Heathored
Encyclopedia
Heathored of Whithorn is sometimes given as the Northumbria
n Bishop of Whithorn
(Latin: Candida Casa), following the demise of Bishop Beadwulf
. He is possibly the last known Anglo-Saxon
Bishop of Whithorn. His name occurs for the last time around 833; no other bishop at Whithorn is known until the accession around three centuries later of Gille Aldan
. It is sometimes thought that he may be the same man as Bishop Heathored of Lindisfarne
.
.
At the end of John of Worcester
's Chronicle are lists of bishops of the various dioceses, and the list for Candida Casa includes a certain Heathored as following Beadwulf, but no chronicle (including this one) mentions either Whithorn or its bishop after Beadwulf. However, the various chronicles continue to mention the deaths and consecrations of the bishops at York
, Hexham
, and Lindisfarne
well into the ninth century. Had there been a successor to Beadwulf, it is unlikely that he would have escaped the attention of the chroniclers. Beadwulf is the last known Bishop of Candida Casa.
As to the possibility that there was confusion with another historical person named Heathored who might have been Bishop of Whithorn, there was a Bishop of Hexham named Heathored, who was consecrated in 797 on the death of Bishop Æthelberht of Hexham
, and who served only until 800, when he died and was succeeded by Eanbert. However, Beadwulf was still the Bishop of Candida Casa in 803, so this Heathored could not be the one in question. It is not credible to suggest that the bishopric of Heathored of Lindisfarne
would be extended to include far-off Candida Casa, across the territory of the still-active bishopric of Hexham. However, it is possible that the scribe who compiled the list at the end of John of Worcester's Chronicle was confused about whether one of these like-named bishops had served at Candida Casa.
Northumbria
Northumbria was a medieval kingdom of the Angles, in what is now Northern England and South-East Scotland, becoming subsequently an earldom in a united Anglo-Saxon kingdom of England. The name reflects the approximate southern limit to the kingdom's territory, the Humber Estuary.Northumbria was...
n Bishop of Whithorn
Bishop of Galloway
The Bishop of Galloway, also called the Bishop of Whithorn, was the eccesiastical head of the Diocese of Galloway, said to have been founded by Saint Ninian in the mid-5th century. The subsequent Anglo-Saxon bishopric was founded in the late 7th century or early 8th century, and the first known...
(Latin: Candida Casa), following the demise of Bishop Beadwulf
Beadwulf
Beadwulf was the last Bishop of Candida Casa to be consecrated by the Northumbrian Archbishop of York. He appears in four years of the chronicles and nowhere else...
. He is possibly the last known Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
Bishop of Whithorn. His name occurs for the last time around 833; no other bishop at Whithorn is known until the accession around three centuries later of Gille Aldan
Gille Aldan
Gille Aldan , of Whithorn, was a native Galwegian who was the first Bishop of the resurrected Bishopric of Whithorn or Galloway. He was the first to be consecrated by the Archbishop of York, who at that time was Thurstan...
. It is sometimes thought that he may be the same man as Bishop Heathored of Lindisfarne
Egfrid of Lindisfarne
Egfrid of Lindisfarne was Bishop of Lindisfarne from 821 until his death in 830. It is thought that he founded the church of Saint Cuthbert in Norham.- External links :*...
.
Controversy
It is possible that his occasional inclusion on the list of the bishops of Whithorn is the result of a scribal mistake or confusion, and that there was no such bishop at that episcopal seeEpiscopal See
An episcopal see is, in the original sense, the official seat of a bishop. This seat, which is also referred to as the bishop's cathedra, is placed in the bishop's principal church, which is therefore called the bishop's cathedral...
.
At the end of John of Worcester
John of Worcester
John of Worcester was an English monk and chronicler. He is usually held to be the author of the Chronicon ex chronicis.-Chronicon ex chronicis:...
's Chronicle are lists of bishops of the various dioceses, and the list for Candida Casa includes a certain Heathored as following Beadwulf, but no chronicle (including this one) mentions either Whithorn or its bishop after Beadwulf. However, the various chronicles continue to mention the deaths and consecrations of the bishops at York
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
, Hexham
Hexham
Hexham is a market town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, located south of the River Tyne, and was the administrative centre for the Tynedale district from 1974 to 2009. The three major towns in Tynedale were Hexham, Prudhoe and Haltwhistle, although in terms of population, Prudhoe was...
, and Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne is a tidal island off the north-east coast of England. It is also known as Holy Island and constitutes a civil parish in Northumberland...
well into the ninth century. Had there been a successor to Beadwulf, it is unlikely that he would have escaped the attention of the chroniclers. Beadwulf is the last known Bishop of Candida Casa.
As to the possibility that there was confusion with another historical person named Heathored who might have been Bishop of Whithorn, there was a Bishop of Hexham named Heathored, who was consecrated in 797 on the death of Bishop Æthelberht of Hexham
Æthelberht of Whithorn
Æthelberht was a 8th century Anglo-Saxon bishop. His consecration as Bishop of Whithorn can be placed using the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle on 15 June in either 776 or 777, and took place at York. In either 789, 790 or 791 he became Bishop of Hexham; he was succeeded at Whithorn by Beadwulf. He died on...
, and who served only until 800, when he died and was succeeded by Eanbert. However, Beadwulf was still the Bishop of Candida Casa in 803, so this Heathored could not be the one in question. It is not credible to suggest that the bishopric of Heathored of Lindisfarne
Egfrid of Lindisfarne
Egfrid of Lindisfarne was Bishop of Lindisfarne from 821 until his death in 830. It is thought that he founded the church of Saint Cuthbert in Norham.- External links :*...
would be extended to include far-off Candida Casa, across the territory of the still-active bishopric of Hexham. However, it is possible that the scribe who compiled the list at the end of John of Worcester's Chronicle was confused about whether one of these like-named bishops had served at Candida Casa.