Frideswide

Saint Frideswide (c.680–727) was the daughter of the Mercian sub-king Dida of Eynsham or Oxford - or indeed both. Her legend was written down many years after her death, but seems to contain nuggets of verifiable fact. She was the first abbess of the double monastery of Oxford, founded by her father. The legend recounts the preservation of her chastity by miracles of divine intervention, and the discovery of a holy well. The abbey, owner of several estates in the Thames valley near Oxford, became the nucleus of the city of Oxford: St Frideswide is the ackowledged patron saint of the City of Oxford. She was also declared

• • Frideswide is a transliteration of the Old English: Friðuswīþ. [wikipedia, 2021] lists Fridiswade, Frideswith, Fritheswithe, Frevisse, or simply Fris s alternative renderings of the name, which it gives as Frithuswith. Few of these renderings are to be found much on line. She is known as Ste Fréwisse in France.