"
were seized with a panic, and ceased all further attempts, believing that the x
town had been preserved by some Almighty power.
were seized with a panic, and ceased all further attempts, believing that the x
town had been preserved by some Almighty power.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v8
] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
493
of exhortation, and if perchance a priest came to any village, forthwith the inhabitants gathered together, and they were careful to seek from him the word of life. 4? Those among the missionaries who were priests administered Baptism to the neophytes ; while the people flocked together with eagerness to hear the Divine message. Churches were built in many places, while lands and sites were given likewise, for the building and endowment of schools and monasteries. .
CHAPTER IV.
THE ZEAL OF KING OSWALD FOR THE PROMOTION OF CHRISTIANITY—HIS DEATH— AFTERWARDS KING OSWY SUCCEEDS HIM IN THE PROVINCE OF BKRNICIA—OSWIN BECOMES RULER OVER THE DEIRI, AND BEFRIENDS ST. AIDAN—GENEROSITY OF THIS KING AND THE SPIRIT OF PROPHECY—DEATH OF OSWIN AND OF OUR SAINT— THE SEES OF LINDISFARNE AND OF DURHAM—TRANSLATION OF ST. AIDAN's RELICS—COMMEMORATION AND FESTIVALS—CONCLUSION.
King Oswald, and the Anglo-Saxons whom he ruled, were in a great measure guided by this holy prelate. Humbly and willingly, the monarch gave ear, in all important cases, to Aidan's admonitions, while he also industriously applied to building up and extending the Church of Christ, throughout his kingdomofNorthumbria. NotonlydidKingOswaldhopefortherealms of everlasting joy, unknown to his ancestors ; but he obtained an increase of his temporal possessions, to a great extent, owing to the favour of Almighty God, the Lord of earth and Heaven. 1 He was the most potent of the Anglo-Saxon Kings, in his time, ruling over the people of four distinct nationalities ; viz. , the Britons, the Picts, the Scots, and the Angles, each of these
a different 2 like other who language. However, many monarchs,
speaking
enjoyed a prosperous career for some time, the vicissitudes of that barbarous ageandnationturnedthetideoffortuneagainsthim. ThegoodKingOswald was killed on the 5th of August, a. d. 642, by Penda, king of the Mercians, in a battle fought at Maser, or Macerfeld, by some supposed to be Oswestra,
46 Hume has absurdly and ignorantly re- ferred to this account of Venerable Bede, as
showing the height to which priestly domi- nation had been carried among the Anglo-
common air,
Might seem a saintly image from its shrine
Descended :—happy are the eyes that meet
Saxons. It is cited as an instance of The Apparition ; evil thoughts are stayed
"
At his approach, and low-bowed necks entreat
A benediction from his voice or hand ;
Whence grace, through which the heart can understand,
And vows, that bind the will, in silence made. "
—Wordsworth's" Poetical Works," vol. iv. ,
Ecclesiastical Sonnets, part i. , sonnet xix. , With the vain world ; who outwardly as p. 14. London 1857, 8vo, in six volumes,
servility
to the mo—nks, and an '
abject
and "
illiberal devotion. " History of England,
vol. i. , chap, i. , pp. 42, 43.
47 This account of the " Primitive Saxon Clergy," taken from Bede, is thus versified in one of William Wordsworth's sonnets :—
" How beautiful your presence, how benign, Servants of God! who not a thought
will share
- bare
As winter trees, yield no fallacious
That the firm soul is clothed with fruit
divine ;
Such Priest when service worthy of his
care
Has called him forth to breathe the
Moxon's edition.
Chapter iv. —' See Surius," De Probatis
Sanctorum Vitis," vol. iv„ Augusti xxxi.
sign
Yita S. Aidani, cap. v. , p. 338. 2"
See L'Abbe Fleury's Histoire Ec- clesiastique," tome viii. , liv. , xxxviii. , sect. xix. , p. 348.
494 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 31.
in Shropshire, and by others Winwick in Lancashire. 3 He reigned for nine
years, and he thus perished in the thirty-eighth year of his age. 4 His religious life and conversation, with his great zeal for the propagation of Christianity, caused him to be regarded as a saint. Moreover, his festival, from a very
ancient had been in
period, kept England,
5 on the of 6 the date 5th August,
for his death.
Oswald was succeeded by his brother, Oswy, then about thirty years of
age. With much trouble he held the throne for twenty-eight years. Oswy ruled over all the northern part of Northumbria, that is the province of Bernicia, beyond the Humber.
During the second year of his reign, Oswy had a partner in this royal dignity, and he was called Oswin. He was son of Osric, and he belonged to KingEdwin'srace. Hischaracterhasbeendrawninthemostpleasingcolours byVenerableBede. Hewasaffable,just,religiousandgenerous. Hisvirtues were idolized by his subjects ; and his court was crowded with foreign Saxons, who solicited employment in his service. 7 Oswin governed the pro- vince of the Deiri for seven years in great prosperity, and he was beloved by all men.
