Robert Burnell
Encyclopedia
Robert Burnell (circa
1239 – 25 October 1292) was an English bishop who served as Lord Chancellor
of England from 1274 to 1292. A native of Shropshire
, he served as a minor royal official before entering into the service of Prince Edward, the future King Edward I of England
. When Edward went on the Eighth Crusade
in 1270, Burnell stayed in England to secure the prince's interests. He served as regent
after the death of King Henry III of England
while Edward was still on crusade. He was twice elected Archbishop of Canterbury
, but his personal life—which included a long-term mistress who was rumoured to have borne him four sons—prevented his confirmation by the papacy. In 1275 Burnell was elected Bishop of Bath and Wells
, after Edward had appointed him Lord Chancellor in 1274.
Burnell was behind the efforts of the royal officials to enforce royal rights during his term of office as chancellor, including the implementation of the Quo warranto
procedures. He also helped with the legislative and legal reforms of Edward's reign. During Burnell's tenure the chancellor's office and records became fixed in London rather than travelling with the king. Burnell went abroad on diplomatic missions for Edward, and for a time governed Gascony
. He continued to enjoy the king's trust until his death in 1292; one historian has suggested that Burnell may have been the most important royal official of the 13th century.
in Shropshire, where Burnell was born probably in about 1239, as he was close in age to King Edward. His father was probably Roger Burnell, who died in about 1259. He had three brothers, two of whom died fighting the Welsh
at the Battle of Moel-y-don in 1282; the third, Hugh, died in 1286. Hugh's son Philip was Robert's eventual heir. Burnell worked as a clerk in the royal chancery, the office responsible for the writing of documents, before moving to the household of Prince Edward, later King Edward I of England. By 1257 Burnell was spending most of his time with the prince and the prince's household. After Simon de Montfort
's victory at the Battle of Lewes
in 1264, Burnell continued to serve Edward, and was named the prince's clerk in December 1264. As a reward for his service, Burnell was given the prebend
of Holme in the diocese of York
some time before 1267, and was named Archdeacon of York in December 1270. He also held the office of chancellor to Edward from the time of the Battle of Evesham
in 1265 until 1270, when Edward left on crusade
.
Prince Edward tried to have Burnell elected to the Archbishopric of Canterbury
in 1270, but was frustrated by the Canterbury cathedral chapter
's members, who instead elected their prior
, William Chillenden. Eventually Pope Gregory X
set Chillenden aside and installed his own choice in the see, Robert Kilwardby
. Burnell did not accompany the prince on crusade in late 1270, although he had originally planned to do so. Instead, he was appointed one of the four lieutenants who looked after Edward's interests while the prince was away. Thus he was still in England when Henry III died in November 1272. Burnell acted as one of the regents of the kingdom until August 1274, when the prince, now king, returned from Palestine
. During the regency Burnell supervised a parliament, dealt with raids on the Welsh Marches
and resolved a trade conflict with Flanders. After the king's return to England Burnell was made chancellor. The historian Richard Huscroft considers that Burnell gained valuable experience governing England during Edward's absence, ensuring Burnell's dominance in the English government after Edward's return.
. He received the temporalities
of the see on 19 March 1275 and was consecrated on 7 April 1275. Three years later Edward once more tried to secure the see of Canterbury
for his favourite. Burnell was elected to the archbishopric in June or July 1278, but the election was quashed by Pope Nicholas III
in January 1279. King Edward sent a deputation, including the eventual appointee, John Peckham
, to secure Nicholas' confirmation of the election. The pope named three cardinals as investigators, and then appointed Peckham instead. The bishop's second failure to obtain the archbishopric was probably a consequence of his lifestyle, which included keeping a mistress. Edward made one final attempt to promote his friend to a wealthier see in early 1280, when Burnell was nominated to become Bishop of Winchester
, but Pope Nicholas III quashed the election on 28 June 1280.
Burnell was the chief and most influential of Edward I's advisers during the first half of his reign. As part of his duties Burnell spent most of his time in attendance on the king. He heard many requests and petitions from those who desired patronage or other advancements, and was diligent and active in dealing with routine business. Burnell played a leading role in the legislation introduced by King Edward. The king's major legislative acts mainly date to Burnell's tenure of the office of chancellor, from 21 September 1274 until Burnell's death in 1292. Burnell was instrumental in the enforcement of royal writs and enactments, including the Statutes of Westminster, enacted in 1275, 1285
, and 1290
. Those of 1275 attempted to deal with the usurpation of royal rights. Keeping the peace in the realm and the extension of royal jurisdiction to cover rape was dealt with in the statutes from 1285, along with a number of other issues. The last statute, from 1290, regulated land law, the result of pressure from the magnates, the leading laymen of England.
