Hilda of Whitby | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).JPG) St. Hilda as depicted in a stained glass window in Chester Cathedral | |
| Virgin | |
| Born | c. 614 Kingdom of Deira |
| Died | 17 November 680 Whitby Abbey, Northumbria |
| Venerated in | Catholic Church Anglican Communion Eastern Orthodox Church |
| Canonized | Pre-Congregation |
| Feast | 17, 18 or 19 November In the Anglican Use, her feast is on 23 June |
| Attributes | Crozier of an abbess, model of Whitby Abbey |
Hilda of Whitby (or Hild of Whitby) (c. 614 – 680) was a saint of the early Church in Britain. She was the founder and first abbess of the monastery at Whitby which was chosen as the venue for the Synod of Whitby in 664. An important figure in the Christianisation of Anglo-Saxon England, she was abbess in several convents and recognised for the wisdom that drew kings to her for advice.
The source of information about Hilda is the Ecclesiastical History of the English People by Bede in 731, who was born approximately eight years before her death. He documented much of the Christian conversion of the English.