Venerable Bede relates some miracles, which were wrought through the
merits of St. Aidan. A certain named priest,
8 a man of
and truth, and much esteemed by the grandees of the Kingdom, had been sent to Cantua,9 to conduct thence the intended wife of King Oswy. She was named Eanfleda, and she was daughter to King Edwin, who had been killed. Vita went to Bishop Aidan, beseeching him to supplicate the Almighty for himself and his companions, who were about to undertake this journey. The Queen had been brought to Cantua, on the death of her father, Edwin. 10 The priest, Vita, and his companions were resolved on proceeding to that place, by a land journey, and on returning with Eanfleda by a sea voyage. Blessing them and commending them to God, Aidan gave the priest
some consecrated " I know when oil, saying :
a and a tempest
you embark,
head-wind shall arise. But, do you remember, to cast some of this oil, which
I give you, into the ocean. Immediately the wind shall cease, and a tranquil seashallbearyouprosperouslytotheendofyourdestinedcourse. "" All
these things occurred, as the Bishop had intimated. Having set sail, the wind arose ; and the sailors endeavoured, but in vain, to secure the vessel, by casting anchor. But, the waves began to roll into the ship, and threatened the voyagers with instant destruction. At length, the priest, remembering our saint's words, produced the ampulla and cast some oil into the se'a. In- stantly, the waves began to subside. " Thus it happened, that the man of
3See Rev. Dr. " of withhimtoKent asea
passage, Queen
Lingard's History England," vol. i. , chap. ii. , p. 92, and n. ibid. 4 See Rev. Collier's " Ecclesias-
by
Ethelburga, and her daughter Eanfleda. See
Jeremy
tical History of Great Britain," vol. i. , book achi Cestrensis, vol. v. , pp. 450, 451. Edited ii. , cent, vii. , p. 212. by Rev. Joseph Rawson Lumby, B. D.
5"'M See Bede's Historia Ecclesiastica
Gentis Anglorum," lib. iv. , cap. xiv. 6"
of
The property of oil smoothing ruffled waves seems to have been known to the ancients from the time of Pliny and Plutarch, and from this account of Bede, it was known also to the Anglo-Saxons of his time. See Michaud's " Universelle," tome
Biographie
i. , p. 264.
" A most trustworthy Priest of his own
congregation, named Cynimund, related this miracle to Venerable Bede, with his own lips ; stating, also, that he had the account from the Priest Vita himself, who was a
See Rev. Dr. Lanigan's Ecclesiastical History of Ireland, vol. ii. , chap, xv. , sect. xiv. , n. 113. pp. 425, 426.
7 See Rev. Dr.
Lingard's "History England," vol. i. , chap, ii. , p. 94.
8 Otherwise Utta, as the name has been written.
9 Otherwise Kent.
10
When he fell in the battle of Hatfield, A. D. 633, Paulinus, Bishop of York, took
Vita,
great gravity
" " Mon- Polychronicon Ranulphi Higden
August 31. ] LIVES OE THE IRISH SAINTS. 495
God was divinely enabled to predict the coming tempest ; and although corporally absent when it took place, he was a chief instrument under God,
1* The
cordial relations existing between the King of the Deiri and the holy Bishop. They also serve to prove the generosity, charity and humility of the Mon- arch'scharacter. Oneday,KingOswinpresentedAidanwithahorse,richly caparisoned. This he intended the Bishop should use on journeys, when it might be necessary to ford rivers, or on other occasions, when he could not convenientlywalk,accordingtohisusualcustom. Ashorttimeafterwards, while the Bishop was mounted on this horse, covered with regal trappings, he met a poor man on the way, who asked for alms. Full of compassion and love for the distressed and afflicted, to whom he was ever a most tender
for appeasing it.
following
anecdotes
sufficiently
father, Aidan at once dismounted, and presented the horse, as he then stood,
to the pauper. This act of generosity being told to the King, the latter soon
after asked our Saint, as they were about to go to dinner, why it was that he
gave a horse royally caparisoned to a poor man, when it was so necessary for
his own use. " Have we not many other horses of less value," subjoined the
'*
King, andofanotherdescription,whichwouldserveasgiftsforthepoor,
withoutgivingthathorse,whichIspeciallydestinedforyourownuse? " The
" What do
than that foal of a mare ? "
? Is not this child
King Having
After this occurrence, Oswin, who had returned from a hunting party, stood with his companions at the fire, to warm himself. Suddenly recollect- ing what the Bishop had said to him, he ungirded his sword, and handed it to a servant. Immediately the King hastened to the presence of our Saint, before whose feet he fell prostrate. To the astonishment of Aidan, he be- sought the Bishop to make his mind tranquil regarding the late occurrence, saying that for the future, it should not be spoken of, nor would he after- wards enquire about sums of money distributed to the children of God, no matter how great the amount might be. At this spectacle, and on hearing these words, the holy Bishop was greatly moved. Immediately Aidan raised the King from his position, and promised that his mind should be quite at rest, provided the monarch would sit down at table with due composure. TheKingdidashewasinstructed; whiletheBishopinturnbegantofeel
Bishop immediately replied :
you
both entered the banqueting room. Here the Bishop was placed in an
1 honourable seat by the King. *
of God dearer to
said these words,
sorrowful. At length, the holy man —burst into tears.
A priest who was near
and his domestics
asked him in —
the Scottish of which the
King were ignorant what furnished occasion for those tears.
the " that the Saint,
King
is not destined to live for
any great length
chief participator in the occurrence. See
"
Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum," lib. iii. , cap. xv. , pp. 3 [4 to 317.
I3 SeeSurius, " De Probatis Sanctorum Vitis," vol. iv. , Augusti xxxi. Vita S. Aidani, cap. viii. , p. 339.
"
I4 See ibid. Also Venerable Bede's His-
toria Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum," lib.
iii. , cap. xiv.
« See Matthew of Paris, "Chronica
Majora," edited by Henry Richards Luard, M. A, vol. i. , pp. 281, 282.
language
"
of time. Never before have I seen a prince humble as he is ; and hence I under- stand, that he shall soon be taken away from this life. His nation is not worthy of such a ruler. " *s In a short time afterwards, these sad presages
were fulfilled.
