William de Corbeil
Encyclopedia
William de Corbeil or William of Corbeil (circa
1070–1136) was a medieval Archbishop of Canterbury
. Very little is known of William's early life or his family, except that he was born at Corbeil
in the outskirts of Paris and that he had two brothers. Educated as a theologian, he taught briefly before serving the bishops of Durham and London as a clerk and subsequently becoming a canon
, a priest who lived a communal life. William was elected to the see of Canterbury
as a compromise candidate in 1123, the first canon to become an English archbishop. He succeeded Ralph d'Escures
, who had employed him as a chaplain.
Throughout his archbishopric, William was embroiled in a dispute
with Thurstan
, the Archbishop of York
, over the primacy of Canterbury
. As a temporary solution, the pope appointed William the papal legate
for England, giving him powers superior to those of York. William concerned himself with the morals of the clergy, and presided over three legatine council
s, which among other things condemned the purchase of benefices or priesthoods, and admonished the clergy to live a celibate life. He was also known as a builder; among his constructions is the keep
of Rochester Castle
. Towards the end of his life William was instrumental in the selection of Count Stephen of Boulogne
as King of England, despite his oath to the dying King Henry I
that he would support the succession of his daughter, the Empress Matilda
. Although some chroniclers considered him a perjurer and a traitor for crowning Stephen, none doubted his piety.
, possibly in about 1070. He was educated at Laon
, where he studied under Anselm of Laon
, the noted scholastic
and teacher of theology. William taught for a time at Laon, but nothing else is known of his early life. All that is known of his parents or ancestry is that he had two brothers, Ranulf and Helgot; his brothers appear as witnesses on William's charters.
William joined the service of Ranulf Flambard
, Bishop of Durham, as a clerk, and was present at the translation of the body of Saint Cuthbert in 1104. His name appears high in a list of those who were present at the event, implying that he may have held an important position in Flambard's household, but appended to his name is "subsequently archbishop", suggesting that his inclusion could have been a later interpolation. He was a teacher to Flambard's children, probably in about 1107 to 1109, but at some unknown date William appears to have transferred to the household of the Archbishop of Canterbury. Between 1107 and 1112 he went to Laon and attended lectures given by Anselm of Laon. By 1116 he was a clerk for Ralph d'Escures, Archbishop of Canterbury, with whom he travelled to Rome in 1117 when Ralph was in dispute with Thurstan, the Archbishop of York, over the primacy of Canterbury.
In 1118, William entered the Augustinian
order at Holy Trinity Priory in Aldgate
, a house of canons rather than monks. Subsequently he became prior
of the Augustinian priory at St Osyth in Essex
, appointed by Richard de Beaumis
, Bishop of London
, in 1121.
After the death of Ralph d'Escures in October 1122, King Henry I decided to allow a free election, with the new primate to be chosen by the leading men of the realm, both ecclesiastical and secular. The monks of the cathedral chapter and the bishops of the kingdom disagreed on who should be appointed. The bishops insisted that it should not be a clerk (a non-monastic member of the clergy), but Canterbury's monastic cathedral chapter
preferred a monk, and insisted that they alone had the right to elect the archbishop. However, only two bishops in England or Normandy were monks (Ernulf
, Bishop of Rochester
, and Serlo
, Bishop of Séez), and no monks other than Anselm of Canterbury
, Ernulf, and Ralph d'Escures, had been elected to an English or Norman see since 1091; recent precedent therefore favoured a clerk. King Henry sided with the bishops, and told the monks that they could elect their choice from a short list selected by the bishops. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the list contained no monks.
On 2 February or 4 February 1123, William was chosen from among four candidates to the see of Canterbury; the names of the three unsuccessful candidates are unknown. He appears to have been a compromise candidate, as he was at least a canon, if not the monk that the chapter had sought. William was the first Augustinian canon to become an archbishop in England, a striking break with the tradition that had favoured monks in the see of Canterbury. Although most contemporaries would not have considered there to be much of a distinction between monks and canons, William's election still occasioned some trepidation among the monks of the Canterbury chapter, who were "alarmed at the appointment, since he was a clerk".
, maintained that Canterbury held primacy—in essence, overlordship—over all other dioceses in Great Britain
, including the archbishopric of York. Thurstan had claimed independence, and refused to consecrate William when the latter demanded recognition of Canterbury's primacy; the ceremony was performed instead by William's own suffragan
bishops on 18 February 1123. Previous popes had generally favoured York's side of the dispute, and the successive popes Paschal II
, Gelasius II
, and Calixtus II had issued rulings in the late 1110s and early 1120s siding with York. Calixtus had also consecrated Thurstan when both King Henry and William's predecessor had attempted to prevent Thurstan's consecration unless Thurstan submitted to Canterbury.
