Saint David of Munktorp (''David av Munktorp'') was an

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...

Cluniac Cluny Abbey (; , formerly also ''Cluni'' or ''Clugny''; ) is a former Order of Saint Benedict, Benedictine monastery in Cluny, Saône-et-Loire, France. It was dedicated to Saint Peter, Saints Peter and Saint Paul, Paul. The abbey was constructed ...

monk of the 11th century. David was sent as a missionary to Sweden by Saint Sigfrid of

Växjö Växjö () is a city and the seat of Växjö Municipality, Kronoberg County, Sweden. It had 71,282 inhabitants (2020) out of a Municipalities of Sweden, municipal population of 97,349 (2024). It is the administrative, cultural, and industrial ce ...

along with

Saint Botvid Saint Botvid was a Christian missionary in Sweden during the 11th century. Biography Botvid, who was born in Södermanland, Sweden, went on a trade trip to England where he came into contact with Christianity and was converted to the Catholic fai ...

and

Saint Eskil Saint Eskil (11th century) was an Anglo-Saxon monk particularly venerated during the end of the 11th century in the province of Södermanland, Sweden. He was the founder of the first diocese of the lands surrounding Lake Mälaren, today the Di ...

. The missionaries David, Eskil, and Botvid preached chiefly in

Södermanland Södermanland ( ), locally Sörmland, sometimes referred to under its Latinisation of names, Latinized form Sudermannia or Sudermania, is a Provinces of Sweden, historical province (or ) on the south eastern coast of Sweden. It borders Österg� ...

and

Västmanland Västmanland ( or ) is a historical Swedish province, or , in middle Sweden. It borders Södermanland, Närke, Värmland, Dalarna and Uppland. Västmanland means "West Man Land" or, less literally, "The Land of the Western Men", where the "we ...

, in the area of

Lake Mälaren A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from t ...

. David is associated with Munktorp, a village situated in

Köping Municipality Köping Municipality () is a municipality in Västmanland County in central Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Köping. The municipality was created in 1971, when the former ''City of Köping'' was merged with the municipalities of Kolsva ...

, in Västmanland County. He reportedly originated Munktorp Church (''Munktorps kyrka''). The original church structures are known as David's Church (''Davidskyrkan''). There is an ancient carving of St. David. Munktorp Church is in

Västerås Västerås () is a city in central Sweden on the shore of Mälaren, Lake Mälaren in the province of Västmanland, west of Stockholm. The city had a population of 127,799 at the end of 2019, out of the municipal total of 158,653, over 100,000 mo ...

diocese, northeast of

Köping, Sweden Köping is a locality and the seat of Köping Municipality in Västmanland County, Sweden. It had 17,743 inhabitants in 2010. It is known for the television series '' I en annan del av Köping''. Etymology ''Köping'' means merchant place. I ...

. David became known as the Västmanland apostle (''Västmanlands apostel''). An oral tradition about David of Munktorp, as retold by Grau in 1754 states that St David was so holy that he could hang his gloves on the sun rays. David died peacefully in 1082 of old age. After his death, his remains were buried in Munktorps kyrka. According to the Västerås breviary, David came to evangelize in Sweden in order to become a martyr. It further says that David "wandered among villages and towns, preaching the word of God and baptizing the converted, kept nightly prayer vigils, committing to God with tears and sighs his plentiful offspring, which he had thus born in the Lord".''David'' (Riksarkivet)
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{{Authority control 11th-century Swedish people Anglo-Saxon saints Medieval Swedish saints 11th-century Christian saints 1082 deaths 11th-century Christian monks