ABSTRACT
Wulfstan was remarkable as an Englishman who retained his bishopric, outlived the Conqueror, and oversaw changes for his diocese within the continuity that his long episcopacy allowed. His reputation as theologian, administrator and holy man (which led to his canonisation) is unparalleled. In 1062, Bishop Ealdred became archbishop of York, and the abbey's prior, Wulfstan, was elected to the see. Although representing the best of traditional Anglo-Saxon monasticism, he keenly supported the reforms introduced by Lanfranc, as archbishop of Canterbury, from 1070. He also supervised the rebuilding of the minster church in the grand Romanesque style found on the Continent and patronised by Edward the Confessor (although he is reported to have wept on viewing the destruction of the older, simple building).
