Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of key concepts covered in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book explores the historical background of Ansgar's mission in the North, which scholars have too often ignored. It presents an overview of Ansgar's predecessors, and a close study of Willehad's work around Bremen. The book discusses the origins of the ecclesiastical hierarchy in Saxony, as well as Ebo's first missions to the Danes. It analyzes documentary evidence for the foundation of Hamburg-Bremen. This evidence consists largely of three charters: privileges of Gregory IV and Nicholas I, and a royal immunity in the name of Louis the Pious. Diplomatic analysis and external evidence show that some of the primary assertions of the Vita Anskarii are fictional. The book also analyses about Rimbert and the circumstances that influenced his conception of Ansgar's life. These fictions have confused the understanding of the northern mission, and the origins of Hamburg-Bremen, down to the present day.