John Howson was an English academic and bishop.

Life

He was born in the London parish of St Bride's Church

St Bride's Church

St Bride's Church is a church in the City of London, England. The building's most recent incarnation was designed by Sir Christopher Wren in 1672 on Fleet Street in the City of London, though Wren's original building was largely gutted by fire during the London Blitz in 1940. Due to its location on...

, and educated at St Paul's School.

He was a student and then canon of Christ Church, Oxford

Christ Church, Oxford

Christ Church or house of Christ, and thus sometimes known as The House), is one of the largest constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England...

, and Vice-Chancellor in 1602. James I of England

James I of England

James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...

 appointed him to Chelsea College

Chelsea College (17th century)

Chelsea College was a polemical college founded in London in 1609. This establishment was intended to centralize controversial writing against Catholicism, and was the idea of Matthew Sutcliffe, Dean of Exeter, who was the first Provost...

. He became rector of Brightwell Baldwin

Brightwell Baldwin

Brightwell Baldwin is a village and civil parish in Oxfordshire, about northeast of Wallingford.-History:The Church of England parish church of Saint Bartholomew was built in the 14th century in the Decorated Gothic style. The chancel includes the remains of a 13th century lancet window, a remnant...

 in 1608.

Conflicts in Oxford with Calvinist clergy led to his being accused in 1615 before the King of popery, by George Abbot, the Archbishop of Canterbury

Archbishop of Canterbury

The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...

. He was able to convince the King that the charges were misplaced, and began to rise in the hierarchy, where he was an influence on the Arminian side. He was Bishop of Oxford

Bishop of Oxford

The Bishop of Oxford is the diocesan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Oxford in the Province of Canterbury; his seat is at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford...

 from 1619, and Bishop of Durham from 1628.