John Lech

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John Lech (also Leek ) († August 10, 1313 ) was an English clergyman. From 1311 he was Archbishop of Dublin .

Origin and advancement as an official and clergyman

John Lech may have been from Yorkshire , where he owned property. He is first mentioned in 1307 as a royal official. Since the Archbishopric of Dublin was vacant at that time after the death of Archbishop Richard of Ferings , King Edward II could dispose of the benefices of the diocese. On September 12, 1307 he appointed Lech Precentor of St Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin . At that time Lech already held a benefice in the Scottish Dunkeld . In 1309 Lech served as the king's almsman .

Unsuccessful fight for the appointment as Bishop of Dunkeld

When Bishop Matthew de Crambeth von Dunkeld died in 1309, Edward II used all his influence in the Curia to make Lech the new bishop of the important Scottish diocese. Allegedly the dean and the cathedral chapter of Dunkeld had already chosen Lech, and the king asked the Pope to confirm the election in order to consolidate peace and English rule in Scotland. On December 14, 1309, King Lech instructed Lech to take over the robes , books and measuring utensils of the deceased bishop , according to Scottish custom . A little later, Lech apparently set out for France to represent his claims directly to the Curia. In Dunkeld, however, there was a Scottish opponent against Lech in William Sinclair . Given the success of the Scots in the fight against English rule , Lech was unable to prevail against this Scottish rival candidate despite the support of the English king. On February 8, 1312, the king finally agreed to the election of Sinclair in a letter to the Pope. In order for Lech to be able to pay the costs for his stay at the Curia, Pope Clement V allowed him on February 21, 1311 to take out a loan of 800 marks .

Archbishop of Dublin

Appointment as archbishop

In Dublin, after the death of Archbishop Fering in late 1306 or early 1307, there was a double choice between the cathedral chapters of the two rival cathedrals. The chapter of Holy Trinity Cathedral had Nicholas Butler , the chapter of St Patrick's Cathedral had elected the royal official Richard de Havering as the new archbishop. The king wanted Havering as archbishop and on September 13th, 1307 he handed over the temporalities of the archbishopric, before transferring the office of precentor to Lech. Havering accepted the income from the diocese, but made no move to be ordained bishop. In November 1310 he finally refused the election, whereupon the two cathedral chapters of Dublin unanimously elected the royal official Alexander Bicknor as the new archbishop in the spring . The king had now apparently recognized that, against the Scottish resistance, the appointment of John Lech as Bishop of Dunkeld would not succeed. He then asked the Pope to appoint Lech as the new Archbishop of Dublin. Despite the election of the cathedral chapters, he had the right to appoint a new archbishop, as Havering had not been consecrated. The Pope followed the king's proposal on May 16, 1311. On May 18, he commissioned three cardinals to hand over the pallium to Lech , but nothing more is known about Lech's episcopal ordination. On July 20, 1311, the temporalities of the diocese were given to him.

Activity as archbishop

In the homage that Lech had to pay the king for the goods of the diocese, he was represented by William de Birston . Lech never came to Dublin as archbishop. Lech probably stayed in France, as he is considered a participant in the Council of Vienne , which was opened by the Pope in October 1311. Apparently shortly before the end of the council in May 1312, Lech presented the Pope with a proposal from an Irish delegation to found a university in Dublin. A little later he traveled back to England from Avignon . On October 1, 1312 he appointed Walter Thornbury in London as his vicar general and as his deputy in Dublin during his absence. On May 20, 1313, the King appointed Lech treasurer of Ireland, but Lech probably did not leave for Ireland before his death. He was probably buried in Westminster Abbey . After Lech's death, the king ordered on October 29, 1313 that the sheriff of Yorkshire should confiscate the Lech estates in York in order to settle Lech's outstanding debts to the crown.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Aubrey Gwynn: The medieval university of St Patrick's, Dublin . In: Studies: an Irish Quarterly Review, 27 (1938), p. 208.
  2. ^ Aubrey Gwynn: The medieval university of St Patrick's, Dublin . In: Studies: an Irish Quarterly Review , 27 (1938), p. 209.
  3. ^ Aubrey Gwynn: The medieval university of St Patrick's, Dublin . In: Studies: an Irish Quarterly Review , 27 (1938), p. 204.
  4. ^ Aubrey Gwynn: The medieval university of St Patrick's, Dublin . In: Studies: an Irish Quarterly Review , 27 (1938), p. 205.
  5. ^ A b Aubrey Gwynn: The medieval university of St Patrick's, Dublin . In: Studies: an Irish Quarterly Review , 27 (1938), p. 206.
  6. ^ Geoffrey J. Hand: The rivalry of the cathedral chapters in medieval Dublin . In: Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland , 92 (1962), p. 204.
  7. ^ Aubrey Gwynn: The medieval university of St Patrick's, Dublin . In: Studies: an Irish Quarterly Review , 27 (1938), p. 207.
  8. ^ A b Aubrey Gwynn: The medieval university of St Patrick's, Dublin . In: Studies: an Irish Quarterly Review , 27 (1938), p. 210.
  9. ^ Aubrey Gwynn: The medieval university of St Patrick's, Dublin . In: Studies: an Irish Quarterly Review , 27 (1938), p. 438.
predecessor Office successor
Richard de Havering Archbishop of Dublin
1311-1313 		Alexander Bicknor
personal data
SURNAME Lech, John
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Leek, John
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English clergyman, Archbishop of Dublin
DATE OF BIRTH 13th Century
DATE OF DEATH August 10, 1313