Continuing my report on Barbara Yorke’s 2009 Jarrow lecture, she spent quite a bit of time on the relationship between Aldfrith and two of his good friends, Adomman and Aldhelm. How remarkable that this half-Irish, half Northumbrian prince had such close contact with two of the greatest scholars of his time. Yorke notes that both [...]
Archive for the ‘Northumbria’ Category
26 Oct
Ecgfrith’s Heir
During a fall when I’ve been too busy for blogging, I got a great medieval surprise in my snail mailbox. For the first time I can remember the Jarrow Lecture has been published in the year it was given! Kudos to Barbara Yorke! She gave a very interesting and thought provoking lecture. So thought provoking [...]
4 Sep
Negotiating Conversion
I was just looking at one of my favorite articles on St Oswald this morning. Tolley’s “Oswald’s Tree” is a unique article that sets Oswald’s actions and the development of his veneration within the semi-pagan times that he lived. So few people consider the pre-Christian context and what that means for conversion. Today, the word [...]
25 Jul
When Bede Met Adomnan…
One of the events that Bede mentions in the Ecclesiastical History that has always fascinated me is a meeting between Bede and Adomnan in 703. Bede never specifically says that he met Adomnan, but he does report of a visit by Adomnan to Wearmouth-Jarrow in the year before Adomnan’s death. We know that Adomnan died [...]
7 Jun
The Realm of Humbria
Humbria is a hypothetical proto-over-kingdom in the extreme. The area discussed under the term Humbria seems to be the region around the Humber River, not surprisingly. This region includes the kingdoms of Deira, Elmet, Lindsey, and proto-Mercia. In effect, references to Humbria suggest that it was the core of Deira’s hegemony. While Edwin had extended [...]
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