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Eustace (died 1215) was the twenty-third
Lord Chancellor The lord chancellor, formally the lord high chancellor of Great Britain, is the highest-ranking traditional minister among the Great Officers of State in Scotland and England in the United Kingdom, nominally outranking the prime minister. The ...
of England, from 1197 to 1198. He was also
Dean of Salisbury The Dean of Salisbury is the head of the chapter of Salisbury Cathedral in the Church of England. The Dean assists the archdeacon of Sarum and bishop of Ramsbury in the diocese of Salisbury. List of deans High Medieval * Walter * Osbert *?â ...
and Bishop of Ely.


Early life

Eustace was probably French or Norman by birth, and was educated at Paris. He was a student with
Gerald of Wales Gerald of Wales ( la, Giraldus Cambrensis; cy, Gerallt Gymro; french: Gerald de Barri; ) was a Cambro-Norman priest and English historians in the Middle Ages, historian. As a royal clerk to the king and two archbishops, he travelled widely and w ...
, who remained a lifelong friend.Owen "Eustace" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' After his education was finished, he was considered a master, or magister.Gillingham ''Richard I'' p. 259 By 1177, he was a clerk for Robert Foliot, who was Bishop of Hereford, and he stayed at Hereford until around 1186. By 1190, he held the office of parson of Withcall, Lincolnshire. He entered the king's service sometime before 1194, for he was Dean of Salisbury by 5 May 1194.Greenway
Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300: Volume 4: Salisbury: Deans
'
He held the offices of Archdeacon of Richmond, treasurer of the East Riding and
archdeacon of the East Riding The Archdeacon of the East Riding is a senior ecclesiastical officer of an archdeaconry, or subdivision, of the Church of England Diocese of York in the Province of York. It is named for the East Riding of Yorkshire and consists of the eight rur ...
after this.Greenway
Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300: Volume 6: York: Archdeacons of East Riding
'


Bishop

Eustace was elected to the
see of Ely See or SEE may refer to: * Sight - seeing Arts, entertainment, and media * Music: ** ''See'' (album), studio album by rock band The Rascals *** "See", song by The Rascals, on the album ''See'' ** "See" (Tycho song), song by Tycho * Television * ...
on 10 August 1197 and consecrated on 8 March 1198.Fryde, et al. ''Handbook of British Chronology'' p. 244 He had been elected at Vaudreuil, but King
Richard I of England Richard I (8 September 1157 â€“ 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was ...
sent him on a diplomatic mission to Germany after his election, which kept him from being consecrated until 1198. The consecration was performed by Hubert Walter, the
Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...
at
Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...
. Eustace was Lord Chancellor from May 1198 to May 1199.Fryde, et al. ''Handbook of British Chronology'' p. 84 During this time he also acted as a royal justice, and in January 1199, Richard sent him to King
Philip II of France Philip II (21 August 1165 – 14 July 1223), byname Philip Augustus (french: Philippe Auguste), was King of France from 1180 to 1223. His predecessors had been known as kings of the Franks, but from 1190 onward, Philip became the first French ...
to notify the French king that the truce between Philip and Richard was over. With the death of King Richard and the accession of King
John of England John (24 December 1166 â€“ 19 October 1216) was King of England from 1199 until his death in 1216. He lost the Duchy of Normandy and most of his other French lands to King Philip II of France, resulting in the collapse of the Angevin Emp ...
, Eustace was replaced as chancellor by Hubert Walter, but Eustace was still employed by the king on diplomatic errands, including two errands to the French king, in 1202 and 1204. It was at this time that Pope
Innocent III Pope Innocent III ( la, Innocentius III; 1160 or 1161 – 16 July 1216), born Lotario dei Conti di Segni (anglicized as Lothar of Segni), was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 January 1198 to his death in 16 J ...
began to use Eustace as a
papal judge-delegate A papal judge delegate was a type of judicial appointment created during the 12th century by the medieval papacy where the pope would designate a local judge, often an ecclesiastic, to decide a case that had been appealed to the papal court. Histo ...
, first appointing him to help mediate a dispute between Hubert Walter and the monks of Canterbury. Eustace was appointed one of the papal commissioners to investigate and settle the attempt by
Savaric FitzGeldewin Savaric fitzGeldewin (died 8 August 1205) was an Englishman who became Bishop of Bath and Glastonbury in England. Related to his predecessor as well as to Emperor Henry VI, he was elected bishop on the insistence of his predecessor, who urged hi ...
the
Bishop of Wells The Bishop of Bath and Wells heads the Church of England Diocese of Bath and Wells in the Province of Canterbury in England. The present diocese covers the overwhelmingly greater part of the (ceremonial) county of Somerset and a small area of ...
to take over
Glastonbury Abbey Glastonbury Abbey was a monastery in Glastonbury, Somerset, England. Its ruins, a grade I listed building and scheduled ancient monument, are open as a visitor attraction. The abbey was founded in the 8th century and enlarged in the 10th. It wa ...
as Savaric's new cathedral site. The commissioners set forth a plan, but Savaric died soon after and Pope Innocent III was persuaded to disallow the move.Knowles ''Monastic Order'' p. 329 During King John's dispute with the pope over the election of
Stephen Langton Stephen Langton (c. 1150 â€“ 9 July 1228) was an English Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church and Archbishop of Canterbury between 1207 and his death in 1228. The dispute between King John of England and Pope Innocent III over his ...
as Archbishop of Canterbury, the pope once more chose Eustace as a commissioner in August 1207, along with
William of Sainte-Mère-Eglise William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
, the
Bishop of London 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 ca ...
, and Mauger the
Bishop of Worcester 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 ca ...
.Warren ''King John'' p. 164 The commission tried to convince the king to accept Langton, but eventually in March 1208, they pronounced an interdict on England because of John's refusal to accept Langton.Turner ''King John'' pp. 117–118 In July 1208 the commissioners once more attempted to negotiate with John, this time in company with Langton's brother Simon Langton. They waited eight weeks for a meeting, but the king never received them. A year later, the king finally met with them at Dover. Although an agreement was reached, it was never put into effect, and negotiations reached a stalemate. In November, the commissioners declared John
excommunicated Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to end or at least regulate the communion of a member of a congregation with other members of the religious institution who are in normal communion with each other. The purpose ...
.Turner ''King John'' pp. 120–121 Eustace had been in exile since the proclamation of the interdict in 1208.Warren ''King John'' p. 169 In 1212, Eustace journeyed to Rome to complain to Innocent about John's oppression of the English Church.


