Saturday 3 November 2012

Anglo-Saxon England: The English Orthodox Church (597-1066)



According to historians, during this period St. Non, the mother of St. David of Wales, and the daughter of the nobleman Cynyr of Caer Goch of Pembrokeshire, reposed and St. Materiana of Cornwall, April 9, reposed early 6th-century at Minster of Cornwall. St. Augustine, Archbishop of Canterbury, Apostle of the English. 597 Gregory the Great sends Augustine[note 16] and forty monks to Britain to convert the Kingdom of Kent; Augustine first preaches in the Isle of Thanet to King Ethelbert, receiving license to enter the Kingdom of Kent; King Ethelbert is converted and on Christmas day 10,000 of the king's subjects were baptized; Augustine was consecrated Abp. at Arles, and establishes the See of Canterbury. 598 Brandon mac Echac (d. 603) convence a synod at which the Diocese of Ferns is made an episcopal see and Aedan of Ferns is made the first Bishop; Glastonbury Abbey founded; the Church in the British Isles numbers 120 bishops, hundreds of monasteries and parishes organized under a Primate with his See at Menevia. 7th c. Celtic missions are launched in Northumbria (Aidan, Cuthbert). ca.600 Emergence of Insular art, also known as the Hiberno-Saxon style, produced in the post-Roman history of the British Isles, originating from the Irish monasticism of Celtic Christianity, or metalwork for the secular elite; the most important centres were in Ireland, Scotland and the kingdom of Northumbria in Northern England. 601 Death of David of Wales, Bishop of Menevia; Gregory sends the St Augustine Gospels to Augustine of Canterbury[note 17] 602 Augustine repares the church of our Saviour and builds the monastery of St. Peter the Apostle, "Peter" is the first abbot of the same. 603 Death of Kentigern of Glasgow; Ethelfrid, king of the Northumbrians, having vanquished the nations of the Scots, expels them from the territories of the English. 604 First Bishop of London, Mellitus consecrated by Augustine in the province of East Saxons; Repose of Saint Augustine of Canterbury "Apostle to the English;" Saint Laurence of Canterbury consecrated as the second Archbishop of Canterbury; Bp. Mellitus founded the first St. Paul's Cathedral, traditionally said to be on the site of an old Roman Temple of Diana (although Christopher Wren in the 17th c. found no evidence of this). Aidan of Lindisfarne, Enlightener of Northumbria. 612 Death of Dubricius of Caerleon, Archbishop and Confessor of Caerleon and Wales, one of the greatest of Welsh saints. 614 Death of Kentigern of Glasgow, Apostle of northwest England and southwest Scotland. 616 Death of Æthelberht (Ethelbert), King of Kent, the first Christian king of the Anglo-Saxons. 618 Death of abbot Donnan & his monk companions in Eigg. 619 Death of Laurence of Canterbury; Mellitus consecrated as third Archbishop of Canterbury. 624 Death of Mellitus, first Bishop of London. 628 Benedict Biscop born in Northumbria. 630 Audrey of Ely born in West Suffolk. 632 Death of Aed of Ferns,[note 18] Bishop of Ferns in Ireland. 635 Cuthbert born in Britain. 640 Death of Constantine of Strathclyde; death of Beuno the Wonderworker, Abbot of Clynnog.[note 19] 647 Repose of Felix of Burgundy, Apostle of East Anglia. 650 The Book of Durrow illuminated manuscript Gospel Book is begun at Durrow Abbey, Ireland in the Insular style; (Fursey of Lagny); citation needed 651 Cuthbert of Lindisfarne witnesses the soul of St. Aidan of Lindisfarne reposing as a light in the night sky and leaves for Melrose Abbey to become a monk; Repose of St. Aidan of Lindisfarne, enlightener of Northumbria of Northern England. 653 Benedict Biscop and Wilfred the Elder set off to visit Rome. 657 Whitby Abbey (Benedictine) is founded by the Anglo-Saxon King of Northumbria, Oswy (Oswiu). 