Cwenburh of Wimborne was an 8th-century Anglo-Saxon saint,David Hugh Farmer (2011), '' The Oxford Dictionary of Saints'', 5th Edition (revised), p
373
as Quenburga a sister of King Ine of Wessex and of Saint

Cuthburh Saint Cuthburh or Cuthburg, Cuthburga ( ang, Cūþburh; died 31 August 725) was the first Abbess of Wimborne Minster. She was the sister of Ine, King of Wessex and was married to the Northumbrian king Aldfrith. Life Cuthburh was the daughter of ...

. Her sister Cuthburh was married to King

Aldfrith of Northumbria Aldfrith (Early Modern Irish: ''Flann Fína mac Ossu''; Latin: ''Aldfrid'', ''Aldfridus''; died 14 December 704 or 705) was king of Northumbria from 685 until his death. He is described by early writers such as Bede, Alcuin and Stephen of Ripon ...

and then became the first

abbess An abbess (Latin: ''abbatissa''), also known as a mother superior, is the female superior of a community of Catholic nuns in an abbey. Description In the Catholic Church (both the Latin Church and Eastern Catholic), Eastern Orthodox, Coptic ...

of Wimborne monastery. Very little information survives about Cwenburh. She is known primarily from a mention in a single annal of the ''

Anglo-Saxon Chronicle The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' is a collection of annals in Old English, chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the ''Chronicle'' was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alf ...

'': :''718. In this year Ingild Ine's brother died, and their sisters were Cwenburh and Cuthburh. And Cuthburh raised the monastery at Wimborne; and she was given to

Aldfrith Aldfrith (Early Modern Irish: ''Flann Fína mac Ossu''; Latin: ''Aldfrid'', ''Aldfridus''; died 14 December 704 or 705) was king of Northumbria from 685 until his death. He is described by early writers such as Bede, Alcuin and Stephen of Ripon ...

, king of the Northumbrians; but they separated during his life.'' She is also included in the genealogical preface to the ''Chronicle'' in one copy, as part of a pedigree for the 9th-century King

Æthelwulf of Wessex C3, C-3, C.3, C03, C.III or C-III may refer to: Life and biology * C3 carbon fixation in plants * C3-convertase, an enzyme * Complement component 3, a protein of the innate immune system * Apolipoprotein C3, a human very low density lipoprotein ...

, the father of King Alfred the Great of Wessex. :''... Eoppa

he son He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...

of Ingild, and Ingild of Cenred, and Ine of Cenred, and Cuthburh of Cenred, and Cwenburh of Cenred, and Cenred of Ceolwald ...'' It is possible that Cwenburh succeeded Cuthburh as abbess there after her sister's death. Cuthburh is later mentioned again in a list entitled ''

On the Resting-Places of the Saints ''On the Resting-Places of the Saints'' is a heading given to two early medieval pieces of writing, also known as ''Þá hálgan'' and the ''Secgan'', which exist in various manuscript forms in both Old English and Latin, the earliest surviving m ...

'', found in two 11th century manuscripts :''resteth Saint Cuthburh at Wimborne Minster, that first established the life and customs that are still kept in the monastery.'' In one version of the list the words ''"and Cwenburh"'' appear after Cuthburh. According to

Felix Liebermann Felix Liebermann (20 July 1851 – 7 October 1925) was a Jewish German historian, who is celebrated for his scholarly contributions to the study of medieval English history, particularly that of Anglo-Saxon and Anglo-Norman law. Born in 1851, Berl ...

who made an edition of the text in the 19th century this appears to be a later addition, and the subsequent clause remains grammatically singular, referring only to Saint Cuthburh. The Abbess Tetta is sometimes viewed as a familiar name for Cwenburh, or alternatively as a third sister.Brownlow, Canon. "The Brother and Sister and Saint Willibald", ''Report and Transactions - The Devonshire Association for the Advancement of Science, Literature and Art'', Vol. 23, 1891, p. 232
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References

External links

* {{Authority control 7th-century births 710s deaths 8th-century Christian saints 7th-century English people 8th-century English nuns West Saxon saints Mercian saints Anglo-Saxon abbesses Anglo-Saxon nuns Burials at Wimborne Minster (church) Christian female saints of the Middle Ages