WILFRID, ST., Bishop of York; born in Northumbria in 634. He was brought up in the monastery of Lindisfarne, but at 18 visited Rome, returning in 658 a warm partisan of the Roman party in the controversy with the native Church on the shape of the tonsure and the time of keeping Easter. At the synod of Whitby (664) he contended against Bishop Colman, and succeeded in gaining over the king, who learning it was only St. Peter to whom the keys had been given, thought it most prudent to be on his side lest Peter should pay him out in his need by closing the gate on him. Already he had been given the monas tery at Ripon, and now he was chosen Bishop of York, being consecrated at Compiegne. On his return he found that Chad had been elected Bishop of North umbria; but Archishop Theodore restored Wilfrid. He improved the minster of York, built a splendid church at Hex ham, some of the underground portions of which still remain, and raised a new minster at Ripon, the vault of which, called St. Wilfrid's Needle, still exists.
Theodore, without consulting Wilfrid, di vided Northumbria into the sees of Lin disfarne, Hexham, and Whitherne, in ad dition to York, and Wilfrid made his ap peal to Rome. On the journey he was driven by a storm to the coast of Fries land, the inhabitants of which were still pagan. Such was the effect of his preaching that thousands were baptized, and that work of conversion begun which was to be completed by Boniface and Willibrod. Pope Agatho decided in his favor, but King Ecgfrid flung him into prison. He escaped to Sussex, was allowed to return by the new King Ald frid in 686, keeping the sees of York and Ripon. But again he appealed to Rome against the measures of the new prim ate, Berthwald (704), and was finally, after a council held near Ripon, allowed to keep Ripon and Hexham, but not York. He died in Oundle, in Northamptonshire, in 709, and was buried in Ripon.