Oscytel | |
|---|---|
| Archbishop of York | |
| Appointed | 958 |
| Term ended | 971 |
| Predecessor | Wulfstan |
| Successor | Edwald |
| Other post(s) | Bishop of Dorchester |
| Orders | |
| Consecration | between 934 and 951 |
| Personal details | |
| Died | 971 Thame |
| Buried | Bedford |
Oscytel (or Oskytel or Oscetel; died 971) was a medieval Bishop of Dorchester and Archbishop of York.
Oscytel was probably of Danish ancestry. [2] [3] He was related to Oswald, Bishop of Worcester and later Archbishop of York, and Thurcytel, who was abbot of Bedford Abbey. All three men were landowners in the eastern midlands, with Oskytel owning lands at Beeby, in Leicestershire. No other information about Oskytel's birth and upbringing is known. [4] A legend stated that his father was a Dane who arrived in England as part of a pagan war band. [5]
Oscytel was selected to the see of Dorchester sometime between 934 and 951, [6] probably close to 951 for the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle says that he had been a bishop for twenty-two years when he died. 951 is also when he first attests a charter as bishop. A previous mention of an "Oscetel" as either a sacrist or treasurer in 949 may or may not be the same person. Oskytel only starts showing up consistently after the death of King Eadred of England, who left the bishop some bequests in his will. At first Oskytel supported King Eadwig of England, but in about 958 he switched to supporting Eadwig's brother King Edgar of England. [4]
Oscytel became archbishop in 958. [7] However, he continued to hold the see of Dorchester along with York, a practice known as pluralism. It is probably due to Oskytel's pluralism that Nottinghamshire was added to the see of York instead of remaining with Dorchester where it had been before. The Anglo Saxon Chronicle from Ramsey says that he went to Rome for his pallium, but no other sources say that he did so. While archbishop he advanced the career of his kinsman Oswald by bringing him to the attention of Dunstan, and encouraging Oswald's foundation of Ramsey Abbey. Oskytel also was a benefactor to the new monastic houses that were formed in the fens during his time as archbishop. [4] The precise nature of Oskytel's and Oswald's relationship is unclear, but they were relatives. [8]
Oscytel died on 1 November 971 [7] or on 31 October 971 at Thame, and was buried at Bedford. The ancient minster of St Paul's Church, Bedford is accepted as the site of his grave. [4]
Eadwig was King of England from 23 November 955 until his death in 959. He was the elder son of Edmund I and his first wife Ælfgifu, who died in 944. Eadwig and his brother Edgar were young children when their father was killed trying to rescue his seneschal from attack by an outlawed thief on 26 May 946. As Edmund's sons were too young to rule he was succeeded by his brother Eadred, who suffered from ill health and died unmarried in his early 30s.
Odathe Good was a 10th-century Archbishop of Canterbury in England. The son of a Danish invader, Oda became Bishop of Ramsbury before 928. A number of stories were told about his actions both prior to becoming and while a bishop, but few of these incidents are recorded in contemporary accounts. After being named to Canterbury in 941, Oda was instrumental in crafting royal legislation as well as involved in providing rules for his clergy. Oda was also involved in the efforts to reform religious life in England. He died in 958 and legendary tales afterwards were ascribed to him. Later he came to be regarded as a saint, and a hagiography was written in the late 11th or early 12th century.
Ælfsige was Bishop of Winchester before he became Archbishop of Canterbury in 959.
Wulfstan was Archbishop of York between 931 and 952. He is often known as Wulfstan I, to separate him from Wulfstan II, Archbishop of York.
Æthelbert was an eighth-century scholar, teacher, and Archbishop of York. Related to his predecessor at York, he became a monk at an early age and was in charge of the cathedral's library and school before becoming archbishop. He taught a number of missionaries and scholars, including Alcuin, at the school. While archbishop, Æthelbert sent missionaries to the Continent. Æthelbert retired before his death, and during his retirement consecrated another church in York.
Ælfgifu was Queen of the English as wife of King Eadwig of England for a brief period of time until 957 or 958. What little is known of her comes primarily by way of Anglo-Saxon charters, possibly including a will, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and hostile anecdotes in works of hagiography. Her union with the king, annulled within a few years of Eadwig's reign, seems to have been a target for factional rivalries which surrounded the throne in the late 950s. By c. 1000, when the careers of the Benedictine reformers Dunstan and Oswald became the subject of hagiography, its memory had suffered heavy degradation. In the mid-960s, however, she appears to have become a well-to-do landowner on good terms with King Edgar and, through her will, a generous benefactress of ecclesiastical houses associated with the royal family, notably the Old Minster and New Minster at Winchester.
Æthelwold of Winchester was Bishop of Winchester from 963 to 984 and one of the leaders of the tenth-century monastic reform movement in Anglo-Saxon England.
Oswald of Worcester was Archbishop of York from 972 to his death in 992. He was of Danish ancestry, but brought up by his uncle, Oda of Canterbury, who sent him to France to the abbey of Fleury to become a monk. After a number of years at Fleury, Oswald returned to England at the request of his uncle, who died before Oswald returned. With his uncle's death, Oswald needed a patron and turned to another kinsman, Oskytel, who had recently become Archbishop of York. His activity for Oskytel attracted the notice of Archbishop Dunstan who had Oswald consecrated as Bishop of Worcester in 961. In 972, Oswald was promoted to the see of York, although he continued to hold Worcester also.
Eanbald I was an eighth century Archbishop of York.
Eanbald II was an eighth century Archbishop of York and correspondent of Alcuin.
Wulfhere was Archbishop of York between 854 and 900.
Ealdwulf was a medieval Abbot of Peterborough, Bishop of Worcester, and Archbishop of York.
Ælfric Puttoc was Archbishop of York from 1023 to his death, and briefly Bishop of Worcester from 1040 to 1041. He may have crowned Harold Harefoot in 1036, and certainly assisted in that king's disinterment in 1040 and at the coronation of Edward the Confessor in 1043. He founded houses of canons and encouraged the cult of John of Beverley.
Cynesige was a medieval English Archbishop of York between 1051 and 1060. Prior to his appointment to York, he was a royal clerk and perhaps a monk at Peterborough. As archbishop, he built and adorned his cathedral as well as other churches, and was active in consecrating bishops. After his death in 1060, the bequests he had made to a monastery were confiscated by the queen.
Plegmund was a medieval English Archbishop of Canterbury. He may have been a hermit before he became archbishop in 890. As archbishop, he reorganised the Diocese of Winchester, creating four new sees, and worked with other scholars in translating religious works. He was canonised after his death.
Æthelwine was the last Anglo-Saxon bishop of Durham, the last who was not also a secular ruler, and the only English bishop at the time of the Norman Conquest who did not remain loyal to King William the Conqueror.
Ælfheah the Bald is the commonly used name for Ælfheah, the first English Bishop of Winchester of that name. He is sometimes known as Alphege, an older translation of his Old English name.
Æthelric was Bishop of Durham from 1041 to 1056 when he resigned.
Byrhthelm was the Bishop of Wells and briefly the archbishop of Canterbury. A monk from Glastonbury Abbey, he served as Bishop of Wells beginning in 956, then was translated to Canterbury in 959, only to be translated back to Wells in the same year.
Events from the 10th century in the Kingdom of England.