Antony Bek
Encyclopedia
Antony Bek was a medieval Prince Bishop of Durham.
were members of a family of knights. Their father was Walter Bek, who held lands at Ersby in Lincolnshire
. Another brother was John Beke, who held the family lands in Ersby. Walter had married Eve, the niece of Walter de Gray
, Archbishop of York
. Bek was born about 1245 and was Walter's third son.
Both Thomas and Antony were educated at Oxford University, where they studied from 1267 to 1270. Having entered the clergy, Bek received several benefices and soon attracted the attention of Prince Edward
, the heir of King Henry III of England. He was Archdeacon of Durham by 1275, as well as precentor
of York and held prebends at Lichfield
, London, and Wells
. Bek accompanied Prince Edward when the prince went on Crusade in 1270. When Edward returned from crusading, he appointed Bek to the office of Keeper of the wardrobe on 21 September 1274, but Bek held the office for only about a month, and was replaced in October with his brother Thomas Bek. Edward named Bek the constable of the Tower of London
in 1275. In November of 1277 Bek was one of the councillors sent by Edward to negotiate with Prince Llywelyn of Wales
. The result was the Treaty of Aberconwy
which required Llywelyn to give up hostages, pay a large fine, give up claims to some lands and pay homage to King Edward. Bek was also sent to Aragon
to negotiate the marriage of Edward's daughter Eleanor
to the heir of Aragon, Alfonso
.
. Bek was enthroned at Durham Cathedral on 25 December 1285. When, after the death of King Alexander III of Scotland
in 1286, Edward betrothed his son Prince Edward to Alexander's heir Margaret of Norway
, it was Bek who King Edward appointed to oversee affairs in Scotland for the couple. However, Margaret died soon after this, and Edward was brought in to decide the succession of the Scottish throne. Bek was employed by King Edward in the negotiations and also served as a spokesman. In November of 1292, Edward decided in favor of John Balliol, and Bek assisted in the enthronement of Balliol at Scone soon after.
because Bek had allowed the king's officers to arrest two clerks while Bek was in Scotland on a royal mission. In response, a legal case was brought against the archbishop in Parliament alleging that because Bek was acting as the king's officer at the time, he wasn't acting as bishop but as earl palatine, and thus the excommunication was actually an affront to the royal dignity. Before the case could be decided, the archbishop yielded and was fined. In 1294 the king sent Bek, along with others, on a diplomatic errand to the German king Adolf of Nassau
and the archbishop of Colonge. The embassy was attempting to secure allies for Edward's war against King Philip IV of France
.
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Taking part in Edward's campaigns in Scotland, the bishop received the surrender of King John I of Scotland at Brechin
in 1296, and led one division of the English army at the Battle of Falkirk
in 1298. During the Falkirk campaign, but before the battle itself, a section of the army under Bek captured Dirleton Castle
.
In 1300, soon after his return to England, Bek became involved in a quarrel with Richard de Hoton
, Prior of Durham
and the cathedral chapter
. Both Hoton and the chapter were attempting to assert their independence from oversight by the bishop. Bek deposed and excommunicated the prior, and locked the cathedral and the priory up. Appeals from both sides were made to the king, but the prior had previously secured the support of several of the king's advisors. Attempts to secure a negotiated settlement failed, and other disputes over lands and rights escalated the dispute. At sometime after 1301 the king confiscated the lands of the bishop. A settlement in 1303 which restored the bishop's lands, did not settle the dispute between the prior and the bishop. In 1304, further charges were brought against the bishop by the prior and the cathedral chapter, including a serious one of imprisoning a royal messenger. The issue of the messenger led to the lands of the bishop once more being confiscated in 1305. The bishop secured the support of Pope Clement V
who named Bek Patriarch of Jerusalem
on 26 February 1306. Further actions against the bishop were stopped by the death of the king in 1307.
. In September, shortly after the death of Edward I, Edward II restored Bek's lands and rights. Bek's title of patriarch made him the senior ecclesiastic in England, and it was probably due to that status that he was named the main investigator of the Templars
in 1308. In 1309, he finally managed to visit the priory at Durham, and the new prior announced that he and the chapter would not institute any more legal proceedings against the bishop stemming from the dispute.
on 3 March 1311. He was buried on 3 May 1311 in Durham Cathedral. Bek served as an important advisor to King Edward I throughout most of his term as bishop, only losing that status at the end of Edward's reign due to the dispute with the Durham prior. His extravagance was legendary, and his retinue was large, and consisted of 140 knights. Bek was a wealthy man, and his personal estate at his death was valued at 6000 marks. He built at Auckland Castle
, Somerton
and elsewhere. He also built Durham Castle
's Great Hall. Some efforts were made after the bishop's death to have him canonized, but nothing came of these efforts. Bek was known for his chastity and bravery also.
