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{{Short description|Archbishop of Canterbury from 959 to 988, Christian saint}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2022}}

{{Infobox Christian leader
 | honorific_prefix  = [[Saint]]
 | name              = Dunstan
 | archbishop_of     = [[Archbishop of Canterbury]]
 | image             = Dunstan3.jpg
 | caption           = Possible [[self-portrait]]; detail from the ''Glastonbury Classbook''
 | enthroned         = 959
 | ended             = 988
 | predecessor       = [[Byrhthelm (bishop of Wells)|Byrhthelm]]
 | successor         = [[Æthelgar]]
 | ordination        = 
 | consecration      = 
 | other_post        = 
 | birth_date        = {{circa|909}}
 | birth_place       = [[Baltonsborough]], [[Wessex]]
 | death_date        = 19 May 988 (aged about 79)
 | death_place       = [[Canterbury]], [[Kingdom of England|England]]
 | buried            = [[Canterbury Cathedral]]
<!----------Sainthood---------->
 | feast_day         = 19 May
 | venerated         = {{ubl|[[Roman Catholic Church]]|[[Eastern Orthodox Church]]<ref name="synaxarion.gr" />|[[Anglican Communion]]}}
 | canonized_date    = 1029
 | canonized_place   = 
 | canonized_by      = 
 | attributes        = Man holding a pair of smith's tongs; with a dove hovering near him; with a troop of angels before him
 | patronage         = Blacksmiths; goldsmiths; locksmiths; musicians; silversmiths; bellringers; Charlottetown, Canada; [[Stepney]]
 | shrine            = Canterbury Cathedral (but also claimed by [[Glastonbury Abbey]]), both [[Dissolution of the monasteries|destroyed]]
 | honorific_suffix  = [[Benedictines|OSB]]
}}

'''Dunstan'''{{efn|{{langx|la|Dunstanus}}}} ({{c.|909}} – 19 May 988),{{sfn|Lapidge|2004}} was an English bishop and [[Benedictine]] [[monk]]. He was successively [[Abbot of Glastonbury|Abbot of Glastonbury Abbey]], [[Bishop of Worcester]], [[Bishop of London]] and [[Archbishop of Canterbury]], later [[canonised]].{{sfn|Bunson|Bunson|Bunson|1998|p=}} His work restored monastic life in England and reformed the English Church. His 11th-century biographer [[Osbern of Canterbury|Osbern]], himself an artist and scribe, states that Dunstan was skilled in "making a picture and forming letters", as were other clergy of his age who reached senior rank.{{sfn|Alexander|1992|p=9}}

Dunstan served as an important minister of state to several English kings. He was the most popular saint in England for nearly two centuries, having gained fame for the many stories of his greatness, not least among which were those concerning his famed cunning in defeating the [[Devil in Christianity|Devil]].

==Early life (909–943)==
===Birth and relatives===
According to Dunstan's earliest biographer, known only as 'B',{{efn|A charter of 955 is only attested by three clerical witnesses below the status of bishop, Dunstan and two deacons, Byrhthelm and Æthelferth, and [[Michael Lapidge]] suggests that the deacons were Dunstan's personal secretaries and Byrhthelm may have been 'B'.{{sfn|Lapidge|1993|pp=285–286; [https://esawyer.lib.cam.ac.uk/charter/582.html# S 582]}} }} his parents were called Heorstan and Cynethryth and they lived near [[Glastonbury]]. B states that Dunstan was "''oritur''" in the days of King [[Æthelstan]], 924 to 939. "''Oritur''" has often been taken to mean "born", but this is unlikely as another source states that he was ordained during Æthelstan's reign, and he would have been under the minimum age of 30 if he was born no earlier than 924. It is more likely that "''oritur''" should be taken as "emerged" and that he was born around 910. B states that he was related to [[Ælfheah the Bald]], the [[Bishop of Winchester]] and [[Cynesige of Lichfield|Cynesige]], [[Bishop of Lichfield]]. According to a later biographer, [[Adelard of Ghent]], he was a nephew of [[Athelm]], [[Archbishop of Canterbury]], but this is less certain as it is not mentioned by B, who should have known as he had been a member of Dunstan's household.{{sfn|Lapidge|2004}}

===School to the king's court===
As a young boy, Dunstan studied under the [[Hiberno-Scottish mission|Irish monks]] who then occupied the ruins of [[Glastonbury Abbey]].<ref name="co" /> Accounts tell of his youthful optimism and of his vision of the abbey being restored. While still a boy, Dunstan was stricken with a near-fatal illness and effected a seemingly miraculous recovery. Even as a child, he was noted for his devotion to learning and for his mastery of many kinds of artistic craftsmanship. With his parents' consent he was [[tonsure]]d, received [[minor orders]] and served in the ancient church of St Mary. He became so well known for his devotion to learning that he is said to have been summoned by Athelm to enter his service.<ref name=britannica>[https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Dunstan-of-Canterbury Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Saint Dunstan of Canterbury". ''Encyclopedia Britannica'', 28 Feb. 2024]</ref> He was later appointed to the court of King Æthelstan.{{sfn|Cross|Livingstone|1997|p=514}}
[[Image:Dunstan2.jpg|thumbnail|left|Dunstan playing his harp as the Devil is paying a visit]]

