Chad. Biography fact and fiction.

2 March 2022 was 1350 years since Chad’s death. 

Chad on the west front of the cathedral.

          Very little is known about the early life of Chad.[1] He had three brothers[2] and their order is assumed to reflect their ages; the order being Cedd, Cynebill, Cælin and Chad (Bede writes Ceadda).[3] Their names appear to be Celtic. All were prepared for priesthood by Bishop Aidan at Lindisfarne, 635 to 651 and this would be a Celtic theology. The next mention of Chad is when he follows his brother Cedd as Abbot of Lastingham (Bede’s Læstingau), North Yorkshire, c. 664.^[4] Cedd was a married man with a son who was baptised well into his youth, so it can be presumed Chad as the Abbot would have looked after Cedd’s widow and possibly his nephew.

 

Chad and Cedd at Lastingham church.

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Chad and his three older brothers, Cedd, Cynebil and Caelin being taught by Aidan. From a window in the Chapter House.

Crypt at Lastingham.

New Chad statue

     Bede recorded how Chad journeyed extensively preaching the gospel to high and low (to oppida, rura, casas, vicos, castella – approximately towns, villages, cottages, roads and castles). He appears to have travelled long distance through Northern Ireland, Scotland and Northern England.[5]

The following, in a frame, is all derived and cannot be considered certain.

He was born in 634, a date with obvious difficulties; it does not fit with dates for being a bishop and when he was most likely to have been priested.[6] Chad and his brothers were drawn from the Northumbrian nobility; an assertion because all the early priests appear to have had some standing. He became a novice at Lindisfarne aged 12 (thus c. 646); this is thought to be the age when novices started. It has been suggested Chad and Cedd visited north Perthshire, based on church and chapel dedications.[7] Aidan sent him as a missionary to Ireland with his friend Egbert of Ripon, c. 651, aged 17 or 18.[8] Most priests appear to have completed their preparation in Ireland or Iona. The monastery of Rath Melsigi (Rathmelsh or Clonmelsh) is thought to have been his base. The inference is he returned to England in 653 or 4. A supposition is he then spent around 2½ years in Mercia and this has been said to explain the many churches dedicated to the saint.[9] In 664, he was consecrated a bishop for the first time[10] and Bede writes it as being ‘consecrated bishop of the church of York’.[11] Many writers assume this was as Bishop of York[12], but more likely he became the Bishop of Northumbria. It is quite clear that Oswiu intended Chad to be bishop over the entire Northumbrian people; his predecessor, Wilfrid, had been consecrated with this title. He was consecrated bishop in the Celtic rite. That meant he viewed the date of Easter in the Celtic way and his hair cut and simplified dress would presumably have showed this persuasion.

 

Chad’s appearance would presumably be like the middle figure.

 The account of his installation as Bishop of Northumbria is complicated and probably incomplete. After the Synod of Whitby, 663/4, and a change from Celtic worship to Roman church worship the Bishop of Northumbria resigned. King Oswiu wanted Bishop Wilfrid of Ripon to have the post and he accepted with the condition of going to Paris to be consecrated. Unfortunately, he lingered abroad and spent much time at Canterbury on his way home and did not arrive back for at least two years, that is in 666. In the meantime, there was much trouble within the diocese so Oswiu asked Chad of Lastingham to be the bishop. Chad set out for Canterbury to be consecrated and ended up in Winchester. It is strange Chad did not go to Bishop Berhtgisl of East Anglia for consecration. At Winchester the bishop had to engage two Celtic bishops to licence Chad.[13] This was uncanonical for the Roman Church which held that three Roman Bishops had to be present. Whether Chad kept his personal faith in a Celtic rite or changed to a Roman observance is unknown. When Wilfrid finally returned, he saw his see now occupied so retired to Ripon. Chad was bishop of Northumbria for three years.

 

          The following was recorded by Bede. In 669, the Mercian King Wulfhere, under some obligation to the Christian Northumbrian King Oswiu and receiving advice from Bishop Wilfred, arranged for Chad to be sent to Lichfield as a way to further good relations. The new Archbishop, a Greek called Theodore, agreed for Chad to be moved out of Northumbria and away from Wilfred. It was almost certainly managed by the kings, approved by Canterbury and Rome, and apparently accepted by Chad. Before this occurred, Theodore arranged for Bede to be re-consecrated in the Roman custom and this was undertaken in York, probably Wilfrid was present with Theodore. The location of Lichfield moved the see away from wherever the previous bishop’s churches were located. The notion the Mercian See was moved from Repton to Lichfield[14] is unsupported.

