Saint Cuthbert at chester-le-street

While at Chester-le-Street the Shrine became famous and many people visited including the Kings of Wessex who were trying to unite England.

Many gifts were left.King Aethelstan gave a bible. It was taken south at the Reformation and destroyed by fire. Precious embroidered silks were given. They can still be seen in Durham cathedral.

At Chester-le-Street Aldred the Provost took the Lindisfarne Gospels and inserted a word for word translation of the Latin into Northumbrian English. This makes the Gospels the oldest surviving English Bible.

When the Community of Saint Cuthbert with the coffin and other treasures including Saint Cuthbert`s book (The Lindisfarne Gospels) arrived in Chester-le-Street.They settled inside the Roman fort and built a church. They remained here for 113 years.

They succeeded in converting the Danes to Christianity. The Danish ruler of York,Guthred, gave the Community much land in Durham between the Wear and the sea.