John LowFryde, et al. ''Handbook of British Chronology'' p. 268 or John LoweFryde, et al. ''Handbook of British Chronology'' p. 296 (c. 1382–1467) was a medieval Bishop of St Asaph and then Bishop of Rochester, in Wales and England respectively. He was an

Augustinian Augustinian may refer to: *Augustinians, members of religious orders following the Rule of St Augustine *Augustinianism, the teachings of Augustine of Hippo and his intellectual heirs *Someone who follows Augustine of Hippo * Canons Regular of Sain ...

monk and opponent of the

Lollard Lollardy, also known as Lollardism or the Lollard movement, was a proto-Protestant Christian religious movement that existed from the mid-14th century until the 16th-century English Reformation. It was initially led by John Wycliffe, a Catho ...

movement. He was born in

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...

, descended from Henry and Isabella Lowe of

Lindridge Lindridge is a village and civil parish in the Malvern Hills District in the north of the county of Worcestershire, England, near the Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) ...

, Worcestershire, who lived in the reign of King

Richard II Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward the Black Prince, Prince of Wales, and Joan, Countess of Kent. Richard's father died ...

. He became an

hermit, and studied at Droitwich. He studied at Lincoln where he was ordained a deacon on 20 December 1403. He was created a

Doctor Doctor or The Doctor may refer to: Personal titles * Doctor (title), the holder of an accredited academic degree * A medical practitioner, including: ** Physician ** Surgeon ** Dentist ** Veterinary physician ** Optometrist *Other roles ** ...

at Oxford before coming to the Augustine House in London in 1420. He was provincial of England for the Augustinian order from 1427 to 1433. About 1432 he was confessor to King Henry VI. He was created Bishop of St. Asaph, Wales, by a papal bull dated 17 August 1433, being consecrated on 1 November 1433. He assisted in the foundation of

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

in 1442 and

King's College, Cambridge King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, the college lies beside the River Cam and faces out onto King's Parade in the centre of the city ...

in 1444. He was translated to the see of Rochester on 26 October 1444. He built the library of the Austin Friars in London in around 1456. He helped John Bury write the ''Gladius Salomonis,'' which criticised

Reginald Pecock Reginald Pecock (or Peacock; c. 1395– c. 1461) was a Welsh prelate, scholastic, and writer. Life Pecock was probably born in Laugharne and was educated at Oriel College, Oxford. Having been ordained priest in 1421, Pecock secured a master ...

, Lowe's successor as Bishop of Asaph, and the writer of ‘''The Repressor of Over Much Blaming of the Clergy''’. Lowe was one of the judges who condemned Pecock for heresy in 1457. Lowe made an agreement with the citizens of Rochester respecting his jurisdiction in the town, and before 1459 built a new palace. In politics Lowe supported the

Yorkist The House of York was a cadet branch of the English royal House of Plantagenet. Three of its members became kings of England in the late 15th century. The House of York descended in the male line from Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York, t ...

cause. In 1460 he joined

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's force at Rochester, went to Dunstable, and was sent as an emissary to Henry VI at Northampton. He did not, however, see the king, but in the same year was commissioned by the Londoners to accompany the Bishop of Ely and others when they went to ask Edward's intentions respecting the crown. He made his will on 15 August 1460, and feeling very infirm in 1465 wished to resign. King Edward IV wrote to the pope on the subject, but before any decision was arrived at Lowe died about 21 November 1467, and was buried on the north side of Rochester Cathedral, where there is an altar monument to him with an inscription. He wrote the following books: * ''Sermones coram Rege'' * ''Conciones per annum'' * ''Lecturæ ordinariæ'' * ''Temporum Historiæ'' * ''Disputationes Theologicæ''

Citations

References

*
Will of John Lowe
Bishop of Rochester, National Archives, 20 November 1470
Lowe, John
New Catholic Encyclopedia, ''Encyclopedia.com.'' 26 October 2021
4339 John Lowe
AugNet Bishops of Rochester Bishops of St Asaph 15th-century English Roman Catholic bishops 1467 deaths Year of birth unknown {{England-bishop-stub