During Burnell's time in office Edward and his royal officials made great efforts to reassert royal rights that were felt to have been usurped by the king's subjects. These efforts were made under writs of Quo warranto, which asked the recipient what royal grant or warrant gives the recipient the authority for a right or a power. They were first issued in 1278, after earlier attempts to recover royal rights through parliament unintentionally resulted in too much work for that body. Through these writs, attempts were made to enforce the rule that the only correct way to receive a privilege or grant of land was through a written charter, which might have deprived most of the magnates of England of their lands and rights. Most lands at that time were held not by documentary grants, but by the force of custom. By the 1290s the government was forced to back down and permit rights as they had been allowed from "time out of mind".
The distinction between the king's personal household department of the Wardrobe
and the governmental department of the Chancery, which was headed by the chancellor, disappeared almost entirely during Burnell's period of office. The Wardrobe had developed as a less formal department for the collection and distribution of money, but under Edward had effectively become a treasury for warfare. There was no rivalry between the holders of the Great Seal
, the official seal of government and used for formal documents, and the Privy Seal
, used to authenticate the king's less formal letters. During Burnell's time in office the king only used a Privy Seal warrant, or an informal set of instructions for the chancellor to issue a letter from the Chancery under the Great Seal, when the king and Burnell were apart; after Burnell's death the number of Privy Seal warrants increased greatly.
Edward had such trust in his chancellor and the chancellor's clerks that Burnell and the clerks were allowed to dispense with the hanaper
system, which required fees for sealing charters to be paid into the hanaper department of the Chancery for disbursal. Robert and his clerks were permitted to enjoy the profits from the fees of their office. Burnell was also responsible for the decision to force the Court of Chancery
to settle in London, rather than following the king and his court around the country. A Chancery memorandum of 1280 records that the chancellor, along with the other ministers, now had the duty of sorting the many petitions that came into the government and only passing on the most urgent to the king.
As bishop, Burnell built a wall around the cathedral at Wells, which helped to improve the security of the cathedral and its outlying buildings. He left the court each year at Lent
, when he returned to his diocese and attended to its affairs. Peckham appointed Burnell to be his deputy when the archbishop went to Wales in 1282. It was probably Burnell who suggested a compromise in 1285 over the jurisdictions of the royal and ecclesiastical courts, which allowed royal officials to return cases involving only religious matters to the church courts.
. The speech was a prelude to discussions, successfully concluded, involving the homage
that Edward owed to King Philip IV of France
, for Edward's land in France. Burnell was employed in Gascony during the late 1280s, helping to administer that duchy and to reorganise its government. He showed himself sensitive to the Gascon desire for independence and did not attempt to impose the same systems of government that were used in England. The historian Michael Prestwich
therefore argues that the first half of Edward's reign was the period when Gascony enjoyed its most successful government under the Plantagenet
s. Later, in June 1291, Burnell gave two speeches at the great council of English and Scottish nobles
in Norham
to decide the succession to the Scottish crown. Edward had been asked to mediate an end to the crisis over the succession, or the Great Cause
as it was known in England.
In Welsh affairs, Burnell attended a number of councils dealing with Llywelyn ap Gruffudd
, the Welsh ruler, and in 1277 he escorted Llywelyn to Westminster, where Llywelyn pledged homage to Edward. Burnell was present during Edward's conquest of Wales
in the 1280s; he witnessed documents in Rhuddlan in 1282, and subsequently at Conwy and Caernarfon.
Some time before 1290 Burnell vowed to go on crusade to help reinforce the crusader city of Acre
, which was threatened by Muslims in the late 1280s, but he never fulfilled his obligation.
, on 25 October 1292, but his body, minus his heart, rests in the nave of Wells Cathedral
; his heart was buried at Bath Abbey
. Although he was usually busy with royal business, Burnell managed to expand his bishopric and provide for his relatives. He amassed great wealth, and acquired numerous estates in Shropshire, Worcestershire
, Somerset
, Kent
, Surrey
and elsewhere. At his death, he owned 82 manors over 19 counties
, most of them his personal property rather than that of the diocese of Bath and Wells.