Restless in his rapacity, the ambitious Penda led his army northwards
against the strong citadel of Bamborough. Many, who had cognizance of the matter, related a wonderful miracle, wrought by our holy Bishop, during this period of his episcopacy. The fierce King of Mercia, as he advanced,
you say,
illustratethe and kindly
I know," replied
496 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 31.
devastated the kingdom of Northumbria with fire and slaughter. Having come to the royal city, formerly named Bebbo,16 he found he could neither take it by force of arms nor by blockade. Penda thereupon endeavoured to set it on fire. Penda retired for a time, and brought
on waggons, which he found in the neighbourhood of that city.
In these he placed great loads of beams, logs, and wicker-walls 7 of houses ; all of these he piled up in great heaps, before the town, and
immediately near its walls. Having seized the opportunity of a wind,
blowing in a suitable direction ;
he had fire applied to those combus-
18 At this time, the
Aidan was in Fame Island, whither he often retired, tor the sake of devoting himself to prayer and holy contemplation. When Aidan saw flames and smoke arise above the walls, he is said to have raised his eyes and hands to-
tibles,
that thus he
might
burn the
city.
holy Bishop
" See, O Lord, what evil At these words, the winds blew from the city, and in the direction of those who attacked it. Many of the foe being injured, the rest
wards Heaven. Then he exclaimed, with tears
:
Penda does !
"
were seized with a panic, and ceased all further attempts, believing that the x
town had been preserved by some Almighty power. 9 Chagrined and con- founded, afterwards Penda raised the siege and led back his army.
However, Oswy could not live in peace with Oswin 2° and their ;
differences increased to such an extent, that at length open hostility was the consequence. The manner of Oswin's death is thus related. Although for six years, Oswy dared not provoke a war with the good and valiant princeoftheDeiri; yet,intheseventhyear,ambitiontemptedhimtobring their causes of disagreement to a hostile issue. On both sides armies were raised; butOswinsoonfoundheoughtnotmaintainacontestwitharival,who could bring more numerous auxiliaries to the field than was in his own power. Whereupon, he thought it better to sue for peace. Hoping for a more pros- perous result, when his army had assembled at a place, formerly called Wil-
21 Oswin disbanded, and ordered all his men to return to their own homes. Withonlyonetrustysoldier,namedTondhere,hewithdrew,and lay concealed in the house of Earl Hunwald, whom he imagined to be
fares-dun,
his most assured friend.
22
But, this thane proved to be false, and betrayed
theKingandhisguardtoOswy. Inadetestablemanner,thelattercaused
his commander Ethilwin to slay Oswin and his faithful soldier. This
happened on the 20th of August, a. d. 651, in the ninth year of his reign, and
ata called place
23 Asanatonementforthat a
crime, monastery
Ingethlingum.
was alterwards built there. In it, prayers were daily offered for the souls of both Kings ; that is, for him that was murdered, and for him that com- manded the murder to be committed. 2*
16
queen.
Bamborough.
So called from the name of a former cap. xiv. , pp. 308 to 311. «
Now
'? This gives us to understand the fragile
character of materials used in the construe-
tion of houses at that period among the
Anglo-Saxons.
ai That is Wilfar's Hill. It almost ten lay
miles distant from the village called Cata- ract, and towards the north-west,
M See ** Henrici Archidiaconi Hunten- dunensis Historia Anglorum," edited by Thomas Arnold, M. A. , lib. iii. , sect. 39, p. 95.
33 See "Matthsei Monachi Parisiensis,
Sancti Albani, Chronica Majora," edited by Henry Richards Luard, M. A. , p. 287.
** See Venerable Bedo's " Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum," lib. iii. ,
,y
siege of this place by Penda, in Rev. Dr.
See the account given regarding the
Lingard's "History chap, ii. , p. 93.
of
England,"
vol.
i. ,
'» See burius, " De Probatis Sanctorum
Vitis, vol. iv. Vita S. Aidani, 389-
10
Ecclesiastica Gentis lib. Anglorum,"
ix. ,
cap.
See Venerable Bede's "Historia cap. xiv. , pp. 310 to 313.
p.
iii. ,
as Francis Goodwin states it as Bishop
T
August 31. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 497
The holy bishop and founder of Lindisfame only survived King Oswin for
the short term of twelve 2* called to receive the crown of his days, being away
virtues, on the day before the September Calends. 26 When the time of his
departure had arrived, and having completed the seventeenth year of his 2
episcopacy, 7 Aidan chanced to be residing in the royal villa, Bebbord, not
far from the city of Bebbaborough, or Bamborough. There, he had an oratory and a chamber ; while he was wont often to go and to stay with King Oswin, as he and Aidan were linked by ties of the closest companionship. Thence, too, the saint was accustomed to make excursions, and to preach in the country round about ; and such was his habit, when he was at other country villas, belonging to the king, having nothing of his own, save the church and a few fields about it. It would seem, that the incessant labours of St. Aidan must have often tried his constitution, and brought on him fits of illness. When his last sickness came, the monks placed a tent or hut for himonthewesternsideofthechurchatLindisfame. Againstthisabeam rested for support, so that the temporary covering should adhere to its sides. The position was doubtless selected towards the mainland, as having been more sheltered from the cold winds of the east and north. When his last illness came, he was brought from his cell into the tent, and there blessed Aidan breathed forth his spirit, which he meekly resigned into the hands of his Creator. The Annals of Ulster, which are one year in arrear, record at 650 the rest of St. Aedain. 28 He died2? in the year 651, according to Venerable Bede,3° and by most writers, who follow this statement, although Bede does not exactly record the date.
