Thomas Beckington

Portrait of Thomas Beckington on the grave designed by him

Thomas Beckington (born around 1390 in Beckington in Somerset , † January 14, 1465 in Wells ) was an English clergyman and bishop of Bath and Wells .

education

Born the son of a weaver , Beckington grew up in his native Somerset. He received his education from 1403 at Winchester College in the county of Hampshire . 1406 he was to study at New College of Oxford University admitted. There he obtained a Bachelor of Civil Law and received his doctorate in canon law in 1418 . Beckington was a Fellow at New College as early as 1408 , a position he held until 1420.

Professional background

Mediated by his alma mater , Beckington received his first job as pastor in 1418 at St Leonard's Chapel near Hastings in East Sussex . Between 1420 and 1423 he entered the service of Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester , who appointed him his chancellor . In addition, Beckington was from 1422 on the legal advisers of Henry Chichele , at that time Archbishop of Canterbury . Initially, Beckington held the office of Dean of Arches from February 1423 . His close ties to the Archbishop of Canterbury also earned him a lucrative pastoral position in Sutton Courtenay , which he held in 1420. This was followed by delegations as capitulars to Gnosall , Penkridge , York and Salisbury . Beckington also served briefly in the Buckingham Archdeaconate . A papal indult in 1427 allowed him to stay in Buckingham. From this point on he withdrew a little from the public and was only active at the regional level for the church. With the takeover of the crown by Henry VI. put Beckington back at the center of public life. He was secretary to the king and was sent by him as part of a delegation to Calais in 1439 to negotiate a peace treaty with France. In 1442 the king sent him again to France to arrange a marriage with one of the daughters of Jean IV d'Armagnac . After his return he was appointed Lord Seal Keeper in July 1443 . He held this post for a year. On October 13, 1443, Beckington succeeded John Stafford as Bishop of Wells. He held this office until his death. He was very active as a bishop. He visited many of the monasteries in his diocese and promoted the training of young clergymen. He also commissioned numerous buildings in Wells, including the city's water supply and several residential buildings at the northern end of the market square. After his death on January 14, 1465, Beckington was buried in a grave designed by himself.

literature

• Robert W. Dunning: Beckington, Thomas (1390? -1465) . In: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography . Oxford University Press, Oxford 2008, doi : 10.1093 / ref: odnb / 1908 ( oxforddnb.com [accessed May 21, 2014]).