Later life and death

When John made his peace with Innocent, Eustace was allowed to return to England, and it was Eustace who formally lifted the excommunication of John on 2 July 1214. John had pledged to compensate Eustace for the damages done to Ely during the interdict, which were estimated to have been around £1000. When John came into conflict with the barons, the king attempted to win over Eustace by giving Ely the royal rights of patronage to
Thorney Abbey Thorney Abbey, now the Church of St Mary and St Botolph, was a medieval monastic house established on the island of Thorney in The Fens of Cambridgeshire, England. History The earliest documentary sources refer to a mid-7th century hermita ...
. Eustace died at
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
on 3 February 1215 or on 4 February.Greenway
Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300: Volume 2: Monastic Cathedrals (Northern and Southern Provinces): Ely: Bishops
''
He was buried in
Ely Cathedral Ely Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, is an Anglican cathedral in the city of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England. The cathedral has its origins in AD 672 when St Etheldreda built an abbey church. The presen ...
near the altar of St. Mary. A modern historian, C. R. Cheney, said of Eustace that even though he started as a royal official, he "rose to isresponsibilities" as bishop.Cheney ''Becket to Langton'' p. 29 It was a letter of Eustace to Innocent that caused Innocent to write a letter back entitled ''Pastoralis officii diligentia'', which later was incorporated into
Gratian Gratian (; la, Gratianus; 18 April 359 – 25 August 383) was emperor of the Western Roman Empire from 367 to 383. The eldest son of Valentinian I, Gratian accompanied his father on several campaigns along the Rhine and Danube frontiers and wa ...
's ''
Decretals Decretals ( la, litterae decretales) are letters of a pope that formulate decisions in ecclesiastical law of the Catholic Church.McGurk. ''Dictionary of Medieval Terms''. p. 10 They are generally given in answer to consultations but are sometimes ...
''.Cheney ''Becket to Langton'' pp. 53–54 Eustace was also active in promoting the canonization of
Gilbert of Sempringham Gilbert of Sempringham (c. 1085 – 4 February 1189) the founder of the Gilbertine Order, was the only Medieval Englishman to found a conventual order, mainly because the Abbot of Cîteaux declined his request to assist him in organising a gro ...
. He also investigated alleged miracles of
Wulfstan of Worcester Wulfstan ( â€“ 20 January 1095) was Bishop of Worcester from 1062 to 1095. He was the last surviving pre-Conquest bishop. Wulfstan is a saint in the Western Christian churches. Denomination His denomination as Wulfstan II is to indicate t ...
. He also built the church of St. Mary, in Ely.


Citations


References

* * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Eustace Lord chancellors of England Deans of Salisbury Archdeacons of the East Riding 1215 deaths 12th-century English Roman Catholic bishops 13th-century English Roman Catholic bishops Archdeacons of Richmond 12th-century births Year of birth unknown