John Twenge (Saint John of Bridlington, John Thwing, John of Thwing, John Thwing of Bridlington) (1320–1379) is an English saint of the 14th century. In his lifetime he enjoyed a reputation for great holiness and for miraculous powers. St John of Bridlington was commended for the integrity of his life, his scholarship, and his quiet generosity. He was the last English saint to be canonised before the

English Reformation The English Reformation took place in 16th-century England when the Church of England broke away from the authority of the pope and the Catholic Church. These events were part of the wider European Protestant Reformation, a religious and poli ...

Life

Born in 1320 in the village of Thwing on the

Yorkshire Wolds The Yorkshire Wolds are low hills in the counties of the East Riding of Yorkshire and North Yorkshire in north-eastern England. The name also applies to the district in which the hills lie. On the western edge, the Wolds rise to an escarpment wh ...

, about nine miles west of

Bridlington Bridlington is a coastal town and a civil parish on the Holderness Coast of the North Sea in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is about north of Hull and east of York. The Gypsey Race enters the North Sea at its harbour. The 2011 Cen ...

,Wilson, Mike. "St John of Bridlington", Bridlington.net
he was of the

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

family Twenge, which during the

would supply two

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

priest-

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

s, and was also instrumental in establishing the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary at

Bar Convent The Convent of the Institute of the Blessed Virgin at Micklegate Bar, York, better known as The Bar Convent Living Heritage Centre, is the oldest surviving Catholic convent in England, established in 1686. The laws of England at this time proh ...

, York. John was educated at a school in the village from the age of five, completing his studies at

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

. He then entered the Augustinian

Canons Regular Canons regular are priests who live in community under a rule ( and canon in greek) and are generally organised into religious orders, differing from both secular canons and other forms of religious life, such as clerics regular, designated by a ...

community of

Bridlington Priory Priory Church of St Mary, Bridlington, , commonly known as Bridlington Priory Church is a parish church in Bridlington, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, in the Diocese of York. It is on the site of an Augustinian priory founded in 1113 which w ...

. He carried out his duties with humility and diligence, and was in turn novice master, almsgiver, preacher and sub-prior. He became Canon of the Priory in 1346 and was eventually elected Prior in 1356. John initially declined out of humility, but after being re-elected, probably in 1361, he took on the duties of Prior in January 1362. He served as Prior for 17 years before his death on 10 October 1379.

Miracles attributed to him

In his lifetime he enjoyed a reputation for great holiness and for miraculous powers. Reputedly on one occasion he changed water into wine. On another, five seamen from

Hartlepool Hartlepool () is a seaside and port town in County Durham, England. It is the largest settlement and administrative centre of the Borough of Hartlepool. With an estimated population of 90,123, it is the second-largest settlement in County ...

in danger of

shipwreck A shipwreck is the wreckage of a ship that is located either beached on land or sunken to the bottom of a body of water. Shipwrecking may be intentional or unintentional. Angela Croome reported in January 1999 that there were approximately ...

called upon God in the name of His servant, John of Bridlington, whereupon the prior himself appeared to them in his canonical habit and brought them safely to shore. The men left their vessel at the harbour and walked to the Monastery where they thanked John in person for saving their lives. The Vision of William Staunton (

British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and is one of the largest libraries in the world. It is estimated to contain between 170 and 200 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the British ...

Manuscripts, Royal 17.B.xliii and Additional 34,193) recounts William's visit to

St Patrick's Purgatory St Patrick's Purgatory is an ancient pilgrimage site on Station Island in Lough Derg, County Donegal, Ireland. According to legend, the site dates from the fifth century, when Christ showed Saint Patrick a cave, sometimes referred to as a p ...

where he sees both

purgatory Purgatory (, borrowed into English via Anglo-Norman and Old French) is, according to the belief of some Christian denominations (mostly Catholic), an intermediate state after physical death for expiatory purification. The process of purgatory ...

and the earthly

paradise In religion, paradise is a place of exceptional happiness and delight. Paradisiacal notions are often laden with pastoral imagery, and may be cosmogonical or eschatological or both, often compared to the miseries of human civilization: in paradis ...

and is conducted through the otherworld by St John of Bridlington and St Ive (of Quitike).

Death and canonisation

After his death from

natural causes In many legal jurisdictions, the manner of death is a determination, typically made by the coroner, medical examiner, police, or similar officials, and recorded as a vital statistic. Within the United States and the United Kingdom, a distinct ...

, the fame of the supposed miracles brought by his intercession spread rapidly through the land.

Alexander Neville Alexander Neville ( 1340–1392) was a late medieval prelate who served as Archbishop of York from 1374 to 1388. Life Born in about 1340, Alexander Neville was a younger son of Ralph Neville, 2nd Baron Neville de Raby and Alice de Audley. He ...

, Archbishop of York, charged his suffragans and others to take evidence with a view to his

canonisation Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of s ...

, 26 July 1386.

Richard le Scrope Richard Scrope may refer to: * Richard Scrope, 1st Baron Scrope of Bolton (c. 1327–1403), English soldier and courtier, builder of Bolton Castle *Richard Scrope (bishop) (c. 1350–1405), Archbishop of York * Richard Scrope, 3rd Baron Scrope of Bo ...

, Archbishop of York 1398–1405, assisted by the bishops of

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county *Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in No ...

and

Carlisle Carlisle ( , ; from xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern England, Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers River Eden, Cumbria, Eden, River C ...

, officiated at a solemn translation of his body, 11 March 1404, ''de mandato Domini Papae''. This pope,

Boniface IX Pope Boniface IX ( la, Bonifatius IX; it, Bonifacio IX; c. 1350 – 1 October 1404, born Pietro Tomacelli) was head of the Catholic Church from 2 November 1389 to his death in October 1404. He was the second Roman pope of the Western Schism.Richa ...

, shortly afterwards canonised him. The canonisation had been doubted and disputed; but the original Bull was unearthed in the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum The Holy See * The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...

archives by T. A. Twemlow, who was engaged in research work there for the British government. At the

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

was asked to spare the magnificent shrine of the saint, but it was destroyed in 1537. The nave of the church, restored in 1857, is all that now remains of Bridlington Priory. The saint's feast is observed by the canons regular on 9 October.

Veneration

St John of Bridlington was commended for the integrity of his life, his scholarship, and his quiet generosity. He was the last English saint to be canonised before the

King Henry V Henry V (16 September 1386 – 31 August 1422), also called Henry of Monmouth, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1413 until his death in 1422. Despite his relatively short reign, Henry's outstanding military successes in the ...

attributed his victory at Agincourt to the intercession in heaven of this Saint John and of

Saint John of Beverley John of Beverley (died 7 May 721) was an English bishop active in the kingdom of Northumbria. He was the bishop of Hexham and then the bishop of York, which was the most important religious designation in the area. He went on to found the town ...

. Women in difficult labour may pray to St John of Bridlington as their patron saint and he is also associated with the local fishing industry. At All Saints Church, Thwing, there is a window showing St John of Bridlington and St Cecilia. There is a St John Street in Bridlington named after him, an old thoroughfare linking the "Old Town" that grew up around Bridlington Priory with the quayside community of fishermen and traders. At St Andrew's Church, Hempstead, Norfolk, a wooden panel showing John of Bridlington depicts him holding a fish and in episcopal robes, though he never served as bishop.St Andrew, Hempstead
at The Norfolk Churches Site

References

External links