No More Learning

If this is right, the incident related in the text
must be placed before Gregory’s departure to Constantinople in 579.
Paul the Deacon places it after his return in 585 or 586, and
asserts that the pope was Pelagius II.

162 The date of the synod is uncertain. It was probably about 602 or 603
A. D. , after the arrival of Gregory’s “Responsa. ” The “nearest
province” must mean what we call South Wales, though it is possible
that the Britons of Cornwall were also represented. The scene of the
conference has been generally supposed to be Aust, on the Severn,
opposite Chepstow, and the name may possibly preserve the memory of
Augustine, though more probably it is derived from “Trajectus
Augusti” (Haddan and Stubbs). Other possible sites are Malmesbury
(Green, “Making of England”), and a spot called “the Oak,” near
Cricklade, on the Upper Thames, which would be on the borders of the
Hwiccas and West Saxons (_v. _ Plummer, _ad loc. _).

163 The Hwiccas were in the present Gloucestershire and Worcestershire,
north-west of Wessex.

164 Cf. especially III, 25, and V, 21. (Other references are: II, 4, 19;
III, 3, 4, 26, 29; V, 15, 22. )

A full discussion of this involved question is beyond our scope.
Readers are referred to Plummer (Excursus on Paschal Controversy),
Bright, or Hunt. Here, the point at issue may be briefly stated. It
was regarded as essential by the Roman Church that Easter Day should
be kept on a Sunday, in the third week of the first month, _i. e. _,
the month in which the full moon occurred on or after the vernal
equinox. The Celts observed the Feast on Sunday, and were,
therefore, not rightly called “Quartodecimans” (the name given to
those who observed it on the 14th of the month Nisan, the day of the
Jewish Passover, without regard to the day of the week). They
differed from the Romans in fixing the vernal equinox at March 25th,
instead of March 21st, and in their reckoning of the third week,
holding it to be from the 14th to the 20th of the moon inclusive.
The Roman Church originally reckoned it from the 16th to the 22nd,
but ultimately fixed it from the 15th to the 21st (cf. V, 21, p.
365).

There was a further divergence in the “cycles” adopted to ascertain
the day in each year on which the Paschal moon would fall. The Celts
retained an old cycle of eighty-four years, while the Romans had
finally adopted one of nineteen. It is obvious that these
differences must necessarily lead to great divergence in practice
and consequently serious inconvenience. The real importance of this
and the other points of difference, settled afterwards at the Synod
of Whitby, lay in the question whether England was to conform to the
practice of the Catholic Church, or to isolate herself from it by
local peculiarities (cf. the reply of the British to Augustine:
“They would do none of those things nor receive him as their
archbishop”).

_ 165 E. g. _, Consecration of bishops by a single bishop, certain
differences of ritual (Gregory’s “Responsa” admit of some latitude
in these matters), and the tonsure, which was a more controversial
point (cf. III, 26, and V, 21). The Romans shaved only the top of
the head, letting the hair grow in the form of a crown. The Celts
shaved the whole front of the head from ear to ear, leaving the hair
at the back. A third method was the Oriental, which consisted in
shaving the whole head (cf. IV, 1).

166 The place of the second conference is not mentioned. It is generally
assumed that it was the same as that of the first. All attempts to
determine the names and sees of these bishops rest upon the most
uncertain evidence.

167 Probably Bangor-is-Coed, in Flintshire, from which it appears that
North Wales was represented at the second conference. The size and
importance of the monastery are inferred by William of Malmesbury,
writing in the twelfth century, from the extent of the ruins, which
were all that was left of it in his time.

168 Dunawd, or Dunod; Latin: Donatus (Rhŷs).

169 It is not known in what way the practice of the British Church
differed from that of the Romans in the rite of Baptism. It may have
been by the neglect of Confirmation as the completion of Baptism
(cf. “compleatis” in the text). Other suggestions are: single
immersion (but this was permitted in Spain); the omission of chrism,
an omission which was affirmed of the Irish at a later period; some
defect in the invocation of the Trinity. This conjecture rests on a
canon respecting Baptism established in the English Church from the
time of Augustine (quoted by Haddan and Stubbs from a letter of Pope
Zacharias to Boniface), which enforces the full invocation.

170 I, 34.

171 Chester, the seat of the Twentieth legion. “Legionum civitas, quae
nunc simpliciter Cestra vocatur. ” (William of Malmesbury. ) Cf. note
on I, 7, p. 18. The date of the battle cannot be accurately fixed.
The “Annales Cambriae” give 613, but it may have been a few years
later. Bede only tells us that it was a considerable time after
Augustine’s death, which was probably in 604 or 605.

