Ethelfrid, governed the kingdom of the
Northumbrians, and ravaged the Britons more than all the chiefs of the English, insomuch that he
might be compared to Saul of old, king of the Israelites, save only in this, that he was ignorant of
Divine religion. For he conquered more territories from the Britons than any other chieftain or king,
either subduing the inhabitants and making them tributary, or driving them out and planting the
English in their places. To him might justly be applied the saying of the patriarch blessing his son
in the person of Saul, "Benjamin shall ravin as a wolf; in the morning he shall devour the prey, and

at night he shall divide the spoil." Hereupon, Aedan, king of the Scots that dwell in Britain, being
alarmed by his success, came against him with a great and mighty army, but was defeated and fled
with a few followers; for almost all his army was cut to pieces at a famous place, called Degsastan,
that is, Degsa Stone. In which battle also Theodbald, brother to Ethelfrid, was killed, with almost
all the forces he commanded. This war Ethelfrid brought to an end in the year of our Lord 603, the
eleventh of his own reign, which lasted twenty-four years, and the first year of the reign of Phocas,
who then was at the head of the Roman empire. From that time, no king of the Scots durst come
into Britain to make war on the English to this day.

BOOK II

CHAP. I.

AT this time, that is, in the year of our Lord 605, the blessed Pope Gregory, after having most
gloriously governed the Roman Apostolic see thirteen years, six months, and ten days, died, and
was translated to an eternal abode in the kingdom of Heaven. Of whom, seeing that by his zeal he
converted our nation, the English, from the power of Satan to the faith of Christ, it behoves us to
discourse more at large in our Ecclesiastical History, for we may rightly, nay, we must, call him
our apostle; because, as soon as he began to wield the pontifical power over all the world, and was
placed over the Churches long before converted to the true faith, he made our nation, till then
enslaved to idols, the Church of Christ, so that concerning him we may use those words of the
Apostle; "if he be not an apostle to others, yet doubtless he is to us; for the seal of his apostleship
are we in the Lord."
He was by nation a Roman, son of Gordianus, tracing his descent from ancestors that were not only
noble, but religious. Moreover Felix, once bishop of the same Apostolic see, a man of great honour
in Christ and in the Church, was his forefather, Nor did he show his nobility in religion by less
strength of devotion than his parents and kindred. But that nobility of this world which was seen
in him, by the help of the Divine Grace, he used only to gain the glory of eternal dignity; for soon
quitting his secular habit, he entered a monastery, wherein he began to live with so much grace of
perfection that (as he was wont afterwards with tears to testify) his mind was above all transitory things; that he rose superior to all that is subject to change; that he used to think of nothing but
what was heavenly; that, whilst detained by the body, he broke through the bonds of the flesh by
contemplation; and that he even loved death, which is a penalty to almost all men, as the entrance
into life, and the reward of his labours. This he used to say of himself, not to boast of his progress
in virtue, but rather to bewail the falling off which he imagined he had sustained through his pastoral
charge. Indeed, once in a private conversation with his deacon, Peter, after having enumerated the
former virtues of his soul, he added sorrowfully, "But now, on account of the pastoral charge, it is
entangled with the affairs of laymen, and, after so fair an appearance of inward peace, is defiled
with the dust of earthly action. And having wasted itself on outward things, by turning aside to the
affairs of many men, even when it desires the inward things, it returns to them undoubtedly impaired.
I therefore consider what I endure, I consider what I have lost, and when I behold what I have
thrown away; that which I bear appears the more grievous."
So spake the holy man constrained by his great humility. But it behoves us to believe that he lost
nothing of his monastic perfection by reason of his pastoral charge, but rather that he gained greater
profit through the labour of converting many, than by the former calm of his private life, and chiefly
because, whilst holding the pontifical office, he set about organizing his house like a monastery.
And when first drawn from the monastery, ordained to the ministry of the altar, and sent to
Constantinople as representative of the Apostolic see, though he now took part in the secular affairs
of the palace, yet he did not abandon the fixed course of his heavenly life; for some of the brethren
of his monastery, who had followed him to the royal city in their brotherly love, he employed for
the better observance of monastic rule, to the end that at all times, by their example, as he writes
himself, he might be held fast to the calm shore of prayer, as it were, with the cable of an anchor,
whilst he should be tossed up and down by the ceaseless waves of worldly affairs; and daily in the
intercourse of studious reading with them, strengthen his mind shaken with temporal concerns. By
their company he was not only guarded against the assaults of the world, but more and more roused
to the exercises of a heavenly life.
For they persuaded him to interpret by a mystical exposition the book of the blessed Job, which is
involved in great obscurity; nor could he refuse to undertake that work, which brotherly affection
imposed on him for the future benefit of many; but in a wonderful manner, in five and thirty books
of exposition, he taught how that same book is to be understood literally; how to be referred to the
mysteries of Christ and the Church; and in what sense it is to be adapted to every one of the faithful.
This work he began as papal representative in the royal city, but finished it at Rome after being
made pope. Whilst he was still in the royal city, by the help of the grace of Catholic truth, he crushed
in its first rise a new heresy which sprang up there, concerning the state of our resurrection. For
Eutychius, bishop of that city, taught, that our body, in the glory of resurrection, would be impalpable,
and more subtle than wind and air. The blessed Gregory hearing this, proved by force of truth, and
by the instance of the Resurrection of our Lord, that this doctrine was every way opposed to the
orthodox faith. For the Catholic faith holds that our body, raised by the glory of immortality, is
indeed rendered subtile by the effect of spiritual power, but is palpable by the reality of nature;
according to the example of our Lord’s Body, concerning which, when risen from the dead, He
Himself says to His disciples, "Handle Me and see, for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see
Me have. In maintaining this faith, the venerable Father Gregory so earnestly strove against the
rising heresy, and with the help of the most pious emperor, Tiberius Constantine, so fully suppressed
it, that none has been since found to revive it.

He likewise composed another notable book, the "Liber Pastoralis," wherein he clearly showed
what sort of persons ought to be preferred to rule the Church; how such rulers ought to live; with
how much discrimination they ought to instruct the different classes of their hearers, and how
seriously to reflect every day on their own frailty. He also wrote forty homilies on the Gospel,
which he divided equally into two volumes; and composed four books of Dialogues, in which, at
the request of his deacon, Peter, he recounted the virtues of the more renowned saints of Italy,
whom he had either known or heard of, as a pattern of life for posterity; to the end that, as he taught
in his books of Expositions what virtues men ought to strive after, so by describing the miracles of
saints, he might make known the glory of those’ virtues. Further, in twenty-two homilies, he showed
how much light is latent in the first and last parts of the prophet Ezekiel, which seemed the most
obscure. Besides which, he wrote the "Book of Answers," to the questions of the holy Augustine,
the first bishop of the English nation, as we have shown above, inserting the same book entire in
this history; and the useful little "Synodical Book," which he composed with the bishops of Italy
on necessary matters of the Church; as well as private letters to certain persons. And it is the more
wonderful that he could write so many lengthy works, seeing that almost all the time of his youth,
to use his own words, he was frequently tormented with internal pain, constantly enfeebled by the
weakness of his digestion, and oppressed by a low but persistent fever. But in all these troubles,
forasmuch as he carefully reflected that, as the Scripture testifies, "He scourgeth every son whom
He receiveth," the more severely he suffered under those present evils, the more he assured himself
of his eternal hope.
Thus much may be said of his immortal genius, which could not be crushed by such severe bodily
pains. Other popes applied themselves to building churches or adorning them with gold and silver,
but Gregory was wholly intent upon gaining souls. Whatsoever money he had, he took care to
distribute diligently and give to the poor, that his righteousness, might endure for ever, and his horn
be exalted with honour; so that the words of the blessed Job might be truly said of him, "When the
ear heard me, then it blessed me; and when the eye saw me, it gave witness to me: because I delivered
the poor that cried, and the fatherless, and him that had none to help him. The blessing of him that
was ready to perish came upon me, and I caused the widow’s heart to sing for, joy. I put on
righteousness, and it clothed me; my judgement was as a robe and a diadem. I was eyes to the blind,
and feet was I to the lame. I was a father to the poor; and the cause which I knew not, I searched
out. And I brake the jaws of the wicked, and plucked the spoil out of his teeth." And a little after:
"If I have withheld," says he, "the poor from their desire; or have caused the eyes of the widow to
fail; or have eaten my morsel myself alone, and the fatherless hath not eaten thereof: (for from my
youth compassion grew up with me, and from my mother’s womb it came forth with me.")
To his works of piety and righteousness this also may be added, that he saved our nation, by the
preachers he sent hither, from the teeth of the old enemy, and made it partaker of eternal liberty.
Rejoicing in the faith and salvation of our race, and worthily commending it with praise, he says,
in his exposition of the blessed Job, "Behold, the tongue of Britain, which only knew how to utter
barbarous cries, has long since begun to raise the Hebrew Hallelujah to the praise of God! Behold,
the once swelling ocean now serves prostrate at the feet of the saints; and its wild upheavals, which
earthly princes could not subdue with the sword, are now, through the fear of God, bound by the
lips of priests with words alone; and the heathen that stood not in awe of troops of warriors, now
believes and fears the tongues of the humble! For he has received a message from on high and
mighty works are revealed; the strength of the knowledge of God is given him, and restrained by the fear of the Lord, he dreads to do evil, and with all his heart desires to attain to everlasting grace."
In which words the blessed Gregory shows us this also, that St.Augustine and his companions
brought the English to receive the truth, not only by the preaching of words, but also by showing
forth heavenly signs.
The blessed Pope Gregory, among other things, caused Masses to be celebrated in the churches of
the holy Apostles, Peter and Paul, over their bodies. And in the celebration of Masses, he added
three petitions of the utmost perfection: "And dispose our days in thy peace, and bid us to be
preserved from eternal damnation, and to be numbered in the flock of thine elect."
He governed the Church in the days of the Emperors Mauritius and Phocas, and passing out of this
life in the second year of the same Phocas, departed to the true life which is in Heaven. His body
was buried in the church of the blessed Apostle Peter before the sacristy, on the 12th day of March,
to rise one day in the same body in glory with the rest of the holy pastors of the Church. On his
tomb was written this epitaph:
Receive, Earth, his body taken from thine own; thou canst restore it, when God calls to life. His
spirit rises to the stars; the claims of death shall not avail against him, for death itself is but the way
to new life. In this tomb are laid the limbs of a great pontiff, who yet lives for ever in all places in
countless deeds of mercy. Hunger and cold he overcame with food and raiment, and shielded souls
from the enemy by his holy teaching. And whatsoever he taught in word, that he fulfilled in deed,
that he might be a pattern, even as he spake words of mystic meaning. By his guiding love he
brought the Angles to Christ, gaining armies for the Faith from a new people. This was thy toil,
thy task, thy care, thy aim as shepherd, to offer to thy Lord abundant increase of the flock. So,
Consul of God, rejoice in this thy triumph, for now thou hast the reward of thy works for evermore.
Nor must we pass by in silence the story of the blessed Gregory, handed down to us by the tradition
of our ancestors, which explains his earnest care for the salvation of our nation. It is said that one
day, when some merchants had lately arrived at Rome, many things were exposed for sale in the
market place, and much people resorted thither to buy: Gregory himself went with the rest, and
saw among other wares some boys put up for sale, of fair complexion, with pleasing countenances,
and very beautiful hair. When he beheld them, he asked, it is said, from what region or country
they were brought? and was told, from the island of Britain, and that the inhabitants were like that
in appearance. He again inquired whether those islanders were Christians, or still involved in the
errors of paganism, and was informed that they were pagans. Then fetching a deep sigh from the
bottom of his heart, "Alas! what pity," said he, "that the author of darkness should own men of such
fair countenances; and that with such grace of outward form, their minds should be void of inward
grace. He therefore again asked, what was the name of that nation? and was answered, that they
were called Angles. "Right," said he, "for they have an angelic face, and it is meet that such should
be co-heirs with the Angels in heaven. What is the name of the province from which they are
brought?" It was replied, that the natives of that province were called Deiri. (Note: Southern
Northumbria) "Truly are they Deira," said he, "saved from wrath, and called to the mercy of Christ.
How is the king of that called?" They told him his name was Aelli;’ and he, playing upon the name,
said, "Allelujah, the praise of God the Creator must be sung in those parts."
Then he went to the bishop of the Roman Apostolic see (for he was not himself then made pope),
and entreated him to send some ministers of the Word into Britain to the nation of the English, that
it might be converted to Christ by them; declaring himself ready to carry out that work with the
help of God, if the Apostolic Pope should think fit to have it done. But not being then able to perform this task, because, though the Pope was willing to grant his request, yet the citizens of Rome could
not be brought to consent that he should depart so far from the city, as soon as he was himself made
Pope, he carried out the long-desired work, sending, indeed, other preachers, but himself by his
exhortations and prayers helping the preaching to bear fruit. This account, which we have received
from a past generation, we have thought fit to insert in our Ecclesiastical History.

CHAP. II.

IN the meantime, Augustine, with the help of King Ethelbert, drew together to a conference
the bishops and doctors of the nearest province of the Britons, at a place which is to this day called,
in the English language, Augustine’s Ac, that is, Augustine’s Oak, on the borders of the Hwiccas
and West Saxons; and began by brotherly admonitions to persuade them to preserve Catholic peace
with him, and undertake the common labour of preaching the Gospel to the heathen for the Lord’s
sake. For they did not keep Easter Sunday at the proper time, but from the fourteenth to the twentieth
moon; which computation is contained in a cycle of eighty-four years. Besides, they did many other
things which were opposed to the unity of the church. When, after a long disputation, they did not
comply With the entreaties, exhortations, or rebukes of Augustine and his companions, but preferred
their own traditions before all the Churches which are united in Christ throughout the world, the
holy father, Augustine, put an end to this troublesome and tedious contention, saying, "Let us entreat
God, who maketh men to be of one mind in His Father’s house, to vouchsafe, by signs from Heaven,
to declare to us which tradition is to be followed; and by what path we are to strive to enter His
kingdom. Let some sick man be brought, and let the faith and practice of him, by whose prayers
he shall be healed, be looked upon as hallowed in God’s sight and such as should be adopted by
all." His adversaries unwillingly consenting, a blind man of the English race was brought, who
having been presented to the British bishops, found no benefit or healing from their ministry; at
length, Augustine, compelled by strict necessity, bowed his knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, praying that He would restore his lost sight to the blind man, and by the bodily enlightenment
of one kindle the grace of spiritual light in the hearts of many of the faithful. Immediately the blind
man received sight, and Augustine was proclaimed by all to be a true herald of the light from
Heaven. The Britons then confessed that they perceived that it was the true way of righteousness
which Augustine taught; but that they could not depart from their ancient customs without the
consent and sanction of their people. They therefore desired that a second time a synod might be
appointed, at which more of their number should be present.
This being decreed, there came, it is said, seven bishops of the Britons, and many men of great
learning, particularly from their most celebrated monastery, which is called, in the English tongue,
Bancornaburg, and over which the Abbot Dinoot is said to have presided at that time. They that
were to go to the aforesaid council, be-took themselves first to a certain holy and discreet man,
who was wont to lead the life of a hermit among them, to consult with him, whether they ought, at
the preaching of Augustine, to forsake their traditions. He answered, "If he is a man of God, follow
him."— "How shall we know that?" said they. He replied, "Our Lord saith, Take My yoke upon
you, and learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart; if therefore, Augustine is meek and lowly
of heart, it is to be believed that he bears the yoke of Christ himself, and offers it to you to bear.

But, if he is harsh and proud, it is plain that he is not of God, nor are we to regard his words." They
said again, "And how shall we discern even this?" – "Do you contrive," said the anchorite, "that
he first arrive with his company at the place where the synod is to be held; and if at your approach
he rises tip to you, hear him submissively, being assured that he is the servant of Christ; but if he
despises you, and does not rise up to you, whereas you are more in number, let him also be despised
by you."
They did as he directed; and it happened, that as they approached, Augustine was sitting on a chair.
When they perceived it, they were angry, and charging him with pride, set themselves to contradict
all he said. He said to them, "Many things ye do which are contrary to our custom, or rather the
custom of the universal Church, and yet, if you will comply with me in these three matters, to wit,
to keep Easter at the due time; to fulfil the ministry of Baptism, by which we are born again to God,
according to the custom of the holy Roman Apostolic Church; and to join with us in preaching the
Word of God to the English nation, we will gladly suffer all the other things you do, though contrary
to our customs." They answered that they would do none of those things, nor receive him as their
archbishop; for they said among themselves, "if he would not rise up to us now, how much more
will he despise us, as of no account, if we begin to be under his subjection?" Then the man of God,
Augustine, is said to have threatened them, that if they would not accept peace with their brethren,
they should have war from their enemies; and, if they would not preach the way of life to the English
nation, they should suffer at their hands the vengeance of death. All which, through the dispensation
of the Divine judgement, fell out exactly as he had predicted.
For afterwards the warlike king of the English, Ethelfrid, of whom we have spoken, having raised
a mighty army, made a very great slaughter of that heretical nation, at the city of Legions, (Chester)
which by the English is called Legacaestir, but by the Britons more rightly Car-legion. Being about
to give battle, he observed their priests, who were come together to offer up their prayers to God
for the combatants, standing apart in a place of greater safety; he inquired who they were, and what
they came together to do in that place. Most of them were of the monastery of Bangor, in which,
it is said, there was so great a number of monks, that the monastery being divided into seven parts,
with a superior set over each, none of those parts contained less than three hundred men, who all
lived by the labour of their hands. Many of these, having observed a fast of three days,. had come
together along with others to pray at the aforesaid battle, having one Brocmail for their protector,
to defend them, whilst they were intent upon their prayers, against the swords of the barbarians.
King Ethelfrid being informed of the occasion of their coming, said; "If then they cry to their God
against us, in truth, though they do not bear arms, yet they fight against us, because they assail us
with their curses." He, therefore, commanded them to be attacked first, and then destroyed the rest
of the impious army, not without great loss of his own forces. About twelve hundred of those that
came to pray are said to have been killed, and only fifty to have escaped by flight. Brocmail, turning
his back with his men, at the first approach of the enemy, left those whom he ought to have defended
unarmed and exposed to the swords of the assailants. Thus was fulfilled the prophecy of the holy
Bishop Augustine, though he himself had been long before taken up into the heavenly kingdom,
that the heretics should feel the vengeance of temporal death also, because they had despised the
offer of eternal salvation.

 

CHAP. III.

IN the year of our Lord 604, Augustine, Archbishop of Britain, ordained two bishops, to wit,
Mellitus and Justus; Mellitus to preach to the province of the East Saxons, who are divided from
Kent by the river Thames, and border on the Eastern sea. Their metropolis is the city of London,
which is situated on the bank of the aforesaid river, and is the mart of many nations resorting to it
by sea and land. At that time, Sabert, nephew to Ethelbert through his sister Ricula, reigned over
the nation, though he was under subjection to Ethelbert, who, as has been said above, had command
over all the nations of the English as far as the river Humber. But when this province also received
the word of truth, by the preaching of Mellitus, King Ethelbert built the church of St. Paul the
Apostle, in the city of London, where he and his successors should have their episcopal see. As for
Justus, Augustine ordained him bishop in Kent, at thc city of Dorubrevis, which the English call
Hrofaescaestrae, from one that was formerly the chief man of it, called Hrof. It is about twenty-four
miles distant from the city of Canterbury to the westward, and in it King Ethelbert dedicated a
church to the blessed Apostle Andrew, and bestowed many gifts on the bishops of both those
churches, as well as on the Bishop of Canterbury, adding lands and possessions for the use of those
who were associated with the bishops.
After this, the beloved of God, our father Augustine, died, and his body was laid outside, close by
the church of the blessed Apostles, Peter and Paul, above spoken of, because it was not yet finished,
nor consecrated, but as soon as it was consecrated, the body was brought in, and fittingly buried in
the north chapel a thereof; wherein also were interred the bodies of all the succeeding archbishops,
except two only, Theodore and Bertwald, whose bodies are in the church itself, because the aforesaid
chapel could contain no more.’ Almost in the midst of this chapel is an altar dedicated in honour
of the blessed Pope Gregory, at which every Saturday memorial Masses are celebrated for the
archbishops by a priest of that place. On the tomb of Augustine is inscribed this epitaph:
"Here rests the Lord Augustine, first Archbishop of Canterbury, who, being of old sent hither by
the blessed Gregory, Bishop of the city of Rome, and supported by God in the working of miracles,
led King Ethelbert and his nation from the worship of idols to the faith of Christ, and having ended
the days of his office in peace, died the 26th day of May, in the reign of the same king"

CHAP. IV.

LAURENTIUS succeeded Augustine in the bishopric, having been ordained thereto by the
latter, in his lifetime, lest, upon his death, the Church, as yet in so unsettled a state, might begin to
falter, if it should be destitute of a pastor, though but for one hour. Wherein he also followed the
example of the first pastor of the Church, that is, of the most blessed Peter, chief of the Apostles,
who, having founded the Church of Christ at Rome, is said to have consecrated Clement to help
him in preaching the Gospel, and at the same time to be his successor. Laurentius, being advanced
to the rank of archbishop, laboured indefatigably, both by frequent words of holy exhortation and
constant example of good works to strengthen the foundations of the Church, which had been so
nobly laid, and to carry it on to the fitting height of perfection. In short, he not only took charge of
the new Church formed among the English, but endeavoured also to bestow his pastoral care upon the tribes of the ancient inhabitants of Britain, as also of the Scots, who inhabit the island of Ireland,
which is next to Britain. For when he understood that the life and profession of the Scots in their
aforesaid country, as well as of the Britons in Britain, was not truly in accordance with the practice
of the Church in many matters, especially that they did not celebrate the festival of Easter at the
due time, but thought that the day of the Resurrection of our Lord ought, as has been said above,
to be observed between the 14th and 20th of the moon; he wrote, jointly with his fellow bishops,
a hortatory epistle, entreating and conjuring them to keep the unity of peace and Catholic observance
with the Church of Christ spread throughout the world. The beginning of which epistle is as follows:
"To our most dear brethren, the Lords Bishops and Abbots throughout all the country of the Scots,’
Laurentius, Mellitus, and Justus, Bishops, servants of the servants of God. When the Apostolic see,
according to the universal custom which it has followed elsewhere, sent us to these western parts
to preach to pagan nations, and it was our lot to come into this island, which is called Britain, before
we knew them, we held both the Britons and Scots in great esteem for sanctity, believing that they
walked according to the custom of the universal Church; but becoming acquainted with the Britons,
we thought that the Scots had been better. Now we have learnt from Bishop Dagan, who came into
this aforesaid island, and the Abbot Columban, (Note: The most famous of the great Irish
missionaries who laboured on the Continent. He was born in Leinster about 540, went to Gaul about
574, founded three monasteries (Annegray, Luxeuil, and Fontaines), worked for twenty years among
the Franks and Burgundians, afterwards among the Suevi and Alemanni, and finally in Italy, where
he founded a monastery at Bobbio and died there in 615. He was a vigorous supporter of the Celtic
usages and an active opponent of Arianism. He instituted a monastic rule of great severity.) in Gaul,
that the Scots in no way differ from the Britons in their walk; for when Bishop Dagan came to us,
not only did he refuse to eat at the same table, but even to eat in the same house where we were
entertained."
Also Laurentius with his fellow bishops wrote a letter to the bishops of the Britons, suitable to his
degree, by which he endeavoured to confirm them in Catholic unity; but what he gained by so doing
the present times still show.
About this time, Mellitus, bishop of London, went to Rome, to confer with the Apostolic Pope
Boniface about the necessary affairs of the English Church. And the same most reverend pope,
assembling a synod of the bishops of Italy, to prescribe rules for the life and peace of the monks,
Mellitus also sat among them, in the eighth year of the reign of the Emperor Phocas, the thirteenth
incliction, on the 27th of February, to the end that he also might sign and confirm by his authority
whatsoever should be regularly decreed, and on his return into Britain might carry the decrees to
the Churches of the English, to be committed to them and observed; together with letters which
the same pope sent to the beloved of God, Archbishop Laurentius, and to all the clergy; as likewise
to King Ethelbert and the English nation. This pope was Boniface, the fourth after the blessed
Gregory, bishop of the city of Rome. He obtained for the Church of Christ from the Emperor Phocas
the gift of the temple at Rome called by the ancients Pantheon, as representing all the gods; wherein
he, having purified, it from all defilement, dedicated a church to the holy Mother of God, and to
all Christ’s martyrs, to the end that, the company of devils being expelled, the blessed company of
the saints might have therein a perpetual memorial.

CHAP. V.

IN the year of our Lord 616, which is the twenty-first year after Augustine and his company
were sent to preach to the English nation, Ethelbert, king of Kent, having most gloriously governed
his temporal kingdom fifty-six years, entered into the eternal joys of the kingdom of Heaven. He
was the third of the English kings who ruled over all the southern provinces that are divided from
the northern by the river Humber and the borders contiguous to it; but the first of all that ascended
to the heavenly kingdom. The first who had the like sovereignty was Aelli, king of the South-Saxons;
the second, Caelin, king of the West-Saxons, who, in their own language, is called Ceaulin; the
third, as has been said, was Ethelbert, king of Kent; the fourth was Redwald, king of the East-Angles,
who, even in the life-time of Ethelbert, had been acquiring the leadership for his own race. The
fifth was Edwin, king of the Northumbrian nation, that is, of those who live in the district to the
north of the river H umber; his power was greater; he had the overlordship over all the nations who
inhabit Britain, both English and British, except only the people of Kent; and he reduced also under
the dominion of the English, the Mevanian Islands of the Britons, lying between Ireland and Britain;
the sixth was Oswald, the most Christian king of the Northumbrians, whose kingdom was within
the same bounds; the seventh, his brother Oswy, ruled over a kingdom of like extent for a time,
and for the most part subdued and made tributary the nations of the Picts and Scots, who occupy
the northern parts of Britain: but of that hereafter.
King Ethelbert died on the 24th day of the month of February, twenty-one years after he had received
the faith, and was buried in St. Martin’s chapel within the church of the blessed Apostles Peter and
Paul, where also lies his queen, Bertha. Among other benefits which he conferred upon his nation
in his care for them, he established, with the help of his council of wise men, judicial decisions,
after the Roman model; which are written in the language of the English, and are still kept and
observed by them. Among which, he set down first what satisfaction should be given by any one
who should steal anything belonging to the Church, the bishop, or the other clergy, for he was
resolved to give protection to those whom he had received along with their doctrine.
This Ethelbert was the son of Irminric, whose father was Octa, whose father was Oeric, surnamed
Oisc, from whom the kings of Kent are wont to be called Oiscings. His father was Hengist, who,
being invited by Vortigern, first came into Britain, with his son Oisc, as has been said above.
But after the death of Ethelbert, the accession of his son Eadbald proved very harmful to the still
tender growth of the new Church; for he not only refused to accept the faith of Christ, but was also
defiled with such fornication, as the Apostle testifies, as is not so much as named among the Gentiles,
that one should have his father’s wife. By both which crimes he gave occasion to those to return to
their former uncleanness, who, under his father, had, either for favour or fear of the king, submitted
to the laws of the faith and of a pure life. Nor did the unbelieving king escape without the scourge
of Divine severity in chastisement and correction; for he was troubled with frequent fits of madness,
and possessed by an unclean spirit. The storm of this disturbance was increased by the death of
Sabert, king of the East Saxons, who departing to the heavenly kingdom, left three sons, still pagans,
to inherit his temporal crown. They immediately began openly to give themselves up to idolatry,
which, during their father’s lifetime, they had seemed somewhat to abandon, and they granted free
licence to their subjects to serve idols. And when they saw the bishop, whilst celebrating Mass in
the church, give the Eucharist to the people, filled, as they were, with folly and ignorance, they
said to him, as is commonly reported, "Why do you not give us also that white bread, which you used to give to our father Saba (for so they were wont to call him), and which you still continue to
give to the people in the church?" To whom he answered, "If you will be washed in that font of
salvation, in which your father was washed, you may also partake of the holy Bread of which he
partook; but if you despise the laver of life, you can in no wise receive the Bread of life." They
replied, "We will not enter into that font, because we know that we do not stand in need of it, and
yet we will be refreshed by that bread." And being often earnestly admonished by him, that this
could by no means be done, nor would any one be admitted to partake of the sacred Oblation without
the holy cleansing, at last, they said, filled with rage, "If you will not comply with us in so small a
matter as that which we require, you shall not stay in our province." And they drove him out and
bade him and his company depart from their kingdom. Being driven thence, he came into Kent, to
take counsel with his fellow bishops, Laurentius and Justus, and learn what was to be done in that
case; and with one consent they determined that it was better for them all to return to their own
country, where they might serve God in freedom of mind, than to continue to no purpose among
barbarians, who had revolted from the faith. Mellitus and Justus accordingly went away first, and
withdrew into the parts of Gaul, intending there to await the event. But the kings, who had driven
from them the herald of the truth, did not continue long unpunished in their worship of devils. For
marching out to battle against the nation of the Gewissi, they were all slain with their army.
Nevertheless, the people having been once turned to wickedness, though the authors of it were
destroyed, would not be corrected, nor return to the unity of faith and charity which is in Christ.

CHAP. VI.

LAURENTIUS, being about to follow Mellitus and Justus, and to quit Britain, ordered his bed
to be laid that night in the church of the blessed Apostles, Peter and Paul, which has been often
mentioned before; wherein having laid himself to rest, after he had with tears poured forth many
prayers to God for the state of the Church, he fell asleep; in the dead of night, the blessed chief of
the Apostles appeared to him, and scourging him grievously a long time, asked of him with apostolic
severity, why he was forsaking the flock which he had committed to him? or to what shepherd he
was leaving, by his flight, Christ’s sheep that were in the midst of wolves? "Hast thou," he said,
"forgotten my example, who, for the sake of those little ones, whom Christ commended to me in
token of His affection, underwent at the hands of infidels and enemies of Christ, bonds, stripes,
imprisonment, afflictions, and lastly, death itself, even the death of the cross, that I might at last
be crowned with Him?" Laurentius, the servant of Christ, roused by the scourging of the blessed
Peter and his words of exhortation, went to the king as soon as morning broke, and laying aside
his garment, showed the scars of the stripes which he had received. The king, astonished, asked
who had presumed to inflict such stripes on so great a man. And when he heard that for the sake
of his salvation the bishop had suffered these cruel blows at the hands of the Apostle of Christ, he
was greatly afraid; and abjuring the worship of idols, and renouncing his unlawful marriage, he
received the faith of Christ, and being baptized, promoted and supported the interests of the Church
to the utmost of his power.
He also sent over into Gaul, and recalled Mellitus and Justus, and bade them return to govern their
churches in freedom. They came back one year after their departure, and Justus returned to the city of Rochester, where he had before presided; but the people of London would not receive Bishop
Mellitus, choosing rather to be under their idolatrous high priests; for King Eadbald had not so
much authority in the kingdom as his father, and was not able to restore the bishop to his church
against the will and consent of the pagans. But he and his nation, after his conversion to the Lord,
sought to obey the commandments of God. Lastly, he built the church of the holy Mother of God,
in the monastery of the most blessed chief of the Apostles, which was afterwards consecrated by
Archbishop Mellitus.