As Aidan was deservedly loved whilst living, being held in veneration by
the Archbishop of Canterbury and by the bishop of the East Angles, so after
a saint. He died on the Island of Lindisfarne. 31 There too, at a subsequent time, St. Cuthbert lived. 32 When Aidan departed this life, Cuthbert was then a young man, and he saw the holy bishop's soul bornetoHeaven. 33 InVenerableBede'sLifeofSt. Cuthbert,itisrelated,that this latter saint, whilst tending his flock on the mountains, had been engaged at his prayer in the early part of that night on which St. Aidan departed. The
mountains around were illuminated by a miraculous light, while a choir of Angels conducted him towards Heaven. This vision Cuthbert afterwards related to the shepherds. On the following morning, he learned for a certainty, that the illustrious Bishop Aidan of Lindisfame had left the prison of his body for the mansions of everlasting light. 34 The body of St. Aidan
ology of Donegal," at He died, we read : " This clause is in the more recent hand and in Irish characters. "
death he was
reputed
probable, that Aidan died through grief for the death of —Oswald—but this is a
King
mistake for Oswin qui suorum perfidia
"
a—nte duodecim dies turn fuerat interemptus. "
" Historia Ecclesiastica
"De
Vitis," vol. iv. , Augustixxxi. Vita S. Aidani, cap. vii. , p. 339.
27 John Major only allows him seven
3° See Bede's
Gentis
3I For an account of this place, the reader
De Episcopis Dunelmensibus, p. 718. 26 '•
Anglise Commentarius. "
lib. xvii. iii. , cap.
Prsesulibus
Anglorum,"
See Surius, De Probatis Sanctorum is referred to that section of Gibson's
years of episcopal rule. " Septem annos
episcopatum rexit iste (Aidainus) in Anglia,
cui Finanus Scotus de eadem religione
monachus qua Aidanus successit. "— ad Annum Domini M. CCC. LXVL," a
" Historia Majoris Britannise, tarn Anglio quam Scotico," lib. ii. , cap. xi. , fol. xxxiii.
a8 Thus :—"Quies Aedain Episcopi Sax-
Monacho quodam Malmesburiensi exara-
turn, &c, vol. i. , lib. ii. , cap. lxxiv. , p. 215. Edited by Frank Scott Haydon, B. A. Lon-
don, 1858, 8vo.
3* See Bede's " Vita S. Cuthberti," cap. iv.
onum. "
'-9 In a note
by
Dr. Todd to the "
Martyr-
Camden's "Britannia," headed
"
Insulse Britannise," p. 856, of the London edition,
1607.
** Set ibid. Introduction, p. xlvi.
» See "Eulogium (Historiarum sive Tem-
poris) : Chronicon ab Orbe condito usque
II
498 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 31.
was afterwards consigned to earth in the Island of Lindisfarne, and there he was buried in the monks' cemetery. 35
Some time having elapsed, when the larger church, dedicated to the Prince of the Apostles, had been there built, Aidan's bones were translated to it. They were preserved on the right side of its altar, and with all the veneration due to so great a Prelate. 36 Some years after St. Aidan's death, Penda, King of the Mercians, came to Lindisfarne. He destroyed with fire and sword whatever came in his way ; and, with other places, the village and church where our Saint died were given to the flames. Yet, wonderful to relate ! that pillar of the church, under which our Saint rested after his death, could not be consumed. 37 The fame of this miracle caused the prop to be placed again without the walls of that new church, which was subsequently built. 38 Through some accident, the new church was again burned ; yet, that prop escaped the fire once more. A third church was built, when the pillar was placed—not, as before, without but within the building—in order to comme- morate such a miracle. Where it stood, those who entered the church desired to kneel, and to supplicate the Divine mercy. In after time, many were restored to health in the place. Even splinters removed from that beam, and put into water, furnished many with a remedy, which was effectual in the cure of various maladies.
After the death of St. Aidan, the Church in Northumbria was disturbed by the internecine wars and hostile inroads that prevailed. Oswy was greatly harassed by the pagan King Penda and by the Mercians, who had slain his brother, as also by his rebellious son, Alchfrid, or Alfred,39 and by his cousin-german, Ethel wald, the son of Oswy's brother, who had reigned before him. However, Oswy overthrew Penda, ad. 654, in a great battle fought near York. Penda was the last and most powerful upholder of Saxon heathen- dom ; and he had assailed every neighbouring kingdom 'with remorseless
over
Soon after the holy founder of Lindisfarne had been called to his
1' After his
the Mericans north of the Trent to his kingdom, and soon afterwards, he added the remainder south of that river. In the year 655, he assumed the office of Bretwalda, which, however, was disputed. 41
cruelty.
victory
Penda, Oswy
reward, the clergy and people held a meeting, with the result, that St.
2 ———
Finan* also of Scottish origin was selected to succeed him in that See. <3 II. In all things, he followed the traditions and customs of his pre- decessor, as the second bishop over the See of Lindisfarne ; but, by one Romanus,44 or Conanus/s as others name him, from Kent, Finan was visited
3s Ussher a Saxon Archbishop quotes
record, which states incorrectly, that St. Patrick, and St. Aidan, were interred in
"
the World," vol. iv. , book i. , chap, iv. , p. 87. *3 See the First Volume of this work, at the 9th of January, his chief feast, for his Vitis," vol. iv. , Augusti xxxi. Vita S. Life, Art. ii. ; as also the Second Volume of this work, for on account of him, at Feb- ruary 17th, another day for his festival, Art.
Glastonbury. See
Britannicarum Eccle-
siarum Antiquitates," cap. xvii. , p. 463.
36 "
See Surius, De Probatis Sanctorum
Aidani, cap. x. , p. 339.
» It seems, that this pillar was of wood,
and that the church itself was built of the same material. Such opinion may well be inferred from the account left us.
38 This, it seems likely, was also a wooden church.
39 He had demanded and obtained that a
part of North Umbria should be given to
xxvi.
