Giric (bishop of the Scots) facts for kids
Giric was a person from a long time ago in Scotland. Historians believe he might have been a very important church leader, known as a bishop, in a place called St Andrews. This was around the late 1000s and early 1100s.
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Who Was Giric?
Giric is mentioned in old writings as a possible bishop of St Andrews. A historian named Walter Bower wrote a list of bishops. In his list, he mentioned someone called Gregorius who came after another bishop named Fothad II. Some experts think this Gregorius might have been Giric.
The Mystery of the Missing Years
For a long time, historians weren't sure who was bishop between 1093 and 1109. There wasn't much proof that anyone was officially made a bishop during these years. This made it hard to know the full history of the church leaders in St Andrews.
New Clues from Old Texts
In the late 1990s, a historian named Dauvit Broun from the University of Glasgow made an exciting discovery. He looked closely at very old handwritten books. He found a missing part of an ancient story called the St. Andrews Foundation Legend. This story was written around 1100.
In this newly found part, some important church leaders of that time were named. One of these names was "Archbishop Giric." This was a big clue! It suggested that Giric was indeed a real and important person in the church.
When Did Giric Live?
We know that another bishop, Turgot of Durham, was chosen in 1107. So, if Giric was a bishop, he would have been in charge sometime between 1093 (when the previous bishop died) and 1107.
Walter Bower's list also says that Giric was one of four people who were chosen to be bishops but died before they could officially start. These people were called "bishops-elect." The other "bishops-elect" mentioned were Cathróe, Eadmer, and Godric. This means Giric might have been chosen for the role but never fully became the bishop.