CHAP. VII.

IN this king’s reign, the blessed Archbishop Laurentius was taken up to the heavenly kingdom:
he was buried in the church and monastery of the holy Apostle Peter, close by his predecessor
Augustine, on the 2nd day of the month of February. Mellitus, who was bishop of London, succeeded
to the see of Canterbury, being the third archbishop from Augustine; Justus, who was still living,
governed the church of Rochester. These ruled the Church of the English with much care and
industry, and received letters of exhortation from Boniface, bishop of the Roman Apostolic see,
who presided over the Church after Deusdedit, in the year of our Lord 619. Mellitus laboured under
the bodily infirmity of gout, but his mind was sound and active, cheerfully passing over all earthly
things, and always aspiring to love, seek, and attain to those which are celestial. He was noble by
birth, but still nobler by the elevation of his mind.
In short, that I may give one instance of his power, from which the rest may be inferred, it happened
once that the city of Canterbury, being set on fire through carelessness, was in danger of being
consumed by the spreading conflagration; water was thrown on the fire in vain; a considerable part
of the city was already destroyed, and the fierce flames were advancing towards the bishop’s abode,
when he, trusting in God, where human help failed, ordered himself to be carried towards the raging
masses of fire which were spreading on every side. The church of the four crowned Martyrs was
in the place where the fire raged most fiercely. The bishop, being carried thither by his servants,
weak as he was, set about averting by prayer the danger which the strong hands of active men had
not been able to overcome with all their exertions. Immediately the wind, which blowing from the
south had spread the conflagration throughout the city, veered to the north, and thus prevented the
destruction of those places that had been exposed to its full violence, then it ceased entirely and
there was a calm, while the flames likewise sank and were extinguished. And because the man of
God burned with the fire of divine love, and was wont to drive away the storms of the powers of
the air, by his frequent prayers and at his bidding, from doing harm to himself, or his people, it was
meet that he should be allowed to prevail over the winds and flames of this world, and to obtain
that they should not injure him or his.
This archbishop also, having ruled the church five years, departed to heaven in the reign of King
Eadbald, and was buried with his fathers in the monastery and church, which we have so often
mentioned, of the most blessed chief of the Apostles, in the year of our Lord 624, on the 24th day
of April.

CHAP. VIII.[624 A.D.]

JUSTUS, bishop of the church of Rochester, immediately succeeded Mellitus in the
archbishopric. He consecrated Romanus bishop of that see in his own stead, having obtained
authority to ordain bishops from Pope Boniface, whom we mentioned above as successor to
Deusdedit: of which licence this is the form:
"Boniface, to his most beloved brother Justus. We have learnt not only from the contents of your
letter addressed to us, but from the fulfilment granted to your work, how faithfully and vigilantly
you have laboured, my brother, for the Gospel of Christ; for Almighty God has not forsaken either
the mystery of His Name, or the fruit of your labours, having Himself faithfully promised to the
preachers of the Gospel, ‘Lo! I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world’; which promise
His mercy has particularly manifested in this ministry imposed upon you, opening the hearts of the
nations to receive the wondrous mystery of your preaching. For He has blessed with a rich reward
your Eminence’s acceptable course, by the support of His loving kindness; granting a plentiful
increase to your labours in the faithful management of the talents committed to you, and bestowing
it on that which you might confirm to many generations. This is conferred on you by that recompense
whereby, constantly persevering in the ministry imposed upon you, you have awaited with
praiseworthy patience the redemption of that nation, and that they might profit by your merits,
salvation has been bestowed on them. For our Lord Himself says, ‘He that endureth to the end shall
be saved.” You are, therefore, saved by the hope of patience, and the virtue of endurance, to the
end that the hearts of unbelievers, being cleansed from their natural disease of superstition, might
obtain the mercy of their Saviour: for having received letters from our son Adulwald, we perceive
with how much knowledge of the Sacred Word you, my brother, have brought his mind to the belief
in true conversion and the certainty of the faith. Therefore, firmly confiding in the long-suffering
of the Divine clemency, we believe that, through the ministry of your preaching, there will ensue
most full salvation not only of the nations subject to him, but also of their neighbours; to the end,
that as it is written, the recompense of a perfect work may be conferred on you by the Lord, the
Rewarder of all the just; and that the universal confession of all nations, having received the mystery
of the Christian faith, may declare, that in truth ‘Their sound is gone out into all the earth, and their
words unto the end of the world.’
"We have also, my brother, moved by the warmth of our goodwill, sent you by the bearer of these
presents, the pall, giving you authority to use it only in the celebration of the Sacred Mysteries;
granting to you likewise to ordain bishops when there shall be occasion, through the Lord’s mercy;
that so the Gospel of Christ, by the preaching of many, may be spread abroad in all the nations that
are not yet converted. You must, therefore, endeavour, my brother, to preserve with unblemished
sincerity of mind that which you have received through the kindness of the Apostolic see, bearing
in mind what it is that is represented by the honourable vestment which you have obtained to be
borne on your shoulders. And imploring the Divine mercy, study to show yourself such that you
may present before the tribunal of the Supreme Judge that is to come, the rewards of the favour
granted to you, not with guiltiness, but with the benefit of souls. "God preserve you in safety, most
dear brother!"

CHAP. IX.

AT this time the nation of the Northumbrians, that is, the English tribe dwelling on the north
side of the river Humber, with their king, Edwin, received the Word of faith through the preaching
of Paulinus, of whom we have before spoken. This king, as an earnest of his reception of the faith,
and his share in the heavenly kingdom, received an increase also of his temporal realm, for he
reduced under his dominion all the parts of Britain that were provinces either of the English, or of
the Britons, a thing which no English king had ever done before; and he even subjected to the
English the Mevanian islands, as has been said above. The more important of these, which is to the
southward, is the larger in extent, and more fruitful, containing nine hundred and sixty families,
according to the English computation; the other contains above three hundred.
The occasion of this nation’s reception of the faith was the alliance by marriage of their aforesaid
king with the kings of Kent, for he had taken to wife Ethelberg, otherwise called Tata, (a term of
endearment) daughter to King Ethelbert. When he first sent ambassadors to ask her in marriage of
her brother Eadbald, who then reigned in Kent, he received the answer, "That it was not lawful to
give a Christian maiden in marriage to a pagan husband, lest the faith and the mysteries of the
heavenly King should be profaned by her union with a king that was altogether a stranger to the
worship of the true God." This answer being brought to Edwin by his messengers, he promised that
he would in no manner act in opposition to the Christian faith, which the maiden professed; but
would give leave to her, and all that went with her, men and women, bishops and clergy, to follow
their faith and worship after the custom of the Christians. Nor did he refuse to accept that religion
himself, if, being examined by wise men, it should be found more holy and more worthy of God.
So the maiden was promised, and sent to Edwin, and in accordance with the agreement, Paulinus,
a man beloved of God, was ordained bishop, to go with her, and by daily exhortations, and
celebrating the heavenly Mysteries, to confirm her, and her company, lest they should be corrupted
by intercourse with the pagans. Paulinus was ordained bishop by the Archbishop Justus, on the
21st day of July, in the year of our Lord 625, and so came to King Edwin with the aforesaid maiden
as an attendant on their union in the flesh. But his mind was wholly bent upon calling the nation
to which he was sent to the knowledge of truth; according to the words of the Apostle, "To espouse
her to the one true Husband, that he might present her as a chaste virgin to Christ."’ Being come
into that province, he laboured much, not only to retain those that went with him, by the help of
God, that they should not abandon the faith, but, if haply he might, to convert some of the pagans
to the grace of the faith by his preaching. But, as the Apostle says, though he laboured long in the
Word, "The god of this world blinded the minds of them that believed not, lest the light of the
glorious Gospel of Christ should shine unto them."
The next year there came into the province one called Eumer, sent by the king of the West-Saxons,
whose name was Cuichelm,to lie in wait for King Edwin, in hopes at once to deprive him of his
kingdom and his life. He had a two-edged dagger, dipped in poison, to the end that, if the wound
inflicted by the weapon did not avail to kill the king, it might be aided by the deadly venom. He
came to the king on the first day of the Easter festival,’ at the river Derwent, where there was then
a royal township, and being admitted as if to deliver a message from his master, whilst unfolding
in cunning words his pretended embassy, he startled up on a sudden, and unsheathing the dagger
under his garment, assaulted the king. When Lilla, the king’s most devoted servant, saw this, having
no buckler at hand to protect the king from death, he at once interposed his own body to receive the blow; but the enemy struck home with such force, that he wounded the king through the body
of the slaughtered thegn. Being then attacked on all sides with swords, in the confusion he also
slew impiously with his dagger another of the thegns, whose name was Forthhere.
On that same holy Easter night, the queen had brought forth to the king a daughter, called Eanfled.
The king, in the presence of Bishop Paulinus, gave thanks to his gods for the birth of his daughter;
and the bishop, on his part, began to give thanks to Christ, and to tell the king, that by his prayers
to Him he had obtained that the queen should bring forth the child in safety, and without grievous
pain. The king, delighted with his words, promised, that if God would grant him life and victory
over the king by whom the murderer who had wounded him had been sent, he would renounce his
idols, and serve Christ; and as a pledge that he would perform his promise, he delivered up that
same daughter to Bishop Paulinus, to be consecrated to Christ. She was the first to be baptized of
the nation of the Northumbrians, and she received Baptism on the holy day of Pentecost, along
with eleven others of her house. At that time, the king, being recovered of the wound which he had
received, raised an army and marched against the nation of the West-Saxons; and engaging in war,
either slew or received in surrender all those of whom he learned that they had conspired to murder
him. So he returned victorious into his own country, but he would not immediately and unadvisedly
embrace the mysteries of the Christian faith, though he no longer worshipped idols, ever since he
made the promise that he would serve Christ; but first took heed earnestly to be instructed at leisure
by the venerable Paulinus, in the knowledge of faith, and to confer with such as he knew to be the
wisest of his chief men, inquiring what they thought was fittest to be done in that case. And being
a man of great natural sagacity, he often sat alone by himself a long time in silence, deliberating
in the depths of his heart how he should proceed, and to which religion he should adhere.

CHAP. X.

AT this time he received a letter from Pope Boniface exhorting him to embrace the faith, which
was as follows:
COPY OF THE LETTER OF THE MOST BLESSED AND APOSTOLIC POPE OF THE CHURCH
OF THE CITY OF ROME, BONIFACE, ADDRESSED TO THE ILLUSTRIOUS EDWIN, KING
OF THE ENGLISH.
"To the illustrious Edwin, king of the English, Bishop Boniface, the servant of the servants of God.
Although the power of the Supreme Deity cannot be expressed by the function of human speech,
seeing that, by its own greatness, it so consists in invisible and unsearchable eternity, that no
keenness of wit can comprehend or express how great it is; yet inasmuch as His Humanity, having
opened the doors of the heart to receive Himself, mercifully, by secret inspiration, puts into the
minds of men such things as It reveals concerning Itself, we have thought fit to extend our episcopal
care so far as to make known to you the fulness of the Christian faith; to the end that, bringing to
your knowledge the Gospel of Christ, which our Saviour commanded should be preached to all
nations, we might offer to you the cup of the means of salvation.
"Thus the goodness of the Supreme Majesty, which, by the word alone of His command, made and
created all things, the heaven, the earth, the sea, and all that in them is, disposing the order by which
they should subsist, hath, ordaining all things, with the counsel of His co-eternal Word, and the unity of the Holy Spirit, made man after His own image and likeness, forming him out of the mire
of the earth; and granted him such high privilege of distinction, as to place him above all else; so
that, preserving the bounds of the law of his being, his substance should be established to eternity.
This God,—Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, the undivided Trinity,—from the east unto the west,
through faith by confession to the saving of their souls, men worship and adore as the Creator of
all things, and their own Maker; to Whom also the heights of empire and the powers of the world
are subject, because the pre-eminence of all kingdoms is granted by His disposition. It hath pleased
Him, therefore, in the mercy of His loving kindness, and for the greater benefit of all His creatures,
by the fire of His Holy Spirit wonderfully to kindle the cold hearts even of the nations seated at the
extremities of the earth in the knowledge of Himself.
"For we suppose, since the two countries are near together, that your Highness has fully understood
what the clemency of our Redeemer has effected in the enlightenment of our illustrious son, King
Eadbald, and the nations under his rule; we therefore trust, with assured confidence that, through
the long-suffering of Heaven, His wonderful gift will be also conferred on you; since, indeed, we
have learnt that your illustrious consort, who is discerned to be one flesh with you, has been blessed
with the reward of eternity, through the regeneration of Holy Baptism. We have, therefore, taken
care by this letter, with all the goodwill of heartfelt love, to exhort your Highness, that, abhorring
idols and their worship, and despising the foolishness of temples, and the deceitful flatteries of
auguries, you believe in God the Father Almighty, and His Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost,
to the end that, believing and being released from the bonds of captivity to the Devil, you may,
through the co-operating power of the Holy and undivided Trinity, be partaker of the eternal life.
"How great guilt they lie tinder, who adhere in their worship to the pernicious superstition of
idolatry, appears by the examples of the perishing of those whom they worship. Wherefore it is
said of them by the Psalmist, ‘All the gods of the nations are devils,’ but the Lord made the heavens.’
And again, ‘Eyes have they, but they see not; they have ears, but they hear not; noses have they,
but they smell not; they have hands, but they handle not; feet have they, but they walk not. Therefore
they are made like unto those that place the hope of their confidence in them.’ For how can they
have power to help any man, that are made out of corruptible matter, by the hands of your inferiors
and subjects, and on which, by employing human art, you have bestowed a lifeless similitude of
members? which, moreover, unless they be moved by you, will not be able to walk; but, like a stone
fixed in one place, being so formed, and having no understanding, sunk in insensibility, have no
power of doing harm or good. We cannot, therefore, by any manner of discernment conceive how
you come to be so deceived as to follow and worship those gods, to whom you yourselves have
given the likeness of a body.
"It behoves you, therefore, by taking upon you the sign of the Holy Cross, by which the human
race has been redeemed, to root out of your hearts all the accursed deceitfulness of the snares of
the Devil, who is ever the jealous foe of the works of the Divine Goodness, and to put forth your
hands and with all your might set to work to break in pieces and destroy those which you have
hitherto fashioned of wood or stone to be your gods. For the very destruction and decay of these,
which never had the breath of life in them, nor could in any wise receive feeling from their makers,
may plainly teach you how worthless that was which you hitherto worshipped. For you yourselves,
who have received the breath of life from the Lord, are certainly better than these which are wrought
with hands, seeing that Almighty God has appointed you to be descended, after many ages and
through many generations, from the first man whom he formed. Draw near, then, to the knowledge of Him Who created you, Who breathed the breath of life into you, Who sent His only-begotten
Son for your redemption, to save you from original sin, that being delivered from the power of the
Devil’s perversity and wickedness, He might bestow on you a heavenly reward.
Hearken to the words of the preachers, and the Gospel of God, which they declare to you, to the
end that, believing, as has been said before more than once, in God the Father Almighty, and in
Jesus Christ His Son, and the Holy Ghost, and the indivisible Trinity, having put to flight the
thoughts of devils, and driven from you the temptations of the venomous and deceitful enemy, and
being born again of water and the Holy Ghost, you may, through the aid of His bounty, dwell in
the brightness of eternal glory with Him in Whom you shall have believed.
We have, moreover, sent you the blessing of your protector, the blessed Peter, chief of the Apostles,
to wit, a shirt of proof with one gold ornament, and one cloak of Ancyra, which we pray your
Highness to accept with all the goodwill with which it is sent by us."

CHAP. XI.

[Circ. 625 A.D.]
THE same pope also wrote to King Edwin’s consort, Ethelberg, to this effect:
THE COPY OF THE LETTER OF THE MOST BLESSED AND APOSTOLIC BONIFACE,
POPE OF THE CITY OF ROME, TO ETHELBERG, KING EDWIN’S QUEEN.
"To the illustrious lady his daughter, Queen Ethelberg, Boniface, bishop, servant of the servants
of God. The goodness of our Redeemer has in His abundant Providence offered the means of
salvation to the human race, which He rescued, by the shedding of His precious Blood, from the
bonds of captivity to the Devil; to the end that, when He had made known His name in divers ways
to the nations, they might acknowledge their Creator by embracing the mystery of the Christian
faith. And this the mystical purification of your regeneration plainly shows to have been bestowed
upon the mind of your Highness by God’s gift. Our heart, therefore, has greatly rejoiced in the
benefit bestowed by the bounty of the Lord, for that He has vouchsafed, in your confession, to
kindle a spark of the orthodox religion, by which He might the more easily inflame with the love
of Himself the understanding, not only of your illustrious consort, but also of all the nation that is
subject to you.
"For we have been informed by those, who came to acquaint us with the laudable conversion of
our illustrious son, King Eadbald, that your Highness, also, having received the wonderful mystery
of the Christian faith, continually excels in the performance of works pious and acceptable to God;
that you likewise carefully refrain from the worship of idols, and the deceits of temples and auguries,
and with unimpaired devotion, give yourself so wholly to the love of your Redeemer, as never to
cease from lending your aid in spreading the Christian faith. But when our fatherly love earnestly
inquired concerning your illustrious consort, we were given to understand, that he still served
abominable idols, and delayed to yield obedience in giving ear to the voice of the preachers. This
occasioned us no small grief, that he that is one flesh with you still remained a stranger to the
knowledge of the supreme and undivided Trinity. Whereupon we, in our fatherly care, have not
delayed to admonish and exhort your Christian Highness, to the end that, filled with the support of
the Divine inspiration, you should not defer to strive, both in season and out of season, that with the co-operating power of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, your husband also may be added to
the number of Christians; that so you may uphold the rights of marriage in the bond of a holy and
unblemished union. For it is written, ‘They twain shall be one flesh.’ How then can it be said, that
there is unity in the bond between you, if he continues a stranger to the brightness of your faith,
separated from it by the darkness of detestable error?
"Wherefore, applying yourself continually to prayer, do not cease to beg of the long-suffering of
the Divine Mercy the benefits of his illumination; to the end, that those whom the union of carnal
affection has manifestly made in a manner to be one body, may, after this life continue in perpetual
fellowship, by the unity of faith. Persist, therefore, illustrious daughter, and to the utmost of your
power endeavour to soften the hardness of his heart by carefully making known to him the Divine
precepts; pouring into his mind a knowledge of the greatness of that mystery which you have
received by faith, and of the marvellous reward which, by the new birth, you have been made
worthy to obtain. Inflame the coldness of his heart by the message of the Holy Ghost, that he may
put from him the deadness of an evil worship, and the warmth of the Divine faith may kindle his
understanding through your frequent exhortations; and so the testimony of Holy Scripture may
shine forth clearly, fulfilled by you, ‘The unbelieving husband shall be saved by the believing wife.’
For to this end you have obtained the mercy of the Lord’s goodness, that you might restore with
increase to your Redeemer the fruit of faith and of the benefits entrusted to your hands. That you
may be able to fulfil this task, supported by the help of His loving kindness we do not cease to
implore with frequent prayers.
"Having premised thus much, in pursuance of the duty of our fatherly affection, we exhort you,
that when the opportunity of a bearer shall offer, you will with all speed comfort us with the glad
tidings of the wonderful work which the heavenly Power shall vouchsafe to perform by your means
in the conversion of your consort, and of the nation subject to you; to the end, that our solicitude,
which earnestly awaits the fulfilment of its desire in the soul’s salvation of you and yours, may, by
hearing from you, be set at rest; and that we, discerning more fully the light of the Divine propitiation
shed abroad in you, may with a joyful confession abundantly return due thanks to God, the Giver
of all good things, and to the blessed Peter, the chief of the Apostles.
We have, moreover, sent you the blessing of your protector, the blessed Peter, the chief of the
Apostles, to wit, a silver looking-glass, and a gilded ivory comb, which we pray your Highness to
accept with all the goodwill with which it is sent by us.

CHAP. XII.

THUS wrote the aforesaid Pope Boniface for the salvation of King Edwin and his nation. But
a heavenly vision, which the Divine Goodness was pleased once to reveal to this king, when he
was in banishment at the court of Redwald, king of the Angles, was of no little use in urging him
to receive and understand the doctrines of salvation. For when Paulinus perceived that it was a
difficult task to incline the king’s proud mind to the humility of the way of salvation and the reception
of the mystery of the life-giving Cross, and at the same time was employing the word of exhortation
with men, and prayer to the Divine Goodness, for the salvation of Edwin and his subjects; at length,
as we may suppose, it was shown him in spirit what the nature of the vision was that had been formerly revealed from Heaven to the king. Then he lost no time, but immediately admonished the
king to perform the vow which he had made, when he received the vision, promising to fulfil it, if
he should be delivered from the troubles of that time, and advanced to the throne.
The vision was this. When Ethelfrid, his predecessor, was persecuting him, he wandered for many
years as an exile, hiding in divers places and kingdoms, and at last came to Redwald, beseeching
him to give him protection against the snares of his powerful persecutor. Redwald willingly received
him, and promised to perform ‘what was asked of him. But when Ethelfrid understood that he had
appeared in that province, and that he and his companions were hospitably entertained by Redwald,
he sent messengers to bribe that king with a great sum of money to murder him, but without effect.
He sent a second and a third time, offering a greater bribe each time, and, moreover, threatening
to make war on him if his offer should be despised. Redwald, whether terrified by his threats, or
won over by his gifts, complied with this request, and promised either to kill Edwin, or to deliver
him up to the envoys. A faithful friend of his, hearing of this, went into his chamber, where he was
going to bed, for it was the first hour of the night; and calling him out, told him what the king had
promised to do with him, adding, "If, therefore, you are willing, I will this very hour conduct you
out of this province, and lead you to a place where neither Redwald nor Ethelfrid shall ever find
you." He answered, "I thank you for your good will, yet I cannot do what you propose, and be
guilty of being the first to break the compact I have made with so great a king, when he has done
me no harm, nor shown any enmity to me; but, on the contrary, if I must die, let it rather be by his
hand than by that of any meaner man. For whither shall I now fly, when I have for so many long
years been a vagabond through all the provinces of Britain, to escape the snares of my enemies?"
His friend went away; Edwin remained alone without, and sitting with a heavy heart before the
palace, began to be overwhelmed with many thoughts, not knowing what to do, or which way to
turn.
When he had remained a long time in silent anguish of mind, consumed with inward fire, on a
sudden in the stillness of the dead of night he saw approaching a person, whose face and habit were
strange to him, at sight of whom, seeing that he was unknown and unlooked for, he was not a little
startled. The stranger coming close up, saluted him, and asked why he sat there in solitude on a
stone troubled and wakeful at that time, when all others were taking their rest, and were fast asleep.
Edwin, in his turn, asked, what it was to him, whether he spent the night within doors or abroad.
The stranger, in reply, said, "Do not think that I am ignorant of the cause of your grief, your watching,
and sitting alone without. For I know of a surety who you are, and why you grieve, and the evils
which you fear will soon fall upon you. But tell me, what reward you would give the man who
should deliver you out of these troubles, and persuade Redwald neither to do you any harm himself,
nor to deliver you up to be murdered by your enemies." Edwin replied, that he would give such an
one all that he could in return for so great a benefit. The other further added, "What if he should
also assure you, that your enemies should be destroyed, and you should be a king surpassing in
power, not only all your own ancestors, but even all that have reigned before you in the English
nation?" Edwin, encouraged by these questions, did not hesitate to promise that he would make a
fitting return to him who should confer such benefits upon him. Then the other spoke a third time
and said, "But if he who should truly foretell that all these great blessings are about to befall you,
could also give you better and more profitable counsel for your life and salvation than any of your
fathers or kindred ever heard, do you consent to submit to him, and to follow his wholesome guidance?" Edwin at once promised that he would in all things follow the teaching of that man who
should deliver him from so many great calamities, and raise him to a throne.
Having received this answer, the man who talked to him laid his right hand on his head saying,
"When this sign shall be given you, remember this present discourse that has passed between us,
and do not delay the performance of what you now promise." Having uttered these words, he is
said to have immediately vanished. So the king perceived that it was not a man, but a spirit, that
had appeared to him.
Whilst the royal youth still sat there alone, glad of the comfort he had received, but still troubled
and earnestly pondering who he was, and whence he came, that had so talked to him, his aforesaid
friend came to him, and greeting him with a glad countenance, "Rise," said he, "go in; calm and
put away your anxious cares, and compose yourself in body and mind to sleep; for the king’s
resolution is altered, and he designs to do you no harm, but rather to keep his pledged faith; for
when he had privately made known to the queen his intention of doing what I told you before, she
dissuaded him from it, reminding him that it was altogether unworthy of so great a king to sell his
good friend in such distress for gold, and to sacrifice his honour, which is more valuable than all
other adornments, for the love of money." In short, the king did as has been said, and not only
refused to deliver up the banished man to his enemy’s messengers, but helped him to recover his
kingdom. For as soon as the messengers had returned home, he raised a mighty army to subdue
Ethelfrid; who, meeting him with much inferior forces, (for Redwald had not given him time to
gather and unite all his power,) was slain on the borders of the kingdom of Mercia, on the east side
of the river that is called Idle. In this battle, Redwald’s son, called Raegenheri, was killed. Thus
Edwin, in accordance with the prophecy he had received, not only escaped the danger from his
enemy, but, by his death, succeeded the king on the throne.
King Edwin, therefore, delaying to receive the Word of God at the preaching of Paulinus, and being
wont for some time, as has been said, to sit many hours alone, and seriously to ponder with himself
what he was to do, and what religion he was to follow, the man of God came to him one day, laid
his right hand on his head, and asked, whether he knew that sign? The king, trembling, was ready
to fall down at his feet, but he raised him up, and speaking to him with the voice of a friend, said,
"Behold, by the gift of God you have escaped the hands of the enemies whom you feared. Behold,
you have obtained of His bounty the kingdom which you desired. Take heed not to delay to perform
your third promise; accept the faith, and keep the precepts of Him Who, delivering you from
temporal adversity, has raised you to the honour of a temporal kingdom; and if, from this time
forward, you shall be obedient to His will, which through me He signifies to you, He will also
deliver you from the everlasting torments of the wicked, and make you partaker with Him of His
eternal kingdom in heaven."

CHAP. XIII.

THE king, hearing these words, answered, that he was both willing and bound to receive the
faith which Paulinus taught; but that he would confer about it with his chief friends and counsellors,
to the end that if they also were of his opinion, they might all together be consecrated to Christ in
the font of life. Paulinus consenting, the king did as he said; for, holding a council with the wise men,’ he asked of every one in particular what he thought of this doctrine hitherto unknown to them,
and the new worship of God that was preached? The chief of his own priests, Coifi, immediately
answered him, "0 king, consider what this is which is now preached to us; for I verily declare to
you what I have learnt beyond doubt, that the religion which we have hitherto professed has no
virtue in it and no profit. For none of your people has applied himself more diligently to the worship
of our gods than I; and yet there are many who receive greater favours from you, and are more
preferred than I, and are more prosperous in all that they undertake to do or to get. Now if the gods
were good for any thing, they would rather forward me, who have been careful to serve them with
greater zeal. It remains, therefore, that if upon examination you find those new doctrines, which
are now preached to us, better and more efficacious, we hasten to receive them without any delay."
Another of the king’s chief men, approving of his wise words and exhortations, added thereafter:
"The present life of man upon earth, O king, seems to me, in comparison with that time which is
unknown to us, like to the swift flight of a sparrow through the house wherein you sit at supper in
winter, with your ealdormen and thegns, while the fire blazes in the midst, and the hall is warmed,
but the wintry storms of rain or snow are raging abroad. The sparrow, flying in at one door and
immediately out at another, whilst he is within, is safe from the wintry tempest; but after a short
space of fair weather, he immediately vanishes out of your sight, passing from winter into winter
again. So this life of man appears for a little while, but of what is to follow or what went before we
know nothing at all. If, therefore, this new doctrine tells us something more certain, it seems justly
to deserve to be followed." The other elders and king’s counsellors, by Divine prompting, spoke to
the same effect.
But Coifi added, that he wished more attentively to hear Paulinus discourse concerning the God
Whom he preached. When he did so, at the king’s command, Coifi, hearing his words, cried out,
"This long time I have perceived that what we worshipped was naught; because the more diligently
I sought after truth in that worship, the less I found it. But now I freely confess, that such truth
evidently appears in this preaching as can confer on us the gifts of life, of salvation, and of eternal
happiness. For which reason my counsel is, O king, that we instantly give up to ban and fire those
temples and altars which we have consecrated without reaping any benefit from them." In brief,
the king openly assented to the preaching of the Gospel by Paulinus, and renouncing idolatry,
declared that he received the faith of Christ: and when he inquired of the aforesaid high priest of
his religion, who should first desecrate the altars and temples of their idols, with the precincts that
were about them, he answered, "I; for who can more fittingly than myself destroy those things
which I worshipped in my folly, for an example to all others, through the wisdom which has been
given me by the true God?" Then immediately, in contempt of his vain superstitions, he desired
the king to furnish him with arms and a stallion, that he might mount and go forth to destroy the
idols; for it was not lawful before for the high priest either to carry arms, or to ride on anything but
a mare. Having, therefore, girt a sword about him, with a spear in his hand, he mounted the king’s
stallion, and went his way to the idols. The multitude, beholding it, thought that he was mad; but
as soon as he drew near the temple he did not delay to desecrate it by casting into it the spear which
he held; and rejoicing in the knowledge of the worship of the true God, he commanded his
companions to tear down and set on fire the temple, with all its precincts. This place where the
idols once stood is still shown, not far from York, to the eastward, beyond the river Derwent, and
is now called Godmunddingaham, where the high priest, by the inspiration of the true God, profaned
and destroyed the altars which he had himself consecrated.

CHAP. XIV.

[627 A.D.]
KING EDWIN, therefore, with all the nobility of the nation, and a large number of the common
sort, received the faith, and the washing of holy regeneration, in the eleventh year of his reign,
which is the year of our Lord 627, and about one hundred and eighty after the coming of the English
into Britain. He was baptized at York, on the holy day of Easter, being the 12th of April, in the
church of St. Peter the Apostle, which he himself had built of timber there in haste, whilst he was
a catechumen receiving instruction in order to be admitted to baptism. In that city also he bestowed
upon his instructor and bishop, Paulinus, his episcopal see. But as soon as he was baptized, he set
about building, by the direction of Paulinus, in the same place a larger and nobler church of stone,
in the midst whereof the oratory which he had first erected should be enclosed. Having, therefore,
laid the foundation, he began to build the church square, encompassing the former oratory. But
before the walls were raised to their full height, the cruel death of the king left that work to be
finished by Oswald his successor. Paulinus, for the space of six years from this time, that is, till the
end of the king’s reign, with his, consent and favour, preached the Word of God in that country,
and as many as were foreordained to eternal life believed and were baptized. Among them were
Osfrid and Eadfrid, King Edwin’s sons who were both born to him, whilst he was in banishment,
of Quenburga, the daughter of Cearl, king of the Mercians.
Afterwards other children of his, by Queen Ethelberg, were baptized, Ethelhun and his daughter
Ethelthryth, and another, Wuscfrea, a son; the first two were snatched out of this life whilst they
were still in the white garments of the newly-baptized, and buried in the church at York. Yffi, the
son of Osfrid, was also baptized, and many other noble and royal persons. So great was then the
fervour of the faith, as is reported, and the desire for the laver of salvation among the nation of the
Northumbrians, that Paulinus at a certain time coming with the king and queen to the royal township,
which is called Adgefrin, stayed there with them thirty-six days, fully occupied in catechizing and
baptizing; during which days, from morning till night, he did nothing else but instruct the people
resorting from all villages and places, in Christ’s saving Word; and when they were instructed, he
washed them with the water of absolution in the river Glen, which is close by. This township, under
the following kings, was abandoned, and another was built instead of it, at the place called Maelmin.
These things happened in the province of the Bernicians; but in that of the Deiri also, where he was
wont often to be with the king, he baptized in the river Swale, which runs by the village of Cataract;
for as yet oratories, or baptisteries, could not be built in the early infancy of the Church in those
parts. But in Campodonum, where there was then a royal township, he built a church which the
pagans, by whom King Edwin was slain, afterwards burnt, together with all the place. Instead of
this royal seat the later kings built themselves a township in the country called Loidis. But the altar,
being of stone, escaped the fire and is still preserved in the monastery of the most reverend abbot
and priest, Thrydwulf, which is in the forest of Elmet.

