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Eata of Hexham
Bishop of Lindisfarne; Bishop of Hexham; Saint
SaintResearchedDate unknown
Feast: 26 October (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Born
700
Died
26 October 686
verified
Beatified
—
not on record
Canonised
—
not on record
Who they were
Eata, a disciple of St Aidan, was elected Abbot of Melrose in 651. In 678 Archbishop Theodore made him 'Bishop of the Bernicians', with sees at Hexham and Lindisfarne.
When St Cuthbert was elected to Hexham but wished to stay at Lindisfarne, Eata gladly exchanged sees with him, and ruled Hexham for his last two years. He died on 26 October 686.
The miracles
Like most early English saints, he was canonised by the general repute of his holiness among the faithful he served.
Why that counted as sanctity
A humble bishop who gave way to St Cuthbert's wish.
Connected on this site
- Cuthbert Saint“He was made guest-master at the new monastery at Ripon, soon after 655, but had to return with Eata of Hexham to Melrose when Wilfrid was given the monastery instead.” — Wikipedia
Sources
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - St. Eata
- Wikidata Q93667 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Eata of Hexham (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.