Saint Swithun

ln search of
Saint Swithun
a saint
to
Woocibury's fine church building - dating from the 13'h century - is dedicated
active in the
St Swithun. But who was he? History barely mentions him, a cleric
ninth century in Wessex, before England was recognised ancl ruled as one
political entity. The formal element of his career peaked when he was appointed
birf,op of Winchester. He became the surbject of a later cltlt, bt-tt his work in rewhile
creating an English acaciemic and learning tradition was significant' And
Boniface had
as Dr David Keep points out, 100 years earlier the Crediton-born
visited
travelled widely throughout Europe, it seems unlikely that Swithr-rn ever
Devon.
any
The main difficulty in understanding Swithun is that so little information of
to
quality about him is available. As if this were not enough, it is also important
that
disentangle fact from fiction, and in particular the rnyths and legends
traditionally accompany the memory of any candidate for sainthood'
- the
One obvious task is to distinguish the contemporary from the post hoc
material written during or soon after his life, as opposed to the nllmerous legends
years
attaching to him. These stories were mostly concocted hundreds of
motives
afterwards by people not much concerned with historical accuracy' Their
were, of course, predominantly religious.
rather
So it is a struggle to get even the vaguest outline of Swithun. The task is
most
and
like trying to tackle a iomplex jigsaw puzzle.The picture has been lost,
by the dog'
of the pieces are missing, while the few that are left have been chewed
Rain, rain...
sflp"Iyr0RI{3Xt X{OI{K A'r Xv0li^}i.
f"art'ai"r.\
Septernb er 2009
Saint Swithun (or Swithin) was born around 800 and died on Znd July 862
(though some Winchester sources maintain it was 863). He was an early English
Bishop of winchester, now best known for the popular British weather lore
prou.ib that if it rains on St Swithun's day, 15 July, it will rain for 40 days and
40 nights.
Recorded life
St Swithun's day if thou dost lain
For fbrty daYs it will rematn
St Swithun's daY if thou be lair
For- Iolty days 'twill I'ain na mrit'
Swithun apparently asked to be buried out of doors, rathef tllrttl itr llis cathedral,
sothe,sweetrainofheaven'couldfall onhisgrave. In8Tltrtortksllictltomove
on his
his remains insicie the cathedral but miraculously. two ir"on riltgs litslcrttccl
itt the stone'
gravestone came out aS Soon aS they were touched, and le1't tlo Ittrtl I'
100 years
rtpirrilr'
it
to
Afterwards, it was said the rings apparently self fastened
t:c:tcttltllly was
later his body waS mOved to an indoor shrine, and rt is sard tltt:
lltc lnove.
delayed by 40 days of torrential rain, a sign of swithun's slttltt:ss:tt
If on St Swithun's day it really pours
You're better off to staY indools'
Trivia'
Crook
enlightenment on the subject.
30
We do know Swrthun succeeded Elmstan as Bishop of Winchester, from
any
in
October 852 to his death on 2nd July 862. Yet he is scarcely mentioned
document of his own time. His death is wrongly entered in the Anglo-Saxon
in the
Chronicle under the year 861 . His signature is appended to several charters
three
these
Of
accepted documentary authority Kemble's Codex diplomrtticas'
presbyter
belong to 833, 838 and 860-862. In the first the saint signs as Swithuttus
as
swithunus
third
regis Egberrl, in the second as swithunus diaconus, and in the
the first must be
genuine,
is
nffrropur. This means that if the second charter
wrong, and it is so marked in Kemble.
