Martyrdom of Alphege
April 19, 1012
Held for months in Danish chains at Greenwich, the archbishop of Canterbury refused to allow ransom to ruin his poor tenants. His captors, roaring drunk after a feast, stoned him with rib bones from their table until an axe blow finished him. Canterbury at once made him a saint. Even the Danes' own commander Thorkell was so horrified that he defected to Ethelred's side.
In context
Also in 1012 (3 other events on record)
- Mahmud of Ghazni raids Thanesar · South Asia · War
- Song astronomers refine star catalogues · East Asia · Science
- Ly Thai To constructs temples at Thang Long · Southeast Asia · Religion
Before and after in Europe
Before and after in Religion
Era
High Middle Ages (1000–1300), one of 1,306 events from that era on Saeculum.