So far the archbishops had all been foreigners who had come over either with Augustine or with the second company of missionaries who were despatched by Gregory soon after Ethelbert's conversion. In 655, however, a native Englishman, named Frithona, was consecrated by the Saxon Bishop of Rochester, and adopted the name of #Deus Dedit#. He ruled at Canterbury till 664, and after his death the see remained vacant for four years, probably owing to the plague which was then wasting all Europe, and caused the death of Wighard, a Saxon, who had started for Rome to receive his consecration there. But in 668, #Theodore#, a native of Tarsus in Cecilia, was appointed, and was welcomed by the members of the torn and divided English Church. He devoted all his energy to centralizing and consolidating the power of the archbishop, which had been hitherto largely nominal. He journeyed all over England, correcting the prevalent laxity of discipline and establishing the control of the metropolitan authority. He went so far as to interfere with the Archbishopric of York, and with the help of the king attempted to divide it into three sees. He was, moreover, an enthusiastic scholar, and first diffused the study of Greek in England. He had brought a copy of Homer with him, and is said to have established a school of Greek in Canterbury. He died in 690, and after his death there was no archbishop for three years. In 693, one #Brethwald#, an English monk, some time Abbot of Reculver, was appointed to the see. The Saxon Church shows that it had benefited by Theodore's rigorous discipline, in that it was henceforth able to supply its own archbishops; it had now securely established itself all over the country, and the last home of paganism, which, curiously enough, held its own longest in Sussex, had been finally converted in Theodore's time. Brethwald ruled till 731, and was followed by #Tatwin# (731-734) and #Nothelm# (734-740). In 740 #Cuthbert# became archbishop. He seems to have been an interesting personage with a good deal of zeal for reform; he is recorded to have assembled a synod at Cliff to discuss measures for the improvement of the lives and behaviour both of clergy and laity. Probably at his instigation the synod ordained that the Lord's Prayer and the Creed should be taught in the vulgar tongue; he was the first archbishop buried in the cathedral. He was succeeded by #Bregwin#, who held the see from 759 to 765. He was an exception among the series of English primates, being of German origin. During the rule of the next archbishop, #Jaenbert#, an attempt was made to transfer the primacy from Canterbury. Offa, the King of Mercia, had established himself in a position of commanding power, and wishing that the seat of the chief ecclesiastical authority should be within his own dominion, obtained a Bull from Pope Adrian I. by which an Archbishop of Lichfield was created, with a larger see than that of Canterbury. Jaenbert seems to have acquiesced, though doubtless most unwillingly, in this arrangement, but in spite of the central situation of Lichfield, the traditional claims of Canterbury were too strong, and Adulf was the first and last Archbishop of Lichfield. #Athelard#, who succeeded Jaenbert in 790, had the primacy restored to him. The Northmen began their raids on the English coasts at this time, and their ravages probably continued through the days of his successors, #Wulfred#, #Feologild#, #Ceolnoth#, and #Ethelred# (805-889).