Alcuin of York (c.735-804)

Alcuin, also known as Ealhwine, Alhwin or Alchoin was a scholar, poet and teacher from York, Northumbria.
He became the student of Archbishop Ecgbert. He was a court chancellor in Aachen. At the invitation of Charlemagne he became a leading scholar and teacher at the Carolingian court in France.

H e graduated to become a teacher during the 750s. He became the head at York school (now St.Peter’s) where he revived trivium (grammar/rhetoric/logic) and quadrivium disciplines and wrote a codex on the trivium. He became a deacon but was never ordained.

In 781 he was sent to Rome by King Elfwald. On his way home he met Charlemagne. who persuaded him to join his court. He joined an illustrious group of scholars. He later wrote the Lord was calling me to the service of King Charles.

He became master of the Palace School of Charlemagne. He taught Charlemagne (782-790), his sons Pepin and Louis as well as young men sent to be educated at court and young clerics attached to the palace. He brought with him his assistants from York and revolutionised the educational standards of the school. It became known as the school of Master Albinus (Alcuin’s nickname)

In 790 he returned to York for a short time. He failed to influence King AEtheired so he returned to the Carolingian court. He never went back to York ,

In 796, now in his 60’s, he hoped to retire from court instead Marmoutier Abbey was put into his care by Charlemagne - who could call on him for advice. Alcuin encouraged the monks there to use beautiful Carolingian minuscule script.
Carolingian minuscule - using a mixture of upper and lower-case letters - was perfected and restored to purity of the form. by Alcuin.

He stayed at the abbey until his death on 19th May 804.

According to Einhard’s* Life of Charlemagne* he was considered among the most important intellectual architects of the Carolingian Renaissance.

Source
Wikipedia