CHAP. XV.

EDWIN was so zealous for the true worship, that he likewise persuaded Earpwald, king of the
East Angles, and son of Redwald, to abandonhis idolatrous superstitions, and with his whole province
to receive the faith and mysteries of Christ. And indeed his father Redwald had long before been
initiated into the mysteries of the Christian faith in Kent, but in vain; for on his return home, he
was seduced by his wife and certain perverse teachers, and turned aside from the sincerity of the
faith; and thus his latter state was worse than the former; so that, like the Samaritans of old, he
seemed at the same time to serve Christ and the gods whom he served before; and in the same
temple he had an altar for the Christian Sacrifice, and another small one at which to offer victims
to devils. Aldwulf, king of that same province, who lived in our time, testifies that this temple had
stood until his time, and that he had seen it when he was a boy. The aforesaid King Redwald was
noble by birth, though ignoble in his actions, being the son of Tytilus, whose father was Uuffa,
from whom the kings of the East Angles are called Uuffings.
Earpwald, not long after he had embraced the Christian faith, was slain by one Ricbert, a pagan;
and from that time the province was in error for three years, till Sigbert succeeded to the kingdom,
brother to the same Earpwald, a most Christian and learned man, who was banished, and went to
live in Gaul during his brother’s life, and was there initiated into the mysteries of the faith, whereof
he made it his business to cause all his province to partake as soon as he came to the throne. His
exertions were nobly promoted by Bishop Felix,who, coming to Honorius, the archbishop, from
the parts of Burgundy, where he had been born and ordained, and having told him what he desired,
was sent by him to preach the Word of life to the aforesaid nation of the Angles. Nor were his good
wishes in vain; for the pious labourer in the spiritual field reaped therein a great harvest of believers,
delivering all that province (according to the inner signification of his name) from long iniquity
and unhappiness, and bringing it to the faith and works of righteousness, and the gifts of everlasting
happiness. He had the see of his bishopric appointed him in the city Dommoc, and having presided
over the same province with pontifical authority seventeen years, he ended his days there in peace.

CHAP. XVI.

PAULINUS also preached the Word to the province of Lindsey, which is the first on the south
side of the river H umber, stretching as far as the sea; and he first converted to the Lord the reeve
of the city of Lincoln, whose name was Blaecca, with his whole house. He likewise built, in that
city, a stone church of beautiful workmanship; the roof of which has either fallen through long
neglect, or been thrown down by enemies, but the walls are still to be seen standing, and every year
miraculous cures are wrought in that place, for the benefit of those who have faith to seek them.
In that church, when Justus had departed to Christ, Paulinus consecrated Honorius bishop in his
stead, as will be hereafter mentioned in its proper place. A certain priest and abbot of the monastery
of Peartaneu,(Partney in Lincolnshire)a man of singular veracity, whose name was Deda, told me
concerning the faith of this province that an old man had informed him that he himself had been
baptized at noon-day, by Bishop Paulinus, in the presence of King Edwin, and with him a great
multitude of the people, in the river Trent, near the city, which in the English tongue is called
Tiouulfingacaestir; and he was also wont to describe the person of the same Paulinus, saying that
he was tall of stature, stooping somewhat, his hair black, his visage thin, his nose slender and aquiline, his aspect both venerable and awe-inspiring. He had also with him in the ministry, James,
the deacon, a man of zeal and great fame in Christ and in the church, who lived even to our days.
It is told that there was then such perfect peace in Britain, wheresoever the dominion of King Edwin
extended, that, as is still proverbially said, a woman with her new-born babe might walk throughout
the island, from sea to sea, without receiving any harm. That king took such care for the good of
his nation, that in several places where he had seen clear springs near the highways, he caused
stakes to be fixed, with copper drinking-vessels hanging on them, for the refreshment of travellers;
nor durst any man touch them for any other purpose than that for which they were designed, either
through the great dread they had of the king, or for the affection which they bore him. His dignity
was so great throughout his dominions, that not only were his banners borne before him in battle,
but even in time of peace, when he rode about his cities, townships, or provinces, with his thegns,
the standard-bearer was always wont to go before him. Also, when he walked anywhere along the
streets, that sort of banner which the Romans call Tufa, and the English, Thuuf, was in like manner
borne before him.

CHAP. XVII.

AT that time Honorius, successor to Boniface, was Bishop of the Apostolic see. When he learned
that the nation of the Northumbrians, with their king, had been, by the preaching of Paulinus,
converted to the faith and confession of Christ, he sent the pall to the said Paulinus, and with it
letters of exhortation to King Edwin, with fatherly love inflaming his zeal, to the end that he and
his people should persist in belief of the truth which they had received. The contents of which letter
were as follow:
"To his most noble son, and excellent lord, Edwin king of the Angles, Bishop Honorius, servant
of the servants of God, greeting. The wholeheartedness of your Christian Majesty, in the worship
of your Creator, is so inflamed with the fire of faith, that it shines out far and wide, and, being
reported throughout the world, brings forth plentiful fruits of your labours. For the terms of your
kingship you know to be this, that taught by orthodox preaching the knowledge of your King and
Creator, you believe and worship God, and as far as man is able, pay Him the sincere devotion of
your mind. For what else are we able to offer to our God, but our readiness to worship Him and to
pay Him our vows, persisting in good actions, and confesssing Him the Creator of mankind? And,
therefore, most excellent son, we exhort you with such fatherly love as is meet, to labour to preserve
this gift in every way, by earnest striving and constant prayer, in that the Divine Mercy has
vouchsafed to call you to His grace; to the end that He, Who has been pleased to deliver you from
all errors, and bring you to the knowledge of His name in this present world, may likewise prepare
a place for you in the heavenly country. Employing yourself, therefore, in reading frequently the
works of my lord Gregory, your Evangelist, of apostolic memory, keep before your eyes that love
of his doctrine, which he zealously bestowed for the sake of your souls; that his prayers may exalt
your kingdom and people, and present you faultless before Almighty God. We are preparing with
a willing mind immediately to grant those things which you hoped would be by us ordained for
your bishops, and this we do on account of the sincerity of your faith, which has been made known
to us abundantly in terms of praise by the bearers of these presents. We have sent two palls to thetwo metropolitans, Honorius and Paulinus; to the intent, that when either of them shall be called
out of this world to his Creator, the other may, by this authority of ours, substitute another bishop
in his place; which privilege we are induced to grant by the warmth of our love for you, as well as
by reason of the great extent of the provinces which lie between us and you; that we may in all
things support your devotion and likewise satisfy your desires. May God’s grace preserve your
Highless in safety!"

CHAP. XVIII.

IN the meantime, Archbishop Justus was taken up to the heavenly kingdom, on the 10th of
November, and Honorius, who was elected to the see in his stead, came to Paulinus to be ordained,
and meeting him at Lincoln was there consecrated the fifth prelate of the Church of Canterbury
from Augustine. To him also the aforesaid Pope Honorius sent the pall, and a letter, wherein he
ordains the same that he had before ordained in his epistle to King Edwin, to wit, that when either
the Archbishop of Canterbury or of York shall depart this life, the survivor, being of the same
degree, shall have power to ordain another bishop in the room of him that is departed; that it might
not be necessary always to undertake the toilsome journey to Rome, at so great a distance by sea
and land, to ordain an archbishop. Which letter we have also thought fit to insert in this our history:
"Honorius to his most beloved brother Honorius: Among the many good gifts which the mercy of
our Redeemer is pleased to bestow on His servants He grants to us in His bounty, graciously
conferred on us by His goodness, the special blessing of realizing by brotherly intercourse, as it
were face to face, our mutual love. For which gift we continually render thanks to His Majesty;
and we humbly beseech Him, that He will ever confirm your labour, beloved, in preaching the
Gospel, and bringing forth fruit, and following the rule of your master and head, the holy Gregory;
and that, for the advancement of His Church, He may by your means raise up further increase; to
the end, that through faith and works, in the fear and love of God, what you and your predecessors
have already gained from the seed sown by our lord Gregory, may grow strong and be further
extended; that so the promises spoken by our Lord may hereafter be brought to pass in you; and
that these words may summon you to everlasting happiness: ‘Come unto Me all ye that labour and
are heavy laden, and I will refresh you.’ And ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been
faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things; enter thou into the joy of thy
Lord." And we, most beloved brothers, sending you first these words of exhortation out of our
enduring charity, do not fail further to grant those things which we perceive may be suitable for
the privileges of your Churches.
"Wherefore, in accordance with your request, and that of the kings our sons, we do hereby in the
name of the blessed Peter, chief of the Apostles, grant you authority, that when the Divine Grace
shall call either of you to Himself, the survivor shall ordain a bishop in the room of him that is
deceased. To which end also we have sent a pall to each of you, beloved, for celebrating the said
ordination; that by the authority which we hereby commit to you, you may make an ordination
acceptable to God; because the long distance of sea and land that lies between us and you, has
obliged us to grant you this, that no loss may happen to your Church in any way, on any pretext
whatever, but that the devotion of the people committed to you may increase the more. God preserve you in safety, most dear brother! Given the 11th day of June, in the reign of these our lords and
emperors, in the twenty-fourth year of the reign of Heraclius, and the twenty-third after his
consulship; and in the twenty-third of his son Constantine, and the third after his consulship; and
in the third year of the most prosperous Caesar, his son Heraclius, the seventh indiction; that is, in
the year of our Lord, 634."

CHAP. XIX.

THE same Pope Honorius also wrote to the Scots, whom he had found to err in the observance
of the holy Festival of Easter, as has been shown above, with subtlety of argument exhorting them
not to think themselves, few as they were, and placed in the utmost borders of the earth, wiser than
all the ancient and modern Churches of Christ, throughout the world; and not to celebrate a different
Easter, contrary to the Paschal calculation and the decrees of all the bishops upon earth sitting in
synod. Likewise John, who succeeded Severinus, successor to the same Honorius, being yet but
Pope elect, sent to them letters of great authority and erudition for the purpose of correcting the
same error; evidently showing, that Easter Sunday is to be found between the fifteenth of the moon
and the twenty-first, as was approved in the Council of Nicaea He also in the same epistle
admonished them to guard against the Pelagian heresy, and reject it, for he had been informed that
it was again springing up among them. The beginning of the epistle was as follows:
To our most beloved and most holy Tomianus, Columbanus, Cromanus, Dinnaus, and Baithanus,
bishops; to Cromanus, Ernianus, Laistranus, Scellanus, and Segenus, priests; to Saranus and the
rest of the Scottish doctors and abbots, Hilarus, the arch-presbyter, and vice-gerent of the holy
Apostolic See; John, the deacon, and elect in the name of God; likewise John, the chief of the
notaries and vicegerent of the holy Apostolic See, and John, the servant of God, and counsellor of
the same Apostolic See. The writings which were brought by the bearers to Pope Severinus, of holy
memory, were left, when he departed from the light of this world, without an answer to the questions
contained in them. Lest any obscurity should long remain undispelled in a matter of so great moment,
we opened the same, and found that some in your province, endeavouring to revive a new heresy
out of an old one, contrary to the orthodox faith, do through the darkness of their minds reject our
Easter, when Christ was sacrificed; and contend that the same should be kept with the Hebrews on
the fourteenth of the moon."
By this beginning of the epistle it evidently appears that this heresy arose among them in very late
times, and that not all their nation, but only some of them, were involved in the same.
After having laid down the manner of keeping Easter, they add this concerning the Pelagians in
the same epistle:
"And we have also learnt that the poison of the Pelagian heresy again springs up among you; we,
therefore, exhort you, that you put away from your thoughts all such venomous and superstitious
wickedness. For you cannot be ignorant how that execrable heresy has been condemned; for it has
not only been abolished these two hundred years, but it is also daily condemned by us and buried
under our perpetual ban; and we exhort you not to rake up the ashes of those whose weapons have
been burnt. For who would not detest that insolent and impious assertion, ‘That man can live without
sin of his own free will, and not through the grace of God?’ And in the first place, it is blasphemous folly to say that man is without sin, which none can be, but only the one Mediator between God
and men, the Man Christ Jesus, Who was conceived and born without sin; for all other men, being
born in original sin, are known to bear the mark of Adam’s transgression, even whilst they are
without actual sin, according to the saying of the prophet, ‘For behold, I was conceived in iniquity;
and in sin did my mother give birth to me.’

CHAP. XX.

EDWIN reigned most gloriously seventeen years over the nations of the English and the Britons,
six whereof, as has been said, he also was a soldier in the kingdom of Christ. Caedwalla, king of
the Britons, rebelled against him, being supported by the vigorous Penda, of the royal race of the
Mercians, who from that time governed that nation for twenty-two years with varying success.
A great battle being fought in the plain that is called Haethfelth, Edwin was killed on the 12th of
October, in the year of our Lord 633, being then forty-eight years of age, and all his army was either
slain or dispersed. In the same war also, Osfrid, one of his sons, a warlike youth, fell before him;
Eadfrid, another of them, compelled by necessity, went over to King Penda, and was by him
afterwards slain in the reign of Oswald, contrary to his oath. At this time a great slaughter was
made in the Church and nation of the Northumbrians; chiefly because one of the chiefs, by whom
it was carried on, was a pagan, and the other a barbarian, more cruel than a pagan; for Penda, with
all the nation of the Mercians, was an idolater, and a stranger to the name of Christ; but Caedwalla,
though he professed and called himself a Christian, was so barbarous in his disposition and manner
of living, that he did not even spare women and innocent children, but with bestial cruelty put all
alike to death by torture, and overran all their country in his fury for a long time, intending to cut
off all the race of the English within the borders of Britain. Nor did he pay any respect to the
Christian religion which had sprung up among them; it being to this day the custom of the Britons
to despise the faith and religion of the English, and to have no part with them in anything any more
than with pagans. King Edwin’s head was brought to York, and afterwards taken into the church
of the blessed Peter the Apostle, which he had begun, but which his successor Oswald finished, as
has been said before. It was laid in the chapel of the holy Pope Gregory, from whose disciples he
had received the word of life.
The affairs of the Northumbrians being thrown into confusion at the moment of this disaster, when
there seemed to be no prospect of safety except in flight, Paulinus, taking with him Queen Ethelberg,
whom he had before brought thither, returned into Kent by sea, and was very honourably received
by the Archbishop Honorius and King Eadbald. He came thither under the conduct of Bassus, a
most valiant thegn of King Edwin, having with him Eanfled, the daughter, and Wuscfrea, the son
of Edwin, as well as Yffi, the son of Osfrid, Edwin’s son. Afterwards Ethelberg, for fear of the
kings Eadbald and Oswald, sent Wuscfrea and Yffi over into Gaul to be bred up by King Dagobert,
who was her friend; and there they both died in infancy, and were buried in the church with the
honour due to royal children and to Christ’s innocents. He also brought with him many rich goods
of King Edwin, among which were a large gold cross, and a golden chalice, consecrated to the
service of the altar, which are still preserved, and shown in the church of Canterbury.

At that time the church of Rochester had no pastor, for Romanus, the bishop thereof, being sent on
a mission to Pope Honorius by Archbishop Justus, was drowned in the Italian Sea; and thus Paulinus,
at the request of Archbishop Honorius and King Eadbald, took upon him the charge of the same,
and held it until he too, in his own time, departed to heaven, with the fruits of his glorious labours;
and, dying in that Church, he left there the pall which he had received from the Pope of Rome. He
had left behind him in his Church at York, James, the deacon, a true churchman and a holy man,
who continuing long after in that Church, by teaching and baptizing, rescued much prey from the
ancient enemy; and from him the village, where he chiefly dwelt, near Cataract,has its name to this
day. He had great skill in singing in church, and when the province was afterwards restored to
peace, and the number of the faithful increased, he began to teach church music to many, according
to the custom of the Romans, or of the Cantuarians. And being old and full of days, as the Scripture
says. He went the way of his fathers.

BOOK III

CHAP. I. How King Edwin’s next successors lost both the faith of their nation and the
kingdom; but the most Christian King Oswald retrieved both. [633 A.D.]

EDWIN being slain in battle, the kingdom of the Deiri, to which province his family belonged,
and where he first began to reign, passed to Osric, the son of his uncle Aelfric, who, through the
preaching of Paulinus, had also received the mysteries of the faith. But the kingdom of the
Bernicians—for into these two provinces the nation of the Northumbrians was formerly divided

—passed to Eanfrid, the son of Ethelfrid, who derived his origin from the royal family of that
province. For all the time that Edwin reigned, the sons of the aforesaid Ethelfrid, who had reigned
before him, with many of the younger nobility, lived in banishment among the Scots or Picts, and
were there instructed according to the doctrine of the Scots, and were renewed with the grace of
Baptism. Upon the death of the king, their enemy, they were allowed to return home, and the

aforesaid Eanfrid, as the eldest of them, became king of the Bernicians. Both those kings, as soon
as they obtained the government of their earthly kingdoms, abjured and betrayed the mysteries of
the heavenly kingdom to which they had been admitted, and again delivered themselves up to
defilement and perdition through the abominations of their former idolatry.

But soon after, the king of the Britons, Caedwalla, the unrighteous instrument of rightful
vengeance, slew them both. First, in the following summer, he put Osric to death; for, being rashly
besieged by him in the municipal town, he sallied out on a sudden with all his forces, took him by
surprise, and destroyed him and all his army. Then,when he had occupied the provinces of the
Northumbrians for a whole year,not ruling them like a victorious king, but ravaging them like a
furious tyrant, he at length put an end to Eanfrid, in like manner, when he unadvisedly came to him
with only twelve chosen soldiers, to sue for peace. To this day, that year is looked upon as ill-omened,
and hateful to all good men; as well on account of the apostacy of the English kings, who had renounced the mysteries of the faith, as of the outrageous tyranny of the British king. Hence it has
been generally agreed, in reckoning the dates of the kings, to abolish the memory of those faithless
monarchs, and to assign that year to the reign of the following king, Oswald, a man beloved of
God. This king, after the death of his brother Eanfrid,advanced with an army, small, indeed, in
number, but strengthened with the faith of Christ; and the impious commander of the Britons, in
spite of his vast forces, which he boasted nothing could withstand, was slain at a place called in
the English tongue Denisesburna, that is, the brook of Denis.

CHAP. II. How, among innumerable other miracles of healing wrought by the wood of the
cross, which King Oswald, being ready to engage against the barbarians, erected, a certain
man had his injured arm healed. [634 A.D.]

THE place is shown to this day, and held in much veneration, where Oswald, being about to
engage in this battle, erected the symbol of the Holy Cross, and knelt down and prayed to God that
he would send help from Heaven to his worshippers in their sore need. Then, we are told, that the
cross being made in haste, and the hole dug in which it was to be set up, the king himself, in the
ardour of his faith, laid hold of it and held it upright with both his hands, till the earth was heaped
up by the soldiers and it was fixed. Thereupon, uplifting his voice, he cried to his whole army, "Let
us all kneel, and together beseech the true and living God Almighty in His mercy to defend us from
the proud and cruel enemy; for He knows that we have undertaken a just war for the safety of our
nation." All did as he had commanded, and accordingly advancing towards the enemy with the first
dawn of day, they obtained the victory, as their faith deserved. In the place where they prayed very
many miracles of healing are known to have been wrought, as a token and memorial of the king’s
faith; for even to this day, many are wont to cut off small splinters from the wood of the holy cross,
and put them into water, which they give to sick men or cattle to drink, or they sprinkle them
therewith, and these are presently restored to health.

The place is called in the English tongue Hefenfelth, or the Heavenly Field,which name it
undoubtedly received of old as a presage of what was afterwards to happen, denoting, that the
heavenly trophy was to be erected, the heavenly victory begun, and heavenly miracles shown forth
to this day. The place is near the wall in the north which the Romans formerly drew across the
whole of Britain from sea to sea, to restrain the onslaught of the barbarous nations, as has been said
before. Hither also the brothers of the church of Hagustald, which is not far distant, long ago made
it their custom to resort every year, on the day before that on which King Oswald was afterwards
slain, to keep vigils there for the health of his soul, and having sung many psalms of praise, to offer
for him in the morning the sacrifice of the Holy Oblation. And since that good custom has spread,
they have lately built a church there, which has attached additional sanctity and honour in the eyes
of all men to that place;and this with good reason; for it appears that there was no symbol of the
Christian faith, no church, no altar erected throughout all the nation of the Bernicians, before that
new leader in war, prompted by the zeal of his faith, set up this standard of the Cross as he was
going to give battle to his barbarous enemy.

Nor is it foreign to our purpose to relate one of the many miracles that have been wrought at
this cross. One of the brothers of the same church of Hagulstald, whose name is Bothelm, and who is still living, a few years ago, walking carelessly on the ice at night, suddenly fell and broke his
arm; he was soon tormented with a most grievous pain in the broken part, so that he could not lift
his arm to his mouth for the anguish. Hearing one morning that one of the brothers designed to go
up to the place of the holy cross, he desired him, on his return to bring him a piece of that sacred
wood, saying, he believed that with the mercy of God he might thereby be healed. The brother did
as he was desired; and returning in the evening, when the brothers were sitting at table, gave him
some of the old moss which grew on the surface of the wood. As he sat at table, having no place
to bestow the gift which was brought him, he put it into his bosom; and forgetting, when he went
to bed, to put it away, left it in his bosom. Awaking in the middle of the night, he felt something
cold lying by his side, and putting his hand upon it to feel what it was, he found his arm and hand
as sound as if he had never felt any such pain.

CHAP. III. How the same King Oswald, asking a bishop of the Scottish nation, had Aidan
sent him, and granted him an episcopal see in the Isle of Lindisfarne. [635A.D.]

THE same Oswald, as soon as he ascended the throne, being desirous that all the nation under
his rule should be endued with the grace of the Christian faith, whereof he had found happy
experience in vanquishing the barbarians, sent to the elders of the Scots, among whom himself and
his followers, when in banishment, had received the sacrament of Baptism, desiring that they would
send him a bishop, by whose instruction and ministry the English nation, which he governed, might
learn the privileges and receive the Sacraments of the faith of our Lord. Nor were they slow in
granting his request; for they sent him Bishop Aidan, a man of singular gentleness, piety, and
moderation; having a zeal of God, but not fully according to knowledge; for he was wont to keep
Easter Sunday according to the custom of his country, which we have before so often mentioned,from
the fourteenth to the twentieth of the moon; the northern province of the Scots, and all the nation
of the Picts, at that time still celebrating Easter after that manner, and believing that in this observance
they followed the writings of the holy and praiseworthy Father Anatolius. Whether this be true,
every instructed person can easily judge. But the Scots which dwelt in the South of Ireland had
long since, by the admonition of the Bishop of the Apostolic see, learned to observe Easter according
to the canonical custom.

On the arrival of the bishop, the king appointed him his episcopal see in the island of
Lindisfarne,as he desired. Which place, as the tide ebbs and flows, is twice a day enclosed by the
waves of the sea like an island; and again, twice, when the beach is left dry, becomes contiguous
with the land. The king also humbly and willingly in all things giving ear to his admonitions,
industriously applied himself to build up and extend the Church of Christ in his kingdom; wherein,
when the bishop, who was not perfectly skilled in the English tongue, preached the Gospel, it was
a fair sight to see the king himself interpreting the Word of God to his ealdormen and thegns, for
he had thoroughly learned the language of the Scots during his long banishment. From that time
many came daily into Britain from the country of the Scots, and with great devotion preached the
Word to those provinces of the English, over which King Oswald reigned, and those among them
that had received priest’s orders administered the grace of Baptism to the believers.. Churches were
built in divers places; the people joyfully flocked together to hear the Word; lands and other property were given of the king’s bounty to found monasteries; English children, as well as their elders,
were instructed by their Scottish teachers in study and the observance of monastic discipline. For
most of those who came to preach were monks. Bishop Aidan was himself a monk, having been
sent out from the island called Hii (Iona)whereof the monastery was for a long time the chief of
almost all those of the northern Scots, and all those of the Picts, and had the direction of their people.
That island belongs to Britain, being divided from it by a small arm of the sea, but had been long
since given by the Picts, who inhabit those parts of Britain, to the Scottish monks, because they
had received the faith of Christ through their preaching.

CHAP. IV. When the nation of the Picts received the faith of Christ. [565 A.D.]

IN the year of our Lord 565, when Justin, the younger, the successor of Justinian, obtained the
government of the Roman empire, there came into Britain from Ireland a famous priest and abbot,
marked as a monk by habit and manner of life, whose name was Columba,to preach the word of
God to the provinces of the northern Picts, who are separated from the southern parts belonging to
that nation by steep and rugged mountains. For the southern Picts, who dwell on this side of those
mountains, had, it is said, long before forsaken the errors of idolatry, and received the true faith by
the preaching of Bishop Ninias, a most reverend and holy man of the British nation, who had been
regularly instructed at Rome in the faith and mysteries of the truth; whose episcopal see, named
after St. Martin the bishop, and famous for a church dedicated to him (wherein Ninias himself and
many other saints rest in the body), is now in the possession of the English nation. The place belongs to the province of the Bernicians, and is commonly called the White House, because he there built
a church of stone, which was not usual among the Britons.

Columba came into Britain in the ninth year of the reign of Bridius, who was the son of
Meilochon, and the powerful king of the Pictish nation, and he converted that nation to the faith of
Christ, by his preaching and example. Wherefore he also received of them the gift of the aforesaid
island whereon to found a monastery. It is not a large island, but contains about five families,
according to the English computation; his successors hold it to this day; he was also buried therein,
having died at the age of seventy-seven, about thirty-two years after he came into Britain to
preach.Before he crossed over into Britain, he had built a famous monastery in Ireland, which, from
the great number of oaks, is in the Scottish tongue called Dearmach—The Field of Oaks. From
both these monasteries, many others had their beginning through his disciples, both in Britain and
Ireland; but the island monastery where his body lies, has the pre-eminence among them all.

That island has for its ruler an abbot, who is a priest, to whose jurisdiction all the province, and
even the bishops, contrary to the usual method, are bound to be subject, according to the example
of their first teacher, who was not a bishop, but a priest and monk;of whose life and discourses
some records are said to be preserved by his disciples. But whatsoever he was himself, this we
know for certain concerning him, that he left successors renowned for their continence, their love
of God, and observance of monastic rules. It is true they employed doubtful cycles in fixing the
time of the great festival, as having none to bring them the synodal decrees for the observance of
Easter, by reason of their being so far away from the rest of the world; but they earnestly practiced such works of piety and chastity as they could learn from the Prophets, the Gospels and the Apostolic
writings. This manner of keeping Easter continued among them no little time, to wit, for the space
of 150 years, till the year of our Lord 715.

But then the most reverend and holy father and priest, Egbert, of the English nation, who had
long lived in banishment in Ireland for the sake of Christ, and was most learned in the Scriptures,
and renowned for long perfection of life, came among them, corrected their error, and led them to
observe the true and canonical day of Easter; which, nevertheless, they did not always keep on the
fourteenth of the moon with the Jews, as some imagined, but on Sunday, although not in the proper
week.For, as Christians, they knew that the Resurrection of our Lord, which happened on the first
day of the week, was always to be celebrated on the first day of the week; but being rude and
barbarous, they had not learned when that same first day after the Sabbath, which is now called the
Lord’s day, should come. But because they had not failed in the grace of fervent charity, they were
accounted worthy to receive the full knowledge of this matter also, according to the promise of the
Apostle, "And if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you." Of
which we shall speak more fully hereafter in its proper place.

CHAP. V. Of the life of Bishop Aidan. [635 A.D.]

FROM this island, then, and the fraternity of these monks, Aidan was sent to instruct the English
nation in Christ, having received the dignity of a bishop. At that time Segeni,abbot and priest,
presided over that monastery. Among other lessons in holy living, Aidan left the clergy a most
salutary example of abstinence and continence; it was the highest commendation of his doctrine
with all men, that he taught nothing that he did not practice in his life among his brethren; for he
neither sought nor loved anything of this world, but delighted in distributing immediately among
the poor whom he met whatsoever was given him by the kings or rich men of the world. He was
wont to traverse both town and country on foot, never on horseback, unless compelled by some
urgent necessity; to the end that, as he went, he might turn aside to any whomsoever he saw, whether
rich or poor, and call upon them, if infidels, to receive the mystery of the faith, or, if they were
believers, strengthen them in the faith, and stir them up by words and actions to giving of alms and
the performance of good works.

His course of life was so different from the slothfulness of our times, that all those who bore
him company, whether they were tonsured or laymen, had to study either reading the Scriptures,
or learning psalms. This was the daily employment of himself and all that were with him,
wheresoever they went; and if it happened, which was but seldom, that he was invited to the king’s
table, he went with one or two clerks, and having taken a little food, made haste to be gone, either
to read with his brethren or to pray. At that time, many religious men and women, led by his example,
adopted the custom of prolonging their fast on Wednesdays and Fridays, till the ninth hour,
throughout the year, except during the fifty days after Easter. Never, through fear or respect of
persons, did he keep silence with regard to the sins of the rich; but was wont to correct them with
a severe rebuke. He never gave money to the powerful men of the world, but only food, if he
happened to entertain them; and, on the contrary, whatsoever gifts of money he received from the
rich, he either distributed, as has been said, for the use of the poor, or bestowed in ransoming such as had been wrongfully sold for slaves. Moreover, he afterwards made many of those he had
ransomed his disciples, and after having taught and instructed them, advanced them to priest’s
orders.

It is said, that when King Oswald had asked a bishop of the Scots to administer the Word of
faith to him and his nation, there was first sent to him another man of more harsh disposition,who,
after preaching for some time to the English and meeting with no success, not being gladly heard
by the people, returned home, and in an assembly of the elders reported, that he had not been able
to do any good by his teaching to the nation to whom he had been sent, because they were intractable
men, and of a stubborn and barbarous disposition. They then, it is said, held a council and seriously
debated what was to be done, being desirous that the nation should obtain the, salvation it demanded,
but grieving that they had not received the preacher sent to them. Then said Aidan, who was also
present in the council, to the priest in question, "Methinks, brother, that you were more severe to
your unlearned hearers than you ought to have been, and did not at first, conformably to the Apostolic
rule, give them the milk of more easy doctrine, till, being by degrees nourished with the Word of
God, they should be capable of receiving that which is more perfect and of performing the higher
precepts of God." Having heard these words, all present turned their attention to him and began
diligently to weigh what he had said, and they decided that he was worthy to be made a bishop,
and that he was the man who ought to be sent to instruct the unbelieving and unlearned; since he
was found to be endued preeminently with the grace of discretion, which is the mother of the virtues.
So they ordained him and sent him forth to preach; and, as time went on, his other virtues became
apparent, as well as that temperate discretion which had marked him at first.

