Samson of Brechin is the first known Bishop of Brechin. He appears as a witness in a charter granted by King

David I of Scotland David I or Dauíd mac Maíl Choluim ( Modern: ''Daibhidh I mac haoilChaluim''; – 24 May 1153) was a 12th-century ruler who was Prince of the Cumbrians from 1113 to 1124 and later King of Scotland from 1124 to 1153. The youngest son of Mal ...

to the community of

Deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...

, recorded in the ''notitiae'' in the margins of the '' Book of Deer''. The charter dates to some point between the years 1140 and 1153, although it can probably be pinned down to the year 1150. There certainly was a bishopric of Brechin in 1150, as there exists another charter of King David's, this time granted to the bishop (unnamed) and ''Céli Dé'' of Brechin. It is known that Samson was still bishop in the reign of King

Máel Coluim IV Malcolm IV ( mga, Máel Coluim mac Eanric, label=Medieval Gaelic; gd, Maol Chaluim mac Eanraig), nicknamed Virgo, "the Maiden" (between 23 April and 24 May 11419 December 1165) was King of Scotland from 1153 until his death. He was the eldest ...

(1153–1165), appearing as a witness as late as 1165 in a charter of Richard, Bishop of St. Andrews. Samson was a native cleric of Brechin. He was very likely the son of Léot, an earlier

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 ...

Brechin Brechin (; gd, Breichin) is a city and former Royal burgh in Angus, Scotland. Traditionally Brechin was described as a city because of its cathedral and its status as the seat of a pre-Reformation Roman Catholic diocese (which continues today ...

, and father of Domnall, a later Abbot of Brechin.See,

Dauvit Broun Dauvit Broun, FRSE, FBA ( en, David Brown) (born 1961) is a Scottish historian and academic. He is the professor of Scottish history at the University of Glasgow. A specialist in medieval Scottish and Celtic studies, he concentrates primarily on ...

"Genealogical chart of ruling family of the Church of Brechin"
, Jackson, ''op. cit.'', p. 61 and Lawrie, ''op. cit.'', p. 331. This family story probably explains the origins of the Brechin bishopric, that is, the Bishopric of Brechin, like other Scottish bishoprics, had its origins in the older Gaelic ''Céli Dé'' monastic community, and perhaps a hereditary ruling family.

Notes

References

* Dowden, John, ''The Bishops of Scotland'', ed. J. Maitland Thomson, (Glasgow, 1912) * Jackson, Kenneth H. (ed), ''The Gaelic Notes in the Book of Deer: The Osborn Bergin Memorial Lecture 1970'', (Cambridge, 1972) * Lawrie, Sir Archibald, ''Early Scottish Charters Prior to A.D. 1153'', (Glasgow, 1905)

External links

Dauvit Broun's list of 12th century Scottish Bishops
{{DEFAULTSORT:Samson of Brechin 12th-century deaths Bishops of Brechin (pre-Reformation) 12th-century Scottish bishops Medieval Gaels from Scotland Year of birth unknown