Rigaud de Asserio

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Rigaud de Asserio (also Rigaud d'Asserio ) (* around 1290 in Assier ; † April 12, 1323 in Avignon ) was a clergyman from France . From 1319 he was bishop of the English diocese of Winchester .

Origin, studies and posting to England

Rigaud de Asserio came from an old French family from Assier in the south of France. Presumably he studied in Paris , where he obtained a doctorate in Roman law . The able young man caught the attention of the newly elected Pope John XXII. who himself came from the Cahors near Assier . In 1316 the Pope procured Rigaud a benefice as a canon at Orléans Cathedral and appointed him Auditor Camerae . In 1317 he was sent to England as papal nuncio to raise St. Peter's penny . To this end, he should review the collection of other fees due to the Pope in England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. Both the English clergy and the nobility, who complained about him during the Parliament of York in 1318 , resisted his demands for payment . Since the powers conferred on Rigaud by the Pope were not precisely limited, King Edward II turned to the Pope to find out the scope of these powers. Finally, the king and the pope came to an agreement, since only a small part of the money collected from Rigaud was sent to the papal court in Avignon , while the majority was given to the English king or his creditors.

Bishop of Winchester

Appointment as bishop

In June 1317, Rigaud received a benefice at St Paul's Cathedral in London. In the same year he was appointed papal chaplain . In May 1319 he received another benefice at Salisbury Cathedral , and he also received other benefices from the Pope in France, including the office of schoolmaster in Orléans . The transfer of this office was apparently an invitation from the Pope to return to France. However, when John Sandale , Bishop of Winchester died on November 2, 1319 , the Pope decided on November 26 to appoint Rigaud as the new bishop of the Diocese of Winchester . On December 12th, the Pope released him from the obligation to come to the papal court for episcopal ordination and allowed him to be ordained by a bishop of his choice. On April 16, 1320, the temporalities of the diocese were given to Rigaud , on September 20 he was ordained a priest and finally on November 17 in St Albans Abbey by Bishop Stephen Gravesend of London.

Act as a bishop

Pope John XXII. had apparently hoped that Rigaud would serve as a moderating advisor to King Edward II, who was in a serious conflict with an aristocratic opposition. In July 1320 the Pope asked Rigaud, who was still not consecrated, to return to Avignon as soon as possible to discuss the situation in England. Rigaud stayed near London, however, and in August 1320 the Pope exhorted him to mediate in the conflict between the king and Thomas of Lancaster , leader of the aristocratic opposition. In January 1321 Edward II sent him to Scotland, where he should try to negotiate a peace with the Scottish King Robert Bruce . During his absence, Rigaud had appointed his brother Gerald de Asserio as vicar general of his diocese. Rigaud's negotiations in Scotland were unsuccessful, so that he returned after three months. Only after his return was he enthroned on June 7, 1321 in Winchester Cathedral . During his brief tenure, Rigaud stayed mostly in the episcopal palaces of Winchester Palace in Southwark and Farnham . He traveled to his diocese only occasionally, probably only visiting Bishop's Waltham apart from Winchester . Since after the vacancy after the death of Bishop Sandale, the royal administrators had transferred large sums of money from the diocesan coffers to the royal coffers, Rigaud had only limited funds despite its actually rich diocese, especially since England continued to suffer from the consequences of a famine .

In December 1321, the King appointed Rigaud head of an embassy, ​​which left on January 18, 1322 for the papal court in Avignon. Rigaud was no longer able to mediate between the king and Lancaster, who had finally started open rebellion against the king. This was bloodily suppressed in the spring of 1322. Rigaud had again appointed his brother Gerald as his representative in the Diocese of Winchester. Rigaud stayed in Avignon and did not return to England until his untimely death. He was buried in Avignon. In addition to his brother Gerald, his nephew Bertrand de Asserio followed him to England. Rigaud also conferred several offices on him, including the post of Master of the Hospital of St Cross at Winchester.

literature

  • Guillaume Mollat : Rigaud d'Assier . In: Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie ecclésiastique , Vol. 4, Paris 1930, Col. 1119

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predecessor Office successor
John sandal Bishop of Winchester
1319-1323
John de Stratford