Archbishop Theodore consecrating Chad for a second time shown in a floor roundel.

 In the short time Chad presided at Lichfield he was, according to Bede, greatly loved for his humility and asceticism.[15] He had seven or eight brothers to help with the church site. The site would be a monasterium or religious community and this name translated to mynster and then minster. One of his pupils called Trumbercht (Trumbert) went on to instruct Bede, which must be a good reason why Bede’s account of Chad was so fulsome.[16]

Chad was in Lichfield for less than three years before he died in 672, probably from a variant of plague, but smallpox and yellow fever have also been implicated. Bede described it as a progressive bodily weakness which grew worse over seven days.[17] Chad had foreseen he was soon to die and told his fellow monks he had been visited by the beloved guest who has been in the habit of visiting our brothers. All this indicates the plague bacterium, but he was surrounded by others and there is no record of them succumbing to the disease. He was buried near to his church of St Mary and it became known miracle cures occurred close to his tomb leading to him being quickly besainted by his community.

Chad from the north door of the cathedral.

 The cult of St Chad

It has been said in the age of saints, 7th and 8th century, every monastery had a saint and over 100 Saxon sites with a cult have been identified. Chad at Lichfield was one of the earliest, proved to be one of the most enduring and in terms of numbers of pilgrims was exceptional. Sargent[18] has suggested the narrative of Chad as a saint was established by the monks at Lastingham. It is also clear Bishop Wilfred, later bishop of Mercia, with the assistance of Headda, Bishop of Lichfield, promoted and established the cult and pilgrimage to his grave site. It is difficult to understand the life of Chad without considering alongside the workings of Wilfrid.

Chad died on March 2 672 and this day might well have been kept for a special service every year and could be one of the oldest acts of patronal remembrance in England. In the 14th-century, following the Sarum missal, the translation of Chad’s relics to a shrine was on Rogation Sunday in May.

Chad at St Chad’s church, Hanmer, near Wrexham, Wales, and close to the route for Irish pilgrims journeying down the Wirral, across Cheshire, along the Trent River and finally to Lichfield.

 Chad is a recognised saint in the Anglican, Roman Catholic and Celtic Orthodox churches. He is mentioned in The Synaxarion; a book containing the lives of the saints of the Orthodox Church.[19]

 

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[1] The Saint Chad's entry in the Oxford Dictionary of Saints has no mention of his early life. The Victorian County History avoids his biography.

[2] J. Mclure and R. Collins, Bede. The ecclesiastical history of the English people. (Oxford: 2008), 149 (Historia Ecclesiastica- HE- 3, 23.).

[3] Their suggested dates are Cedd c. 620–664, unknown for Cynebill and Cælin and Chad c. 634–672.

[4] See McClure and Collins (2008),149, (HE 3, 23).

[5] A. Breeze, ‘Bede’s castella and the journeys of St Chad’, Northern History, (2009), 46, 1, 137–9.

[6] This does not make sense if Chad is traditionally priested when 30 years old, around 664, since this would mean he became a bishop before a priest! It is logical if Chad’s birth date was in the late 620s.

[7] I. Styler, ‘Understanding and illustrating the influence of the Cult of St Chad of Lichfield’, The Journal of the Historical Association, (2020), 105, 367, 591.

[8] Ibid 161–2 (HE 3, 27). Chad is not explicitly named as amongst the nobles and commons who left for Ireland. Bede’s HE (4, 3) states Ceadda adulescente et ipse adulescens in Hibernia (Chad is a young man in Ireland). Adulescens can mean a youth, but for Romans this was the age of 14/15–27/30. A young man would normally be in his 20s. Chad is much more likely to be in Ireland c. 651 in his early 20s which makes his birth date 627–631. He is then priested 657–661 and becomes a bishop in 664 aged 33–37. He dies aged 41–45.