CHAP. VI. Of King Oswald’s wonderful piety and religion. [635-642 A.D.]

KING OSWALD, with the English nation which he governed, being instructed by the teaching
of this bishop, not only learned to hope for a heavenly kingdom unknown to his fathers, but also
obtained of the one God, Who made heaven and earth, a greater earthly kingdom than any of his
ancestors. In brief, he brought under his dominion all the nations and provinces of Britain, which
are divided into four languages, to wit, those of the Britons, the Picts, the Scots, and the English.
Though raised to that height of regal power, wonderful to relate, he was always humble, kind, and
generous to the poor and to strangers.

To give one instance, it is told, that when he was once sitting at dinner, on the holy day of
Easter, with the aforesaid bishop, and a silver dish full of royal dainties was set before him, and
they were just about to put forth their hands to bless the bread, the servant, whom he had appointed
to relieve the needy, came in on a sudden, and told the king, that a great multitude of poor folk
from all parts was sitting in the streets begging alms of the king; he immediately ordered the meat
set before him to be carried to the poor, and the dish to be broken in pieces and divided among
them. At which sight, the bishop who sat by him, greatly rejoicing at such an act of piety, clasped
his right hand and said, "May this hand never decay." This fell out according to his prayer, for his
hands with the arms being cut off from his body, when he was slain in battle, remain uncorrupted
to this day, and are kept in a silver shrine, as revered relics, in St. Peter’s church in the royal city,
which has taken its name from Bebba, one of its former queens. Through this king’s exertions the provinces of the Deiri and the Bernicians, which till then had been at variance, were peacefully
united and moulded into one people. He was nephew to King Edwin through his sister Acha; and
it was fit that so great a predecessor should have in his own family such an one to succeed him in
his religion and sovereignty.

CHAP. VII. How the West Saxons received the Word of God by the preaching of Birinus;
and of his successors, Agilbert and Leutherius. [635-670 A. D.]

AT that time, the West Saxons, formerly called Gewissae,in the reign of Cynegils,received the
faith of Christ, through the preaching of Bishop Birinus,who came into Britain by the counsel of
Pope Honorius ; having promised in his presence that he would sow the seed of the holy faith in
the farthest inland regions of the English, where no other teacher hadbeen before him. Hereupon
at the bidding of the Pope he received episcopal consecration from Asterius, bishop of Genoa, but
on his arrival in Britain, he first came to the nation of the Gewissae, and finding all in that place
confirmed pagans, he thought it better to preach the Word there, than to proceed further to seek for
other hearers of his preaching.

Now, as he was spreading the Gospel in the aforesaid province, it happened that when the king
himself, having received instruction as a catechumen, was being baptized together with his people,
Oswald, the most holy and victorious king of the Northumbrians, being present, received him as
he came forth from baptism, and by an honourable alliance most acceptable to God, first adopted
as his son, thus born again and dedicated to God, the man whose daughterhe was about to receive
in marriage. The two kings gave to the bishop the city called Dorcic,there to establish his episcopal
see; where having built and consecrated churches, and by his pious labours called many to the Lord,
he departed to the Lord, and was buried in the same city; but many years after, when Haedde was
bishop," he was translated thence to the city of Venta,and laid in the church of the blessed Apostles,
Peter and Paul.

When the king died, his son Coinwalch succeeded him on the throne, but refused to receive the
faith and the mysteries of the heavenly kingdom; and not long after he lost also the dominion of
his earthly kingdom; for he put away the sister of Penda, king of the Mercians, whom he had
married, and took another wife; whereupon a war ensuing, he was by him deprived of his kingdom,
and withdrew to Anna, king of the East Angles, where he lived three years in banishment, and
learned and received the true faith; for the king, with whom he lived in his banishment, was a good
man, and happy in a good and saintly offspring, as we shall show hereafter.

But when Coinwalch was restored to his kingdom, there came into that province out of Ireland,

a certain bishop called Agilbert, a native of Gaul, but who had then lived a long time in Ireland,
for the purpose of reading the Scriptures. He attached himself to the king, and voluntarily undertook
the ministry of preaching. The king, observing his learning and industry, desired him to accept an
episcopal see there and remain as the bishop of his people. Agilbert complied with the request. And
presided over that nation as their bishop for many years. At length the king, who understood only
the language of the Saxons, weary of his barbarous tongue, privately brought into the province
another bishop, speaking his own language, by name Wini,who had also been ordained in Gaul; and dividing his province into two dioceses, appointed this last his episcopal see in the city of
Venta, by the Saxons called Wintancaestir. (Winchester) Agilbert, being highly offended, that the
king should do this without consulting him, returned into Gaul, and being made bishop of the city
of Paris, died there, being old and full of days. Not many years after his departure out of Britain,
Wini was also expelled from his bishopric by the same king, and took refuge with Wulfhere, king
of the Mercians, of whom he purchased for money the see of the city of London,and remained
bishop thereof till his death. Thus the province of the West Saxons continued no small time without
a bishop.

During which time, the aforesaid king of that nation, sustaining repeatedly very great losses in
his kingdom from his enemies, at length bethought himself, that as he had been before expelled
from the throne for his unbelief, he had been restored when he acknowledged the faith of Christ;
and he perceived that his kingdom, being deprived of a bishop, was justly deprived also of the
Divine protection. He, therefore, sent messengers into Gaul to Agilbert, with humble apologies
entreating him to return to the bishopric of his nation. But he excused himself, and protested that
he could not go, because he was bound to the bishopric of his own city and diocese; notwithstanding,
in order to give him some help in answer to his earnest request, he sent thither in his stead the priest
Leutherius,his nephew, to be ordained as his bishop, if he thought fit, saying that he thought him
worthy of a bishopric. The king and the people received him honourably, and asked Theodore, then
Archbishop of Canterbury, to consecrate him as their bishop. He was accordingly consecrated in
the same city, and many years diligently governed the whole bishopric of the West Saxons by
synodical authority.

CHAP. VIII. How Earconbert, King of Kent, ordered the idols to be destroyed, and of his
daughter Earcongota, and his kinswoman Ethelberg, virgins consecrated to God. [640 A.D.]

IN the year of our Lord 640, Eadbald,king of Kent, departed this life, and left his kingdom to
his son Earconbert, who governed it most nobly twenty-four years and some months. He was the
first of the English kings that of his supreme authority commanded the idols throughout his whole
kingdom to be forsaken and destroyed, and the fast of forty days to be observed; and that the same
might not be lightly neglected, he appointed fitting and condign punishments for the offenders. His
daughter Earcongota, as became the offspring of such a parent, was a most virtuous virgin, serving
God in a monastery in the country of the Franks, built by a most noble abbess, named Fara, at a
place called In Brige; for at that time but few monasteries had been built in the country of the
Angles, and many were wont, for the sake of monastic life, to repair to the monasteries of the Franks
or Gauls; and they also sent their daughters there to be instructed, and united to their Heavenly
Bridegroom, especially in the monasteries of Brige, of Cale,and Andilegum.Among whom was
also Saethryth,daughter of the wife of Anna, king of the East Angles, above mentioned; and
Ethelberg,the king’s own daughter; both of whom, though strangers, were for their virtue made
abbesses of the monastery of Brige. Sexburg, that king’s elder daughter, wife to Earconbert, king
of Kent, had a daughter called Earcongota,of whom we are about to speak.

Many wonderful works and miracles of this virgin, dedicated to God, are to this day related by
the inhabitants of that place; but for us it shall suffice to say something briefly of her departure out of this world to the heavenly kingdom. The day of her summoning drawing near, she began to visit
in the monastery the cells of the infirm handmaidens of Christ, and particularly those that were of
a great age, or most noted for their virtuous life, and humbly commending herself to their prayers,
she let them know that her death was at hand, as she had learnt by revelation, which she said she
had received in this manner. She had seen a band of men, clothed in white, come into the monastery,
and being asked by her what they wanted, and what they did there, they answered, "They had been
sent thither to carry away with them the gold coin that had been brought thither from Kent." Towards
the close of that same night, as morning began to dawn, leaving the darkness of this world, she
departed to the light of heaven. Many of the brethren of that monastery who were in other houses,
declared they had then plainly heard choirs of singing angels, and, as it were, the sound of a multitude
entering the monastery. Whereupon going out immediately to see what it might be, they beheld a
great light coming down from heaven, which bore that holy soul, set loose from the bonds of the
flesh, to the eternal joys of the celestial country. They also tell of other miracles that were wrought
that night in the same monastery by the power of God; but as we must proceed to other matters,
we leave them to be related by those whose concern they are. The body of this venerable virgin
and bride of Christ was buried in the church of the blessed protomartyr, Stephen. It was thought
fit, three days after, to take up the stone that covered the tomb, and to raise it higher in the same
place, and whilst they were doing this, so sweet a fragrance rose from below, that it seemed to all
the brethren and sisters there present, as if a store of balsam had been opened.

Her aunt also, Ethelberg, of whom we have spoken, preserved the glory, acceptable to God, of
perpetual virginity, in a life of great self-denial, but the extent of her virtue became more conspicuous
after her death. Whilst she was abbess, she began to build in her monastery a church, in honour of
all the Apostles, wherein she desired that her body should be buried; but when that work was
advanced half way, she was prevented by death from finishing it, and was buried in the place in
the church which she had chosen. After her death, the brothers occupied themselves with other
things, and this structure was left untouched for seven years, at the expiration whereof they resolved,
by reason of the greatness of the work, wholly to abandon the building of the church, and to remove
the abbess’s bones thence to some other church that was finished and consecrated. On opening her
tomb, they found the body as untouched by decay as it had been free from the corruption of carnal
concupiscence, and having washed it again and clothed it in other garments, they removed it to the
church of the blessed Stephen, the Martyr. And her festival is wont to be celebrated there with
much honour on the 7th of July.

CHAP. IX. How miracles of healing have been frequently wrought in the place where King
Oswald was killed; and how, first, a traveller’s horse was restored and afterwards a young
girl cured of the palsy. [642 A.D.]

OSWALD, the most Christian king of the Northumbrians, reigned nine years, including that
year which was held accursed for the barbarous cruelty of the king of the Britons and the reckless
apostacy of the English kings; for, as was said above,it is agreed by the unanimous consent of all,
that the names and memory of the apostates should be erased from the catalogue of the Christian
kings, and no year assigned to their reign. After which period, Oswald was killed in a great battle, by the same pagan nation and pagan king of the Mercians, who had slain his predecessor Edwin,
at a place called in the English tongue Maserfelth, in the thirty-eighth year of his age, on the fifth
day of the month of August.

How great his faith was towards God, and how remarkable his devotion, has been made evident
by miracles even after his death; for, in the place where he was killed by the pagans, fighting for
his country, sick men and cattle are frequently healed to this day. Whence it came to pass that many
took up the very dust of the place where his body fell, and putting it into water, brought much relief
with it to their friends who were sick. This custom came so much into use, that the earth being
carried away by degrees, a hole was made as deep as the height of a man. Nor is it surprising that
the sick should be healed in the place where he died; for, whilst he lived, he never ceased to provide
for the poor and the sick, and to bestow alms on them, and assist them.

Many miracles are said to have been wrought in that place, or with the dust carried from it; but
we have thought it sufficient to mention two, which we have heard from our elders.

It happened, not long after his death, that a man was travelling on horseback near that place,
when his horse on a sudden fell sick, stood still, hung his head, and foamed at the mouth, and, at
length, as his pain increased, he fell to the ground; the rider dismounted, and taking off his
saddle,waited to see whether the beast would recover or die. At length, after writhing for a long
time in extreme anguish, the horse happened in his struggles to come to the very place where the
great king died. Immediately the pain abated, the beast ceased from his frantic kicking, and, after
the manner of horses, as if resting from his weariness, he rolled from side to side, and then starting
up, perfectly recovered, began to graze hungrily on the green herbage. The rider observing this,
and being an intelligent man, concluded that there must be some wonderful sanctity in the place
where the horse had been healed, and he marked the spot. After which he again mounted his horse,
and went on to the inn where he intended to stop. On his arrival he found a girl, niece to the landlord,
who had long been sick of the palsy; and when the members of the household, in his presence,
lamented the girl’s grievous calamity, he gave them an account of the place where his horse had
been cured. In brief, she was put into a wagon and carried to the place and laid down there. At first
she slept awhile, and when she awoke, found herself healed of her infirmity. Upon which she called
for water, washed her face, arranged her hair, put a kerchief on her head, and returned home on
foot, in good health, with those who had brought her.

CHAP. X. How the dust of that place prevailed against fire. [After 642 A.D.]

ABOUT the same time, another traveller, a Briton, as is reported, happened to pass by the same
place, where the aforesaid battle was fought. Observing one particular spot of ground greener and
more beautiful than any other part of the field, he had the wisdom to infer that the cause of the
unusual greenness in that place must be that some person of greater holiness than any other in the
army had been killed there. Ide therefore took along with him some of the dust of that piece of
ground, tying it up in a linen cloth, supposing, as was indeed the case, that it would be of use for
curing sick people, and proceeding on his journey, came in the evening to a certain village, and
entered a house where the villagers were feasting at supper. Being received by the owners of the
house, he sat down with them at the entertainment, hanging the cloth, with the dust which he had carried in it, on a post in the wall. They sat long at supper and drank deep. Now there was a great
fire in the middle of the room, and it happened that the sparks flew up and caught the roof of the
house, which being made of wattles and thatch, was suddenly wrapped in flames; the guests ran
out in panic and confusion, but they were not able to save the burning house, which was rapidly
being destroyed. Wherefore the house was burnt down, and only that post on which the dust hung
in the linen cloth remained safe and untouched by the fire. When they beheld this miracle, they
were all amazed, and inquiring into it diligently, learned that the dust had been taken from the place
where the blood of King Oswald had been shed. These wonderful works being made known and
reported abroad, many began daily to resort to that place, and received the blessing of health for
themselves and their friends.

CHAP. XI. How a light from Heaven stood all night over his relics, and how those possessed
with devils were healed by them. [679-697 A.D.]

AMONG the rest, I think we ought not to pass over in silence the miracles and signs from
Heaven that were shown when King Oswald’s bones were found, and translated into the church
where they are now preserved. This was done by the zealous care of Osthryth, queen of the
Mercians,the daughter of his brother Oswy, who reigned after him, as shall be said hereafter.

There is a famous monastery in the province of Lindsey, called Beardaneu, which that queen
and her husband Ethelred greatly loved and venerated, conferring upon it many honours. It was
here that she was desirous to lay the revered bones of her uncle. When the wagon in which those
bones were carried arrived towards evening at the aforesaid monastery, they that were in it were
unwilling to admit them, because, though they knew him to be a holy man, yet, as he was a native
of another province, and had obtained the sovereignty over them, they retained their ancient aversion
to him even after his death. Thus it came to pass that the relics were left in the open air all that
night, with only a large tent spread over the wagon which contained them. But it was revealed by
a sign from Heaven with how much reverence they ought to be received by all the faithful; for all
that night, a pillar of light, reaching from the wagon up to heaven, was visible in almost every part
of the province of Lindsey. Hereupon, in the morning, the brethren of that monastery who had
refused it the day before, began themselves earnestly to pray that those holy relics, beloved of God,
might be laid among them. Accordingly, the bones, being washed, were put into a shrine which
they had made for that purpose, and placed in the church, with due honour; and that there might
be a perpetual memorial of the royal character of this holy man, they hung up over the monument
his banner of gold and purple. Then they poured out the water in which they had washed the bones,
in a corner of the cemetery. From that time, the very earth which received that holy water, had the
power of saving grace in casting out devils from the bodies of persons possessed.

Lastly, when the aforesaid queen afterwards abode some time in that monastery, there came to
visit her a certain venerable abbess, who is still living, called Ethelhild, the sister of the holy men,
Ethelwinand Aldwin, the first of whom was bishop in the province of Lindsey, the other abbot of
the monastery of Peartaneu; not far from which was the monastery of Ethelhild. When this lady
was come, in a conversation between her and the queen, the discourse, among other things, turning
upon Oswald, she said, that she also had that night seen the light over his relics reaching up to heaven. The queen thereupon added, that the very dust of the pavement on which the water that
washed the bones had been poured out, had already healed many sick persons. The abbess thereupon
desired that some of that health-bringing dust might be given her, and, receiving it, she tied it up
in a cloth, and, putting it into a casket, returned home. Some time after, when she was in her
monastery, there came to it a guest, who was wont often in the night to be on a sudden grievously
tormented with an unclean spirit; he being hospitably entertained, when he had gone to bed after
supper, was suddenly seized by the Devil, and began to cry out, to gnash his teeth, to foam at the
mouth, and to writhe and distort his limbs. None being able to hold or bind him, the servant ran,
and knocking at the door, told the abbess. She, opening the monastery door, went out herself with
one of the nuns to the men’s apartment, and calling a priest, desired that he would go with her to
the sufferer. Being come thither, and seeing many present, who had not been able, by their efforts,
to hold the tormented person and restrain his convulsive movements, the priest used exorcisms,
and did all that he could to assuage the madness of the unfortunate man, but, though he took much
pains, he could not prevail. When no hope appeared of easing him in his ravings, the abbess
bethought herself of the dust, and immediately bade her handmaiden go and fetch her the casket
in which it was. As soon as she came with it, as she had been bidden, and was entering the hall of
the house, in the inner part whereof the possessed person was writhing in torment, he suddenly
became silent, and laid down his head, as if he had been falling asleep, stretching out all his limbs
to rest. "Silence fell upon all and intent they gazed," anxiously waiting to see the end of the matter.
And after about the space of an hour the man that had been tormented sat up, and fetching a deep
sigh, said, "Now I am whole, for I am restored to my senses." They earnestly inquired how that
came to pass, and he answered, "As soon as that maiden drew near the hall of this house, with the
casket she brought, all the evil spirits that vexed me departed and left me, and were no more to be
seen." Then the abbess gave him a little of that dust, and the priest having prayed, he passed that
night in great peace; nor was he, from that time forward, alarmed by night, or in any way troubled
by his old enemy.

CHAP. XII. How a little boy was cured of a fever at his tomb.

SOME time after, there was a certain little boy in the said monastery, who had been long
grievously troubled with a fever; he was one day anxiously expecting the hour when his fit was to
come on, when one of the brothers, coming in to him, said, "Shall I tell you, my son, how you may
be cured of this sickness? Rise, enter the church, and go close to Oswald’s tomb; sit down and stay
there quiet and do not leave it; do not come away, or stir from the place, till the time is past, when
the fever leaves you: then I will go in and fetch you away." The boy did as he was advised, and the
disease durst not assail him as he sat by the saint’s tomb; but fled in such fear that it did not dare
to touch him, either the second or third day, or ever after. The brother that came from thence, and
told me this, added, that at the time when he was talking with me, the young man was then still
living in the monastery, on whom, when a boy, that miracle of healing had been wrought. Nor need
we wonder that the prayers of that king who is now reigning with our Lord, should be very
efficacious with Him, since he, whilst yet governing his temporal kingdom, was always wont to
pray and labour more for that which is eternal. Nay, it is said, that he often continued in prayer from the hour of morning thanksgiving till it was day; and that by reason of his constant custom
of praying or giving thanks to God, he was wont always, wherever he sat, to hold his hands on his
knees with the palms turned upwards. It is also commonly affirmed and has passed into a proverb,
that he ended his life in prayer; for when he was beset with the weapons of his enemies, and perceived
that death was at hand, he prayed for the souls of his army. Whence it is proverbially said, "‘Lord
have mercy on their souls,’ said Oswald, as he fell to the ground."

Now his bones were translated to the monastery which we have mentioned, and buried therein:
but the king who slew him commanded his head, and hands, with the arms, to be cut off from the
body, and set upon stakes. But his successor in the throne, Oswy, coming thither the next year with
his army, took them down, and buried his head in the cemetery of the church of Lindisfarne, and
the hands and arms in his royal city.

CHAP. XIII. How a certain person in Ireland was restored, when at the point of death, by
his relics.

NOR was the fame of the renowned Oswald confined to Britain, but, spreading rays of healing
light even beyond the sea, reached also to Germany and Ireland. For the most reverend prelate,
Acca,is wont to relate, that when, in his journey to Rome,he and his bishop Wilfrid stayed some
time with Wilbrord,the holy archbishop of the Frisians, he often heard him tell of the wonders
which had been wrought in that province at the relics of that most worshipful king. And he used
to say that in Ireland, when, being yet only a priest, he led the life of a stranger and pilgrim for love
of the eternal country, the fame of that king’s sanctity was already spread far and near in that island
also. One of the miracles, among the rest, which he related, we have thought fit to insert in this our
history.

"At the time," said he, "of the plague which made such widespread havoc in Britain and Ireland,
among others, a certain scholar of the Scottish race was smitten with the disease, a man learned in
the study of letters, but in no way careful or studious of his eternal salvation; who, seeing his death
near at hand, began to fear and tremble lest, as soon as he was dead, he should be hurried away to
the prison-house of Hell for his sins. He called me, for I was near, and trembling and sighing in his
weakness, with a lamentable voice made his complaint to me, after this manner: ‘You see that my
bodily distress increases, and that I am now reduced to the point of death. Nor do I question but
that after the death of my body, I shall be immediately snatched away to the everlasting death of
my soul, and cast into the torments of hell, since for a long time, amidst all my reading of divine
books, I have suffered myself to be ensnared by sin, instead of keeping the commandments of God.
But it is my resolve, if the Divine Mercy shall grant me a new term of life, to correct my sinful
habits, and wholly to devote anew my mind and life to obedience to the Divine will. But I know
that I have no merits of my own whereby to obtain a prolongation of life, nor can I hope to have
it, unless it shall please God to forgive me, wretched and unworthy of pardon as I am, through the
help of those who have faithfully served him. We have heard, and the report is widespread, that
there was in your nation a king, of wonderful sanctity, called Oswald, the excellency of whose faith
and virtue has been made famous even after his death by the working of many miracles. I beseech
you, if you have any relics of his in your keeping, that you will bring them to me; if haply the Lord shall be pleased, through his merits, to have mercy on me.’ I answered, ‘I have indeed a part of the
stake on which his head was set up by the pagans, when he was killed, and if you believe with
steadfast heart, the Divine mercy may, through the merits of so great a man, both grant you a longer
term of life here, and render you worthy to be admitted into eternal life.’ He answered immediately
that he had entire faith therein. Then I blessed some water, and put into it a splinter of the aforesaid
oak, and gave it to the sick man to drink. He presently found ease, and, recovering of his sickness,
lived a long time after; and, being entirely converted to God in heart and deed, wherever he went,
he spoke of the goodness of his merciful Creator, and the honour of His faithful servant."

CHAP. XIV. How on the death of Paulinus, Ithamar was made Bishop of Rochester in his
stead; and of the wonderful humility of King Oswin, who was cruelly slain by Oswy. [644-651
A. D.]

OSWALD being translated to the heavenly kingdom, his brother Oswy,a young man of about
thirty years of age, succeeded him on the throne of his earthly kingdom, and held it twenty-eight
years with much trouble, being attacked by the pagan nation of the Mercians, that had slain his
brother, as also by his son Alchfrid,and by his nephew Oidilwald,the son of his brother who reigned
before him. In his second year, that is, in the year of our Lord 644, the most reverend Father Paulinus,
formerly Bishop of York, but at that time Bishop of the city of Rochester, departed to the Lord, on
the ioth day of October, having held the office of a bishop nineteen years, two months, and
twenty-one days; and was buried in the sacristy of the blessed Apostle Andrew,’ which King
Ethelbert had built from the foundation, in the same city of Rochester. In his place.Archbishop
Honorius ordained Ithamar,of the Kentish nation, but not inferior to his predecessors in learning
and conduct of life.

Oswy, during the first part of his reign, had a partner in the royal dignity called Oswin, of the
race of King Edwin, and son to Osricof whom we have spoken above, a man of wonderful piety
and devotion, who governed the province of the Deiri seven years in very great prosperity, and was
himself beloved by all men. But Oswy, who governed all the other northern part of the nation
beyond the Humber, that is, the province of the Bernicians, could not live at peace with him; and
at last, when the causes of their disagreement increased, he murdered him most cruelly. For when
each had raised an army against the other, Oswin perceived that he could not maintain a war against
his enemy who had more auxiliaries than himself, and he thought it better at that time to lay aside
all thoughts of engaging, and to reserve himself for better times. He therefore disbanded the army
which he had assembled, and ordered all his men to return to their own homes, from the place that
is called Wilfaraesdun,that is, Wilfar’s Hill, which is about ten miles distant from the village called
Cataract, towards the north-west. He himself, with only one trusty thegn, whose name was Tondhere,
withdrew and lay concealed in the house of Hunwald, a noble,whom he imagined to be his most
assured friend. But, alas! it was far otherwise; for Hunwald betrayed him, and Oswy, by the hands
of his reeve, Ethilwin, foully slew him and the thegn aforesaid. This happened on the 20th of August,
in the ninth year of his reign, at a place called Ingetlingum, where afterwards, to atone for this
crime, a monastery was built, wherein prayers should be daily offered up to God for the redemption
of the souls of both kings, to wit, of him that was murdered, and of him that commanded the murder.

King Oswin was of a goodly countenance, and tall of stature, pleasant in discourse, and courteous
in behaviour; and bountiful to all, gentle and simple alike; so that he was beloved by all men for
the royal dignity of his mind and appearance and actions, and men of the highest rank came from
almost all provinces to serve him. Among all the graces of virtue and moderation by which he was
distinguished and, if I may say so, blessed in a special manner, humility is said to have been the
greatest, which it will suffice to prove by one instance.

He had given a beautiful horse to Bishop Aidan, to use either in crossing rivers, or in performing
a journey upon any urgent necessity, though the Bishop was wont to travel ordinarily on foot. Some
short time after, a poor man meeting the Bishop, and asking alms, he immediately dismounted, and
ordered the horse, with all his royal trappings, to be given to the beggar; for he was very
compassionate, a great friend to the poor, and, in a manner, the father of the wretched. This being
told to the king, when they were going in to dinner, he said to the Bishop, "What did you mean,
my lord Bishop, by giving the poor man that royal horse, which it was fitting that you should have
for your own use? Had not we many other horses of less value, or things of other sorts, which would
have been good enough to give to the poor, instead of giving that horse, which I had chosen and
set apart for your own use?" Thereupon the Bishop answered, "What do you say, O king? Is that
son of a mare more dear to you than that son of God?" Upon this they went in to dinner, and the
Bishop sat in his place; but the king, who had come in from hunting, stood warming himself, with
his attendants, at the fire. Then, on a sudden, whilst he was warming himself, calling to mind what
the bishop had said to him, he ungirt his sword, and gave it to a servant, and hastened to the Bishop
and fell down at his feet,’ beseeching him to forgive him; "For from this time forward," said he, "I
will never speak any more of this, nor will. I judge of what or how much of our money you shall
give to the sons of God." The bishop was much moved at this sight, and starting up, raised him,
saying that he was entirely reconciled to him, if he would but sit down to his meat, and lay aside
all sorrow. The king, at the bishop’s command and request, was comforted, but the bishop, on the
other hand, grew sad and was moved even to tears. His priest then asking him, in the language of
his country, which the king and his servants did not understand, why he wept, "I know," said he,
"that the king will not live long; for I never before saw a humble king; whence I perceive that he
will soon be snatched out of this life, because this nation is not worthy of such a ruler." Not long
after, the bishop’s gloomy foreboding was fulfilled by the king’s sad death, as has been said above.
But Bishop Aidan himself was also taken out of this world, not more than twelve days after the
death of the king he loved, on the 31st of August, to receive the eternal reward of his labours from
the Lord.

CHAP. XV. How Bishop Aidan foretold to certain seamen that a storm would arise, and gave
them some holy oil to calm it. [Between 642 and 645 AD.]

How great the merits of Aidan were, was made manifest by the Judge of the heart, with the
testimony of miracles, whereof it will suffice to mention three, that they may not be forgotten. A
certain priest, whose name was Utta, a man of great weight and sincerity, and on that account
honoured by all men, even the princes of the world, was sent to Kent, to bring thence, as wife for

 

King Oswy, Eanfled, the daughter of King Edwin, who had been carried thither when her father
was killed. Intending to go thither by land, but to return with the maiden by sea, he went to Bishop
Aidan, and entreated him to offer up his prayers to the Lord for him and his company, who were
then to set out on so long a journey. He, blessing them, and commending them to the Lord, at the
same time gave them some holy oil, saying, "I know that when you go on board ship, you will meet
with a storm and contrary wind; but be mindful to cast this oil I give you into the sea, and the wind
will cease immediately; you will have pleasant calm weather to attend you and send you home by
the way that you desire.

All these things fell out in order, even as the bishop had foretold. For first, the waves of the sea
raged ,and the sailors endeavoured to ride it out at anchor, but all to no purpose; for the sea sweeping
over the ship on all sides and beginning to fill it with water, they all perceived that death was at
hand and about to overtake them. The priest at last, remembering the bishop’s words, laid hold of
the phial and cast some of the oil into the sea, which at once, as had been foretold, ceased from its
uproar. Thus it came to pass that the man of God, by the spirit of prophecy, foretold the storm that
was to come to pass, and by virtue of the same spirit, though absent in the body, calmed it when it
had arisen. The story of this miracle was not told me by a person of little credit, but by Cynimund,
a most faithful priest of our church,who declared that it was related to him by Utta, the priest, in
whose case and through whom the same was wrought.

CHAP. XVI. How the same Aidan, by his prayers, saved the royal city when it was fired by
the enemy. [Before 651 A.D.]

ANOTHER notable miracle of the same father is related by many such as were likely to have
knowledge thereof; for during the time that he was bishop, the hostile army of the Mercians, under
the command of Penda, cruelly ravaged the country of the Northumbrians far and near, even to the
royal city,which has its name from Bebba, formerly its queen. Not being able to take it by storm
or by siege, he endeavoured to burn it down; and having pulled down all the villages in the
neighbourhood of the city, he brought thither an immense quantity of beams, rafters, partitions,
wattles and thatch, wherewith he encompassed the place to a great height on the land side, and
when he found the wind favourable, he set fire to it and attempted to burn the town.

At that time, the most reverend Bishop Aidan was dwelling in the Isle of Fame,which is about
two miles from the city; for thither he was wont often to retire to pray in solitude and silence; and,
indeed, this lonely dwelling of his is to this day shown in that island. When he saw the flames of
fire and the smoke carried by the wind rising above the city walls, he is said to have lifted up his
eyes and hands to heaven, and cried with tears, "Behold, Lord, how great evil is wrought by Penda!"
These words were hardly uttered, when the wind immediately veering from the city, drove back
the flames upon those who had kindled them, so that some being hurt, and all afraid, they forebore
any further attempts against the city, which they perceived to be protected by the hand of God.

