Gisa (bishop of Wells)
Gisa | |
|---|---|
Lorraine | |
| Died | 1088 |
| Buried | Wells Cathedral |
Gisa (also written Giso; died 1088) was
Norman Conquest, Gisa took part in the consecration of Lanfranc, the new Archbishop of Canterbury, and attended Lanfranc's church councils. His tomb in Wells Cathedral
was opened in the 20th century and a cross was discovered in his tomb.
Life
Gisa was born in
excommunicated for various irregularities,[5] and travelled in company with another bishop—Walter of Lorraine, the Bishop of Hereford-elect—and Tostig Godwinson.[6] The Vita Edwardi says that he was "most suitably and excellently trained".[7]
On Gisa's arrival in the
canons to live together under a rule, but exactly which rule it was is unknown. After the Norman Conquest, he introduced the veneration of new saints into his cathedral, as well as setting up an archdeacon in the diocese for the first time.[2] He also wrote a history of the church.[8] He worked to restore lands formerly held by the bishop or cathedral that had been unjustly acquired by others.[9][10]
Gisa obtained land grants for the upkeep of the church and canons from King Edward the Confessor and the later kings
William I of England. He is mentioned many times in the Domesday Book of 1086 as the holder of land for the see, and was notorious for acquiring land throughout his bishopric.[2] The only surviving writ of Harold's issued while Harold was king dealt with Giso's rights as bishop, and was addressed to Abbot Æthelnoth of Glastonbury, the sheriff of Somerset, and the thegns of Somerset.[11]
After the Norman Conquest, Gisa supported
Council of London in 1075. At a later church council, Giso asserted his authority over the abbots of Muchelney and Athelney, but failed to uphold the same claim in regards to Thurstan, Abbot of Glastonbury. Previously, he was credited as the author of Historiola de primordiis episcopatus Somersetensis, a history of the bishops of Wells, but he is no longer considered the author of that work.[2]
Gisa died in 1088Wulfstan, Bishop of Worcester, were the only remaining bishops from Edward the Confessor's appointments.[13] His tomb was opened in 1979,[2] and a cross with verses from the Mass for the Dead inscribed on it was found in his tomb.[14]
Citations
- ^ Barlow Edward the Confessor p. 245
- ^ a b c d e f Barrow "Giso" Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
- ^ a b c Greenway "Bishops" Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300: Volume 7: Bath and Wells
- ^ a b Fryde, et al. Handbook of British Chronology p. 222
- ^ Huscroft Ruling England p. 51
- ^ Smith "Court and Piety" Catholic Historical Review p. 574
- ^ Quoted in Huscroft Ruling England p. 48
- ^ a b Barlow English Church pp. 82–83
- ^ Barlow English Church p. 149
- ^ Barlow English Church p. 224
- ^ Walker Harold p. 139
- ^ Douglas William the Conqueror p. 215
- ^ Stenton Anglo Saxon England p. 680
- ^ Bartlett England Under the Norman and Angevin Kings p. 597
References
- ISBN 0-520-01671-8.
- ISBN 0-582-49049-9.
- Barrow, Julia (2004). "Giso (d. 1088)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/10778. Retrieved 14 November 2007.(subscription or UK public library membershiprequired)
- ISBN 0-19-822741-8.
- OCLC 399137.
- Fryde, E. B.; Greenway, D. E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I. (1996). Handbook of British Chronology (Third revised ed.). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-56350-X.
- Greenway, Diana E. (2001). "Bishops". Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300. Vol. 7: Bath and Wells. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 23 September 2007.
- Huscroft, Richard (2005). Ruling England 1042–1217. London: Pearson/Longman. ISBN 0-582-84882-2.
- Smith, Mary Frances; S2CID 159900538.
- ISBN 978-0-19-280139-5.
- Walker, Ian (2000). Harold the Last Anglo-Saxon King. Gloucestershire, UK: Wrens Park. ISBN 0-905778-46-4.
Further reading
- ISBN 0-85115-707-6.
External links