Ælfheah the Bald | |
Religion: | Christian |
Bishop of Winchester | |
Appointed: | 934 or 935 |
Ended: | 12 March 951 |
Predecessor: | Byrnstan |
Successor: | Ælfsige I |
Consecration: | 934 or 935 |
Birth Name: | Ælfheah |
Death Date: | 12 March 951 |
Buried: | Old Minster in Winchester |
Feast Day: | 12 March |
Ælfheah the Bald is the commonly used name for Ælfheah (died 12 March 951), the first English Bishop of Winchester of that name. He is sometimes known as Alphege, an older translation of his Old English name.
Ælfheah may have been a relative of Dunstan.[1] He certainly began his career as a monk at the court of King Athelstan of England and was made Bishop of Winchester in 934 or 935 .[2] He was an early mover towards the monastic reforms of the next generation and was tutor of Aethelwold. He died on 12 March 951[2] and was buried in Old Minster in Winchester. He was subsequently revered as a saint.[3]