CHAP. XVII. How a prop of the church on which Bishop Aidan was leaning when he died,
could not be consumed when the rest of the Church was on fire; and concerning his inward
life. [651 A. D.]

AIDAN was in the king’s township, not far from the city of which we have spoken above, at
the time when death caused him to quit the body, after he had been bishop sixteen years; for having
a church and a chamber in that place, he was wont often to go and stay there, and to make excursions
from it to preach in the country round about, which he likewise did at other of the king’s townships,
having nothing of his own besides his church and a few fields about it. When he was sick they set
up a tent for him against the wall at the west end of the church, and so it happened that he breathed
his last, leaning against a buttress that was on the outside of the church to strengthen the wall. He
died in the seventeenth year of his episcopate, on the 31st of August. His body was. thence presently
translated to the isle of Lindisfarne, and buried in the cemetery of the brethren. Some time after,
when a larger church was built there and dedicated in honour of the blessed prince of the Apostles,
his bones were translated thither, and laid on the right side of the altar, with the respect due to so
great a prelate.

Finan,who had likewise been sent thither from Hii, the island monastery of the Scots, succeeded
him, and continued no small time in the bishopric. It happened some years after, that Penda, king
of the Mercians, coming into these parts with a hostile army, destroyed all he could with fire and
sword, and the village where the bishop died, along with the church above mentioned, was burnt
down; but it fell out in a wonderful manner that the buttress against which he had been leaning
when he died, could not be consumed by the fire which devoured all about it. This miracle being
noised abroad, the church was soon rebuilt in the same place, and that same buttress was set up on
the outside, as it had been before, to strengthen the wall. It happened again, some time after, that
the village and likewise the church were carelessly burned down the second time. Then again, the
fire could not touch the buttress; and, miraculously, though the fire broke through the very holes
of the nails wherewith it was fixed to the building, yet it could do no hurt to the buttress itself.
When therefore the church was built there the third time, they did not, as before, place that buttress
on the outside as a support of the building, but within the church, as a memorial of the miracle;
where the people coming in might kneel, and implore the Divine mercy. And it is well known that
since then many have found grace and been healed in that same place, as also that by means of
splinters cut off from the buttress, and put into water, many more have obtained a remedy for their
own infirmities and those of their friends

I have written thus much concerning the character and works of the aforesaid Aidan, in no way
commending or approving his lack of wisdom with regard to the observance of Easter; nay, heartily
detesting it, as I have most manifestly proved in the book I have written, "De Temporibus"; but,
like an impartial historian, unreservedly relating what was done by or through him, and commending
such things as are praiseworthy in his actions, and preserving the memory thereof for the benefit
of the readers; to wit, his love of peace and charity; of continence and humility; his mind superior
to anger and avarice, and despising pride and vainglory; his industry in keeping and teaching the
Divine commandments, his power of study and keeping vigil; his priestly authority in reproving
the haughty and powerful, and at the same time his tenderness in comforting the afflicted, and
relieving or defending the poor. To be brief, so far as I have learnt from those that knew him, he took care to neglect none of those things which he found in the Gospels and the writings of Apostles
and prophets, but to the utmost of his power endeavoured to fulfil them all in his deeds.

These things I greatly admire and love in the aforesaid bishop, because I do not doubt that they
were pleasing to God; but I do not approve or praise his observance of Easter at the wrong time,
either through ignorance of the canonical time appointed, or, if he knew it, being prevailed on by
the authority of his nation not to adopt it. Yet this I approve in him, that in the celebration of his
Easter, the object which he had at heart and reverenced and preached was the same as ours, to wit,
the redemption of mankind, through the Passion, Resurrection and Ascension into Heaven of the
Man Christ Jesus, who is the mediator between God and man. And therefore he always celebrated
Easter, not as some falsely imagine, on the fourteenth of the moon, like the Jews, on any day of
the week, but on the Lord’s day, from the fourteenth to the twentieth of the moon; and this he did
from his belief that the Resurrection of our Lord happened on the first day of the week, and for the
hope of our resurrection, which also he, with the holy Church, believed would truly happen on that
same first day/ of the week, now called the Lord’s day.

CHAP. XVIII. Of the life and death of the religious King Sigbert [Circ. 631 A.D.]

AT this time, the kingdom of the East Angles, after the death of Earpwald, the successor of
Redwald, was governed by his brother Sigbert, a good and religious man, who some time before
had been baptized in Gaul, whilst he lived in banishment, a fugitive from the enmity of Redwald.
When he returned home, as soon as- he ascended the throne, being desirous to imitate the good
institutions which he had seen in Gaul, he founded a school wherein boys should be taught letters,
and was assisted therein by Bishop Felix, who came to him from Kent, and who furnished them
with masters and teachers after the manner of the people of Kent.

This king became so great a lover of the ‘heavenly kingdom, that at last, quitting the affairs of
his kingdom, and committing them to his kinsman Ecgric, who before had a share in that kingdom,
he entered a monastery, which he had built for himself, and having received the tonsure, applied
himself rather to do battle for a heavenly throne. A long time after this, it happened that the nation
of the Mercians, under King Penda, made war on the East Angles; who finding themselves no match
for their enemy, entreated Sigbert to go with them to battle, to encourage the soldiers. He was
unwilling and refused, upon which they drew him against his will out of the monastery, and carried
him to the army, hoping that the soldiers would be less afraid and less disposed to flee in the presence
of one who had formerly been an active and distinguished commander. But he, still mindful of his
profession, surrounded, as he was, by a royal army, would carry nothing in his hand but a wand,
and was killed with King Ecgric; and the pagans pressing on, all their army was either slanghtered
or dispersed.

They were succeeded in the kingdom by Anna,the son of Eni, of the blood royal, a good man,
and the father of good children, of whom, in the proper place, we shall speak hereafter. He also
was afterwards slain like his predecessors by the same pagan chief of the Mercians.

CHAP. XIX. How Fursa built a monastery among the East Angles, and of his visions and
sanctity, to which, his flesh remaining uncorrupted after death bore testimony. [Circ. 633
A.D.]

WHILST Sigbert still governed the kingdom, there came out of Ireland a holy man called Fursa,
renowned both for his words and actions, and remarkable for singular virtues, being desirous to
live as a stranger and pilgrim for the Lord’s sake, wherever an opportunity should offer. On coming
into the province of the East Angles, he was honourably received by the aforesaid king, and
performing his wonted task of preaching the Gospel, by the example of his virtue and the influence
of his words, converted many unbelievers to Christ, and confirmed in the faith and love of Christ
those that already believed.

Here he fell into some infirmity of body, and was thought worthy to see a vision of angels; in
which he was admonished diligently to persevere in the ministry of the Word which he had
undertaken, and indefatigably to apply himself to his usual watching and prayers; inasmuch as his
end was certain, but the hour thereof uncertain, according to the saying of our Lord, "Watch therefore,
for ye know neither the day nor the hour." Being confirmed by this vision, he set himself with all
speed to build a monastery on the ground which had been given him by King Sigbert, and to establish
a rule of life therein. This monastery was pleasantly situated in the woods, near the sea; it was built
within the area of a fort, which in the English language is called Cnobheresburg, that is, Cnobhere’s
Town; afterwards, Anna, king of that province, and certain of the nobles, embellished it with more
stately buildings and with gifts.

This man was of noble Scottishblood, but much more noble in mind than in birth. From his
boyish years, he had earnestly applied himself to reading sacred books and observing monastic
discipline, and, as is most fitting for holy men, he carefully practised all that he learned to be right.

Now, in course of time he himself built a monastery, wherein he might with more freedom
devote himself to his heavenly studies. There, falling sick, as the book concerning his life clearly
informs us, he fell into a trance, and quitting his body from the evening till cockcrow, he accounted
worthy to behold the sight of the choirs of angels, and to hear their glad songs of praise. He was
wont to declare, that among other things he distinctly heard this refrain: "The saints shall go from
strength to strength."And again, "The God of gods shall be seen in Sion." Being restored to his
body, and again taken from it three days after, he not only saw the greater joys of the blessed, but
also fierce conflicts of evil spirits, who by frequent accusations wickedly endeavoured to obstruct
his journey to heaven; but the angels protected him, and all their endeavours were in vain. Concerning
all these matters, if any one desires to be more fully informed, to wit, with what subtlety of deceit
the devils recounted both his actions and idle words, and even his thoughts, as if they had been
written down in a book; and what joyous or grievous tidings he learned from the holy angels and
just men who appeared to him among the angels; let him read the little book of his life which I have
mentioned, and I doubt not that he will thereby reap much spiritual profit.

But there is one thing among the rest, which we have thought it may be beneficial to many to
insert in this history. When he had been taken up on high, he was bidden by the angels that conducted
him to look back upon the world. Upon which, casting his eyes downward, he saw, as it were, a
dark valley in the depths underneath him. He also saw four fires in the air, not far distant from each
other. Then asking the angels, what fires those were, he was told, they were the fires which would
kindle and consume the world. One of them was of falsehood, when we do not fulfil that which we promised in Baptism, to renounce the Devil and all his works. The next was of covetousness, when
we prefer the riches of the world to the love of heavenly things. The third was of discord, when we
do not fear to offend our neighbour even in needless things. The fourth was of ruthlessness when
we think it a light thing to rob and to defraud the weak. These fires, increasing by degrees, extended
so as to meet one another, and united in one immense flame. When it drew near, fearing for himself,
he said to the angel, "Lord, behold the fire draws near to me." The angel answered, "That which
you did not kindle will not burn you; for though this appears to be a terrible and great pyre, yet it
tries every man according to the merits of his works; for every man’s concupiscence shall burn in
this fire; for as a man burns in the body through unlawful pleasure, so, when set free from the body,
he shall burn by the punishment which he has deserved."

Then he saw one of the three angels, who had been his guides throughout both visions, go before
and divide the flaming fires, whilst the other two, flying about on both sides, defended him from
the danger of the fire. He also saw devils flying through the fire, raising the flames of war against
the just. Then followed accusations of the envious spirits against himself, the defence of the good
spirits, and a fuller vision of the heavenly hosts; as also of holy men of his own nation, who, as he
had learnt, had worthily held the office of priesthood in old times, and who were known to fame;
from whom he heard many things very salutary to himself, and to all others that would listen to
them. When they had ended their discourse, and returned to Heaven with the angelic spirits, there
remained with the blessed Fursa, the three angels of whom we have spoken before, and who were
to bring him back to the body. And when they approached the aforesaid great fire, the angel divided
the flame, as he had done before; but when the man of God came to the passage so opened amidst
the flames, the unclean spirits, laying hold of one of those whom they were burning in the fire, cast
him against him, and, touching his shoulder and jaw, scorched them. He knew the man, and called
to mind that he had received his garment when he died. The holy angel, immediately laying hold
of the man, threw him back into the fire, and the malignant enemy said, "Do not reject him whom
you before received; for as you received the goods of the sinner, so you ought to share in his
punishment." But the angel withstood him, saying, "He did not receive them through avarice, but
in order to save his soul." The fire ceased, and the angel, turning to him, said, "That which you
kindled burned you; for if you had not received the money of this man that died in his sins, his
punishment would not burn you." And he went on to speak with wholesome counsel of what ought
to be done for the salvation of such as repented in the hour of death.

Being afterwards restored to the body, throughout the whole course of his life he bore the mark
of the fire which he had felt in the spirit, visible to all men on his shoulder and jaw; and the flesh
openly showed, in a wonderful manner, what the spirit had suffered in secret. He always took care,
as he had done before, to teach all men the practice of virtue, as well by his example, as by preaching.
But as for the story of his visions, he would only relate them to those who, from desire of repentance,
questioned him about them. An aged brother of our monastery is still living, who is wont to relate
that a very truthful and religious man told him, that he had seen Fursa himself in the province of
the East Angles, and heard those visions from his lips; adding, that though it was in severe winter
weather and a hard frost, and the man was sitting in a thin garment when he told the story, yet he
sweated as if it had been in the heat of mid-summer, by reason of the great terror or joy of which
he spoke.

To return to what we were saying before, when, after preaching the Word of God many years
in Scotland, he could not well endure the disturbance of the crowds that resorted to him, leaving all that he looked upon as his own, he departed from his native island, and came with a few brothers
through the Britons into the province of the English, and preaching the Word there, as has been
said, built a famous monastery.When this was duly carried out, he became desirous to rid himself
of all business of this world, and even of the monastery itself, and forthwith left the care of it and
of its souls, to his brother Fullan, and the priests Gobban and Dicull,and being himself free from
all worldly affairs, resolved to end his life as a hermit. He had another brother called Ultan, who,
after a long monastic probation, had also adopted the life of an anchorite. So, seeking him out alone,
he lived a whole year with him in self-denial and prayer, and laboured daily with his hands.

Afterwards seeing the province thrown into confusion by the irruptions of the pagans,and
foreseeing that the monasteries would also be in danger, he left all things in order, and sailed over
into Gaul, and being there honourably entertained by Clovis, king of the Franks, or by the patrician

Ercinwald, he built a monastery in the place called Latineacum, and falling sick not long after,
departed this life. The same Ercinwald, the patrician, took his body, and kept it in the porch of a
church he was building in his town of Perrona, till the church itself should be dedicated. This
happened twenty-seven days after, and the body being taken from the porch, to be re-buried near
the altar, was found as whole as if he had died that very hour. And again, four years after, when a
more beautiful shrine had been built to receive his body to the east of the altar, it was still found
without taint of corruption, and was translated thither with due honour; where it is well known that
his merits, through the divine operation, have been declared by many miracles. We have briefly
touched upon these matters as well as the incorruption of his body, that the lofty nature of the man
may be better known to our readers. All which, as also concerning the comrades of his warfare,
whosoever will read it, will find more fully described in the book of his life.

CHAP. XX. How, when Honorius died, Deusdedit became Archbishop of Canterbury; and
of those who were at that time bishops of the East Angles, and of the church of Rochester.
[653 A.D.]

IN the meantime, Felix, bishop of the East Angles, dying, when he had held that see seventeen
years, Honorius ordained Thomas his deacon, of the province of the Gyrwas,in his place; and he
being taken from this life when he had been bishop five years, Bertgils, surnamed Boniface,of the
province of Kent, was appointed in his stead. Honoriushimself also, having run his course, departed
this life in the year of our Lord 653, on the 30th of September; and when the see had been vacant
a year and six months, Deusdedit of the nation of the West Saxons, was chosen the sixth Archbishop
of Canterbury. To ordain him, Ithamar,bishop of Rochester, came thither. His ordination was on
the 26th of March, and he ruled the church nine years, four months, and two days; and when Ithamar
died, he consecrated in his place Damian,who was of the race of the South Saxons.

CHAP. XXI. How the province of the Midland Angles became Christian under King Peada.
[653 A.D.]

 

AT this time, the Middle Angles, that is, the Angles of the Midland country (probably
Leicestershire)under their Prince Peada, the son of King Penda, received the faith and mysteries
of the truth. Being an excellent youth, and most worthy of the name and office of a king, he was
by his father elevated to the throne of that nation, and came to Oswy, king of the Northumbrians,
requesting to have his daughter Aichfled given him to wife; but he could not obtain his desire unless
he would receive the faith of Christ, and be baptized, with the nation which he governed. When he
heard the preaching of the truth, the promise of the heavenly kingdom, and the hope of resurrection
and future immortality, he declared that he would willingly become a Christian, even though he
should not obtain the maiden; being chiefly prevailed on to receive the faith by King Oswy’s son

Alchfrid,who was his brother-in-law and friend, for he had married his sister Cyneburg, the
daughter of King Penda.
Accordingly he was baptized by Bishop Finan, with all his his nobles and thegns,and their
servants, that came along with him, at a noted township, belonging to the king, called At the Wall.
And having received four priests, who by reason of their learning and good life were deemed proper
to instruct and baptize his nation, he returned home with much joy. These priests were Cedd and
Adda, and Betti and Diuma; the last of whom was by nation a Scot, the others English. Adda was
brother to Utta, whom we have mentioned before,a renowned priest, and abbot of the monastery
which is called At the Goat’s Head. The aforesaid priests, arriving in the province with the prince,
preached the Word, and were heard willingly; and many, as well of the nobility as the common
sort, renouncing the abominations of idolatry, were daily washed in the fountain of the faith.
Nor did King Penda forbid the preaching of the Word even among his people, the Mercians, if
any were willing to hear it; but, on the contrary, he hated and despised those whom he perceived
to be without the works of faith, when they had once received the faith of Christ, saying, that they
were contemptible and wretched who scorned to obey their God, in whom they believed. These
things were set on foot two years before the death of King Penda.
But when he was slain, and the most Christian king, Oswy, succeeded him in the throne, as we
shall hereafter relate, Diuma,one of the aforesaid four priests, was made bishop of the Midland
Angles, as also of the Mercians, being ordained by Bishop Finan; for the scarcity of priests made
it necessary that one prelate should be set over two nations. Having in a short time gained many
people to the Lord, he died among the Midland Angles, in the country called Infeppingum; and
Ceollach, also of the Scottish nation, succeeded him in the bishopric. But he, not long after, left
his bishopric, and returned to the island of Hii, which, among the Scots, was the chief and head of
many monasteries. His successor in the bishopric was Trumhere,a godly man, and trained in the
monastic life, an Englishman, but ordained bishop by the Scots. This happened in the days of King
Wulfhere, of whom we shall speak hereafter.

CHAP. XXII. How under King Sigbert, through the preaching of Cedd, the East Saxons again
received the faith, which they had before cast off [653 A.D.]

AT that time, also, the East Saxons, at the instance of King Oswy, again received the faith,
which they had formerly cast off when they expelled Mellitus, their bishop.For Sigbert,who reigned next to Sigbert surnamed The Little, was then king of that nation, and a friend to King Oswy, who,
when Sigbert came to the province of the Northumbrians to visit him, as he often did, used to
endeavour to convince him that those could not be gods that had been made by the hands of men;
that a stock or a stone could not be proper matter to form a god, the residue whereof was either
burned in the fire, or framed into any vessels for the use of men, or else was cast out as refuse,
trampled on and turned into dust. That God is rather to be understood as incomprehensible in
majesty and invisible to human eyes, almighty, eternal, the Creator of heaven and earth and of
mankind; Who governs and will judge the world in righteousness, Whose eternal abode must be
believed to be in Heaven, and not in base and perishable metal; and that it ought in reason to be
concluded, that all those who learn and do the will of Him by Whom they were created, will receive
from Him eternal rewards. King Oswy having often, with friendly counsel, like a brother, said this
and much more to the like effect to King Sigbert, at length, aided by the consent of his friends, he
believed, and after he had consulted with those about him, and exhorted them, when they all agreed
and assented to the faith, he was baptized with them by Bishop Finan, in the king’s township above
spoken of, which is called At the Wall,because it is close by the wall which the Romans formerly
drew across the island of Britain, at the distance of twelve miles from the eastern sea.

King Sigbert, having now become a citizen of the eternal kingdom, returned to the seat of his
temporal kingdom, requesting of King Oswy that he would give him some teachers, to convert his
nation to the faith of Christ, and cleanse them in the fountain of salvation. Wherefore Oswy, sending
into the province of the Midland Angles, summoned the man of God, Cedd, and, giving him another
priest for his companion, sent them to preach the Word to the East Saxons. When these two,
travelling to all parts of that country, had gathered a numerous Church to the Lord, it happened
once that Cedd returned home, and came to the church of Lindisfarne to confer with Bishop Finan;
who, finding that the work of the Gospel had prospered in his hands, made him bishop of the nation
of the East Saxons, calling to him two other bishops to assist at the ordination. Cedd, having received
the episcopal dignity, returned to his province, and pursuing the work he had begun with more
ample authority, built churches in divers places, and ordained priests and deacons to assist him in
the Word of faith, and the ministry of Baptism,especially in the city which, in the language of the
Saxons, is called Ythancaestir,as also in that which is named Tilaburg. The first of these places is
on the bank of the Pant, the other on the bank of the Thames. In these, gathering a flock of Christ’s
servants, he taught them to observe the discipline of a rule of life, as far as those rude people were
then capable of receiving it.

Whilst the teaching of the everlasting life was thus, for no small time, making daily increase
in that province to the joy of the king and of all the people, it happened that the king, at the instigation
of the enemy of all good men, was murdered by his own kindred. They were two brothers who did
this wicked deed; and being asked what had moved them to it, they had nothing else to answer, but
that they had been incensed against the king, and hated him, because he was too apt to spare his
enemies, and calmly forgave the wrongs they had done him, upon their entreaty. Such was the
crime for which the king was killed, because he observed the precepts of the Gospel with a devout
heart; but in this innocent death his real offence was also punished, according to the prediction of
the man of God. For one of those nobles that murdered him was unlawfully married, and when the
bishop was not able to prevent or correct the sin, he excommunicated him, and commanded all that
would give ear to him not to enter this man’s house, nor to eat of his meat. But the king made light
of this command, and being invited by the noble, went to a banquet at his house. As he was going thence, the bishop met him. The king, beholding him, immediately dismounted from his horse,
trembling, and fell down at his feet, begging pardon for his offence; for the bishop, who was likewise
on horseback, had also alighted. Being much incensed, he touched the prostrate king with the rod
he held in his hand, and spoke thus with the authority of his office:

"I tell thee, forasmuch as thou wouldest not refrain from the house of that sinful and condemned
man, thou shalt die in that very house." Yet it is to be believed, that such a death of a religious man
not only blotted out his offence, but even added to his merit; because it happened on account of his
piety and his observance of the commands of Christ.

Sigbert was succeeded in the kingdom by Suidhelm, the son of Sexbald, who was baptized by
the same Cedd, in the province of the East Angles, in the royal township, called Rendlaesham,’
that is, Rendil’s Dwelling; and Ethelwald,king of the East Angles, brother to Anna, king of the
same people, received him as he came forth from the holy font.

CHAP. XXIII. How Bishop Cedd, having a place for building a monastery given him by King
Etheiwald, consecrated it to the Lord with prayer and fasting; and concerning his death.
[659-664 A. D.]

THE same man of God, whilst he was bishop among the East Saxons, was also wont oftentimes
to visit his own province, Northumbria, for the purpose of exhortation. Oidilwald,the son of King
Oswald, who reigned among the Deiri, finding him a holy, wise, and good man, desired him to
accept some land whereon to build a monastery, to which the king himself might frequently resort,
to pray to the Lord and hear the Word, and where he might be buried when he died; for he believed
faithfully that he should receive much benefit from the daily prayers of those who were to serve
the Lord in that place. The king had before with him a brother of the same bishop, called Caelin,
a man no less devoted to God, who, being a priest, was wont to administer to him and his house
the Word and the Sacraments of the faith; by whose means he chiefly came to know and love the
bishop. So then, complying with the king’s desires, the Bishop chose himself a place whereon to
build a monastery among steep and distant mountains, which looked more like lurking-places for
robbers and dens of wild beasts, than dwellings of men; to the end that, according to the prophecy
of Isaiah, "In the habitation of dragons, where each lay, might be grass with reeds and rushes;" that
is, that the fruits of good works should spring up, where before beasts were wont to dwell, or men
to live after the manner of beasts.

But the man of God, desiring first to cleanse the place which he had received for the monastery
from stain of former crimes, by prayer and fasting, and so to lay the foundations there, requested
of the king that he would give him opportunity and leave to abide there for prayer all the time of
Lent, which was at hand. All which days, except Sundays, he prolonged his fast till the evening,
according to custom, and then took no other sustenance than a small piece of bread, one hen’s egg,
and a little milk and water. This, he said, was the custom of those of whom he had learned the rule
of regular discipline, first to consecrate to the Lord, by prayer and fasting, the places which they
had newly received for building a monastery or a church. When there were ten days of Lent still
remaining, there came a messenger to call him to the king; and he, that the holy work might not be
intermitted, on account of the king’s affairs, entreated his priest, Cynibill, who was also his own brother, to complete his pious undertaking. Cynibill readily consented, and when the duty of fasting
and prayer was over, he there built the monastery, which is now called Laestingaeu,and established
therein religious customs according to the use of Lindisfarne, where he had been trained.

When Cedd had for many years held the office of bishop in the aforesaid province, and also
taken charge of this monastery, over which he placed provosts,it happened that he came thither at
a time when there was plague, and fell sick and died. He was first buried without the walls; but in
the process of time a church was built of stone in the monastery, in honour of the Blessed Mother
of God, and his body was laid in it, on the right side of the altar.

The bishop left the monastery to be governed after him by his brother Ceadda,who was afterwards
made bishop, as shall be told hereafter. For, as it rarely happens, the four brothers we have mentioned,
Cedd and Cynibill, and Caelin and Ceadda, were all celebrated priests of the Lord, and two of them
also came to be bishops. When the brethren who were in his monastery, in the province of the East
Saxons,heard that the bishop was dead and buried in the province of the Northumbrians, about
thirty men of that monastery came thither, being desirous either to live near the body of their father,
if it should please God, or to die and be buried there. Being gladly received by their brethren and
fellow soldiers in Christ, all of them died there struck down by the aforesaid pestilence, except one
little boy, who is known to have been saved from death by the prayers of his spiritual father. For
being alive long after, and giving himself to the reading of Scripture, he was told that he had not
been regenerated by the water of Baptism, and being then cleansed in the layer of salvation, he was
afterwards promoted to the order of priesthood, and was of service to many in the church. I do not
doubt that he was delivered at the point of death, as I have said, by the intercession of his father,
to whose body he had come for love of him, that so he might himself avoid eternal death, and by
teaching, offer the ministry of life and salvation to others of the brethren.

CHAP. XXIV. How when King Penda was slain, the province of the Mercians received the
faith of Christ, and Oswy gave possessions and territories to God, for building monasteries,
as a thank offering for the victory obtained. [655 A.D.]

AT this time, King Oswy was exposed to the cruel and intolerable invasions of Penda, king of
the Mercians, whom we have so often mentioned, and who had slain his brother; at length, compelled
by his necessity, he promised to give him countless gifts and royal marks of honour greater than
can be believed, to purchase peace; provided that he would return home, and cease to waste and
utterly destroy the provinces of his kingdom. The pagan king refused to grant his request, for he
had resolved to blot out and extirpate all his nation, from the highest to the lowest; whereupon King
Oswy had recourse to the protection of the Divine pity for deliverance from his barbarous and
pitiless foe, and binding himself by a vow, said, "If the pagan will not accept our gifts, let us offer
them to Him that will, the Lord our God." He then vowed, that if he should win the victory, he
would dedicate his daughter to the Lord in holy virginity, and give twelve pieces of land whereon
to build monasteries. After this he gave battle with a very small army: indeed, it is reported that
the pagans had thirty times the number of men; for they had thirty legions, drawn up under most
noted commanders. King Oswy and his son Alchfrid met them with a very small army, as has been
said, but trusting in Christ as their Leader; his other son, Egfrid was then kept as a hostage at the court of Queen Cynwise,in the province of the Mercians. King Oswald’s son Oidilwald, who ought
to have supported them, was on the enemy’s side, and led them on to fight against his country and
his uncle; though, during the battle, he withdrew, and awaited the event in a place of safety. The
engagement began, the pagans were put to flight or killed, the thirty royal commanders, who had

come to Penda’s assistance, were almost all of them slain; among whom was Ethelhere, brother
and successor to Anna, king of the East Angles. He had been the occasion of the war, and was now
killed, having lost his army and auxiliaries. The battle was fought near the river Winwaed, which
then, owing to the great rains, was in flood, and had overflowed its banks, so that many more were
drowned in the flight than destroyed in battle by thc sword.

Then King Oswy, according to the vow he had made to the Lord, returned thanks to God for
the victory granted him, and gave his daughter Elfled, who was scarce a year old, to be consecrated
to Him in perpetual virginity; bestowing also twelve small estates of land, wherein the practice of
earthly warfare should cease, and place and means should be afforded to devout and zealous monks
to wage spiritual warfare, and pray for the eternal peace of his nation. Of these estates six were in
the province of the Deiri, and the other six in that of the Bernicians. Each of the estates contained
ten families, that is, a hundred and twenty in all. The aforesaid daughter of King Oswy, who was
to be dedicated to God, entered the monastery called Heruteu,or, "The Island of the Hart," at that
time ruled by the Abbess Hilda, who, two years after, having acquired an estate of ten families, at
the place called Streanaeshalch,built a monastery there, in which the aforesaid king’s daughter was
first trained in the monastic life and afterwards became abbess; till, at the age of fifty-nine, the
blessed virgin departed to be united to her Heavenly Bridegroom. In this monastery, she and her
father, Oswy, her mother, Eanfled, her mother’s father, Edwin, and many other noble persons, are
buried in the church of the holy Apostle Peter. King Oswy concluded this war in the district of
Loidis, in the thirteenth year of his reign, on the 15th of November, to the great benefit of both
nations; for he delivered his own people from the hostile depredations of the pagans, and, having
made an end of their heathen chief, converted the Mercians and the adjacent provinces to the grace
of the Christian faith.

Diuma was made the first bishop of the Mercians, as also of Lindsey and the Midland Angles,
as has been said above,and he died and was buried among the Midland Angles. The second was

Ceollach, who, giving up his episcopal office before his death, returned into Scotland. Both these
bishops belonged to the nation of the Scots. The third was Trumhere, an Englishman, but educated
and ordained by the Scots. He was abbot of the monastery that is called Ingetlingum,and is the
place where King Oswin was killed, as has been said above; for Queen Eanfled, his kinswoman,
in expiation of his unjust death, begged of King Oswy that he would give Trumhere, the aforesaid
servant of God, a place there to build a monastery, because he also was kinsman to the slaughtered
king; in which monastery continual prayers should be offered up for the eternal welfare of the kings,
both of him that was murdered, and of him that commanded the murder. The same King Oswy
governed the Mercians, as also the people of the other southern provinces, three years after he had
slain King Penda; and he likewise subdued the greater part of the Picts to the dominion of the
English.

At this time he gave to the above-mentioned Peada, son to King Penda, because he was his
kinsman, the kingdom of the Southern Mercians,consisting, as is said, of 5,000 families, divided by the river Trent from the Northern Mercians, whose land contains 7,000 families; but Peada was
foully slain in the following spring, by the treachery, as is said, of his wife,during the very time of
the Easter festival. Three years after the death of King Penda, the Mercian chiefs, Immin, and Eafa,
and Eadbert, rebelled against King Oswy, setting up for their king, Wulfhere,son to the said Penda,
a youth whom they had kept concealed; and expelling the ealdormen of the foreign king, they
bravely recovered at once their liberty and their lands; and being thus free, together with their king,
they rejoiced to serve Christ the true King, for the sake of an everlasting kingdom in heaven. This
king governed the Mercians seventeen years, and had for his first bishop Trumhere, above spoken
of; the second was Jaruman; the third Ceadda; the fourth Wynfrid. All these, succeeding each other
in order under King Wulfhere, discharged episcopal duties to the Mercian nation.

CHAP. XXV. How the question arose about the due time of keeping Easter, with those that
came out of Scotland. [664 A.D.]