After travelling to Rome to receive his pallium
, the symbol of his authority as an archbishop, William discovered that Thurstan had arrived before him, and had presented a case against William's election to Pope Callixtus II. There were four objections to William's election: first that he was elected in the king's court; second that the chapter of Canterbury had been coerced and was unwilling; third that his consecration was unlawful because it was not performed by Thurstan; and fourth that a monk should be elected to the see of Canterbury, which had been founded by Augustine of Canterbury
, a monk. However, King Henry I and the Emperor Henry IV
, Henry I's son-in-law, persuaded the pope to overlook the irregularities of the election, with the proviso that William swore to obey "all things that the Pope imposed upon him." At the conclusion of the visit the pope denied the primacy of Canterbury over York, dismissing the Canterbury cathedral chapter's supposed papal documents as forgeries. The outcome was in accordance with most earlier papal rulings on the primacy issue, which involved not taking sides and thus reinforcing papal supremacy. William returned to England, and was enthroned at Canterbury on 22 July 1123.
The archbishop's next opponent was the papal legate of the new Pope Honorius II
, Cardinal John of Crema
, who arrived in England in 1125. A compromise between York and Canterbury was negotiated, which involved Canterbury allowing York the supervision of the diocese
s of Bangor, Chester
, and St Aspah
in return for Thurstan's verbal submission and the written submission of his successors. The pope, however, rejected the agreement, likely because he wished to preserve his own primacy, and substituted his own. The papal solution was that Honorius would appoint William papal legate in England and Scotland, which was done in 1126, giving William the position over York, but it was dependent on the will of the pope, and would lapse on the pope's death. The arrangement merely postponed the problem however, as neither Thurstan nor William renounced their claims. That Christmas, at a royal court, Thurstan unsuccessfully attempted to claim the right to ceremonially crown the king as well as have his episcopal cross carried before him in Canterbury's province. As a result of his lengthy dispute with Thurstan, William travelled to Rome more frequently than any bishop before him except for Wilfrid
in the 7th century.
Legatine councils in 1125, 1127 and 1129 were held in Westminster
, the last two called by Archbishop William. The council of 1125 met under the direction of John of Crema and prohibited simony
, purchase of the sacrament
s, and the inheritance of clerical benefice
s. John of Crema had been sent to England not only to seek a compromise in the Canterbury-York dispute, but to publicize the decrees of the First Council of the Lateran
held in 1123, which neither William nor Thurstan had attended. Included in canons were the rejection of hereditary claims to a benefice or prebend, which was a source of consternation to the clergy. Also prohibited was the presence of any women in clergy's households unless they were relatives. In 1127 the council condemned the purchase of benefices, priesthoods, or places in monastic houses. It also enacted canons declaring that clergy who refused to give up their wives or concubines would be deprived of their benefices, and that any such women who did not leave the parish where they had been could be expelled and even forced into slavery. Lastly, in 1129 the clergy were once more admonished to live a celibate life and to put aside their wives. This council was presided over by King Henry, who then undermined the force of the prohibition of concubines by permitting the clergy to pay a fine to the royal treasury in order to keep their women. William's allowance of this royal fine was condemned by the chronicler Henry of Huntingdon
. The festival of the Conception
was also allowed at one of these councils.
As well as the councils, William was active in his diocese, and was interested in reforming the churches in his diocese. A conlict with Alexander of Lincoln
over a church in Alexander's diocese led to further condemnation by Henry of Huntingon and prompted Henry to write that "no one can sing [William's] praises because there's nothing to sing about." William seems to have been somewhat eclipsed in ecclesiastical administration and appointments by Roger of Salisbury
, Bishop of Salisbury
, and King Henry's primary advisor. William reformed the nunnery of Minster-in-Sheppey however, and he installed a college of regular canons at the church of St. Gregory's, in Canterbury. He also secured a profession of obedience from the newly installed abbot
of St Augustine's Abbey
in Canterbury. His legateship from Honorius lapsed when the pope died in February 1130, but it was renewed by Honorius' successor Pope Innocent II
in 1132.
