Thomas Sydserf(f) (1581 – 1663) was a Scottish minister of the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...

who served as Protestant Bishop first of Brechin, then Galloway and finally Orkney.

Life

The eldest son of James Sydserf, an Edinburgh merchant, Sydserf graduated from the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

in 1602 before travelling to

continental Europe Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous continent of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by ...

to study at the

University of Heidelberg } Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, ...

. After returning to Scotland, he entered the

ministry Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian ...

, beginning at St Giles' parish,

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 ...

in 1611. 15 years later, in January 1626, he was

translated Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''transla ...

Trinity College Kirk Trinity College Kirk was a royal collegiate church in Edinburgh, Scotland. The kirk and its adjacent almshouse, Trinity Hospital, were founded in 1460 by Mary of Gueldres in memory of her husband, King James II who had been killed at the ...

, Edinburgh, before being promoted to

Dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

on 19 February 1634 (based at

St Giles Cathedral St Giles' Cathedral ( gd, Cathair-eaglais Naomh Giles), or the High Kirk of Edinburgh, is a parish church of the Church of Scotland in the Old Town, Edinburgh, Old Town of Edinburgh. The current building was begun in the 14th century and extended ...

).Fasti Ecclesiastae Scoticana by Hew Scott However, in the same year, and on the recommendation of

William Laud William Laud (; 7 October 1573 – 10 January 1645) was a bishop in the Church of England. Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury by Charles I in 1633, Laud was a key advocate of Charles I's religious reforms, he was arrested by Parliament in 1640 ...

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...

, he ascended to episcopal rank, receiving consecration as

Bishop of Brechin The Bishop of Brechin is the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of Brechin or angus, Scotland, Angus, based at Dundee. Brechin Cathedral, Brechin is a parish church of the established (presbyterian) Church of Scotland. The diocese had a long-es ...

on 29 July. In the following year, on 30 August 1635, he was translated as

Bishop of Galloway The Bishop of Galloway, also called the Bishop of Whithorn, was the eccesiastical head of the Diocese of Galloway, said to have been founded by Saint Ninian in the mid-5th century. The subsequent Anglo-Saxon bishopric was founded in the late 7th ...

. Sydserf was very much a

royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governme ...

, pro-

Episcopacy A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

, and inclined to be highly sympathetic towards

Arminianism Arminianism is a branch of Protestantism based on the theological ideas of the Dutch Reformed theologian Jacobus Arminius (1560–1609) and his historic supporters known as Remonstrants. Dutch Arminianism was originally articulated in the ''Re ...

. These views brought him much conflict in Scotland, and as Bishop of Galloway, he exercised his episcopal powers against his ideological opponents. He supported the introduction in 1637 of an English-style

Book of Common Prayer The ''Book of Common Prayer'' (BCP) is the name given to a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion and by other Christian churches historically related to Anglicanism. The original book, published in 1549 in the reign ...

, and for this, he was attacked on several occasions by mobs in

Falkirk Falkirk ( gd, An Eaglais Bhreac, sco, Fawkirk) is a large town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland, historically within the county of Stirlingshire. It lies in the Forth Valley, northwest of Edinburgh and northeast of Glasgow. Falkirk had a ...

Dalkeith Dalkeith ( ; gd, Dail Cheith, IPA: �t̪alˈçe is a town in Midlothian, Scotland, on the River Esk. It was granted a burgh of barony in 1401 and a burgh of regality in 1540. The settlement of Dalkeith grew southwestwards from its 12th-cent ...

and Edinburgh. Some went further and accused him of being a

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 lette ...

: he was alleged to wear a

crucifix A crucifix (from Latin ''cruci fixus'' meaning "(one) fixed to a cross") is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the ''corpus'' (Lati ...

. He was finally deposed by the General Assembly of the Scottish church on 13 December 1638. Sydserf thereafter went to England, briefly becoming a follower of King

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

, before moving to continental Europe. He returned to Scotland, and after

the Restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...

and

reimposition of Episcopacy in Scotland The Restoration was the return of the monarchy to Scotland in 1660 after the period of the Commonwealth, and the subsequent three decades of Scottish history until the Revolution and Convention of Estates of 1689. It was part of a wider Restor ...

, was reinstated as a bishop, though on this occasion becoming

Bishop of Orkney The Bishop of Orkney was the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of Orkney, one of thirteen medieval bishoprics of Scotland. It included both Orkney and Shetland. It was based for almost all of its history at St Magnus Cathedral, Kirkwall. The bi ...

. He was the only pre-1638 bishop to be reinstated as a bishop in Scotland after the Restoration. He lobbied hard to be made Primate of Scotland but without success. His willingness to ordain as a clergyman anyone who asked him attracted much criticism, a fact recorded by

Samuel Pepys Samuel Pepys (; 23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) was an English diarist and naval administrator. He served as administrator of the Royal Navy and Member of Parliament and is most famous for the diary he kept for a decade. Pepys had no mariti ...

in his famous diary. Sydserf died in Edinburgh on 29 September 1663 and is buried in Greyfriars Churchyard (location unknown). Sydserf was responsible for remodelling the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

Whithorn Priory Whithorn Priory was a medieval Scottish monastery that also served as a cathedral, located at 6 Bruce Street in Whithorn, Wigtownshire, Dumfries and Galloway (54.7357N, 4.415954W; OS grid reference NX445405). History The priory was founded ab ...

in line with the new styles of worship he tried to promote. Although not formally a member of the

Hartlib Circle The Hartlib Circle was the correspondence network set up in Western and Central Europe by Samuel Hartlib, an intelligencer based in London, and his associates, in the period 1630 to 1660. Hartlib worked closely with John Dury, an itinerant figure ...

, he was on friendly terms with some of its members including

Arnold Boate Arnold Boate, originally called de Boot (1606–1653) was a Dutch physician, writer and Hebraist who spent much of his life abroad, and lived for several years in Dublin. There he married Margaret Dongan, a judge's daughter, whom he portrayed lovin ...

, who dedicated to Sydserf his memoir of his wife Margaret Dongan. Their friendship was apparently not affected by Boate's closeness to

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...

, for whom he is said to have acted as a spy.

Family

In 1624 he married Rachel Byers, the daughter of an Edinburgh magistrate: they had four sons and four daughters, including Thomas junior, a popular

dramatist A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

and journalist.

References

*Adams, Sharon, "Sydserff, Thomas (1581–1663)", in the ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; online edn, May 200
retrieved 4 May 2007
*Keith, Robert, ''An Historical Catalogue of the Scottish Bishops: Down to the Year 1688'', (London, 1824), pp. 228, 281 * Watt, D.E.R., ''Fasti Ecclesiae Scotinanae Medii Aevi ad annum 1638'', 2nd Draft, (St Andrews, 1969), pp. 42, 127, 133 {{DEFAULTSORT:Sydserf, Thomas 1581 births 1663 deaths Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Arminian ministers Bishops of Brechin (Church of Scotland) Bishops of Galloway (Church of Scotland) Bishops of Orkney Heidelberg University alumni 17th-century Scottish Episcopalian bishops 1581 in Scotland Deans of Edinburgh Scottish Restoration bishops Members of the Parliament of Scotland 1661–1663