Bishop of Lichfield

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Bishop of Lichfield
Bishopric
Anglican
Incumbent: Jonathan Gledhill
Province:	Canterbury
Diocese:	Lichfield
Cathedral:	Lichfield Cathedral
First Bishop:	Chad of Mercia
Formation:	7th century

The Bishop of Lichfield is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Lichfield in the Province of Canterbury.

The diocese covers 4,516 km² (1,744 sq. mi.) of the counties of Staffordshire, Shropshire, Warwickshire and West Midlands. The bishop's seat is located in the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Saint Chad in the city of Lichfield. The Bishop's residence is Bishop's House, Lichfield. In the past, the title has had various forms (see below). The present bishop is the Right Reverend Jonathan Gledhill, the 98th Lord Bishop of Lichfield, who signs Jonathan Lichfield.

Contents 1 History 2 List of bishops 3 Notes 4 References

[edit] History

The diocese of Mercia was founded 656 by Saint Diuma with its see at Repton. When Saint Chad was made Bishop in 669, he moved his seat to Lichfield, thus the diocese was named after that city. In 691, the area over which the bishop held authority was divided to form the smaller dioceses of Lichfield, Leicester, Lindsey, Worcester and Hereford.

It was briefly the seat of an archbishop under Higbert from 787 to 799 (officially dissolved in 803) during the ascendancy of the kingdom of Mercia. Offa, King of Mercia seemed to resent his own bishops paying allegiance to the Archbishop of Canterbury in Kent who, whilst under Offa's control, was not of his own kingdom of Mercia. Offa therefore created his own archbishopric in Lichfield, who presided over all the bishops from the Humber to the Thames, in 786, with the consent of Pope Adrian I. The Pope's official representatives were received warmly by Offa and were present at the Council of Chelsea (787), often called 'the contentious synod', where it was proposed that the Archbishopric of Canterbury be restricted in order to make way for Offa's new archbishop. It was vehemently opposed, but Offa and the papal representatives defeated Archbishop Jaenbert, installing Higbert as the new Archbishop of Lichfield. Pope Adrian sent Higbert his ceremonial garment, obviously denoting his support for this move. In gratitude, Offa promised to send an annual shipment of gold to the pope for alms and supplying the lights in St. Peter's church in Rome. However the Archbishopric of Lichfield only lasted for 16 years, ending after Offa's death, when at the Fifth Council of Clovesho it was restored to Archbishop Æthelhard of Canterbury by Pope Leo III.

The bishop's seat was briefly moved to Chester in 1075, but by 1102 was in Coventry. From 1228, Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield became the official title with seats at both cathedrals, though various older names remained in common usage.

After the Reformation of the 1530s, Coventry Cathedral was demolished, and after the Restoration of Charles II in 1660 the bishop used the style Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry. In 1837, the ancient bishopric was divided. The archdeaconry of Coventry (comprising northern and eastern Warwickshire) was transferred to the see of Worcester and the style Bishop of Lichfield adopted.

[edit] List of bishops

List of bishops of Mercia, Lichfield, Chester and Coventry.

