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Edward Foxe (c. 1496 – 8 May 1538) was an English churchman,
Bishop of Hereford The Bishop of Hereford is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Hereford in the Province of Canterbury. The episcopal see is centred in the City of Hereford where the bishop's seat (''cathedra'') is in the Cathedral Church of Saint ...
. He played a major role in
Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...
's divorce from
Catherine of Aragon Catherine of Aragon (also spelt as Katherine, ; 16 December 1485 – 7 January 1536) was Queen of England as the first wife of King Henry VIII from their marriage on 11 June 1509 until their annulment on 23 May 1533. She was previously ...
, and he assisted in drafting the '' Ten Articles'' of 1536.


Early life

He was born at Dursley in
Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...
, and may have been related to Richard Fox,
Bishop of Exeter The Bishop of Exeter is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Exeter in the Province of Canterbury. Since 30 April 2014 the ordinary has been Robert Atwell.
and
Lord Privy Seal The Lord Privy Seal (or, more formally, the Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal) is the fifth of the Great Officers of State (United Kingdom), Great Officers of State in the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord President of the Council and abov ...
under King Henry VII. Foxe was educated at
Eton College Eton College () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI of England, Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. i ...
and at King's College, Cambridge. After graduating in 1520, he was made secretary to
Cardinal Wolsey Thomas Wolsey ( – 29 November 1530) was an English statesman and Catholic bishop. When Henry VIII became King of England in 1509, Wolsey became the king's almoner. Wolsey's affairs prospered and by 1514 he had become the controlling figur ...
in 1527. In 1528 he was sent with Bishop Stephen Gardiner to Rome to obtain from Pope Clement VII a decretal commission for the trial and decision of the case between King
Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...
and his first wife,
Catherine of Aragon Catherine of Aragon (also spelt as Katherine, ; 16 December 1485 – 7 January 1536) was Queen of England as the first wife of King Henry VIII from their marriage on 11 June 1509 until their annulment on 23 May 1533. She was previously ...
.


Academic career

Foxe served as Provost of King's College from 22 September 1528 until 8 May 1538, and in August 1529 was the means of conveying to the king Thomas Cranmer's historic advice that he should apply to the universities of Europe rather than to the pope. After a brief mission to Paris in October 1529, Foxe in January 1530 befriended Hugh Latimer at Cambridge and took an active part in persuading the English universities to decide in the king's favour. He was sent to employ similar methods of persuasion at the French universities in 1530–1531, and was also engaged in negotiating a closer league between England and France.


Clerical career

Foxe served as the king's almoner c. 1532 – 1537, and as prolocutor of
convocation A convocation (from the Latin ''wikt:convocare, convocare'' meaning "to call/come together", a translation of the Ancient Greek, Greek wikt:ἐκκλησία, ἐκκλησία ''ekklēsia'') is a group of people formally assembled for a speci ...
in April 1533 when it decided against the validity of Henry's marriage with Catherine. In 1534 he published his treatise ''De vera differentia regiae potestatis et ecclesiae,'' defending the
Royal Supremacy The Acts of Supremacy are two acts passed by the Parliament of England in the 16th century that established the English monarchs as the head of the Church of England; two similar laws were passed by the Parliament of Ireland establishing the ...
by use of the documents collated in the ''
Collectanea satis copiosa The ''Collectanea satis copiosa'' (Latin: ‘The Sufficiently Abundant Collections’) was a collection of scriptural, historical, and patristic texts that was compiled to provide royal propagandists with arguments justifying Henry VIII's personal ...
''. Various ecclesiastical preferments were now granted him, including the archdeaconry of Leicester (1531–1535), the archdeaconry of Dorset (1533–1535), the deanery of Salisbury (1533) and the bishopric of
Hereford Hereford () is a cathedral city, civil parish and the county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, south-west of Worcester and north-west of Gloucester. With a population ...
(1535). He was nominated to the See of Hereford on 20 August 1535, elected by the college of Hereford on 25 August, confirmed on 15 September, and ordained a
bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...
on 26 September 1535; he received the temporalities on 7 September and the spiritualities on 14 October 1535. In 1535–36 he was sent to
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...
to discuss the basis of a political and theological understanding with the Lutheran princes and divines, and had several interviews with
Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation and the namesake of Luther ...
, who could not be persuaded of the justice of Henry VIII's divorce. Henry was unwilling to endorse the
Augsburg Confession The Augsburg Confession, also known as the Augustan Confession or the Augustana from its Latin name, ''Confessio Augustana'', is the primary confession of faith of the Lutheran Church and one of the most important documents of the Protestant ...
and, in 1536, the Wittenberg articles were drafted by Foxe and Lutheran clergymen as a compromise. The articles met strong opposition within convocation in June of the same year, leading Henry to personally intervene to bring about an agreement. This led to the drafting and passing of the Ten Articles by convocation. In 1536,
Martin Bucer Martin Bucer (early German: ''Martin Butzer''; 11 November 1491 – 28 February 1551) was a German Protestant reformer based in Strasbourg who influenced Lutheran, Calvinist, and Anglican doctrines and practices. Bucer was originally a ...
dedicated his ''Commentaries on the Gospels'' to Foxe.


Death and legacy

Foxe died on 8 May 1538 and was buried in the church of
St Mary Mounthaw St Mary Mounthaw or Mounthaut was a parish church in Old Fish Street Hill in the City of London. Of medieval origin, it was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666 and not rebuilt. History The church stood on the west side of Old Fish St ...
,
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
. Foxe is credited with the authorship of several proverbial sayings, such as "the surest way to peace is a constant preparedness for war" and "time and I will challenge any two in the world." However, the former is a paraphrase of '' si vis pacem, para bellum'', while the latter is more usually ascribed to
Philip II of Spain Philip II) in Spain, while in Portugal and his Italian kingdoms he ruled as Philip I ( pt, Filipe I). (21 May 152713 September 1598), also known as Philip the Prudent ( es, Felipe el Prudente), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from ...
.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Foxe, Edward 1490s births 1538 deaths Alumni of King's College, Cambridge People educated at Eton College People from Dursley Bishops of Hereford Archdeacons of Leicester Archdeacons of Dorset 16th-century Church of England bishops Provosts of King's College, Cambridge