Baldred of Tyninghame

Balthere of Tyninghame (later Baldred) was a Northumbrian hermit and abbot, resident in East Lothian during the 8th century.

Dating According to Hovendeus the date of Baldred's death is given as 756. Symeon of Durham says "the twentieth year of King Eadberht of Northumbria" and Turgot of Durham "the seventeenth year of the episcopate of Cynulf", that is 756. As his feast is given as 6 March, by the modern calendar, this would be 6 March 757. Although the 8th-century date is now generally accepted, due to a passage in the 16th-century Aberdeen Breviary, he has, in the past, often been associated with the 6th-century saint, Kentigern.

Life

Baldred is commonly referred to as "the Apostle of the Lothians" and Simeon of Durham says that "the boundaries of his pastorate embraced the whole land which belongs to the monastery of Saint Balther, which is called Tyninghame—from Lammermuir to Inveresk, or, as it was called, Eskmouthe."

Baldred is believed to have founded a monastery at Tyninghame. a not improbable association since, at that time, the Lothians were a part of the kingdom of Northumbria. However, most sources assert an Irish connection. He was probably born in Ireland before joining the Northumbrian mission. Hector Boece says he exercised his office in a district which then formed a part of Pictland.

Veneration

About halfway up the Bass Rock are the ruins of an old chapel or, strictly speaking, the parish church of the Bass, said to mark the spot where Saint Baldred occupied his humble cell. The approximate date of the erection (or re-erection) of the chapel may be found in a papal bull dated 6 May 1493, mentioning this building as being then . A further reconsecration (indicating more building work) took place in 1542 when the chapel was dedicated it to Saint Baldred.

Following Baldred's death on the site of this chapel, there was a dispute between the parishes of Auldhame, Tyninghame and Prestonkirk, as to which should have his body. The story goes that by the advice of a holy man, they spent the night in prayer. In the morning three bodies were found, in all respects alike, each in its winding sheet, prepared for burial. The story was probably invented to explain the claims of each church to house the shrine of Saint Baldred.

In the calendar of saints of the Scottish Episcopal Church, Baldred is commemorated on 6 March. The Episcopalian church is North Berwick is dedicated to St Baldred.