Dunstan soon became a [[favourite]] of the king and was the envy of other members of the court. A plot was hatched to disgrace him and Dunstan was accused of being involved with [[witchcraft]] and [[black magic]].{{sfn|Bunson|Bunson|Bunson|1998|p=}} The king ordered him to leave the court and as Dunstan was leaving the palace his enemies physically attacked him, beat him severely, bound him, and threw him into a [[cesspit|cesspool]].<ref name="cw" /> He managed to crawl out and make his way to the house of a friend. From there, he journeyed to Winchester and entered the service of his kinsman [[Alphege the Bald|Ælfheah]], Bishop of Winchester.<ref name=britannica/>

The bishop tried to persuade him to become a [[monk]], but Dunstan was doubtful whether he had a vocation to a [[Clerical celibacy|celibate]] life. The answer came in the form of an attack of swelling tumours all over Dunstan's body. This ailment was so severe that it was thought to be [[leprosy]]. It was more probably some form of [[bacteremia|blood poisoning]] caused by being beaten and thrown in the cesspool.<ref name="cw"/> Whatever the cause, it changed Dunstan's mind. He took [[Holy Orders]] in 943, in the presence of Ælfheah, and returned to live the life of a hermit at Glastonbury.<ref name=britannica/> Against the old church of St Mary he built a small cell {{convert|5|ft|m}} long and {{convert|2+1/2|ft|m}} deep. It was there that Dunstan studied, worked at his art, and played on his harp. It is at this time, according to a late 11th-century legend, that the [[Devil in Christianity|Devil]] is said to have tempted Dunstan and to have been held by the face with Dunstan's tongs.<ref name="cw"/>

==Monk and abbot (943–957)==
===Life as a monk===
[[File:DunstanLarge.jpg|thumb|Possibly Dunstan praying before Christ]]
Dunstan worked as a [[silversmith]] and in the [[scriptorium]] while he was living at Glastonbury. It is thought likely that he was the artist who drew the well-known image of Christ with a small kneeling monk beside him in the ''Glastonbury Classbook'', "one of the first of a series of outline drawings which were to become a special feature of [[Anglo-Saxon art]] of this period."{{sfn|Alexander|1992|p=9}} Dunstan became famous as a musician, [[Illuminated manuscript|illuminator]], and metalworker.{{sfn|Cross|Livingstone|1997|p=514}} Lady Æthelflæd, King Æthelstan's niece, made Dunstan a trusted adviser and on her death, she left a considerable fortune to him. He used this money later in life to foster and encourage a monastic revival in England.<ref name=Brain>[https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofEngland/Saint-St-Dunstan/ Brain, Jessica. "Saint Dunstan", Historic UK, May 25, 2023]</ref> About the same time, his father Heorstan died and Dunstan inherited his fortune as well. He became a person of great influence, and on the death of King Æthelstan in 940, the new King, [[Edmund I of England|Edmund]], summoned him to his court at [[Cheddar, Somerset|Cheddar]] and made him a minister.{{sfn|Bunson|Bunson|Bunson|1998|p=}}

Again, royal favour fostered jealousy among other courtiers and again Dunstan's enemies succeeded in their plots. The King was prepared to send Dunstan away.<ref name=Brain/> There were then at Cheddar certain envoys from the "Eastern Kingdom", which probably meant [[East Anglia]]. Dunstan implored the envoys to take him with them when they returned to their homes. They agreed to do so, but it never happened. The story is recorded:

{{blockquote|...&nbsp;the king rode out to hunt the [[stag]] in [[Mendip Hills|Mendip Forest]]. He became separated from his attendants and followed a stag at great speed in the direction of the Cheddar cliffs. The stag rushed blindly over the precipice and was followed by the hounds. Eadmund endeavoured vainly to stop his horse; then, seeing death to be imminent, he remembered his harsh treatment of St Dunstan and promised to make amends if his life was spared. At that moment his horse was stopped on the very edge of the cliff. Giving thanks to God, he returned forthwith to his palace, called for St. Dunstan and bade him follow, then rode straight to Glastonbury. Entering the church, the king first knelt in prayer before the altar, then, taking St. Dunstan by the hand, he gave him the kiss of peace, led him to the [[abbot]]'s throne and, seating him thereon, promised him all assistance in restoring Divine worship and regular observance.|source={{harvnb|Toke|1909}}}}

===Abbot of Glastonbury===
Dunstan, now Abbot of Glastonbury, went to work at once on the task of reform.{{sfn|Bunson|Bunson|Bunson|1998|p=}} He had to re-create monastic life and to rebuild the abbey. He began by establishing [[Benedictine]] monasticism at Glastonbury.{{sfn|Cross|Livingstone|1997|p=514}} The Rule of St. Benedict was the basis of his restoration according to the author of 'Edgar's Establishment of the Monasteries' (written in the 960s or 970s) and according to Dunstan's first biographer, who had been a member of the community at Glastonbury.{{sfn|Whitelock|1979|p=920}} Their statements are also in accordance with the nature of his first measures as abbot, with the significance of his first buildings, and with the Benedictine leanings of his most prominent disciples.{{sfn|Toke|1909}}

Nevertheless, not all the members of Dunstan's community at Glastonbury were monks who followed the [[Benedictine Rule]]. In fact, Dunstan's first biographer, 'B.', was a cleric who eventually joined a community of [[Canon (priest)|canons]] at [[Liège]] after leaving Glastonbury.{{sfn|Winterbottom|Lapidge|2011|p=lxix}}
[[Image:Glastonburyabbey.jpg|thumb|350px|left|Remains of the [[Choir (architecture)|choir]] of [[Glastonbury Abbey]] church]]