During William's last years he attempted to reform St Martin's, Dover
. The king had granted the church to the archbishop and the diocese of Canterbury in 1130, and William had a new church building constructed near Dover. The archbishop had planned to install canons regular
into the church, and on William's deathbed dispatched a party of canons from Merton Priory
to take over St Martin's. However, the party of canons, who had been accompanied by two bishops and some other clergy, were prevented from entering by a monk of Canterbury Cathedral, who claimed that St Martin's belonged to the monks of the cathedral chapter. The canons from Merton did not press the issue in the face of the Canterbury chapter's appeal to Rome, and after William's death, the cathedral chapter sent 12 monks to St Martin's instead.
The construction of the keep of Rochester Castle—at 115 feet (35.1 m), the tallest Norman-built keep in England—was initiated at William's orders. Built for King Henry, it is still intact, although it no longer has a roof or floors. The work at Rochester was built within the stone curtain walls
that Gundulf of Rochester
had erected in the late 11th century. The keep was designed not only for defence but also to provide comfortable living quarters, which were probably intended for use by the archbishops when they visited Rochester. In 1127, the custody of Rochester Castle was granted to William and his successors as archbishop by King Henry, including the right to fortify the place as the archbishops wished, and the right to garrison the castle with their own men. In the view of the historian Judith Green
, the grant of the castle was partly to secure the loyalty of the archbishop to the king, and partly to help secure the defences of the coast. William also completed the construction of Canterbury Cathedral
, which was dedicated in May 1130.
, Bishop of Winchester
and Stephen's brother, and Roger of Salisbury, Bishop of Salisbury. The bishops argued that Henry had no right to impose the oath, and that the dying king had released the barons and the bishops from the oath in any event. The royal steward, Hugh Bigod
, swore that he had been present at the king's deathbed and had heard the king say that he released the oath.
William did not long outlive Henry, dying at Canterbury on 21 November 1136. He was buried in the north transept
of Canterbury Cathedral.
Contemporaries were grudging in their praise, and William's reputation suffered after the accession of Matilda's son, Henry II
, to the English throne. William of Malmesbury
said that William was a courteous and sober man, with little of the flamboyant lifestyle of the more "modern" bishops. The author of the Gesta Stephani
claimed that William was avaricious and hoarded money. None of the chroniclers, however, doubted his piety, even when they named him a perjurer and a traitor for his coronation of Stephen.
Circa
Circa , usually abbreviated c. or ca. , means "approximately" in the English language, usually referring to a date...
1070–1136) was a medieval Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior 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. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
. Very little is known of William's early life or his family, except that he was born at Corbeil
Corbeil-Essonnes
Corbeil-Essonnes is a commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris.Although neighboring Évry is the official seat of the Arrondissement of Évry, the sub-prefecture building and administration are located inside the commune of Corbeil-Essonnes.In the 19th...
in the outskirts of Paris and that he had two brothers. Educated as a theologian, he taught briefly before serving the bishops of Durham and London as a clerk and subsequently becoming a canon
Canon (priest)
A canon is a priest or minister who is a member of certain bodies of the Christian clergy subject to an ecclesiastical rule ....
, a priest who lived a communal life. William was elected to the see of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior 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. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
as a compromise candidate in 1123, the first canon to become an English archbishop. He succeeded Ralph d'Escures
Ralph d'Escures
Ralph , also known as Ralph d'Escures from the family estate Escures, near Sées in Normandy, was a medieval Abbot of Séez, Bishop of Rochester and then Archbishop of Canterbury. He studied at the school at the Abbey of Bec. In 1079 he entered the abbey of St Martin at Séez, and became abbot there...
, who had employed him as a chaplain.
Throughout his archbishopric, William was embroiled in a dispute
Canterbury-York dispute
The Canterbury–York dispute was a long-running conflict between the archdioceses of Canterbury and York in medieval England. It began shortly after the Norman Conquest of England and dragged on for many years. The main point of the dispute was over whether Canterbury would have jurisdiction, or...
with Thurstan
Thurstan
Thurstan or Turstin of Bayeux was a medieval Archbishop of York, the son of a priest. He served kings William II and Henry I of England before his election to the see of York in 1114. Once elected, his consecration was delayed for five years while he fought attempts by the Archbishop of Canterbury...
, the Archbishop of York
Archbishop of York
The Archbishop 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...
, over the primacy of Canterbury
Primacy of Canterbury
Within the Church of England, the primacy of Canterbury or primacy of England is the supremacy of the Archbishop of Canterbury over the Archbishop of York.-1071:...
