St Swithin

St Swithin
(d. 862)
   Swithin (or, more properly, Swithun) was Bishop of Winchester. As a mark of humility, when he was dying he asked to be buried out of doors, where he would be trodden on and rained on; in the following century he was regarded as a saint, and the then Bishop had his bones reburied in a shrine inside the cathedral on 15 July 971. According to legend there was a heavy rainstorm, either during this ceremony or on its anniversary; one 14th-century chronicler says it caused massive flooding, several drownings, and a famine. Hence the popular saying, known since Elizabethan times, that if it rains on St Swithin's Day (15 July) it will go on raining for forty days (Opie and Tatem, 1989: 337-8).

A Dictionary of English folklore. . 2014.

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  • Swithin — von Winchester, auch Swithun oder Svithun (* um 800 in Hampshire; † 2. Juli 862 in Winchester) ist der Name eines englischen Heiligen der römisch katholischen Kirche (2. Juli) und der anglikanischen Kirche (15. Juli). Swithin stammte aus einer… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Swithin, Saint — • Bishop of Winchester (d. 862). One of the two trusted counsellors of Egbert, King of the West Saxons Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006 …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Swithin — or Swithun [swith′ən, swith′ən] Saint (A.D. 800? 862?); Eng. prelate: his day is July 15 …   English World dictionary

  • Swithin — (d. 862)    Saint and Bishop.    Little is known of the life of Swithin. He was a Bishop of Winchester and seems to have been an advisor of King Egbert of Wessex. He is known for the legend that if it rains on St Swithin’s Day (15 July), then it… …   Who’s Who in Christianity

  • Swithin — Swith|in, Saint , Swithun →↑Saint Swithin s Day …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • St. Swithin — Swithin von Winchester, auch Swithun oder Svithun (* um 800 in Hampshire; † 2. Juli 862 in Winchester) ist der Name eines englischen Heiligen der römisch katholischen Kirche (2. Juli) und der anglikanischen Kirche (15. Juli). Swithin stammte aus… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Swithin — /swidh in, swith /, n. Saint, died A.D. 862, English ecclesiastic: bishop of Winchester 852? 862. Also, Swithun. * * * …   Universalium

  • Swithin's Alley —    See Sweeting s Alley …   Dictionary of London

  • SWITHIN, ST. —    bishop of Winchester from 852 to 862; was buried by his own request in Winchester Churchyard, where passers by might tread above his head, and the dews of heaven fall on his grave. On his canonisation, a century after, the chapter resolved to… …   The Nuttall Encyclopaedia

  • Swithin’s Day —  (or Swithun’s Day)  St. July 15. According to legend, rain on that day will be followed by forty days of the same …   Bryson’s dictionary for writers and editors

  • Swithin — /ˈswɪðən/ (say swidhuhn) noun Saint, died 862 AD, English bishop …  

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