The Earliest States of Eastern Europe
DG-2011, 147-164

Development of St Edmund's Cult in the Oral Tradition and Hagiography

O. V. Gusakova

This paper aims to trace the early stages of the cult of St Edmund, the East
Anglian king killed by the Vikings in 869. It addresses the question of how
St Edmund’s legend was created and circulated in the oral tradition and how
it was later incorporated in a hagiographical text («Passio sancti Eadmundi»
by Abbo of Fleury). The paper analyzes the correlation between elements of
oral tradition and hagiographical topoi in the «Passio» and seeks to reveal
various textual layers refl ecting different stages of the development of St Edmund’s
cult.

Keywords:
St Edmund, Abbon of Fleury, Anglo-Saxon Church, cult of saints, martyrs, royal saints, Vikings, oral tradition, hagiography
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