The Feast of St Edmund

St Edmund, whose feast we celebrated yesterday, is one of the patrons of the Diocese of Westminster, and his relics were displayed throughout the day.

Born in Abingdon, near Oxford, in 1180, Edmund Rich studied at Paris, and later lectured at Oxford University. Famed for his preaching, in 1234 he became Archbishop of Canterbury, and was held in high esteem for his charity and humility, but also for his staunch defence of the rights of the Church. Eventually forced to flee England through political intrigue, he moved to France, dying at Pontigny on 16 November 1260. So many miracles were attributed to his remains that he was canonised only six years after his death. In 1873, Cardinal Manning led a national pilgrimage to his tomb.