Medieval Europe

Mission to England

He furthered the prestige of the papacy, too, by initiating missions to the pagans. The story, probably apocryphal, has it that in 597 Gregory saw slaves offered for sale in a Roman market. They had blue eyes and blond hair and Gregory on the spot decided to convert these beautiful barbarians.

They were English slaves. Gregory despatched Augustine (not Augustine of Hippo, who lived much earlier) to England, who converted the English king a few years later. England has remained Christian ever since.

This mission began an unbroken tradition of the popes as the sponsors of missions to the pagans. This, too, buttressed the authority of the papacy, for the popes had a direct authority over the missionary territories.

History of Western Civilization

E.L. Skip Knox
Boise State University

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