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Jænberht (died 12 August 792) was a medieval
monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...
, and later the
abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The fem ...
, of
St Augustine's Abbey, Canterbury St Augustine's Abbey was a Benedictine monastery in Canterbury, Kent, England. The abbey was founded in 598 and functioned as a monastery until its dissolution in 1538 during the English Reformation. After the abbey's dissolution, it underwent ...
who was named
Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...
in 765. As archbishop, he had a difficult relationship with King
Offa of Mercia Offa (died 29 July 796 AD) was List of monarchs of Mercia, King of Mercia, a kingdom of History of Anglo-Saxon England, Anglo-Saxon England, from 757 until his death. The son of Thingfrith and a descendant of Eowa of Mercia, Eowa, Offa came to ...
, who at one point confiscated lands from the archbishopric. By 787, some of the bishoprics under Canterbury's supervision were transferred to the control of the newly created
Archbishopric of Lichfield The Bishop of Lichfield is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Lichfield in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers 4,516 km2 (1,744 sq. mi.) of the counties of Powys, Staffordshire, Shropshire, Warwickshire and West Mid ...
, although it is not clear if Jænberht ever recognised its legitimacy. Besides the issue with Lichfield, Jænberht also presided over church councils in England. He died in 792 and was considered a saint after his death.


Early life

Jænberht was a monk at St Augustine's Abbey, Canterbury before being selected as abbot of that monastic house.Costambeys "Jænberht" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' He came from a prominent family in the kingdom of Kent, and a kinsman of his, Eadhun, was the
reeve Reeve may refer to: Titles *Reeve (Canada), an elected chief executive of some counties, townships, and equivalents *Reeve (England), an official elected annually by the serfs to supervise lands for a lord *High-reeve, a title taken by some Englis ...
of King Egbert II of Kent. Jænberht himself was on good terms with Egbert.Yorke ''Kings and Kingdoms'' p. 43


Archbishop of Canterbury

Jænberht was consecrated Archbishop of Canterbury on 2 February 765,Fryde, et al. ''Handbook of British Chronology'' p. 214 at the court of King Offa of Mercia; this location implies that his election was acceptable to the king. In 766, he received a
pallium The pallium (derived from the Roman ''pallium'' or ''palla'', a woolen cloak; : ''pallia'') is an ecclesiastical vestment in the Catholic Church, originally peculiar to the pope, but for many centuries bestowed by the Holy See upon metropolit ...
, the symbol of an archbishop's authority given by the papacy. At this time, Kent had been subjected by Offa; in 776, perhaps at the urging of Jænberht, Kent rebelled and secured its freedom.Keynes "Jænberht" ''Blackwell Encyclopedia of Anglo-Saxon England'' In 780 and 781, Jænberht attended church councils at Brentford that were led by King Offa. Although initially on good terms with Offa, Jænberht's ties to Egbert were also strong: after the
Battle of Otford The Battle of Otford was a battle fought in 776 between the Mercians, led by Offa of Mercia, and the Jutes of Kent. The battle took place at Otford, in the modern English county of Kent. The '' Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' recorded that the Merci ...
, Egbert granted a number of estates to Christ Church. When Offa reasserted control over Kent, which occurred by 785 at the latest, he confiscated these lands and regranted to some of his thegns.Brooks ''Early History of the Church of Canterbury'' pp. 113–120


Elevation of Lichfield

During Jænberht's term of office, a dispute arose between the see of Canterbury and Offa which led in 787 to the creation of the rival Archdiocese of Lichfield under Hygberht. Originally, Offa attempted to bring the southern archbishopric of Canterbury to London, but when the papacy refused permission, Offa secured the creation of a third archbishopric in the British Isles. Lichfield was the main Mercian bishopric, and thus the new archbishopric was under Offa's control.Yorke ''Conversion of Britain'' p. 151 There were several reasons for the conflict between Jænberht and Offa. Jænberht's opposed Offa's deposition of the Kentish dynasty. They conflicted over land which they both claimed as theirs, and Jænberht refused to crown Offa's son
Ecgfrith Ecgfrith ( ang, Ecgfrið) was the name of several Anglo-Saxon kings in England, including: * Ecgfrith of Northumbria, died 685 * Ecgfrith of Mercia Ecgfrith was king of Mercia from 29 July to December 796. He was the son of Offa, one of the m ...
.Yorke ''Kings and Kingdoms'' pp. 116–117 Problems were also caused by the archbishop minting his own coins at Canterbury.Hindley ''Brief History of the Anglo-Saxons'' p. 106 Matthew Paris, writing in the thirteenth century, stated that Jænberht conspired to admit
Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first Holy ...
to Canterbury if he invaded Britain. This story may reflect a genuine tradition recorded at
St Albans Abbey St Albans Cathedral, officially the Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Alban but often referred to locally as "the Abbey", is a Church of England cathedral in St Albans, England. Much of its architecture dates from Norman times. It ceased to be ...
, where Paris was based, or it may be a fabrication to fill in details of Jænberht's life where Paris had no other information. A rumour during Jænberht's reign also falsely claimed that Offa was plotting with Charlemagne to depose Pope Hadrian I; at least one modern historian,
Simon Keynes Simon Douglas Keynes, ( ; born 23 September 1952) is a British author who is Elrington and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon emeritus in the Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse, and Celtic at Cambridge University, and a Fellow of Trinity College.< ...
, believes it possible Jænberht was behind the rumour. Offa's eventual successor later admitted to the papacy that Offa's actions had been motivated by hatred of Jænberht and the Kentish people.Witney "Period of Mercian Rule in Kent" ''Archæologia Cantiana'' p. 89 In 787, Pope Hadrian sent a pallium to Hygberht of Lichfield, elevating Lichfield to an archbishopric, and Ecgfrith was crowned. There is no extant contemporary evidence, however, that Jænberht ever recognised Hygberht as an archbishop. Canterbury retained as suffragans the bishops of Winchester, Sherborne, Selsey, Rochester, and London. The dioceses of Worcester, Hereford, Leicester, Lindsey, Dommoc and Elmham were transferred to Lichfield.Kirby ''Earliest English Kings'' p. 144


Later life

Jænberht presided at a council held at London, sometime after the elevation of Lichfield, attended by most of the bishops from southern Britain.Kirby ''Earliest English Kings'' p. 143 He died on 12 August 792, and was buried in the abbey church of St Augustine's Abbey in Canterbury. He has since been revered as a saint, with a feast day of 12 August.


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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jaenberht 792 deaths 8th-century archbishops Abbots of St Augustine's Kentish saints Archbishops of Canterbury 8th-century Christian saints Year of birth unknown 8th-century English people