. As a temporary solution, the pope appointed William the papal legate
Papal legate
A papal legate – from the Latin, authentic Roman title Legatus – is a personal representative of the pope to foreign nations, or to some part of the Catholic Church. He is empowered on matters of Catholic Faith and for the settlement of ecclesiastical matters....
for England, giving him powers superior to those of York. William concerned himself with the morals of the clergy, and presided over three legatine council
Legatine council
A legatine council or legatine synod is an ecclesiastical council or synod that is presided over by a papal legate.According to Pope Gregory VII, writing in the Dictatus papae, a papal legate "presides over all bishops in a council, even if he is inferior in rank, and he can pronounce sentence of...
s, which among other things condemned the purchase of benefices or priesthoods, and admonished the clergy to live a celibate life. He was also known as a builder; among his constructions is the keep
Keep
A keep is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word keep, but usually consider it to refer to large towers in castles that were fortified residences, used as a refuge of last resort should the rest of the...
of Rochester Castle
Rochester Castle
Rochester Castle stands on the east bank of the River Medway in Rochester, Kent, England. The 12th-century keep or stone tower, which is the castle's most prominent feature, is one of the best preserved in England or France. Located along the River Medway and Watling Street, Rochester was a...
. Towards the end of his life William was instrumental in the selection of Count Stephen of Boulogne
Stephen of England
Stephen , often referred to as Stephen of Blois , was a grandson of William the Conqueror. He was King of England from 1135 to his death, and also the Count of Boulogne by right of his wife. Stephen's reign was marked by the Anarchy, a civil war with his cousin and rival, the Empress Matilda...
as King of England, despite his oath to the dying King Henry I
Henry I of England
Henry I was the fourth son of William I of England. He succeeded his elder brother William II as King of England in 1100 and defeated his eldest brother, Robert Curthose, to become Duke of Normandy in 1106...
that he would support the succession of his daughter, the Empress Matilda
Empress Matilda
Empress Matilda , also known as Matilda of England or Maude, was the daughter and heir of King Henry I of England. Matilda and her younger brother, William Adelin, were the only legitimate children of King Henry to survive to adulthood...
. Although some chroniclers considered him a perjurer and a traitor for crowning Stephen, none doubted his piety.
Early life
William de Corbeil was probably born at Corbeil on the SeineSeine
The Seine is a -long river and an important commercial waterway within the Paris Basin in the north of France. It rises at Saint-Seine near Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plateau, flowing through Paris and into the English Channel at Le Havre . It is navigable by ocean-going vessels...
, possibly in about 1070. He was educated at Laon
Laon
Laon is the capital city of the Aisne department in Picardy in northern France.-History:The hilly district of Laon, which rises a hundred metres above the otherwise flat Picardy plain, has always held strategic importance...
, where he studied under Anselm of Laon
Anselm of Laon
Anselm of Laon was a French theologian and founder of a school of scholars who helped to pioneer biblical hermeneutics.Remembered in the century after his death as "Anselmus" or "Anselm", his name was more properly "Ansellus" or, in Modern French, "Anseau."Born of very humble parents at Laon...
, the noted scholastic
Scholasticism
Scholasticism is a method of critical thought which dominated teaching by the academics of medieval universities in Europe from about 1100–1500, and a program of employing that method in articulating and defending orthodoxy in an increasingly pluralistic context...
and teacher of theology. William taught for a time at Laon, but nothing else is known of his early life. All that is known of his parents or ancestry is that he had two brothers, Ranulf and Helgot; his brothers appear as witnesses on William's charters.
William joined the service of Ranulf Flambard
Ranulf Flambard
Ranulf Flambard was a medieval Norman Bishop of Durham and an influential government minister of King William Rufus of England...
, Bishop of Durham, as a clerk, and was present at the translation of the body of Saint Cuthbert in 1104. His name appears high in a list of those who were present at the event, implying that he may have held an important position in Flambard's household, but appended to his name is "subsequently archbishop", suggesting that his inclusion could have been a later interpolation. He was a teacher to Flambard's children, probably in about 1107 to 1109, but at some unknown date William appears to have transferred to the household of the Archbishop of Canterbury. Between 1107 and 1112 he went to Laon and attended lectures given by Anselm of Laon. By 1116 he was a clerk for Ralph d'Escures, Archbishop of Canterbury, with whom he travelled to Rome in 1117 when Ralph was in dispute with Thurstan, the Archbishop of York, over the primacy of Canterbury.
In 1118, William entered the Augustinian
Augustinians
The term Augustinians, named after Saint Augustine of Hippo , applies to two separate and unrelated types of Catholic religious orders:...
order at Holy Trinity Priory in Aldgate
Aldgate
Aldgate was the eastern most gateway through London Wall leading from the City of London to Whitechapel and the east end of London. Aldgate gives its name to a ward of the City...
