Bricstan was a 12th-century trainee

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

miracle A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divi ...

witness and

Chatteris Chatteris is a market town and civil parish in the Fenland district of Cambridgeshire, England, situated in The Fens between Huntingdon, March and Ely. The town is in the North East Cambridgeshire parliamentary constituency. The parish of Cha ...

's first known parishioner. His story is chronicled by Bishop Hervey, the

Bishop of Ely The Bishop of Ely is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Ely in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese roughly covers the county of Cambridgeshire (with the exception of the Soke of Peterborough), together with ...

when Chatteris Abbey (which was dated around the year 980) was placed under the patronage of the

by King Henry I in 1131.

The legend

Bricstan was a

free tenant Free tenants, also known as free peasants, were tenant farmer peasants in medieval England who occupied a unique place in the medieval hierarchy. They were characterized by the low rents which they paid to their manorial lord. They were subj ...

living in

round about the year 1115. He wanted to become a monk, so he walked to the abbey at Ely, where the Chief Abbot accepted him for training as a monk. However, he was accused of theft, by a rogue who had a grievance against him. The accusations were accepted by the Chief Abbot, and Bricstan was sent to prison in London where he was kept in chains at all times. The legend recounts that one night he had a vision of Saint Etheldreda coming towards him, and as if by a miracle, his chains fell from him and he was shackled no longer. When he awoke from his dream, he discovered that this was indeed true and he was free, of his chains at any rate. Queen Adeliza (the second wife of Henry the First) heard of the miracle, and she assured herself that he was no rogue or thief and issued a writ of pardon and declared him a free man.

Historicity

The legal case was brought before the court in London is recorded in legal texts of that time The history of the county of Cambridge reports that "There is some support for this possibility in the tale of a miracle performed by

St. Etheldreda ST, St, or St. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Stanza, in poetry * Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band * Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise * Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy a ...

in the reign of Henry I. She released from prison a certain Bricstan who, being accused of stealing the king's money, had been condemned” 'The Liberty of Ely: Origins of the Liberty of Ely', A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely: Volume 4: City of Ely; Ely, N. and S. Witchford and Wisbech Hundreds (2002), pp. 4-8. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=21880 Bricstan's name is currently used as the name of the new Parish Church hall in Chatteris. The new "Bricstan Hall", part funded by

SureStart Sure Start is a UK Government area-based initiative, announced in 1998 by the then Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, applying primarily in England with slightly different versions in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The initiative o ...

is now a well used resource for many groups in the town.

References

{{reflist People from Chatteris English Christian monks Year of birth unknown