Walter of Lorraine

Infobox bishopbiog
name =Walter


religion =Catholic
See =Diocese of Hereford
Title = Bishop of Hereford
Period = 1061–1079
Predecessor = Ealdred
Successor =Robert de Losinga
ordination =
bishops =
post =
date of birth = unknown
place of birth = unknown
date of death =1079
place of death =unknown

Walter of Lorraine (or Walter of Lotharingia) was a medieval Bishop of Hereford.

Life

He was a native of Lorraine,Barrow "Walter (d. 1079?)" " [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/28629 Oxford Dictionary of National Biography] ] although some sources state he was a Norman.Huscroft "Ruling England" p. 124] He was chaplain to Queen Edith, wife of Edward the Confessor sometime before his appointment as bishop.Mason "House of Godwine" pp. 94-95] He was appointed to the see of Hereford about Christmas of 1060. [http://british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=34422 British History Online Bishops of Hereford] accessed on October 26, 2007] His appointment was due to the fact that Aldred, the Bishop of Worcester, who had been supervising the see of Hereford after the death of Leofgar in 1056, was appointed Archbishop of York and this opened the way for an appointment to Hereford.

He was consecrated on April 15 1061Fryde "Handbook of British Chronology" p. 250] by Pope Nicholas II at Rome. He, along with Giso, who was elected to the see of Wells, and Tostig Godwinson,Smith "Court and Piety" "Catholic Historical Review" p. 574] went to Rome for consecration because Stigand, the Archbishop of Canterbury, was excommunicated and could not consecrate bishops.Barlow "Godwins" p. 89] They were unable to have the Archbishop of York consecrate them, because Aldred, who was the appointee to York, had not yet received his pallium, the symbol of the authority of an archbishop, and was in fact traveling to Rome with Giso and Walter to receive it.Brooks "Early History of the Church of Canterbury" p. 306] Walter seems to have been little involved in public affairs after his appointment as bishop.

After the Norman Conquest of England, Walter swore loyalty to William the Conqueror at Berkhampsted after the Battle of Hastings. He attended the church councils held at Windsor in 1072 and at London in 1075. But otherwise, his diocesan business is unclear, as no charters of his survive.

The "Vita Edwardi", the saint's life of King Edward the Confessor of England, said of Walter that he was "most suitably and excellently trained in [his] office".Quoted in Huscroft "Ruling England" pp. 48-49]

He died in 1079. The medieval chronicler William of Malmesbury records that he was stabbed to death while attempting to rape a seamstress, but William reports this as rumor, so it is unclear if that was actually how he died. No tomb survives, and his burial place is unknown.

Notes

References

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* [http://british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=34422 British History Online Bishops of Hereford] accessed on October 26, 2007
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Persondata
NAME=Walter of Lorraine
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Walter of Lotharingia
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Bishop of Hereford
DATE OF BIRTH=
PLACE OF BIRTH=
DATE OF DEATH=1079
PLACE OF DEATH=