172 Cf. _supra_ p. 86, note 2.

173 Nothing certain is known of this Welsh prince.

174 I, 29, and note.

175 The site is covered by the present cathedral.

176 Rochester. The new see was closely dependent on Canterbury, and till
1148 the archbishop had the appointment to this bishopric.

177 Probably in memory of his monastery on the Coelian (cf. I, 23).
According to Rochester tradition, Ethelbert gave to the church some
land called Priestfield to the south of the city, and other lands to
the north. There exists a charter of Ethelbert to the city of
Rochester, believed to be genuine.

178 The year is not given, and is not certainly known. It is generally
assumed to have been 604 or 605.

179 This was in 613, by Laurentius. St. Augustine’s body was translated
on September 13th. It was moved again in the twelfth century and
placed under the high altar.

180 “Porticus”; variously translated: “porch,” “aisle,” “transept,” and
“chapel. ” Ducange explains it as “aedis sacrae propylaeum in
porticus formam exstructum,” and says it was also used improperly
for the sanctuary. Plummer (_ad loc. _) says it means side chapel, as
often. The mention of the altar just below seems to support this
meaning (if, indeed, _haec_ refers to the “porticus,” and not to the
church itself, as is assumed in the A. S. version).

181 For Theodore _v. _ Preface, p. 2, note 2; IV, 1; V, 8, _et saep. _;
and for Bertwald, V, 8. Cuthbert (740-758) was the first archbishop
buried in Christ Church, Canterbury, instead of at St. Augustine’s.

182 Cf. I, 27, _ad init. _

183 Bede thus distinguishes them from the colony in Scotland. Cf. I, 1,
and note.

184 Ireland. Iona may be included, as may be inferred from a comparison
of III, 21 (“reversus est ad insulam Hii”) with III, 24 (“ad
Scottiam rediit”). But Bede does not use “Scottia” for Scotland.

185 Bishop of Inver Daeile (Ennereilly) in Wicklow.

186 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.

187 Nothing more is known of this council. The pope was Boniface IV,
608-615.

188 610 A. D.

189 To commemorate the dedication the pope introduced into the Western
Church the Festival of All Saints, celebrated at first probably on
13th May. The Eastern Church had from early times observed a
Festival of All Martyrs, which became later the Festival of All
Saints, kept by them on the Sunday after Whitsunday.

190 As Bretwalda, or paramount sovereign (_v. _ Stubbs, “Constitutional
History,” I, pp. 162-163). Aelli and Ceaulin are not elsewhere
mentioned in this work. For Redwald, _v. infra_ c. 12; for Edwin, c.
9, foll. ; for Oswald, III, 1, foll. ; and for Oswy, III, 14, foll.

191 Anglesea and Man.

192 This is inaccurate and inconsistent with Bede’s own statement in V.
24. Augustine did not arrive in Britain till 597. The dates given
above, at the beginning of this chapter, are, however, probably
correct, if he means that Ethelbert died twenty-one years after the
dispatch of the mission from Rome.

193 The Witenagemot, the supreme assembly. This is the first recorded
instance of its legislative action. The “decisions” are the
so-called “dooms. ”

194 “—ing” is a Saxon patronymic.

195 It was Ethelbert’s second wife. Bertha had died before him.

196 Or Gewissae. The West Saxons, an antiquated term for them. Cf. III,
7: “Occidentalium Saxonum, qui antiquitus Gewissae vocabantur” (cf.
“visi” = west, in “Visigoth”).

197 At Canterbury, to the east of the church of SS. Peter and Paul, to
which it was afterwards joined.

198 619 A. D.

199 Boniface V.

200 Their names are said to have been: Severus, Severianus, Victorinus,
and Carpophorus (v. addition to Bede’s Martyrology at 8th November).
They suffered martyrdom at Rome in the Diocletian persecution. A
church was erected in their honour on the Coelian, and on its site
stands the present church of the Santi Quattro Coronati.

201 St. Matt. , xxviii, 20.

_ 202 I. e. _, the reward is bestowed on that gift of faithful and
successful service which he might hand on in its results to
posterity. But the text is probably corrupt, and it is difficult to
extract sense from it.

203 St. Matt. , x, 22.

204 He means Eadbald.

205 Ps. xix, 4.

206 Cf. c. 5, p. 94.

207 I, 29.

208 Except Kent. Cf. _supra_, c. 5.

_ 209 Ibid. _

210 A term of endearment.

211 2 Cor. , xi, 2.

212 2 Cor. , iv, 4.

213 Apparently joint king with his father, Cynegils (III, 7). The
hegemony which the West-Saxon Ceaulin had possessed (_v. s. _ c. 5)
had passed to Northumbria.

_ 214 I. e. _, Easter Eve, April 19th, 626.

