Oswine of Deira
Encyclopedia
Oswine (died 20 August 651) was a King of Deira in northern England
. He succeeded King Oswald of Northumbria
, probably around the year 644, after Oswald's death at the Battle of Maserfield
. Oswine was the son of Osric
.
His succession, perhaps the choice of the people of Deira, split the Kingdom of Northumbria. Oswiu was the successor of Bernicia
to the north. After years of peaceful rule, Oswiu declared war on Oswine. Oswine refused to engage in battle, instead retreating to Gilling
, where he was betrayed by a friend, and murdered by Oswiu’s soldiers.
, but was later forgotten. It is said that his burial place was made known by an apparition to a monk named Edmund, and his relics were translated to an honorable place in the Tynemouth Priory in 1065. He was culted as a Christian martyr because he had died "if not for the faith of Christ, at least for the justice of Christ".
, Northumberland
, England
is dedicated to St Oswin. The Church was built in 1886 and it currently has a congregation of about 150. The Church has a ring of 6 Bells (in the Tower) and has regular Sunday services with ringing.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. He succeeded King Oswald of Northumbria
Oswald of Northumbria
Oswald was King of Northumbria from 634 until his death, and is now venerated as a Christian saint.Oswald was the son of Æthelfrith of Bernicia and came to rule after spending a period in exile; after defeating the British ruler Cadwallon ap Cadfan, Oswald brought the two Northumbrian kingdoms of...
, probably around the year 644, after Oswald's death at the Battle of Maserfield
Battle of Maserfield
The Battle of Maserfield , Welsh: "Maes Cogwy", was fought on August 5, 641 or 642, between the Anglo-Saxon kings Oswald of Northumbria and Penda of Mercia, ending in Oswald's defeat, death, and dismemberment...
. Oswine was the son of Osric
Osric of Deira
Osric was a King of Deira in northern England. He was a cousin of king Edwin of Northumbria, being the son of Edwin's uncle Aelfric...
.
His succession, perhaps the choice of the people of Deira, split the Kingdom of Northumbria. Oswiu was the successor of Bernicia
Bernicia
Bernicia was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom established by Anglian settlers of the 6th century in what is now southeastern Scotland and North East England....
to the north. After years of peaceful rule, Oswiu declared war on Oswine. Oswine refused to engage in battle, instead retreating to Gilling
Gilling East
Gilling East is a village and civil parish in the Ryedale district of North Yorkshire, England. It lies on the main B1363 road between York and Helmsley and two miles south of Oswaldkirk...
, where he was betrayed by a friend, and murdered by Oswiu’s soldiers.
Veneration
Oswine was buried at TynemouthTynemouth
Tynemouth is a town and a historic borough in Tyne and Wear, England, at the mouth of the River Tyne, between North Shields and Cullercoats . It is administered as part of the borough of North Tyneside, but until 1974 was an independent county borough in its own right...
, but was later forgotten. It is said that his burial place was made known by an apparition to a monk named Edmund, and his relics were translated to an honorable place in the Tynemouth Priory in 1065. He was culted as a Christian martyr because he had died "if not for the faith of Christ, at least for the justice of Christ".
St. Oswin's Church, Wylam
The Anglican Parish Church of WylamWylam
Wylam is a small village about west of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is located in the county of Northumberland.It is famous for the being the birthplace of George Stephenson, one of the early rail pioneers. George Stephenson's Birthplace is his cottage that can be found on the north bank of the...
, Northumberland
Northumberland
Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
is dedicated to St Oswin. The Church was built in 1886 and it currently has a congregation of about 150. The Church has a ring of 6 Bells (in the Tower) and has regular Sunday services with ringing.
Sources
- BedeBedeBede , also referred to as Saint Bede or the Venerable Bede , was a monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter at Monkwearmouth, today part of Sunderland, England, and of its companion monastery, Saint Paul's, in modern Jarrow , both in the Kingdom of Northumbria...
, Historia Ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum, ed. and tr. B. Colgrave and R.A.B. Mynors, Bede’s Ecclesiastical History of the English People. Oxford, 1969. - Anonymous, Vita Oswini (twelfth century), ed. James Raine, Miscellanea Biographica. Publications of the Surtees Society 8. London, 1858. 1-59. PDF available from Internet Archive.
Further reading
- Chase, Colin. "Beowulf, Bede, and St. Oswine: The Hero's Pride in Old English Hagiography." The Anglo-Saxons. Synthesis and Achievement, ed. J. Douglas Woods and David A.E. Pelteret. Waterloo (Ontario), 1985. 37-48. Reprinted in The Beowulf Reader, ed. Peter S. Baker. New York and London, 2000. 181-93.