Portal:Catholic Church/Patron Archive/May 27

Augustine of Canterbury (early 6th century – most likely 26 May 604) was a Christian monk who became the first archbishop of Canterbury in the year 597. He is considered the "Apostle to the English".

Augustine was the prior of a monastery in Rome when Pope Gregory the Great chose him in 595 to lead a mission, usually known as the Gregorian mission, to Britain to Christianize King Æthelberht and his Kingdom of Kent from Anglo-Saxon paganism. Kent was likely chosen because Æthelberht commanded major influence over neighbouring Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in addition to his marriage to Bertha, a Frankish princess, who was expected to exert some influence over her husband. Before reaching Kent, the missionaries had considered turning back, but Gregory urged them on, and in 597, Augustine landed on the Isle of Thanet and proceeded to Æthelberht's main town of Canterbury. (Full article...)
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