Saint Æthelburh of Barking

Saint Æthelburh or Ethelburga (died after 685) was the founder and first abbess of Barking Abbey and sister of Saint Earconwald, Bishop of London. The main source for Æthelburh's life is Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People (Book IV, Chapters 6 to 10). Bede's account, which includes the founding of Barking Abbey, early miracles there, and Æthelburh's death, is itself based on a "little book" (libellus), likely a Life of Saint Ethelburga written at Barking Abbey and now lost. Bede describes Æthelburh as "upright in life and constantly planning for the needs of her community," and says that, upon her death, "no one who knew her ought to doubt that an entrance into the heavenly country was open to her." Some time before he became Bishop of London in 675, Æthelburh's brother Earconwald founded a double monastery at Barking for her and a monastery at Chertsey for himself. Barking Abbey's traditional founding date is 666, though Bede implies Æthelburh was already the head of the monastery during the plague of 664, and charter evidence may suggest a founding c. 660–664. Around 675, Æthelburh founded the church of All Hallows Berkyngechirche (now known as All Hallows Barking or All Hallows by the Tower) in the City of London on land given to her by Earconwald. In the Hodilred Charter (dated most plausibly to 685–687 or 691–693), Æthelburh was granted 40 hides of land to expand Barking Abbey. She is also the recipient of the Earconwald Charter (dated 687) of disputed authenticity. The year of Æthelburh's death is uncertain, though she is believed to have died on 11 October. Bede does not provide a year, instead thematically positioning Æthelburh's story after the discussion of her brother Earconwald's appointment as Bishop of London in 675. He begins his narrative of events at Barking Abbey by calling back to his earlier description of the plague of 664.