An equally prosaic Buckinghamshire variation has:
John Gay's olfering. f|om his
from the cult
Separating Swithun's real achievements, probably considerable,
brilt Lrp Uy tater hagiographers for their own purposes is quite a task' But it neecls
of ninth
to b. ion. to keep faith with the subject. Even allowing for the absence
cln
centllfy recorcl keeping, and the destruction which time inevitably visits
professor
written docLlmentS, there is virtually nothing about Swithun' John Earle'
a Saxon
of
of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford, has published a facsimile and translation
- and has
manuicript of the tenth century - the earliest fragment on Swithr-rn
John
written a useful essay collecting all the reliable data about him' And Dr
further
for
work
has recently done much archaeologically-based
has a pretiy caclence:
How, if on St Swithun's feast the welkin lours
And every penthouse slfeams with hasty showers,
Twice twenty days shall clouds their fleeces drain,
And wash the pavements with incessant rain'
pray in the
Swithun is regarded by many as one of the saints to whom one sltorrlcl
in the
event of a drought. June and July, however, have their weathet' saints
Europc:
calendars of France and Belgium, as well as in other parts of
"Quand il pleut a la Saint Gervais (19th July)
Il pleut quarante j ours aPres. "
of storms" was
So runs the old French proverb' while Wedermaend, the'month
drops and apples'
the ancient Flemish name for July. swithun's emblems are rain
or two in
a
And while nobody would want 40 continuous days of rain, shpwer
mid July does no harm to the coming autumn's apple crop'
winchester
More than a hundred.years later, when Dunstan and ,lEthelwold of
of the
patron
as
were inaugurating their church reforms, St Swithun was adopted
Saint Paul'
restored church at Winchester, formerly dedicated to Saint Peter and
new
His body was transferred from its almost forgotten grave to 'lEtheiwold's
basilica on 15 July 971, and according to some writers, numerous miracles
preceded and followed the move.
Ninth century Wessex
helpful'
Given the role of time and place here, a note on the context may be
its main
Wessex was the dominant kingdom in the British Isles, and Winchester
do
a
bishop
did
centre. Swithun was actually winchester's 19'h bishop. But what
in those days? Swithun would have taken on the administlativc tlrsks of a senior
cleric - management of a large see (the most important one in Wessex),
of
appointment of priests and so on - and in his case it seems, a programme
he
prelate,
powered
ctturcfr building (wooden, not stone). As a literate and high
might also have contributed to the running of the Wessex polity as a sort of senior
civil servant and counsellor. And at that time it was quite usual tn Europe for
leading clerics to act as tutors to the king's sons (see below)'
It is quite hard to rrnagine how different England was in the ninth century - a ple
industrial, localised economy without any modern corlmunications' And
critically, life was lived under the real and constant threat of attack from the
Danes. The wicenga,'a most vile people' to early English historians, were
terrorising Europe. In 835 the Vikings raided Sheppey. In 838 at Hingston Down,
on
Egbert defeated a combined Danish-Cornish army, but 842 saw Viking raids
Rochester, Southampton and London.
In 851 , ayearbefore Swithun became a bishop, Kentish ships defeated the Danes
off Sandwich in the first recorded naval battle in English history. And while at
Oakley, King Ethelwulf chased off a Danish warband, the raiders for the first
time over-wintered in England, at Thanet.
parts
There was a near 20 year interlude in these attacks on Wessex, if not other
lasted
of Britain, as the raiders were successively bribed to stay away' This lull
until the Danes captured Reading in 870. It was not until January 871 atthe battle
king
of Ashdown that Ethelred defeated them in a significant encounter. But this
the
died a few months later to be succeeded in April by his brother, Alfred' In 877
Danes seized Exeter.
These raids were on a Christian people - and especially on churches, monasteries
and abbeys. The Vikings wanted their precious metals, especially silver, a
commodity they traded all over Europe and even beyond. But many people saw
the attacki by 'heathen men' as God's punishment on the unrighteous Anglo
and
Saxons. After all, why else would they be allowed to happen? Life was cheap
people generally feared for their souls'
centre' the tnost
Winchester was then WesSex'S ecclesiastical and administrative
group - the king and
important royal church of Anglo-Saxon England. The ruling
Witan (Council) - wefe
members of the royal family, the leading thegns and the
for weeks at a
itinerant. They moved around from place to place, often staying
understand it' So a
time on royal estates. Wessex had no 'capital' as we would
might be heard'
town like Winchester was one of the few places where disputes
justice administered, charters grantecl and so on. With this official and religiotts
role, a commercial dimension followed'
Traditional life
The so-called
St Swithun's fame later gave rise to a mass of legendary literature'
hardly any
contain
Vitae Swithuni oflantfied and Wuistan, written about 1000,
of Swithun's life is
biographical fact. All that later passed for authentic detail
a monk who came to
taken from a biography ascribed to Goscelin of St Bertin's,
This writer tells
England with Hermann, birhop of Salisbury from 1058 to 1078.
