- Herbert Westfaling
Herbert Westfaling (also spelled Westphaling), 1531/2–1602, was Anglican
Bishop of Hereford andVice-Chancellor of theUniversity of Oxford .Westfaling was born in
London , the son of Harbert Westphaling, whose family originated inWestphalia . He studied atChrist Church, Oxford from the age of fifteen, graduating with a BA in 1551 and MA in 1555. He went on to take a BTh in 1561, and DTh in 1566. He was ordained in February 1562 byBishop of London Edmund Grindal , and subsequently appointed a canon of Christ Church. At the end of 1562 he was appointedLady Margaret's Professor of Divinity , but remained in the post for only a little over a year. After continuing his career in the church he was appointed vice-chancellor of the University of Oxford in June 1576, and as a canon atSt George's Chapel at Windsor Castle the following May.After his his consecration as Bishop of Hereford on
January 30 1586 , Westfaling became known for his zeal in confronting Roman Catholics and others whose religious practises he viewed as suspect, criticising Hereford'svicars choral for their use of "superstitious" images and pictures. He was also noted for the gravity and academic tone of his preaching. In 1592 he preached before Elizabeth I in the university church. Despite the Queen twice ordering him to cut his oration short to allow her to deliver a speech, Westfaling refused to be hurried and the Queen's speech was postponed until the next day.Westfaling was the author of a collection of sermons entitled "A Treatise of Reformation in Religion", and also authored a number of poems in English and
Latin , now in the library of theUniversity of Cambridge .Westfaling died in
Hereford on1 March 1602, and an impressive and austere effigy marks the location of his burial in the north transept ofHereford Cathedral . His will included generous provisions for his servants and for the poor of the city of Hereford and his parish at Whitbourne. He also endowed two fellowships andscholarship s atJesus College, Oxford , on the condition that "my kindred shallbe always preferred before anie others". [Martin E. Speight, ‘Westfaling , Herbert (1531/2–1602)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 (http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/29111, accessed17 July 2006 )]References
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