, a house of canons rather than monks. Subsequently he became prior
Prior
Prior is an ecclesiastical title, derived from the Latin adjective for 'earlier, first', with several notable uses.-Monastic superiors:A Prior is a monastic superior, usually lower in rank than an Abbot. In the Rule of St...
of the Augustinian priory at St Osyth in Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, appointed by Richard de Beaumis
Richard de Beaumis
Richard de Beaumis was a medieval Bishop of London.-Life:Beaumis' family came from Beaumais-sur-Dive in the Calvados region of Normandy. He was elected to the see of London on 24 May 1108. His ordination as a priest took place on 14 June 1108, a little over a month before he was consecrated as a...
, Bishop of London
Bishop of London
The Bishop of London is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers 458 km² of 17 boroughs of Greater London north of the River Thames and a small part of the County of Surrey...
, in 1121.
Election as archbishop
Cathedral chapter
In accordance with canon law, a cathedral chapter is a college 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; in the Roman Catholic church their...
preferred a monk, and insisted that they alone had the right to elect the archbishop. However, only two bishops in England or Normandy were monks (Ernulf
Ernulf
Ernulf was a French Benedictine architect, and Bishop of Rochester, Kent, England.-Life:Ernulf studied under Lanfranc at the monastery of Bec, entered the Benedictine Order, and lived long as a brother in the monastery of St-Lucien, Beauvais...
, Bishop of Rochester
Bishop of Rochester
The Bishop of Rochester is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Rochester in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers the west of the county of Kent and is centred in the city of Rochester where the bishop's seat is located at the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin...
, and Serlo
Serlo, Bishop of Sées
Serlo was the Bishop of Sées from 1091. He was imbued with the spirit of the Gregorian reform.According to Orderic Vitalis, Serlo was "the first of the Normans to offer his services to the king", that is, Henry I of England, after the latter's invasion of the Duchy of Normandy in 1105...
, Bishop of Séez), and no monks other than Anselm of Canterbury
Anselm of Canterbury
Anselm of Canterbury , also called of Aosta for his birthplace, and of Bec for his home monastery, was a Benedictine monk, a philosopher, and a prelate of the church who held the office of Archbishop of Canterbury from 1093 to 1109...
, Ernulf, and Ralph d'Escures, had been elected to an English or Norman see since 1091; recent precedent therefore favoured a clerk. King Henry sided with the bishops, and told the monks that they could elect their choice from a short list selected by the bishops. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the list contained no monks.
On 2 February or 4 February 1123, William was chosen from among four candidates to the see of Canterbury; the names of the three unsuccessful candidates are unknown. He appears to have been a compromise candidate, as he was at least a canon, if not the monk that the chapter had sought. William was the first Augustinian canon to become an archbishop in England, a striking break with the tradition that had favoured monks in the see of Canterbury. Although most contemporaries would not have considered there to be much of a distinction between monks and canons, William's election still occasioned some trepidation among the monks of the Canterbury chapter, who were "alarmed at the appointment, since he was a clerk".
Primacy dispute
William, like every other Canterbury archbishop since LanfrancLanfranc
Lanfranc was Archbishop of Canterbury, and a Lombard by birth.-Early life:Lanfranc was born in the early years of the 11th century at Pavia, where later tradition held that his father, Hanbald, held a rank broadly equivalent to magistrate...
, maintained that Canterbury held primacy—in essence, overlordship—over all other dioceses in Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, including the archbishopric of York. Thurstan had claimed independence, and refused to consecrate William when the latter demanded recognition of Canterbury's primacy; the ceremony was performed instead by William's own suffragan
Suffragan bishop
A suffragan bishop is a bishop subordinate to a metropolitan bishop or diocesan bishop. He or she may be assigned to an area which does not have a cathedral of its own.-Anglican Communion:...
bishops on 18 February 1123. Previous popes had generally favoured York's side of the dispute, and the successive popes Paschal II
Pope Paschal II
Pope Paschal II , born Ranierius, was Pope from August 13, 1099, until his death. A monk of the Cluniac order, he was created cardinal priest of the Titulus S...
, Gelasius II
Pope Gelasius II
Pope Gelasius II , born Giovanni Caetani , was pope from January 24, 1118 to January 29, 1119.-Biography:He was born between 1060 and 1064 at Gaeta into the Pisan branch of the Caetani family....
, and Calixtus II had issued rulings in the late 1110s and early 1120s siding with York. Calixtus had also consecrated Thurstan when both King Henry and William's predecessor had attempted to prevent Thurstan's consecration unless Thurstan submitted to Canterbury.
