A possibly authentic Anglo-Saxon charter records a grant by Hlothhere, king of the people of Kent (south-east Britain), of land at Stodmarsh, Kent, to the monastery outside Canterbury dedicated to *Peter (the Apostle, S00036). Written in Latin, probably in Kent, 1 April 675.
E05863
Documentary texts - Charter or diploma
Documentary texts - Donation document
Charter of King Hlothere (Sawyer 7, excerpted)
In nomine Domini Dei et saluatoris Iesu Christi. Ego Lotharius rex Cantuariorum, anno regni nostri primo, indictione tercia, sub die kalendarum Aprilis [...] terram trium aratorum in marisco qui appellatur Stodmerch' iuxta Fordeuuicam [...] abbati et monasterio beati Petri apostolorum principis quod situm est iuxta ciuitatem Dorouernis in suburbio in sempiterno possidenda concedimus et confirmamus [...] pro remedio anime mee et absolucione peccatorum meorum [...]
'In the name of the Lord God and Saviour Jesus Christ. I, Hlothhere, king of the people of Kent, in the first year of our reign, in the third indiction, on the kalends of April ... grant and confirm the land of three sulungs in the marsh which is called Stodmarsh, next to Fordwich ... to be possessed forever by the abbot and monastery of blessed Peter, prince of the apostles, which is situated next to the city of Canterbury, in its suburb ... for the remedy of my soul and the absolution of my sins ...'
Text: Kelly 1995, no. 6, 26-7.
Translation: B. Savill.
Cult building - monastic
Places Named after SaintMonastery
Non Liturgical ActivityBequests, donations, gifts and offerings
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesEcclesiastics - abbots
Monarchs and their family
Source
This charter survives only as a much later copy, in a 15th century manuscript. Its most recent editor argues that its 'absolute authenticity... must remain undecided, but the present text does represent or at least rely on a genuine seventh-century charter.' (Kelly 1995, 27-30).For further details, see this charter's entry on the Electronic Sawyer: http://www.esawyer.org.uk/charter/7.html
Discussion
This monastery at Canterbury would later become known as St Augustine's, after its founder Augustine, first bishop of Canterbury (597-?609). Although the house was apparently established as a monastery dedicated to both Peter and Paul (cf. Bede, Ecclesiastical History 1.33), this early charter only records a dedication to Peter.Bibliography
Edition:Kelly, S.E., Charters of St Augustine's Abbey, Canterbury, and Minster-in-Thanet (Oxford, 1995).
Further reading:
Sawyer, P.H., Anglo-Saxon Charters: an Annotated List and Bibliography (London, 1968); revd. S.E. Kelly and R. Rushforth et al. online at http://www.esawyer.org.uk
Benjamin Savill
22/06/2018
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00036 | Peter, the Apostle | Petrus | Certain |
|---|
Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Benjamin Savill, Cult of Saints, E05863 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E05863