Thomas de Cantilupe

Infobox bishopbiog
name =Thomas de Cantilupe


religion =Roman Catholic
See =Diocese of Hereford
Title =Bishop of Hereford
Period =1275 - 1282
Predecessor =John de Breton
Successor =Richard Swinefield
ordination =
bishops =
post =
date of birth =about 1218
place of birth =Hambledon, Buckinghamshire
date of death =25 August 1282
place of death =Ferento, Montefiascone, Italy

Infobox Saint
name=Thomas of Hereford
birth_date=c 1218
death_date=25 August 1282
feast_day=25 August, 2 October
venerated_in=Roman Catholic Church; Anglican Communion


imagesize=
caption=
birth_place=Hambledon, Buckinghamshire
death_place=Ferento, Montefiascone, Italy
titles=Bishop
beatified_date=
beatified_place=
beatified_by=
canonized_date=1320
canonized_place=
canonized_by=
attributes=dressed as a bishop
patronage=
major_shrine=Hereford Cathedral
suppressed_date=
issues=

Thomas de Cantilupe (c. 1218 – 25 August 1282), was an English saint and prelate.

Early years

He was a son of William de Cantilupe, the 2nd baron (d. 1251), one of King John's ministers, and a nephew of Walter de Cantilupe, Bishop of Worcester (d.1266). He was born at Hambleden in Buckinghamshire and was educated in Paris and Orleans.

Career

Thomas became a teacher of canon law at Oxford and Chancellor of the University in 1261.Walsh "A New Dictionary of Saints" p. 598]

During the Barons' War Thomas favoured Simon de Montfort and the baronial party. He represented the barons before St Louis of France at Amiens in 1264.

He was made Chancellor of England on February 25 1264,Fryde "Handbook of British Chronology" p. 85] but was deprived of this office after Montfort's death at Evesham, and lived out of England for some time. Returning to England, he was again Chancellor of Oxford University, lectured on theology, and held several ecclesiastical appointments.

Bishop of Hereford

In 1274 he attended the second council of Lyons,Fact|date=April 2008 and about June 14 1275 he was appointed Bishop of Hereford and was consecrated on September 8 1275.Fryde "Handbook of British Chronology" p. 250]

Cantilupe was now a trusted adviser of Edward I and lived at Earley in Berkshire when attending royal councils in Windsor or Westminster. Even when differing from the King's opinions, he did not forfeit his favour.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Robert Kilwardby, was also his friend; but after Kilwardby's death in 1279 a series of disputes arose between the bishop and the new archbishop, John Peckham, and this drove Cantilupe to visit the Pope.

Death, burial and canonisation

He died at Ferento, near Orvieto, in Italy on the 25 August 1282. He was buried in Hereford Cathedral and, with his canonisation in 1320, his shrine became a popular place of pilgrimage. The base can still be seen there today. Since 1881, a reliquary containing his skull has been held at Downside Abbey in Somerset.

Legacy

Cantilupe appears to have been an exemplary Bishop both in spiritual and secular affairs. His charities were large and his private life blameless; he was constantly visiting his diocese, correcting offenders and discharging other episcopal duties; and he compelled neighboring landholders to restore estates which rightly belonged to the see of Hereford.

In 1905 the Cantilupe Society was founded to publish the episcopal registers of Hereford, of which Cantilupe's is the first in existence.

Notes

References

*
*
* Valerie I. J. Flint, "The Saint and the Operation of the Law: Reflections upon the Miracles of St Thomas Cantilupe," in "Belief and Culture in the Middle Ages: Studies Presented to Henry Mayr-Harting". Eds. Henry Mayr-Harting, Henrietta Leyser and Richard Gameson (Oxford, OUP, 2001), pp.
* Walsh, Michael "A New Dictionary of Saints: East and West" London: Burns & Oates 2007 ISBN 0-8601-2438-X

External links

* [http://www.berkshirehistory.com/bios/tcantilupe.html Royal Berkshire History: St. Thomas Cantilupe of Hereford]
* [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14694c.htm Catholic Encyclopedia]
* [http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=2307 Catholic Online Saints and Angels]

Persondata
NAME= de Cantilupe, Thomas
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Bishop of Hereford; Saint
DATE OF BIRTH=
PLACE OF BIRTH=
DATE OF DEATH=August 25, 1282
PLACE OF DEATH=