Robert Winchelsey
Robert Winchelsey | |
---|---|
Archbishop of Canterbury | |
Elected | 13 February 1293 |
Term ended | 11 May 1313 |
Predecessor | John Peckham |
Successor | Thomas Cobham |
Orders | |
Consecration | September 1294 by Pope Celestine V |
Personal details | |
Died | 11 May 1313 Otford |
Buried | Canterbury Cathedral |
Robert Winchelsey (or Winchelsea; c. 1245 – 11 May 1313) was an English Catholic theologian and Archbishop of Canterbury. He studied at the universities of Paris and Oxford, and later taught at both. Influenced by Thomas Aquinas, he was a scholastic theologian.
Winchelsey held various benefices in England and was the
Following the election of a former royal clerk as Pope Clement V in 1305, the king was able to secure the archbishop's exile that same year. Upon the succession of Edward's son, Edward II, Winchelsey was allowed to return to England after the new king petitioned the pope to allow his return. Winchelsey soon joined the king's enemies, however, and was the only bishop to object to the return of the king's favourite, Piers Gaveston. Winchelsey died in 1313. Although miracles were alleged to have happened at his tomb, an attempt to have him declared a saint was unsuccessful.
Early life
Winchelsey studied and taught at the universities of Paris and Oxford, and became the Rector of Paris, and Chancellor of Oxford. While in Paris, he read, and possibly met, Thomas Aquinas, and his own theology was thereafter purely scholastic.[1]
In 1283, he was appointed canon of
Archbishop
Election
Disputes with Edward I
Winchelsey was a fearless opponent of Edward I. When he swore his oath of fealty to Edward, he offended the king by adding a declaration that he was only swearing fealty for the temporalities, not the spiritualities. All through his term as archbishop he refused to allow Edward to tax the clergy beyond certain levels, and withstood severe pressure to change his mind. In August 1295, he offered the king a tenth of all ecclesiastical revenues, less than Edward had hoped to collect from the clergy. Winchelsey did concede though that if the war with France, which was what the money was requested to fund, continued into the following year, then the clergy would be amenable to making further contributions.[6]
Following the issue of the papal bull Clericis laicos in 1296, forbidding the payment of taxes to a secular power, Winchelsey urged his clergy in 1297 to refuse payments to Edward. However, the clergy of the province of York paid a tax of a fifth of their revenues. Edward then declared clerics who refused to pay outlaws, and ordered their property to be seized. He conceded that the clergy could return to his protection if they paid a fine of a fifth of their revenues, exactly what the northern clergy had offered in the way of taxation. The royal clerks and many other clergy paid the fines, and in March, the southern clergy met again, and after a long debate, Winchelsey instructed each clerk to decide for himself whether or not to pay the fine. It appears that most chose to pay,[7] but the archbishop still refused to make any contribution, and so Edward seized his lands. They were returned to him in July 1297, when the king and prelate were reconciled at Westminster.[8] Winchelsey then tried to mediate between Edward and the earls, who also objected to Edward's tax demands.[9]
Winchelsey further irritated Edward with his opposition to the
Exile and return
Winchelsey and the barons joined in demanding reforms from the king at the parliament of Lincoln in 1301, but Winchelsey's support of Boniface VIII's claim to be the protector of Scotland broke the alliance. One of the reasons which led the archbishop to ally with the barons was his hostility to Edward's adviser, Walter Langton, Bishop of
After the death of Edward I, the new king, Edward II, asked that Winchelsey be restored,
Legacy
Winchelsey was a preacher of some note, and when preaching at St. Paul's he attracted large crowds to his sermons and lectures.[18] Winchelsey's theological writings date primarily from his time at St. Paul's, where he delivered a number of quodlibeta. The quaestiones disputatae from those sessions survive, and illustrate his highly orthodox trinitarian views and his scholastic method. Miracles were said to have been worked at his tomb in Canterbury cathedral, but efforts to have him declared a saint have been unsuccessful.[1]
Citations
- ^ a b c d e f g Denton "Winchelsey, Robert" Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
- ^ Greenway "Prebendaries: Oxgate" Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300: Volume 1: St. Paul's, London
- ^ Greenway "Archdeacons: Essex" Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300: Volume 1: St. Paul's, London
- ^ a b Fryde, et al. Handbook of British Chronology p. 233
- ^ a b c d Greenway "Canterbury: Archbishops" Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300: Volume 2: Monastic Cathedrals (Northern and Southern Provinces)
- ^ Prestwich. Edward I p. 405
- ^ Prestwich. Edward I pp. 415–17.
- ^ Powell and Wallis House of Lords pp. 232–35
- ^ Prestwich Edward I p. 420
- ^ Prestwich Edward I pp. 412–413
- ^ Prestwich Edward I p. 521
- ^ Prestwich Edward I pp. 540–41
- ^ Powell and Wallis. House of Lords, p. 266
- ^ Weir. Queen Isabella p. 42
- ^ Weir Queen Isabella p. 49
- ^ Weir. Queen Isabella p. 55
- ^ Powell and Wallis House of Lords pp. 275–276
- ^ Moorman Church Life pp. 162–163
References
- Denton, J.H. (2004). "Winchelsey, Robert (c. 1240–1313)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. required)
- Fryde, E.B.; Greenway, D.E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I. (1996). Handbook of British Chronology (Third revised ed.). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-56350-5.
- Greenway, Diana E. (1971). "Canterbury: Archbishops". Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300. Vol. 2: Monastic Cathedrals (Northern and Southern Provinces). Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 6 March 2008.
- Greenway, Diana E. (1968). "Archdeacons: Essex". Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300. Vol. 1: St. Paul's, London. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 6 March 2008.
- Greenway, Diana E. (1968). "Prebendaries: Oxgate". Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300. Vol. 1: St. Paul's, London. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 6 March 2008.
- OCLC 213820968.
- OCLC 463626.
- ISBN 978-0-300-07157-3.
- ISBN 978-0-345-45319-8.
Further reading
- Denton, J.H. (1980). Robert Winchelsey and the Crown, 1294–1313: A Study in the Defence of Ecclesiastical Liberty. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-22963-0.