Bek's elder brother, Thomas Bek was Bishop of St David's
and a trusted servant of Edward I. Two other relations were Thomas Bek
, who was Bishop of Lincoln
, and Antony Bek
, who was Bishop of Norwich
.
Early life
Bek and his elder brother Thomas BekThomas Bek, Bishop of St David's
Thomas Bek was a Bishop of St David's.Thomas was the elder brother of Antony Bek, Bishop of Durham and of St David's. He was a trusted servant of King Edward I. He obtained many important and wealthy ecclesiastical positions, was made treasurer of England in 1279, and became bishop of St Davids...
were members of a family of knights. Their father was Walter Bek, who held lands at Ersby in Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
. Another brother was John Beke, who held the family lands in Ersby. Walter had married Eve, the niece of Walter de Gray
Walter de Gray
Walter de Gray was an English prelate and statesman who rose to be Archbishop of York and Lord Chancellor.-Life:Gray was the son of John de Gray the Elder of Eaton in Norfolk and nephew of John de Gray , Bishop of Norwich. His sister, Hawise, married the Justiciar of England, Philip Basset...
, Archbishop of York
Archbishop of York
The Archbishop of York is a high-ranking cleric in the Church of England, second only to the Archbishop of Canterbury. He is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and metropolitan of the Province of York, which covers the northern portion of England as well as the Isle of Man...
. Bek was born about 1245 and was Walter's third son.
Both Thomas and Antony were educated at Oxford University, where they studied from 1267 to 1270. Having entered the clergy, Bek received several benefices and soon attracted the attention of Prince Edward
Edward I of England
Edward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...
, the heir of King Henry III of England. He was Archdeacon of Durham by 1275, as well as precentor
Precentor
A precentor is a person who helps facilitate worship. The details vary depending on the religion, denomination, and era in question. The Latin derivation is "præcentor", from cantor, meaning "the one who sings before" ....
of York and held prebends at Lichfield
Lichfield
Lichfield is a cathedral city, civil parish and district in Staffordshire, England. One of eight civil parishes with city status in England, Lichfield is situated roughly north of Birmingham...
, London, and Wells
Wells
Wells is a cathedral city and civil parish in the Mendip district of Somerset, England, on the southern edge of the Mendip Hills. Although the population recorded in the 2001 census is 10,406, it has had city status since 1205...
. Bek accompanied Prince Edward when the prince went on Crusade in 1270. When Edward returned from crusading, he appointed Bek to the office of Keeper of the wardrobe on 21 September 1274, but Bek held the office for only about a month, and was replaced in October with his brother Thomas Bek. Edward named Bek the constable of the Tower of London
Tower of London
Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...
in 1275. In November of 1277 Bek was one of the councillors sent by Edward to negotiate with Prince Llywelyn of Wales
Llywelyn the Last
Llywelyn ap Gruffydd or Llywelyn Ein Llyw Olaf , sometimes rendered as Llywelyn II, was the last prince of an independent Wales before its conquest by Edward I of England....
. The result was the Treaty of Aberconwy
Treaty of Aberconwy
The Treaty of Aberconwy was signed in 1277 by King Edward I of England and Llewelyn the Last of modern-day Wales, who had fought each other on and off for years over control of the Welsh countryside...
which required Llywelyn to give up hostages, pay a large fine, give up claims to some lands and pay homage to King Edward. Bek was also sent to Aragon
Kingdom of Aragon
The Kingdom of Aragon was a medieval and early modern kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula, corresponding to the modern-day autonomous community of Aragon, in Spain...
to negotiate the marriage of Edward's daughter Eleanor
Eleanor of England (1269-1298)
Eleanor of England was the eldest surviving daughter of Edward I of England and his first wife, Eleanor of Castile...
to the heir of Aragon, Alfonso
Alfonso III of Aragon
Alfonso III , called the Liberal or the Free , was the King of Aragon and Count of Barcelona from 1285...
.
