Robert Wauchope (c. 1500 1551) was a Scots-born cleric, who was the

Roman Catholic Archbishop of Armagh The Archdiocese of Armagh ( la, Archidioecesis Ardmachana; ga, Ard-Deoise Ard Mhacha) is an ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church ( particularly the Roman Catholic or Latin Church) located in the northern part of Ire ...

from 1539 to 1551. He was born at Nidrie Marischal near

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, son of Gilbert Wauchope, who was the head of the family which owned Niddrie Marischal for several centuries. Robert is known to have been nearly blind from an early age (there are conflicting accounts of precisely how bad his eyesight was), yet he somehow overcame this handicap and became an outstanding scholar. He is recorded as studying at the

University of Paris , image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of Arms , latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis , motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin) , mottoeng = Here and a ...

in 1526, and also studied for a time with Hector Boece at

King's College, Aberdeen King's College in Old Aberdeen, Scotland, the full title of which is The University and King's College of Aberdeen (''Collegium Regium Abredonense''), is a formerly independent university founded in 1495 and now an integral part of the Universi ...

. He was a friend of

Erasmus Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (; ; English: Erasmus of Rotterdam or Erasmus;''Erasmus'' was his baptismal name, given after St. Erasmus of Formiae. ''Desiderius'' was an adopted additional name, which he used from 1496. The ''Roterodamus'' wa ...

. He was considered one of the best theologians of his day, taking a prominent role at the conference at

Worms Worms may refer to: *Worm, an invertebrate animal with a tube-like body and no limbs Places *Worms, Germany, a city **Worms (electoral district) *Worms, Nebraska, U.S. *Worms im Veltlintal, the German name for Bormio, Italy Arts and entertainme ...

in 1540 and the Diet of Ratisbon in 1541. He also attended the early sessions of the

Council of Trent The Council of Trent ( la, Concilium Tridentinum), held between 1545 and 1563 in Trento, Trent (or Trento), now in northern Italian Peninsula, Italy, was the 19th ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. Prompted by the Protestant Reformation ...

. Pius IV relied heavily on his advice. Wauchope worked as a theologian in Rome, and was probably not consecrated until the death of his predecessor in the See of Armagh,

George Cromer George Cromer (died 16 March 1542) was Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland in the reign of Henry VIII of England, from 1521/2. He was English by birth, a descendant of the Cromer (also spelt Crowemer) family of Tunstall, Kent and ...

, in 1543. Cromer was suspected of

heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important religi ...

by the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of Rome ...

, and was deposed by

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 ...

during the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

. The King appointed

George Dowdall George Dowdall (1487 – 15 August 1558) was a sixteenth-century Irish cleric, who was twice Archbishop of Armagh. He was born in Drogheda, the son of Edward Dowdall. The Dowdall family came to Ireland from Dovedale in Derbyshire in the thirte ...

to the See, and Dowdall denounced Wauchope when he arrived in Ireland. Wauchope returned to Rome where he was made

legate Legate may refer to: *Legatus, a higher ranking general officer of the Roman army drawn from among the senatorial class :*Legatus Augusti pro praetore, a provincial governor in the Roman Imperial period *A member of a legation *A representative, ...

to Ireland, but he died soon afterwards, before he could return to Ireland to reclaim the Archdiocese.

References

Roman Catholic archbishops of Armagh Scottish Roman Catholic theologians 16th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Ireland Alumni of the University of Aberdeen Clergy from Edinburgh 16th-century Scottish clergy 1500s births Year of birth uncertain 1551 deaths Expatriate Roman Catholic archbishops Scottish expatriates in Ireland {{Christian-theologian-stub