[9] H.E. Savage, Life of St Chad. (Unpub. Article in Cathedral Library, reprint dated 1972), 15. Savage mentions 31 churches with ancient dedication to Chad, but none can trace back their origins to the 7th-century. It is more likely churches with Chad as patron were situated on pilgrimage routes.

[10] This is the same year as being made Abbot of Lastingham.

[11] See McClure and Collins (2008), 163, (HE, 3, 28).

[12] Ibid. 17.

[13] This is the year 664, but some accounts have different dates.

[14] O. Mosley, A short account of the Ancient British Church. (London: 1858), 109. This reference to Repton surprisingly appears in the Wikipedia account for Lichfield Cathedral.

[15] See McClure and Collins (2008), 174, (HE, 4, 3).

[16] It was in stark contrast to Bede’s lesser treatment of Mercia and its Christian development, knowing it could potentially rival and threaten Northumbria.

[17] See McClure and Collins (2008),177, (HE, 4, 3).

[18] A. Sargent, Lichfield and the Lands of St Chad, University of Hertfordshire Press Volume 19 (2020).

[19] See https://www.orthodoxbritain.co.uk/st-chadd-biography

Langton's shrine

    At least six shrines for Chad have been described in incomplete form. The first was the original grave site in the nave area described by Bede and later covered with a shrine chest of which the 'Lichfield Angel' is part of the left end. The second was a reliquary chapel which can only loosely be connected with Chad's relics. The third is 'Langton's shrine' in the retroquire and facing the shrine (Lady) chapel at the east end. Then there were three portable shrines, one with a gilded skull, another with his right arm bones and a third with bones in a rectangular box.

Langton's Shrine

     On the death of Bishop Langton (1296–1321), a penny was given to every poor soul in Lichfeld. He was the wealthiest of all the medieval bishops of Lichfield.[1] He left money in his will to complete the Lady Chapel (it may have been later sequestered by Edward II) and he probably made provision for the completion of the cathedral.[2] Around 1303, money recorded as £2120, was given to Paris goldsmiths to make a stone monument for Chad’s new shrine in the retroquire. It could have been in place by 1307 or 8 (later dates have been given); which was before the Lady Chapel was built. This rich monument would equal in splendour with the Crown of Thorns shrine at Sainte-Chapelle, Edward’s tomb in Westminster Abbey and Becket’s shrine (1220 – 1538) at Canterbury. In one year, the shrine brought in £400 income from pilgrims.

 
 Recreated Chad’s shrine much based on Becket’s shrine. If similar, pulleys lifted a wooden chest canopy upwards to expose the casket on an elaborate plinth. It was decorated with 6 rubies, 5 sapphires, 15 large emeralds, 16 pearls and many small stones. Some jewels were set in an image of Chad. It is unclear which relics were kept in the casket, if relics were still in St Chad’s Head Chapel. Pilgrims would have left many valuable offerings around the shrine, such as rings, brooches and necklaces. Permission given from The Centre for the study of Christianity and Culture, University of York, 2018.

 An inventory of 1445[3] described a large rectangular jewel-encrusted gilt reliquary in the shape of a church, presumably the cathedral. The bell tower was surmounted with an enamelled gilded crucifix. It had cockle shells on its roof, with figures of saints, St Chad, Mary and probably Michael, on the sides. St Chad was richly adorned with jewels including a jewelled gold clasp with an image of the Angelic Salutation and a gold brooch with an image of the lamb of God. There were two large crystal stones and a block of crystal, a gilded ring and seven collars. The figure of the Virgin was decorated with nine pearls, three rubies, and a sapphire. A statue of St Katherine was listed. A gilded collar or necklace with a pendant portrait of St John the Evangelist was mentioned together with a pendant with images of swans. The west face had a gold clasp with an enamelled falcon surrounded by eight clusters of pearls, each with a diamond. The whole shrine may have had a hood that could be raised and lowered with a chain, much like Thomas Becket’s shrine, but no record survives. Langton’s shrine was almost as lavish as Henry III’s shrine for Edward the Confessor, had similarities to shrines at Rouen, Nivelles and Beverley and would have out shone most; it is undoubtedly a lost masterpiece of medieval religious art.[4] Lepine also links the shrine with a 'golden age of translation and remodelling,' 1270-1350 for such saints as Richard at Chichester, Hugh at Lincoln, William at York, Alban at St Albans and Erkenwald at St Pauls.