by Elmstan'
us Swithun was born in the ieign of Egbert, and ordained priest
the king's ears'
Bishop of Winchester (c838-852). Swithun's reputation reached
a friend'
He made him tutor to his son, Ethelwulf, and considered him
and
under Ethelwulf, Swithun was appointed to the see of winchester'
his
for
was
known
consecrated by Archbishop Ceolnoth. In his new office he
there were none
piety, and for his zeal in building new churches in places where
t"for., or restoring old ones which were dilapidated. At Swithun's request
A charter of
Ethelwulf apparentiy gave a tenth of his royal lands to the Church'
this was not' as
854 signed Uy tft. king and his four sons attests to this' However
were levied on income
some have suggested;he origin of English tithing. Tithes
journeys on foot'
not wealth. Swithun is supposed to have made his diocesan
when he gave a banquet it was said he invited the poor, not the rich.
to the cathedral
Swithun had apparently been Prior of the monastery attached
the buildingof
before he was made nisnop. He is also credited with encouraging
of this bridge over the
a bridge on the east side oi th. city. The modern velsion
Itchen is still named after Swithun.
During the work, it was claimed he made a practice of sitting there to watch the
workmen, 'that his presence might stimulate their industry''
An anonymous
14'h
century poem represents the bridge episode thus:
Seynt Swithin his bishopricke to al goodness dlougl.t,
The towne of Winchester he arrrended enough,
Fol he lette the strong bluge without the towne avere'
Ancl tbnd thereto lyrn ancl ston and the worktnen that were theIe.
Legends and miracles
William of Maimesbury wrote that, if Bishop Alhstan of Sherborne was
Ethelwulfs minister for temporal matters, St Swithun was the minister for
spiritual matters. The same writer recorded the bishop's prayer that his burial
might be ubi et peclibus praetereutxtium et stitticidiis cox alto rorantibus esset
obnoxius.In other words Swithun is said to have insisted he was not to be buried
within the church, but outside in a 'vile and unworthy place' where 'paSSerS by
might tread on his grave and where the rain from the eaves might fall on it.' This
exfression has been taken as indicating that the famous weather myth about St
Swithun was already well-known in the 12th century. However, this is uncertain
(particularly for those who need a translation).
occurred,
James Raine suggested the legend derived from the huge downpour that
according to the Durham chroniclers, on St Swithun's Day, 1315. A more
plausible theory, though without proof, traces it to a heavy shower by which, on
if," duy of his move to the new shrine, the saint marked his displeasure at those
disturiing his remains. Yet this story cannot be traced further back than the lTth
or 18th century at most. Apart from the typically awkward issue of the
all
Julian/Gregorian calendar change, it is not mentioned by 1Oth century writers,
in
expressed
of whom agreed the move took place according to the saint's desire
a vision.
pagan or
More probable is Earle's suggestion that the legend today comes from a
possibly prehistoric day of augury. In France, St Medard (8 June),
credited with an
Urban of Langres, and St Gervase and St Protais (19 June) are
St Swithun in
influence on the weather almost identical with that attributed to
the Seven
England. In Flanders, there is st Godelieve (6 July) and in Germany
Sleepers' Day (27 June).
restoration to
Apart from the rain legend, Swithun's best known miracle was his
he built - of a basket of eggs
a Winchester woman on a bridge - perhaps the one
be found in
that workmen had for some reason maliciously broken. This is to
Goscelin's life (c. 1 100).
is that of Queen
The most famous of the other stories connected with St Swithun
(15th century),
Emma',s ordeal, described in Thomas Rudborne's Historiamajor
Alfred
accompanied
a work which is also responsible for the story that Swithun
by some
on his supposed visit to Rome in 856 (a journey strongly doubted
the 11'n
how
relate
modern historians). Sources from the 13th century onwards
and Canute,
century Queen Emma, wife successively of Ethelred the Unraede
(ie. the old Minster)'
walked over red hot ploughshares in winchester cathedral
.gave, the same day, nine manors as an offering to St. Swithun,.
