A Biography of the Venerable Bede

The Venerable Bede was a British monk whose works in theology, history, chronology, poetry, and biography have led him to be accepted at the greatest scholar of the early medieval era. Born in March of 672 and having died on May 25, 735 in Jarrow, Northumbria, UK, Bede is most famous for producing the Historia ecclesiastica (Ecclesiastical History), a source essential for our understanding of the Anglo-Saxons and the Christianisation of Britain in the era before William the Conqueror and the Norman Conquest, earning him the title of the Father of English history. Childhood Little is known of Bedes childhood, other than he was born in March of 672 to parents living on land belonging to the newly founded Monastery of St. Peter, based in Wearmouth, to which Bede was given by relatives for a monastic education when he was seven. Initially, in the care of Abbot Benedict, Bedes teaching was taken over by Ceolfrith, with whom Bede moved to the monasterys new twin-house at Jarrow in 681. The Life of Ceolfrith suggests that here only the young Bede and Ceolfrith survived a plague which devastated the settlement. However, in the aftermath of the plague the new house regrew and continued. Both houses were in the kingdom of Northumbria. Adult Life Bede spent the rest of his life as a monk at Jarrow, first being taught and then teaching to the daily rhythms of monastic rule: for Bede, a mixture of prayer and study. He was ordained as a Deacon aged 19 – at a time when Deacons were supposed to be 25 or over – and a priest aged 30. Indeed, historians believe Bede left Jarrow only twice in his relatively long life, to visit Lindisfarne and York. While his letters contain hints of other visits, there isnt any real evidence, and he certainly never traveled far. Works Monasteries were nodes of scholarship in early medieval Europe, and there is nothing surprising in the fact that Bede, an intelligent, pious and educated man, used his learning, life of study and house library to produce a large body of writing. What was unusual was the sheer breadth, depth, and quality of the fifty plus works he produced, covering scientific and chronological matters, history and biography and, perhaps as expected, scriptural commentary. As befitted the greatest scholar of his era, Bede had the chance to become Prior of Jarrow, and perhaps more, but turned the jobs down as they would interfere with his study. The Theologian: Bedes biblical commentaries – in which he interpreted the bible mainly as an allegory, applied criticism and tried to solve discrepancies – were extremely popular in the early medieval period, being copied and spread – along with Bedes reputation – widely across the monasteries of Europe. This dissemination was helped by the school of Archbishop Egbert of York, one of Bedes pupils, and later by a student of this school, Alcuin, who became head of Charlemagnes palace school and played a key role in the Carolingian Renaissance. Bede took the Latin and Greek of the early church manuscripts and turned them into something the secular elites of the Anglo-Saxon world could deal with, helping them accept the faith and spread the church. The Chronologist Bedes two chronological works - De temporibus (On Times) and De temporum ratione (On the Reckoning of Time) were concerned with establishing the dates of Easter. Along with his histories, these still affect our style of dating: when equating the number of the year with the year of Jesus Christs life, Bede invented the use of A.D., The Year Of Our Lord. In stark contrast to dark age cliches, Bede also knew the world was round, the moon affected tides and appreciated observational science. The Historian In 731/2 Bede completed the Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum, the Ecclesiastical History of the English People. An account of Britain between the landings of Julius Caesar in 55/54 BC and St. Augustine in 597 AD, its the key source on the Christianisation of Britain, a mixture of sophisticated historiography and religious messages containing details simply not found elsewhere. As such, it now overshadows his other historical, indeed all his other, works and is one of the key documents in the entire field of British history. Its also lovely to read. Death and Reputation Bede died in 735 and was buried at Jarrow before being re-interred inside Durham Cathedral (at the time of this writing the Bedes World museum in Jarrow have a cast of his cranium on display.) He was already renowned among his peers, being described by a Bishop Boniface as having shone forth as a lantern in the world by his scriptural commentary, but is now regarded as the greatest and most multi-talented scholar of the early medieval era, perhaps of the entire medieval era. Bede was sainted in 1899, thus giving him the posthumous title of Saint Bede the Venerable. Bede was declared venerable by the church in 836, and the word is given on his tomb in Durham Cathedral: Hic sunt in fossa bedae venerabilis ossa (Here are buried the bones of the Venerable Bede.) Bede on Bede The Historia ecclesiastica finishes with a short account of Bede about himself and a list of his many works (and is actually the key source about his life that we, much later historians, have to work with): Thus much of the Ecclesiastical History of Britain, and more especially of the English nation, as far as I could learn either from the writings of the ancients, or the tradition of our ancestors, or of my own knowledge, has, with the help of God, been digested by me, Bede, the servant of God, and priest of the monastery of the blessed apostles, Peter and Paul, which is at Wearmouth and Jarrow; who being born in the territory of that same monastery, was given, at seven years of age, to be educated by the most reverend Abbot Benedict, and afterwards by Ceolfrid; and spending all the remaining time of my life in that monastery, I wholly applied myself to the study of Scripture, and amidst the observance of regular discipline, and the daily care of singing in the church, I always took delight in learning, teaching, and writing. In the nineteenth year of my age, I received deacons orders; in the thirtieth, those of the priesthood, both of them by the ministry of the most reverend Bishop J ohn, and by the order of the Abbot Ceolfrid. From which time, till the fifty-ninth year of my age, I have made it my business, for the use of me and mine, to compile out of the works of the venerable Fathers, and to interpret and explain according to their meaning... Source Bede, Ecclesiastical History of the English People. Penguin Classics, D. H. Farmer  (Editor, Introduction), Ronald Latham (Editor), et al., Paperback, Revised edition, Penguin Classics, May 1, 1991.