Died 765. The 12th archbishop of Canterbury (761-765), Bregwin's "vita"
was written by Eadmer. According to this, he was a Continental Saxon
who went to England to receive his education at the abbey-school run by
Saint Theodore (f.d. September 19).
He received the pallium from
Pope Saint Paul I (f.d. June 28).
As archbishop he tried to recover Cookham
Abbey in Berkshire from King Cynewulf of Wessex and he convened a synod.
Like his predecessor
Saint Cuthbert (f.d. March 20),
he was buried in
the baptistery of Canterbury cathedral, rather than in the abbey church
of Saint Augustine, which had been traditional. When the baptistery was
destroyed in 1067 by fire, Bregwin's relics were placed in a vault over
the north transept with those of the other archbishops buried there.
An attempt was made to translate Bregwin's body c. 1121 by a German monk
named Lambert to a monastery he was planning to build. Later Bregwin's
relics were moved to the altar of Saint Gregory in the south transept of
the cathedral, which was the occasion of the short "vita" by Eadmer.
His letters to
Saint Lullus (f.d. October 16)
at Mainz can still be
read. One of them refers to their friendship made during a visit to
Rome, indicates regret that war had led to the loss of contact, and
refers to a reliquary he was sending as a gift. His death has been
cited as August 24 or 26 depending on the calendar used
(
Benedictines,
Farmer).