After travelling to Rome to receive his pallium
Pallium
The pallium is an ecclesiastical vestment in the Roman Catholic Church, originally peculiar to the Pope, but for many centuries bestowed by him on metropolitans and primates as a symbol of the jurisdiction delegated to them by the Holy See. In that context it has always remained unambiguously...
, the symbol of his authority as an archbishop, William discovered that Thurstan had arrived before him, and had presented a case against William's election to Pope Callixtus II. There were four objections to William's election: first that he was elected in the king's court; second that the chapter of Canterbury had been coerced and was unwilling; third that his consecration was unlawful because it was not performed by Thurstan; and fourth that a monk should be elected to the see of Canterbury, which had been founded by Augustine of Canterbury
Augustine of Canterbury
Augustine of Canterbury was a Benedictine monk who became the first Archbishop of Canterbury in the year 597...
, a monk. However, King Henry I and the Emperor Henry IV
Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor
Henry IV was King of the Romans from 1056 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1084 until his forced abdication in 1105. He was the third emperor of the Salian dynasty and one of the most powerful and important figures of the 11th century...
, Henry I's son-in-law, persuaded the pope to overlook the irregularities of the election, with the proviso that William swore to obey "all things that the Pope imposed upon him." At the conclusion of the visit the pope denied the primacy of Canterbury over York, dismissing the Canterbury cathedral chapter's supposed papal documents as forgeries. The outcome was in accordance with most earlier papal rulings on the primacy issue, which involved not taking sides and thus reinforcing papal supremacy. William returned to England, and was enthroned at Canterbury on 22 July 1123.
The archbishop's next opponent was the papal legate of the new Pope Honorius II
Pope Honorius II
Pope Honorius II , born Lamberto Scannabecchi, was pope from December 21, 1124, to February 13, 1130. Although from a humble background, his obvious intellect and outstanding abilities saw him promoted through the ecclesiastical hierarchy...
, Cardinal John of Crema
John of Crema
John of Crema was an Italian papal legate and Cardinal. He was a close supporter of Pope Callistus II.-Legate:He undertook a significant papal mission to Henry I of England in 1124-5, sent by Callistus and confirmed by his successor Pope Honorius II...
, who arrived in England in 1125. A compromise between York and Canterbury was negotiated, which involved Canterbury allowing York the supervision of the diocese
Diocese
A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...
s of Bangor, Chester
Diocese of Chester
The Diocese of Chester is a Church of England diocese in the Province of York based in Chester, covering the county of Cheshire in its pre-1974 boundaries...
, and St Aspah
Diocese of St Asaph
The Diocese of Saint Asaph is a diocese in north-east Wales, named after Saint Asaph, its second bishop.-Geography:The Anglican Diocese of St Asaph in the north-east corner of Wales stretches from the borders of Chester in the east, to the Conwy valley in the west, to Bala in the south-west, and...
in return for Thurstan's verbal submission and the written submission of his successors. The pope, however, rejected the agreement, likely because he wished to preserve his own primacy, and substituted his own. The papal solution was that Honorius would appoint William papal legate in England and Scotland, which was done in 1126, giving William the position over York, but it was dependent on the will of the pope, and would lapse on the pope's death. The arrangement merely postponed the problem however, as neither Thurstan nor William renounced their claims. That Christmas, at a royal court, Thurstan unsuccessfully attempted to claim the right to ceremonially crown the king as well as have his episcopal cross carried before him in Canterbury's province. As a result of his lengthy dispute with Thurstan, William travelled to Rome more frequently than any bishop before him except for Wilfrid
Wilfrid
Wilfrid was an English bishop and saint. Born a Northumbrian noble, he entered religious life as a teenager and studied at Lindisfarne, at Canterbury, in Gaul, and at Rome; he returned to Northumbria in about 660, and became the abbot of a newly founded monastery at Ripon...
in the 7th century.
Archiepiscopal activities
Westminster
Westminster is an area of central London, within the City of Westminster, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, southwest of the City of London and southwest of Charing Cross...
, the last two called by Archbishop William. The council of 1125 met under the direction of John of Crema and prohibited simony
Simony
Simony is the act of paying for sacraments and consequently for holy offices or for positions in the hierarchy of a church, named after Simon Magus , who appears in the Acts of the Apostles 8:9-24...