Emma
contemporary
Two comments on this legend are worth bearing in mind. First, no
authority for the story exists. Also what we can gather from contemporary
of the nine
writings cannot easily be reconciled with it. Hayling is the only one
with even the slightest
manors stated to have been given by Emma to Winchester
to her'
shadow of confirmation from Domesday of having ever belonged
The politics of sainthood
St Swithun's day is 15 July, the day
in97I when he was made a saint
and moved
But why
from his grave to his indoor shrine in the Old Minster at Winchester'
politics' The
was he moved? lt seems to have been down to ecclesiastical
English
discovery and/or re-discovery of saints' remains was a particularly
built
Minster
New
feature of t0'n century reformed monasticism. Winchester's
remains of Alfred
alongside the seventtrcentury Old Minster, already boasted the
and other kings of his time.
Bones and veneration
But why
Swithun was known for his learning, kindness and for charitable gifts'
of Wessex?
was he selected as patron of Winchester? Why not Birinus, apostle
whose
Or Haedda, who had translated the see of Winchester? Or even BeornStan,
Athelwold?
sancttty was supposedly the subject of a special revelation to Bishop
wulfstan claims swithun was chosen due to the generai ignorance about him. But
to
is this really acceptable? Tom Beaumont, in his Winchester from Prehistont
would
the Pre.gentis a sceptic. He believes it is quite inconceivable that Swithun
grave,
not have been known to the monks of the Old Minster. Indeed his original
while in the open, was centred right outside the front door of the Old Minster
i
I
I
t
hardly an obscul'e Position'
of
More piausibly he may have been 'promoted' after a promising re-evaluation
his life. It suited the policy of Bishop ,lBthelwold, encouraged by King Edgar
(whom he had tutoredj and backed by Archbishop Dunstan, to revive the popular
veneration for Swithun in pursuing their own schemes to establish monastic
discipline. The Bishop wanted his cathedral to return to the perceived simpler
values of monasticism in line with the Benedictine reforms that were reaching
England from continental centres such as Fleury and Ghent"
altar.
century Reinhald, a Winchester monk, travelled to Norway taking
Swithun's right arm with him. It was placed in the newly consecrated Stavanger
Cathedral (1125). Peterborough Abbey had the other arm'
In the
of Swithun, "He had not been a monk
12th
50 years later, in Canterbury, Alfheah's Successors, who had no links with
Winchester, had lost interest in the skull. Somehow, it ended up at Evreux, in
Normandy. It is possible that Giles, Bishop of Evreux, was given it as a
diplomatic gift in i172 *h"nhe was in England for the coronation of Henry II's
sJn, 'Henry the Young King', as co-ruler of England. Some sources suggest it
have
was Giles who placed the crown on Henry's head. St Swithun's skull might
took
been seen as an appropriate thank-you present - especially as the coronation
of potential benefits.