Dunstan's first care was to rebuild the Church of St. Peter, rebuild the cloister, and re-establish the monastic enclosure.<ref name=Brain/> The secular affairs of the house were committed to his brother, Wulfric, "so that neither himself nor any of the professed monks might break enclosure."{{sfn|Toke|1909}} A school for the local youth was founded and soon became the most famous of its time in England.{{sfn|Cross|Livingstone|1997|p=514}} A substantial extension of the irrigation system on the surrounding [[Somerset Levels]] was also completed.{{sfn|Williams|1970|p=50}}

Within two years of Dunstan's appointment, in 946, King Edmund was assassinated. His successor was [[Eadred of England|Eadred]]. The policy of the new government was supported by the [[Queen mother]], [[Eadgifu of Kent]], by the Archbishop of Canterbury, [[Oda the Severe|Oda]], and by the East Anglian nobles, at whose head was the powerful [[ealdorman]] [[Æthelstan Half-King|Æthelstan the "Half-king"]]. It was a policy of unification and conciliation with the Danish half of the kingdom.<ref name = "co"/> The goal was a firm establishment of royal authority. In ecclesiastical matters it favoured the spread of [[catholicism|Catholic]] observance, the rebuilding of churches, the moral reform of the clergy and laity, and the end of the [[Norse mythology|religion of the Danes]] in England.<ref name="cw"/> These policies made Dunstan popular in the North of England, but unpopular in the South.<ref name=Kiefer>[http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bio/160.html Kiefer, James E. "Dunstan of Canterbury", Biographical sketches of memorable Christians of the past]</ref> Against all these reforms were the nobles of Wessex, who included most of Dunstan's own relatives, and who had an interest in maintaining established customs. For nine years Dunstan's influence was dominant, during which time he twice refused the office of bishop (that of Winchester in 951 and [[Bishop of Exeter|Crediton]] in 953), affirming that he would not leave the king's side so long as the king lived and needed him.{{sfn|Cross|Livingstone|1997|p=514}}

===Changes in fortune===
[[Image:Eadwig - MS Royal 14 B VI.jpg|thumb|280px|right|[[Eadwig|King Eadwig]]'s reign was marred by conflicts with his family and with Dunstan.]]
In 955, Eadred died, and the situation was at once changed. [[Eadwig]], the elder son of Edmund, who then came to the throne, was a headstrong youth wholly devoted to the reactionary nobles. According to one legend, the feud with Dunstan began on the day of Eadwig's coronation, when he failed to attend a meeting of nobles. When Dunstan eventually found the young monarch, he was cavorting with a noblewoman named Ælfgifu and her mother, and refused to return with the bishop. Infuriated by this, Dunstan dragged Eadwig back to the royal gathering.{{sfn|Winterbottom|Lapidge|2011|p=69}}

Later realising that he had provoked the king, Dunstan saw that his life was in danger. He fled England and crossed the channel to Flanders, where he found himself ignorant of the language and of the customs of the locals.{{sfn|Cross|Livingstone|1997|p=514}} The [[Counts of Flanders|count of Flanders]], [[Arnulf I, Count of Flanders|Arnulf I]], received him with honour and lodged him in the Abbey of [[Blandijnberg|Mont Blandin]], near [[Ghent]]. This was one of the centres of the Benedictine revival in that country, and Dunstan was able for the first time to observe the strict observance that had seen its rebirth at [[Cluny Abbey|Cluny]] at the beginning of the century. His exile was not of long duration. Before the end of 957, the [[Mercia]]ns and [[Northumbria]]ns revolted and drove out Eadwig, choosing his brother [[Edgar of England|Edgar]] as king of the country north of the Thames.<ref name = "co"/> The south remained faithful to Eadwig. At once Edgar's advisers recalled Dunstan.{{sfn|Cross|Livingstone|1997|p=514}}

== Bishop and archbishop (957–978) ==
===Bishop of Worcester and of London===
On Dunstan's return, Archbishop [[Oda the Severe|Oda]] consecrated him a bishop and, on the death of [[Coenwald]] of [[Anglican Diocese of Worcester|Worcester]] at the end of 957, Oda appointed Dunstan to the see.{{sfn|Fryde|Powicke|1961|p=260}}

In the following year the see of [[Diocese of London|London]] became vacant and was conferred on Dunstan, who held it simultaneously with Worcester.{{sfn|Bunson|Bunson|Bunson|1998|p=}}{{sfn|Fryde|Powicke|1961|p=260}} In October 959, Eadwig died and his brother Edgar was readily accepted as ruler of Wessex. One of Eadwig's final acts had been to appoint a successor to Archbishop Oda, who died on 2 June 958. The chosen candidate was [[Ælfsige]] of Winchester, but he died of cold in the Alps as he journeyed to [[Holy See|Rome]] for the [[pallium]]. In his place Eadwig then nominated one of his supporters, the Bishop of Wells, [[Byrhthelm (bishop of Wells)|Byrhthelm]]. As soon as [[Edgar the Peaceful|Edgar]] became king, he reversed this second choice on the ground that Byrhthelm had not been able to govern even his first diocese properly.<ref>{{cite book |author=Stenton, F. M. |author-link= Frank Stenton |title= Anglo-Saxon England |year= 1971|publisher= Oxford University Press |location=Oxford, UK |edition=Third |page=367|isbn=978-0-19-280139-5}}</ref> The archbishopric was then conferred on Dunstan.{{sfn|Cross|Livingstone|1997|p=514}}

===Archbishop of Canterbury===
[[Image:MS. Hatton 30 Expositio Augustini in Apocalypsin 73v.jpg|thumb|right|Theological manuscript from Glastonbury Abbey ([[Bodleian Library]]):''Abbot Dunstan ordered the writing of this book''.]]