661 Cuthbert of Lindisfarne and Eata join a monastery at Ripon. St. Cuthbert the Wonderworker, Bishop of Lindisfarne. Folio 27r from the Lindisfarne Gospels contains the incipit from the Gospel of Matthew. 664 Synod of Whitby; Cuthbert stricken by the great pestilence; death of St. Boisil, abbot of Melrose Abbey, Scotland;[note 20] death of St. Cedd, Apostle of Essex. 668 Gerald of Mayo follows Colman and settles in Innisboffin. 669 Theodore of Tarsus arrives in Kent at the age of seven. 670 Colman founds an English monastery, separate from the Irish, the "Mayo of the Saxons,"[note 21] with Gerald of Mayo as the first abbot. 672 Death of Chad of Lichfield and Mercia. 673 Historian Bede born. 675 Death of Ethelburgh, first abbess of the Convent of Barking 676 Cuthbert becomes a solitary on Farne Island; Malmesbury Abbey (Benedictine) is founded at Malmesbury in Wiltshire, England, by the scholar-poet Aldhelm, a nephew of King Ine of Wessex. 679 Death of Audrey of Ely. 680 Death of Botolph of Iken; Repose of St. Hilda of Whitby; Sussex is the last part of England to be converted to Christianity. 681 Death of Caedmon,[note 22] 682 Foundation of Monkwearmouth-Jarrow Abbey in England. 685 Cuthbert of Lindisfarne consecrated Bishop of Lindisfarne, by St. Theodore 686 Death of Cuthbert of Lindisfarne. 689 Death of Benedict Biscop, abbot, in Wearmouth, Co Durham. 690 Death of Theodore of Tarsus, eighth Archbishop of Canterbury. 694 Death of Sebbe, founder of the monastery of Westiminster. 693 Death of Erconwald, Bishop of London. 696 Incorrupt body of Audrey of Ely found. 697 Gerald of Mayo resigns as abbot of the "Mayo of the Saxons" in favour of St. Adamnan; Relics of Cuthbert of Lindisfarne revealed to be incorrupt. 703 Gerald of Mayo resumes the abbacy of the "Mayo of the Saxons". 705 The Saxon Diocese of Sherborne was founded by King Ine of Wessex, who set Aldhelm as first Bishop of the see of Western Wessex, with his seat at Sherborne. 709 Death of Wilfrid, Bishop of Hexham. 712 Glastonbury Abbey is founded as a stone church in Glastonbury, Somerset, England, under the patronage of Saxon King Ine of Wessex, although the abbey itself was founded by Britons dating to at least the early 7th century. 714 Death of Guthlac of Crowland, the hermit. ca. 715 Lindisfarne Gospels produced in Northumbria (Northern England). 716 Death of Donald of Ogilvy, Confessor of Scotland, whose nine daughters all entered a monastery in Abernethy, founded by Ss. Darlugdach and Brigid, where they became known as the Nine Maidens, or the Nine Holy Virgins. 717 In Scotland, the Iona monks were expelled by the Pictish king Nechtan son of Derile. St Bede, or the Venerable Bede, Monk of Jarrow, biblical scholar (+735). 725 During his pilgrimage to Rome, King Ina of the West Saxons first gives the tribute or alms knows as "Peter's-Pence" (otherwise called in the Saxon Romefeoh).[note 23] 731 Death of Gerald, Bishop of Mayo and english monk; Bede writes "The Ecclesiastical History of the English People"' 735 Death of Venerable Bede; See of York achieves archepiscopal status. 747 Witenagamot of England again forbids appeals to the Roman Pope; Council of Clovesho I adopts Roman calendar, observance of the feasts of Gregory the Great and Augustine of Canterbury, and adopts the Rogation Days. ca.750-800 Book of Mulling composed, an Irish pocket Gospel Book. 768 Wales adopts Orthodox Paschalion and other decrees of the Synod of Whitby at teaching of Elfoddw of Gwynedd. 781 King Charlemagne of the Franks summons Alcuin of York to head palace school at Aachen (Aix-la-Chapelle) to inspire revival of education in Europe. 785 Synod of Cealchythe erects the Archbishopric of Lichfield. 