Ælfheah of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury and saint (c. 953–1012) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ælfheah[lower-alpha 1][lower-alpha 2] (c. 953 – 19 April 1012), more commonly known today as Alphege, was an Anglo-Saxon Bishop of Winchester, later Archbishop of Canterbury. He became an anchorite before being elected abbot of Bath Abbey. His reputation for piety and sanctity led to his promotion to the episcopate and, eventually, to his becoming archbishop. Ælfheah furthered the cult of Dunstan and also encouraged learning. He was captured by Viking raiders in 1011 during the siege of Canterbury and killed by them the following year after refusing to allow himself to be ransomed. Ælfheah was canonised as a saint in 1078. Thomas Becket, a later Archbishop of Canterbury, prayed to Ælfheah just before his murder in Canterbury Cathedral in 1170.
Ælfheah | |
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Archbishop of Canterbury | |
Term ended | 19 April 1012 |
Predecessor | Ælfric of Abingdon |
Successor | Lyfing |
Other post(s) | |
Orders | |
Consecration | 19 October 984 |
Personal details | |
Born | c. 953 Weston, Somerset, England |
Died | 19 April 1012 Greenwich, Kent, England |
Buried | Canterbury Cathedral |
Sainthood | |
Feast day | 19 April |
Venerated in | |
Canonized | 1078 Rome by Pope Gregory VII |
Attributes | Archbishop holding an axe[5] |
Patronage | Greenwich; Solihull; kidnap victims[6] |
Shrines | Canterbury Cathedral |