Even after he became a bishop Burnell kept a mistress, Juliana. Rumours circulated that she bore him four sons, and that he had a number of daughters, all of which Burnell denied. He kept a magnificent household, sufficient for him to be able to host a parliament
at his home in Acton Burnell in autumn 1283. He married off a number of young female relatives, rumoured to be his daughters, to noblemen. Amabilla Burnell married a member of a royal justice's family, and a Joan Burnell was the subject of a guarantee to the bishop that the son of William of Greystoke would marry her. A William Burnell was dean
of Wells Cathedral, and was named as one of the bishop's executors. Robert Burnell's eventual heir was his nephew, Philip.
Burnell built extensively at Acton Burnell Castle
, and large parts of his house have survived. It was substantially different in plan from the older hall-style houses, which had the private quarters at the back of a large hall. At Acton Burnell the bishop's quarters were well away from the building's main public spaces, and included a latrine. The house was not quite a castle, but it was designed to have some defensive capability. The overall form of the structure was of a fortified hall-house, much like the Norman-era hall-keeps. He also built the chapel in the Bishop's Palace in Wells.
Burnell was a dominant figure during the first part of Edward's reign, and he controlled most aspects of royal administration. He was involved not only in domestic issues but also in foreign relations, a responsibility he retained for two decades after Edward's return to England in 1274. Huscroft argues that he may have been the most important royal administrator of the 13th century.
Circa
Circa , usually abbreviated c. or ca. , means "approximately" in the English language, usually referring to a date...
1239 – 25 October 1292) was an English bishop who served as Lord Chancellor
Lord Chancellor
The Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor, is a senior and important functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. He is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking only after the Lord High Steward. The Lord Chancellor is appointed by the Sovereign...
of England from 1274 to 1292. A native of Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
, he served as a minor royal official before entering into the service of Prince Edward, the future King Edward I of England
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...
. When Edward went on the Eighth Crusade
Eighth Crusade
The Eighth Crusade was a crusade launched by Louis IX, King of France, in 1270. The Eighth Crusade is sometimes counted as the Seventh, if the Fifth and Sixth Crusades of Frederick II are counted as a single crusade...
in 1270, Burnell stayed in England to secure the prince's interests. He served as regent
Regent
A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
after the death of King Henry III of England
Henry III of England
Henry III was the son and successor of John as King of England, reigning for 56 years from 1216 until his death. His contemporaries knew him as Henry of Winchester. He was the first child king in England since the reign of Æthelred the Unready...
while Edward was still on crusade. He was twice elected 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...
, but his personal life—which included a long-term mistress who was rumoured to have borne him four sons—prevented his confirmation by the papacy. In 1275 Burnell was elected Bishop of Bath and Wells
Bishop of Bath and Wells
The Bishop of Bath and Wells heads the Church of England Diocese of Bath and Wells in the Province of Canterbury in England.The present diocese covers the vast majority of the county of Somerset and a small area of Dorset. The Episcopal seat is located in the Cathedral Church of Saint Andrew in...
, after Edward had appointed him Lord Chancellor in 1274.
Burnell was behind the efforts of the royal officials to enforce royal rights during his term of office as chancellor, including the implementation of the Quo warranto
Quo warranto
Quo warranto is a prerogative writ requiring the person to whom it is directed to show what authority they have for exercising some right or power they claim to hold.-History:...
procedures. He also helped with the legislative and legal reforms of Edward's reign. During Burnell's tenure the chancellor's office and records became fixed in London rather than travelling with the king. Burnell went abroad on diplomatic missions for Edward, and for a time governed Gascony
Gascony
Gascony is an area of southwest France that was part of the "Province of Guyenne and Gascony" prior to the French Revolution. The region is vaguely defined and the distinction between Guyenne and Gascony is unclear; sometimes they are considered to overlap, and sometimes Gascony is considered a...
. He continued to enjoy the king's trust until his death in 1292; one historian has suggested that Burnell may have been the most important royal official of the 13th century.
