&ions arose such a Love and Harmony among them, that they are call'd but one. Monaftery, tho' plac'd at a great Distance; however Malmsbury came to mistake, in saying they food oppofite one on each fide the River Were.

The Time of his Birth, is, by most of those who have written his Life, plac'd in the Year of our Lord 677, but Mabillon, with more Reafon, has plac'd it fooner; for Bede finish'd his Ecclefiaftical History, Anno 131, the fame Year Beritwald, the Archbishop dy'd, as appears at the End of his Epitome, and foon after, in the fame Place, he tells us, that from the Time of his taking Priest's Orders to his 58 Year of Age, he had continu'd writing, &c. fo that from that, if we look backward 58 Years, it will bring the Time of his Birth to the Year 673, four Years fooner than the common Computation. This hapned in the fifteenth Year of the Reign of Ecgfrid, King of the Northumbrians.

His Parents we have no Account of, tho' Simon Dunelm, from Turgot, tells us, they were of no great Character in the World; but whether they were or no is not material, fince they took care for the Education of their Son in Learning and Piety, which they did by committing him very early, even at the feventh Year of his Age, to the Abbat Benedict or Bifcop beforemention'd, to be brought up in his Monaftery. This Bifcop was a Man of extraordinary Learning and fingular Piety; he was a Man, tho' Noble by Birth, indefa

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defatigable in the Purfuit of Learning, and improving his Country, in order to which he travell'd feveral Times, and introduc'd not only foreign Literature, but foreign Arts, into our Land, being the firft who brought over Mafon's and Glafiers. Travelling several times to Rome, and being intimate with Pope Agatho, he was much taken with the Liturgy of the Roman Church, and their Manner of Singing and Chaunting, for till then the Gallican or Mozarabick Liturgy was us'd in Britain and England, as appears by Auguftin's Questions. Under the Care of this Man, Bede was educated in the Monaftery of Weremouth for fome Time, where befide the Example of To great a Master, he had the Advantage of a large and curious Library which Bifcop brought into England: how long he continu'd in this Monaftery he has not inform'd us, but from being under his Care, he was afterwards remov'd to the Care of Ceolfrid, Fellow Traveller with Bifcop, nor inferior to him in Chara&ter; he was then Abbat of Girwy or Farrow, which Monaftery, Mr. Cambden, from a mistaken Infcription, thinks he founded. In this Monaftery of Jarrow he profecuted his Studies, and made, no fmall Progrefs under the finifhing Hand of fuch a Tutor; altho' he had several other Inftructors; aš one Trumber&t, a Brother of his Monaftery, who had been Scholar to St. Cedd the Bifhop, as his Inftructor in Divinity. And in the Knowledge of the Greek Tongue, of which he was a Mafter, as appears by his Ars Metrica, his Tranflation of the Life of Anaftafius, &c. he was inftructed by the Archbishop Theodore, a Greek by Birth,

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and the great Planter of that Language in our Country, being affifted by the Abbat Adrian; for which End they travell'd to feveral Parts of England, and by their Instructions that Language grew as familiar to fome of their Scholars as their native Tongue, which he inftances in the Cafe of Tobias, Bishop of Rochefter, and others; to thefe Preceptors we may add John the Arch-Chaunter, brought over by Bifcop, who inftructed him in finging in the Church and others add John, the Archbishop, of whom hereafter.

About the 19th Year of his Age, viz. 691. he was ordain'd Deacon by Bishop John, at the Command (jubente) of the Abbat Ceolfrid; this John was Bishop of Hagulstad, now Hexham in Northumberland, in whofe Diocese those Monafteries then were, (for the Bishoprick of Durham, in which Territories they now ftand, was not then erected.) This is that famous John, Surnamed of Beverly, of whom he has given us fuch an Account in his Hiftory. This Ordination, though earlier than the Church allows, fhows that there were fome extraordinary Qualifications in the Perfon, which could influence them to recede from a general Canon. From this Time he continued conftantly in his Studies, till the Age of thirty Years, when he was ordain'd Prieft by the aforefaid Bishop John; the Verfion of King Elfrid calls him marr neort, Mafs Prieft, his Employment being daily to fing in the Church; and now at the Intervals between his Duty and the Offices and Employments of the Monaftery, which, by the way, were numerous, as well as laborious, for himfelf inftancing, Bifcop the

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Founder,

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Founder, fays, He, like the reft of the Brothers, to winnow the Corn, and thrash it, to give Milk to the Lambs and Calfs, in the Bakehoufe, in the Garden, in the Kitchen, and in the other Employments of the Monaftéry, chearful and obedient, delighted to exercise himself. He began to apply himself to Writing, incited thereto by the Bishop Acca of Hagulftad, (in whofe Diocese he was,) ás appears by an obliging Epiftle from that Prelate to him, prefix'd to his Annotations upon St. Luke. Befides the Study and writing Comments on the Scriptures, he treated on feveral Subjects, on Hiftory, Aftrology, Orthogra phy, Rhetorick and Poetry; in the latter of which he was no fmall Master, as Mafter, as appears by what he has left us on the Life of St. Cuthbert, and fome Places in his Ecclefiaftical Hiftory; he wrote likewife two Books of the Art of Poetry, which are not now extant; a Book of Hymns, and another of Epigrams. Thus this ftudious and venerable Man employ'd all that little Time he could fave from the Call of his Duty, in improving the Souls and Understandings of Men; which he did not only to Mankind in general, but more particularly to thofe Pupils immediately under his Care; which were no less than 600, the Number of the Brothers of that Convent. Of thefe, feveral by the Influence of his Teaching, came to make confiderable Figures in the World, as Eufebius or Huethbert to whom he wrote his Book De ratione temporum, and his Interpretation on the Apocalypfe, who was afterwards Abbat of Weremouth.

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whom he wrote his Book, De Arte Metrica, who fucceeded Huet bbert, and was afterwards Abbat of Farrow: This Man wrote of his Master's Death, of which hereafter. Conftantine, to whom he wrote his Book De divifione numerorum, and Nothelmus, then Prieft at London, and afterwards Archbishop of Canterbury, to whom he wrote, Lib. xxx Queftionum in Libros Regum,to which we may add feveral in other Monafteries, and fome have join'd Alcuinus, afterwards Preceptor to Charles the Great.

Thus was the Time of that excellent Man employ'd in doing good to Mankind, feldom or never moving beyond the Limits of his own Monaftery, and yet in the dark Cloyster of it furveying the whole World, and difpenfing to it the Gifts intrufted, to him; it feems not a little furprizing, that one who had scare mov'd farther than the Place of his Nativity, fhould fo accurately defcribe thofe at Distance, and defcribe them fo particularly, no lefs familiarly then if he had refided upon the Spot, and been a Spectator of the Affairs there acted. But this Wonder will ceafe when we confider the great Efteem in which he was held, which occafion'd curious and learned Men to flock from all Parts to vifit him; and the Exactnefs of oral Accounts receiv'd fromthem.Nor need we wonder at this Efteem fhown him by our own Nation, fince Foreigners, and thofe the greatest of that Age, courted his Acquaintance, particularly Pope Sergius fent him an earneft Invitation to come to Rome, as appears by a Letter which Malmsbury has given us. The learnned Spelman tell us he was actually there, and feeing this Infcription, which none could un

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