The Bishop of Hexham was an episcopal title which took its name after the market town of Hexham in Northumberland, England. The title was first used by the Anglo-Saxons in the 7th and 9th centuries, and then by the Roman Catholic Church since the 19th century.
The first Diocese of Lindisfarne was merged into the Diocese of York in 664. York diocese was then divided in 678 by Archbishop Theodore of Canterbury, forming a bishopric for the country between the Rivers Aln and Tees, with a seat at Hexham. This gradually and erratically merged back into the bishopric of Lindisfarne. Eleven bishops of Hexham followed St. Eata, of which six were saints.
No successor was appointed in 821, the condition of the country being too unsettled. A period of disorder followed the Danish devastations, after which Hexham monastery was reconstituted in 1113 as a priory of Austin Canons, which flourished until its dissolution under Henry VIII. Meantime the bishopric had been merged in that of Lindisfarne, which latter see was removed to Chester-le-Street in 883, and thence to Durham in 995.
| Anglo-Saxon Bishops of Hexham | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| From | Until | Incumbent | Notes |
| 678 | c. 681 | St. Eata | Translated to Lindisfarne circa 681.[1] |
| 681 | 684 | Trumbert | Deposed in 684. |
| 684 | 685 | St. Cuthbert | Elected in 684. Translated to Lindisfarne in 685.[2] |
| 685 | 685 or 686 | St. Eata (returned) | Died in office in 685 or 686. |
| 687 | 706 | St. John of Beverley | Became bishop in August 687. Translated to York in 706.[3] |
| 706 | 709 | St. Wilfrid | Translated from Leicester in 706. Died in office in 709. |
| 709 | 731 | St. Acca | Deprived or expelled in 731. Died on 20 October 737 or 740.[4] |
| 734 | 766 | St. Frithubeorht | Became bishop on 8 September 734. Died in office on 766. |
| 767 | 780 or 781 | St. Eahlmund | Became bishop on 24 April 767. Died in office on 7 September 780 or 781. |
| 780 or 781 | 789 | Tilbeorht | Became bishop on 2 October, possibly in 780 or 781. Died in office in 789. |
| 789 | 797 | Æthelberht | Translated from Whithorn in 789. Died in office on 16 October 797. |
| 797 | 800 | Heardred | Became bishop on 29 October 797. Died in office in 800. |
| 800 | 813 | Eanbehrt | Died in office in 813. |
| 813 | 821 | Tidfrith | Died in office in 821. |
| After the death of the last bishop of Hexham and a period of unrest, the see merged to the bishopric of Lindisfarne. | |||
| align=center colspan="4" | Source(s):[5] | ||