| When still a boy, Oswald had been exiled to a monastery
at Iona, after his father was defeated by Edwin. When Edwin himself was
overthrown, Oswald regained his father's kingdom and rebuilt the Christian
community. Oswald invited Aidan from Iona to join him and they worked together
throughout the kingdom, which stretched from York to Edinburgh. They laid
the faith on foundations that have never been moved. Oswald gave Aidan
the island of Lindisfarne which became a great centre of mission and was
close to Oswald's own capital at Bamburgh. Edwin's daughter Hilda set up
an abbey at Whitby.
So began the flowering of Christian art and literature, of which the Lindisfarne Gospels are an example. The unique style of the books produced at Lindisfarne came from the Christian churches in Ireland, who in turn were inspired by monks from the early church in what is now Eastern Turkey. Oswald also completed the first York Minster to be built in stone. |
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