Alcuin to the People of Kent

To the most excellent nation and praiseworthy people of Canterbury, the humble Alcuin sends greetings.

A great danger threatens this island and its inhabitants. Behold, something never before heard of: a pagan people is growing accustomed to plundering our shores with piratical raids; and our own people, the Angles, are quarreling among themselves over kingdoms and kings. There is scarcely anyone left, I say this with tears, from the ancient lineage of kings, and the more uncertain the origin, the less the bravery. Similarly, in the churches of Christ, teachers of truth have perished; almost everyone pursues worldly vanities and holds regular discipline in contempt: even their warriors desire greed rather than justice. Read Gildas, the wisest Briton, and you will see why the ancestors of the Britons lost their kingdom and homeland; then consider yourselves and you will find things almost the same. Fear for yourselves the truth that has been given regarding the church, saying, “Every kingdom divided against itself will not stand.” Behold the great division between the people and the tribes of the Angles; and because of this, they fail in their duty to themselves, as they do not maintain peace and faith among themselves. Recall, if possible, your bishop, Adelhard, a wise and venerable man; strengthen the state of your kingdom by his advice, removing customs displeasing to God; strive to do things that will call upon you His mercy. It is not right that the seat of St. Augustine, our first preacher, should remain vacant; no one else can be ordained in Adelhard’s place.

It is ruinous for people everywhere not to obey the priests and to drive out from their midst the preachers of salvation. Humble yourselves before your bishop, the minister of your safety, so that divine grace may follow you in all your works. Believe me, in no other way can you retain God’s favor; through him, you can, I believe, have peace and hope for eternal safety. Make a plan for your prosperity, act manfully, and you will find it well; turn to entreaties, prayers, and fasting, so that divine mercy may be granted to you, that it may preserve you in peace and safety, that it may grant you a safe dwelling in your homeland and a glorious kingdom in the eternal home. O worthy and venerable brethren, may the right hand of Almighty God protect and rule over you, and may it deem you worthy of being exalted in present happiness and eternal bliss.