Drawing by Revd William Stukeley (1687 – 1765) of stonework believed to have been part of Chad’s shrine. It was possibly done on his travels through the north Midlands in 1725.[5]

 

Isolated stone kept in the cathedral. Might have come from a shrine.

 It is likely Langton’s shrine was not in place in the retroquire until the 1370s with the building of the Lady Chapel and then the remodelling of the choir. Where it stood before then is unknown. 

The shrine of St Chad until November 2022.

There were three altars to Chad by the 14th-century. Masses were said at the 'saint's altar in the nave', Bishop Stretton equipped an altar by Langton's shrine in 1378, and at some unknown time an altar was completed in what is now St Chad's Head Chapel.

Langton's shrine was plundered in 1538 as part of the Reformation. There is an account by William Stukeley, 1715, of the defaced St Chad's tomb being stored in St Peter's Chapel.[6] This might have been the room above the vestibule and now part of the cathedral library, but could also be the retrochoir where it stood originally. It is not known what happened to the remains which considering its importance is a mystery. Losing something of this size and weight, no matter how degraded, is very odd.The spot where the shrine stood was possibly the place where a Paget monument was raised in 1577 to the memory of William, Lord Paget of Beaudesert, died 1563, his eldest son and heir Henry, died 1568, and their respective wives. It was destroyed during the Civil War sieges.

     The new shrine has a container for one bone and stands below a chandelier of candles in an oval shape. It bears no relationship to Langton’s shrine.

St Chad’s new shrine. 

                                                                                            Shrine cabinet housing a fereter containing a bone.

Retrochoir floor

Only three medieval mosaic pavements survive; two in Westminster abbey at the shrine of St Edward the Confessor and one in Canterbury cathedral for the shrine of St Thomas Becket. The Cosmati pavements added to the splendour of the shrines and at Westminster Abbey the tomb of Henry III. Canterbury’s pavement of cut and shaped stone dates from c. 1182–4 and now lies in front of the shrine of Becket in the Trinity Chapel located here in 1220. This pavement could have been the inspiration for Westminster’s Cosmatesque mosaics in the 1260s.[7] It is possible Langton would also have wanted a similar pavement in the retrochoir floor.

Lichfield’s ‘cosmati’. This is Henry Moore’s monument organised by G. Gilbert Scott, 1876, for the archdeacon of Stafford. The cosmati-like decoration contains green, red, white, blue, black and ochre stones.[8]

[1] He left landed property in eleven counties. Many of the properties were large houses.

[2] Includes a Bishop’s palace on the east wall and also at Eccleshall, strengthened battlements around the Close, the upper west front and towers of the cathedral and much more.

[3] R. N. Swanson, ‘Extracts from a Fifteenth-Century Lichfield Chapter Act Book’, in A Medieval Miscellany (being SHC, 4th series, XX, 2004), 129–70 (at 142–3).

[4] D. Lepine, ‘Glorius Confessor: The cult of St Chad at Lichfield Cathedral during the Middle Ages’. SAHS transactions, (2021), 35.

[5] W. Stukeley. ‘Itinerarium Curiosum: or an account of the antiquities and remarkable curiosities in nature and art observed in travels through Great Britain’. (London: 1776). 

[6] An account supposed to be written by W. Stukeley around 1715 now lost. It is known from a manuscript entitled ‘Commonplace book of collections for Staffordshire History by S. Pegge dated about 1757 and now MS 302 in the William Salt Library, 243–247. It was recorded again by N. J. Tringham, ‘An early eighteenth-century description of Lichfield Cathedral’, South Staffordshire Archaeological and Historical Society Transactions, (1988), 28, 55–63. T. Cox, Survey of the ancient and present state of Great Britain, (London: 1738), 254, repeats the assertion the defaced Langton’s shrine plinth was kept in St Peter’s Chapel after the Civil War restoration. On Gale’s groundplan of the Cathedral, 1720, St Peter’s chapel is the retroquire, the location where the plinth shrine always stood.

[7] W. Rodwell, ‘Cosmati at Canterbury Cathedral? Current Archaeology, (April 2023), 397, 46–51.

[8] G. T. Noszlopy and F. Waterhouse, Public sculpture of Staffordshire and the Black Country. (Liverpool: 2005), 229.