Maurice Griffith (or Griffin; c. 1507 – 20 November 1558) was a Welshman who became

Bishop of Rochester The Bishop of Rochester is the ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of Rochester in the Province of Canterbury. The town of Rochester has the bishop's seat, at the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary, which was foun ...

Biography

Little is known of his birth but it is thought to have been in the

Caernarfon Caernarfon (; ) is a royal town, community and port in Gwynedd, Wales, with a population of 9,852 (with Caeathro). It lies along the A487 road, on the eastern shore of the Menai Strait, opposite the Isle of Anglesey. The city of Bangor is ...

area around 1507. He was a friar at

Blackfriars, Oxford Blackfriars Priory (formally the Priory of the Holy Spirit) is a Dominican religious community in Oxford, England. It houses two educational institutions: Blackfriars Studium, the centre of theological studies of the English Province of the D ...

and was admitted as B.D. on 5 July 1532. In 1535 was appointed by

John Hilsey John Hilsey (a.k.a. Hildesley or Hildesleigh; died 4 August 1539) was an English Dominican, prior provincial of his order, then an agent of Henry VIII and the English Reformation, and Bishop of Rochester. Life According to Anthony Wood, Hil ...

, then Bishop of Rochester, to be his Vicar-General, and was appointed rector of

St Magnus-the-Martyr St Magnus the Martyr, London Bridge, is a Church of England church and parish within the City of London. The church, which is located in Lower Thames Street near The Monument to the Great Fire of London, is part of the Diocese of London and unde ...

in 1537.Thomas F. Mayer and Courtney B. Walters (2008) ''The Correspondence of Reginald Pole, IV: a Biographical Companion. The British Isles'', p.231 A succession of posts in the church followed, mainly in the Diocese of Rochester but he also maintained his Welsh connection with the see of

St. Asaph St Asaph (; cy, Llanelwy "church on the Elwy") is a city and community on the River Elwy in Denbighshire, Wales. In the 2011 Census it had a population of 3,355, making it the second-smallest city in Britain in terms of population and urban ...

. Only towards the end of his career, in 1554, was he appointed to be Bishop of Rochester.Gareth Alban Davies (2007), 'Maurice Griffin (?-1558), Esgob Rochester', in ''Transactions of the Caernarvonshire Historical Society'', volume 68 (2007).

Necrography

He died on 20 November 1558, probably at the bishop’s palace in

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, and was interred in the church of

, of which was still rector at the time of his death, on 30 November 1558 with much solemnity. In accordance with the Catholic church's desire to restore ecclesiastical pageantry in England, the funeral was a splendid affair, ending in a magnificent dinner. The three leading mourners were Sir

William Petre Sir William Petre (c. 1505 – 1572) (pronounced ''Peter'') was Secretary of State to three successive Tudor monarchs, namely Kings Henry VIII, Edward VI and Queen Mary I. He also deputised for the Secretary of State to Elizabeth I. Educate ...

, Sir

William Garrard This Profile Is Managed By / Garrett(-Garwood), Garrard, Gerard, FitzGerald, FitzWalter, FitzOtho, Gherardini Family Tree Research/Redesign Plan 2022/23. Family Tree Link : https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/tree/184159457?dtid=100 Sir W ...

and

Simon Lowe Simon Lowe is a British actor who, among other titles, has played series regulars in ''Bodies'' (Dr. Tim Sibley), and ''The Grimleys'' (Shane Titley), both of which were written by Jed Mercurio. He also played Derek Evans in '' EastEnders''. In ...

, who were also to be the executors of his will. Both Gerrard and Lowe were parishioners of his at

.Nichols, J.G. (ed.), ''The Diary of Henry Machyn'', Camden Society, Original series 42 (London, 1848), p. 180. The text reads: "The xxx day of November, was sant Andrewes day, the bysshope of Rochestur was cared from the plasse in Sowthwarke unto sant Mangnus in London; for he was parsun ther; and he had a herse of wax, and a v dosen pensels, and the qwyre hangyd with blake and armes; and he had ij whyt branchys and ij dosen torchys; and he had ij haroldes of armes, ser Wylliam Peter cheyff morner, and ser Wylliam Garrett, master Low, master Catter, and dyvers odur, and mony morners; and xij pore men had blake gownes, and xij of ys men bare torchys; and after my lord of Wynchester dyd pryche; and after he was bered they whent to ys plasse to dener, for ther was a grett dener, and he had a gret baner of armes and iiij baners of santes and viij dosen of skochyons." He had been left, with

William Glyn William E. Glyn (1859 – March 23, 1939) was an American based British male tennis player. William Glyn from the Staten Island Cricket and B.B. Club was a finalist in the first U.S. National Championships held in 1881 at the Newport Lawn Tenn ...

Bishop of Bangor The Bishop of Bangor is the ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of Bangor. The see is based in the city of Bangor where the bishop's seat (''cathedra'') is at Cathedral Church of Saint Deiniol. The ''Report of the Commissioners appointed ...

, property from the will of

Geoffrey Glyn Geoffrey Glyn (died 1557), also known as Geoffrey Glynne, was a lawyer, principally known as the founder of Friars School, Bangor. He was born in Heneglwys, Anglesey, the brother or half-brother of William Glyn, later Bishop of Bangor. A graduat ...

, in order to found a school in Bangor in North Wales. As William Glyn had also died and he was the only surviving trustee of Glyn's will, he transmitted this trust by his will to his executors –

and

– who went on to found

Friars School, Bangor Friars School is a school in Bangor, Gwynedd, and one of the oldest schools in Wales. History 1557 Establishment The school was founded by Geoffrey Glyn who had been brought up in Anglesey and had followed a career in law in London. A friary ...

as was intended.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Griffith, Maurice 1500s births 1558 deaths Bishops of Rochester Archdeacons of Rochester 16th-century English Roman Catholic bishops 16th-century Welsh Anglican priests