John de Gray (died 18 October 1214) was
Bishop of NorwichThe Bishop of Norwich is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Norwich in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers most of the County of Norfolk and part of Suffolk...
in the English county of
NorfolkNorfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast, including The Wash. The county town is Norwich...
, as well as being elected
Archbishop of CanterburyAlso see Leaders of ChristianityThe Archbishop of Canterbury is the chief bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury, the see that churches must be in communion with in order to be...
, but was never confirmed as archbishop.
John was a younger son of Robert de Gray of
Rotherfield GreysRotherfield Greys is a village and civil parish in the Chiltern Hills in South Oxfordshire. It is west of Henley-on-Thames and just over east of the village of Rotherfield Peppard....
in
OxfordshireOxfordshire is a county in the South East England region, bordering on Northamptonshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, and Warwickshire....
, and descended from the Norman knight,
Anchetil de GreyeAnchetil de Greye was a vassal of William the Conqueror who accompanied him in the Norman conquest of England.Anchetil de Greye is specifically named in the Domesday Book of 1086...
. He entered Prince John's service by 1196 and was keeper of John's seal by 1198. After John's accession in 1199 he was rapidly promoted in the church, becoming Archdeacon of Cleveland in March of 1200 and Archdeacon of Gloucester before April of 1200 then quickly being elected bishop of Norwich in September of 1200.
John de Gray (died 18 October 1214) was
Bishop of NorwichThe Bishop of Norwich is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Norwich in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers most of the County of Norfolk and part of Suffolk...
in the English county of
NorfolkNorfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast, including The Wash. The county town is Norwich...
, as well as being elected
Archbishop of CanterburyAlso see Leaders of ChristianityThe Archbishop of Canterbury is the chief bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury, the see that churches must be in communion with in order to be...
, but was never confirmed as archbishop.
Life
John was a younger son of Robert de Gray of
Rotherfield GreysRotherfield Greys is a village and civil parish in the Chiltern Hills in South Oxfordshire. It is west of Henley-on-Thames and just over east of the village of Rotherfield Peppard....
in
OxfordshireOxfordshire is a county in the South East England region, bordering on Northamptonshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, and Warwickshire....
, and descended from the Norman knight,
Anchetil de GreyeAnchetil de Greye was a vassal of William the Conqueror who accompanied him in the Norman conquest of England.Anchetil de Greye is specifically named in the Domesday Book of 1086...
. He entered Prince John's service by 1196 and was keeper of John's seal by 1198. After John's accession in 1199 he was rapidly promoted in the church, becoming Archdeacon of Cleveland in March of 1200 and Archdeacon of Gloucester before April of 1200 then quickly being elected bishop of Norwich in September of 1200. He was elected about 7 September and was consecrated on 24 September. He also served as John's secretary. In 1203 he went with Archbishop
Hubert WalterHubert Walter was an influential royal adviser in the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries in the positions of chief justiciar of England, archbishop of Canterbury, and Lord Chancellor. As chancellor, Walter began the keeping of the Charter Roll, a record of all charters issued by the...
of Canterbury on a diplomatic mission to King
Philip II of FrancePhilip II Augustus was the King of France from 1180 until his death. A member of the House of Capet, Philip Augustus was born at Gonesse in the Val-d'Oise, the son of Louis VII and his third wife, Adela of Champagne...
. He was also instrumental in securing the selection of his nephew as
Lord ChancellorThe Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor, is a senior and important functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. He is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking only after the Lord High Steward. The Lord Chancellor is appointed by the Sovereign...
after Walter's death in 1205.
King John's attempt to force him into the primate's office of
Archbishop of CanterburyAlso see Leaders of ChristianityThe Archbishop of Canterbury is the chief bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury, the see that churches must be in communion with in order to be...
in 1205 started the king's long quarrel with
Pope Innocent IIIPope Innocent III was Pope from 8 January 1198 until his death. He was born with the name Lotario de Conti.-Early life and election to the Papacy:Lotario de' Conti was born Gavignano, near Anagni...
. After Hubert Walter's death in July of 1205 the selection of a successor was hindered by doubts about what the proper procedure should be. King John postponed a decision while delegations from both the bishops of England and the monks of the
cathedral chapterIn accordance with canon law, a cathedral chapter is a body of clerics formed to advise a bishop and, in the case of a vacancy of the episcopal see in some countries, to govern the diocese in his stead. These councils are made up of canons and dignitaries; their creation is the purview of the pope...
went to
RomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated municipality , with over 2.7 million residents in , while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat to be 3.46 million. The metropolitan area of Rome is estimated by OECD to have a population of 3.7 million...
to seek guidance from the pope. However, while the delegations were in Rome, the monks of Canterbury decided to hold a secret election and elected their prior Reginald to be archbishop. Reginald was sent to Rome to join the delegation. When King John found out that the monks had elected someone without any regal input he forced the monks to elect John de Gray as archbishop. Some stories have the election of Reginald taking place before the sending of the first delegation to the curia. Another source,
Gervase of CanterburyGervase of Canterbury was an English chronicler.- Life :If Gervase's brother Thomas, who like himself was a monk of Christ Church, Canterbury, was identical with Thomas of Maidstone, they came of a Kentish family. St. Thomas of Canterbury received his religious profession on February 16, 1163,...
has the king telling the chapter they could choose their own nominee after six months, while the king secretly sent envoys to Rome to secure the election of de Gray.