Dunstan went to Rome in 960, and received the pallium from [[Pope John XII]].{{sfn|Bunson|Bunson|Bunson|1998|p=}} On his journey there, Dunstan's acts of charity were so lavish as to leave nothing for himself and his attendants. His steward complained, but Dunstan seems to have suggested that they trust in [[Christ|Jesus Christ]].

On his return from Rome, Dunstan at once regained his position as virtual prime minister of the kingdom. By his advice [[Ælfstan (bishop of London)|Ælfstan]] was appointed to the Bishopric of London, and [[Oswald of Worcester|Oswald]] to that of Worcester. In 963, [[Æthelwold of Winchester|Æthelwold]], the Abbot of [[Abingdon Abbey|Abingdon]], was appointed to the See of Winchester. With their aid and with the ready support of King Edgar, Dunstan pushed forward his reforms in the English Church.{{sfn|Bunson|Bunson|Bunson|1998|p=}} The monks in his communities were taught to live in a spirit of self-sacrifice, and Dunstan actively enforced the law of celibacy whenever possible.{{sfn|Hollister|1966|p=61}} He forbade the practices of [[simony]] (selling ecclesiastical offices for money) and ended the custom of [[cleric]]s appointing relatives to offices under their jurisdiction. Monasteries were built, and in some of the great cathedrals, monks took the place of the secular canons; in the rest the canons were obliged to live according to rule. The parish priests were compelled to be qualified for their office; they were urged to teach parishioners not only the truths of the Christian faith, but also trades to improve their position.<ref name="cw"/> The state saw reforms as well.{{sfn|Cross|Livingstone|1997|p=514}} Good order was maintained throughout the realm and there was respect for the law. Trained bands policed the north, and a navy guarded the shores from Viking raids.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Williams |first=Ann |author-link=Ann Williams (historian) | title=Edgar (called Edgar Pacificus) (943/4–975) |encyclopedia= Oxford Dictionary of National Biography |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2014 |url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/8463?docPos=1 |doi= 10.1093/ref:odnb/8463 |url-access=subscription }}{{ODNBsub}}</ref>

In 973, Dunstan's statesmanship reached its zenith when he officiated at the coronation of King Edgar. Edgar was crowned at Bath in an imperial ceremony planned not as the initiation, but as the culmination of his reign (a move that must have taken a great deal of preliminary diplomacy).{{sfn|Churchill|1966|p=134}} This service, devised by Dunstan himself and celebrated with a poem in the ''[[Anglo-Saxon Chronicle]]'' forms the basis of the present-day [[Coronation of the British monarch|British coronation ceremony]].{{sfn|Churchill|1966|p=134}} There was a second symbolic coronation held later. This was an important step, as other kings of Britain came and gave their allegiance to Edgar at [[Chester]].{{sfn|Schama|2011|p=65}} Six kings in Britain, including the kings of Scotland and of [[Strathclyde]], pledged their faith that they would be the king's liege-men on sea and land.

Edgar ruled as a strong and popular king for 16 years. Edgar's reign, and implicitly his governing partnership with Dunstan, was praised by early chroniclers and historians who regarded it as a golden age. The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' caveated the acclaim with one complaint, criticising the high level of immigration that took place at that time. It would appear from [[William of Malmesbury]]'s later history that the objection was limited to the mercenary seaman, employed from around the [[North Sea]] littoral, to assist in the defence of the country.<ref>Early sources on Edgar and Dunstan, http://www.dot-domesday.me.uk/edgar.htm</ref>

In 975, Edgar was succeeded by his eldest son [[Edward the Martyr|Edward "the Martyr"]].{{sfn|Cross|Livingstone|1997|p=514}} His accession was disputed by his stepmother, [[Ælfthryth, Queen of England|Ælfthryth]], who wished her own son [[Æthelred the Unready|Æthelred]] to reign. Through the influence of Dunstan, Edward was chosen and crowned at Winchester.{{sfn|Bunson|Bunson|Bunson|1998|p=}} Edgar's death had encouraged the reactionary nobles, and at once there was a determined attack upon the monks, the protagonists of reform. Throughout Mercia they were persecuted and deprived of their possessions. Their cause, however, was supported by [[Æthelstan Half-King#Family|Æthelwine]], the ealdorman of East Anglia, and the realm was in serious danger of civil war. Three meetings of the [[Witenagemot|Witan]] were held to settle these disputes, at [[Oxfordshire|Kyrtlington]], at [[Calne]], and at [[Amesbury]]. At the second of them the floor of the hall where the Witan was sitting gave way, and all except Dunstan, who clung to a beam, fell into the room below; several men were killed.<ref>{{cite book |last=Roach |first=Levi |author-link= |title=Kingship and Consent in Anglo-Saxon England, 871–978 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location = Cambridge |year=2013 |pages= 67, 240|isbn=978-1-107-03653-6}}</ref>

