Dunstan, Saint

Dunstan, Saint (about 910-988 AD), Archbishop of Canterbury, statesman, b. Glastonbury, Somerset, England.

Dunstan was the son of a Saxon nobleman.

For a time he was a member of the court of King Athelstan, but he was banished for experimenting with witchcraft.

He became a monk and was made Abbot of Glastonbury in 946. In the years that followed, he spent a great deal of time at court, giving advice to four Saxon kings.

King Edmund made him, in turn, Bishop of Worcester and Bishop of London, but when Edwy became king, Dunstan had to flee to Flanders.

King Edgar recalled him in 959 and made him Archbishop of Canterbury and during Edgar's reign of sixteen years he helped to make the kingdom of Wessex prosperous.

His career as a statesman came to an end when Ethelred II became king in 979.