IN the meantime, Bishop Aidan being taken away from this life, Finan, who was ordained and
sent by the Scots, succeeded him in the bishopric, and built a church in the Isle of Lindisfarne, fit
for the episcopal see; nevertheless, after the manner of the Scots, he made it, not of stone, but
entirely of hewn oak, and covered it with reeds; and it was afterwards dedicated in honour of the
blessed Peter the Apostle, by the most reverend Archbishop Theodore. Eadbert,also bishop of that
place, took off the thatch, and caused it to be covered entirely, both roof and walls, with plates of
lead.

At this time, a great and frequently debated question arose about the observance of Easter; those
that came from Kent or Gaul affirming, that the Scots celebrated Easter Sunday contrary to the
custom of the universal Church. Among them was a most zealous defender of the true Easter, whose
name was Ronan,a Scot by nation, but instructed in the rule of ecclesiastical truth in Gaul or Italy.
Disputing with Finan, he convinced many, or at least induced them to make a more strict inquiry
after the truth; yet he could not prevail upon Finan, but, on the contrary, embittered him the more
by reproof, and made him a professed opponent of the truth, for he was of a violent temper.
James,formerly the deacon of the venerable Archbishop Paulinus, as has been said above, observed
the true and Catholic Easter, with all those that he could instruct in the better way. Queen Eanfled
and her followers also observed it as she had seen it practised in Kent, having with her a Kentish
priest who followed the Catholic observance, whose name was Romanus. Thus it is said to have
sometimes happened in those times that Easter was twice celebrated in one year; and that when the
king, having ended his fast, was keeping Easter, the queen and her followers were still fasting, and
celebrating Palm Sunday. Whilst Aidan lived, this difference about the observance of Easter was
patiently tolerated by all men, for they well knew, that though he could not keep Easter contrary
to the custom of those who had sent him, yet he industriously laboured to practise the works of
faith, piety, and love, according to the custom of all holy men; for which reason he was deservedly
beloved by all, even by those who differed in opinion concerning Easter, and was held in veneration,
not only by less important persons, but even by the bishops, Honorius of Canterbury, and Felix of
the East Angles.

But after the death of Finan, who succeeded him, when Colman, who was also sent from
Scotland, came to be bishop, a greater controversy arose about the observance of Easter, and other
rules of ecclesiastical life. Whereupon this question began naturally to influence the thoughts and
hearts of many who feared, lest haply, having received the name of Christians, they might run, or
have run, in vain. This reached the ears of the rulers, King Oswy and his son Alchfrid. Now Oswy,
having been instructed and baptized by the Scots, and being very perfectly skilled in their language,
thought nothing better than what they taught; but Alchfrid, having for his teacher in Christianity
the learned Wilfrid, who had formerly gone to Rome to study ecclesiastical doctrine, and spent

much time at Lyons with Dalfinus, archbishop of Gaul, from whom also he had received the crown
of ecclesiastical tonsure, rightly thought that this man’s doctrine ought to be preferred before all
the traditions of the Scots. For this reason he had also given him a monastery of forty families, at
a place called Inhrypum; which place, not long before, he had given for a monastery to those that
were followers of the Scots; but forasmuch as they afterwards, being left to their choice, preferred
to quit the place rather than alter their custom, he gave it to him, whose life and doctrine were
worthy of it.

Agilbert, bishop of the West Saxons, above-mentioned, a friend of King Alchfrid and of Abbot
Wilfrid, had at that time come into the province of the Northumbrians, and was staying some time
among them; at the request of Alchfrid, he made Wilfrid a priest in his aforesaid monastery. He
had in his company a priest, whose name was Agatho. The question being raised there concerning
Easter and the tonsure and other ecclesiastical matters, it was arranged, that a synod should be held
in the monastery of Streanaeshalch,which signifies the Bay of the Lighthouse, where the Abbess
Hilda,a woman devoted to the service of God, then ruled; and that there this question should be
decided. The kings, both father and son, came thither, and the bishops, Colman with his Scottish
clerks, and Agilbert with the priests Agatho and Wilfrid. James and Romanus were on their side;
but the Abbess Hilda and her followers were for the Scots, as was also the venerable Bishop Cedd,
long before ordained by the Scots, as has been said above, and he acted in that council as a most
careful interpreter for both parties.

King Oswy first made an opening speech, in which he said that it behoved those who served
one God to observe one rule of life; and as they all expected the same kingdom in heaven, so they
ought not to differ in the celebration of the heavenly mysteries; but rather to inquire which was the
truer tradition, that it might be followed by all in common; he then commanded his bishop, Colman,
first to declare what the custom was which he observed, and whence it derived its origin. Then
Colman said, "The Easter which I keep, I received from my elders, who sent me hither as bishop;
all our forefathers, men beloved of God, are known to have celebrated it after the same manner;
and that it may not seem to any contemptible and worthy to be rejected, it is the same which the
blessed John the Evangelist, the disciple specially beloved of our Lord, with all the churches over
which he presided, is recorded to have celebrated."’ When he had said thus much, and more to the
like effect, the king commanded Agilbert to make known the manner of his observance and to show
whence it was derived, and on what authority he followed it. Agilbert answered, "I beseech you,
let my disciple, the priest Wilfrid, speak in my stead; because we both concur with the other followers
of the ecclesiastical tradition that are here present, and he can better and more clearly explain our
opinion in the English language, than I can by an interpreter."

Then Wilfrid, being ordered by the king to speak, began thus:— "The Easter which we keep,
we saw celebrated by all at Rome, where the blessed Apostles, Peter and Paul, lived, taught, suffered,
and were buried; we saw the same done by all in Italy and in Gaul, when we travelled through those
countries for the purpose of study and prayer. We found it observed in Africa, Asia, Egypt, Greece,
and all the world, wherever the Church of Christ is spread abroad, among divers nations and tongues,
at one and the same time; save only among these and their accomplices in obstinacy, I mean the
Picts and the Britons, who foolishly, in these two remote islands of the ocean, and only in part even
of them, strive to oppose all the rest of the world."

When he had so said, Colman answered, "It is strange that you choose to call our efforts foolish,
wherein we follow the example of so great an Apostle, who was thought worthy to lean on our
Lord’s bosom, when all the world knows him to have lived most wisely." Wilfrid replied, " Far be
it from us to charge John with folly, for he literally observed the precepts of the Mosaic Law, whilst
the Church was still Jewish in many points, and the Apostles, lest they should give cause of offence
to the Jews who, were among the Gentiles, were not able at once to cast off all the observances of
the Law which had been instituted by God, in the same way as it is necessary that all who come to
the faith should forsake the idols which were invented by devils. For this reason it was, that Paul
circumcised Timothy,that he offered sacrifice in the temple,that he shaved his head with Aquila
and Priscilla at Corinth;for no other advantage than to avoid giving offence to the Jews. Hence it
was, that James said to the same Paul, "Thou seest, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are
which believe; and they are all zealous of the Law." " And yet, at this time, when the light of the
Gospel is spreading throughout the world, it is needless, nay, it is not lawful, for the faithful either
to be circumcised, or to offer up to God sacrifices of flesh. So John, according to the custom of the
Law, began the celebration of the feast of Easter, on the fourteenth day of the first month, in the
evening, not regarding whether the same happened on a Saturday, or any other week-day. But when
Peter preached at Rome, being mindful that our Lord arose from the dead, and gave to the world
the hope of resurrection, on the first day of the week, he perceived that Easter ought to be kept after
this manner: he always awaited the rising of the moon on the fourteenth day of the first month in
the evening, according to the custom and precepts of the Law, even as John did. And when that
came, if the Lord’s day, then called the first day of the week, was the next day, he began that very
evening to celebrate Easter, as we all do at the present time. But if the Lord’s day did not fall the
next morning after the fourteenth moon, but on the sixteenth, or the seventeenth, or any other moon
till the twenty-first, he waited for that, and on the Saturday before, in the evening, began to observe
the holy solemnity of Easter. Thus it came to pass, that Easter Sunday was only kept from the
fifteenth moon to the twenty-first. Nor does this evangelical and apostolic tradition abolish the
Law, but rather fulfil it; the command being to keep the passover from the fourteenth moon of the
first month in the evening to the twenty-first moon of the same month in the evening; which
observance all the successors of the blessed John in Asia, since his death, and all the Church
throughout the world, have since followed; and that this is the true Easter, and the only one to be
celebrated by the faithful, was not newly decreed by the council of Nicaea, but only confirmed
afresh; as the history of the Church informs us.

"Thus it is plain, that you, Colman, neither follow the example of John, as you imagine, nor
that of Peter, whose tradition you oppose with full knowledge, and that you neither agree with the
Law nor the Gospel in the keeping of your Easter. For John, keeping the Paschal time according
to the decree of the Mosaic Law, had no regard to the first day of the week, which you do not practise, seeing that you celebrate Easter only on the first day after the Sabbath. Peter celebrated
Easter Sunday between the fifteenth and the twenty-first moon, which you do not practise, seeing
that you observe Easter Sunday from the fourteenth to the twentieth moon; so that you often begin
Easter on the thirteenth moon in the evening, whereof neither the Law made any mention, nor did
our Lord, the Author and Giver of the Gospel, on that day either eat the old passover in the evening,
or deliver the Sacraments of the New Testament, to be celebrated by the Church, in memory of His
Passion, but on the fourteenth. Besides, in your celebration of Easter, you utterly exclude the
twenty-first moon, which the Law ordered to be specially observed. Thus, as I have said before,
you agree neither with John nor Peter, nor with the Law, nor the Gospel, in the celebration of the
greatest festival."

To this Colman rejoined: "Did the holy Anatolius, much commended in the history of the
Church, judge contrary to the Law and the Gospel, when he wrote, that Easter was to be celebrated
from the fourteenth to the twentieth moon? Is it to be believed that our most reverend Father
Columba and his successors, men beloved by God, who kept Easter after the same manner, judged
or acted contrary to the Divine writings? Whereas there were many among them, whose sanctity
was attested by heavenly signs and miracles which they wrought; whom I, for my part, doubt not
to be saints, and whose life, customs, and discipline I never cease to follow."

"It is evident," said Wilfrid, "that Anatolius was a most holy, learned, and commendable man;
but what have you to do with him, since you do not observe his decrees? For he undoubtedly,
following the rule of truth in his Easter, appointed a cycle of nineteen years, which either you are
ignorant of, or if you know it, though it is kept by the whole Church of Christ, yet you despise it
as a thing of naught. He so computed the fourteenth moon in our Lord’s Paschal Feast, that according
to the custom of the Egyptians, he acknowledged it to be the fifteenth moon on that same day in
the evening; so in like manner he assigned the twentieth to Easter-Sunday, as believing that to be
the twenty-first moon, when the sun had set. That you are ignorant of the rule of this distinction is
proved by this, that you sometimes manifestly keep Easter before the full moon, that is, on the
thirteenth day. Concerning your Father Columba and his followers, whose sanctity you say you
imitate, and whose rule and precepts confirmed by signs from Heaven you say that you follow, I
might answer, then when many, in the day of judgement, shall say to our Lord, that in His name
they have prophesied, and have cast out devils, and done many wonderful works, our Lord will
reply, that He never knew them. But far be it from me to speak thus of your fathers, for it is much
more just to believe good than evil of those whom we know not. Wherefore I do not deny those
also to have been God’s servants, and beloved of God, who with rude simplicity, but pious intentions,
have themselves loved Him. Nor do I think that such observance of Easter did them much harm,
as long as none came to show them a more perfect rule to follow; for assuredly I believe that, if
any teacher, reckoning after the Catholic manner, had come among them, they would have as readily
followed his admonitions, as they are known to have kept those commandments of God, which
they had learned and knew.

"But as for you and your companions, you certainly sin, if, having heard the decrees of the
Apostolic see, nay, of the universal Church, confirmed, as they are, by Holy Scripture, you scorn
to follow them; for, though your fathers were holy, do you think that those few men, in a corner of
the remotest island, are to be preferred before the universal Church of Christ throughout the world?
And if that Columba of yours, (and, I may say, ours also, if he was Christ’s servant,) was a holy
man and powerful in miracles, yet could he be preferred before the most blessed chief of the

Apostles, to whom our Lord said, ‘Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and
the gates of hell shall not prevail against it, and I will give unto thee the .keys of the kingdom of
Heaven?’

When Wilfrid had ended thus, the king said, "Is it true, Colman, that these words were spoken
to Peter by our Lord?" He answered, "It is true, O king!" .Then said he, "Can you show any such
power given to your Columba?" Colman answered, "None." Then again the king asked, " Do you
both agree in this, without any controversy, that these words were said above all to Peter, and that
the keys of the kingdom of Heaven were given to him by our Lord?" They both answered, "Yes."
Then the king concluded, "And I also say unto you, that he is the door-keeper, and I will not gainsay
him, but I desire, as far as I know and am able, in all things to obey his laws, lest haply when I
come to the gates of the kingdom of Heaven, there should be none to open them, he being my
adversary who is proved to have the keys." The king having said this, all who were seated there or
standing by, both great and small, gave their assent, and renouncing the less perfect custom, hastened
to conform to that which they had found to be better.

CHAP. XXVI. How Colman, being worsted, returned home, and Tuda succeeded him in the
bishopric, and of the state of the church under those teachers. [664 A.D.]

THE disputation being ended, and the assembly broken up, Agilbert returned home. Colman,
perceiving that his doctrine was rejected, and his party despised, took with him those who wished
to follow him, to wit, such as would not accept the Catholic Easter and the tonsure in the form of
a crown,(for there was no small dispute about that also,) and went back into Scotland,to consult
with his people what was to be done in this case. Cedd, forsaking the practices of the Scots, returned
to his bishopric, having submitted to the Catholic observance of Easter. This debate took place in
the year of our Lord 664, which was the twenty-second year of the reign of King Oswy, and the
thirtieth of the episcopate of the Scots among the English; for Aidan was bishop seventeen years,
Finan ten, and Colman three.

When Colman had gone back into his own country, Tuda, the servant of Christ, was made
bishop of the Northumbriansin his place, having been instructed and ordained bishop among the
Southern Scots, having also the crown of the ecclesiastical tonsure, according to the custom of that
province, and observing the Catholic rule with regard to the time of Easter.He was a good and
religious man, but he governed the church a very short time; he had come from Scotlandwhilst
Colman was yet bishop, and, both by word and deed, diligently taught all men those things that
appertain to the faith and truth. But Eata,who was abbot of the monastery called Mailros,a man
most reverend and gentle, was appointed abbot over the brethren that chose to remain in the church
of Lindisfarne, when the Scots went away. It is said that Colman, upon his departure, requested
and obtained this of King Oswy, because Eata was one of Aidan’s twelve boys of the English
nation,whom he received in the early years of his episcopate, to be instructed in Christ; for the king
greatly loved Bishop Colman on account of his innate discretion. This is that Eata, who, not long
after, was made bishop of the same church of Lindisfarne. Colman carried home with him part of
the bones of the most reverend Father Aidan, and left part of them in the church where he had
presided, ordering them to be interred in the sacristy.

The place which they governed shows how frugal and temperate he and his predecessors were,
for there were very few houses besides the church found at their departure; indeed, no more than
were barely sufficient to make civilized life possible; they had also no money, but only cattle; for
if they received any money from rich persons, they immediately- gave it to the poor; there being
no need to gather money, or provide houses for the entertainment of the great men of the world;
for such never resorted to the church, except to pray and hear the Word of God. The king himself,
when occasion required, came only with five or six servants, and having performed his devotions
in the church, departed. But if they happened to take a repast there, they were satisfied with the
plain, daily food of the brethren, and required no more. For the whole care of those teachers was
to serve God, not the world—to feed the soul, and not the belly.

For this reason the religious habit was at that time held in great veneration; so that wheresoever
any clerk or monk went, he was joyfully received by all men, as God’s servant; and even if they
chanced to meet him upon the way, they ran to him, and with bowed head, were glad to be signed
with the cross by his hand, or blessed by his lips. Great attention was also paid to their exhortations;
and on Sundays they flocked eagerly to the church, or the monasteries, not to feed their bodies, but
to hear the Word of God; and if any priest happened to come into a village, the inhabitants came
together and asked of him the Word of life; for the priests and clerks went to the villages for no
other reason than to preach, baptize, visit the sick, and, in a word, to take care of souls; and they
were so purified from all taint of avarice, that none of them received lands and possessions for
building monasteries, unless they were compelled to do so by the temporal authorities; which
custom was for some time after universally observed in the churches of the Northumbrians. But
enough has now been said on this subject.

CHAP. XXVII. How Egbert, a holy man of the English nation, led a monastic life in Ireland.
[664 A.D.]

IN the same year of our Lord 664, there happened an eclipse of the sun, on the third day of
May,about the tenth hour of the day. In the same year, a sudden pestilence depopulated first the
southern parts of Britain, and afterwards attacking the province of the Northumbrians, ravaged the
country far and near, and destroyed a great multitude of men. By this plague the aforesaid priest of the Lord, Tuda,was carried off, and was honourably buried in the monastery called Paegnalaech.
Moreover, this plague prevailed no less disastrously in the island of Ireland. Many of the nobility,
and of the lower ranks of the English nation, were there at that time, who, in the days of the Bishops
Finan and Colman, forsaking their native island, retired thither, either for the sake of sacred studies,
or of a more ascetic life; and some of them presently devoted themselves faithfully to a monastic
life, others chose rather to apply themselves to study, going about from one master’s cell to another.
The Scots willingly received them all, and took care to supply them with daily food without cost,
as also to furnish them with books for their studies, and teaching free of charge.

Among these were Ethelhun and Egbert,two youths of great capacity, of the English nobility.
The former of whom was brother to Ethelwin,a man no less beloved by God, who also at a later
time went over into Ireland to study, and having been well instructed, returned into his own country, and being made bishop in the province of Lindsey, long and nobly governed the Church. These
two being in the monastery which in the language of the Scots is called Rathmelsigi,and having
lost all their companions, who were either cut off by the plague, or dispersed into other places,
were both seized by the same sickness, and grievously afflicted. Of these, Egbert, (as I was informed
by a priest venerable for his age, and of great veracity, who declared he had heard the story from
his own lips,) concluding that he was at the point of death, went out of the chamber, where the sick
lay, in the morning, and sitting alone in a fitting place, began seriously to reflect upon his past
actions, and, being full of compunction at the remembrance of his sins, bedewed his face with tears,
and prayed fervently to God that he might not die yet, before he could forthwith more fully make
amends for the careless offences which he had committed in his boyhood and infancy, or might
further exercise himself in good works. He also made a vow that he would spend all his life abroad
and never return into the island of Britain, where he was born; that besides singing the psalms at
the canonical hours, he would, unless prevented by bodily infirmity, repeat the whole Psalter daily
to the praise of God; and that he would every week fast one whole day and night. Returning home,
after his tears and prayers and vows, he found his companion asleep; and going to bed himself, he
began to compose himself to rest. When he had lain quiet awhile, his comrade awaking, looked on
him, and said, "Alas! Brother Egbert, what have you done? I was in hopes that we should have
entered together into life everlasting; but know that your prayer is granted." For he had learned in
a vision what the other had requested, and that he had obtained his request.

In brief, Ethelhun died the next night; but Egbert, throwing off his sickness, recovered and lived
a long time after to grace the episcopal office, which he received, by deeds worthy of it; and blessed
with many virtues, according to his desire, lately, in the year of our Lord 729, being ninety years
of age, he departed to the heavenly kingdom. He passed his life in great perfection of humility,
gentleness, continence, simplicity, and justice. Thus he was a great benefactor, both to his own
people, and to those nations of the Scots and Picts among whom he lived in exile, by the example
of his life, his earnestness in teaching, his authority in reproving, and his piety in giving away of
those things which he received from the rich. He also added this to the vows which we have
mentioned: during Lent, he would eat but one meal a day, allowing himself nothing but bread and
thin milk, and even that by measure. The milk, new the day before, he kept in a vessel, and skimming
off the cream in the morning, drank the rest, as has been said, with a little bread. Which sort of
abstinence he likewise always observed forty days before the Nativity of our Lord, and as many
after the solemnity of Pentecost, that is, of the fifty days’ festival.

CHAP. XXVIII. How, when Tuda was dead, Wilfrid was ordained, in Gaul, and Ceadda,

among the West Saxons, to be bishops for the province of the Northumbrians. [664 A.D.]

IN the meantime, King Alchfrid sent the priest, Wilfrid, to the king of Gaul, in order that he
should cause him to be consecrated bishop for himself and his people. That prince sent him to be
ordained by Agilbert,of whom we have before spoken, and who, having left Britain, was made
bishop of the city of Paris;and by him Wilfrid was honourably consecrated, several bishops meeting
together for that purpose in a village belonging to the king, called In Compendio.He stayed some
time in the parts beyond the sea for his ordination, and King Oswy, following the example of his son’s zeal, sent into Kent a holy man, of modest character, well read in the Scripture, and diligently
practising those things which he had learned therein, to be ordained bishop of the church of York.
This was a priest called Ceadda, brother to the most reverend prelate Cedd, of whom mention has
been often made, and abbot of the monastery of Laestingaeu. With him the king also sent his priest
Eadhaed,who was afterwards, in the reign of Egfrid,made bishop of the church of Ripon. Now
when they arrived in Kent, they found that Archbishop Deusdedit had departed this life, and no
other bishop was as yet appointed in his place; whereupon they betook themselves to the province
of the West Saxons, where Wini was bishop, and by him Ceadda was consecrated; two bishops of
the British nation, who kept Easter Sunday, as has been often said, contrary to the canonical manner,
from the fourteenth to the twentieth moon, being called in to assist at the ordination; for at that time
there was no other bishop in all Britain canonically ordained, except Wini.

So Ceadda, being consecrated bishop, began immediately to labour for ecclesiastical truth and
purity of doctrine; to apply himself to humility, self-denial, and study; to travel about, not on
horseback, but after the manner of the Apostles, on foot, to preach the Gospel in towns, the open
country, cottages, villages, and castles; for he was one of the disciples of Aidan, and endeavoured
to instruct his people by the same manner of life and character, after his and his own brother Cedd’s
example. Wilfrid also having been now made a bishop, came into Britain, and in like manner by
his teaching brought into the English Church many rules of Catholic observance. Whence it followed,
that the Catholic principles daily gained strength, and all the Scots that dwelt in England either
conformed to these, or returned into their own country.

CHAP. XXIX. How the priest Wighard was sent from Britain to Rome, to be ordained
archbishop; of his death there, and of the letters of the Apostolic Pope giving an account
thereof. [667 A.D.]

AT this time the most noble kings of the English, Oswy, of the province of the Northumbrians,
and Egbert of Kent, consulted together to determine what ought to be done about the state of the
English Church, for Oswy, though educated by the Scots, had rightly perceived that the Roman
was the Catholic and Apostolic Church. They selected, with the consent and by the choice of the
holy Church of the English nation, a priest named Wighard, one of Bishop Deusdedit’s clergy, a
good man and fitted for the episcopate, and sent him to Rome to be ordained bishop, to the end
that, having been raised to the rank of an archbishop, he might ordain Catholic prelates for the
Churches of the English nation throughout all Britain. But Wighard, arriving at Rome, was cut off
by death, before he could be consecrated bishop, and the following letter was sent back into Britain
to King Oswy:— "To the most excellent lord, our son, Oswy, king of the Saxons, Vitalian, bishop,
servant of the servants of God. We have received to our comfort your Excellency’s letters; by
reading whereof we are acquainted with your most pious devotion and fervent love of the blessed
life; and know that by the protecting hand of God you have been converted to the true and Apostolic
faith, in hope that even as you reign in your own nation, so you may hereafter reign with Christ.
Blessed be the nation, therefore, that has been found worthy to have as its king one so wise and a
worshipper of God; forasmuch as he is not himself alone a worshipper of God, but also studies day
and night the conversion of all his subjects to the Catholic and Apostolic faith, to the redemption of his own soul. Who would not rejoice at hearing such glad tidings? Who would not exult and be
joyful at these good works? For your nation has believed in Christ the Almighty God, according
to the words of the Divine prophets, as it is written in Isaiah, ‘In that day there shall be a root of
Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek.’ And again, ‘Listen,
O isles, unto me, and hearken ye people from far.’And a little after, ‘It is a light thing that thou
shouldst be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the outcast of Israel. I have
given thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayst be my salvation unto the end of the earth.’
And again, ‘ Kings shall see, princes also shall arise and worship.’ And immediately after, ‘I have
given thee for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, and possess the scattered heritages;
that thou mayest say to the prisoners, Go forth; to them that are in darkness, Show yourselves.’And
again, ‘I the Lord have called thee in righteousness, and have held thine hand, and have kept thee,
and have given thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles; to open the blind eyes,
to bring out the prisoner from the prison, and them that sit in darkness from the prison-house.

"Behold, most excellent son, how it is plain as day that it was prophesied not only of you, but
also of all the nations, that they should believe in Christ, the Creator of all things. Wherefore it
behoves your Highness, as being a member of Christ, in all things continually to follow the pious
rule of the chief of the Apostles, in celebrating Easter, and in all things delivered by the holy
Apostles, Peter and Paul, whose doctrine daily enlightens the hearts of believers, even as the two
lights of heaven illumine the world."

And after some lines, wherein he speaks of celebrating the true Easter uniformly throughout
all the world,— "Finally," he adds, "we have not been able now, on account of the length of the
journey, to find a man, apt to teach, and qualified in all respects to be a bishop, according to the
tenor of your letters.But, assuredly, as soon as such a fit person shall be found, we will send him
well instructed to your country, that he may, by word of mouth, and through the Divine oracles,
with the blessing of God, root out all the enemy’s tares throughout your island. We have received
the presents sent by your Highness to the blessed chief of the Apostles, for an eternal memorial of
him, and return you thanks, and always pray for your safety with the clergy of Christ. But he that
brought these presents has been removed out of this world, and is buried at the threshold of the
Apostles, for whom we have been much grieved, because he died here. Nevertheless, we have
caused the blessed gifts of the saints, that is, the relics of the blessed Apostles, Peter and Paul, and
of the holy martyrs, Laurentius, John, and Paul, and Gregory, and Pancratius,to be given to your
servants, the bearers of these our letters, to be by them delivered to your Excellency. And to your
consort also, our spiritual daughter, we have by the aforesaid bearers sent a cross, with a gold key
to it, made out of the most holy chains of the blessed Apostles, Peter and Paul; for, hearing of her
pious zeal, all the Apostolic see rejoices with us, even as her pious works smell sweet and blossom
before God.

"We therefore desire that your Highness should hasten, according to our wish, to dedicate all
your island to Christ our God; for assuredly you have for your Protector, the Redeemer of mankind,
our Lord Jesus Christ, Who will prosper you in all things, that you may gather together a new people
of Christ, establishing there the Catholic and Apostolic faith. For it is written, ‘Seek ye first the
kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.’Truly your
Highness seeks, and shall obtain, and all your islands shall be made subject to you, even as we
desire. Saluting your Excellency with fatherly affection, we never cease to pray to the DivineGoodness, to vouchsafe to assist you and yours in all good works, that you may reign with Christ
in the world to come. May the Heavenly Grace preserve your Excellency in safety!"

In the next book we shall have a more suitable occasion to show who was selected and
consecrated in Wighard’s place.

CHAP. XXX. How the East Saxons, during a pestilence, returned to idolatry, but were soon
brought back from their error by the zeal of Bishop Jaruman. [665 A.D.]

AT the same time, the Kings Sighere and Sebbi, though themselves subject to Wulfhere, king
of the Mercians, governed the province of the East Saxons after Suidhelm, of whom we have spoken
above.When that province was suffering from the aforesaid disastrous plague, Sighere, with his
part of the people, forsook the mysteries of the Christian faith, and turned apostate. For the king
himself, and many of the commons and nobles, loving this life, and not seeking after another, or
even not believing in any other, began to restore the temples that had been abandoned, and to adore
idols, as if they might by those means be protected against the plague. But Sebbi, his companion
and co-heir in the kingdom, with all his people, very devoutly preserved the faith which he had
received, and, as we shall show hereafter, ended his faithful life in great felicity.

King Wulfhere, hearing that the faith of the province was in part profaned, sent Bishop
Jaruman,who was successor to Trumhere, to correct their error, and recall the province to the true
faith. He acted with much discretion, as I was informed by a priest who bore him company in that
journey, and had been his fellow labourer in the Word, for he was a religious and good man, and
travelling through all the country, far and near, brought back both the people and the aforesaid king
to the way of righteousness, so that, either forsaking or destroying the temples and altars which
they had erected, they opened the churches, and gladly confessed the Name of Christ, which they
had opposed, choosing rather to die in the faith of resurrection in Him, than to live in the
abominations of unbelief among their idols. Having thus accomplished their works, the priests and
teachers returned home with joy.

BOOK IV

CHAP. I. How when Deusdedit died, Wigihard was sent to Rome to receive the episcopate;
but he dying there, Theodore was ordained archbishop, and sent into Britain with the Abbot
Hadrian. [664-669 A.D.]

IN the above-mentioned year of the aforesaid eclipse and of the pestilence which followed it
immediately, in which also Bishop Colman, being overcome by the united effort of the Catholics,
returned home, Deusdedit, the sixth bishop of the church of Canterbury, died on the 14th of July.
Earconbert,also, king of Kent, departed this life the same month and day; leaving his kingdom to
his son Egbert, who held it for nine years. The see then became vacant for no small time, until, the priest Wighard, a man of great learning in the teaching of the Church, of the English race, was sent
to Rome by King Egbert and Oswy, king of the Northumbrians, as was briefly mentioned in the
foregoing book, with a request that he might be ordained Archbishop of the Church of England;
and at the same time presents were sent to the Apostolic pope, and many vessels of gold and silver.
Arriving at Rome, where Vitalianpresided at that time over the Apostolic see, and having made
known to the aforesaid Apostolic pope the occasion of his journey, he was not long after carried
off, with almost all his companions who had come with him, by a pestilence which fell upon them.

But the Apostolic pope having consulted about that matter, made diligent inquiry for some one
to send to be archbishop of the English Churches. There was then in the monastery of Niridanum,
which is not far from Naples in Campania, an abbot called Hadrian, by nation an African, well
versed in Holy Scripture, trained in monastic and ecclesiastical teaching, and excellently skilled
both in the Greek and Latin tongues. The pope, sending for him, commanded him to accept the
bishopric and go to Britain. He answered, that he was unworthy of so great a dignity, but said that
he could name another, whose learning and age were fitter for the episcopal office. He proposed
to the pope a certain monk named Andrew, belonging to a neighbouring nunnery and he was by
all that knew him judged worthy of a bishopric; but the weight of bodily infirmity prevented him
from becoming a bishop. Then again Hadrian was urged to accept the episcopate; but he desired a
respite, to see whether in time he could find another to be ordained bishop.

There was at that time in Rome, a monk, called Theodore, known to Hadrian, born at Tarsus
in Cilicia, a man instructed in secular and Divine writings, as also in Greek and Latin; of high
character and venerable age, being sixty-six years old. Hadrian proposed him to the pope to be
ordained bishop, and prevailed; but upon the condition that he should himself conduct him into
Britain, because he had already travelled through Gaul twice upon different occasions, and was,
therefore, better acquainted with the way, and was, moreover, sufficiently provided with men of
his own; as also, to the end that, being his fellow labourer in teaching, he might take special care
that Theodore should not, according to the custom of the Greeks, introduce any thing contrary to
the truth of the faith into the Church where he presided. Theodore, being ordained subdeacon,
waited four months for his hair to grow, that it might be shorn into the shape of a crown; for he had
before the tonsure of St. Paul,the Apostle, after the manner of the eastern people. He was ordained
by Pope Vitalian, in the year of our Lord 668, on Sunday, the 26th of March, and on the 27th of
May was sent with Hadrian to Britain.

