Which Catholic saint was the first bishop of Canterbury and led the Gregorian mission to Anglo-Saxon England?

Augustine of Canterbury was the first archbishop of Canterbury and leader of the Gregorian mission to Anglo-Saxon England.

Pope Gregory the Great sent Augustine from Rome in 597 with a group of missionaries. Their mission aimed to establish Christianity among the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. Augustine reached the kingdom of Kent, where King Æthelberht permitted the missionaries to preach.

Augustine baptized Æthelberht according to tradition and established his episcopal seat at Canterbury. He also founded the monastery later associated with Saints Peter and Paul, now known as St Augustine’s Abbey.

Augustine is sometimes confused with Augustine of Hippo, the North African bishop and theologian who lived centuries earlier. Augustine of Canterbury died around 604, while Augustine of Hippo died in 430.