George Gardiner (1535?–1589) was an English churchman,
Dean of Norwich
The Dean of Norwich is the head of the Chapter of Norwich Cathedral in Norwich, England. The role is vacant since Jane Hedges' retirement on 1 May 2022.
List of deans
Early modern
*1538–1539 William Castleton (last prior)
*1539–1554 J ...
from 1573.
Life
The son of George Gardiner (abt 1509 – abt 1536) and Margaret Neville (abt 1515 – 15 October 1559), was born at
Berwick-on-Tweed in 1537. He was a scholar of
Christ's College, Cambridge
Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college includes the Master, the Fellows of the College, and about 450 undergraduate and 170 graduate students. The college was founded by William Byngham in 1437 as ...
, where he proceeded B.A. in 1554.
He took the M.A. degree in 1558, having in the meantime become a fellow of
Queens' College, Cambridge
Queens' College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Queens' is one of the oldest colleges of the university, founded in 1448 by Margaret of Anjou. The college spans the River Cam, colloquially referred to as the "light s ...
, an appointment of which he was deprived on 6 August 1561 for his continued absence from Cambridge.
In December 1560, supported by
Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester
Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester, (24 June 1532 – 4 September 1588) was an English statesman and the favourite of Elizabeth I from her accession until his death. He was a suitor for the queen's hand for many years.
Dudley's youth was ov ...
who was always a firm friend, he was presented by
the queen
In the English-speaking world, The Queen most commonly refers to:
* Elizabeth II (1926–2022), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 1952 until her death
The Queen may also refer to:
* Camilla, Queen Consort (born 1947), ...
to the living of
Chatton
Chatton is a village in Northumberland, in England. It is roughly to the east of Wooler.
History
Chatton has been occupied for many centuries. There has been a church on the site since the twelfth century. There is evidence of occupation in ...
,
Northumberland
Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey.
It is bordered by land on ...
. In or about 1562 he became a minor canon of
Norwich Cathedral
Norwich Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Norwich, Norfolk, dedicated to the Holy and Undivided Trinity. It is the cathedral church for the Church of England Diocese of Norwich and is one of the Norwich 12 heritage sites.
The cathedral ...
, and was appointed minister to the church of St. Andrew in the city. He was promoted to be prebendary in 1565, and in 1570 was one of those who entered the choir of the cathedral and, among other acts, broke down the organ. In the previous year, at a metropolitan visitation, articles had been lodged against him charging him with having been ‘a man very unquiet, troublesome, and dissenting, setting debate between man and man.’ It was also said that in
Queen Mary's time he had persecuted persons supposed to favour the gospel at the universities.
In 1571 Gardiner gave up his Norwich living on being instituted by the
Merchant Taylors' Company
]
The Worshipful Company of Merchant Taylors is one of the 110 Livery company, livery companies of the City of London.
The Company, originally known as the ''Guild and Fraternity of St John the Baptist in the City of London'', was founded prio ...
to the rectory of
St Martin Outwich, London, which he resigned in 1574, and in the same year he was collated to the living of
Morley, Norfolk
Morley is a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The name is first attested in 1086 as ''Morlea'', which probably meant "open ground by a pasture/clearing", from Old English ''mōr'' " moor, clearing, pasture" + lẽah "open ground, c ...
. In 1575 he became
archdeacon of Norwich
The Archdeacon of Norwich is a senior ecclesiastical officer in the Church of England Diocese of Norwich, who exercises supervision of clergy and responsibility for church buildings within the geographical area of her or his archdeaconry.
History
...
. He had represented to Leicester that the appointment had lapsed to the crown in consequence of a prolonged lawsuit between two candidates. The Bishop of Norwich,
John Parkhurst
John Parkhurst (c. 1512 – 2 February 1575) was an English Marian exile and from 1560 the Bishop of Norwich.
Early life
Born about 1512, he was son of George Parkhurst of Guildford, Surrey. He initially attended the Royal Grammar School, Guild ...