They proceeded together by sea to Marseilles, and thence by land to Arles, and having there
delivered to John, archbishop of that city, Pope Vitalian’s letters of recommendation, were by him
detained till Ebroin,the king’s mayor of the palace, gave them leave to go where they pleased.
Having received the same, Theodore went to Agilbert, bishop of Paris, of whom we have spoken
above, and was by him kindly received, and long entertained. But Hadrian went first to Emma,
Bishop of the Senones, and then to Faro, bishop of the Meldi, and lived in comfort with them a
considerable time; for the approach of winter had obliged them to rest wherever they could. King
Egbert, being informed by sure messengers that the bishop they had asked of the Roman prelate
was in the kingdom of the Franks, sent thither his reeve, Raedfrid, to conduct him. He, having
arrived there, with Ebroin’s leave took Theodore and conveyed him to the port called Quentavic;
where, falling sick, he stayed some time, and as soon as he began to recover, sailed over into Britain.
But Ebroin detained Hadrian, suspecting that he went on some mission from the Emperor to the
kings of Britain, to the prejudice of the kingdom of which he at that time had the chief charge; however, when he found that in truth he had never had any such commission, he discharged him,
and permitted him to follow Theodore. As soon as he came to him, Theodore gave him the monastery
of the blessed Peter the Apostle, where the archbishops of Canterbury are wont to be buried, as I
have said before; for at his departure, the Apostolic lord had enjoined upon Theodore that he should
provide for him in his province, and give him a suitable place to live in with his followers.

CHAP. II. How Theodore visited all places; how the Churches of the English began to be
instructed in the study of holy Scripture, and in the catholic truth, and how Putta was made
bishop of the Church of Rochester in the roam of Damianus. [669 A.D.]

THEODORE came to his Church in the second year after his consecration, on Sunday, the 27th
of May, and spent in it twenty-one years, three months, and twenty-six days. Soon after, he visited
all the island, wherever the tribes of the English dwelt, for he was gladly received and heard by all
persons; and everywhere attended and assisted by Hadrian, he taught the right rule of life, and the
canonical custom of celebrating Easter. This was the first archbishop whom all the English Church
consented to obey. And forasmuch as both of them were, as has been said before, fully instructed
both in sacred and in secular letters, they gathered a crowd of disciples, and rivers of wholesome
knowledge daily flowed from them to water the hearts of their hearers; and, together with the books
of Holy Scripture, they also taught them the metrical art, astronomy, and ecclesiastical arithmetic.
A testimony whereof is, that there are still living at this day some of their scholars, who are as well
versed in the Greek and Latin tongues as in their own, in which they were born. Nor were there
ever happier times since the English came into Britain; for having brave Christian kings, they were
a terror to all barbarous nations, and the minds of all men were bent upon the joys of the heavenly
kingdom of which they had but lately heard; and all who desired to be instructed in sacred studies
had masters at hand to teach them.

From that time also they began in all the churches of the English to learn Church music, which
till then had been only known in Kent. And, excepting James, of whom we have spoken above,the
first teacher of singing in the churches of the Northumbrians was Eddi, surnamed Stephen,invited
from Kent by the most reverend Wilfrid, who was the first of the bishops of the English nation that
learned to deliver to the churches of the English the Catholic manner of life.

Theodore, journeying through all parts, ordained bishops in fitting places, and with their
assistance corrected such things as he found faulty. Among the rest, when he charged Bishop Ceadda
with not having been duly consecrated, he, with great humility, answered, "If you know that I have
not duly received episcopal ordination, I willingly resign the office, for I never thought myself
worthy of it; but, though unworthy, for obedience sake I submitted, when bidden to undertake it."
Theodore, hearing his humble answer, said that he should not resign the bishopric, and he himself
completed his ordination after the Catholic manner. Now at the time when Deusdledit died, and a
bishop for the church of Canterbury was by request ordained and sent, Wilfrid was also sent from
Britain into Gaul to be ordained; and because he returned before Theodore, he ordained priests and
deacons in Kent till the archbishop should come to his see. But when Theodore came to the city of
Rochester, where the bishopric had been long vacant by the death of Damian,he ordained a man
named Putta,trained rather in the teaching of the Church and more addicted to simplicity of life than active in worldly affairs, but specially skilful in Church music, after the Roman use, which he
had learned from the disciples of the blessed Pope Gregory.

CHAP. III. How the above-mentioned Ceadda was made Bishop of the province of Mercians.
Of his life, death, and burial. [669 A.D.]

AT that time, the province of the Mercians was governed by King Wulf here, who, on the death
of Jaruman, desired of Theodore that a bishop should be given to him and his people; but Theodore
would not ordain a new one for them, but requested of King Oswy that Ceadda might be their
bishop. He then lived in retirement at his monastery, which is at Laestingaeu,while Wilfrid
administered the bishopric of York, and of all the Northumbrians, and likewise of the Picts, as far
as King Oswy was able to extend his dominions. And, seeing that it was the custom of that most
reverend prelate to go about the work of the Gospel everywhere on foot rather than on horseback,
Theodore commanded him to ride whenever he had a long journey to undertake; and finding him
very unwilling, in his zeal and love for his pious labour, he himself, with his own hands, lifted him
on horseback; for he knew him to be a holy man, and therefore obliged him to ride wherever he
had need to go. Ceadda having received the bishopric of the Mercians and of Lindsey, took care
to administer it with great perfection of life, according to the example of the ancient fathers. King
Wulfhere also gave him land of the extent of fifty families, to build a monastery, at the place called
Ad Barvae,or "At the Wood," in the province of Lindsey, wherein traces of the monastic life
instituted by him continue to this day.

He had his episcopal see in the place called Lyccidfelth,in which he also died, and was buried,
and where the see of the succeeding bishops of that province continues to this day. He had built
himself a retired habitation not far from the church, wherein he was wont to pray and read in private,
with a few, it might be seven or eight of the brethren, as often as he had any spare time from the
labour and ministry of the Word. When he had most gloriously governed the church in that province
for two years and a half, the Divine Providence so ordaining, there came round a season like that
of which Ecclesiastes says, "That there is a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones
together;" I for a plague fell upon them, sent from Heaven, which, by means of the death of the
flesh, translated the living stones of the Church from their earthly places to the heavenly building.
And when, after many of the Church of that most reverend prelate had been taken away out of the
flesh, his hour also drew near wherein he was to pass out of this world to the Lord, it happened one
day that he was in the aforesaid habitation with only one brother, called Owini,his other companions
having upon some due occasion returned to the church.

Now Owini was a monk of great merit, having forsaken the world with the sole desire of the
heavenly reward; worthy in all respects to have the secrets of the Lord revealed to him in special
wise, and worthy to have credit given by his hearers to what he said. For he had come with Queen
Ethelthryth from the province of the East Angles, and was the chief of her thegns, and governor of
her house. As the fervour of his faith increased, resolving to renounce the secular life, he did not
go about it slothfully, but so entirely forsook the things of this world, that, quitting all that he had,
clad in a plain garment, and carrying an axe and hatchet in his hand, he came to the monastery of
the same most reverend father, which is called Laestingaeu. He said that he was not entering the monastery in order to live in idleness, as some do, but to labour; which he also confirmed by practice;
for as he was less capable of studying the Scriptures, the more earnestly he applied himself to the
labour of his hands. So then, forasmuch as he was reverent and devout, he was kept by the bishop
in the aforesaid habitation with the brethren, and whilst they were engaged within in reading, he
was without, doing such things as were necessary.

One day, when he was thus employed abroad, his companions having gone to the church, as I
began to tell, and the bishop was alone reading or praying in the oratory of that place, on a sudden,
as he afterwards said, he heard a sweet sound of singing and rejoicing descend from heaven to
earth. This sound he said he first heard coming from the sky in the south-east, above the winter
sunrise, and that afterwards it drew near him gradually, till it came to the roof of the oratory where
the bishop was, and entering the rein, filled all the place and encompassed it about. He listened
attentively to what he heard, and after about half an hour, perceived the same song of joy to ascend
from the roof of the said oratory, and to return to heaven in the same way as it came, with
unspeakable sweetness. When he had stood some time amazed, and earnestly considering in his
mind what this might be, the bishop opened the window of the oratory, and making a sound with
his hand, as he was often wont to do, bade anyone who might be without to come in to him. He
went hastily in, and the bishop said to him, "Make haste to the church, and cause those seven
brothers to come hither, and do you come with them." When they were come, he first admonished
them to preserve the virtue of love and peace among themselves, and towards all the faithful; and
with unwearied earnestness to follow the rules of monastic discipline, which they had either been
taught by him, and had seen him observe, or had found in the words and actions of the former
fathers. Then he added that the day of his death was at hand; for, said he, "that gracious guest, who
was wont to visit our brethren, has vouchsafed also to come to me this day, and to call me out of
this world. Return, therefore, to the church, and speak to the brethren, that in their prayers they
commend my departure to the Lord, and that they be mindful to prepare for their own, the hour
whereof is uncertain, by watching, and prayer, and good works."

When he had spoken thus much and more to the same end, and they, having received his blessing,
had gone away in great sorrow, he who had heard the heavenly song returned alone, and prostrating
himself on the ground, said, "I beseech you, father, may I be permitted to ask a question? "—" Ask
what you will," answered the bishop. Then he said, "I beseech you to tell me what was that song
which I heard as of a joyful company coming from heaven upon this oratory, and after some time
returning to heaven?" The bishop answered: "If you heard the singing, and know of the coming of
the heavenly company, I command you, in the Name of the Lord, that you tell it not to any before
my death. But in truth they were angelic spirits, who came to call me to my heavenly reward, which
I have always loved and longed after, and they promised that they would return seven days hence,
and take me away with them." Which was indeed fulfilled, as had been said to him; for being
presently seized with bodily infirmity, and the same daily increasing, on the seventh day, as had
been promised to him, when he had prepared for death by receiving the Body and Blood of our
Lord, his saintly soul being delivered from the prison of the body, led, as may justly be believed,
by the attendant angels, he departed to the joys of Heaven.

It is no wonder that he joyfully beheld the day of his death, or rather the day of the Lord, the
coming whereof he had always been mindful to await with earnest expectation. For with all his
merits of continence, humility, teaching, prayer, voluntary poverty, and other virtues, he was so
filled with the fear of the Lord, so mindful of his latter end in all his actions, that, as I was wont to hear from one of the brothers who instructed me in the Scriptures, and who had been bred in his
monastery, and under his direction, whose name was Trumbert, if it happened that there blew a
sudden strong gust of wind, when he was reading or doing any other thing, he forthwith called upon
the Lord for mercy, and begged that it might be granted to all mankind. If the wind grew stronger,
he closed his book, and fell on his face, praying still more earnestly. But, if a violent storm of wind
or rain came on, or if the earth and air were filled with the terror of thunder and lightning, he would
go to the church, and anxiously devote himself with all his heart to prayers and psalms till the
weather became calm. Being asked by his brethren why he did so, he answered, "Have not you
read—The Lord also thundered in the heavens, and the Highest gave his voice. Yea, he sent out
his arrows and scattered them; and he shot out lightnings, and discomfited them.’ For the Lord
moves the air, raises the winds, hurls lightning, and thunders from heaven, to rouse the inhabitants
of the earth to fear him; to put them in mind of judgement to come; to dispel their pride, and
confound their boldness, by recalling to their thoughts that dread time, when the heavens and the
earth being on fire, He will come in the clouds, with great power and majesty, to judge the quick
and the dead. Wherefore," said he, "it behoves us to respond to His heavenly admonition with due
fear and love; that, as often as the air is moved and He puts forth His hand threatening to strike,
but does not yet let it fall, we may immediately implore His mercy; and searching the recesses of
our hearts, and casting out the dregs of our sins, we may carefully so act that we may never deserve
to be struck down."

With this revelation and narrative of the aforesaid brother, concerning the death of this prelate,
agrees the account of the most reverend Father Egbert, above spoken of,who long and zealously
led a monastic life with the same Ceadda, when both were youths, in Ireland, in prayer and self-denial
and meditation on the Holy Scriptures. But whereas Ceadda afterwards returned into his own
country, Egbert continued to live abroad for the Lord’s sake till the end of his life. A long time
after, Hygbald, a man of great holiness and continence, who was an abbot in the province of Lindsey,
came from Britain to visit him, and whilst, as became holy men, they were discoursing of the life
of the former fathers, and rejoicing to imitate the same, mention was made of the most reverend
prelate, Ceadda; whereupon Egbert said, "I know a man in this island, still in the flesh, who, when
Ceadda passed away from this world, saw the soul of his brother Cedd, with a company of angels,
descending from heaven, who, having taken Ceadda’s soul along with them, returned again to the
heavenly kingdom." Whether he said this of himself, or some other, we do not certainly know; but
because it was said by so great a man, there can be no doubt of the truth thereof.

Ceadda died on the 2nd of March,and was first buried by St. Mary’s Church, but afterwards,
when the church of the most blessed chief of the Apostles, Peter, was built in the same place, his
bones were translated into it. In both which places, as a testimony of his virtue, frequent miracles
of healing are wont to be wrought. And of late, a certain man that had a frenzy, wandering about
everywhere, arrived there in the evening, unperceived or disregarded by the keepers of the place,
and having rested there the whole of the night, came forth in his right mind the next morning, to
the surprise and joy of all, and told what a cure had been wrought on him through the goodness of
God. The place of the sepulchre is a wooden monument, made like a little house, covered, having
a hole in the wall, through which those that go thither for devotion are wont to put in their hand
and take out some of the dust. This they put into water and give to sick cattle or men to drink,
whereupon they are presently eased of their infirmity, and restored to their desired health.

In his place, Theodore ordained Wynfrid,a man of good and sober life, to preside, like his
predecessors, over the bishoprics of the Mercians, the Midland Angles, and Lindsey, of all which,
Wulfhere, who was still living, was king. Wynfrid was one of the clergy of the prelate he succeeded,
and had for no small time filled the office of deacon under him.

CHAP. IV. How Bishop Colman, having left Britain, built two monasteries in the country of
the Scots; the one for the Scots, the other for the English whom he had taken along with him.
[667 A. D.]

IN the meantime, Colman, the Scottish bishop, departing from Britain,took along with him all
the Scots whom he had gathered about him in the isle of Lindisfame, and also about thirty of the
English nation, for both these companies had been trained in duties of the monastic life; and leaving
some brothers in his church, he went first to the isle of Hii,whence he had been sent to preach the
Word of God to the English nation. Afterwards he retired to a small island, which is to the west of
Ireland, and at some distance from it, called in the language of the Scots, Inisboufinde, the Island
of the White Heifer. Arriving there, he built a monastery, and placed in it the monks he had brought
of both nations. But they could not agree among themselves, by reason that the Scots, in the summer
season, when the harvest was to be brought in, leaving the monastery, wandered about through
places known to them; but returned again the next winter, and desired to use in common what the
English had provided. Colman sought to put an end to this dissension, and travelling about far and
near, he found a place in the island of Ireland fitted to be the site of a monastery, which, in the
language of the Scots, is called Mageo? He bought a small part of it of the chief to whom it belonged,
to build his monastery thereon; upon condition, that the monks dwelling there should pray to the
Lord for him who let them have the place. Then at once building a monastery, with the assistance
of the chief and all the neighbouring people, he placed the English there, leaving the Scots in the
aforesaid island. This monastery is to this day occupied by English inhabitants; being the same
that, grown from a small beginning to be very large, is commonly called Muigeo; and as all have
long since been brought to adopt better customs, it contains a notable society of monks, who are
gathered there from the province of the English, and live by the labour of their own hands, after
the example of the venerable fathers, under a rule and a canonical abbot, in much continence and
singleness of life.

CHAP. V. Of the death of the kings Oswy and Eghert, and of the synod held at the place
Herutford, in which Archbishop Theodore presided. [670-673 A. D.]

IN the year of our Lord 670, being the second year after Theodore arrived in England, Oswy,
king of the Northumbrians, fell sick, and died, in the fifty-eighth year of his age.He at that time
bore so great affection to the Roman Apostolic usages, that he had designed, if he recovered from
his sickness, to go to Rome, and there to end his days at the holy places, having asked Bishop
Wilfrid, with a promise of no small gift of money, to conduct him on his journey. He died on the 15th of February, leaving his son Egfrid his successor in the kingdom. In the third year of his reign,
Theodore assembled a council of bishops, along with many other teachers of the church, who loved
and were acquainted with the canonical statutes of the fathers. When they were met together, he
began, in the spirit which became a bishop, to enjoin the observance of such things as were in
accordance with the unity and the peace of the Church. The purport of the proceedings of this synod
is as follows:—

"In the name of our Lord God and Saviour Jesus Christ, Who reigns for ever and governs His
Church, it was thought meet that we should assemble, according to the custom prescribed in the
venerable canons, to treat about the necessary affairs of the Church. We met on the 24th day of
September, the first indiction,at the place which is called Herutford: I, Theodore, albeit unworthy,
appointed by the Apostolic see bishop of the church of Canterbury; our fellow priest and brother,
the most reverend Bisi, bishop of the East Angles; and with us also our brother and fellow priest,
Wilfrid, bishop of the nation of the Northumbrians, represented by his proxies. There were present
also our brothers and fellow priests, Putta, bishop of the Kentish castle, called Rochester; Leutherius,
bishop of the West Saxons, and Wynfrid, bishop of the province of the Mercians. When we were
all met together, and had sat down in order, I said, ‘I beseech you, most dear brothers, for the fear
and love of our Redeemer, that we may all treat in common on behalf of our faith; to the end that
whatsoever has been decreed and defined by holy and approved fathers, may be inviolably observed
by all of us.’ This and much more I spoke tending to charity and the preservation of the unity of
the Church; and when I had ended my preface, I asked every one of them in order, whether they
consented to observe the things that had been of old canonically decreed by the fathers? To which
all our fellow priests answered, ‘Most assuredly we are all resolved to observe willingly and heartily
whatsoever is laid down in the canons of the holy fathers.’ Then forthwith I produced the said book
of canons,and in the presence of them all showed ten articles in the same, which I had marked in
several places, because I knew them to be of the most importance to us, and entreated that these
might be most particularly received by them all.

"Article I. That we all in common keep the holy day of Easter on the Sunday after the fourteenth
moon of the first month.

"II. That no bishop intrude into the diocese of another, but be satisfied with the government of
the people committed to him.

"III. That it shall not be lawful for any bishop to disturb in any matter monasteries dedicated
to God, nor to take away forcibly any part of their property.

"IV. That the monks themselves do not move from one place to another, that is, from monastery
to monastery, unless with the consent of their own abbot; but that they continue in the obedience
which they promised at the time of their conversion.

"V. That no clerk, forsaking his own bishop, shall wander about, or be anywhere received
without commendatory letters from his diocesan. But if he shall be once received, and will not
return when summoned, both the receiver, and he that is received shall be under excommunication.

"VI. That bishops and clergy, when travelling, shall be content with the hospitality that is
afforded them; and that it be not lawful for any one of them to exercise any priestly function without
leave of the bishop in whose diocese he is known to be.

"VII. That a synod be assembled twice a year; but on account of divers hindrances, it was
approved by all, that we should meet once a year, on the 1st of August, at the place called Clofeshoch.

"VIII. That no bishop, through ambition, shall set himself above another; but that they shall all
observe the time and order of their consecration.

"IX. The ninth Article was discussed in common, to the effect that more bishops should be
made, as the number of the faithful increased; but this matter for the present was passed over.

"X. Of marriages; that nothing be allowed but lawful wedlock; that none commit incest; no
man leave his own wife, except it be, as the holy Gospel teaches, for fornication. And if any man
shall put away his own wife, lawfully joined to him in matrimony, that he take no other, if he wishes
to be a true Christian, but continue as he is, or else be reconciled to his own wife.

"These articles being thus discussed and defined in common, to the end, that for the future, no
stumbling-block of contention might arise from any one of us, or that things be falsely set forth, it
was thought fit that every one of us should, by the subscription of his own hand, confirm all the
particulars so defined. Which judgement, as defined by us, I dictated to be written by Titillus our
notary. Given in the month and indiction aforesaid. Whosoever, therefore, shall attempt in anyway
to oppose or infringe this decision, confirmed by our consent, and by the subscription of our hands,
according to the decree of the canons, must know, that he is excluded from all sacerdotal functions,
and from our fellowship. May the Grace of God keep us in safety, living in the unity of His Holy
Church."

This synod was held in the year of our Lord 673. In which year Egbert, king of Kent, died in
the month of July; his brother Hlothere succeeded him on the throne, which he held eleven years
and seven months. Bisi, the bishop of the East Angles, who is said to have been in the aforesaid
synod, a man of great saintliness and piety, was successor to Boniface, before spoken of; for when
Boniface died, after having been bishop seventeen years, he was ordained by Theodore and made
bishop in his place. Whilst he was still alive, but hindered by grievous infirmity from administering
his episcopal functions, two bishops, Aecci and Badwin, were elected and consecrated in his place;
from which time to the present, that province has had two bishops.

CHAP. VI. How Wynfrid being deposed, Sexwulf received his bishopric, and Earconwald
was made bishop of the East Saxons. [675 A.D.]

NOT long after these events, Theodore, the archbishop, taking offence at some act of
disobedience of Wynfrid, bishop of the Mercians,deposed him from his bishopric when he had held
it but a few years, and in his, place ordained Sexwulf bishop,who was founder and abbot of the
monastery which is called Medeshamstead,’ in the country of the Gyrwas.Wynfrid, thus deposed,
returned to his monastery which is called Ad Barvae,and there ended his life in holy conversation.

Theodore then also appointed Earconwald bishop of the East Saxons, in the city of London,
over whom at that time reigned Sebbi and Sighere, of whom mention has been made above.This
Earconwald’s life and conversation, as well when he was bishop as before that time, is said to have
been most holy, as is even now testified by heavenly miracles; for to this day, his horse-litter, in
which he was wont to be carried when sick, is kept by his disciples, and continues to cure many of
fevers and other ailments; and, not only sick persons who are laid under that litter, or close by it,
are cured; but the very splinters cut from it, when carried to the sick, are wont immediately to bring
healing to them.

This man, before he was made bishop, had built two famous monasteries, the one for himself,
and the other for his sister Ethelburg, and established them both in regular discipline of the best
kind. That for himself was in the district of Sudergeona, by the river Thames, at a place called
Cerotaesei,that is, the Island of Cerot; that for his sister in the province of the East Saxons, at a
place called In Berecingum, wherein she might be a mother and nurse of women devoted to God.
Being put into the government of that monastery, she showed herself in all respects worthy of her
brother the bishop, by her own holy life and by her regular and pious care of those under her rule,
as was also manifested by heavenly miracles.

CHAP. VII. How it was indicated by a light from heaven where the bodies of the nuns should
be buried in the monastery of Berecingum. [675 A.D.?]

IN this monastery many miracles were wrought, accounts of which have been committed to
writing by those who were acquainted with them, that their memory might be preserved, and
succeeding generations edified, and these are in the possession of many persons; some of them we
also have taken pains to include in our History of the Church. At the time of the pestilence, already
often mentioned, which ravaged all the country far and wide, it had also seized on that part of this
monastery where the men abode, and they were daily hurried away to the Lord. The careful mother
of the community began often to inquire of the sisters, when they were gathered together, in what
part of the monastery they desired to be buried and a cemetery to be made, when the same affliction
should fall upon that part of the monastery in which the handmaids of the Lord dwelt together apart
from the men, and they should. be snatched away out of this world by the same destruction as the
rest. Receiving no certain answer from the sisters, though she often questioned them, she and all
of them received a most certain answer from the Divine Providence. For one night, after matins
had been sung, and those handmaids of Christ had gone out of their chapel to the tombs of the
brothers who had departed this life before them, and were singing the customary songs of praise
to the Lord, on a sudden a light from heaven, like a great sheet, came down upon them all, and
struck them with such amazement, that, in consternation, they even left off singing their hymn. But
that, resplendent light, in comparison wherewith the sun at noon-day might seem dark, soon after,
rising from that place, removed to the south side of the monastery, that is, to the westward of the
chapel, and having continued there some time, and rested upon those parts, in the sight of them all
withdrew itself again to heaven, leaving no doubt in the minds of all, but that the same light, which
was to lead or to receive the souls of those handmaids of Christ into Heaven, also showed the place
in which their bodies were to rest and await the day of the resurrection. The radiance of this light
was so great, that one of the older brethren, who at the same time was in their chapel with another
younger than himself, related in the morning, that the rays of light which came in at the crannies
of the doors and windows, seemed to exceed the utmost brightness of daylight.

CHAP. VIII. How a little boy, dying in the same monastery, called upon a virgin that was to
follow him; and how another nun, at the point of leaving her body, saw some small part of
the future glory. [675 A. D.?]

THERE was, in the same monastery, a boy, not above three years old, called Aesica; who, by
reason of his tender age, was being brought up among the virgins dedicated to God; there to learn
his lessons. This child being seized by the aforesaid pestilence, when his last hour was come, called
three times upon one of the virgins consecrated to Christ, speaking to her by her own name, as if
she had been present, Eadgyth! Eadgyth! Eadgyth! and thus ending his temporal life, entered into
that which is eternal. The virgin, to whom he called, as he was dying, was immediately seized,
where she was, with the same sickness, and departing this life the same day on which she had been
summoned, followed him that called her into the heavenly kingdom.

Likewise, one of the same handmaids of God, being smitten with the same disease, and reduced
to the last extremity, began on a sudden, about midnight, to cry out to them that ministered to her,
desiring they would put out the lamp that was lighted there. And, when she had done this many
times, and yet no one did her will, at last she said, "I know that you think I am raving when I say
this, but be assured that it is not so; for I tell you truly, that I see this house filled with so great a
light, that that lamp of yours seems to me to be altogether dark." And when still no one replied to
what she said, or did her bidding, she added, "Burn your lamp, then, as long as you will; but know,
that it is not my light, for my light will come to me at the dawn of day." Then she began to tell, that
a certain man of God, who had died that same year, had appeared to her, telling her that at the break
of day she should depart to the eternal light. The truth of which vision was speedily proved by the
maiden’s death as soon as the day appeared.

CHAP. IX. Of the signs which were shown from Heaven when the mother of that community
departed this life. [675 A.D.?]

Now when Ethelburg herself, the pious mother of that community devoted to God, was about
to be taken out of this world, a wonderful vision appeared to one of the sisters, called Tortgyth;
who, having lived many years in that monastery, always endeavoured, in all humility and sincerity,
to serve God herself, and to help the mother to maintain regular discipline, by instructing and
reproving the younger ones. Now, in order that her virtue might, according to the Apostle, be made
perfect in weakness, she was suddenly seized with a most grievous bodily disease, under which,
through the merciful providence of our Redeemer, she was sorely tried for the space of nine years;
to the end, that whatever stain of evil remained amidst her virtues, either through ignorance or
neglect, might all be purified in the furnace of long tribulation. This woman, going out of the
chamber where she abode one night, at dusk, plainly saw as it were a human body, which was
brighter than the sun, wrapped in fine linen, and lifted up on high, being taken out of the house in
which the sisters used to sleep. Then looking earnestly to see what it was that drew up that appearance
of the glorious body which she beheld, she perceived that it was raised on high as it were by cords
brighter than gold, until, entering into the open heavens, it could no longer be seen by her. Reflecting
on this vision, she made no doubt that some one of the community would soon die, and her soul be lifted up to heaven by the good works which she had wrought, as it were by golden cords. And
so in truth it befell; for a few days after, the beloved of God, Ethelburg, mother of that community,
was delivered out of the prison of the flesh; and her life is proved to have been such that no one
who knew her ought to doubt that an entrance into the heavenly country was open to her, when she
departed from this life.

There was also, in the same monastery, a certain nun, of noble origin in this world, and still
nobler in the love of the world to come; who had, for many years, been so disabled in all her body,
that she could not move a single limb. When she heard that the body of the venerable abbess had
been carried into the church, till it should be buried, she desired to be carried thither, and to be
placed bending towards it, after the manner of one praying; which being done, she spoke to her as
if she had been living, and entreated her that she would obtain of the mercy of our pitiful Creator,
that she might be delivered from such great and long-continued pains; nor was it long before her
prayer was heard: for being delivered from the flesh twelve days after, she exchanged her temporal
afflictions for an eternal reward.

For three years after the death of her Superior, the aforesaid handmaid of Christ, Tortgyth, was
detained in this life and was so far spent with the sickness before mentioned, that her bones scarce
held together. At last, when the time of her release was at hand, she not only lost the use of her
other limbs, but also of her tongue; in which state having continued three days and as many nights,
she was, on a sudden, restored by a spiritual vision, and opened her lips and eyes, and looking up
to heaven, began thus to speak to the vision which she saw: "Very acceptable to me is thy coming,
and thou art welcome!" Having so said, she was silent awhile, as it were, waiting for the answer
of him whom she saw and to whom she spoke; then, as if somewhat displeased, she said, "I can in
no wise gladly suffer this;" then pausing awhile, she said again, "If it can by no means be to-day,
I beg that the delay may not be long;" and again holding her peace a short while, she concluded
thus; "If it is certainly so determined, and the decree cannot be altered, I beg that it may be no
longer deferred than this next night." Having so said, and being asked by those about her with
whom she talked, she said, "With my most dear mother, Ethelburg;" by which they understood,
that she was come to acquaint her that the time of her departure was at hand; for, as she had desired,
after one day and night, she was delivered alike from the bonds of the flesh and of her infirmity
and entered into the joys of eternal salvation.

CHAP. X. How a blind woman, praying in the burial-place of that monastery, was restored
to her sight. [675 A.D.?]

HILDILID, a devout handmaid of God, succeeded Ethelburg in the office of abbess and presided
over that monastery with great vigour many years, till she was of an extreme old age,in the
observance of regular discipline, and carefully providing all things for the common use. The
narrowness of the space where the monastery is built, led her to determine that the bones of the
servants and handmaidens of Christ, who had been there buried, should be taken up, and should
all be translated into the church of the Blessed Mother of God, and interred in one place. How often
a brightness of heavenly light was seen there, when this was done, and a fragrancy of wonderful sweetness arose, and what other signs were revealed, whosoever reads will find in the book from
which we have taken these tales.

But in truth, I think it by no means fit to pass over the miracle of healing, which the same book
informs us was wrought in the cemetery of that community dedicated to God. There lived in that
neighbourhood a certain thegn, whose wife was seized with a sudden dimness in her eyes, and as
the malady increased daily, it became so burdensome to her, that she could not see the least glimpse
of light. Having continued some time wrapped in the night of this blindness, on a sudden she
bethought herself that she might recover her lost sight, if she were carried to the monastery of the
nuns, and there prayed at the relics of the saints. Nor did she lose any time in fulfilling that which
she had conceived in her mind: for being conducted by her maids to the monastery, which was very
near, and professing that she had perfect faith that she should be there healed, she was led into the
cemetery, and having long prayed there on her knees, she did not fail to be heard, for as she rose
from prayer, before she went out of the place, she received the gift of sight which she had desired;
and whereas she had been led thither by the hands of her maids, she now returned home joyfully
without help: as if she had lost the light of this world to no other end than that she might show by
her recovery how great a light is vouchsafed to the saints of Christ in Heaven, and how great a
grace of healing power.

