Editing Alcuin (section)

=== York ===
The young Alcuin came to the [[York Minster|cathedral church]] of York during the golden age of Archbishop [[Ecgbert of York|Ecgbert]] and his brother, the Northumbrian King [[Eadberht of Northumbria|Eadberht]]. Ecgbert had been a disciple of the [[Bede|Venerable Bede]], who urged him to raise York to an [[archbishopric]]. King Eadberht and Archbishop Ecgbert oversaw the re-energising and reorganisation of the [[History of the Church of England|English church]], with an emphasis on reforming the clergy and on the tradition of learning that Bede had begun. Ecgbert was devoted to Alcuin, who thrived under his tutelage.<ref>Mayr-Harting "Ecgberht" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography''</ref>

The York school was renowned as a centre of learning in the liberal arts, literature, and science, as well as in religious matters.{{sfn|Hutchison|2006}} From here, Alcuin drew inspiration for the school he would lead at the [[Franks|Frankish]] court. He revived the school with the [[Trivium (education)|trivium]] and [[quadrivium]] disciplines,{{sfn|Burns|1907}} writing a [[codex]] on the trivium, while his student [[Rabanus Maurus|Hrabanus]] wrote one on the quadrivium.

Alcuin graduated to become a teacher during the 750s. His ascendancy to the headship of the York school, the ancestor of [[St Peter's School, York|St Peter's School]], began after [[Æthelbert of York]] became [[Archbishop of York]] in 767. Around the same time, Alcuin became a [[deacon]] in the church. He was never ordained a priest. Though no real evidence shows that he took monastic vows, he lived as if he had.

In 781, King [[Ælfwald I of Northumbria]] sent Alcuin to Rome to petition the Pope for official confirmation of York's status as an archbishopric and to confirm the election of the new archbishop, [[Eanbald (died 796)|Eanbald I]]. On his way home, he met [[Charlemagne]] (whom he had met once before), this time in the Italian city of [[Parma]].{{efn|{{harvnb|Mayr-Harting|2016|page=207}} asserts Charlemagne met Alcuin – for the second time – at Parma in 781. {{harvnb|Story|2005|p=137}} reports that Alcuin had previously been sent to Charlemagne by Ethelbert.}}