787 Two councils held in England, one in the north at Pincanhale, and the other in the south at Chelsea, reaffirming the faith of the first Six Ecumenical Councils (the decrees of the Seventh having not yet been received), and establishing a third archbishopric at Lichfield. Book of Kells, Folio 183v, Text from Mark. Viking Age (793-1066) 793 Sack of Lindisfarne Priory, beginning Viking attacks on England. 794 Vikings sack the Monkwearmouth-Jarrow Abbey; Offa, King of the Mercians, offers the tribute or alms known as "Peter's Pence" (Romefeoh). 795 In the earliest recorded Viking raid on Ireland, they attack Iona, Inisbofin and Inismurray. ca.800 Book of Kells is completed by the Celts. 802 The Vikings sack Iona. 803 Council of Clovesho II abolishes archbishopric of Lichfield, restoring the pattern of the two metropolitan archbishoprics (Canterbury and York) which had prevailed before 787, and requires the use of the Western Rite amongst the English speaking peoples. 806 Vikings kill all the inhabitants on the religious island of Iona, Scotland, UK. 807 The Christianized Vikings (Danes) land on the Cornish coast, and form an alliance with the Cornish to fight against the 'heathen' West Saxons. 815 Egbert of Wessex ravages the territories of the west Welsh (Cornwall). 824 Death of Óengus of Tallaght (Óengus the Culdee), held to be the author of the Félire Óengusso ("The Martyrology of Óengus") and possibly the Martyrology of Tallaght. 825 Egbert of Wessex defeats Beornwulf of Mercia at Ellandun; Kent, Surrey, Sussex and Essex submit to Wessex and East Anglia acknowledges Egbert as overlord. 828 Egbert of Wessex becomes the first King of England. ca.830 Historia Brittonum written (known for its list of 12 battles of King Arthur). 836 Egbert of Wessex is defeated by the Danes. 838 Death of Bp. Winnoc (Gwynog, Guinoch) of Scotland, a counsellor to King Kenneth, whose prayers helped the king to vanquish the Picts in seven battles on a single day; at Hingston Down, Egbert of Wessex beats the Danish and the West Welsh. 843 Kenneth I (Cináed mac Ailpín), King of the Scots, also becomes King of the Picts, thus becoming the first monarch of the new nation of Scotland; the Alpin dynasty of Scottish kings begins to reign. Edmund the King-Martyr of East Anglia (+869). 851 Vikings plunder London and Canterbury. 852 St. Swithun becomes Bp. of Winchester, England. 855 King Æthelwulf of Wessex grants churches in the kingdom of Wessex the right to receive tithes. 866 Vikings raid and capture York in England. 869 Martyrdom of King Edmund of East Anglia. 870 Death of Ss. Beocca and Hethor, the two martyrs of Chertsey; the Great Summer Army invades England led by Bagsecg and conquers East Anglia; the buildings destroyed by the Danish invaders include the abbey of Ely and the monastery of Peterborough. 875 The Danes capture Lindisfarne and arrive in Cambridge. 878 King Alfred the Great of Wessex defeats Vikings; the Treaty of Wedmore divides England between the Anglo-Saxons and the Danes (the Danelaw). 886 St Alfred the Great, King of Wessex, captures London from the Danes. 888 Shaftesbury Abbey is founded in Dorset, England. 890 Bede's Ecclesiastical History was translated into Old English at the insistence of Alfred the Great. 899 Death of King Alfred the Great. 903 Relics of King Alfred the Great[note 24] translated to New Minster Abbey. 904 King Constantine II of Scotland (900-943) is victorious at the Battle of Scone, after which the Vikings were forced to withdraw from Scotland; according to the Fragmentary Annals of Ireland, the defeat of the Norsemen is attributed to the intercession of Saint Columba following fasting and prayer. 906 Synod at Scone, reported by the Chronicle of the Kings of Alba, where King Constantine II of Scotland and Bp. Cellach I of Cennrígmonaid met "upon the hill of credulity near the royal city of Scone, [and] pledged themselves that the laws and disciplines of the faith, and the rights in churches and gospels, should be kept in conformity with the [customs of the] Gaels". 