Thomas Cranley
Thomas Cranley ( c.1337-1417 ) was a leading statesman and cleric in early fourteenth-century Ireland, who held the offices of Chancellor of Oxford, Archbishop of Dublin and Lord Chancellor of Ireland.
Early career
He was born in England about 1337, entered the Carmelite order, is recorded as a fellow of Merton College, Oxford in 1366, became Warden of New College in 1389 and Chancellor of Oxford in 1390.[1]
Irish career
In 1397 on the death of Richard de Northalis he was made Archbishop of Dublin and arrived in Ireland the following year. After the accession of King Henry IV he undertook a mission on his behalf to Rome before being made Lord Chancellor of Ireland in 1401. When Henry's son Thomas, Duke of Clarence was made Lord Deputy Cranley was appointed to his council. A letter he sent to the King around the end of 1402 paints a grim picture of English rule in Ireland. Cranley assures the King of his absolute loyalty and duty to both the King and his son, but implores the King to send money and aid since " your son is so destitute of money that he has not a penny in the world ..and his soldiers have departed from him, and the people of his household are on the point of leaving."[2] The King , who was generally short of money, is not known to have responded.
Pressure of business, ill health and old age made Cranley increasingly unable to perform his duties, and the office of Chancellor was carried out by a deputy, Laurence de Merbury. Cranley resigned in 1410, but in 1413 the new King Henry V reappointed him Chancellor. This is a tribute to the high regard in which the Crown, and the Lord Lieutenant the 1st Earl of Shrewsbury held him; he also acted as justiciar.In 1417 he was asked to present a memorial on the state of Ireland to the Crown; he reached England, but died at Faringdon in Berkshire on 25 May. He was buried in New College, Oxford: the inscription on his tomb hails him as " the flower of prelates".[3]
Appearance and character
Early historians warmly praised Cranley for both mental and physical qualities : "thou art fair beyond the children of men, grace is diffused through thy lips because of thine eloquence". He is described as tall and commanding in appearance with fair hair and a ruddy complexion, witty, eloquent and learned. As a cleric he was described as charitable, a notable preacher and a great builder of churches.[4]