Tenure	Incumbent	Notes
Diocese of Mercia
took office after 655	Diuma (Dwyna; Duma)
dates unclear	Ceollach (Cellach)	A Scot, he resigned and returned to Scotland
c658 to c 662	Trumhere (Trumhere)	Abbot of Ingethling
c 662 to c. 667	Jaruman
Diocese of Lichfield
669 to 672	Ceadda	Translated from York (after having his consecration first declared invalid and then restored; Died in office.Saint Chad
672 to c674	Winfrith (Winfride or Winfrid)	Deprived by Theodore, Archbishop of York
c676 to before 692	Sexwulf (Saxulf; Sexulf)	Abbot of Medeshamstede (Peterborough); Saint Sexwulf
691 to between 716 and 727	Headda (Headdi; Eatheadus of Sidnacester)
before 731 to 737	Aldwine (Aldwyn; Aldwini)
737 to between 749 and 767	Witta (Huitta)
before 757 to 765	Hemele (Hemel)
c765 to c769	Cuthfrith (Cuthred)	Died in office
c769 to between 777 and 779	Berhthun	Died in office
779 to 799	Hygeberht (Higbert)	Created Archbishop by Offa in 787
between 799 and 801 to between 814 and 816	Aldwulf (Adulphus)	Title of Archbishop laid aside
between 814 and 816 to between 817 and 818	Herewine
818 to 830	Æthelwald
830 to between 830 and 836	Hunberght (Humbert II]
between 830 and 836 to between 841 and 845	Cynefrith (Cumbert; Cineferth)	Saint Cumbert
between 843 and 845 to between 857 and 862	Tunberht (Tunbright; Tunfrith; Tumfriht)
between 857 and 862 to between 866 and 869	Wulfsige
between 866 and 869 to between 869 and 883	Burgheard
between 869 and 883 to between 889 and 900	Wulfred
between 889 and 900 to between 903 and 915	Wigmund	Omitted from Haydn's, not the same as the Archbishop of York who died in 854
between 903 and 915 to between 935 and 941	Ælfwine
between 935 and 941 to between 946 and 949	Wulfgar
between 946 and 949 to between 963 and 964	Cynesige (Kinsey; Kynsy; Kinsius)
between 963 and 964 to 975	Wynsige (Winsey; Winsius)
975 to between 1002 and 1004	Elphege of Lichfield
between 1002 and 1004 to after 1017	Godwin
after 1017 to between 1026 and 1027	Leofgar (Leosgar)
c1027 to 1039	Brihtmær (Brithmar)
1039 to 1053	Wulfsige (Wulsy)
1053 to 1067	Leofwin	Abbot of Coventry
1067 to 1075	Peter	Removed see to Chester
See at Chester
1075 to 1085	Peter
1086 to 1102	Robert de Limesey	Prebendary of St Paul's; removed See to Coventry
See at Coventry
1102 to 117	Robert de Limesey	as above, title change only; Died in office
1117 to 1121	vacant	For 4 years
1121 to 1126	Robert Peche (Robert Pecham)	Chaplain to King Henry I; died in office
1126 to 1129	vacant	For 2 years
1129 to 1148	Roger de Clinton, Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry
1149 to 1159	Walter Durdent
1161 to 1182	Richard Peche
1183 to 1184	Gerard la Pucelle
1184 to 1188	vacant
1188 to 1198	Hugh Nonant
1198 to 1208	Geofrey de Muschamp
1208 to 1215	vacant
1215 to 1223	William de Cornhill
1224 to 1238	Alexander de Stavenby
1239	William de Raley (William Raleigh)	Elected by both the chapter of Coventry and that of Lichfield but being also elected Norwich he accepted that office
1239	Nicholas Farnham	Elected by the Chapter of Coventry but did not take office, later Bishop of Durham
1239	William de Manchester	Dean of Lichfield; elected by the Chapter of Lichfield but did not take office
Diocese of Coventry and Lichfield
1239 to December 1241	Hugh de Pateshull	Lord Treasurer; accepted after much controversy between the two chapters and at Henry III's request; confirmed 25 December 1239; died in office
December 1241 to 8 December 1241	Richard le Gras	Abbot of Evesham, elected but declined office or died before the disputed election was resolved
December 1241 to 1245	vacant
1243	Robert de Monte Pessulano	Elected but refused the appointment, finding the election disagreeable to Henry III
1245 to 1256	Roger Weseham	Dean of Lincoln; appointed by the pope
1258 to 1295	Roger de Meyland (Roger Longespée; Roger de Molend)
1296 to 1321	Walter Langton	Lord Treasurer and Lord Chancellor
1322 to 1358	Roger Northburgh (Roger de Northbrugh)	Archdeacon of Richmond and Lord Keeper and Lord Treasurer
1360 to 1385	Robert de Stretton	Canon of Lichfield
1386 to 1386	Walter Skirlaw	Dean of St Martin's; translated to Bath & Wells
1386 to 1398	Richard le Scrope	Translated to York
1398 to 1414	John Burghill	Translated from Llandaff
1415 to 1419	John Catterick (John Keterich)	Translated from St David's; translated to Exeter
