112 Facts About Wilfrid

In 664 Wilfrid acted as spokesman for the Roman position at the Synod of Whitby, and became famous for his speech advocating that the Roman method for calculating the date of Easter should be adopted.

Wilfrid's success prompted the king's son, Alhfrith, to appoint him Bishop of Northumbria.

Wilfrid chose to be consecrated in Gaul because of the lack of what he considered to be validly consecrated bishops in England at that time.

When Wilfrid quarrelled with Ecgfrith, the Northumbrian king, Theodore took the opportunity to implement his reforms despite Wilfrid's objections.

Wilfrid spent the next few years in Selsey, now in West Sussex, where he founded an episcopal see and converted the pagan inhabitants of the Kingdom of Sussex to Christianity.

Theodore and Wilfrid settled their differences, and Theodore urged the new Northumbrian king, Aldfrith, to allow Wilfrid's return.

Wilfrid went to Mercia, where he helped missionaries and acted as bishop for the Mercian king.

Wilfrid appealed to the papacy about his expulsion in 700, and the pope ordered that an English council should be held to decide the issue.

Wilfrid's followers commissioned Stephen of Ripon to write a Vita Sancti Wilfrithi shortly after his death, and the medieval historian Bede wrote extensively about him.

Wilfrid ruled a large number of monasteries, and claimed to be the first Englishman to introduce the Rule of Saint Benedict into English monasteries.

Stephen's Vita is a hagiography, intended to show Wilfrid as a saintly man, and to buttress claims that he was a saint.

Two-thirds of the work deals with Wilfrid's attempts to return to Northumbria, and is a defence and vindication of his Northumbrian career.

Stephen's work is flattering and highly favourable to Wilfrid, making its use as a source problematic; despite its shortcomings however, the Vita is the main source of information on Wilfrid's life.

James Fraser argues that Wilfrid's family were aristocrats from Deira, pointing out that most of Wilfrid's early contacts were from that area.

Wilfrid's background is never explicitly described as noble, but the king's retainers were frequent guests at his father's house, and on leaving home Wilfrid equipped his party with horses and clothes fit for a royal court.

Wilfrid sent him to study under Cudda, formerly one of her husband's retainers, but by that time in about 648 a monk on the island of Lindisfarne.

At Lindisfarne Wilfrid is said to have "learned the whole Psalter by heart and several books".

Wilfrid appears to have spent about a year in Kent, but the exact chronology is uncertain.

Wilfrid developed a close friendship with Boniface Consiliarius during his time in Rome.

Stephen of Ripon says that Wilfrid stayed in Lyon for three years, leaving only after the archbishop's murder.

However, Annemund's murder took place in 660 and Wilfrid returned to England in 658, suggesting that Stephen's chronology is awry.

Some historians believe that Wilfrid was never a monk.

Wilfrid would have learned of the Rule of Saint Benedict in Gaul, as Columbanus' monasteries followed that monastic rule.

Wilfrid ejected the abbot, Eata, because he would not follow the Roman customs; Cuthbert, later a saint, was another of the monks expelled.

Wilfrid introduced the Rule of Saint Benedict into Ripon, claiming that he was the first person in England to make a monastery follow it, but this claim rests on the Vita Sancti Wilfrithi and does not say where Wilfrid became knowledgeable about the Rule, nor exactly what form of the Rule was being referred to.

Shortly afterwards Wilfrid was ordained a priest by Agilbert, Bishop of Dorchester in the kingdom of the Gewisse, part of Wessex.

Wilfrid was a protege of Agilbert, who later helped in Wilfrid's consecration as a bishop.

Wilfrid attended the synod, or council, of Whitby, as a member of the party favouring the continental practice of dating Easter, along with James the Deacon, Agilbert, and Alhfrith.

Wilfrid was chosen to present the Roman position to the council; he acted as Agilbert's interpreter, as the latter did not speak the local language.

One is that Alhfrith wished the seat to be at York, another is that Wilfrid was bishop only in Deira, a third supposes that Wilfrid was never bishop at York and that his diocese was only part of Deira.

Wilfrid refused to be consecrated in Northumbria at the hands of Anglo-Saxon bishops.

Deusdedit had died shortly after Whitby, and as there were no other bishops in Britain whom Wilfrid considered to have been validly consecrated he travelled to Compiegne, to be consecrated by Agilbert, the Bishop of Paris.

Wilfrid delayed his return from Gaul, only to find on his arrival back in Northumbria that Ceadda had been installed as bishop in his place.

The reason for Wilfrid's delay has never been clear, although the historians Eric John and Richard Abels theorise that it was caused by Alhfrith's unsuccessful revolt against Oswiu.