==Final years (978–88)==
In March 978, King Edward was assassinated at [[Corfe Castle]], possibly at the instigation of his stepmother, and Æthelred the Unready became king. The coronation took place on [[Low Sunday]] 31 March 978. According to [[William of Malmesbury|William of Malmsesbury]], writing over a century later, when the young king took the usual oath to govern well, Dunstan addressed him in solemn warning. He criticised the violent act whereby he became king and prophesied the misfortunes that were shortly to fall on the kingdom,{{sfn|Churchill|1966|p=139}} but Dunstan's influence at court was ended.{{sfn|Cross|Livingstone|1997|p=514}} Dunstan retired to Canterbury, to teach at the [[cathedral school]].{{sfn|Bunson|Bunson|Bunson|1998|p=}}

Only three more public acts are known. In 980, Dunstan joined [[Ælfhere, Ealdorman of Mercia|Ælfhere of Mercia]] in the solemn [[translation (relic)|translation of the relic]]s of King Edward, soon to be regarded as a saint, from their grave at [[Wareham, Dorset|Wareham]] to a shrine at [[Shaftesbury Abbey]]. In 984, he persuaded King Æthelred to appoint [[Alphege|Ælfheah]] as Bishop of Winchester in succession to Æthelwold.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Fryde, E. B. |author2=Greenway, D. E. |author3=Porter, S. |author4=Roy, I. |title=Handbook of British Chronology|edition=Third revised |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Cambridge, UK |date=1996|page=223 |isbn=0-521-56350-X }}</ref> In 986, Dunstan induced the king, by a donation of 100 pounds of silver, to stop his persecution of the See of [[Diocese of Rochester|Rochester]].

Dunstan's retirement at Canterbury consisted of long hours, both day and night, spent in private prayer, as well as his regular attendance at Mass and the [[Canonical hours|daily office]]. He visited the shrines of [[Augustine of Canterbury|St Augustine]] and [[Æthelberht of Kent|St Æthelberht]]. He worked to improve the spiritual and temporal well-being of his people, to build and restore churches, to establish schools, to judge suits, to defend widows and orphans, to promote peace, and to enforce respect for purity.<ref name="co"/> He practised his crafts, made bells and organs and corrected the books in the cathedral library. He encouraged and protected European scholars who came to England, and was active as a teacher of boys in the cathedral school. On [[Ascension of Jesus Christ|Ascension]] Day 988, Dunstan said Mass and preached three times to the people: at the [[Mass (liturgy)#Liturgy of the Word|Gospel]], at the [[benediction#Christianity|benediction]], and after the [[Agnus Dei]]. In this last address, he announced his impending death and wished his congregation well.<ref name="msc" /><ref name=Kiefer/> That afternoon he chose the spot for his tomb, then went to his bed. His strength failed rapidly, and on Saturday morning, 19 May, he caused the clergy to assemble. Mass was celebrated in his presence, then he received [[Extreme Unction]] and the [[Viaticum]], and died. Dunstan's final words are reported to have been, "He hath made a remembrance of his wonderful works, being a merciful and gracious Lord: He hath given food to them that fear Him."{{sfn|Toke|1909}}

The English people accepted him as a [[saint]] shortly thereafter. He was formally [[canonised]] in 1029. That year at the Synod of Winchester, St Dunstan's feast was ordered to be kept solemnly throughout England.{{sfn|Toke|1909}}

==Legacy==
Until [[Thomas Becket]]'s fame overshadowed Dunstan's, he was the favourite saint of the English people. Dunstan had been buried in his [[Canterbury Cathedral|cathedral]]. In 1180 his relics were translated to a tomb on the south side of the high altar, when that building was restored after being partially destroyed by a fire in 1174.<ref>{{citation|first=G. H.|last=Cook|title=Portrait of Canterbury Cathedral|publisher=Phoenix House|location=London|year=1949}} pp 22–23.</ref>

The monks of Glastonbury used to claim that during the sack of Canterbury by the [[Viking|Danes]] in 1012, Dunstan's body had been carried for safety to their abbey. This story was disproved by Archbishop [[William Warham]], who opened the tomb at Canterbury in 1508. They found Dunstan's relics still to be there. However, his shrine was destroyed during the [[English Reformation]].

===Patronage and feast day===
Dunstan became [[patron saint]] of English [[goldsmith]]s and silversmiths because he worked as a silversmith making church plate. The [[Eastern Orthodox Church]] and the [[Roman Catholic Church]] mark his [[Calendar of saints|feast day]] on 19 May.{{sfn|Bunson|Bunson|Bunson|1998|p=}} Dunstan is also honoured in the [[Calendar of saints (Church of England)|Church of England]] and in the [[Calendar of saints (Episcopal Church)|Episcopal Church]] on 19 May.<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Calendar|url=https://www.churchofengland.org/prayer-and-worship/worship-texts-and-resources/common-worship/churchs-year/calendar|access-date=27 March 2021|website=The Church of England|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bEq7DwAAQBAJ |title=Lesser Feasts and Fasts 2018 |date=17 December 2019 |publisher=Church Publishing, Inc. |isbn=978-1-64065-235-4 |language=en}}</ref>

In 2023, a [[deanery|pastoral area]] of the [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Clifton]] was named in honour of Dunstan.<ref>{{cite web |title=Parishes |url=https://cliftondiocese.com/parishes/ |website=Clifton Diocese |access-date=10 February 2024}}</ref>

