Robert Shorton
Encyclopedia
Robert Shorton was an English churchman and academic, first Master of St John's College, Cambridge
and archdeacon of Bath.
. He graduated B.A. in 1501 and M.A. in 1503, and was elected fellow of Pembroke Hall on 24 November 1505. In 1507 he was chosen to preach before the university, and in 1509 graduated B.D., and was selected to read the divinity lecture instituted by Lord Chief Justice William Hussey
. On 9 April 1511 he was appointed the first Master of St. John's College, newly founded by Lady Margaret Beaufort. Shorton superintended the progress of the work of building the college, resigning his office before 1517.
He was already dean of the chapel to Thomas Wolsey, and through Wolsey's influence he received preferment. On 1 November 1517 he obtained the prebend of Donnington in the diocese of York, which on 7 May 1523 he exchanged for that of Fridaythorpe in the same see. In October 1518 he was chosen master of Pembroke Hall, and in the same year was appointed rector of Sedgefield
, County Durham
. On 7 May 1522 he was appointed rector of Stackpole in Pembrokeshire
, and on 14 April 1523 he received the prebend of Louth in Lincoln Cathedral
. About this time he was of service to Wolsey in selecting scholars at Cambridge to be invited to join Wolsey's new Cardinal College at Oxford. He received the honorary degree of D.D. from Oxford in 1525.
On 8 April 1527 he was installed canon of Windsor. He was also Queen Catherine of Aragon
's almoner, and, as a staunch Catholic, adhered to the Queen when the divorce question arose. He was one of the few clergymen who supported her cause in convocation. In 1529 Catherine appointed him Master of the college of Stoke-by-Clare
in Sussex
. In 1534 he resigned the mastership of Pembroke Hall, increasingly a Protestant institution. He became archdeacon of Bath in 1535, and, dying on 17 October of the same year, was buried at Stoke-by-Clare. By his will he left money to four Cambridge colleges.
St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's alumni include nine Nobel Prize winners, six Prime Ministers, three archbishops, at least two princes, and three Saints....
and archdeacon of Bath.
Life
He was one of the earliest scholars of Jesus College, CambridgeJesus College, Cambridge
Jesus College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.The College was founded in 1496 on the site of a Benedictine nunnery by John Alcock, then Bishop of Ely...
. He graduated B.A. in 1501 and M.A. in 1503, and was elected fellow of Pembroke Hall on 24 November 1505. In 1507 he was chosen to preach before the university, and in 1509 graduated B.D., and was selected to read the divinity lecture instituted by Lord Chief Justice William Hussey
William Hussey (judge)
Sir William Hussey , SL was an English judge who served as Chief Justice of the King’s Bench....
. On 9 April 1511 he was appointed the first Master of St. John's College, newly founded by Lady Margaret Beaufort. Shorton superintended the progress of the work of building the college, resigning his office before 1517.
He was already dean of the chapel to Thomas Wolsey, and through Wolsey's influence he received preferment. On 1 November 1517 he obtained the prebend of Donnington in the diocese of York, which on 7 May 1523 he exchanged for that of Fridaythorpe in the same see. In October 1518 he was chosen master of Pembroke Hall, and in the same year was appointed rector of Sedgefield
Sedgefield
Sedgefield is a small town and civil parish in County Durham, England. It has a population of 4,534.Sedgefield has attracted particular attention as the Member of Parliament for the wider Sedgefield constituency was the former Prime Minister Tony Blair; he was the area's MP from 1983 to 2008,...
, County Durham
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...
. On 7 May 1522 he was appointed rector of Stackpole in Pembrokeshire
Pembrokeshire
Pembrokeshire is a county in the south west of Wales. It borders Carmarthenshire to the east and Ceredigion to the north east. The county town is Haverfordwest where Pembrokeshire County Council is headquartered....
, and on 14 April 1523 he received the prebend of Louth in Lincoln Cathedral
Lincoln Cathedral
Lincoln Cathedral is a historic Anglican cathedral in Lincoln in England and seat of the Bishop of Lincoln in the Church of England. It was reputedly the tallest building in the world for 249 years . The central spire collapsed in 1549 and was not rebuilt...
. About this time he was of service to Wolsey in selecting scholars at Cambridge to be invited to join Wolsey's new Cardinal College at Oxford. He received the honorary degree of D.D. from Oxford in 1525.
On 8 April 1527 he was installed canon of Windsor. He was also Queen Catherine of Aragon
Catherine of Aragon
Catherine of Aragon , also known as Katherine or Katharine, was Queen consort of England as the first wife of King Henry VIII of England and Princess of Wales as the wife to Arthur, Prince of Wales...
's almoner, and, as a staunch Catholic, adhered to the Queen when the divorce question arose. He was one of the few clergymen who supported her cause in convocation. In 1529 Catherine appointed him Master of the college of Stoke-by-Clare
Stoke-by-Clare
Stoke-by-Clare is a small village in Suffolk located in the valley of the River Stour, about two miles west of Clare.In 1124 Richard de Clare, 1st Earl of Hertford moved the Benedictine Priory that had been established at his castle in Clare to Stoke-by-Clare. The Priory, which was controlled by...
in Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
. In 1534 he resigned the mastership of Pembroke Hall, increasingly a Protestant institution. He became archdeacon of Bath in 1535, and, dying on 17 October of the same year, was buried at Stoke-by-Clare. By his will he left money to four Cambridge colleges.