43 See " Monasticon Anglicanum," by Sir
William Dugdale. New edition by John Caley, Esq. , F. S. A. ; Henry Ellis, LL. B. , F. R. S. , and the Rev. Bulkeley Bandinel, M. A.
of exhortation, and if perchance a priest came to any village, forthwith the inhabitants gathered together, and they were careful to seek from him the word of life. 4? Those among the missionaries who were priests administered Baptism to the neophytes ; while the people flocked together with eagerness to hear the Divine message. Churches were built in many places, while lands and sites were given likewise, for the building and endowment of schools and monasteries. .
CHAPTER IV.
THE ZEAL OF KING OSWALD FOR THE PROMOTION OF CHRISTIANITY—HIS DEATH— AFTERWARDS KING OSWY SUCCEEDS HIM IN THE PROVINCE OF BKRNICIA—OSWIN BECOMES RULER OVER THE DEIRI, AND BEFRIENDS ST. AIDAN—GENEROSITY OF THIS KING AND THE SPIRIT OF PROPHECY—DEATH OF OSWIN AND OF OUR SAINT— THE SEES OF LINDISFARNE AND OF DURHAM—TRANSLATION OF ST. AIDAN's RELICS—COMMEMORATION AND FESTIVALS—CONCLUSION.
King Oswald, and the Anglo-Saxons whom he ruled, were in a great measure guided by this holy prelate. Humbly and willingly, the monarch gave ear, in all important cases, to Aidan's admonitions, while he also industriously applied to building up and extending the Church of Christ, throughout his kingdomofNorthumbria. NotonlydidKingOswaldhopefortherealms of everlasting joy, unknown to his ancestors ; but he obtained an increase of his temporal possessions, to a great extent, owing to the favour of Almighty God, the Lord of earth and Heaven. 1 He was the most potent of the Anglo-Saxon Kings, in his time, ruling over the people of four distinct nationalities ; viz. , the Britons, the Picts, the Scots, and the Angles, each of these
a different 2 like other who language. However, many monarchs,
speaking
enjoyed a prosperous career for some time, the vicissitudes of that barbarous ageandnationturnedthetideoffortuneagainsthim. ThegoodKingOswald was killed on the 5th of August, a. d. 642, by Penda, king of the Mercians, in a battle fought at Maser, or Macerfeld, by some supposed to be Oswestra,
46 Hume has absurdly and ignorantly re- ferred to this account of Venerable Bede, as
showing the height to which priestly domi- nation had been carried among the Anglo-
common air,
Might seem a saintly image from its shrine
Descended :—happy are the eyes that meet
Saxons. It is cited as an instance of The Apparition ; evil thoughts are stayed
"
At his approach, and low-bowed necks entreat
A benediction from his voice or hand ;
Whence grace, through which the heart can understand,
And vows, that bind the will, in silence made. "
—Wordsworth's" Poetical Works," vol. iv. ,
Ecclesiastical Sonnets, part i. , sonnet xix. , With the vain world ; who outwardly as p. 14. London 1857, 8vo, in six volumes,
servility
to the mo—nks, and an '
abject
and "
illiberal devotion. " History of England,
vol. i. , chap, i. , pp. 42, 43.
47 This account of the " Primitive Saxon Clergy," taken from Bede, is thus versified in one of William Wordsworth's sonnets :—
" How beautiful your presence, how benign, Servants of God! who not a thought
will share
- bare
As winter trees, yield no fallacious
That the firm soul is clothed with fruit
divine ;
Such Priest when service worthy of his
care
Has called him forth to breathe the
Moxon's edition.
Chapter iv. —' See Surius," De Probatis
Sanctorum Vitis," vol. iv„ Augusti xxxi.
sign
Yita S. Aidani, cap. v. , p. 338. 2"
See L'Abbe Fleury's Histoire Ec- clesiastique," tome viii. , liv. , xxxviii. , sect. xix. , p. 348.
494 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 31.
in Shropshire, and by others Winwick in Lancashire. 3 He reigned for nine
years, and he thus perished in the thirty-eighth year of his age. 4 His religious life and conversation, with his great zeal for the propagation of Christianity, caused him to be regarded as a saint. Moreover, his festival, from a very
ancient had been in
period, kept England,
5 on the of 6 the date 5th August,
for his death.
Oswald was succeeded by his brother, Oswy, then about thirty years of
age. With much trouble he held the throne for twenty-eight years. Oswy ruled over all the northern part of Northumbria, that is the province of Bernicia, beyond the Humber.
During the second year of his reign, Oswy had a partner in this royal dignity, and he was called Oswin. He was son of Osric, and he belonged to KingEdwin'srace. Hischaracterhasbeendrawninthemostpleasingcolours byVenerableBede. Hewasaffable,just,religiousandgenerous. Hisvirtues were idolized by his subjects ; and his court was crowded with foreign Saxons, who solicited employment in his service. 7 Oswin governed the pro- vince of the Deiri for seven years in great prosperity, and he was beloved by all men.
