The arrival of Christianity in England was one of the most significant events in English history. Before Christianity expanded across the country, the Anglo-Saxons mostly followed pagan religions and worshipped multiple gods associated with nature, war and farming. The conversion of England started in the late sixth century and was massively influenced by connections with Rome and France. As a result of Augustine of Canterbury’s mission, Christianity became established in Kent before slowly spreading throughout Anglo Saxon England. Canterbury became the core of this religious shift and many of its historic landmarks still stand today as reminders of such a significant time period.
By the sixth century, Christianity was already in Gaul, which is known today as France. The kingdoms that ruled a vast part of France had welcomed Christianity into their society and supported the expansion of the religion across Europe. According to historian Rob Meens, the role of the Frankish church in the conversion of England was majorly crucial. Meens argues that Frankish churches, clerics and Christian traditions played a crucial role in aiding the success of the mission to England.
The start of the mission is closely linked to Pope Gregory the Great. In 597 AD, Gregory sent a group of monks led by Augustine to convert the Anglo-Saxons to Christianity. Augustine was a monk from Rome, but his voyage to England depended majorly on the support from the Christian groups in France. As Ian Wood explains in The Mission of Augustine of Canterbury to the English, the mission travelled through Frankish territory and acquired assistance from Frankish bishops and rulers. Without that support, the mission could have never succeeded. The missionaries were given guidance, supplies and protection during their journey to England.
One of the most essential connections between England and France was Queen Bertha of Kent. Bertha was a Christian princess from the Frankish kingdom who wed King Ethelberht of Kent before Augustine arrived in England. Her presence in Kent fostered a link between England and intercontinental Christianity. Bertha was able to continue practising Christianity after her marriage to Etherlbert and used a small church in Canterbury known as St Martin’s Church. This church still stands today and is widely considered the oldest church in England.
St Martin’s Church is extremely significant because it is evidence that Christianity had already reached Kent via French influence prior to Augustine’s arrival in England. The church was used by Queen Bertha and her chaplain, Bishop Liudhard, who also arrived from France. Augustine and his monks are widely believed to have used the church when they first reached Canterbury.
This reflects that the Christian mission in England was not completely isolated but was linked to Christian traditions already firmly established throughout the Frankish kingdom.
When Augustine arrived in Kent, King Ethelberht allowed him to preach Christianity. Based on tradition, Augustine first met the king outdoors because Ethelberht feared the monks might use magical powers indoors. Augustine ultimately gained the king’s trust, and Ethelberht became christian. His conversion was highly significant as Anglo Saxon society commonly followed the religion of the king. As more and more nobles and ordinary people welcomed Christianity, monasteries and churches began to pop up across Kent.
Canterbury became the capital of this growing Christian community. Augustine founded his headquarters there and went on to become the first Archbishop of Canterbury. The city quickly became the religious core of England, a position it still holds today through the Archbishop of Canterbury.
The most famous landmark connected to this period is Canterbury Cathedral. The cathedral stands on the site where Augustine established his church after arriving in 597 AD. Although much of the current building was constructed later in the medieval period, the land itself dates all the way back to Augustine’s mission. Canterbury Cathedral became the symbol of Christianity in England and has endured as one of the most significant churches in England. The cathedral reflects the success of Augustine’s mission and the lasting establishment of Christianity among the Anglo Saxons.
Canterbury Cathedral went on to become famous throughout Europe due to the murder of Archbishop Thomas Becket in 1170. Pilgrims travelled from across Europe and England to visit Becket’s shrine, which made Canterbury one of the most vital pilgrimage destinations in medieval Christianity. Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales was actually inspired by these pilgrimages. Although this happened many centuries following Augustine’s mission, it reflects how Canterbury continues to hold religious significance long after Christianity first came to England. .
Another important landmark associated with Augustine’s mission is St Augustine’s Abbey. The abbey was founded not long after Augustine arrived in England and became one of the most notable monasteries in Anglo Saxon England. Monasteries played a vital role in spreading Christianity because they served as hubs of education and worship. Monks taught Christian beliefs, copied manuscripts and trained priests who travelled across England evangelising.
Although much of the abbey now survives only as ruins of the past, it still demonstrates how Christianity became rooted in English society. The abbey’s remains enable visitors and historians to connect with the early Christian history of Canterbury.
The surviving landmarks in Canterbury also reflect how Christianity connected England to the rest of the European world. Augustine’s mission was not merely an isolated English event. It involved cooperation between France, Rome and England. Frankish Christians gave support for the missionaries and ideas from continental Europe shaped the English church. Rob Meens argues that historians oftentimes underestimated the role of the Frankish church in this process. However, the evidence from Pope Gregory’s letters and other historical documents suggests that Frankish support was crucial.
Meens also inspects the religious questions Augustine asked Pope Gregory following his arrival in England. These questions concerned Christian customs, church practices and baptism.. The existence of these questions demonstrates that the conversion of England was complex and involved interdenominational interaction between different Christian traditions. Augustine was not just converting pagans, he was also handling the already existing Christian influences from Ireland, Britain and the Frankish kingdoms.
Canterbury’s Roman history also played a pivotal role in the spread of Christianity. Parts of the old Roman walls still survive around Canterbury today. These walls remind visitors that Canterbury had been a principal settlement since the Roman period. Christianity had existed in Roman Britain before the Anglo Saxon invasions, even though a lot of it declined after the fall of the Roman empire. Augustine’s mission thus aided in reconnecting England with earlier Christian traditions directly linked to the Roman world.
Today, St Martin’s Church, St Augustine’s Abbey and Canterbury Cathedral together form a UNESCO World Heritage Site. These landmarks are recognised globally due to their significance in the history of Christianity. Together, they tell a story of how Christianity spread from Europe into England and became established among the Anglo Saxons.
In short, Christianity came to England via a mission that depended majorly on connections with France and Rome. Augustine of Canterbury, sent by Pope Gregory, advanced through Frankish territory and received aid from French Christians prior to arriving in Kent in 597 AD. Queen Bertha’s Christian faith and her application of St Martin’s Church supplied an important connection between England and the Frankish kingdoms even before Augustine came to England. Canterbury became the core of the new English church through the establishment of Canterbury Cathedral and St Augustine’s Abbey. These landmarks still stand today as evidence, marking one of the most consequential turning points in English history. The survival of these sites enables modern day visitors to understand how Christianity spread from France and Rome into England and reshaped the country forever.
References
Wood, I. (1994) ‘The Mission of Augustine of Canterbury to the English’ Speculum Vol. 69, No. 1 Jan. (1994), pp. 1-17.
St Augustine’s Abbey
Canterbury Cathedral
Meens, R. (1994) ‘A background to Augustine’s mission to Anglo-Saxon England’ Anglo-Saxon England, Vol. 23 (1994), pp. 5-17.