Early life
By 1198 Burnell's family had bestowed its name on the village of Acton BurnellActon Burnell
Acton Burnell is a village and parish in the English county of Shropshire. It lies at 110m above sea level and is near to Park Wood.-Attractions:...
in Shropshire, where Burnell was born probably in about 1239, as he was close in age to King Edward. His father was probably Roger Burnell, who died in about 1259. He had three brothers, two of whom died fighting the Welsh
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
at the Battle of Moel-y-don in 1282; the third, Hugh, died in 1286. Hugh's son Philip was Robert's eventual heir. Burnell worked as a clerk in the royal chancery, the office responsible for the writing of documents, before moving to the household of Prince Edward, later King Edward I of England. By 1257 Burnell was spending most of his time with the prince and the prince's household. After Simon de Montfort
Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester
Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, 1st Earl of Chester , sometimes referred to as Simon V de Montfort to distinguish him from other Simon de Montforts, was an Anglo-Norman nobleman. He led the barons' rebellion against King Henry III of England during the Second Barons' War of 1263-4, and...
's victory at the Battle of Lewes
Battle of Lewes
The Battle of Lewes was one of two main battles of the conflict known as the Second Barons' War. It took place at Lewes in Sussex, on 14 May 1264...
in 1264, Burnell continued to serve Edward, and was named the prince's clerk in December 1264. As a reward for his service, Burnell was given the prebend
Prebendary
A prebendary is a post connected to an Anglican or Catholic cathedral or collegiate church and is a type of canon. Prebendaries have a role in the administration of the cathedral...
of Holme in the diocese of York
Diocese of York
The Diocese of York is an administrative division of the Church of England, part of the Province of York. It covers the city of York, the eastern part of North Yorkshire, and most of the East Riding of Yorkshire....
some time before 1267, and was named Archdeacon of York in December 1270. He also held the office of chancellor to Edward from the time of the Battle of Evesham
Battle of Evesham
The Battle of Evesham was one of the two main battles of 13th century England's Second Barons' War. It marked the defeat of Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, and the rebellious barons by Prince Edward – later King Edward I – who led the forces of his father, King Henry III...
in 1265 until 1270, when Edward left on crusade
Eighth Crusade
The Eighth Crusade was a crusade launched by Louis IX, King of France, in 1270. The Eighth Crusade is sometimes counted as the Seventh, if the Fifth and Sixth Crusades of Frederick II are counted as a single crusade...
.
Prince Edward tried to have Burnell elected to the Archbishopric 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...
in 1270, but was frustrated by the Canterbury cathedral chapter
Cathedral chapter
In accordance with canon law, a cathedral chapter is a college of clerics formed to advise a bishop and, in the case of a vacancy of the episcopal see in some countries, to govern the diocese in his stead. These councils are made up of canons and dignitaries; in the Roman Catholic church their...
's members, who instead elected their prior
Prior
Prior is an ecclesiastical title, derived from the Latin adjective for 'earlier, first', with several notable uses.-Monastic superiors:A Prior is a monastic superior, usually lower in rank than an Abbot. In the Rule of St...
, William Chillenden. Eventually Pope Gregory X
Pope Gregory X
Pope Blessed Gregory X , born Tebaldo Visconti, was Pope from 1271 to 1276. He was elected by the papal election, 1268–1271, the longest papal election in the history of the Roman Catholic Church....
set Chillenden aside and installed his own choice in the see, Robert Kilwardby
Robert Kilwardby
Robert Kilwardby was an Archbishop of Canterbury in England and as well as a cardinal.-Life:Kilwardby studied at the University of Paris, then was a teacher of grammar and logic there. He then joined the Dominican Order and studied theology, and became regent at Oxford University before 1261,...
. Burnell did not accompany the prince on crusade in late 1270, although he had originally planned to do so. Instead, he was appointed one of the four lieutenants who looked after Edward's interests while the prince was away. Thus he was still in England when Henry III died in November 1272. Burnell acted as one of the regents of the kingdom until August 1274, when the prince, now king, returned from Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
. During the regency Burnell supervised a parliament, dealt with raids on the Welsh Marches
Welsh Marches
The Welsh Marches is a term which, in modern usage, denotes an imprecisely defined area along and around the border between England and Wales in the United Kingdom. The precise meaning of the term has varied at different periods...
and resolved a trade conflict with Flanders. After the king's return to England Burnell was made chancellor. The historian Richard Huscroft considers that Burnell gained valuable experience governing England during Edward's absence, ensuring Burnell's dominance in the English government after Edward's return.
Chancellor and bishop
On 23 January 1275 Burnell was elected to the see of Bath and WellsBishop of Bath and Wells
The Bishop of Bath and Wells heads the Church of England Diocese of Bath and Wells in the Province of Canterbury in England.The present diocese covers the vast majority of the county of Somerset and a small area of Dorset. The Episcopal seat is located in the Cathedral Church of Saint Andrew in...