Venerable Bede relates some miracles, which were wrought through the
merits of St. Aidan. A certain named priest,
8 a man of
and truth, and much esteemed by the grandees of the Kingdom, had been sent to Cantua,9 to conduct thence the intended wife of King Oswy. She was named Eanfleda, and she was daughter to King Edwin, who had been killed. Vita went to Bishop Aidan, beseeching him to supplicate the Almighty for himself and his companions, who were about to undertake this journey. The Queen had been brought to Cantua, on the death of her father, Edwin. 10 The priest, Vita, and his companions were resolved on proceeding to that place, by a land journey, and on returning with Eanfleda by a sea voyage. Blessing them and commending them to God, Aidan gave the priest
some consecrated " I know when oil, saying :
a and a tempest
you embark,
head-wind shall arise. But, do you remember, to cast some of this oil, which
I give you, into the ocean. Immediately the wind shall cease, and a tranquil seashallbearyouprosperouslytotheendofyourdestinedcourse. "" All
these things occurred, as the Bishop had intimated. Having set sail, the wind arose ; and the sailors endeavoured, but in vain, to secure the vessel, by casting anchor. But, the waves began to roll into the ship, and threatened the voyagers with instant destruction. At length, the priest, remembering our saint's words, produced the ampulla and cast some oil into the se'a. In- stantly, the waves began to subside. " Thus it happened, that the man of
3See Rev. Dr. " of withhimtoKent asea
passage, Queen
Lingard's History England," vol. i. , chap. ii. , p. 92, and n. ibid. 4 See Rev. Collier's " Ecclesias-
by
Ethelburga, and her daughter Eanfleda. See
Jeremy
tical History of Great Britain," vol. i. , book achi Cestrensis, vol. v. , pp. 450, 451. Edited ii. , cent, vii. , p. 212. by Rev. Joseph Rawson Lumby, B. D.
5"'M See Bede's Historia Ecclesiastica
Gentis Anglorum," lib. iv. , cap. xiv. 6"
of
The property of oil smoothing ruffled waves seems to have been known to the ancients from the time of Pliny and Plutarch, and from this account of Bede, it was known also to the Anglo-Saxons of his time. See Michaud's " Universelle," tome
Biographie
i. , p. 264.
" A most trustworthy Priest of his own
congregation, named Cynimund, related this miracle to Venerable Bede, with his own lips ; stating, also, that he had the account from the Priest Vita himself, who was a
See Rev. Dr. Lanigan's Ecclesiastical History of Ireland, vol. ii. , chap, xv. , sect. xiv. , n. 113. pp. 425, 426.
7 See Rev. Dr.
Lingard's "History England," vol. i. , chap, ii. , p. 94.
8 Otherwise Utta, as the name has been written.
9 Otherwise Kent.
10
When he fell in the battle of Hatfield, A. D. 633, Paulinus, Bishop of York, took
Vita,
great gravity
" " Mon- Polychronicon Ranulphi Higden
August 31. ] LIVES OE THE IRISH SAINTS. 495
God was divinely enabled to predict the coming tempest ; and although corporally absent when it took place, he was a chief instrument under God,
1* The
cordial relations existing between the King of the Deiri and the holy Bishop. They also serve to prove the generosity, charity and humility of the Mon- arch'scharacter. Oneday,KingOswinpresentedAidanwithahorse,richly caparisoned. This he intended the Bishop should use on journeys, when it might be necessary to ford rivers, or on other occasions, when he could not convenientlywalk,accordingtohisusualcustom. Ashorttimeafterwards, while the Bishop was mounted on this horse, covered with regal trappings, he met a poor man on the way, who asked for alms. Full of compassion and love for the distressed and afflicted, to whom he was ever a most tender
for appeasing it.
following
anecdotes
sufficiently
father, Aidan at once dismounted, and presented the horse, as he then stood,
to the pauper. This act of generosity being told to the King, the latter soon
after asked our Saint, as they were about to go to dinner, why it was that he
gave a horse royally caparisoned to a poor man, when it was so necessary for
his own use. " Have we not many other horses of less value," subjoined the
'*
King, andofanotherdescription,whichwouldserveasgiftsforthepoor,
withoutgivingthathorse,whichIspeciallydestinedforyourownuse? " The
" What do
than that foal of a mare ? "
? Is not this child
King Having
After this occurrence, Oswin, who had returned from a hunting party, stood with his companions at the fire, to warm himself. Suddenly recollect- ing what the Bishop had said to him, he ungirded his sword, and handed it to a servant. Immediately the King hastened to the presence of our Saint, before whose feet he fell prostrate. To the astonishment of Aidan, he be- sought the Bishop to make his mind tranquil regarding the late occurrence, saying that for the future, it should not be spoken of, nor would he after- wards enquire about sums of money distributed to the children of God, no matter how great the amount might be. At this spectacle, and on hearing these words, the holy Bishop was greatly moved. Immediately Aidan raised the King from his position, and promised that his mind should be quite at rest, provided the monarch would sit down at table with due composure. TheKingdidashewasinstructed; whiletheBishopinturnbegantofeel
Bishop immediately replied :
you
both entered the banqueting room. Here the Bishop was placed in an
1 honourable seat by the King. *
of God dearer to
said these words,
sorrowful. At length, the holy man —burst into tears.
A priest who was near
and his domestics
asked him in —
the Scottish of which the
King were ignorant what furnished occasion for those tears.
the " that the Saint,
King
is not destined to live for
any great length
chief participator in the occurrence. See
"
Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum," lib. iii. , cap. xv. , pp. 3 [4 to 317.
I3 SeeSurius, " De Probatis Sanctorum Vitis," vol. iv. , Augusti xxxi. Vita S. Aidani, cap. viii. , p. 339.
"
I4 See ibid. Also Venerable Bede's His-
toria Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum," lib.
iii. , cap. xiv.
« See Matthew of Paris, "Chronica
Majora," edited by Henry Richards Luard, M. A, vol. i. , pp. 281, 282.
language
"
of time. Never before have I seen a prince humble as he is ; and hence I under- stand, that he shall soon be taken away from this life. His nation is not worthy of such a ruler. " *s In a short time afterwards, these sad presages
were fulfilled.
Restless in his rapacity, the ambitious Penda led his army northwards
against the strong citadel of Bamborough. Many, who had cognizance of the matter, related a wonderful miracle, wrought by our holy Bishop, during this period of his episcopacy. The fierce King of Mercia, as he advanced,
you say,
illustratethe and kindly
I know," replied
496 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 31.
devastated the kingdom of Northumbria with fire and slaughter. Having come to the royal city, formerly named Bebbo,16 he found he could neither take it by force of arms nor by blockade. Penda thereupon endeavoured to set it on fire. Penda retired for a time, and brought
on waggons, which he found in the neighbourhood of that city.