1419 to 1419	James Cary	Translated to Exeter but died before taking office thereof
20 November 1420 to 13 March 1447	William Heyworth
1447 to 1452	William Booth	Prebendary of St Paul's, London; translated to York
1452	Nicholas Close	Translated from Carlisle; Chancellor of Cambridge
1453 to 1459	Reginald Boulers	Translated from Hereford
1459 to 1490	John Hales (John Halse)	Prebendary of St Paul's, London
1493 to 1496	William Smyth	Archdeacon of Surrey; translated to Lincoln
1496 to 1502	John Arundel	Dean of Exeter; translated to Exeter
1503 to 1531	Geoffrey Blyth (Geoffry Blyth)	Dean of York
1534 to 1539	Rowland Lee	Chancellor and Prebendary of Lichfield and Lord President of Wales
Diocese of Lichfield and Coventry
1539 to 1543	Rowland Lee	as above, title change only
1543 to 1554	Richard Sampson	Translated from Chichester; Lord President of Wales
1554 to 1559	Ralph Bayne (Ralph Baines)	Deprived and died soon after
1560 to 1579	Thomas Bentham	Fellow of Magdalene College, Oxford
1580 to 1609	William Overton	Prebendary of Winchester and Salisbury
1609 to 1610	George Abbot	Dean of Winchester; translated to London
1610 to 1614	Richard Neile (Richard Neale)	Translated to Rochester
1614 to 1618	John Overal	Dean of St Paul's, London; translated to Norwich
1619 to 1632	Thomas Morton	Translated from Chester; translated to Durham
1632 to 1643	Robert Wright	Translated from Bristol
1644 to 1660	Accepted Frewen	Dean of Gloucester; translated to York
1661 to 1670	John Hacket	Canon-resident of St Paul's, London
1671 to 1692	Thomas Wood	Dean of Lichfield
1692 to 1699	William Lloyd	Translated from St Asaph; translated to Worcester
1699 to 1717	John Hough	Translated from Oxford; translated to Worcester
1717 to 1730	Edward Chandler	Prebendary of Worcester; translated to Durham
1731 to 1749	Richard Smalbroke	Translated from St David's
1750 to 1768	The Honourable Frederick Cornwallis	Canon of Windsor; Dean of St Paul's, London (1766); translated to Canterbury
1768 to 1771	The Honourable John Egerton	Translated from Bangor; translated to Durham
1771 to 1774	Brownlow North	Dean of Canterbury; translated to Worcester
1775 to 1781	Richard Hurd	Master of the Temple; translated to Worcester
1781 to 1824	The Honourable James Cornwallis	Dean of Canterbury; subsequently Earl of Cornwallis; Died in office
10 March 1824 to 31 March 1836	The Honourable Henry Ryder	Translated from Gloucester; died in office
3 July 1836 to 24 January 1837	Samuel Butler	Becoming Bishop of Lichfield
Diocese of Lichfield
24 January 1837 to 4 December 1839	Samuel Butler	as above, change of title only; Died in office
23 January 1840 to 11 October 1843	James Bowstead	Translated from Sodor & Man
3 December 1843 to 19 October 1867	John Lonsdale	Archdeacon of Middlesex and Principal of King's College, London; died in office
4 January 1868 to 11 April 1878	George Augustus Selwyn	Translated from New Zealand; died in office
24 June 1878 to 28 July 1891	William Dalrymple Maclagan, DD	Vicar of St Mary Abbots, Kensington; translated to York
29 September 1891 to 15 March 1913	Augustus Legge	Died in office
13 June 1913 to 15 June 1937	John Augustine Kempthorne, DD [1]
29 July 1937 to 11 January 1953	Edward Sydney Woods	died in office
29 September 1953 to 1 December 1974	Arthur Stretton Reeve, DD
2 January 1975 to 29 February 1984	Kenneth John Fraser Skelton, CBE, MA	Bishop of Matabeleland; Rector of Bishopwearmouth, Sunderland; retired
12 October 1984 to 2003	Keith Norman Sutton
2003 to present	Jonathan Gledhill

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[edit] Notes

[edit] References

• Beresford, W. (n.d.). Diocesan Histories: Lichfield. London: SPCK
• Cahill, M. (2001). The diocese of Coventry and Lichfield 1603–1642. PhD dissertation. University of Warwick.
• Cooper, T. N. (1994). Oligarchy and conflict : Lichfield Cathedral clergy in the early sixteenth century in 'Midland History', 19, 40–57.
• Fryde, E. B.; Greenway, D. E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I. (1996). Handbook of British Chronology (Third Edition, revised ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 219. ISBN 0-521-56350-X. 
• Haydn, Joseph. (1894). Haydn's Book of Dignities (1894). Horace Ockerby.
• Stenton, Frank M. (1971) Anglo-Saxon England (Third Edition). Oxford University Press
• Whittaker, James. (2004). Whitaker's Almanack 1883 to 2004. A & C Black, London.