John Woodman

infobox bishopbiog
name = John Woodman


religion= Roman Catholic Church
See = Diocese of Ross
Title = Bishop of Ross
Period = 1476–1480 × 1481
consecration = unknown
Predecessor = Henry Cockburn
Successor = William Elphinstone
post = Abbot of Jedburgh (1468–1478) | ordination =
bishops =
date of birth = unknown
place of birth = unknown
date of death = Before August 3, 1481
place of death =

John Woodman [Wodman] (d. 1480 × 1481) was a 15th century churchman based in the Kingdom of Scotland. Woodman was a canon of the diocese of St Andrews, and as such was locally made Prior of Pittenweem on the death of the previous prior, James Kennedy, Bishop of St Andrews; however, he was opposed by one Walter Monypenny, while the new bishop, Patrick Graham, desired the position for himself. [Watt & Shead, "Heads of Religious Houses", p. 146.] Woodman had lost litigation for this post to Monypenny by September 17, 1466, and possession to the bishop, though Woodman was still claiming this priory as late as 1477 when he became Bishop of Ross. [Watt & Shead, "Heads of Religious Houses", pp. 146-7.]

Some time after November 1465, he was collated as Prior of Restenneth by Bishop Patrick Graham, which involved him in unsuccessful litigation against the sitting prior James Dunmain. [Watt & Shead, "Heads of Religious Houses", p. 184.] In 1468, while still litigating with Dunmain in the papal curia, he was provided as Abbot of Jedburgh. [Watt & Shead, "Heads of Religious Houses", pp. 119, 184.] The death of the previous abbot Andrew Bolton led the Bishop of Glasgow to try to imposed Robert Turnbull as abbot, but it was Woodman who secured papal provision. [Watt & Shead, "Heads of Religious Houses", p. 119.]

Woodman was provided to the bishopric of Ross sometime before August 20, 1476, but after July 22. He occurs as Bishop-elect on August 17, 1477, and on October 16 made a payment to the papacy of 321 gold florins through Nicholas de Rabatis and Rayner de Ricolis. [Dowden, "Bishops", p. 220; Watt, "Fasti Ecclesiae", p. 269.] He occurs again as Bishop-elect of Ross (though unnamed) on May 4, 1478.Watt, "Fasti Ecclesiae", p. 269.] Woodman was in the archdiocese of York in 1480, allegedly acting as a suffragan, though this may be doutbful. We have no knowledge of his consecration, and his successor William Elphinstone was provided to the (now vacant) bishopric of Ross on August 3, 1481 following the death of Woodman, though it is not possible to date Woodman's death more narrowly than either 1480 or 1481.

Notes

References

* Dowden, John, "The Bishops of Scotland", ed. J. Maitland Thomson, (Glasgow, 1912)
* Keith, Robert, "An Historical Catalogue of the Scottish Bishops: Down to the Year 1688", (London, 1824)
* Watt, D. E. R., "Fasti Ecclesiae Scotinanae Medii Aevi ad annum 1638", 2nd Draft, (St Andrews, 1969)
* Watt, D. E. R. & Shead, N. F. (eds.), "The Heads of Religious Houses in Scotland from the 12th to the 16th Centuries", The Scottish Records Society, New Series, Volume 24, (Edinburgh, 2001)