The English monk and archbishop St. Dunstan (ca. 909-988) was a counselor of kings and a respected churchman. He made the English monasteries into centers of religion and culture.

Dunstan was born into an important family near Glastonbury in Somerset. As a young man, he lived for a time in the household of King Athelstan but incurred the displeasure of some of the officials by his love of singing and reading. Accused of black magic and pressured into leaving the court, Dunstan lived for a short time with the bishop of Winchester, who persuaded him to become a monk.

As a hermit near Glastonbury, Dunstan disciplined himself through prayer and penance. He worked as a silversmith and copied manuscripts. The next king, Edmund, called Dunstan back to court as one of his counselors and eventually made him abbot of Glastonbury. Under Edmund's successor, Edred, Dunstan practically ran the...