more
paiaded to bridge the gap between the recently imposed monks and the
departure
iubstantial clerks who had preceded them in the minsters, and whose
was causing such friction"'
A persona to embody the spirit of the new cathedral priory was needed' Swithun
hai a good reputation in Winchester and was remembered as having the common
appease the
touch. He had been a 'secular' rather than a monk, So was used to
reform
monastic
dispossessed canons somewhat, and to legitimise the
progru-... concludes Beaumont, "The beatification of Swithun was by no
."un, a fraud but it does have the hallmarks of necessity being the mother of
invention". So Athelwold's policy was confirmed'
1005, the then Bishop of Winchester,.Elfheah (known today as Alphege or
Alphage), decided to take the saint's skull with him when he was promoted to the
in a gold and
see of Canterbury. Thus Swithun's bones were exhumed and placed
silver reliquary at Winchester. They became the focus of considerable veneratton'
The reliquary, which contained the now headless collection of bones, was given
In
pride of place when the cathedral was rebuilt by the Normans in the late l lth
century ( f Oq:). It was installed on a 'feretory platform' above and behind the high
as the occupants of the
and
reformed minster were. He'd been a clerk whose successors had been ejected
sorts
all
had
excluded frorn the.lEthelwoldian reforms. His resuscitation therefore
He was local, saintly and non-monastic, so he could be
Says Beaumont
In late Anglo-Saxon England Swithun's remains had become an tmpotlant and
lucrative attraction. He was credited with the power to help restore cripples and
give sight to the blind. There is little evidence that his cult flourished so
vigorously after the Norman Conquest, eiespite periodic attelllpts to prornote it'
especiaily rn the I 3'r' centurY.
place in Winchester Cathedral'
I
huge
The Winchester retrochoir was built in the early 13th century to serve the
'holy hole' beneath
numbers of pilgrims wishing to visit the shrine and enter the
him. His empty tomb in the ruins of the Old Minster was also popular with
was
visitors. The new shrine was only moved into the retrochoir itself in 1476. It
demolished during the English Reformation 60 years later' A modern
representation of it now stands on the site.
robbed the skull of
In Evreux, anti-clerical actions during the French Revolution
reliquary. Meanwhile, winchester had no idea where
its precious-metal
found a
Swithun,s skull had ended up - until a member of the congregation
He visited Evreux'
reference to it in a 19th-century book on French cathedrals'
Winchester and
though did not manage to see the relic. But contact between
Eur.i,* was established, and Winchester Cathedral's archaeologist, Dr John
Crook, went to Evreux to see the relic for himself'
fragments
In recent yeafs, Crook has gradually been discovering and identifying
years in
overthe
of the monumental shrine irorn 1476, which hadbeen re-used
postgraduate students
a garden wall, an outbuilding, and other structures. Two
created a threefrom the University of Bamberg have scanned the fragments and
cathedral might use
dimensional computer model. It is these fragments that the
in
a reconstruction.
There is
a
'l'his church was restored again after 1660 and has been in use ever since. It
achieved a place in literature when Anthony Trollope referred to it in the last part
of his novel 'The Warden'. Warden Harding becomes rector after resigning from
Hiram's Hospital (usually identified with the Hospital of St Cross)' Trollope
ciescribes the stone steps leading down under the archway. "It is no bigger than
an ordinary room...but still it is a perfect chutch",
Norway's Stavanger cathedral is dedicated to him, as is zr church in Lincoln.
There is a St Swithin's Lane in the City of London, and a St. Swithun's School for
girls in Winchester. And of course we have the church in Woodbury, which
would have heid a presumed relic.
Apart from buildings, there is also a rose named after him. St Swithnn is a large
shrub or short climber, with a strong myrrh scent and lovely rosettes produced
freely. A beautiful rose, it is claimed to be tough, reliable and healthy.
appeal
suggestion that this new research could help broaden Swithun's
social
by placing him more clearly in the wider ecclesiastical, political, and
context of his time. His role as a bridge builder, in every sense, Seems
metaphorical lY aPProPri ate.
Dedications
They include
There are numerous dedications to St Swithun at Engli.sh churches.
An example
over 50 throughout the south of England, especially in Hampshire'
is probably not a very
is that in Headbourne worthy to the north of winchester. It
sides by a creek
notable church, but its setting is superb - surrounded on three
a bridge
flowing from a spring in the village. The lych gate on the south is also
over the creek, which is unusual.
of his own In the centre of Winchester itself Swithun has a little parish church
upstairs room just
St Swithun upon Kingsgate - a tiny and delightfully simple
middle ages churches
beyond the cathedr* cloie with a beautiful feel to it. In the
This
abtve gates were fairly common, but very few have survived until today'
not
but
John
King
of
little gern was built in the early 13'h century during the reign
of a dispute
recorded until 1264 when it was burnt by the citizens in the course
with the PriorY (it was rebuilt).
