Thomas Spofford | |
|---|---|
| Bishop of Hereford | |
 The tombstone of Thomas Spofford from St. Mary's Abbey, York. | |
| Appointed | 18 November 1421 |
| Term ended | resigned about 4 December 1448 |
| Predecessor | Thomas Polton |
| Successor | Richard Beauchamp |
| Orders | |
| Consecration | 24 May 1422 |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1370s |
| Died | 1456 York, North Yorkshire |
| Denomination | Catholic |
Thomas Spofford (d. 1456) was a medieval Bishop of Hereford and Abbot of St Mary's Abbey, York. [1]
Spofford was probably born in Spofforth, North Yorkshire in the 1370s. He entered the Benedictine order at the abbey of St Mary's in York in 1392 and was elected as its abbot on 8 June 1405. He became visitor of the Benedictines in York province, and proctor of the province and the archbishop at the Council of Pisa in 1409. He was one of Henry V's ambassadors to the Council of Constance in 1414. In November 1417 he was one of the six English members of the conclave that elected Pope Martin V. [1]
He was nominated by the Pope to the position of Bishop of Hereford on 18 November 1421 and consecrated on 24 May 1422. [2] He went on pilgrimage to Rome in 1429 but mainly remained in Hereford. He twice petitioned King Henry VI and two popes to be allowed to resign his position. [1] He resigned his see about 4 December 1448. [2]
Lanfranc was a celebrated Italian jurist who renounced his career to become a Benedictine monk at Bec in Normandy. He served successively as prior of Bec Abbey and abbot of St Stephen in Normandy and then as Archbishop of Canterbury in England, following its Conquest by William the Conqueror. He is also variously known as Lanfranc of Pavia, Lanfranc of Bec, and Lanfranc of Canterbury.
Theobald of Bec was a Norman archbishop of Canterbury from 1139 to 1161. His exact birth date is unknown. Some time in the late 11th or early 12th century Theobald became a monk at the Abbey of Bec, rising to the position of abbot in 1137. King Stephen of England chose him to be Archbishop of Canterbury in 1138. Canterbury's claim to primacy over the Welsh ecclesiastics was resolved during Theobald's term of office when Pope Eugene III decided in 1148 in Canterbury's favour. Theobald faced challenges to his authority from a subordinate bishop, Henry of Blois, Bishop of Winchester and King Stephen's younger brother, and his relationship with King Stephen was turbulent. On one occasion Stephen forbade him from attending a papal council, but Theobald defied the king, which resulted in the confiscation of his property and temporary exile. Theobald's relations with his cathedral clergy and the monastic houses in his archdiocese were also difficult.
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| Preceded by Thomas Polton | Bishop of Hereford 1421–1448 | Succeeded by Richard Beauchamp |
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