===In literature and folklore===
[[English literature]] contains many references to him: for example, in ''[[A Christmas Carol]]'' by [[Charles Dickens]],{{efn|"Foggier yet, and colder! Piercing, searching, biting cold. If the good Saint Dunstan had but nipped the Evil Spirit's nose with a touch of such weather as that, instead of using his familiar weapons, then, indeed, he would have roared to lusty purpose".{{Sfn|Dickens|1893|p=24}} }} and in this folk rhyme: 
<poem>St Dunstan, as the story goes,
Once pull'd the devil by the nose
With red-hot tongs, which made him roar,
That he was heard three miles or more.{{sfn|Hone|1825|p=670}}</poem>

This [[Folklore|folk]] story is already shown in an [[initial]] in the ''Life of Dunstan'' in the Canterbury ''Passionale'', from the second quarter of the 12th century ([[British Library]], Harley MS 315, f. 15v.).{{sfn|Dunning|2016}}

[[Image:Dunstan and the Devil - Project Gutenberg eText 13978.png|thumbnail|upright=1.2|Dunstan shoeing the Devil's hoof, as illustrated by [[George Cruikshank]]]]
Daniel Anlezark has tentatively suggested that Dunstan may be the medieval author of the poem ''[[Solomon and Saturn]]'', citing the style, word choice, and [[Hiberno-Latin]] used in the texts.{{sfn|Anlezark|2009|p=}} However, Clive Tolley examines this claim from a linguistic point-of-view and disagrees with Anlezark's claim.{{sfn|Tolley|2010|pp=166-168}}

Another story relates how Dunstan nailed a [[horseshoe]] to the Devil's foot when he was asked to re-shoe the Devil's cloven hoof. This caused the Devil great pain, and Dunstan only agreed to remove the shoe and release the Devil after he promised never to enter a place where a horseshoe is over the door. This is claimed as the origin of the lucky horseshoe.{{sfn|Lawrence|1899|p=91}}

A further legend relating to Dunstan and the Devil relates to the last frosty nights of the year, said to often occur as late as St Dunstan’s Day, when apple trees are in blossom. On occurring so late, these frosts are known as “Franklin Nights”. The story goes that Dunstan was a great [[Brewing|brewer]] and negotiated an agreement whereby the Devil could blast the blossom of local apple trees with frost, damaging the [[Cider apple|cider]] crop so that Dunstan's own beer would sell more readily.<ref>{{cite web|title=Franklin's Nights|website=Legends of Dartmoor |url= https://www.legendarydartmoor.co.uk/franklin-nights.htm|access-date=19 May 2022|first=Tim |last=Sandles |date=17 April 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Weather Eye|website=The Times|url= https://www.thetimes.com/travel/advice/weather-eye-may-19-2003-3p3kqrkdqdl |access-date=4 April 2025|first=Paul |last=Simons |date=19 May 2003}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=The Franken’s Nights Legend|website=Bonny Green |url=https://www.bonnygreen.uk/franken.html|access-date=4 April 2025|first=Colin |last=Andrew}}</ref>

===An East London saint===
As Bishop of London, Dunstan was also Lord of the [[Stepney#Manor and Ancient Parish|Manor of Stepney]], and may, like subsequent bishops, have lived there. Dunstan is recorded as having founded (or rebuilt<ref>"Medieval London Suburbs", Kevin McDonnell, p136</ref>) [[St Dunstan's, Stepney|Stepney's church]], in 952 AD. This church was dedicated to All Saints, but was rededicated to Dunstan after his [[Canonization|canonisation]] in 1029, making Dunstan the patron saint of Stepney.<ref>The Metropolitan Borough of Stepney Official Guide – 10th Edition – 1961 – Published by Ed J Burrow and Co Ltd p. 29</ref>

==References==
===Notes===
{{notelist}}

===Citations===
{{Reflist|refs=
<ref name="synaxarion.gr">{{in lang|el}} ''[http://www.synaxarion.gr/gr/sid/3266/sxsaintinfo.aspx Ὁ Ἅγιος Δουνστάνος Ἀρχιεπίσκοπος Καντουαρίας].'' 19 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.</ref>
<ref name="co">{{Cite web |title=St Dunstan |publisher=Catholic Online |url=http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=438 |access-date=5 August 2016 }}</ref>
<ref name="cw">{{Cite web | title =St Dunstan | work =Catholic Community&nbsp;– Woking | publisher =st-dunstans.org | url =http://www.st-dunstans.org/history/biography09.htm | access-date =5 August 2016 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20170608074750/http://www.st-dunstans.org/history/biography09.htm | archive-date =8 June 2017 | url-status =dead }}</ref>
<ref name="msc">{{Cite web|url=http://www.missionstclare.com/english/people/may19.html |title=Biography: St. Dunstan |access-date=2 August 2007 |work=Mission St. Clare}}</ref>
}}