, whose own candidate was one of the disputants, refused to recognise Gardiner as archdeacon; but in October 1573 the bishop promised to support him for the deanery, then vacant, if he would give up the archdeaconry. But Gardiner had already had resort to Leicester and
Lord Burghley
William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley (13 September 15204 August 1598) was an English statesman, the chief adviser of Queen Elizabeth I for most of her reign, twice Secretary of State (1550–1553 and 1558–1572) and Lord High Treasurer from 1 ...
, and was nominated dean unconditionally, in spite of his bishop's opposition. Both Leicester and the queen ordered the bishop to desist, and ultimately Parkhurst and Gardiner were on good terms. Gardiner erected a monument to Parkhurst's memory in the cathedral.
In 1573 Gardiner was also appointed chaplain to the queen, and in the following year he was in attendance at court. In the same year he was on a commission of
oyer and terminer
In English law, oyer and terminer (; a partial translation of the Anglo-French ''oyer et terminer'', which literally means "to hear and to determine") was one of the commissions by which a judge of assize sat. Apart from its Law French name, the ...
for the county of Norfolk to examine into offences against the
Act of Uniformity. In 1578 he was vicar-general of Norwich, apparently for only a short period. In 1575 he obtained the vicarage of
Swaffham
Swaffham () is a market town and civil parish in the Breckland District and English county of Norfolk. It is situated east of King's Lynn and west of Norwich.
The civil parish has an area of and in the 2001 census had a population of 6,9 ...
by gift of the queen, in 1579 the rectory of
Haylesden, in 1580 that of
Blofield
Blofield is a village and civil parish in the Broadland district of Norfolk, England. The parish includes Blofield and the hamlets of Blofield Heath and Blofield Corner and, according to the 2001 census, had a population of 3,221, increasing to ...
, in 1583 that of
Ashill, and in 1584 that of
Forncett
Forncett is a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk.
It covers an area of and had a population of 1,000 in 381 households at the 2001 census, increasing to 1,126 at the 2011 census.
For the purposes of local government, it falls within ...
, all in Norfolk. He held also the rectory of
West Stow
West Stow is a small village and civil parish in West Suffolk, England. The village lies north of Bury St. Edmunds, south of Mildenhall and Thetford and west of the villages of Culford and Ingham in the area known as the Breckland. This ar ...
,
Suffolk
Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...
.
Gardiner had duties too in London, and in February 1587 a formal complaint was made against him, among others, for neglecting to preach at
St Paul's Cross
St Paul's Cross (alternative spellings – "Powles Crosse") was a preaching cross and open-air pulpit in the grounds of Old St Paul's Cathedral, City of London. It was the most important public pulpit in Tudor and early Stuart England, and ma ...
according to a monition. As dean of Norwich he improved the revenues of the cathedral. Part of the church lands had been annexed by
Sir Thomas Shirley and others, on various pretexts. Gardiner, by dint of his influence at court and many lawsuits, finally, in 1588, obtained a royal warrant ordering the patentees to surrender the church lands, for some compensation.
In the later years of his life Gardiner was much invalided by
gout
Gout ( ) is a form of inflammatory arthritis characterized by recurrent attacks of a red, tender, hot and swollen joint, caused by deposition of monosodium urate monohydrate crystals. Pain typically comes on rapidly, reaching maximal intensit ...
. He died about June 1589, and was buried in the south aisle of his cathedral, where was his tomb, with a Latin inscription. A number of his letter are printed in
John Strype
John Strype (1 November 1643 – 11 December 1737) was an English clergyman, historian and biographer from London. He became a merchant when settling in Petticoat Lane. In his twenties, he became perpetual curate of Theydon Bois, Essex and lat ...
's ''Annals''.
Gardiner was married to Dorothy Constable (abt 1536 - abt 1589) around the year 1564.
He had at least two children with her:
Sir Thomas Gardiner (abt 1565 - abt 1635) who married Elizabeth White and had issue.
Lionel Gardiner (abt 1573 - abt 1610) who married Elizabeth Woodhouse and had issue.
References
*
Notes
;Attribution
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gardiner, George
1535 births
1589 deaths
Deans of Norwich
Archdeacons of Norwich
People from Berwick-upon-Tweed
Alumni of Christ's College, Cambridge
Fellows of Queens' College, Cambridge
16th-century English Anglican priests
English chaplains
Christian chaplains
Burials at Norwich Cathedral