Picture: Ealdgyth · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Wilfrid
Christian saint, Bishop of York from 664 to 678
SaintResearchedBenedictinesPre-congregation
Feast: 12 October (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Born
634
verified
Died
709
verified
Beatified
—
not needed: before formal processes
Canonised
By tradition
recognised before formal processes began
Who they were
Wilfrid, son of a Northumbrian thegn, was sent to Lindisfarne and then to Rome, and refused a rich marriage at Lyons to become a priest. At Ripon he established the full Benedictine Rule.
As Bishop of York he met much opposition and appealed more than once to Rome, suffering exile, before he was reconciled. He died at Oundle in 709.
The miracles
There was never a formal cause: he has been honoured as a saint since before the Church's formal processes began.
Why that counted as sanctity
A bishop who brought Roman ways and the Benedictine Rule to England.
Connected on this site
- Aidan of Lindisfarne Saint Teacher
- Willibrord Saint Pupil
- Theodore of Tarsus Saint“After becoming Archbishop of Canterbury in 668, Theodore of Tarsus resolved the situation by deposing Ceadda and restoring Wilfrid as the Bishop of Northumbria.” — Wikipedia
Sources
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - St. Wilfrid
- Wikidata Q719721 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Wilfrid (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.