Bede

The Venerable Bede (672/3–735) was an English Benedictine monk whose prolific scholarship earned him the title 'Father of English History.' His masterwork, the 'Ecclesiastical History of the English People' (Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum), completed in 731, remains the single most important source for the history of England from the Roman period through the early eighth century, and it established the standard of historical writing that would influence Western historiography for centuries. Bede spent virtually his entire life within the twin monastery of Monkwearmouth-Jarrow in the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Northumbria. Sent to the monastery at age seven, he devoted himself to the study of Scripture, the writings of the Church Fathers, and the liberal arts. His monastic library, built through the efforts of founders Benedict Biscop and Ceolfrith, was one of the finest in Europe, giving Bede access to an extraordinary range of texts. Bede's output was remarkable in both volume and range. He wrote commentaries on nearly every book of the Bible, treatises on chronology, natural history, and grammar, hagiographies of saints, and hymns. His work 'On the Reckoning of Time' (De Temporum Ratione) was instrumental in popularizing the system of dating events from the Incarnation of Christ (Anno Domini), the system still in universal use today. His careful attention to sources, his critical evaluation of evidence, and his effort to distinguish reliable testimony from legend set a standard for historical methodology that was centuries ahead of its time. Bede was ordained a deacon at nineteen and a priest at thirty, but he never rose to positions of ecclesiastical authority, preferring the life of study, teaching, and prayer. He died on May 26, 735 — Ascension Day — reportedly while dictating a translation of the Gospel of John into Old English. He was declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Leo XIII in 1899, the only native Englishman to hold this title.