That Ceadda was supported by Oswiu, and Wilfrid had been a supporter of Oswiu's son, lends further credence to the theory that Alhfrith's rebellion took place while Wilfrid was in Gaul.

Stephen of Ripon reported that Wilfrid was expelled by "Quartodecimans", or those who supported the celebration of Easter on the 14th day of the Jewish month Nisan, whether or not this was a Sunday.

On being attacked by the locals, Wilfrid's party killed the head priest before refloating their ship and making their escape.

The historian Marion Gibbs suggests that after this episode Wilfrid visited Kent again, and took part in the diplomacy related to Wigheard's appointment to the see of Canterbury.

Wilfrid occasionally performed episcopal functions in Mercia and Kent, but never did so north of the river Humber.

Consequently, Theodore deposed Ceadda, leaving the way open for Wilfrid, who was finally installed in his see in 669, the first Saxon to occupy the see of York.

Wilfrid spent the next nine years building churches, including at the monastery at Hexham, and attending to diocesan business.

Wilfrid continued to exercise control over his monastic houses of Ripon and Hexham while he was bishop.

The Vita Sancti Wilfrithi claims that Wilfrid had ecclesiastical rule over Britons and Gaels.

In 679, while Wilfrid was in Rome, he claimed authority over "all the northern part of Britain, Ireland and the islands, which are inhabited by English and British peoples, as well as by Gaelic and Pictish peoples".

Wilfrid was one of the first churchmen in Northumbria to use written charters as records of gifts to his churches.

Wilfrid ordered the creation of a listing of all benefactions received by Ripon, which was recited at the dedication ceremony.

Wilfrid was an advocate for the use of music in ecclesiastical ceremonies.

Wilfrid sent to Kent for a singing master to instruct his clergy in the Roman style of church music, which involved a double choir who sang in antiphons and responses.

Wilfrid introduced the Rule of Saint Benedict into the monasteries he founded.

Wilfrid was one of the first Anglo-Saxon bishops to record the gifts of land and property to his church, which he did at Ripon.

When Wilfrid arrived in York as bishop the cathedral's roof was on the point of collapse; he had it repaired and covered in lead, and had glass set in the windows.

Wilfrid worked to combat pagan practices, building a church at Melrose on a pagan site.

Wilfrid did not neglect his pastoral duties in his diocese, making visits throughout the diocese to baptise and perform other episcopal functions, such as consecrating new churches.

Wilfrid was criticised for dressing his household and servants in clothing fit for royalty.

Wilfrid was accompanied on his travels by a retinue of warriors, one of whom, while at York, Wilfrid sent to abduct a young boy who had been promised to the church but whose family had changed their mind.

Wilfrid educated young men, both for clerical and secular careers.

The new bishops were unacceptable to Wilfrid, who claimed they were not truly members of the Church because of their support for the "Celtic" method of dating Easter, and thus he could not serve alongside them.

Wilfrid's deposition became tangled up in a dispute over whether or not the Gregorian plan for Britain, with two metropolitan sees, the northern one set at York, would be followed through or abandoned.

Wilfrid seems to have felt that he had metropolitan authority over the northern part of England, but Theodore never acknowledged that claim, instead claiming authority over the whole of the island of Britain.

Wilfrid went to Rome after his expulsion to appeal against Theodore and Ecgfrith's decisions, the first Englishman to challenge a royal or ecclesiastical decision by petitioning the papacy.

Wilfrid had been blown off course on his trip from England to the continent, and ended up in Frisia according to some historians.

Wilfrid wintered in Frisia, avoiding the diplomatic efforts of Ebroin, who according to Stephen attempted to have Wilfrid killed.

Wilfrid's biographer says that most of the nobles converted, but the success was short-lived.

Once in Italy, Wilfrid was received by Perctarit, a Lombard king, who gave him a place at his court.

Wilfrid was given the right to replace any bishop in the new dioceses to whom he objected.

The council had been called to deal with the Monothelete controversy, and Wilfrid's concerns were not the sole focus of the council.

Wilfrid secured the right for his monasteries of Ripon and Hexham to be directly supervised by the pope, preventing any further interference in their affairs by the diocesan bishops.

In 680 Wilfrid returned to Northumbria and appeared before a royal council.

Wilfrid produced the papal decree ordering his restoration, but was instead briefly imprisoned and then exiled by the king.

Wilfrid spent the next five years preaching to, and converting the pagan inhabitants of Sussex, the South Saxons.

Wilfrid worked with Bishop Erkenwald of London, helping to set up the church in Sussex.

In 686 Wilfrid was recalled to Northumbria after the death of Ecgfrith in battle with the Picts.

Aldfrith agreed, Wilfrid returned to the north, and Bosa was removed from York.

