A.D. 706. SICINNIUS APPOINTED TO THE ROMAN CHAIR. 341

the provinces of Wilton, Dorset, Berru, and Somerset, Devon, and Cornwall. But the village of Sherborne is so small, that it appears marvellous that a bishopric should have lasted there so many ages.

CH. XIII. FROM A.D. 705 to 742. Death of Ethelred-The See of Worcester is founded-Saint Guthlac of Croyland-Gregory is Pope-Ina, king of the West Saxons, defeats and kills Eadbert-Bede writes his History-Schism of the Iconoclasts-Wars of Ethelbald, King of Mercia-Death of Bede-His Character-Death of Gregory.

A.D. 705. Ethelred, king of Mercia, who had become a monk, after having ruled the kingdom with great vigour for thirty years, died at Bardoneia, and was buried there. This king had two sisters, who were most holy virgins, by name Kinesdrida and Kineswitha, both dedicated to God from their infancy, and who nobly persevered to old age in their noble determination of virginity. But the younger, not being content with the salvation of herself alone, restored Offa, her betrothed husband, also to the kingdom of heaven; and Offa reigned in the kingdom of the East Saxons a few years after Sigehard and Scofrid, being a youth of pleasant countenance, in the flower of his age, and greatly beloved by his countrymen. He then, in consequence of the exhortations of the before-mentioned Kineswitha, as she disdained to become his wife, was taught to sigh for heavenly love, and went to Rome, and having become a monk there, he ascended devoutly to the kingdom of heaven. The remains of these holy virgins are worshipped by, and bring good fortune to the people at friedeshamstede, a village which is sometimes called the Borough of Saint Peter (Peterborough). The same year, Ælfrid, king of Northumberland, died, and was succeeded by his son Osred, who reigned eleven years. Ethelred was succeeded as king of Mercia by Kinred, who reigned five years. This year also, John was selected pope of Rome, and occupied that see one year.

A.D. 706. Sicinnius was appointed to the Roman chair, and held it only twenty days. The same year, Justinian, who had been an exile, was, by the assistance of Trehelbus, king of Bulgaria, restored to his kingdom, and reigned six years. And when he was firmly seated on the throne, he put to death all those men who had formerly expelled him, and ordered

Absimarus Tiberius to be executed. He also tore out the eyes of the patriarch Gallinicus, and sent him to Rome, and slew a countless multitude of Roman citizens. He likewise caused the town of Chersona, where he had lived in banishment, to be destroyed, and practised unheard-of cruelties on his enemies.

to me."

A.D. 707. Constantine was elected to the Roman chair, and occupied it seven years and fifteen days, and the see was vacant forty days. About the same time, there was a certain soldier, of the family of Kinred, king of Mercia, a man openly devoted to vice; and as the king earnestly advised him to seek repentance, he so disregarded his warnings of salvation, that he postponed all amendment of his flagitious life. But about this time he was seized with an illness, and took to his bed, and began to yield to the attacks of severe pain. Accordingly, the king went to see him, and frequently exhorted him to turn to repentance for his sins, before he died. But he replied that he would not confess his sins till he recovered from his sickness, lest his companions should reproach him with having done so through fear of death. And when, as his disease became more violent, the king came again to him to exhort him, he began to cry out with a piteous voice, "Why have you come hither? you cannot any longer be any advantage or salvation And the king answered him, "Do not say so; study to adopt sensible and sane thoughts.' "I am not insane,' said the man, "but I have a terrible conscience before my eyes. For a little before you came, two youths entered this house, and sat down close to me, the one at my head, and the other at my feet, and one of them brought me forth a book, very beautiful, but very small, for me to read, in which I found all the good deeds which I have hitherto done, set down. But they, looking on the book, said nothing, and immediately there came up an army of most foul, malignant spirits, which blockaded this house on the outside, and sitting down ́inside also, filled the greater part of it. Then one of the foulest among them, who appeared larger than his fellows, produced a book of horrible appearance and enormous bulk, and insupportable weight, and ordered one of his attendants to bring it to me to read. And when I had read in it, I found all the wickednesses, all the offences that I had committed, not only in deed or word, but in even the slightest thought, written down in it most legibly, in the blackest characters. And they

A.D. 710.

KINRED PUTS ON THE MONASTIC HABIT.

343

said to those bright men in white garments, who were sitting by me, 'Why sit ye here, knowing that this man most undoubtedly belongs to us?' They replied, 'You speak truly, take him and lead him away to the crowd of your damnation." Then two most wicked spirits rose up, having forks in their hands, and smote me, one on the head and the other on the feet, and they now are creeping, to my great torture, into all my inward parts, and as soon as they meet I shall die, and then, as all these devils are prepared to carry me off, I shall be dragged down to hell." Thus spoke that despairing wretch, and immediately his miserable death ensued. But it is evident, in this case, that this display of his crimes was not made for his own sake, as he derived no benefit from it, but for that of others, that they, knowing the circumstances of his death, might not delay their repentance, lest they should be anticipated by some unforeseen stroke of death, and so die unrepentant.

A.D. 708. Ina, king of the West Saxons, fought a battle against Gerens, king of the Welch; and at the beginning of the battle, Higebald, his general, was slain. But at last, the king of Wales fled, and left his arms and spoils to the Angles, who were pursuing him. The same year, Offer, governor of Northumberland, fought against the Picts, and slew a great multitude of them, and so became the avenger of king Egfrid.