In these he placed great loads of beams, logs, and wicker-walls 7 of houses ; all of these he piled up in great heaps, before the town, and
immediately near its walls. Having seized the opportunity of a wind,
blowing in a suitable direction ;
he had fire applied to those combus-
18 At this time, the
Aidan was in Fame Island, whither he often retired, tor the sake of devoting himself to prayer and holy contemplation. When Aidan saw flames and smoke arise above the walls, he is said to have raised his eyes and hands to-
tibles,
that thus he
might
burn the
city.
holy Bishop
" See, O Lord, what evil At these words, the winds blew from the city, and in the direction of those who attacked it. Many of the foe being injured, the rest
wards Heaven. Then he exclaimed, with tears
:
Penda does !
"
were seized with a panic, and ceased all further attempts, believing that the x
town had been preserved by some Almighty power. 9 Chagrined and con- founded, afterwards Penda raised the siege and led back his army.
However, Oswy could not live in peace with Oswin 2° and their ;
differences increased to such an extent, that at length open hostility was the consequence. The manner of Oswin's death is thus related. Although for six years, Oswy dared not provoke a war with the good and valiant princeoftheDeiri; yet,intheseventhyear,ambitiontemptedhimtobring their causes of disagreement to a hostile issue. On both sides armies were raised; butOswinsoonfoundheoughtnotmaintainacontestwitharival,who could bring more numerous auxiliaries to the field than was in his own power. Whereupon, he thought it better to sue for peace. Hoping for a more pros- perous result, when his army had assembled at a place, formerly called Wil-
21 Oswin disbanded, and ordered all his men to return to their own homes. Withonlyonetrustysoldier,namedTondhere,hewithdrew,and lay concealed in the house of Earl Hunwald, whom he imagined to be
fares-dun,
his most assured friend.
22
But, this thane proved to be false, and betrayed
theKingandhisguardtoOswy. Inadetestablemanner,thelattercaused
his commander Ethilwin to slay Oswin and his faithful soldier. This
happened on the 20th of August, a. d. 651, in the ninth year of his reign, and
ata called place
23 Asanatonementforthat a
crime, monastery
Ingethlingum.
was alterwards built there. In it, prayers were daily offered for the souls of both Kings ; that is, for him that was murdered, and for him that com- manded the murder to be committed. 2*
16
queen.
Bamborough.
So called from the name of a former cap. xiv. , pp. 308 to 311. «
Now
'? This gives us to understand the fragile
character of materials used in the construe-
tion of houses at that period among the
Anglo-Saxons.
ai That is Wilfar's Hill. It almost ten lay
miles distant from the village called Cata- ract, and towards the north-west,
M See ** Henrici Archidiaconi Hunten- dunensis Historia Anglorum," edited by Thomas Arnold, M. A. , lib. iii. , sect. 39, p. 95.
33 See "Matthsei Monachi Parisiensis,
Sancti Albani, Chronica Majora," edited by Henry Richards Luard, M. A. , p. 287.
** See Venerable Bedo's " Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum," lib. iii. ,
,y
siege of this place by Penda, in Rev. Dr.
See the account given regarding the
Lingard's "History chap, ii. , p. 93.
of
England,"
vol.
i. ,
'» See burius, " De Probatis Sanctorum
Vitis, vol. iv. Vita S. Aidani, 389-
10
Ecclesiastica Gentis lib. Anglorum,"
ix. ,
cap.
See Venerable Bede's "Historia cap. xiv. , pp. 310 to 313.
p.
iii. ,
as Francis Goodwin states it as Bishop
T
August 31. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 497
The holy bishop and founder of Lindisfame only survived King Oswin for
the short term of twelve 2* called to receive the crown of his days, being away
virtues, on the day before the September Calends. 26 When the time of his
departure had arrived, and having completed the seventeenth year of his 2
episcopacy, 7 Aidan chanced to be residing in the royal villa, Bebbord, not
far from the city of Bebbaborough, or Bamborough. There, he had an oratory and a chamber ; while he was wont often to go and to stay with King Oswin, as he and Aidan were linked by ties of the closest companionship. Thence, too, the saint was accustomed to make excursions, and to preach in the country round about ; and such was his habit, when he was at other country villas, belonging to the king, having nothing of his own, save the church and a few fields about it. It would seem, that the incessant labours of St. Aidan must have often tried his constitution, and brought on him fits of illness. When his last sickness came, the monks placed a tent or hut for himonthewesternsideofthechurchatLindisfame. Againstthisabeam rested for support, so that the temporary covering should adhere to its sides. The position was doubtless selected towards the mainland, as having been more sheltered from the cold winds of the east and north. When his last illness came, he was brought from his cell into the tent, and there blessed Aidan breathed forth his spirit, which he meekly resigned into the hands of his Creator. The Annals of Ulster, which are one year in arrear, record at 650 the rest of St. Aedain. 28 He died2? in the year 651, according to Venerable Bede,3° and by most writers, who follow this statement, although Bede does not exactly record the date.