===Sources===
{{refbegin}}
*{{cite book |last=Alexander |first=Jonathan J. G. |title=Medieval Illuminators and Their Methods of Work |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Yy21QgAACAAJ |year=1992 |publisher=Yale University Press |location=New Haven, CT |isbn=978-0-300-05689-1}}
*{{cite book |last=Anlezark |first=Daniel |title=The Old English Dialogues of Solomon and Saturn |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3ZBjPgAACAAJ |year=2009 |publisher=D.S. Brewer |isbn=978-1-84384-203-3}}
*{{Cite book |last1=Bunson |first1=Matthew |last2=Bunson |first2=Margaret |last3=Bunson |first3=Stephen |title=Our Sunday Visitor's Encyclopedia of Saints |year=1998 |publisher=Our Sunday Visitor Publishing |location=Huntington, IN |isbn=0-87973-588-0}}
*{{Cite book |last=Churchill |first=Winston |author-link=Winston Churchill |title=The Birth of Britain |publisher=Dodd, Mead |year=1966 }}
*{{cite book |title=The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church |editor1-first=F. L. |editor1-last=Cross |editor2-first= E. A. |editor2-last=Livingstone |publisher=Oxford University Press, USA | edition=3rd | date= 1997 |url={{google books |id=0Q0RAQAAMAAJ |plainurl=yes |page=514}} }}
*{{cite book |last=Dickens |first=Charles |author-link=Charles Dickens |title=A Christmas Carol in Prose: Being a Ghost Story of Christmas. The Cricket on the Hearth, a Fairy Tale of Home; with a Biographical Sketch and Notes |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L8AvAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA24 |year=1893 |publisher=Houghton Mifflin }}
*{{Cite web |title=An Anglo-Saxon 'Renaissance Man': St Dunstan |last=Dunning |first=Andrew |work=Medieval manuscripts blog |date=19 May 2016 |access-date=7 November 2019 |url= https://britishlibrary.typepad.co.uk/digitisedmanuscripts/2016/05/st-dunstan.html }}
*{{cite book |last=Dunning |first=Robert William |title=A History of Somerset |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YqmnQAAACAAJ |year=1983 |publisher=Phillimore |location=Chichester |isbn=978-0-85033-461-6}}
*{{cite book |last1=Fryde |first1=E. B. |last2=Powicke |first2=Frederick Maurice |title=Handbook of British Chronology |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Q7bCwwEACAAJ |year=1961 |publisher=Royal Historical Society|isbn=9780901050175 }}
*{{cite book |last=Green |first=John Richard |title=History of the English People |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0xKajT7qfFMC&pg=PA121 |volume= 1 |year=1895 |publisher=Macmillan |location=London}}
*{{cite book |last=Hone |first=William |title=The every-day book, or, The guide to the year |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8CEIAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA670 |year=1825 |publisher=William Tegg}}
*{{cite book |last=Iggulden |first=Conn |title=Dunstan: One Man. Seven Kings. England's Bloody Throne. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F7FwDQAAQBAJ |year=2017 |publisher=Penguin |isbn=978-1-4059-2150-3}}
* {{cite book|last=Lapidge|first=Michael|authorlink=Michael Lapidge|title=Anglo-Latin Literature 900–1066|chapter=B. and the Vita S. Dunstani|pages=279–291|publisher=The Hambledon Press|location=London, UK|year =1993|isbn=978-1-85285-012-8}}
*{{cite book |last=Lapidge |first=Michael |author-link=Michael Lapidge |title=The Blackwell Encyclopaedia of Anglo-Saxon England |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SnpGngEACAAJ |year=1999 |publisher=Wiley |isbn=978-0-631-15565-2 |chapter=Dunstan |editor1-first=Michael |editor1-last=Lapidge |editor2-first=John |editor2-last=Blair |editor3-first=Simon |editor3-last=Keynes |editor4-first=Donald |editor4-last=Scragg }}
*{{Cite ODNB |first=Michael |last=Lapidge |title=Dunstan [St Dunstan] (''d''. 988) |id=8288 |date=23 September 2004 }}
*{{cite book |last1=Lawrence |first1=Robert |title=The Magic of the Horseshoe |date=1899 |publisher=Houghton Mifflin |location=Boston, MA |oclc=603818324}}
*{{cite book |last=Schama |first=Simon |title=A History of Britain |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cBtcY1RIVMUC |volume= 1: At the Edge of the World? 3000 BC-AD 1603 |year=2011 |publisher=Random House |isbn=978-1-4090-1824-7}}
*{{Cite CE1913 |wstitle=St. Dunstan |first= Leslie Alexander St. Lawrence |last=Toke |volume=5 }}
*{{cite journal |last1=Tolley |first1=C. |title=Solomon and Saturn I's 'Prologa Prima' |journal=Notes and Queries |volume=57 |issue=2 |year=2010 |pages=166–168 |issn=0029-3970 |doi=10.1093/notesj/gjq050}}
*{{cite book |last=Hollister |first=Charles Warren |title=The Making of England, 55 B. C.-1399 |url=https://archive.org/details/makingofengland500holl |url-access=registration |year=1966 |publisher=Heath}}
*{{cite journal |last=Whitelock |first=Dorothy |title=An Old English Account of King Edgar's Establishment of the Monasteries |journal=English Historical Documents |date=1979 |volume=1 |page=920}}
*{{cite book |last=Williams |first=Michael |title=Draining Somerset Levels |year=1970 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=[https://archive.org/details/drainingofsomers0000will/page/50 50] |isbn=0-521-07486-X |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/drainingofsomers0000will/page/50 }}
*{{cite book |last1=Winterbottom |first1=Michael |last2=Lapidge |first2=Michael |author2-link=Michael Lapidge |title=The Early Lives of St Dunstan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ssu8cQAACAAJ |year=2011 |publisher=OUP |location=Oxford |isbn=978-0-19-960504-0}}