, purchase of the sacrament
Sacrament
A sacrament is a sacred rite recognized as of particular importance and significance. There are various views on the existence and meaning of such rites.-General definitions and terms:...
s, and the inheritance of clerical benefice
Benefice
A benefice is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The term is now almost obsolete.-Church of England:...
s. John of Crema had been sent to England not only to seek a compromise in the Canterbury-York dispute, but to publicize the decrees of the First Council of the Lateran
First Council of the Lateran
The Council of 1123 is reckoned in the series of Ecumenical councils by the Catholic Church. It was convoked by Pope Calixtus II in December, 1122, immediately after the Concordat of Worms...
held in 1123, which neither William nor Thurstan had attended. Included in canons were the rejection of hereditary claims to a benefice or prebend, which was a source of consternation to the clergy. Also prohibited was the presence of any women in clergy's households unless they were relatives. In 1127 the council condemned the purchase of benefices, priesthoods, or places in monastic houses. It also enacted canons declaring that clergy who refused to give up their wives or concubines would be deprived of their benefices, and that any such women who did not leave the parish where they had been could be expelled and even forced into slavery. Lastly, in 1129 the clergy were once more admonished to live a celibate life and to put aside their wives. This council was presided over by King Henry, who then undermined the force of the prohibition of concubines by permitting the clergy to pay a fine to the royal treasury in order to keep their women. William's allowance of this royal fine was condemned by the chronicler Henry of Huntingdon
Henry of Huntingdon
Henry of Huntingdon , the son of a canon in the diocese of Lincoln, was a 12th century English historian, the author of a history of England, Historia anglorum, "the most important Anglo-Norman historian to emerge from the secular clergy". He served as archdeacon of Huntingdon...
. The festival of the Conception
Feast of the Immaculate Conception
The Feast of the Immaculate Conception celebrates belief in the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is celebrated on 8 December, nine months before the Nativity of Mary, which is celebrated on 8 September. It is the patronal feast day of the United States and the Republic of the...
was also allowed at one of these councils.
As well as the councils, William was active in his diocese, and was interested in reforming the churches in his diocese. A conlict with Alexander of Lincoln
Alexander of Lincoln
Alexander of Lincoln was a medieval English Bishop of Lincoln, a member of an important administrative and ecclesiastical family. He was the nephew of Roger of Salisbury, a Bishop of Salisbury and Chancellor of England under King Henry I, and he was also related to Nigel, Bishop of Ely...
over a church in Alexander's diocese led to further condemnation by Henry of Huntingon and prompted Henry to write that "no one can sing [William's] praises because there's nothing to sing about." William seems to have been somewhat eclipsed in ecclesiastical administration and appointments by Roger of Salisbury
Roger of Salisbury
Roger was a Norman medieval Bishop of Salisbury and the seventh Lord Chancellor and Lord Keeper of England.-Life:...
, Bishop of Salisbury
Bishop of Salisbury
The Bishop of Salisbury is the ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of Salisbury in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers much of the counties of Wiltshire and Dorset...
, and King Henry's primary advisor. William reformed the nunnery of Minster-in-Sheppey however, and he installed a college of regular canons at the church of St. Gregory's, in Canterbury. He also secured a profession of obedience from the newly installed abbot
Abbot
The word abbot, meaning father, is a title given to the head of a monastery in various traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not actually the head of a monastery...
of St Augustine's Abbey
St Augustine's Abbey
St Augustine's Abbey was a Benedictine abbey in Canterbury, Kent, England.-Early history:In 597 Saint Augustine arrived in England, having been sent by Pope Gregory I, on what might nowadays be called a revival mission. The King of Kent at this time was Æthelberht, who happened to be married to a...
in Canterbury. His legateship from Honorius lapsed when the pope died in February 1130, but it was renewed by Honorius' successor Pope Innocent II
Pope Innocent II
Pope Innocent II , born Gregorio Papareschi, was pope from 1130 to 1143, and was probably one of the clergy in personal attendance on the antipope Clement III .-Early years:...
in 1132.
During William's last years he attempted to reform St Martin's, Dover
Dover Priory
The Priory of St. Mary the Virgin and St. Martin of the New Work, or Newark, commonly called Dover Priory, was a priory at Dover in southeast England...
. The king had granted the church to the archbishop and the diocese of Canterbury in 1130, and William had a new church building constructed near Dover. The archbishop had planned to install canons regular
Canon (priest)
A canon is a priest or minister who is a member of certain bodies of the Christian clergy subject to an ecclesiastical rule ....
into the church, and on William's deathbed dispatched a party of canons from Merton Priory
Merton Priory
Merton Priory was founded in 1114 by Gilbert Norman, Sheriff of Surrey under Henry I. It was located in Merton, Surrey, England at the point where the Roman Stane Street crossed the River Wandle....
to take over St Martin's. However, the party of canons, who had been accompanied by two bishops and some other clergy, were prevented from entering by a monk of Canterbury Cathedral, who claimed that St Martin's belonged to the monks of the cathedral chapter. The canons from Merton did not press the issue in the face of the Canterbury chapter's appeal to Rome, and after William's death, the cathedral chapter sent 12 monks to St Martin's instead.