. He received the temporalities
Property
Property is any physical or intangible entity that is owned by a person or jointly by a group of people or a legal entity like a corporation...
of the see on 19 March 1275 and was consecrated on 7 April 1275. Three years later Edward once more tried to secure the see 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...
for his favourite. Burnell was elected to the archbishopric in June or July 1278, but the election was quashed by Pope Nicholas III
Pope Nicholas III
Pope Nicholas III , born Giovanni Gaetano Orsini, Pope from November 25, 1277 to his death in 1280, was a Roman nobleman who had served under eight Popes, been made cardinal-deacon of St...
in January 1279. King Edward sent a deputation, including the eventual appointee, John Peckham
John Peckham
John Peckham was Archbishop of Canterbury in the years 1279–1292. He was a native of Sussex who was educated at Lewes Priory and became a Franciscan friar about 1250. He studied at Paris under Bonaventure, where he later taught theology. From his teaching, he came into conflict with Thomas...
, to secure Nicholas' confirmation of the election. The pope named three cardinals as investigators, and then appointed Peckham instead. The bishop's second failure to obtain the archbishopric was probably a consequence of his lifestyle, which included keeping a mistress. Edward made one final attempt to promote his friend to a wealthier see in early 1280, when Burnell was nominated to become Bishop of Winchester
Bishop of Winchester
The Bishop of Winchester is the head of the Church of England diocese of Winchester, with his cathedra at Winchester Cathedral in Hampshire.The bishop is one of five Church of England bishops to be among the Lords Spiritual regardless of their length of service. His diocese is one of the oldest and...
, but Pope Nicholas III quashed the election on 28 June 1280.
Burnell was the chief and most influential of Edward I's advisers during the first half of his reign. As part of his duties Burnell spent most of his time in attendance on the king. He heard many requests and petitions from those who desired patronage or other advancements, and was diligent and active in dealing with routine business. Burnell played a leading role in the legislation introduced by King Edward. The king's major legislative acts mainly date to Burnell's tenure of the office of chancellor, from 21 September 1274 until Burnell's death in 1292. Burnell was instrumental in the enforcement of royal writs and enactments, including the Statutes of Westminster, enacted in 1275, 1285
Statute of Westminster 1285
The Statute of Westminster of 1285, like the Statute of Westminster 1275, is a code in itself, and contains the famous clause De donis conditionalibus , one of the fundamental institutes of the medieval land law of England...
, and 1290
Quia Emptores
Quia Emptores of 1290 was a statute passed by Edward I of England that prevented tenants from alienating their lands to others by subinfeudation, instead requiring all tenants wishing to alienate their land to do so by substitution...
. Those of 1275 attempted to deal with the usurpation of royal rights. Keeping the peace in the realm and the extension of royal jurisdiction to cover rape was dealt with in the statutes from 1285, along with a number of other issues. The last statute, from 1290, regulated land law, the result of pressure from the magnates, the leading laymen of England.
During Burnell's time in office Edward and his royal officials made great efforts to reassert royal rights that were felt to have been usurped by the king's subjects. These efforts were made under writs of Quo warranto, which asked the recipient what royal grant or warrant gives the recipient the authority for a right or a power. They were first issued in 1278, after earlier attempts to recover royal rights through parliament unintentionally resulted in too much work for that body. Through these writs, attempts were made to enforce the rule that the only correct way to receive a privilege or grant of land was through a written charter, which might have deprived most of the magnates of England of their lands and rights. Most lands at that time were held not by documentary grants, but by the force of custom. By the 1290s the government was forced to back down and permit rights as they had been allowed from "time out of mind".
The distinction between the king's personal household department of the Wardrobe
Wardrobe (government)
The wardrobe, along with the chamber, made up the personal part of medieval English government known as the king's household. Its chief officer went under the title of Master or Keeper of the Great Wardrobe. As a result, the wardrobe often appropriated large funds from the exchequer, the main...
and the governmental department of the Chancery, which was headed by the chancellor, disappeared almost entirely during Burnell's period of office. The Wardrobe had developed as a less formal department for the collection and distribution of money, but under Edward had effectively become a treasury for warfare. There was no rivalry between the holders of the Great Seal
Great Seal of the Realm
The Great Seal of the Realm or Great Seal of the United Kingdom is a seal that is used to symbolise the Sovereign's approval of important state documents...
