Life

Gervais was a clerk of the diocese of Exeter

Diocese of Exeter

The Diocese of Exeter is a Church of England diocese covering the county of Devon. It is one of the largest dioceses in England. The Cathedral Church of Saint Peter in Exeter is the seat of the diocesan bishop, the Right Reverend Michael Langrish, Bishop of Exeter. It is part of the Province of...

 and educated in physical sciences. He held the prebends of Fenton and Warthill in the diocese of York

Diocese of York

The Diocese of York is an administrative division of the Church of England, part of the Province of York. It covers the city of York, the eastern part of North Yorkshire, and most of the East Riding of Yorkshire....

 before becoming chancellor of the diocese of York

Diocese of York

The Diocese of York is an administrative division of the Church of England, part of the Province of York. It covers the city of York, the eastern part of North Yorkshire, and most of the East Riding of Yorkshire....

. He made a trip to Rome on business about the election of Archbishop Sewal de Bovil

Sewal de Bovil

-Life:Nothing is known of Bovil's origins or his parents, but he attended Oxford University at around the same time as Edmund of Abingdon, who became Bovil's good friend. He first appears as a canon of York Minster in 1236, and was holding the prebend of Fenton by October 1240. He was Archdeacon of...

 to York and became a papal chaplain under Pope Alexander IV

Pope Alexander IV

Pope Alexander IV was Pope from 1254 until his death.Born as Rinaldo di Jenne, in Jenne , he was, on his mother's side, a member of the de' Conti di Segni family, the counts of Segni, like Pope Innocent III and Pope Gregory IX...

. In 1260 he was named Bishop of Carlisle

Bishop of Carlisle

The Bishop of Carlisle is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Carlisle in the Province of York.The diocese covers the County of Cumbria except for Alston Moor and the former Sedbergh Rural District...

 by Archbishop Godfrey Ludham

Godfrey Ludham

Godfrey Ludham was Archbishop of York from 1258 to 1265.-Life:Ludham's parents were Richard and Eda of Ludham, Norfolk, and he had a brother Thomas who was also a priest. Matthew Paris gives him the name Godfrey Kineton, but without any explanation of why that was his name...

 of York, but the election was not effective.

Gervais was nominated to the see of Winchester on 22 June 1262 by papal provision and probably consecrated on 10 September 1262. He was enthroned in Winchester Cathedral

Winchester Cathedral

Winchester Cathedral at Winchester in Hampshire is one of the largest cathedrals in England, with the longest nave and overall length of any Gothic cathedral in Europe...

about Christmas, 1262.

Gervais died on 20 January 1268 or on 19 January.