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John the Old Saxon

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354:. Acrostics are rare at this early period, so two further examples which are dedicated to King Alfred and preserved as early 10th-century additions to a late-9th-century manuscript associated with the king are possibly also by John the Old Saxon. 258:, origin. Two of these paid Frankish assassins to hide in the church and attack John when he came in to pray privately. John was seriously wounded, but his cries brought friends who saved him. He survived to witness several charters of King 262:, the latest of which are dated 904. That he witnessed as "priest" rather than as "abbot" may imply that he had by then relinquished his abbacy; however, none of the charters is witnessed by anyone described as an abbot. 298:
poems are very likely by John the Old Saxon. The first is an eight-line hexameter poem, probably copied in English script during the 930s into a manuscript of continental (north
169:
reports that John "was a man of most acute intelligence, immensely learned in all fields of literary endeavour, and extremely ingenious in many other forms of expression".
286:, who had died in Francia probably between c. 870 and 877, and the name "John" is rare in Anglo-Saxon England, so it is difficult to think who else this might be. 209:
at approximately the same time as John, in the mid-880s. Asser comments at one point that John had some experience with fighting, which implies that he had a
441: 554: 569: 564: 559: 505: 246:, dated 892), and presumably played a role in formulating his ecclesiastical policy. When Alfred founded the monastery of 181:. Asser states that he was of "Old" Saxon (as opposed to Anglo-Saxon or English) origins, in other words from east of the 549: 468: 544: 156: 221:
King Alfred acknowledges the help among others of "John my mass-priest" with one of his first translations from
378: 524: 432: 539: 282:. John the Old Saxon is not known to have had any connection with Malmesbury, but this cannot have been 509: 529: 501: 190: 383: 351: 485: 472: 342:, who was then five at the oldest but was king from 924 to 939. The poem is embellished with 271: 283: 8: 534: 464: 326:), suggests that "Iohannes" is a signature by John the Old Saxon. The poem describes 194: 161: 31: 373: 259: 247: 230: 144: 41: 518: 343: 299: 255: 235: 459:
Michael Lapidge, "Some Latin Poems as Evidence for Reign of Athelstan", in
339: 243: 335: 226: 152: 393: 319: 279: 148: 119: 100: 388: 323: 307: 303: 240: 189:, he might have been raised in one of the Saxon monasteries such as 368: 347: 331: 295: 202: 350:, foreshadowing the complex style which dominated in 10th-century 302:) origin which later moved to England, and has "ADALSTAN" as its 210: 198: 254:, but as Asser relates, the monks included some of "Gallic", or 363: 251: 222: 206: 182: 166: 140: 186: 239:. John witnessed one of Alfred's charters (a grant to 197:, but he could also have come to England from western 314:(an apparent representation of the Old English name 216: 516: 463:, London / Rio Grande, Ohio: Hambledon, 1993, 131:(active c. 885–904), also known as 310:. The date, in combination with the spelling 455: 453: 451: 448: 442:Oxford Dictionary of National Biography 517: 461:Anglo-Latin literature, 900–1066 427: 425: 423: 421: 419: 417: 415: 413: 411: 409: 185:. Nothing more precise is known; as a 172: 278:(John the scholar) who was buried at 270:The date of John's death is unknown. 