Bishop of Durham
Edward I secured his election as bishop of Durham in 1283. He was elected on 9 July 1283 and consecrated on 9 January 1284. During his consecration, Bek had the remains of Saint William of York moved to a new site in Durham CathedralDurham Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of Christ, Blessed Mary the Virgin and St Cuthbert of Durham is a cathedral in the city of Durham, England, the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Durham. The Bishopric dates from 995, with the present cathedral being founded in AD 1093...
. Bek was enthroned at Durham Cathedral on 25 December 1285. When, after the death of King Alexander III of Scotland
Alexander III of Scotland
Alexander III was King of Scots from 1249 to his death.-Life:...
in 1286, Edward betrothed his son Prince Edward to Alexander's heir Margaret of Norway
Margaret, Maid of Norway
Margaret , usually known as the Maid of Norway , sometimes known as Margaret of Scotland , was a Norwegian princess who was Queen of Scots from 1286 until her death...
, it was Bek who King Edward appointed to oversee affairs in Scotland for the couple. However, Margaret died soon after this, and Edward was brought in to decide the succession of the Scottish throne. Bek was employed by King Edward in the negotiations and also served as a spokesman. In November of 1292, Edward decided in favor of John Balliol, and Bek assisted in the enthronement of Balliol at Scone soon after.
Service for Edward I
In 1293, Bek was excommunicated by the Archbishop of YorkArchbishop of York
The Archbishop of York is a high-ranking cleric in the Church of England, second only to the Archbishop of Canterbury. He is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and metropolitan of the Province of York, which covers the northern portion of England as well as the Isle of Man...
because Bek had allowed the king's officers to arrest two clerks while Bek was in Scotland on a royal mission. In response, a legal case was brought against the archbishop in Parliament alleging that because Bek was acting as the king's officer at the time, he wasn't acting as bishop but as earl palatine, and thus the excommunication was actually an affront to the royal dignity. Before the case could be decided, the archbishop yielded and was fined. In 1294 the king sent Bek, along with others, on a diplomatic errand to the German king Adolf of Nassau
Adolf of Nassau-Weilburg
Adolf was the King of Germany from 1292 until 1298. Though his title in his lifetime was Rex Romanorum , he is usually known as Adolf of Nassau...
and the archbishop of Colonge. The embassy was attempting to secure allies for Edward's war against King Philip IV of France
Philip IV of France
Philip the Fair was, as Philip IV, King of France from 1285 until his death. He was the husband of Joan I of Navarre, by virtue of which he was, as Philip I, King of Navarre and Count of Champagne from 1284 to 1305.-Youth:A member of the House of Capet, Philip was born at the Palace of...
.
Brechin
Brechin is a former royal burgh in Angus, Scotland. Traditionally Brechin is often described as a city because of its cathedral and its status as the seat of a pre-Reformation Roman Catholic diocese , but that status has not been officially recognised in the modern era...
in 1296, and led one division of the English army at the Battle of Falkirk
Battle of Falkirk (1298)
The Battle of Falkirk, which took place on 22 July 1298, was one of the major battles in the First War of Scottish Independence...
in 1298. During the Falkirk campaign, but before the battle itself, a section of the army under Bek captured Dirleton Castle
Dirleton Castle
Dirleton Castle is a medieval fortress in the village of Dirleton, East Lothian, Scotland. It lies around west of North Berwick, and around east of Edinburgh...
.
In 1300, soon after his return to England, Bek became involved in a quarrel with Richard de Hoton
Richard de Hoton
Richard de Hoton was prior of Durham after his election to that role on 24 March 1290. He is notable for his professional tensions with his bishop Antony Bek.-Life:...
, Prior of Durham
Prior of Durham
The Prior of Durham was the head of Durham Cathedral Priory, founded c. 1083 with the move of a previous house from Jarrow. The succession continued until dissolution of the monastery in 1540, when the priory was replaced with a deanery church.-List:...
and the cathedral chapter
Chapter (religion)
Chapter designates certain corporate ecclesiastical bodies in the Roman Catholic, Anglican and Nordic Lutheran churches....