De Gray was postulated to Canterbury on 11 December 1205 and the nomination was quashed by
Pope Innocent IIIPope Innocent III was Pope from 8 January 1198 until his death. He was born with the name Lotario de Conti.-Early life and election to the Papacy:Lotario de' Conti was born Gavignano, near Anagni...
about 30 March 1206, along with Reginald's claim. The monks then elected, with Innocent's approval,
Stephen LangtonStephen Cardinal Langton was Archbishop of Canterbury between 1207 and his death in 1228 and was a central figure in the dispute between King John of England and Pope Innocent III, which ultimately led to the issuing of Magna Carta in 1215.-Early life and career:He was born in the hamlet of Friday...
.
De Gray was a hard-working royal official, in finance, in justice, in action, using his position to enrich himself and his family. In 1209 he went to Ireland to govern it as governor. He adopted a forward policy, attempting to extend the English frontier northward and westward, and fought a number of campaigns on the
River ShannonThe River Shannon is, at 386 km , the longest river in Ireland. It divides the west of Ireland from the east and south . County Clare, being west of the Shannon but part of the province of Munster, is the major exception...
and in Fermanagh. But in 1212 he suffered a great defeat in Fircal in
County OffalyCounty Offaly is one of the traditional counties of Ireland and is located within the province of Leinster. It was named after the of Kingdom of Uí Failghe. Offaly is the 18th largest of Ireland’s 32 counties in area and 23rd largest in terms of population...
. He assimilated the coinage of Ireland to that of England, and tried to effect a similar reform in Irish law.
During the
interdictIn the Roman Catholic Church, the word interdict usually refers to an ecclesiastical penalty. Interdicts may be real, local or personal. A personal interdict pertains to one or more persons. A real or local interdict, which is no longer a part of canon law, suspends all public worship and...
that innocent III placed on England during John's reign, de Gray stayed in the England and helped govern the kingdom, even after the king was excommunicated, along with
Peter des RochesPeter des Roches was bishop of Winchester in the reigns of King John of England and his son Henry III. Roches was not an Englishman, but a Poitevin.-Life:...
,
Bishop of WinchesterThe Bishop of Winchester is the head of the Church of England diocese of Winchester, with his cathedra at Winchester Cathedral in Hampshire.The bishop is one of five Church of England bishops to be among the Lords Spiritual regardless of their length of service. His diocese is one of the oldest and...
De Gray was a good financier, and could always raise money: this probably explains the favour he enjoyed from King John. In 1213 he is found with 500 knights at the great muster at Barham Downs, when
Philip AugustusPhilip II Augustus was the King of France from 1180 until his death. A member of the House of Capet, Philip Augustus was born at Gonesse in the Val-d'Oise, the son of Louis VII and his third wife, Adela of Champagne...
was threatening to invade England. When John and the pope concluded the treaty where John gave England to the pope and received it back as a vassal, John de Gray was one of the witnesses to the treaty. After John's reconciliation with Innocent de Gray was one of those exempted from the general pardon, and was forced to go in person to
RomeVatican City , officially the State of the Vatican City , is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, the capital city of Italy...
to obtain it. At Rome he so completely gained over Innocent that the pope sent him back with papal letters recommending his election to the
bishopric of DurhamThe Bishop of Durham is the Anglican bishop responsible for the diocese of Durham in the province of York. The Diocese is one of the oldest in the country and its bishop is a member of the House of Lords...
in 1213; but he died at
Saint-Jean-d'AngélySaint-Jean-d'Angély is a commune in the Charente-Maritime department in south-western France.The commune has its historical origins in the Abbey of Saint-Jean-d'Angély.-Royal abbey:...
in
PoitouPoitou was a province of west-central France whose capital city was Poitiers.The region of Poitou was called Thifalia in the sixth century....
on his homeward journey on 18 October 1214. He was buried in
Norwich CathedralNorwich Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral in Norwich in Norfolk, England dedicated to the Holy and Undivided Trinity.-Construction:...
.
As bishop, he settled a long running dispute between the monks of his cathedral chapter and the bishops.
He was the uncle of Walter de Gray,
Archbishop of YorkArchbishop of York is a high-ranking cleric in the Church of England, second only to the Archbishop of Canterbury. He is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and metropolitan of the Province of York, which covers the northern portion of England as well as the Isle of Man...
and
Lord ChancellorThe Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor, is a senior and important functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. He is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking only after the Lord High Steward. The Lord Chancellor is appointed by the Sovereign...
from 1215 to 1255.
External links