, the official seal of government and used for formal documents, and the Privy Seal
Privy Seal
A privy seal refers to the personal seal of a reigning monarch, used for the purpose of authenticating official government document.-Privy Seal of England:The Privy Seal of England can be traced back to the reign of King John...
, used to authenticate the king's less formal letters. During Burnell's time in office the king only used a Privy Seal warrant, or an informal set of instructions for the chancellor to issue a letter from the Chancery under the Great Seal, when the king and Burnell were apart; after Burnell's death the number of Privy Seal warrants increased greatly.
Edward had such trust in his chancellor and the chancellor's clerks that Burnell and the clerks were allowed to dispense with the hanaper
Hanaper
Hanaper, properly a case or basket to contain a "hanap " , a drinking vessel, a goblet with a foot or stem; the term which is still used by antiquaries for medieval stemmed cups. The famous Royal Gold Cup in the British Museum is called a "hanap" in the inventory of Charles VI of France of...
system, which required fees for sealing charters to be paid into the hanaper department of the Chancery for disbursal. Robert and his clerks were permitted to enjoy the profits from the fees of their office. Burnell was also responsible for the decision to force the Court of Chancery
Court of Chancery
The Court of Chancery was a court of equity in England and Wales that followed a set of loose rules to avoid the slow pace of change and possible harshness of the common law. The Chancery had jurisdiction over all matters of equity, including trusts, land law, the administration of the estates of...
to settle in London, rather than following the king and his court around the country. A Chancery memorandum of 1280 records that the chancellor, along with the other ministers, now had the duty of sorting the many petitions that came into the government and only passing on the most urgent to the king.
As bishop, Burnell built a wall around the cathedral at Wells, which helped to improve the security of the cathedral and its outlying buildings. He left the court each year at Lent
Lent
In the Christian tradition, Lent is the period of the liturgical year from Ash Wednesday to Easter. The traditional purpose of Lent is the preparation of the believer – through prayer, repentance, almsgiving and self-denial – for the annual commemoration during Holy Week of the Death and...
, when he returned to his diocese and attended to its affairs. Peckham appointed Burnell to be his deputy when the archbishop went to Wales in 1282. It was probably Burnell who suggested a compromise in 1285 over the jurisdictions of the royal and ecclesiastical courts, which allowed royal officials to return cases involving only religious matters to the church courts.
Foreign service
Burnell was active in the king's foreign policy, especially towards France, Scotland and Wales, and undertook a number of diplomatic missions to those countries. Burnell served as the royal spokesman on several of these occasions, one of them being at Paris in 1286 when he made a speech detailing the history of English–French relations since the Treaty of Paris of 1259Treaty of Paris (1259)
The Treaty of Paris was a treaty between Louis IX of France and Henry III of England, agreed to on December 4, 1259....
. The speech was a prelude to discussions, successfully concluded, involving the homage
Homage
Homage is a show or demonstration of respect or dedication to someone or something, sometimes by simple declaration but often by some more oblique reference, artistic or poetic....
that Edward owed to 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...
, for Edward's land in France. Burnell was employed in Gascony during the late 1280s, helping to administer that duchy and to reorganise its government. He showed himself sensitive to the Gascon desire for independence and did not attempt to impose the same systems of government that were used in England. The historian Michael Prestwich
Michael Prestwich
Michael Charles Prestwich OBE is an English historian, specialising on the history of medieval England, in particular the reign of Edward I. He is retired, having been Professor of History at Durham University, and Head of the Department of History until 2007.-Early life:Prestwich is the son of...
therefore argues that the first half of Edward's reign was the period when Gascony enjoyed its most successful government under the Plantagenet
House of Plantagenet
The House of Plantagenet , a branch of the Angevins, was a royal house founded by Geoffrey V of Anjou, father of Henry II of England. Plantagenet kings first ruled the Kingdom of England in the 12th century. Their paternal ancestors originated in the French province of Gâtinais and gained the...
s. Later, in June 1291, Burnell gave two speeches at the great council of English and Scottish nobles
Peerage of Scotland
The Peerage of Scotland is the division of the British Peerage for those peers created in the Kingdom of Scotland before 1707. With that year's Act of Union, the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England were combined into the Kingdom of Great Britain, and a new Peerage of Great Britain was...
in Norham
Norham
Norham is a village in Northumberland, England, just south of the River Tweed and the border with Scotland.It is the site of the 12th century Norham Castle, and was for many years the centre for the Norhamshire exclave of County Durham...
to decide the succession to the Scottish crown. Edward had been asked to mediate an end to the crisis over the succession, or the Great Cause
Competitors for the Crown of Scotland
With the death of Alexander III of Scotland in 1286 without a male heir, the throne of Scotland had become the possession of the three-year old Margaret, Maid of Norway, the granddaughter of the King...
as it was known in England.
