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William Edington

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Historical figures

   William Edington (d. October 6, 1366) was an English bishop and
   administrator. He served as bishop of Winchester from 1346 until his
   death, keeper of the wardrobe from 1341 to 1344, treasurer from 1344 to
   1356, and finally as chancellor from 1356 until he retired from royal
   administration in 1363. Edington’s reforms of the administration — in
   particular of royal finances — had wide-ranging consequences, and
   contributed to the English military efficiency in the early stages of
   the Hundred Years' War. As bishop of Winchester he was responsible for
   starting an extensive rebuilding of Winchester Cathedral, and for
   founding Edington Priory, the church of which still stands today.

Royal service

   His parents were Roger and Amice of Edington near Westbury, Wiltshire.
   Though it has been claimed that he was educated at Oxford, there seems
   to be no support for this. His first patron, however, was the Oxford
   chancellor Gilbert Middleton, who was also a royal counsellor. When
   Middleton died in 1331, Edington entered the service of Middleton’s
   friend, Adam Orleton, bishop of Winchester. Through Orleton, Edington’s
   abilities were brought to the attention of King Edward III, and in 1341
   the king named him keeper of the wardrobe. The position was an
   important one; the wardrobe functioned as the treasury while the king
   was on campaign, and Edward strongly resisted any attempts to limit
   this royal prerogative.

   The king must have been impressed by Edington’s performance, because in
   1344 he made him treasurer of the realm, a position he held for the
   exceptionally long period of twelve years. This was a job fraught with
   problems, as the nation was in serious financial difficulties by the
   mid-1340s. The treasury was in great debt from the heavy demands of the
   early stages of the Hundred Years' War. By then reneging on his debts,
   the king had lost public confidence, and struggled to obtain new loans.
   Edington saw the need to bring all royal expenditure under the
   oversight of the exchequer. This did not entail controlling the king’s
   use of his resources — a move Edward would have resented greatly — but
   simply attempting to budget all revenues and expenses. By the early
   1360s this was largely achieved; a testimony to the capabilities and
   energy of Edington as an administrator. In 1356 he was named
   chancellor, a post he held until his retirement from the national scene
   in 1363, possibly for health reasons.

Ecclasiastical career

   Edington Priory in 1826.
   Enlarge
   Edington Priory in 1826.

   While serving in these positions, Edington also held ecclesiastical
   benefices. In 1335 Orleton collated him to the rectory of Cheriton,
   Hampshire, and from 1335 to 1346 he was master of St Cross Hospital in
   Winchester. Also the king was eager to reward his capable servant; in
   1341 he was given the prebend of Leighton Manor ( Lincoln), by 1344 he
   also held that of Netheravon ( Salisbury), and by 1345 that of Putston
   ( Hereford). This level of pluralism was not unusual at the time. His
   greatest preferment, however, came with his papal appointment – on the
   king’s request – to the see of Winchester in 1345. This was the richest
   see in England, considered second only to the archbishopric of Milan.
   The monks of Winchester had already elected one of their own numbers,
   but this was overruled, and Edington was consecrated in 1346. As a
   bishop he was necessarily much absent, even with the relatively short
   distance between Westminster and Winchester. He was not entirely
   detached from his episcopal duties, however. He used the see as a
   source for extensive nepotism, yet he also initiated wide-ranging
   building works on the nave of the cathedral. Meanwhile, in 1351, he
   founded an Augustinian priory at his birthplace of Edington. Although
   most of the priory has been demolished, the church still stands, as a
   good example of the transition between the decorated and perpendicular
   style of church-building.

   In May 1366, as a final sign of royal gratitude, King Edward had
   Edington elected archbishop of Canterbury. Edington, however, declined
   on the grounds of failing health. Five months later, on October 7 1366,
   he died at Bishop's Waltham. He is buried in Winchester Cathedral,
   where his effigy can be seen in the chantry chapel he himself had built
   in the nave.
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