Saint Osgyth | |
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![]() An illuminated capital commencing the anonymous La Vie seinte Osith, virge e martire (Campsey Manuscript, British Library Additional Ms 70513, fol. 134v) | |
Born | Quarrendon, now in Buckinghamshire |
Died | 700 AD |
Venerated in | |
Canonized | Pre-congregation |
Feast | 7 October |
Attributes | Depicted as a cephalophore;[1] or represented with a stag behind her,[1] |
Osgyth (or Osyth; died c. 700 AD) was a Mercian noblewoman and prioress, venerated as an English saint since the 8th century, from soon after her death. She is primarily commemorated in the village of St Osyth, in Essex, near Colchester. Alternative spellings of her name include Sythe, Othith and Ositha. Born of a noble family, she became a nun and founded a priory near Chich which was later named after her.