Life

He was the son of the Rev. David Dee of St. Mary's Hall, Oxford, who held the rectory of St. Bartholomew the Great, West Smithfield from 1587 to 1605, when he was deprived. Francis Dee was born in London, and was admitted a scholar of Merchant Taylors' School

Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood

Merchant Taylors' School is a British independent day school for boys, originally located in the City of London. Since 1933 it has been located at Sandy Lodge in the Three Rivers district of Hertfordshire ....

 on 26 April 1591. He proceeded to St. John's College, Cambridge, where he was admitted in 1595 and became scholar on the Billingsley foundation in 1596. He took his degree of M.A. in 1603, B.D. in 1610, and D.D. in 1617.

In 1606, the year after his father's deprivation, he was appointed to the rectory of Holy Trinity the Less

Holy Trinity the Less

Holy Trinity the Less was a parish church in the City of London, destroyed in the Great Fire of London..-Location:The church was on the east side of Knightrider Street on the south side near St Nicholas Cole Abbey. -History:...

 in the city of London, which he resigned in 1620. In 1615 he became rector of Allhallows, Lombard Street, and held the benefice with his other preferments till his elevation to the episcopate. In 1619 he received the chancellorship of Salisbury Cathedral

Salisbury Cathedral

Salisbury Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is an Anglican cathedral in Salisbury, England, considered one of the leading examples of Early English architecture....

. In 1629 he seems to have been chaplain to the English ambassador in Paris; he forwarded to William Laud

William Laud

William Laud was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1633 to 1645. One of the High Church Caroline divines, he opposed radical forms of Puritanism...

 a petition from a John Fincham, in France on the king's service and imprisoned in the Bastille

Bastille

The Bastille was a fortress in Paris, known formally as the Bastille Saint-Antoine. It played an important role in the internal conflicts of France and for most of its history was used as a state prison by the kings of France. The Bastille was built in response to the English threat to the city of...

.

In 1630 he was one of the assistants in the foundation of Sion College

Sion College

Sion College, in London, is an institution founded by Royal Charter in 1630 as a college, guild of parochial clergy and almshouse, under the 1623 will of Thomas White, vicar of St Dunstan's in the West....

. He became Dean of Chichester 30 April 1630. He was consecrated bishop of Peterborough at Lambeth

Lambeth

Lambeth is a district of south London, England, and part of the London Borough of Lambeth. It is situated southeast of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:...

 by Archbishop Laud, assisted by William Juxon

William Juxon

William Juxon was an English churchman, Bishop of London from 1633 to 1649 and Archbishop of Canterbury from 1660 until his death.-Life:...

, on 18 May 1634, and was enthroned by proxy on 28 May. In his diocese, as elsewhere, the order for placing the communion table

Communion table

A Communion table is used by many Protestant churches, particularly from Reformed, Baptist, Congregational, and non-denominational traditions, for the preparation of the Eucharist ....

 altarwise at the east end of the chancel

Chancel

In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...

, and fencing it in with rails, produced discontent among the clergy, and Dee received frequent instructions from the high court of commission to proceed against those who refused obedience. Dee died at Peterborough

Peterborough

Peterborough is a cathedral city and unitary authority area in the East of England, with an estimated population of in June 2007. For ceremonial purposes it is in the county of Cambridgeshire. Situated north of London, the city stands on the River Nene which flows into the North Sea...

 on 8 October 1638 and was buried in his cathedral. By his will, dated 28 May 1638, he gave to the repair of his cathedral, and to St. John's College the impropriate rectory of Pagham

Pagham

Pagham is a coastal village and civil parish in the Arun district of West Sussex, England, with a population of around 5,500.-Geography:The village comprises three main areas:*Pagham Beach, coastal area, developed in the early 20th Century,...

 for the foundation of two scholars and two fellows to be chosen from Peterborough grammar school. He also bequeathed to the college works in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin, and his chapel plate. He was twice married: first to Susan le Poreque, and secondly to Elizabeth, daughter of John Winter, canon of Canterbury, by whom he left an only daughter, who married Brian King, canon of Chichester. He preached before the court in praise of virginity

Virginity

Virginity refers to the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. There are cultural and religious traditions which place special value and significance on this state, especially in the case of unmarried females, associated with notions of personal purity, honor and worth...

, which was considered tactless.