Statue of St Swithun - Stavanger Cathedral
Swithun's learning
As teacher of young Alfred?
in its
Swithun may have been born in Hampshire and was probably educated
to study
main centre, Winchester. There woulcl have been little or no opportLinity
education'
or
elsewhere. We know nothing at all about his parentage. upbringing
Alfred (himself later buried in Winchester in 899) may have been taught for a
time by Swithun, who could also have accompanied him as a six year old to
Rorne, if indeed this journey really happened. Kings or princes wet'e not then
subject to much of what we would recognise as formal education. Qualities like
bravery, strength and military pfowess were more highly valued than book
learning, and in any case few people could read.
to
But Swithun must have been a talented scholar for he ivas appointed chaplain
as the
Egbert, the 802-839 Wessex king. Egbert had already established hirnself
*or, po*"rful ruler in southern England. In 829 AD he not only conquered
the 1l'r'
Mercia, but also forced Northumbria to submit. From then on, until
century, Wessex retained its dominance in England'
Of course, the subject matter of learning in those days was rather circumscribed
just
by today,s standards. Latin was the main language learnt. Study concerned
long hours poring
u f"*, mainly religious, books and the whole activity involved
and
over ancient texts and copying them on vellum. One or two monasteries
their
in
worked
they
abbeys had teams of monks in a scriptorium' but mostly
cells.
holy
seems the aggressive activities of Danes and Vikings, by plundering
practice
places and murdering the inhabitants, had badly affected the culture and
It
throughout the British Isles and elsewhere. Even allowing for
recent
monastic reporting bias, the evidence here is pretty conclusive, despite
attempts to rehabilitate the reputation of the Vikings'
of learning
him
Egbert's son Ethelwulf, to whose education Swithun contributed, made
Uifrop of Winchester in 852. Egbert's grandson, Alfred, years later hailed in
known
London as King of the Angelcyn, stafied the creation of the single nation
men
learned
most
the
as England. So on balance it is likely Swithun was among
also have
of his time. He was recorded as being the tutor of Ethelwulf' He may
contributed to educating his youngest son, Alfred'
we have
Swithun was clearly literate, and probably clever and hard working' But
product
just
sixpenny
the only
no clue as to whether he was a brilliant scholar, or
in a halfpenny bazaat'
Alfred claims to have largely taught himseif Latin, and what he knew of other
subjects, later in life, as a sort of mature student. Having discovered literature,
with the zeal of the newly converted he proselytized fiercely. Or that's the spin
from the Anglo Saxon Chronicle. But the quality of translation attributed to
A1fred suggests more than a passing acquaintance with linguistic technique.
Alfred probably learned some Latin as a boy. He was the first English king to
write anything other than his name, and the last to write anything for 600 years.
Danish raids were disastrous for monasteries, with their silver such a target. And
while Alfred founded two or three new monasteries and enticed foreign monks
to Engiand, monasticism did not revive signifibantly during his reign. The raids
led to the practical extinction of Latin even among the clergy. The preface to
Pastoral Care, even allowing for a self serving element, testifies to this'
Alfred set up a court school following Charlemagne's example, with scholars
like Grimbald and John the Saxon from Europe, and Asser (his 'biographer')
from Wales. He saw to his own education, and did a series of translations for the
instruction of clergy and people, fftost of which survive. They are probably from
his last four years.
What did Alfred write? Hrs Handboc or Encheiridion, is lost but he wrote the
foreword to his friend Werferth, Bishop of Worcester's translation of Dialogues
of Gregory, a book popular at the time. In Gregory's Pastoral Care. Alfred kept
close to the original. His introduction is among the most interesting documents
of the reign, or indeed of English history.
