Henry (bishop of Finland)

Henry
Henry walking on his murderer Lalli. Painting from the Church of Taivassalo about 1450.
Bishop, missionary, martyr
Born	c. 1100 Kingdom of England
Died	Traditionally 20 January 1156[1] Lake Köyliö, Finnic tribal lands (now Finland)
Venerated in	Catholic Church Anglican Communion Lutheranism
Canonized	Pre-congregation[2]
Major shrine	Earlier Cathedral of Turku, today only Catholic Cathedral of Helsinki
Feast	19 January
Patronage	Catholic Cathedral of Helsinki
Controversy	Existence disputed

Henry (Finnish: Henrik; Swedish: Henrik; Latin: Henricus; died c. 20 January 1156^[1]) was a medieval English clergyman. He came to Sweden with Cardinal Nicholas Breakspeare in 1153 and was most likely designated to be the new Archbishop of Uppsala, but the independent church province of Sweden could only be established in 1164 after the civil war, and Henry would have been sent to organize the Church in Finland, where Christians had already existed for two centuries.

According to legend, he entered Finland during the First Crusade together with the king, Saint Eric of Sweden, and died as a martyr, becoming the patron saint of the Catholic Church in Finland. However, the authenticity of the accounts of his life and ministry are widely disputed and there are no historical records of his birth, death, of even his existence.

Together with his alleged murderer, peasant Lalli, Henry is an important figure in the early history of Finland. His feast is celebrated by the majority Lutheran Church of Finland,^[3] as well as by the Catholic Church of Finland. He is commemorated in the liturgical calendars of several Lutheran and Anglican churches.