This biography is republished from The Dictionary of Irish Biography and was written by Ailbhe Mac Shamhráin. Shared by permission in line with Creative Commons ‘Attribution’ (CC BY) licencing.
Born: Unknown, Ireland (assumed)
Died: Unknown
Country most active: United Kingdom
Also known as: St Bee
Becga (7th cent.), anchoress and reputed foundress of Hartlepool, Northumbria, is of obscure origins, but she is thought to have been attached to a Leinster dynasty. Settling as an anchoress in Cumberland, where she is known as ‘St Bee’, she established an ascetic community on the headland which is named from her. The monastery of St Bees, endowed by King Oswald (d. 642) and subsequently by other members of the Northumbrian dynasty, survived till the sixteenth century. It has been suggested that Becga may be identified with Heiu who, according to Bede (iv, §23), was professed by Áedán of Lindisfarne and was remembered as the first nun in Northumbria. Heiu, foundress and first abbess of Heruteu (Hart’s Island, or Hartlepool), was later replaced by Hilda daughter of King Oswy (d. 671) and moved on to Kaelcacaestir (perhaps Tadcaster). It certainly appears that the cult of Becga, or Bee, was brought to Whitby in Northumbria. She is commemorated in Irish and English martyrologies at 6 September.