Early life Guthlac was the son of Penwalh or Penwald, a noble of the English kingdom of
Mercia, and his wife Tette. Guthlac's sister is venerated as St
Pega. As a young man, Guthlac fought in the army of King
Æthelred of Mercia (). He subsequently became a monk at
Repton Abbey in
Derbyshire at the age of 24, under the abbess there (Repton being a
double monastery). Two years later he sought to live the life of a
hermit, and moved out to the island of
Croyland, now called Crowland (in present-day
Lincolnshire), on
St Bartholomew's Day, 699. His early biographer, Felix, writing in the early 8th century, asserts that Guthlac could understand the ('sibilant speech', that is "barbarous language") of
Brittonic-speaking demons who haunted him there, only because Guthlac had spent some time in exile among
Celtic Britons.
Hermit Guthlac built a small
oratory and
cells in the side of a plundered
barrow on the island. There he lived until his death on 11 April 714. Felix, writing within living memory of Guthlac, described his hermit's existence:
Veneration Guthlac's pious and holy ascetic life became the talk of the land, and many people visited the hermit during his life to seek spiritual guidance from him. He gave sanctuary to
Æthelbald, future king of
Mercia, who was fleeing from his cousin
Ceolred (). Guthlac predicted that Æthelbald would become king, and Æthelbald promised to build him an
abbey if his prophecy became true. Æthelbald indeed became king (), and even though Guthlac had died two years before, Æthelbald kept his word and started to build
Crowland Abbey on St Bartholomew's Day, 716. Guthlac's feast day is celebrated on 11 April. by
St Bartholomew,
Guthlac Roll, 1210,
British Library . The 8th-century Latin
Vita sancti Guthlaci, written by Felix, describes the entry of the demons into Guthlac's cell: Felix records Guthlac's foreknowledge of his own death, conversing with angels in his last days. At the moment of death a sweet nectar-like odour emanated from his mouth, as his soul departed from his body in a beam of light while the angels sang. Guthlac had requested a lead coffin and linen winding-sheet from Ecgburh, Abbess of
Repton Abbey, so that his funeral rites could be performed by his sister
Pega. Arriving the day after his death, she found the island of Crowland filled with the scent of ambrosia. She buried the body on the mound after three days of prayer. A year later Pega had a divine calling to move the tomb and relics to a nearby chapel: Guthlac's body is said to have been discovered uncorrupted, his shroud shining with light. Subsequently Guthlac appeared in a miraculous vision to
Æthelbald, prophesying that he would be a future
King of Mercia. == Legacy ==