Richard Fetherston (Fetherstone, Featherstone) (died 30 July 1540) was an English

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

priest. He was

Archdeacon of Brecon An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denominations, above that of mos ...

"Pedro de Ribadeneyra’s 'Ecclesiastical History of the Schism of the Kingdom" p303: Leiden, Brill, 1683 and Chaplain to

Catharine of Aragon Catherine of Aragon (also spelt as Katherine, ; 16 December 1485 – 7 January 1536) was Queen of England as the first wife of King Henry VIII from their marriage on 11 June 1509 until their annulment on 23 May 1533. She was previously P ...

and tutor to her daughter, Mary Tudor. He was executed in 1540 and

beatified Beatification (from Latin ''beatus'', "blessed" and ''facere'', "to make”) is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a deceased person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their nam ...

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-old ...

on 29 December 1886.

Life

He is called ''sacrae theologiae Doctor'' by

John Pits John Pitts (also Pits, Pitseus) (1560 – 17 October 1616) was an English Roman Catholic scholar and writer. Life Pitts was born in Alton, Hampshire in 1560 and attended Winchester College. From 1578 to 1580 he studied at New College, Oxfor ...

(''De illustribus Angliae scriptoribus'', 729). He was one of the theologians appointed to defend Queen Catharine's cause in the divorce proceedings before the papal legates Cardinal Wolsey and

Cardinal Campeggio Lorenzo Campeggio (7 November 1474 – 19 July 1539) was an Italian cardinal and politician. He was the last cardinal protector of England. Life Campeggio was born in Milan, the eldest of five sons. In 1500, he took his doctorate in cano ...

, and is said to have written a treatise ''Contra divortium Henrici et Catharinae, Liber unus''. No copy of this work is known to exist.Huddleston, Gilbert. "Bl. Richard Fetherston." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 13. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 28 May 2013
/ref> He took part in the session of Convocation which began in April 1529, and was one of the few members who refused to sign the Act declaring Henry VIII's marriage with Catharine to be illegal ''ab initio'', through the pope's inability to grant a dispensation in such a case. In 1534 he was called upon to take the Oath of Supremacy and, on refusing to do so, was committed to the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is sep ...

on 13 December 1534. He seems to have remained in prison until 1540. He was

hanged, drawn, and quartered To be hanged, drawn and quartered became a statutory penalty for men convicted of high treason in the Kingdom of England from 1352 under King Edward III (1327–1377), although similar rituals are recorded during the reign of King Henry III ( ...

at Smithfield on 30 July 1540, together with the Catholic theologians

Thomas Abel Thomas Abel (or Abell) (ca. 1497 – 30 July 1540) was an English priest who was martyred during the reign of Henry VIII. The place and date of his birth are unknown. He was educated at Oxford, where in 1516 he took the degree of Master of ...

and

Edward Powell Edward Powell (c.1478 – 30 July 1540) was a Welsh Roman Catholic priest and theologian, in opposition to Henry VIII of England. He is a Catholic martyr, beatified in 1886. Life Powell was born in Wales. He was M.A. of the University of Oxf ...

, like himself councillors to Queen Catharine in the divorce proceedings, and three others, Robert Barnes, Thomas Garret, and

William Jerome William Jerome Flannery, September 30, 1865 – June 25, 1932) was an American songwriter, born in Cornwall-on-Hudson, New York of Irish immigrant parents, Mary Donnellan and Patrick Flannery. He collaborated with numerous well-known composers a ...

, condemned for teaching

Zwinglianism The theology of Ulrich Zwingli was based on an interpretation of the Bible, taking scripture as the inspired word of God and placing its authority higher than what he saw as human sources such as the ecumenical councils and the church fathers. He ...

. All six were drawn through the streets upon three hurdles, a Catholic and a heretic on each hurdle. The Protestants were burned, and the three Catholics executed in the usual manner, their limbs being fixed over the gates of the city and their heads being placed upon poles on London Bridge.

Notes

References

* ;Attribution * The entry cites: **

, ''De illustribus Angliae scriptoribus'' (Paris, 1619), 729; **Sander, tr. Lewis, ''Rise and Growth of the Anglican Schism'' (London, 1877), 65, 67, 150; ** Gilbert Burnet, ''History of the Reformation'', ed. Pocock (Oxford, 1865), I, 260, 472, 566–67; IV, 555, 563; ** Thomas Tanner, ''Bibliotheca Britannico-Hibernica'' (London, 1748), 278; **''Original Letters Relative to the English Reformation'' (Parker Society, Cambridge, 1846), I, 209; **''Calendar of State Papers, Henry VIII'', ed. Gairdner (London, 1882, 1883, 1885, VI, 311, 1199; VII, 530; VIII, 666, 1001. {{DEFAULTSORT:Fetherston, Richard 1540 deaths 16th-century English Roman Catholic priests English beatified people People executed by Tudor England by hanging, drawing and quartering 16th-century venerated Christians Year of birth unknown English chaplains Catholic chaplains 16th-century English educators Executed English people People executed under Henry VIII Archdeacons of Brecon Forty-one Martyrs of England and Wales