{{refend}}

===Further reading===
====Primary sources====
{{refbegin}}
*'Author B', ''Vita S. Dunstani'', ed. W. Stubbs, ''Memorials of St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury''. [[Rolls Series]]. London, 1874. 3–52. Portions of the text are translated by [[Dorothy Whitelock]] in ''English Historical Documents c. 500–1042''. 2nd ed. London, 1979. These have been superseded by the new edition and translation by [[Michael Lapidge]] and Michael Winterbottom, ''The Early Lives of St Dunstan'', Oxford University Press, 2012.
*[[Adelard of Ghent]], ''Epistola Adelardi ad Elfegum Archiepiscopum de Vita Sancti Dunstani'', Adelard's letter to Archbishop [[Ælfheah of Canterbury]] (1005–1012) on the Life of St Dunstan, ed. W. Stubbs, ''Memorials of St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury''. Rolls Series 63. London, 1874. 53–68. Also in the new edition and translation by [[Michael Lapidge]] and Michael Winterbottom, ''The Early Lives of St Dunstan'', Oxford University Press, 2012.
*[[Wulfstan of Winchester]], ''The Life of St Æthelwold'', ed. and tr. M. Lapidge and M. Winterbottom, ''Wulfstan of Winchester. The Life of St Æthelwold''. Oxford Medieval Texts. Oxford, 1991.
*''Reliquiae Dunstanianae'', ed. W. Stubbs, ''Memorials of St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury''. Rolls Series. London, 1874. 354–439.
*''Fragmenta ritualia de Dunstano'', ed. W. Stubbs, ''Memorials of St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury''. Rolls Series. London, 1874. 440–57.
*[[Osbern of Canterbury]], ''Vita sancti Dunstani'' and ''Liber Miraculorum Sancti Dunstani'', ed. W. Stubbs, ''Memorials of St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury''. Rolls Series. London, 1874. 69–161.
*[[Eadmer]], ''Vita S. Dunstani'' and ''Miracula S. Dunstani'', ed. and tr. Bernard J. Muir and Andrew J. Turner, ''Eadmer of Canterbury. Lives and Miracles of Saints Oda, Dunstan, and Oswald''. OMT. Oxford, 2006. 41–159 and 160–212; ed. W. Stubbs, ''Memorials of St Dunstan, archbishop of Canterbury''. Rolls Series 63. London, 1874. 162–249, 412–25.
*''An Old English Account of the King Edgar's Establishment of the Monasteries'', tr. D. Whitelock, ''English Historical Documents I''. Oxford University Press, 1979.
{{refend}}

====Secondary sources====
{{refbegin}}
*Dales, Douglas, ''Dunstan: Saint and Statesman'', 3rd ed., James Clark & Co, 2023
*Duckett, Eleanor. ''Saint Dunstan of Canterbury'' (1955).
*Dunstan, St. ''Encyclopedia of World Biography'', 2nd ed. 17 vols. Gale Research, 1998.
*Knowles, David. ''The Monastic Orders in England'' (1940; 2d ed. 1963).
*Ramsay, Nigel ''St Dunstan: his Life, Times, and Cult'', Woodbridge, Suffolk, UK; Rochester, NY: Boydell Press, 1992.
*Sayles, G. O., ''The Medieval Foundations of England'' (1948; 2d ed. 1950).
*[[William of Malmesbury]], ''Vita sancti Dunstani'', ed. and tr. Bernard J. Muir and Andrew J. Turner, ''William of Malmesbury. Lives of SS. Wulfstan, Dunstan, Patrick, Benignus and Indract''. Oxford Medieval Texts. Oxford, 2002; ed. W. Stubbs, ''Memorials of St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury''. Rolls Series. London, 1874. 250–324.
*[[John Capgrave]], ''Vita sancti Dunstani'', ed. W. Stubbs, ''Memorials of St Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury''. Rolls Series. London, 1874. 325–53.
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Dunstan}}
* {{PASE|67973|Dunstan 1}}
*[http://www.gutenberg.org/files/13978/13978-h/13978-h.htm ''The True Legend of St. Dunstan and the Devil''] by Edward G. Flight, illustrated by [[George Cruikshank]], published in 1871, and available from [[Project Gutenberg]]
*[http://britishlibrary.typepad.co.uk/digitisedmanuscripts/2016/05/st-dunstan.html Dunstan at the British Library], BL medieval manuscripts blogpost, May 2016

{{S-start}}
{{s-rel| [[Christianity|Christian]] titles }}
{{S-bef| before=[[Koenwald]]}}
{{S-ttl| title= [[Bishop of Worcester]] | years=957–9}}
{{S-aft| after=[[Oswald of Worcester]] }}
{{S-bef| before=[[Brihthelm (Bishop of London)|Brihthelm]]}}
{{S-ttl| title= [[Bishop of London]] | years=958–9}}
{{S-aft| after=[[Ælfstan of London|Ælfstan]]}}
{{S-bef| before=[[Byrhthelm (bishop of Wells)|Byrhthelm]]}}
{{S-ttl| title= [[Archbishop of Canterbury]] | years=959–88}}
{{S-aft| after=[[Æthelgar]] }}
{{S-end}}

{{Bishops of London}}
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