CHAP. XI. How Sebbi, king of the same province, ended his life in a monastery. [694 A.D.]

AT that time, as the same little book informs us, Sebbi , a very devout man, of whom mention
has been made above, governed the kingdom of the East Saxons. His mind was set on religious
acts, frequent prayer and pious fruits of almsgiving; he esteemed a private and monastic life better
than all the wealth and honours of his kingdom, and he would have long before left his kingdom
and adopted that life, had not his wife firmly refused to be divorced from him; for which reason
many were of opinion and often said that a man of such a disposition ought rather to have been
made a bishop than a king. When he had spent thirty years as a king and a soldier of the heavenly
kingdom, he fell into great bodily infirmity, of which he afterwards died, and he admonished his
wife, that they should then at least together devote themselves to the service of God, since they
could no longer together enjoy, or rather serve, the world. Having with much difficulty obtained
this of her, he went to Waldhere, bishop of London, who had succeeded Earconwald,and with his
blessing received the religious habit, which he had long desired. He also carried to him a considerable
sum of money, to be given to the poor, reserving nothing to himself, but rather coveting to remain
poor in spirit for the sake of the kingdom of Heaven.

When the aforesaid sickness increased, and he perceived the day of his death to be drawing
near, being a man of a royal disposition, he began to apprehend lest, when in great pain, at the
approach of death, he might commit anything unworthy of his character, either by word or gesture.
Wherefore, calling to him the aforesaid bishop of London, in which city he then was, he entreated
him that none might be present at his death, besides the bishop himself, and two of his own
attendants. The bishop having promised that he would most willingly grant his request, not long
after the man of God composed himself to sleep, and saw a consoling vision, which took from him
all anxiety concerning the aforesaid uneasiness; and, moreover, showed him on what day he was to end his life. For, as he afterwards related, he saw three men in shining garments come to him;
one of whom sat down by his bed, whilst his companions who had come with him stood and inquired
about the state of the sick man they had come to visit, and he said that the king’s soul should quit
his body without any pain, and with a great splendour of light; and told him that he should die the
third day after. Both these things came to pass, as he had learnt from the vision; for on the third
day after, at the ninth hour, he suddenly fell, as it were, into a light slumber, and without any sense
of pain he gave up the ghost.

A stone coffin had been prepared for his burial, but when they came to lay him in it, they found
his body a span longer than the coffin. Hereupon they chipped away as much of the stone as they
could, and made the coffin about two inches longer; but not even so would it contain the body.
Wherefore because of this difficulty of entombing him, they had thoughts either to get another
coffin, or else to shorten the body, by bending it at the knees, if they could, so that the coffin might
contain it. But Heaven interposed and a miracle prevented the execution of either of those designs;
for on a sudden, in the presence of the bishop and Sighard, who was the son of that same king and
monk, and who reigned after him jointly with his brother Suefred, and of no small number of men,
that coffin was found to fit the length of the body, insomuch that a pillow might even be put in at
the head; and at the feet the coffin was four inches longer than the body. He was buried in the
church of the blessed teacher of the Gentiles,by whose doctrine he had learned to hope for heavenly
things.

CHAP. XII. How Haedde succeeded Leutherius in the bishopric of the West Saxons; how
Cuichelm succeeded Putta in the bishopric of the church of Rochester, and was himself
succeeded by Gebmund; and who were then bishops of the Northumbrians. [673-681 A. D.]

LEUTHERIUS was the fourth bishop of the West Saxons; for Birinus was the first, Agilbert
the second, and Wini the third. When Coinwalch,in whose reign the said Leutherius was made
bishop, died, the sub-kings took upon them the government of the nation, and dividing it among
themselves, held it for about ten years; and during their rule he died, and Haedde succeeded him
in the bishopric, having been consecrated by Theodore, in the city of London. During his episcopate,
Caedwalla, having subdued and removed the sub-kings, took upon himself the supreme authority.
When he had held it for two years, and whilst the same bishop still governed the church, at length
impelled by love of the heavenly kingdom, he quitted it and, going away to Rome, ended his days
there, as shall be said more fully hereafter.

In the year of our Lord 676, when Ethelred, king of the Mercians,ravaged Kent with a hostile
army, and profaned churches and monasteries, without regard to pity, or the fear of God, in the
general destruction he laid waste the city of Rochester; Putta,who was bishop, was absent at that
time, but when he understood that his church was ravaged, and everything taken away from it, he
went to Sexwulf, bishop of the Mercians and having received of him a certain church, and a small
piece of land, ended his days there in peace; in no way endeavouring to restore his bishopric, for,
as has keen said above, he was more industrious in ecclesiastical than in worldly affairs; serving
God only in that church, and going wherever he was desired, to teach Church music. Theodore
consecrated Cuichelm bishop of Rochester in his stead; but he, not long after, departing from his bishopric for want of necessaries, and withdrawing to other parts, Gebmund was put in his place
by Theodore.

In the year of our Lord 678, which is the eighth of the reign of Egfrid, in the month of August,
appeared a star, called a comet, which continued for three months, rising in the morning, and sending
forth, as it were, a tall pillar of radiant flame. The same year a dissension broke out between King
Egfrid and the most reverend prelate, Wilfrid, who was driven from his see, and two bishops
substituted for him, to preside over the nation of the Northumbrians,namely, Bosa,to govern the
province of the Deiri; and Eata that of the Bernicians;. the former having his episcopal see in the
city of York, the latter either in the church of Hagustald, or of Lindisfame; both of them promoted
to the episcopal dignity from a community of monks. With them also Eadhaed was ordained bishop
for the province of Lindsey, which King Egfrid had but newly acquired, having defeated Wulfhere
and put him to flight;and this was the first bishop of its own which that province had; the second
was Ethelwin ; the third Edgar; the fourth Cynibert, who is there at present. Before Eadhaed, Sexwulf
was bishop as well of that province as of the Mercians and Midland Angles; so that, when expelled
from Lindsey, he continued in the government of those provinces. Eadhaed, Bosa, and Eata, were
ordained at York by archbishop Theodore; who also, three years after the departure of Wilfrid,
added two bishops to their number: Tunbert, appointed to the church of Hagustald, Eata still
continuing in that of Lindisfarne; and Trumwine to the province of the Picts, which at that time
was subject to English rule. Eadhaed returning from Lindsey, because Ethelred had recovered that
province, was placed by Theodore over the church of Ripon.

CHAP. XIII. How Bishop Wilfrid converted the province of the South Saxons to Christ. [681
A.D.]

BUT Wilfrid was expelled from his bishopric, and having long travelled in many lands, went
to Rome, and afterwards returned to Britain. Though he could not, by reason the enmity of the
aforesaid king, be received into his own country or diocese, yet he could not be restrained from the
ministry of the Gospel; for, taking his way into the province of the South Saxons,which extends
from Kent to the south and west, as far as the West Saxons, containing land of 7,000 families, and
was at that time still in bondage to pagan rites, he administered to them the Word of faith, and the
Baptism of salvation. Ethelwalch,king of that nation, had been, not long before, baptized in the
province of the Mercians, at the instance of King Wulf here, who was present, and received him
as his godson when he came forth from the font, and in token of this adoption gave him two
provinces, to wit, the Isle of Wight, and the province of the Meanware, in the country of the West
Saxons.The bishop, therefore, with the king’s consent, or rather to his great joy, cleansed in the
sacred font the foremost ealdormen and thegns of that country; and the priests, Eappa and Padda,
and Burghelm, and Oiddi, either then, or afterwards, baptized the rest of the people. The queen,
whose name was Eabae, had been baptized in her own country, the province of the Hwiccas. She
was the daughter of Eanfrid, the brother of Aenhere,who were both Christians, as were their people;
but all the province of the South Saxons was ignorant of the Name of God and the faith. But there
was among them a certain monk of the Scottish nation, whose name was Dicul, who had a very
small monastery, at the place called Bosanhamm, (Bosham near Chichester) encompassed by woods and seas, and in it there were five or six brothers, who served the Lord in humility and poverty; but
none of the natives cared either to follow their course of life, or hear their preaching.

But Bishop Wilfrid, while preaching the Gospel to the people, not only delivered them from
the misery of eternal damnation, but also from a terrible calamity of temporal death. For no rain
had fallen in that district for three years before his arrival in the province, whereupon a grievous
famine fell upon the people and pitilessly destroyed them; insomuch that it is said that often forty
or fifty men, wasted with hunger, would go together to some precipice, or to the sea-shore, and
there, hand in hand, in piteous wise cast them themselves down either to perish by the fall, or be
swallowed up by the waves. But on the very day on which the nation received the Baptism of the
faith, there fell a soft but plentiful rain; the earth revived, the fields grew green again, and the season
was pleasant and fruitful. Thus the old superstition was cast away, and idolatry renounced, the heart
and flesh of all rejoiced in the living God, for they perceived that He Who is the true God had
enriched them by His heavenly grace with both inward and outward blessings. For the bishop, when
he came into the province, and found so great misery from famine there, taught them to get their
food by fishing; for their sea and rivers abounded in fish, but the people had no skill to take any of
them, except eels alone. The bishop’s men having gathered eel-nets everywhere, cast them into the
sea, and by the blessing of God took three hundred fishes of divers sorts, which being divided into
three parts, they gave a hundred to the poor, a hundred to those of whom they had the nets, and
kept a hundred for their own use. By this benefit the bishop gained the affections of them all, and
they began more readily at his preaching to hope for heavenly blessings, seeing that by his help
they had received those which are temporal.

At this time, King Ethelwalch gave to the most reverend prelate, Wilfrid, land to the extent of
eighty-seven families, to maintain his company who were wandering in exile. The place is called
Selaeseu, (Selsey, south of Chichester) that is, the Island of the Sea-Calf; it is encompassed by the
sea on all sides, except the west, where is an entrance about the cast of a sling in width; which sort
of place is by the Latins called a peninsula, by the Greeks, a cherronesos. Bishop Wilfrid, having
this place given him, founded therein a monastery, chiefly of the brethren he had brought with him,
and established a rule of life; and his successors are known to be there to this day. He himself, both
in word and deed performed the duties of a bishop in those parts during the space of five years,
until the death of King Egfrid,and was justly honoured by all. And forasmuch as the king, together
with the said place, gave him all the goods that were therein, with the lands and men, he instructed
all the people in the faith of Christ, and cleansed them in the water of Baptism. Among whom were
two hundred and fifty bondsmen and bondswomen, all of whom he saved by Baptism from slavery
to the Devil, and in like manner, by giving them their liberty, set them free from slavery to man.

CHAP. XIV. How a pestilence ceased through the intercession of King Oswald. [681-686 A.D.]

IN this monastery, at that time, certain special manifestations of the heavenly grace are said to
have been shown forth; in as much as the tyranny of the Devil had been recently cast out and Christ
had begun to reign there. Of these I have thought it proper to perpetuate the memory of one which
the most reverend Bishop Acca was wont often to relate to me, affirming that it had been told him
by most creditable brothers of the same monastery. About the same time that this province had received the faith of Christ, a grievous pestilence fell upon many provinces of Britain; which, also,
by the Divine dispensation, reached to the aforesaid monastery, then governed by the most religious
priest of Christ, Eappa;and many, as well of those that had come thither with the bishop, as of those
of the same province of the South Saxons who had been lately called to the faith, were snatched
away out of this world. The brethren, therefore, thought fit to keep a fast of three days, and humbly
to implore the Divine goodness to vouchsafe to have mercy on them, either by delivering from
instant death those that were in danger by reason of the disease, or by saving those who were hurried
out of this life from the eternal damnation of their souls.

There was at that time in the monastery, a little boy, of the Saxon nation, lately called to the
faith ,who had been attacked by the same infirmity, and had long kept his bed. On the second day
of the aforesaid fasting and prayer, it happened about the second hour of the day, that this boy was
left alone in the place where he lay sick, when on a sudden, through the Divine disposition, the
most blessed chiefs of the Apostles vouchsafed to appear to him; for he was a boy of a very simple
and gentle disposition, and with sincere devotion observed the mysteries of the faith which he had
received. The Apostles therefore, greeting him with loving words, said, "My son, fear not death,
concerning which thou art troubled; for this day we will bring thee to the kingdom of Heaven; but
first thou must needs wait till the Masses are celebrated, that having received thy voyage provision,
the Body and Blood of our Lord, and so being set free from sickness and death, thou mayest be
taken up to the everlasting joys in Heaven.

"Call therefore to thee the priest, Eappa, and tell him, that the Lord has heard your prayers, and
has favourably looked upon your devotion and your fast, and not one more shall die of this plague,
either in the monastery or the lands adjacent to it; but all your people who any where labour under
this sickness, shall be raised up from their weakness, and restored to their former health, saving,
thee alone, who art this day to be delivered from death, and to be carried into Heaven, to behold
our Lord Christ, whom thou hast faithfully served. This favour the Divine mercy has vouchsafed
to grant you, through the intercession of the godly King Oswald, beloved of God, who formerly
nobly ruled over the nation of the Northumbrians, with the authority of a temporal kingdom and
the devotion of Christian piety which leads to the eternal kingdom. For this very day that king was
killed in body by the infidels in war, and straightway taken up to Heaven to the everlasting joys of
souls, and brought into fellowship with the number of the elect. Let them look in their
records,wherein the burial of the dead is set down, and they will find that he was, this day, as we
have said, taken out of this world. Let them, therefore, celebrate Masses in all the oratories of this
monastery, either in thanksgiving because their prayers are heard, or else in memory of the aforesaid
King Oswald, who once governed their nation, and therefore humbly prayed to the Lord for them,
as for converts of his nation; and let all the brethren assemble in the church, and all communicate
in the heavenly Sacrifices, and so let them cease to fast, and refresh the body also with the food
that belongs to it."

The boy called the priest, and repeated all these words to him; and the priest carefully inquired
after the habit and form of the men that had appeared to him. He answered, "Their habit was
altogether noble, and their countenances most pleasant and beautiful, such as I had never seen
before, nor did I think there could be any men so fair and comely. One of them indeed was shorn
like a clerk, the other had a long beard; and they said that one of them was called Peter, the other
Paul; and they were the servants of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, sent by Him from Heaven
to protect our monastery." The priest believed what the boy said, and going thence immediately, looked in his chronicle, and found that King Oswald had been killed on that very day. He then
called the brethren, ordered dinner to be provided, Masses to be said, and all of them to communicate
as usual; causing also a part of the same Sacrifice of the Lord’s Oblation to be carried to the sick
boy.

Soon after this, the boy died, on that same day; and by his death proved that the words which
he had heard from the Apostles of Christ were true. And this moreover bore witness to the truth of
his words, that none besides himself, belonging to the same monastery, was taken away at that
time. And without doubt, by this vision, many that heard of it were wonderfully excited to implore
the Divine mercy in adversity, and to submit to the wholesome remedy of fasting. From that time,
the day of commemoration of that king and soldier of Christ began to be yearly honoured with the
celebration of Masses, not only in that monastery, but in many other places.

CHAP. XV. How King Caedwalla, king of the Gewissae, having slain Ethelwalch, wasted that
Province with cruel slaughter and devastation. [685 A.D.]

IN the meantime, Caedwalla,a young man of great vigour, of the royal race of the Gewissae,an
exile from his country, came with an army, slew Ethelwalch,and wasted that province with cruel
slaughter and devastation; but he was soon expelled by Berthun and Andhun, the king’s ealdormen,
who held in succession the government of the province. The first of them was afterwards killed by
the same Caedwalla, when he was king of the Gewissae, and the province was reduced to more
grievous slavery: Ini, likewise, who reigned after Caedwalla, oppressed that country with the like
servitude for many years; for which reason, during all that time, they could have no bishop of their
own; but their first bishop, Wilfrid, having been recalled home, they were subject to the bishop of
the Gewissae, that is, the West Saxons, who were in the city of Venta. (Winchester)

CHAP. XVI. How the Isle of Wight received Christian inhabitants, and two royal youths of
that island were killed immediately after Baptism. [686 A. D.]

AFTER Caedwalla had obtained possession of the kingdom of the Gewissae, he took also the
Isle of Wight, which till then was entirely given over to idolatry, and by merciless slaughter
endeavoured to destroy all the inhabitants thereof, and to place in their stead people from his own
province; binding himself by a vow, though it is said that he was not yet regenerated in Christ, to
give the fourth part of the land and of the spoil to the Lord, if he took the island. He fulfilled this
vow by giving the same for the service of the Lord to Bishop Wilfrid, who happened at the time to
have come thither from his own people.The measure of that island, according to the computation
of the English, is of twelve hundred families, wherefore an estate of three hundred families was
given to the Bishop. The part which he received, he committed to one of his clerks called Bernwin,
who was his sister’s son, assigning to him a priest, whose name was Hiddila, to administer the
Word and layer of life to all that would be saved.

Here I think it ought not to be omitted that, as the first fruits of those of that island who believed
and were saved, two royal boys, brothers to Arwald, king of the island, were crowned with the
special grace of God. For when the enemy approached, they made their escape out of the island,
and crossed over into the neighbouring province of the Jutes.Coming to the place called At the
Stone, they thought to be concealed from the victorious king, but they were betrayed and ordered
to be killed. This being made known to a certain abbot and priest, whose name was Cynibert, who
had a monastery not far from there, at a place called Hreutford, (Redbridge) that is, the Ford of
Reeds, he came to the king, who then lay in concealment in those parts to be cured of the wounds
which he had received whilst he was fighting in the Isle of Wight, and begged of him, that if the
boys must needs be killed, he might be allowed first to instruct them in the mysteries of the Christian
faith. The king consented, and the bishop having taught them the Word of truth, and cleansed them
in the font of salvation, assured to them their entrance into the kingdom of Heaven. Then the
executioner came, and they joyfully underwent the temporal death, through which they did not
doubt they were to pass to the life of the soul, which is everlasting. Thus, after this manner, when
all the provinces of Britain had received the faith of Christ, the Isle of Wight also received the
same; yet because it was suffering under the affliction of foreign subjection, no man there received
the office or see of a bishop, before Daniel, who is now bishop of the West Saxons.

The island is situated opposite the borders of the South Saxons and the Gewissae, being separated
from it by a sea, three miles wide, which is called Solvente. (The Solent) In this sea, the two tides
of the ocean, which break upon Britain all round its coasts from the boundless northern ocean, daily
meet in conflict beyond the mouth of the river Homelea, (The Hamble)which runs into the aforesaid
sea, through the lands of the Jutes, belonging to the country of the Gewissae; and after this struggle
of the tides, they fall back and return into the ocean whence they come.

CHAP. XVII. Of the Synod held in the plain of Haethfelth, Archbishop Theodore being
president. [680 A.D.]

ABOUT this time, Theodore being informed that the faith of the Church at Constantinople was
much perplexed by the heresy of Eutyches, and desiring that the Churches of the English, over
which he presided, should remain free from all such taint, convened an assembly of venerable
bishops and many learned men, and diligently inquired into the faith of each. He found them all of
one mind in the Catholic faith, and this he caused to be committed to writing by the authority of
the synod as a memorial, and for the instruction of succeeding generations; the beginning of which
document is as follows:

"In the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, under the rule of our most pious lords,
Egfrid, king of of the Northumbrians, in the tenth year of his reign, the seventeenth of September,
the eighth indiction; Ethelred, king of the Mercians, in the sixth year of his reign; Aldwulf king of
the East Angles, in the seventeenth year ofhis reign; and Hlothere, king of Kent, in the seventh year
of his reign, Theodore, by the grace of God, archbishop of the island of Britain, and of the city of
Canterbury, being president, and the other venerable bishops of the island of Britain sitting with
him, the holy Gospels being laid before them, at the place which, in the Saxon tongue, is called
Haethfelth,we conferred together, and set forth the right and orthodox faith, as our Lord Jesus Christ in the flesh delivered the same to His disciples, who beheld His Presence and heard His words, and
as it is delivered by the creed of the holy fathers, and by all holy and universal synods in general,
and by the consent of all approved doctors of the Catholic Church. We, therefore, following them,
in piety and orthodoxy, and professing accordance with their divinely inspired doctrine, do believe
agreeably to it, and with the holy fathers confess the Father, and Son, and Holy Ghost, to be properly
and truly a Trinity consubstantial in Unity, and Unity in Trinity, that is, one God in three Subsistences
or consubstantial persons, of equal glory and honour."

And after much more of the same sort, appertaining to the confession of the right faith, this
holy synod added to its document, "We acknowledge the five holy and general councils of the
blessed fathers acceptable to God; that is, of the 318 assembled at Nicaea, against the most impious
Anus and his tenets; and at ConstantinopIe, of 150, against the madness of Macedonius and Eudoxius,
and their tenets; and at Ephesus, for the first time, of 200, against the most wicked Nestorius, and
his tenets; and at Chalcedon, of 630, against Eutyches and Nestorius, and their tenets; and again,
at Constantinople, in a fifth council, in the time of Justinian the younger,against Theodorus, and
the epistles of Theodoret and Ibas, and their tenets in opposition to Cyril." And again a little lower,
"the synod held in the city of Rome, in the time of the blessed Pope Martin,in the eighth indiction,
and in the ninth year of the most pious Emperor Constantine,we also acknowledge. And we glorify
our Lord Jesus Christ, as they glorified Him, neither adding aught nor taking away; anathematizing
with hearts and lips those whom they anathematized, and receiving those whom they received;
glorifying God the Father, Who is without beginning, and His only-begotten Son, begotten of the
Father before the worlds, and the Holy Ghost proceeding ineffably from the Father and the Son,
even as those holy Apostles, prophets, and doctors, whom we have above-mentioned, did declare.
And all we, who, with Archbishop Theodore, have thus set forth the Catholic faith, thereto subscribe."

CHAP. XVIII. Of John, the precentor of the Apostolic see, who came into Britain to teach.
[680 A. D.]

AMONG those who were present at this synod, and confirmed the decrees of the Catholic faith,
was the venerable John, archchanter of the church of the holy Apostle Peter,and abbot of the
monastery of the blessed Martin, who had come lately from Rome, by order of Pope Agatho,
together with the most reverend Abbot Biscop, surnamed Benedict,of whom mention has been
made above. For the said Benedict, having built a monastery in Britain, in honour of the most
blessed chief of the Apostles, at the mouth of the river Wear, went to Rome with Ceolfrid,his
companion and fellow-labourer in that work, who was after him abbot of the same monastery; he
had been several times before at Rome, and was now honourably received by Pope Agatho of
blessed memory; from whom he also asked and obtained, in order to secure the immunities of the
monastery which he had founded, a letter of privilege confirmed by apostolic authority, according
to what he knew to be the will and grant of King Egfrid, by whose consent and gift of land he had
built that monastery.

He was also allowed to take the aforesaid Abbot John with him into Britain, that he might teach
in his monastery the system of singing throughout the year, as it was practised at St. Peter’s at
Rome. The Abbot John did as he had been commanded by the Pope, teaching the singers of the said monastery the order and manner of singing and reading aloud, and committing to writing all
that was requisite throughout the whole course of the year for the celebration of festivals; and these
writings are still preserved in that monastery, and have been copied by many others elsewhere. The
said John not only taught the brothers of that monastery, but such as had skill in singing resorted
from almost all the monasteries of the same province to hear him, and many invited him to teach
in other places.

Besides his task of singing and reading,, he had also received a commission from the Apostolic
Pope, carefully to inform himself concerning the faith of the English Church, and to give an account
thereof on his return to Rome. For he also brought with him the decision of the synod of the blessed
Pope Martin, held not long before at Rome,with the consent of one hundred and five bishops, chiefly
to refute those who taught that there is but one operation and will in Christ, and he gave it to be
transcribed in the aforesaid monastery of the most religious Abbot Benedict. The men who followed
such opinion greatly perplexed the faith of the Church of Constantinople at that time; but by the
help of God they were then discovered and overcome.Wherefore, Pope Agatho, being desirous to
be informed concerning the state of the Church in Britain, as well as in other provinces, and to what
extent it was clear from the contagion of heretics, gave this matter in charge to the most reverend
Abbot John, then appointed to go to Britain. The synod we have spoken of having been called for
this purpose in Britain, the Catholic faith was found untainted in all, and a report of the proceedings
of the same was given him to carry to Rome.

But in his return to his own country, soon after crossing the sea, he fell sick and died; and his
body, for the sake of St. Martin, in whose monastery he presided, was by his friends carried to
Tours, and honourably buried; for he had been kindly entertained by the Church there on his way
to Britain, and earnestly entreated by the brethren, that in his return to Rome he would take that
road, and visit their Church, and moreover he was there supplied with men to conduct him on his
way, and assist him in the work enjoined upon him. Though he died by the way, yet the testimony
of the Catholic faith of the English nation was carried to Rome, and received with great joy by the
Apostolic Pope, and all those, that heard or read it.

CHAP. XIX. How Queen Ethelthryth always preserved her virginity, and her body suffered
no corruption in the grave. [660-696 A.D.]

KING EGFRID took to wife Ethelthryth, the daughter of Anna,king of the East Angles, of
whom mention has been often made; a man of true religion, and altogether noble in mind and deed.
She had before been given in marriage to another, to wit, Tondbert, ealdormanof the Southern
Gyrwas; but he died soon after he had married her, and she was given to the aforesaid king. Though
she lived with him twelve years, yet she preserved the glory of perfect virginity, as I was informed
by Bishop Wilfrid, of blessed memory, of whom I inquired, because some questioned the truth
thereof; and he told me that he was an undoubted witness to her virginity, forasmuch as Egfrid
promised to give him many lands and much money if he could persuade the queen to consent to
fulfil her marriage duty, for he knew the queen loved no man more than himself. And it is not to
be doubted that this might take place in our age, which true histories tell us happened sometimes
in former ages, by the help of the same Lord who promises to abide with us always, even unto the end of the world. For the divine miracle whereby her flesh, being buried, could not suffer corruption,
is a token that she had not been defiled by man.

She had long asked of the king that he would permit her to lay aside worldly cares, and to serve
only Christ, the true King, in a monastery; and having at length with difficulty prevailed, she entered
the monastery of the Abbess Aebba,who was aunt to King Egfrid, at the place called the city of
Coludi,having received the veil of the religious habit from the hands of the aforesaid Bishop Wilfrid;
but a year after she was herself made abbess in the district called Elge, (Ely) where, having built a
monastery, she began, by the example of a heavenly life and by her teaching, to be the virgin mother
of many virgins dedicated to God. It is told of her that from the time of her entering the monastery,
she would never wear any linen but only woollen garments, and would seldom wash in a hot bath,
unless just before the greater festivals, as Easter, Whitsuntide, and the Epiphany, and then she did
it last of all, when the other handmaids of Christ who were there had been washed, served by her
and her attendants. She seldom ate more than once a day, excepting on the greater festivals, or some
urgent occasion. Always, except when grievous sickness prevented her, from the time of matins
till day-break, she continued in the church at prayer. Some also say, that by the spirit of prophecy
she not only foretold the pestilence of which she was to die, but also, in the presence of all, revealed
the number of those that should be then snatched away from this world out of her monastery. She
was taken to the Lord, in the midst of her flock, seven years after she had been made abbess; and,
as she had ordered, was buried among them in a wooden coffin in her turn, according to the order
in which she had passed away.

She was succeeded in the office of abbess by her sister Sexburg,who had been wife to Earconbert,
king of Kent. This abbess, when her sister had been buried sixteen years, thought fit to take up her
bones, and, putting them into a new coffin, to translate them into the church. Accordingly she
ordered some of the brothers to find a stone whereof to make a coffin for this purpose. They went
on board ship, for the district of Ely is on every side encompassed with water and marshes, and has
no large stones, and came to a small deserted city, not far from thence, which, in the language of
the English, is called Grantacaestir, (Grantchester, near Cambridge) and presently, near the city
walls, they found a white marble coffin, most beautifully wrought, and fitly covered with a lid of
the same sort of stone. Perceiving, therefore, that the Lord had prospered their journey, they returned
thanks to Him and carried it to the monastery.

When the grave was opened and the body of the holy virgin and bride of Christ was brought
into the light of day, it was found as free from corruption as if she had died and been buried on that
very day; as the aforesaid Bishop Wilfrid, and many others that know it, testify. But the physician,
Cynifrid, who was present at her death, and when she was taken up out of the grave, had more
certain knowledge. He was wont to relate that in her sickness she had a very great tumour under
her jaw. "And I was ordered," said he, "to lay open that tumour to let out the noxious matter in it,
which I did, and she seemed to be somewhat more easy for two days, so that many thought she
might recover from her infirmity; but on the third day she was attacked by the former pains, and
being soon snatched out of the world, she exchanged all pain and death for everlasting life and
health. And when, so many years after, her bones were to be taken out of the grave, a pavilion being
spread over it, and all the congregation, the brothers on the one side, and the sisters on the other,
standing about it singing, while the abbess, with a few others, had gone within to take up and wash
the bones, on a sudden we heard the abbess within cry out with a loud voice, ‘Glory be to the name
of the Lord.’ Not long after they called me in, opening the door of the pavilion, and I found the body of the holy virgin taken out of the grave and laid on a bed, like one asleep; then taking off the
veil from the face, they also showed me that the incision which I had made was healed up; so that,
in marvellous wise, instead of the open gaping wound with which she had been buried, there then
appeared only the slightest trace of a scar. Besides, all the linen clothes in which the body had been
wrapped, appeared entire and as fresh as if they had been that very day put about her chaste limbs."

It is said that when she was sore troubled with the aforesaid tumour and pain in her jaw and
neck, she took great pleasure in that sort of sickness, and was wont to say, "I know of a surety that
I deservedly bear the weight of my trouble on my neck, for I remember that, when I was a young
maiden, I bore on it the needless weight of necklaces; and therefore I believe the Divine goodness
would have me endure the pain in my neck, that so I may be absolved from the guilt of my needless
levity, having now, instead of gold and pearls, the fiery heat of a tumour rising on my neck." It
happened also that by the touch of those same linen clothes devils were expelled from bodies
possessed, and other diseases were at divers times healed; and the coffin wherein she was first
buried is said to have cured some of infirmities of the eyes, who, praying with their heads resting
upon that coffin, were presently relieved of the pain or dimness in their eyes. So they washed the
virgin’s body, and having clothed it in new garments, brought it into the church, and laid it in the
sarcophagus that had been brought, where it is held in great veneration to this day. The sarcophagus
was found in a wonderful manner to fit the virgin’s body as if it had been made purposely for her,
and the place for the head, which was fashioned separately, appeared exactly shaped to the
measurement of her head.

Elge is in the province of the East Angles, a district of about six hundred families, of the nature
of an island, encompassed, as has been said, with marshes or waters, and therefore it has its name
from the great plenty of eels taken in those marshes; there the aforesaid handmaid of Christ desired
to have a monastery, because, as we have before mentioned, she came, according to the flesh, of
that same province of the East Angles.

CHAP. XX. A Hymn concerning her.

IT seems fitting to insert in this history a hymn concerning virginity, which we composed