Wilfrid did not recover the whole of his previous bishopric however, as Hexham and Lindisfarne remained separate sees.

Wilfrid appears to have lived at Ripon, and for a time he acted as administrator of the see of Lindisfarne after Cuthbert's death in 687.

In 691, the subdivision issue arose once more, along with quarrels with King Aldfrith over lands, and attempts were made to make Wilfrid either give up all his lands or to stay confined to Ripon.

When no compromise was possible Wilfrid left Northumbria for Mercia, and Bosa was returned to York.

Wilfrid is generally considered to have been Bishop of Leicester until about 706, when he is held to have been transferred to Hexham.

Wilfrid became involved in the missionary efforts to the Frisians, which he had started in 678 during his stay in Frisia.

Wilfrid helped the missionary efforts of Willibrord, which were more successful than his own earlier attempts.

Wilfrid had been her spiritual adviser in the 670s, and had helped the queen become a nun against the wishes of her husband King Ecgfrith of Northumbria.

The council was presided over by Berhtwald, the new archbishop of Canterbury, and the decision of the council was that Wilfrid should be deprived of all his monasteries but Ripon, and that he should cease to perform episcopal functions.

When Wilfrid continued his appeal to the papacy, his opponents had him and his supporters excommunicated.

On his way to Rome Wilfrid stopped in Frisia to visit Willibrord.

On his journey back to England Wilfrid had a seizure at Meaux, but he had returned to Kent by 705.

Eadwulf's reign lasted only a few months before he was expelled to make way for Aldfrith's son Osred, to whom Wilfrid acted as spiritual adviser.

Once Osred was secure on the throne Wilfrid was restored to Ripon and Hexham in 706.

When Bosa of York died, Wilfrid did not contest the decision to appoint John of Beverley to York.

Kirby regards Wilfrid's championing of Oswald as being a contributing factor in Wilfrid's expulsion from York in 678.

Kirby believes that Ecgfrith felt Wilfrid was promoting Oswald's branch of the Northumbrian royal family over his own.

Wilfrid made many contacts and friends, not only in Northumbria and the other English kingdoms, but in Gaul, Frisia, and Italy.

Nobles sent their sons to him for fostering, and Wilfrid was known to help his proteges, no matter if they became clerics or not.

Wilfrid's contacts extended to the Lombard kingdom in Italy, where they included King Perctarit and his son Cunipert.

Wilfrid was a prolific founder of churches, which he then controlled until his death, and was a great fundraiser, acquiring lands and money from many of the kings he was in contact with.

Wilfrid was noted for his ability to attract support from powerful women, especially queens.

Wilfrid built a church capable of accommodating a congregation of 2,000 at Hexham, using stone from Hadrian's Wall.

Wilfrid was buried near the altar of his church in Ripon.

Wilfrid was succeeded at Hexham by Acca of Hexham, a protege who had accompanied him to Rome in 703.

Wilfrid left large sums of money to his monastic foundations, enabling them to purchase royal favour.

Stephen's Vita is concerned with vindicating Wilfrid and making a case for his sainthood, and so is used with caution by historians, although it is nevertheless an invaluable source for Wilfrid's life and the history of the time.

Immediately after his death Wilfrid's body was venerated as a cult object, and miracles were alleged to have happened at the spot where the water used to wash his body was discarded.

The relics that were held at Canterbury were originally placed in the High Altar in 948, but after the fire at Canterbury Cathedral in 1067, Wilfrid's relics were placed in their own shrine.

Wilfrid is venerated in the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church and the Anglican Communion.

Wilfrid is usually depicted either as a bishop preaching and baptising or else as a robed bishop holding an episcopal staff.

Wilfrid was one of the first bishops to bring relics of saints back from Rome.

Wilfrid was known as an advocate of Benedictine monasticism, and regarded it as a tool in his efforts to "root out the poisonous weeds planted by the Scots".

Wilfrid built at Ripon and Hexham, and lived a majestic lifestyle.

One commentator has said that Wilfrid "came into conflict with almost every prominent secular and ecclesiastical figure of the age".

The historian Barbara Yorke said of him that "Wilfrid's character was such that he seems to have been able to attract and infuriate in equal measure".

John challenges the belief that Wilfrid was fond of pomp, pointing out that the comparison between the Irish missionaries who walked and Wilfrid who rode ignores the reality that the quickest method of travel in the Middle Ages was on horseback.

Wilfrid was not a humble man, nor, so far as we can see, was he a man greatly interested in learning, and perhaps he would have been more at home as a member of the Gallo-Roman episcopate where the wealth which gave him enemies in England would have passed unnoticed and where his interference in matters of state would have been less likely to take him to prison.

Southern, another modern historian, says that Wilfrid was "the greatest papal enthusiast of the century".