Arthur of

Glastonbury Glastonbury (, ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbury ...

(c. 1539), according to some French sources, was an English

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

in the sixteenth century. He was martyred during the period of

King 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 disag ...

's suppression of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

due to his refusal to accept the king's claim to spiritual leadership of the Church in England. French Catholic sources lack information on Arthur of Glastonbury's martyrdom under Henry VIII. It is possible that the legendary

King Arthur King Arthur ( cy, Brenin Arthur, kw, Arthur Gernow, br, Roue Arzhur) is a legendary king of Britain, and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In the earliest traditions, Arthur appears as a ...

of Camelot, believed to have been connected with Glastonbury, and the story of a local martyr may have been conflated in Breton oral tradition. There were a number of Catholic martyrs during 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 ...

who hailed from the region including Benedictine priest John Thorne, owner of the original Glastonbury chair, whose religious name was Arthur. Thorne, Abbot Richard Whyting and fellow priest Roger James, were charged with treason, accused of having hidden the treasures of the abbey to protect them from confiscation by the Crown. Executed under the tower of a monastery chapel at Glastonbury Abbey, they were beatified in 1895. St. Arthur's feast-day is celebrated regionally on 15 November in

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...

." Il est fêté le 15 novembre.", accessed August 25, 2011
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Notes

16th-century Christian saints English saints English Roman Catholics People executed under Henry VIII 1539 deaths Executed English people 16th-century Roman Catholic martyrs Year of birth unknown People from Mendip District Religion in Brittany Beatifications by Pope Leo XIII {{RC-bio-stub

See also

Notes