911 Normans convert to Christianity: in the Treaty of Saint Clair-sur-Epte with King Charles the Simple, Viking leader Rollo pledged feudal allegiance to the king, changed his name to the Frankish version, and converted to Christianity, probably with the baptismal name Robert. 934 Death of Birnstan of Winchester. 935 Relics of St. Branwallader (or Brelade translated by King Athelstan to Milton Abbey.[note 25] 943 King Constantine II of Scotland retires and becomes a monk. 945 Dunstan becomes Abbot of Glastonbury. 955 Death of King Edred of England. 960 Dunstan becomes Archbishop of Canterbury, reforming monasteries and enforcing rule of Benedict; Church of St. Dunstan, Mayfield is founded in East Sussex by St. Dunstan. Edward the Martyr, King of England (+978). 971 Translation of St. Swithun's relics into an indoor shrine (previously buried outside); the ceremony is said to have been marred by 40 days of torrential rain. 972 The monastery at the site of Peterborough Cathedral is rebuilt; St. Edburga of Winchester (+960) is canonized. 977 St. Æthelwold of Winchester, Bishop of Winchester, rebuilds the western end of the Old Minster, Winchester, with twin towers and no apses. 978 Death of King Edward the Martyr. King Harold II Godwinson, last Orthodox king of England. ca.980-1000 Ramsey Psalter illuminated manuscript is produced at Winchester, intended for use at the Benedictine monastery of Ramsey. 982 Greenland is discovered by Erik the Red. 988 Death of St. Dunstan of Canterbury, Bishop of London. ca.988-1023 The Bosworth Psalter is compiled at Canterbury, including a calendar of the Orthodox Church from among the Saints of Western, especially English origin who reposed before the West fell away from Orthodoxy. 1002 Death of St. Wulsin, renewer of the Monastery of St. Peter; St. Brice's Day massacre . 1005 Irish King Brian Boru visited Armagh, confirming to the apostolic see of Saint Patrick, ecclesiastical supremacy over the whole of Ireland (as recorded in the Book of Armagh). 1006 St. Alphege goes to Pope John XVIII at Rome for his pallium and becomes Archbishop of Canterbury. 1010 Death of Ælfric of Eynsham, abbot of Eynsham and a prolific writer in Old English of hagiography, homilies, biblical commentaries. 1012 Death of St. Alphege, Archbishop of Canterbury martyred to the east of London at Greenwich. 1014 Abp. Wulfstan preaches his Latin homily, "Wulf's Address to the English". 1018 Buckfast Abbey is founded at Buckfastleigh, Devon, England. 1020 Canute the Great codifies the laws of England. ca.1020 Harley Psalter illuminated manuscript is produced, probably at Christ Church, Canterbury. 1022 Aethelnoth, Archbishop of Canterbury, is received at Rome; Gloucester Abbey (Benedictine) is founded in the city of Gloucester, England, dedicated to St. Peter. 1030 Relics of St. Boisil (Boswell), Prior of Melrose (+661), are translated to Durham Cathedral by the priest Ælfred. 1043 Edward the Confessor crowned King of England at Winchester Cathedral. 1045 Edward the Confessor begins construction of Westminster Abbey. 1050 Exeter Cathedral is founded, dedicated to Saint Peter, dating from 1050, when the seat of the Bp. of Devon and Cornwall was transferred from Crediton because of a fear of sea-raids; Leofric is enthroned as Bp. of Exeter on St. Peter's Day, with King Edward the Confessor in attendance; 1065 Westminster Abbey is consecrated on December 28, 1065, only a week before Edward the Confessor's death and subsequent funeral and burial; it was the site of the last coronation prior to the Norman conquest of England, that of Harold II Godwinson.

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