Edsige

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St. Edsige, also Eadsige, Eadsimus, or Eadsin (d. 1050), was Archbishop of Canterbury, and crowned St. Edward the Confessor.

Edsige
Archbishop of Canterbury
Enthroned {{{began}}}
Ended October 29, 1050
Predecessor Aethelnoth
Successor Robert of Jumieges
Consecration 1038
Died October 29, 1050
Christianity Portal
Edsige
Feast October 28
Saints Portal

[edit] Biography

Edsige was a royal priest for King Canute before Canute arranged for him to become a monk at Christ Church, Canterbury about 1030. About 1035, he served as a suffragan or coadjutor bishop to Archbishop Aethelnoth of Canterbury, with his see located at the church of St. Martin in Canterbury.[1] He was translated to the Archbishopric of Canterbury in 1038 after Aethelnoth's death.[2] In 1040, he journeyed to Rome to receive his pallium from Pope Benedict IX.[1]

He may have crowned Harthacanute in 1040,[1] but he definitely crowned Edward the Confessor on April 3, 1043 along with Archbishop Aelfric of York.[3] In 1044, Edsige, wishing to withdraw from his see because of ill-health, appears to have approached King Edward and Godwin, Earl of Wessex, about temporarily consecrating Siward, abbot of Abingdon in Edsige's place.[4] This retirement lasted until 1048,[5] when Siward became ill and returned to Abingdon to die within eight weeks.[1] While he was archbishop, he also was sheriff of Kent.[6] William of Malmesbury relates a story that Siward deprived Edsige of food during Edsige's illness and because of this Siward was not allowed to succeed Edsige, but had to settle for the see of Rochester instead. However this probably is a fabrication to account for the fact that Siward did not become archbishop after Edsige, for William had confused Siward, the abbot, with a different Siward, this one Siward of Rochester, who was Bishop of Rochester from 1058 to 1075.[1] The see of Worcester preserved a tradition that in about 1047 it was Edsige, along with Lyfing Bishop of Worcester, who forced Sweyn Godwinson to give up his wife who had been the abbess of Leominster Abbey before Sweyn abducted her.[7]

He died on October 29, 1050[2][1] or possibly just sometime in October of 1050.[8] During his occupation of the see, many of the lands of the see were either leased, sold or given to Godwin, Earl of Wessex, an action that angered the monks of the cathedral, and may have contributed to William of Malmesbury's dislike of the archbishop and willingness to fabricate a story about him being mistreated.[1]

He is considered a saint, with his feast day on October 28.[9]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Hunt, William "Eadsige (d. 1050)" rev. Mary Frances Smith, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Oxford University Press, 2004 Online Edition accessed November 7, 2007
  2. ^ a b Fryde, E. B.; Greenway, D. E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I. (1996). Handbook of British Chronology, Third Edition, revised, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 214. ISBN 0-521-56350-X. 
  3. ^ Barlow, Frank, Edward the Confessor Berkeley: University of California Press 1970 ISBN 0-520-01671-8 p. 61
  4. ^ Barlow, Frank Edward the Confessor Berkeley: University of California Press 1970 ISBN 0-520-01671-8 p. 78
  5. ^ Barlow, Frank Edward the Confessor Berkeley: University of California Press 1970 ISBN 0-520-01671-8 p. 104
  6. ^ Barlow, Frank Edward the Confessor Berkeley: University of California Press 1970 ISBN 0-520-01671-8 p. 115
  7. ^ Barlow, Frank The Godwins: The Rise and Fall of a Noble Dynasty London: Pearson Longman 2002 ISBN 0-582-78440-9 p. 53
  8. ^ Hindley, Geoffrey A Brief History of the Anglo-Saxons: The beginnings of the English nation New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers 2006 ISBN 978-0-78671738-5 p. 324
  9. ^ Catholic Online Entry for Edsige accessed on November 4, 2007

[edit] External links

Roman Catholic Church titles
Preceded by
Aethelnoth		 Archbishop of Canterbury
1038–1050		 Succeeded by
Robert of Jumieges
v • d • e
List of Archbishops of Canterbury
pre-Reformation

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post-Reformation (Anglican)
Persondata
NAME Edsige
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Eadsige; Eadsimus; Eadsin
SHORT DESCRIPTION Archbishop of Canterbury
DATE OF BIRTH
PLACE OF BIRTH
DATE OF DEATH October 29, 1038
PLACE OF DEATH