‘For I know, that, although during my life some have despised me, yet after my death you will see what sort of man I was, and that my doctrine was by no means worthy of contempt.’ From Bede’s Life of St Cuthbert
Life and death. Glory and contempt. Doctrine and devotion. Anglo-Saxon saints have navigated their way across many centuries, down to our modern world, preserved on street corners, national flags and village halls. While remembered as little more than a name in many cases, the saints of the first millennium were the movers and shakers, the decision makers of the time.