215 Supposed to be at Aldby, near Stamford Bridge, but other conjectures
have been advanced.

216 Twelve in some MSS. and in V, 24. The baptism was on the Eve of
Whitsunday (cf. V. 24, “in Sabbato Pentecostes”). The Eves of Easter
and Whitsunday were usual days for baptisms; the Roman Church tried
to limit them to these seasons, but Christmas and Epiphany were also
favourite times.

217 Boniface V, unless, as Dr. Bright suggests, the name is a scribe’s
error for Honorius, his successor. Boniface V died in October, 625.
Paulinus had only been consecrated in the preceding July, so it is
impossible that Boniface could have heard of Edwin’s delay in
receiving the faith; _v. _ following letter (c. 11). But there is a
reference in the same letter to Eadbald’s conversion, the news of
which must have come in the time of Boniface rather than of
Honorius. The difficulty is not cleared up.

218 Reading “profert” for the impossible “proferetur. ” The style of this
letter is very involved and there seems to be a good deal of
corruption in the text.

219 Adopting the conjecture “propinemus. ”

220 The MSS.
reading (“totius creaturae suae dilatandi subdi”) yields no
sense here, but no satisfactory conjecture has been made.

221 From the Vulgate, Ps. xcv, 5 (Ps. xcvi, 5 in our Psalter).

222 Ps. cxiii, 5-8 (cxv in our Psalter).

223 Gen. , ii, 24; St. Matt. , xix, 5; St. Mark, x, 7; Eph. , v, 31.

224 1 Cor. , vii, 14, cf. 16.

225 Reading “conversione. ”

_ 226 I. e. _, of East Anglia (Norfolk, Suffolk, and Cambridgeshire). Cf.
c. 5, _ad init. _

227 I, 34, and note.

228 Cf. Verg. Aen. , IV, 2, “caeco carpitur igni. ”

229 A tributary of the Trent. The battle is supposed to have been fought
near Retford, in Nottinghamshire, before April 12th, 617. Cf. Bede’s
statement that Edwin was baptized on April 12th, 627, in the
eleventh year of his reign (c. 14).

230 The Witenagemot.

231 Goodmanham, near Market Weighton, in the East Riding of Yorkshire.

232 Cf. Verg. Aen. , II. 502.

_ 233 I. e. _, Easter Eve. Cf. c. 9, p. 104, note 3.

234 On the site now covered by York Cathedral. The little wooden oratory
was carefully preserved and adorned with gifts. The church has been
repeatedly rebuilt, and of the Saxon building nothing remains but
the central wall of the crypt.

235 Cf. _infra_ c. 20.

236 The newly-baptized wore white garments till the octave of the day of
their baptism, and appeared in church daily with lighted tapers and
accompanied by their sponsors.

237 For Wuscfrea and Yffi, _v. infra_ c. 20, p. 132.

238 Yeavering in Glendale, near Wooler in Northumberland. The name,
Adgefrin, is one of those (common in Anglo-Saxon) in which the
preposition is prefixed. “Æt” (Latin _ad_) and “in” are so used. The
idiom is preserved in the Latin. Cf. Ad Murum, Ad Caprae Caput (III,
21), Infeppingum _(ibid. ), et saep. _

239 The stream, in its upper reaches called the Bowmont Water, is still
called the Glen at Yeavering. It is a tributary of the Till.
Pallinsburn, in the neighbourhood of Coldstream, preserves by its
name the memory of similar baptisms by Paulinus.

240 Perhaps Millfield, near Wooler; but Mindrum and Kirknewton in the
same district have also been suggested.

241 Catterick Bridge (the Roman station Cataractonium, on the Watling
Street), near Richmond in the North Riding of Yorkshire.

242 Perhaps Doncaster. Other suggestions are Slack, near Huddersfield,
and Tanfield, near Ripon. The Anglo-Saxon version has Donafeld.

243 Leeds. The royal township (_villa_) is said to have been at
Oswinthorp.

244 Elmet Wood, near Leeds.

245 Cf. IV, 17, 23. His father was Ethelhere, King of East Anglia (III,
24).

246 For the patronymic, cf. _supra_ c. 5, p. 95, and note.

247 Cf. III, 18. He was Earpwald’s half-brother, and had been driven
into exile by his step-father, Redwald. Besides becoming a
Christian, he had acquired a taste for secular learning in the
ecclesiastical schools of Gaul.

248 Cf. III, 18, 20. “An important feature of this mission, as it was of
the Kentish, was the combination of education with religion, by
means of a school such as Sigbert had seen abroad, and as by this
time existed at Canterbury in connection with the house of SS. Peter
and Paul” (Bright, p. 143). The name of Felix is preserved in
Felixstowe, on the coast of Suffolk, and in Feliskirk, a Yorkshire
village.

