Abstract
The appearance of this third edition bespeaks the significance of Douglas Dales’ biography of St Dunstan, originally published in 1988. This third edition was published to coincide with the recent coronation of King Charles and gives some background to the development of that rite and its early roots, and notably Dunstan’s contribution. In nine concise chapters, Dales traces the course of the saint’s life, the cultural influences that bore upon him, his remarkable contribution to the monastic life, and finally his legacy.
The story begins with the impressive political, military and intellectual achievements of Alfred the Great, rooted in an authentic piety and committed to the reform of the Church.
Dunstan was born in the year 909, near Glastonbury – the monastery there would be formative in Dunstan’s own work. Glastonbury had been something of a ‘royal island’ in the king’s gift and possession at the time; this would augur well for Dunstan’s future close relations with the royal court. It was during the reign of King Athelstan that his star began to rise. His life was peppered with crises, including two periods of exile. He established his reputation in his time as Abbot of Glastonbury; interestingly enough, it’s not clear that he ever formally relinquished that role. He rebuilt much of the monastery, including the conventual church, giving it a monastic profile unparalleled in Anglo-Saxon history.
Dunstan’s star would rise and wane with the succession of monarchs, and Dales charts his way through the complex and changing fortunes in both politics and the Church. There is a wealth of detail throughout, which also reaches across into mainland Europe. Some incidents add spice to the story: particularly notable is the adulterous fornication of King Edwy at his coronation feast. The king’s response would lead to one of Dunstan’s exiles. With the accession of Edgar, Dunstan experienced something of a meteoric rise, being ordained a bishop within the royal court and holding the sees of London and Worcester in plurality. Within two years he was nominated to be Archbishop of Canterbury, where he was both an effective bishop and continued his focus on the reform and growth of the monasteries, establishing a stable observance of the keeping of Benedict’s Rule. This reached its climax with the publication of the Regularis Concordia, a formal agreement of all religious houses as to how the rule should be kept. This followed the earlier ‘New Minster Charter’, which had effectively been a manifesto for the reforms that ensued.
The final three chapters outline Dunstan’s legacy, including his impact on King Edgar’s legislation. Rather like a latter-day St Aidan acting as confidant to King Oswald, so Dunstan also acted similarly as a statesman. The flowering of English culture in the tenth century followed. Douglas Dales offers his own statesmanlike assessment of Dunstan’s crucial contribution to monastic reform. The entire argument is supported by an impressive understanding of the detailed and complex history of the period. It is no surprise that the cult of Dunstan should culminate in his canonization.