75. SAINTS MODWENNA AND HARDULF OF BURTON-ON-TRENT

Our holy Mother Modwenna was an Irish noblewoman by birth, who founded a monastery on an island in the River Trent in the ninth century. For seven years she lived there with two other Irish nuns, Lazar and Althea, before the three went on a pilgrimage to Rome. On their return to England, they built a church in Stapenhill in honour of SS. Peter and Paul. According to another source, she built a convent at Trensall in Staffordshire on land given her by the King of Mercia. After a time she retired to a small island called Andressey, near Burton-on-Trent (according to another source, to Langfortin, near Dundee).

It is said that a holy hermit called Hardulf from Breedon heard of her holy life and went to see her, bring books of the lives of the Saints. He lived in a little cliff not far from Trent, which may be the «Anchor church» near Ingleby. Two nuns were saved from drowning in the Trent when they tried to obtain a book that Hardulf had forgotten to take to Modwenna,

St. Modwenna died on July 5. Her body was translated to the church in Burton. She worked many miracles. She is not to be confused with St. Modwenna of Scotland, or St. Modwenna of Northumbria, or St. Morwenna of Morwenstow in Cornwall.

(Sources:

http»: / www.earlybritishkingdoms.com/adversaries/bios/modwburt.html; http»: / en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modwenna;

http://www.benefice.org.uk/breedon_church» the_breedon_story/part_03.php).