The construction of the keep of Rochester Castle—at 115 feet (35.1 m), the tallest Norman-built keep in England—was initiated at William's orders. Built for King Henry, it is still intact, although it no longer has a roof or floors. The work at Rochester was built within the stone curtain walls
Curtain wall (fortification)
A curtain wall is a defensive wall between two bastions of a castle or fortress.In earlier designs of castle the curtain walls were often built to a considerable height and were fronted by a ditch or moat to make assault difficult....
that Gundulf of Rochester
Gundulf of Rochester
Gundulf was a Norman monk who came to England following the Conquest. He was appointed Bishop of Rochester and Prior of the Cathedral Priory there; built castles including Rochester, Colchester and the White Tower of the Tower of London and the Priory and Cathedral Church of...
had erected in the late 11th century. The keep was designed not only for defence but also to provide comfortable living quarters, which were probably intended for use by the archbishops when they visited Rochester. In 1127, the custody of Rochester Castle was granted to William and his successors as archbishop by King Henry, including the right to fortify the place as the archbishops wished, and the right to garrison the castle with their own men. In the view of the historian Judith Green
Judith Green (historian)
Judith Green is an English medieval historian, who is Emeritus Professor of Medieval History at the University of Edinburgh. A graduate of King's College, London and Somerville College, Oxford, she held a research fellowship and then a lectureship at the University of St Andrews before transferring...
, the grant of the castle was partly to secure the loyalty of the archbishop to the king, and partly to help secure the defences of the coast. William also completed the construction of Canterbury Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England and forms part of a World Heritage Site....
, which was dedicated in May 1130.
Final years
The archbishop swore to Henry I that he would support Henry's daughter Matilda's claim to the English throne, but after Henry's death he instead crowned Stephen, on 22 December 1135. He was persuaded to do so by Henry of BloisHenry of Blois
Henry of Blois , often known as Henry of Winchester, was Abbot of Glastonbury Abbey from 1126, and Bishop of Winchester from 1129 to his death.-Early life and education:...
, Bishop of Winchester
Bishop of Winchester
The 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...
and Stephen's brother, and Roger of Salisbury, Bishop of Salisbury. The bishops argued that Henry had no right to impose the oath, and that the dying king had released the barons and the bishops from the oath in any event. The royal steward, Hugh Bigod
Hugh Bigod, 1st Earl of Norfolk
Hugh Bigod, 1st Earl of Norfolk was born in Belvoir Castle, Leicestershire, England.He was the second son of Roger Bigod , Sheriff of Norfolk, who founded the Bigod name in England...
, swore that he had been present at the king's deathbed and had heard the king say that he released the oath.
William did not long outlive Henry, dying at Canterbury on 21 November 1136. He was buried in the north transept
Transept
For the periodical go to The Transept.A transept is a transverse section, of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In Christian churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform building in Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architecture...
of Canterbury Cathedral.
Contemporaries were grudging in their praise, and William's reputation suffered after the accession of Matilda's son, Henry II
Henry II of England
Henry II ruled as King of England , Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Count of Nantes, Lord of Ireland and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland and western France. Henry, the great-grandson of William the Conqueror, was the...
, to the English throne. William of Malmesbury
William of Malmesbury
William of Malmesbury was the foremost English historian of the 12th century. C. Warren Hollister so ranks him among the most talented generation of writers of history since Bede, "a gifted historical scholar and an omnivorous reader, impressively well versed in the literature of classical,...
said that William was a courteous and sober man, with little of the flamboyant lifestyle of the more "modern" bishops. The author of the Gesta Stephani
Deeds of King Stephen
Deeds of King Stephen or Acts of Stephen or Gesta Stephani is a mid-12th-century English history by an anonymous author about King Stephen and his struggles with his cousin Matilda of England, also known as the Empress Maud...
claimed that William was avaricious and hoarded money. None of the chroniclers, however, doubted his piety, even when they named him a perjurer and a traitor for his coronation of Stephen.
Further reading
- Whitelock, D.; M. Brett, and C. N. L. Brooke, editors, Councils and Synods with Other Documents Relating to the English Church, 871–1204 Volume 2 (1981)