506:Prosopography of Anglo-Saxon England 406: 289: 13: 265: 14: 581: 495: 330:as a prince and is presumably an 217:Consecration as abbot of Athelney 151:. He was invited to England by 478: 379:History of Anglo-Saxon England 318:by a speaker of a Continental 1: 399: 25:Iohannes (John the Old Saxon) 16:Scholar and abbot of Athelney 555:10th-century English bishops 155:and contributed to Alfred's 7: 570:9th-century English writers 565:9th-century Christian monks 560:9th-century English bishops 357: 205:, who came to England from 157:revival of English learning 10: 586: 177:John is often referred as 550:9th-century Saxon bishops 274:records the epitaph of a 108: 89: 84: 73: 68: 57: 47: 37: 30: 23: 99:unknown – apparently in 545:English Christian monks 294:A small group of Latin 384:Anglo-Latin literature 352:Anglo-Latin literature 306:and "IOHANNES" as its 433:"John the Old Saxon ( 272:William of Malmesbury 250:, John was appointed 525:9th-century scholars 284:John Scotus Eriugena 139:, was a scholar and 437:. c.885–904)" 173:Name and early life 147:, probably born in 118:unknown – might be 540:Benedictine abbots 338:'s young grandson 129:John the Old Saxon 431:Michael Lapidge, 276:Iohannes Sophista 236:Regula Pastoralis 165:, the Welsh monk 126: 125: 32:Abbot of Athelney 577: 530:Alfred the Great 489: 482: 476: 457: 446: 429: 374:Alfred the Great 322:dialect such as 290:Attributed works 260:Edward the Elder 85:Personal details 21: 20: 585: 584: 580: 579: 578: 576: 575: 574: 515: 514: 498: 493: 492: 483: 479: 458: 449: 430: 407: 402: 360: 292: 268: 266:Death and grave 219: 175: 116: 104: 96: 26: 17: 12: 11: 5: 583: 573: 572: 567: 562: 557: 552: 547: 542: 537: 532: 527: 513: 512: 497: 496:External links 494: 491: 490: 477: 447: 404: 403: 401: 398: 397: 396: 391: 386: 381: 376: 371: 366: 359: 356: 291: 288: 267: 264: 218: 215: 174: 171: 162:Life of Alfred 133:John of Saxony 124: 123: 110: 106: 105: 97: 91: 87: 86: 82: 81: 75: 71: 70: 66: 65: 59: 55: 54: 49: 45: 44: 42:Athelney Abbey 39: 35: 34: 28: 27: 24: 15: 9: 6: 4: 3: 2: 582: 571: 568: 566: 563: 561: 558: 556: 553: 551: 548: 546: 543: 541: 538: 536: 533: 531: 528: 526: 523: 522: 520: 511: 507: 503: 500: 499: 487: 481: 474: 471:, pp. 49–86, 470: 469:9781852850128 466: 462: 456: 454: 452: 444: 443: 438: 436: 428: 426: 424: 422: 420: 418: 416: 414: 412: 410: 405: 395: 392: 390: 387: 385: 382: 380: 377: 375: 372: 370: 367: 365: 362: 361: 355: 353: 349: 345: 341: 337: 333: 329: 325: 321: 317: 313: 309: 305: 301: 297: 287: 285: 281: 277: 273: 263: 261: 257: 256:West Frankish 253: 249: 245: 242: 238: 237: 232: 228: 224: 214: 212: 208: 204: 200: 196: 192: 188: 184: 180: 170: 168: 164: 163: 158: 154: 150: 146: 142: 138: 134: 130: 122: 121: 114: 111: 107: 103: 102: 95: 92: 88: 83: 79: 76: 72: 67: 63: 60: 56: 53: 50: 46: 43: 40: 36: 33: 29: 22: 19: 480: 460: 440: 434: 327: 315: 311: 293: 275: 269: 234: 220: 213:upbringing. 178: 176: 160: 136: 132: 128: 127: 117: 112: 98: 93: 77: 74:Consecration 61: 51: 18: 508:; see also 336:King Alfred 227:Anglo-Saxon 195:Gandersheim 153:King Alfred 535:904 deaths 519:Categories 400:References 394:Old Saxony 346:words and 320:Low German 280:Malmesbury 149:Old Saxony 120:Malmesbury 101:Old Saxony 58:Term ended 486:pp. 64–65 484:Lapidge, 389:Old Saxon 348:archaisms 340:Æthelstan 324:Old Saxon 308:telestich 304:acrostich 244:Æthelhelm 241:Ealdorman 159:. In his 48:Appointed 369:Grimbald 358:See also 332:encomium 328:Adalstan 316:Æþelstan 312:Adalstan 300:Frankish 296:acrostic 248:Athelney 203:Grimbald 179:Iohannes 145:Athelney 510:John 22 502:John 21 231:Gregory 211:secular 201:, like 199:Francia 94:unknown 52:unknown 467:  191:Korvey 137:Scotus 69:Orders 473:p. 66 364:Asser 344:Greek 252:abbot 229:, of 223:Latin 207:Reims 183:Rhine 167:Asser 141:abbot 115:. 904 64:. 904 465:ISBN 187:monk 109:Died 90:Born 504:at 334:to 233:'s 225:to 193:or 143:of 135:or 80:892 38:See 521:: 450:^ 439:, 435:fl 408:^ 78:c. 488:. 475:. 445:. 113:c 62:c

Index

Abbot of Athelney
Athelney Abbey
Old Saxony
Malmesbury
abbot
Athelney
Old Saxony
King Alfred
revival of English learning
Life of Alfred
Asser
Rhine
monk
Korvey
Gandersheim
Francia
Grimbald
Reims
secular
Latin
Anglo-Saxon
Gregory
Regula Pastoralis
Ealdorman
Æthelhelm
Athelney
abbot
West Frankish
Edward the Elder
William of Malmesbury

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