In Welsh affairs, Burnell attended a number of councils dealing with Llywelyn ap Gruffudd
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 Welsh ruler, and in 1277 he escorted Llywelyn to Westminster, where Llywelyn pledged homage to Edward. Burnell was present during Edward's conquest of Wales
Wales in the Late Middle Ages
Wales in the Late Middle Ages covers the period from the death of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd in late 1282 to the incorporation of Wales into the Kingdom of England by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535-1542.-Death of Llywelyn:...
in the 1280s; he witnessed documents in Rhuddlan in 1282, and subsequently at Conwy and Caernarfon.
Some time before 1290 Burnell vowed to go on crusade to help reinforce the crusader city of Acre
Acre, Israel
Acre , is a city in the Western Galilee region of northern Israel at the northern extremity of Haifa Bay. Acre is one of the oldest continuously inhabited sites in the country....
, which was threatened by Muslims in the late 1280s, but he never fulfilled his obligation.
Death and legacy
Burnell died in BerwickBerwick-upon-Tweed
Berwick-upon-Tweed or simply Berwick is a town in the county of Northumberland and is the northernmost town in England, on the east coast at the mouth of the River Tweed. It is situated 2.5 miles south of the Scottish border....
, on 25 October 1292, but his body, minus his heart, rests in the nave of Wells Cathedral
Wells Cathedral
Wells Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, who lives at the adjacent Bishop's Palace....
; his heart was buried at Bath Abbey
Bath Abbey
The Abbey Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, Bath, commonly known as Bath Abbey, is an Anglican parish church and a former Benedictine monastery in Bath, Somerset, England...
. Although he was usually busy with royal business, Burnell managed to expand his bishopric and provide for his relatives. He amassed great wealth, and acquired numerous estates in Shropshire, Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
, Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
and elsewhere. At his death, he owned 82 manors over 19 counties
Counties of the United Kingdom
The counties of the United Kingdom are subnational divisions of the United Kingdom, used for the purposes of administrative, geographical and political demarcation. By the Middle Ages counties had become established as a unit of local government, at least in England. By the early 17th century all...
, most of them his personal property rather than that of the diocese of Bath and Wells.
Even after he became a bishop Burnell kept a mistress, Juliana. Rumours circulated that she bore him four sons, and that he had a number of daughters, all of which Burnell denied. He kept a magnificent household, sufficient for him to be able to host a parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
at his home in Acton Burnell in autumn 1283. He married off a number of young female relatives, rumoured to be his daughters, to noblemen. Amabilla Burnell married a member of a royal justice's family, and a Joan Burnell was the subject of a guarantee to the bishop that the son of William of Greystoke would marry her. A William Burnell was dean
Dean (religion)
A dean, in a church context, is a cleric holding certain positions of authority within a religious hierarchy. The title is used mainly in the Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church.-Anglican Communion:...
of Wells Cathedral, and was named as one of the bishop's executors. Robert Burnell's eventual heir was his nephew, Philip.
Burnell built extensively at Acton Burnell Castle
Acton Burnell Castle
Acton Burnell Castle is a 13th-century fortified manor house, located near the village of Acton Burnell, Shropshire, England . It is believed that the first Parliament of England at which the Commons were fully represented was held here in 1283. Today all that remains is the outer shell of the...
, and large parts of his house have survived. It was substantially different in plan from the older hall-style houses, which had the private quarters at the back of a large hall. At Acton Burnell the bishop's quarters were well away from the building's main public spaces, and included a latrine. The house was not quite a castle, but it was designed to have some defensive capability. The overall form of the structure was of a fortified hall-house, much like the Norman-era hall-keeps. He also built the chapel in the Bishop's Palace in Wells.
Burnell was a dominant figure during the first part of Edward's reign, and he controlled most aspects of royal administration. He was involved not only in domestic issues but also in foreign relations, a responsibility he retained for two decades after Edward's return to England in 1274. Huscroft argues that he may have been the most important royal administrator of the 13th century.