alphege

St. Alphege was born in 954 and was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1006 to 1012. By an early tradition Alphege's birthplace was Weston, near Bath. He entered the important Benedictine priory at Deerhurst near Tewkesbury and became Abbot of Bath in 973.

Appointed by Archbishop Dunstan, Alphege was consecrated Bishop of Winchester on the 19th October 984. His self discipline, holiness and encouragement of alms-giving to the poor became legendary. Despite renewed raids by the Danes he completed the substantial extension of the Anglo-Saxon cathedral.

When the Danes raided in great force in 994, King Ethelred asked Alphege and others to make peace with them. This was agreed after a Danegeld payment of 16,000 pounds (£500 million today). Olaf, one of their leaders, was confirmed a Christian by Bishop Alphege, the King being Olaf's sponsor, and he agreed never to fight in England again. Soon after Olaf, now King of Norway, converted Norway, Iceland and Greenland to Christianity.

At fifty-two years of age, Alphege was consecrated Archbishop of Canterbury in 1006. He led the church in England through the disruptions and uncertainties of renewed and extensive attacks, which came to a head in 1011. The Danes overran nine counties in south-eastern England and then besieged Canterbury. They entered the city, killed most of the people and burnt everything. Alphege was taken in chains with other worthy prisoners to be exchanged for ransoms. After seven months the Danes wintered at Greenwich where an epidemic broke out. Alphege was allowed to minister to them and converted some to be Christians. When he refused to allow his people to pay a ransom of 3,000 pounds of silver the Danes felt deceived and on Easter Saturday, the Saturday after Easter, the 19th April, in a drunken rage they disobeyed their leaders and pelted him with ox bones and stones. One of the soldiers, Thrum, who had recently become a Christian, put him out of his agony with an axe blow to his head. He was buried at St. Paul's in London and in 1023 his body was translated to Canterbury by King Canute, with great ceremony. It was buried on the left of the High Altar where monks venerated it for long after.

St. Alphege died for justice. His life and death give a special Christian meaning to reconciliation.