_ 249 Infra_ cc. 16, 18, _et saep. _ He was a disciple of Pope Gregory,
“vir in rebus ecclesiasticis sublimiter institutus” (V, 19).

250 Dunwich, on the coast of Suffolk, once an important town, afterwards
partially submerged. The diocese was divided into two by Theodore,
and both sees became extinct during the Danish invasions. After
various vicissitudes, the seat of the East Anglian bishopric was
established at Norwich. Cf. IV, 5, p. 231, note 1.

251 Lindsey, the largest of the three divisions of Lincolnshire, was at
times Mercian, at times Northumbrian. At this time it appears to
have been dependent on Northumbria; cf. IV, 12, note.

252 Cf. _infra_ c. 18, _ad init. _ The church which stands on the
probable site of this church is called St. Paul’s. The name has been
supposed to be a corruption of “Paulinus. ”

253 Partney, in Lincolnshire; afterwards it became a cell of Bardney
Abbey.

254 The place cannot be identified with certainty. Torksey, Southwell,
Newark, Fiskerton, and Littleborough have all been suggested.

255 Cf. _infra_ c. 20, _ad fin. _

256 A form of standard adopted from the Romans. It was made of feathers
attached to a spear.

257 Cf. the instructions of Gregory: I, 29.

258 Bede does not mention the year of his death. The Saxon Chronicle
places it in 627, and this is supported by William of Malmesbury.
Smith places it in 630.

259 St. Matt. , xi, 28.

260 St. Matt. , xxv, 21.

_ 261 I. e. _, the kings of Northumbria and Kent. For similar combined
action on the part of a Northumbrian and a Kentish king, cf. III,
29.

_ 262 I. e. _, Heracleonas, son of Heraclius and half-brother of
Constantine III; associated with them in the Empire.

_ 263 I. e. _, Irish. For their error with regard to Easter, _v. s. _ c. 4.

264 John IV, consecrated December 25th, 640. Severinus was Pope for a
few months only. Apparently (cf. _infra_) the Irish ecclesiastics
had consulted him about the Easter question.

265 Cf. _supra_ c. 2, p. 84, note. On the Paschal question the Council
of Nicaea passed no canon, but the understanding was established
that “all the brethren in the East, who formerly celebrated Easter
with the Jews, will henceforth keep it agreeably with the Romans and
ourselves and all who from ancient time have kept Easter as we”;
_i. e. _, that they should all keep Easter on the first day of the
week, but never on the 14th of the month Nisan, even when it fell on
a Sunday. The object of the rule was to avoid the day of the Jewish
Passover.

266 Cf. I, 10, note.

267 These bishops have been identified as follows: Tomianus is Tomene,
Abbot and Bishop of Armagh; Columbanus is Colman, Abbot of Clonard
(also a bishop); Cromanus is Cronan, Bishop of Nendrum, or
Inishmahee; Dinnaus is probably Dima, Bishop of Connor; Baithanus
has not been identified with any certainty. With regard to the
priests the proposed identifications are more conjectural. Saranus
is a certain Saran Ua Critain. Two vice-gerents of the Papal see are
associated with the Pope elect in writing this letter. The
arch-presbyter and the “primicerius notariorum,” with the
archdeacon, acted as vice-gerents during a vacancy, or in the
absence of the Pope (cf. Plummer _ad loc. _).

268 This is not fairly stated. The Irish were not “Quartodecimans,”
_i. e. _, did not insist on the celebration of Easter being on the
fourteenth of the moon. They only included that day as a possible
one for Easter (cf. _supra_ c. 2, p. 84, note 3).

269 Ps. li, 5, in our Psalter. The quotation is partly from the Vulgate,
partly from the “Roman” Psalter, _i. e. _, Jerome’s revision of the
old Italic version.

270 Or Cadwallon, King of Gwynedd, in North Wales. His father Cadvan,
had sheltered Edwin during his exile. Afterwards, when Cadwallon
invaded Northumbria, Edwin defeated him and drove him from his
kingdom. Having regained it, Cadwallon now allied himself with
Penda, king of the Mercians (626- or 627-655) in a successful
attempt to shake off the Northumbrian supremacy.

271 Generally identified with Hatfield Chase, north-east of Doncaster.

272 C. 14, p. 119.

_ 273 Ibid. _

274 His body was ultimately buried at Whitby; cf. III, 24, p. 190, and
note.

275 For Eanfled, _v. s. _ c. 9. For Yffi and Wuscfrea, c. 14.

276 Cf. c. 5.

277 He was a kinsman. Ethelberg’s mother, Bertha, was a daughter of
Charibert, King of Paris (cf.