Ælfgifu of Shaftesbury
first wife of Edmund I
Who they were
Ælfgifu of Shaftesbury, also known as Elgiva, (died 944) was the first wife of King Edmund I (r. 939–946). She was Queen of the English from her marriage in around 939 until her death in 944. Ælfgifu and Edmund were the parents of two future English kings, Eadwig (r. 955–959) and Edgar (r. 959–975). Like her mother Wynflaed, Ælfgifu had a close and special if unknown connection with the royal nunnery of Shaftesbury (Dorset), founded by King Alfred, where she was buried and soon revered as a saint. According to a pre-Conquest tradition from Winchester, her feast day is 18 May.
Summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0), until this page is written up in full.
The miracles
Limited information is available on this saint so far.
Why that counted as sanctity
Limited information is available on this saint so far.
Connected on this site
- Edgar of England Saint Child
- Santi e Beati — Santa Elgiva di Shaftesbury; Stanton's Menology — "Santa Elgiva di Shaftesbury, Badessa"; Stanton's Menology, 18 May: "At Shaftesbury, in Dorsetshire, the commemoration of [St Elgiva]".
- Wikidata Q2278338 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Ælfgifu of Shaftesbury (CC BY-SA)
Not yet written up in full. The Catholic source above names this person; the name, dates and step come from Wikidata and are not yet checked against Church records.