As Aidan was deservedly loved whilst living, being held in veneration by
the Archbishop of Canterbury and by the bishop of the East Angles, so after
a saint. He died on the Island of Lindisfarne. 31 There too, at a subsequent time, St. Cuthbert lived. 32 When Aidan departed this life, Cuthbert was then a young man, and he saw the holy bishop's soul bornetoHeaven. 33 InVenerableBede'sLifeofSt. Cuthbert,itisrelated,that this latter saint, whilst tending his flock on the mountains, had been engaged at his prayer in the early part of that night on which St. Aidan departed. The
mountains around were illuminated by a miraculous light, while a choir of Angels conducted him towards Heaven. This vision Cuthbert afterwards related to the shepherds. On the following morning, he learned for a certainty, that the illustrious Bishop Aidan of Lindisfame had left the prison of his body for the mansions of everlasting light. 34 The body of St. Aidan
ology of Donegal," at He died, we read : " This clause is in the more recent hand and in Irish characters. "
death he was
reputed
probable, that Aidan died through grief for the death of —Oswald—but this is a
King
mistake for Oswin qui suorum perfidia
"
a—nte duodecim dies turn fuerat interemptus. "
" Historia Ecclesiastica
"De
Vitis," vol. iv. , Augustixxxi. Vita S. Aidani, cap. vii. , p. 339.
27 John Major only allows him seven
3° See Bede's
Gentis
3I For an account of this place, the reader
De Episcopis Dunelmensibus, p. 718. 26 '•
Anglise Commentarius. "
lib. xvii. iii. , cap.
Prsesulibus
Anglorum,"
See Surius, De Probatis Sanctorum is referred to that section of Gibson's
years of episcopal rule. " Septem annos
episcopatum rexit iste (Aidainus) in Anglia,
cui Finanus Scotus de eadem religione
monachus qua Aidanus successit. "— ad Annum Domini M. CCC. LXVL," a
" Historia Majoris Britannise, tarn Anglio quam Scotico," lib. ii. , cap. xi. , fol. xxxiii.
a8 Thus :—"Quies Aedain Episcopi Sax-
Monacho quodam Malmesburiensi exara-
turn, &c, vol. i. , lib. ii. , cap. lxxiv. , p. 215. Edited by Frank Scott Haydon, B. A. Lon-
don, 1858, 8vo.
3* See Bede's " Vita S. Cuthberti," cap. iv.
onum. "
'-9 In a note
by
Dr. Todd to the "
Martyr-
Camden's "Britannia," headed
"
Insulse Britannise," p. 856, of the London edition,
1607.
** Set ibid. Introduction, p. xlvi.
» See "Eulogium (Historiarum sive Tem-
poris) : Chronicon ab Orbe condito usque
II
498 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 31.
was afterwards consigned to earth in the Island of Lindisfarne, and there he was buried in the monks' cemetery. 35
Some time having elapsed, when the larger church, dedicated to the Prince of the Apostles, had been there built, Aidan's bones were translated to it. They were preserved on the right side of its altar, and with all the veneration due to so great a Prelate. 36 Some years after St. Aidan's death, Penda, King of the Mercians, came to Lindisfarne. He destroyed with fire and sword whatever came in his way ; and, with other places, the village and church where our Saint died were given to the flames. Yet, wonderful to relate ! that pillar of the church, under which our Saint rested after his death, could not be consumed. 37 The fame of this miracle caused the prop to be placed again without the walls of that new church, which was subsequently built. 38 Through some accident, the new church was again burned ; yet, that prop escaped the fire once more. A third church was built, when the pillar was placed—not, as before, without but within the building—in order to comme- morate such a miracle. Where it stood, those who entered the church desired to kneel, and to supplicate the Divine mercy. In after time, many were restored to health in the place. Even splinters removed from that beam, and put into water, furnished many with a remedy, which was effectual in the cure of various maladies.
After the death of St. Aidan, the Church in Northumbria was disturbed by the internecine wars and hostile inroads that prevailed. Oswy was greatly harassed by the pagan King Penda and by the Mercians, who had slain his brother, as also by his rebellious son, Alchfrid, or Alfred,39 and by his cousin-german, Ethel wald, the son of Oswy's brother, who had reigned before him. However, Oswy overthrew Penda, ad. 654, in a great battle fought near York. Penda was the last and most powerful upholder of Saxon heathen- dom ; and he had assailed every neighbouring kingdom 'with remorseless
over
Soon after the holy founder of Lindisfarne had been called to his
1' After his
the Mericans north of the Trent to his kingdom, and soon afterwards, he added the remainder south of that river. In the year 655, he assumed the office of Bretwalda, which, however, was disputed. 41
cruelty.
victory
Penda, Oswy
reward, the clergy and people held a meeting, with the result, that St.
2 ———
Finan* also of Scottish origin was selected to succeed him in that See. <3 II. In all things, he followed the traditions and customs of his pre- decessor, as the second bishop over the See of Lindisfarne ; but, by one Romanus,44 or Conanus/s as others name him, from Kent, Finan was visited
3s Ussher a Saxon Archbishop quotes
record, which states incorrectly, that St. Patrick, and St. Aidan, were interred in
"
the World," vol. iv. , book i. , chap, iv. , p. 87. *3 See the First Volume of this work, at the 9th of January, his chief feast, for his Vitis," vol. iv. , Augusti xxxi. Vita S. Life, Art. ii. ; as also the Second Volume of this work, for on account of him, at Feb- ruary 17th, another day for his festival, Art.
Glastonbury. See
Britannicarum Eccle-
siarum Antiquitates," cap. xvii. , p. 463.
36 "
See Surius, De Probatis Sanctorum
Aidani, cap. x. , p. 339.
» It seems, that this pillar was of wood,
and that the church itself was built of the same material. Such opinion may well be inferred from the account left us.
38 This, it seems likely, was also a wooden church.
39 He had demanded and obtained that a
part of North Umbria should be given to
xxvi.
43 See " Monasticon Anglicanum," by Sir
William Dugdale. New edition by John Caley, Esq. , F. S. A. ; Henry Ellis, LL. B. , F. R. S. , and the Rev. Bulkeley Bandinel, M. A.
