Previous Saint This month Next Saint
[Today's previous saint] [back to Calendar] [Tomorrow's first saint]
Died c. 870. Hedda was the abbot of Peterborough (Medehampstead). He and 84 monks of his community were slain by the Danes, who that same year killed Saint Edmund of East Anglia (f.d. November 20). Hedda and his monks are venerated as martyrs. In the later Middle Ages the "Hedda stone" stood in the cemetery over the grave of the martyrs. Holes were cut into the slab to hold candles for using it as an altar at which to say Mass--a custom started by abbot Godric. In the 17th century, pilgrims would put their fingers into the holes, perhaps to take dust as a souvenir (Benedictines, Farmer).


Previous Saint This month Next Saint
[Today's previous saint] [back to Calendar] [Tomorrow's first saint]