Early Insular Christianity
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Early Insular Christianity is a term used to cover Christianity in the British Isles during the post-Roman period (5th to 8th centuries). It splits into two strands:
- Celtic Christianity (5th to 8th centuries), the Christianity surviving from the Roman period in the British/Brythonic areas of the British Isles (eg Ireland, Wales, Scotland) and spread to England by the Hiberno-Scottish mission
- Anglo-Saxon Christianity (7th to 11th centuries), the Christianity imported from Rome by Augustine of Canterbury in 597
The Synod of Whitby of 664 forms a significant watershed in that King Oswiu of Northumbria decided to follow Roman rather than Celtic practices, but the two rites co-existed for another century, Wales observing the Celtic Easter date until 768. The Anglo-Saxon mission in the 7th to 8th centuries spread Christianity to the Continent, as had the earlier Celtic missions.