Edith of Polesworth
Saint Edith of Polesworth (Eadgyth) | |
|---|---|
| Born | England |
| Died | 10th century |
| Venerated in | Roman Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy |
| Major shrine | Tamworth, Staffordshire, England |
| Feast | 15 July |
Saint Edith of Polesworth (also known as Editha or Eadgyth; d. ?c.960s
Identity
Edith (Ealdgyth) is included in the first section of the late Old English saints' list known as
As sister to a West-Saxon king
The tradition which was written down at the monastery of
The story appears to take its cue from an earlier source, the D-version of the
These late, contradictory statements have garnered a mixed response from modern historians. Some scholars favour Roger's identification or at least the possibility that her name was Eadgyth/Edith.[5][8] Alan Thacker, for instance, states that "given the strong Mercian connections of Æthelstan himself, it is not at all unlikely that such a woman, if repudiated, should have ended her days in a community in the former heartlands of the Mercian royal family. Perhaps, like Æthelstan, she had been brought up at the Mercian court."[5] Barbara Yorke, however, argues that the name Eadgyth is unlikely to belong to two of Edward's daughters at the same time, the other being a daughter by Ælfflæd.[2]
A slightly earlier if largely legendary source which potentially casts some light on traditions surrounding St Edith is Conchubran's Life of Saint
As early Mercian saint
Yorke prefers to identify the historical figure of Edith with an earlier namesake instead. The saint's inclusion in Secgan, grouped as she is with other early saints buried near rivers, may be taken as evidence for the hypothesis that she was a Mercian saint who flourished in the 7th or 8th century.[10] According to Alan Thacker, on the other hand, the entry in Secgan may also be a later addition, along with at least two other items which seem to reflect interests peculiar to Æthelstan's time.[5]
Later traditions
The saint is commemorated in a number of churches around the
See also
- Church of St Editha, a Grade I listed building
Notes
- ^ Baugh, G. C.; et al. (1970). "Colleges: Tamworth, St Edith". In Greenslade, M. W.; Pugh, R. B. (eds.). A History of the County of Stafford. Victoria County History. Vol. 3. London. pp. 309–315, notes 2–6. Retrieved 1 February 2016.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ a b c Yorke (2003), pp. 77–8.
- ^ a b Hudson (2005), pp. 28–9.
- ^ William of Malmesbury (1998), Book II, ch. 126.
- ^ a b c d e Thacker (2001), pp. 257–8.
- ^ Edwards (1866), p. 11.
- ^ Hudson (2005), "Óláf Sihtricson".
- ^ Hudson (2005), p. 29, considers it possible that her name was Eadgyth (and hence also a source for confusion with namesakes).
- ^ Bartlett in Geoffrey of Burton (2002), pp. xviii–xix.
- ^ Yorke (2003), pp. 22, 39 n. 58, 77–8.
References
Primary sources
- Edwards, Edward, ed. (1866). "'Hyde' Chronicle". Liber monasterii de Hyda. London: Longman, Green, Reader, and Dyer – via Internet Archive.
- Geoffrey of Burton (2002). Bartlett, Robert (ed.). Life and Miracles of St. Modwenna. Translated by Robert Bartlett. Oxford: Clarendon Press. ISBN 978-0-19-820606-4.
- William of Malmesbury (1998). "Gesta regum Anglorum". In Mynors, R. A. B.; Thomson, R. M.; Winterbottom, M. (eds.). Gesta Regum Anglorum: The History of the English Kings. Vol. 1. Translated by Roger Aubrey Baskerville Mynors. Oxford: Oxford Medieval Texts. 2 vols.
Secondary sources
- Hudson, Benjamin T. (2005). Viking Pirates and Christian Princes: Dynasty, Religion, and Empire in the North Atlantic. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Thacker, Alan (2001). "Dynastic monasteries and family cults: Edward the Elder's sainted kindred". In N. J. Higham and D. H. Hill (ed.). Edward the Elder 899–924. London: Routledge. pp. 248–63. ISBN 0-415-21497-1.
- Yorke, Barbara (2003). Nunneries and the Anglo-Saxon Royal Houses. London.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
Further reading
- ISBN 978-0-7546-0044-2.
- Hagerty, R. P. (1987). "The Buckinghamshire Saints Reconsidered 2: St Osyth and St Edith of Aylesbury". Records of Buckinghamshire. 29: 125–32.
- Hohler, C. (1966). "St Osyth of Aylesbury". Records of Buckinghamshire. 18 (1): 61–72.
- Hollis, Stephanie, ed. (2004). Writing the Wilton Women: Goscelin's Legend of Edith and Liber Confortatorius. Turnhout, Belgium: Brepols. ISBN 978-2-503-51436-9.
External links
- Eadgyth 12 at Prosopography of Anglo-Saxon England
- Who was Saint Editha? (article discussing the Editha legend)
- Polesworth Abbey's website Archived 23 September 2010 at the Wayback Machine (which includes a history of the abbey]
- St Editha's Church, Tamworth Archived 5 January 2020 at the Wayback Machine