. Both Hoton and the chapter were attempting to assert their independence from oversight by the bishop. Bek deposed and excommunicated the prior, and locked the cathedral and the priory up. Appeals from both sides were made to the king, but the prior had previously secured the support of several of the king's advisors. Attempts to secure a negotiated settlement failed, and other disputes over lands and rights escalated the dispute. At sometime after 1301 the king confiscated the lands of the bishop. A settlement in 1303 which restored the bishop's lands, did not settle the dispute between the prior and the bishop. In 1304, further charges were brought against the bishop by the prior and the cathedral chapter, including a serious one of imprisoning a royal messenger. The issue of the messenger led to the lands of the bishop once more being confiscated in 1305. The bishop secured the support of Pope Clement V
Pope Clement V
Pope Clement V, born Raymond Bertrand de Got was Pope from 1305 to his death...
who named Bek Patriarch of Jerusalem
Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem
The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem is the title possessed by the Latin Rite Catholic Archbishop of Jerusalem. The Archdiocese of Jerusalem has jurisdiction for all Latin Rite Catholics in Israel, the Palestinian Territories, Jordan and Cyprus...
on 26 February 1306. Further actions against the bishop were stopped by the death of the king in 1307.
Service under Edward II
Bek conducted the funeral service for King Edward I on 27 October 1307 at Westminster AbbeyWestminster Abbey
The Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, popularly known as Westminster Abbey, is a large, mainly Gothic church, in the City of Westminster, London, United Kingdom, located just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English,...
. In September, shortly after the death of Edward I, Edward II restored Bek's lands and rights. Bek's title of patriarch made him the senior ecclesiastic in England, and it was probably due to that status that he was named the main investigator of the Templars
Knights Templar
The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon , commonly known as the Knights Templar, the Order of the Temple or simply as Templars, were among the most famous of the Western Christian military orders...
in 1308. In 1309, he finally managed to visit the priory at Durham, and the new prior announced that he and the chapter would not institute any more legal proceedings against the bishop stemming from the dispute.
Death and legacy
The bishop died at ElthamEltham, London
-Parks and open spaces:There is a large variety of open green space in Eltham, in the form of parkland, fields and woodland.*Avery Hill Park is large, open parkland, situated to the east of Eltham. It is most notable for its Winter Garden, a hothouse containing tropical trees and plants from around...
on 3 March 1311. He was buried on 3 May 1311 in Durham Cathedral. Bek served as an important advisor to King Edward I throughout most of his term as bishop, only losing that status at the end of Edward's reign due to the dispute with the Durham prior. His extravagance was legendary, and his retinue was large, and consisted of 140 knights. Bek was a wealthy man, and his personal estate at his death was valued at 6000 marks. He built at Auckland Castle
Auckland Castle
Auckland Castle is a castle in the town of Bishop Auckland in County Durham, England....
, Somerton
Somerton Castle
Somerton Castle is located approximately one mile west of the hamlet of Boothby Graffoe in Lincolnshire, England.Inherited from his mother, the castle was rebuilt in the latter part of the 13th century by Antony Bek, then Bishop of Durham, who was granted a licence to crenellate in 1281...
and elsewhere. He also built Durham Castle
Durham Castle
Durham Castle is a Norman castle in the city of Durham, England, which has been wholly occupied since 1840 by University College, Durham. It is open to the general public to visit, but only through guided tours, since it is in use as a working building and is home to over 100 students...
's Great Hall. Some efforts were made after the bishop's death to have him canonized, but nothing came of these efforts. Bek was known for his chastity and bravery also.
Bek's elder brother, Thomas Bek was Bishop of St David's
Bishop of St David's
The Bishop of St David's is the ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of St David's.The succession of bishops stretches back to Saint David who in the 6th century established his seat in what is today the city of St David's in Pembrokeshire, founding St David's Cathedral. The current Bishop of St...
and a trusted servant of Edward I. Two other relations were Thomas Bek
Thomas Bek, Bishop of Lincoln
Thomas Bek was the bishop of Lincoln from 1341 until his death. He was a member of the same family as Antony Bek, bishop of Durham, and Thomas Bek, Bishop of St David's....
, who was Bishop of Lincoln
Bishop of Lincoln
The Bishop of Lincoln is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Lincoln in the Province of Canterbury.The present diocese covers the county of Lincolnshire and the unitary authority areas of North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire. The Bishop's seat is located in the Cathedral...
, and Antony Bek
Antony Bek, Bishop of Norwich
Antony Bek was a medieval Bishop of Norwich.Bek was elected Bishop of Lincoln on 3 February 1320 but the election was quashed later in the year....
, who was Bishop of Norwich
Bishop of Norwich
The Bishop of Norwich is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Norwich in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers most of the County of Norfolk and part of Suffolk. The see is in the City of Norwich where the seat is located at the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided...
.