Alfred remocielled the (Jniversal Histotl' of orosius to produce an almost new
work. In Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English Pectple l-re omitted most of
the documents and his authorship is doubted. In Alfred's translation of Boethius'
Consolution of Philosophy he deals freely with the original' but much is
cliaracteristically his, like the famous 'My will was to live worthily as long as I
ln
livecl, ancl after my life to leave to them that sliould come after. my memofy
good works." The poetic Law rtJ'Boethius was hrs main literary achievement'
Alfrecl's last work, Blostman ('Bloorns') includes his epitaph: "Therefore he
his
seems to Ine a very foolish man, and truly wretched, who will not increase
that
unclerstancling while he is in the worlcl, and ever wish and long to reach
enclless life where all shall be made clear."
(.iod's last judgment visiteclon all mankind,living and dead. And whiie religious
Scare-mongering, aS Some woulcl see it, was then less pronounced than in
liurope's later medieval period, many folk genuinely feared for their souls'
Within their limits of unclerstanding, therefore, they did their very best to avoid
being consigned forever to the presumed torments of hell.
lrore probably made by Athelwold and Dr-ttistan to further
their church reforms. A public relations theorist has recently written, "Behitld the
creation of the cult of St Swithun were comrrrunications and political strategies
with aspects of brand creation and extension, fund-raising, messi"rge creation and
delivery, and stakeholder engagement using tactics such as word-of-mouth, the
creation of special events and music, and use of specially commissioned
publications." Wow ! Here is the man through the prisrn of modern PR theory and
So a cult was born, or
Winchester and the Swithun cult
practice"
Swithun had no role in the Treasury, which was only iater based in Winchester'
Subsequent bishops weren't just the richest men in England, but in E'urope too'
Their po*"r: and wealth is shown by the cathedral's grand memorial chapels
housing their tombs. Among them were the immensely wealthy William of
Wykeham, who in the 14'h century was twice Chancellor' He also founded
Winchester College, and New Coliege Oxford. Other luminaries included
Mary
Ste phen Gardiner who officiated at the 1554 'spanish marriage' between
'l'Lrilor ancl Phillip of Spain, and Henry Beaufort, half brother to Henry fV and
banker to Henry V.
Swithun's legacy
'homeSt Swithun was never actually canonised by a pope, so is effectively a
made saint'. For centuries, Winchester was a place of pilgrimage, mainly due to
hirn. After his death, his bones, as we have seen, were said to heal the sick'
Pilgnms flocked to the cathedral in their thousands. Stalls were set up to sell
relics and clay models of the parts of the body that required healing. These were
then placed in the shrine in the hope of a miracle cure'
in different ways then. For
with
instance it was widely expected that the world would end in the year 1000,
It is helpful to realise people thought
and behaved
In Swithun's day the Winchester see covered a vast territory, froin the Thames to
the Channel Islands. It is now, of course, much smaller in area. But its
educational tradition remains and it is still regarded as one of the inain academic
sees today. It looks safe to assume Swithun was much involved in establishing it
as a base for learning - writing in English as well as Latin'
Crucially Winchester is the home of the Anglo Saxon Chronicle. English was the
only vernacular language (except Irish) to be used for historical purposes in the
'Dark Ages'. The Chronicle is the keystone of English history and language'
Scholars specialising in the field increasingly think it was sponsored and directed
in the lare ninth century by King Alfred himself. And whilst Swithun had by then
been dead for at least 25 years, the power of his reputation and strength of his
legacy in building up Winchester as a centre of literature and translation would
remain. This provided the skills and the means for the Chronicle actually to be
written. It also helped engender the culture in which the document in its various
forms would be cherished and preserved.
education of Alfred, he performed a
singular service to the English nation. Alfred the Great, a consLlmmate politician
unJrtot.r*an, is rightly regarded as a major figure in our history. Indeed many
have seen him as a sort of father of the English people'
If Swithun ciid have a role in the early
in any case, Swithun's re-creation of an acaciemic and learning tradition, and
the team of scholars I're rvould have established, was drLrcial forWessex, and in
future, for Englancl. Swithr-rn may have been left in obscr-rrity but foL a l0'r'
century initiative connected with church politics. But without him the foundations
of our Anglo-S axon culture might simply have been forgotten, too. In the context
of the time. this was a real achievement. It is Swithun's crowning legacy to us'
Br.rt
l
Stavanger Cathedral