Robert of Holy Island

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Robert of Holy Island
Denomination Catholic
Senior posting
See Diocese of Durham
Title Bishop of Durham
Period in office 1274–1283
Predecessor Robert Stitchill
Successor Antony Bek
Personal
Date of death June 7, 1283

Robert of Holy Island or Robert de Insula was a medieval Bishop of Durham.

Robert was the son of crofters and was a native of the island of Lindisfarne.[1] He had a brother, Henry, who became Robert's executor. He became a Benedictine monk at Durham, where he served as sacrist from 1265 to 1269. He was prior of Durham's dependent monastic cell at Finchale by 1272. Robert was sent as a representative of the Durham cathedral chapter to the Second Council of Lyon in 1274.[2] He was elected to the see of Durham on September 24, 1274.[3] He was consecrated on December 9, 1274 at York.[2]

While Robert was bishop, in 1281, the Archbishop of York William Wickwane declared that he was going to inspect the cathedral chapter at Durham. The monks claimed an exemption from oversight by the archbishops of York, and were supported by Robert as bishop. When the archbishop attempted to enter the cathedral chapter in June of 1281, he found the doors shut and locked. Both sides sued each other, and the resulting litigation dragged on for year. In fact, it was never technically resolved, and is one of the longest law cases on record.[2]

He died on June 7, 1283[4] at Bishop Middleham. He was buried in the chapter house at Durham Cathedral on June 10, 1283.[2]

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Moorman Church Life p. 25
  2. ^ a b c d Piper "Holy Island, Robert of (d. 1283)" Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
  3. ^ British History Online Bishops of Durham accessed on October 25, 2007
  4. ^ Fryde Handbook of British Chronology p. 242

[edit] References

  • British History Online Bishops of Durham accessed on October 25, 2007
  • Fryde, E. B.; Greenway, D. E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I. (1996). Handbook of British Chronology, Third Edition, revised, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-56350-X. 
  • Moorman, John R. H. (1955). Church Life in England in the Thirteenth Century, Revised Edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 
  • Piper, A. J. "Holy Island, Robert of (d. 1283)" Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Oxford University Press, 2004 Online Edition accessed February 2, 2008
Roman Catholic Church titles
Preceded by
Robert Stitchill		 Bishop of Durham
1274–1283		 Succeeded by
Antony Bek
Persondata
NAME Robert of Holy Island
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Insula, Robert de
SHORT DESCRIPTION Bishop of Durham
DATE OF BIRTH
PLACE OF BIRTH
DATE OF DEATH June 7, 1283
PLACE OF DEATH
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