A.D. 709. Aldelm, bishop of Sherborne, died. When that holy man was only a priest, and abbot of the monastery which they call the city of Maildulph, he, at the command of a synod, wrote an admirable book to his nation against the errors of the Britons, by which he induced them to adopt the Catholic celebration of Easter. He also wrote an excellent treatise on Virginity, and many other books likewise, being a man of the greatest learning on every subject, and admirable for his erudition, as well in mundane as in spiritual affairs. And after his death, Forther succeeded him in his pontificate, who was also a man of most praiseworthy learning in the holy Scrip

tures.

A.D. 710. Kinred, who had for some time governed the kingdom of Mercia in a most noble manner, abandoned the sceptre of the kingdom in a more noble manner still. For while Constantine filled the office of pontiff at Rome, Kinred devoutly travelled to the threshold of the apostles, and there put on the monastic habit, and remained there till the day of

He was

his summons, in prayers, and fastings, and alms. succeeded in the kingdom by Ceolred, the son of Ethelred, who ruled that kingdom before Kinred. And he came to Rome with Offa, king of the Saxons, of whom mention has been made above. And Offa too, prompted by a devout mind, left wife, and lands, and kinsmen, and country for Christ's sake, that he might receive in this life a hundred-fold, and in the world to come life everlasting. He was succeeded in his kingdom by Selred, the son of Segebert the Good, who reigned thirty-eight years.

A.D. 711. In the province of the South Saxons, it was determined, by a synodal decree, that those in that province who had hitherto belonged to the diocese of Winchester, over which Daniel at that time presided, should henceforth form a separate diocese, and have a bishop of their own. And Eadbert was consecrated their first bishop, who had been abbot of the monastery of bishop Wilfrid of blessed memory, which is called Selsey, where that servant of God, having been in exile for five years, had obtained from the king of that province an estate sufficient for eighty families, in which he might receive his fellow-exiles, and supply them with the necessaries of life. For it is a place surrounded on all sides by the sea, except on the west, where it is connected with the main-land by a neck of land of about the extent of a sling's throw in width. And when Wilfrid had received this spot, he founded a monastery on it, and instituted a regular system of life, forming his convent chiefly of those persons whom he had brought with him, and his successors maintained his institutions for a long time afterwards. And as king Ethelwald gave him not only the land and the men on it, but also entire power over them, he regenerated all those whom he found there in the water of baptism, and strengthened them in the faith of Christ. And there were in number, with servants and hand-maidens, about two hundred and fifty souls, all of whom he delivered, as I may say, from the service of the devil, and also, by giving them their liberty, from the yoke of human slavery.

But when Wilfrid was recalled to the province of Northumberland first of all, Cadwallader, king of the West Saxons, and after him his successor Ina (having defeated and slain the kings of that province), occupied that kingdom. Owing to which circumstance, it happened that during all that time that nation had no bishop of its own, but was subject to the bishop

A.D. 714.

SAINT GUTHLAC DIES.

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of the city of Winchester, as has been said before. And after Eadbert, the first bishop of that country, Cella succeeded to the office of the pontificate. And when he was withdrawn from this world, that see was vacant till the death of Bede. This year also the great Wilfrid died, forty-five years after he first received his bishopric, as has been stated before. And he was succeeded in the bishopric of Hagustald by Eatta, one of his priests. And Bede the priest says a great deal about his industry in his book of history, and greatly commends his sanctity.

A.D. 712. Egwin, the third bishop of the Wicci, flourished. But the first bishop of that province had been a man by name Bosel, and the second was Ostfort. And Egwin, being the third in order, going to Rome with Kinred, king of Mercia, and Offa, king of the East Angles, obtained from pope Constantine the privilege of liberty for the monastery which he had erected in the district of Worcester, in order to render it more secure from the irruption of wicked men. And his successors in the bishopric of Worcester were Wilfrid, Mildred, Werenerd, Tilher, Herefert, Debert, Herebert, Alwyne, Hereferth, Ethelhun, Wilferth, Kinewolt, Dunstan, Oswald, and Eldulf, of whom the three last were also afterwards archbishops of Canterbury. About the same time, Justinian, the emperor, was slain by the heretic Philippicus at Constantinople, and his son Tiberius with him. For Justinian was the emperor who had treated those citizens with excessive tyranny, ordering their city to be ploughed up, and to be rased to the ground, because they had conspired together to depose him, as has been related above.

A.D. 713. Philippicus usurped the Roman empire, and received the purple at Constantinople, and reigned two years. He, being a heretic, banished Cyrus, the bishop of Constantinople, and placed in that see a proud monk of his own opinions, by name John. And Philippicus himself sent to Rome to pope Constantine letters full of erroneous doctrine, which that holy man, by the advice of the Roman people, rejected, and ordered that his name should not be inscribed in the rolls, that his payment of money should not be received, and that his name should not be recited at the solemnity of the mass.

A.D. 714. Saint Guthlac, the hermit, ended his days in a marsh at Croyland. He was descended from no ignoble family, but was of illustrious blood on both sides of his house. And when his mother bore him, in the reign of Ethelred, king