Thomas Chaundler (1418–1490) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

playwright 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

illustrator An illustrator is an artist who specializes in enhancing writing or elucidating concepts by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text or idea. The illustration may be intended to clarify complicat ...

. A manuscript at

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

, depicts Chaundler presenting one of his plays to the

Bishop of Bath The Bishop of Bath and Wells heads the Church of England Diocese of Bath and Wells in the Province of Canterbury in England. The present diocese covers the overwhelmingly greater part of the (ceremonial) county of Somerset and a small area of D ...

, Thomas Beckynton, in 1460.

Life

He was born about 1418 in the parish of St. Cuthbert's, Wells. At the end of May 1430, he was admitted scholar of

Winchester College Winchester College is a public school (fee-charging independent day and boarding school) in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382 and has existed in its present location ever since. It is the oldest of the ...

, and on 1 May 1435 he was elected scholar of

New College, Oxford New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as its feeder school, New College is one of the oldest colleges at th ...

. He became fellow on 1 May 1437, graduated B.A. and M.A., and in 1444 served the office of proctor. He was admitted B.D. on 8 February 1449-50, and on 18 November following was elected warden of Winchester College. On 9 March 1450 – 1451 he supplicated for the degree of B. Can. L., and on 15 July 1452 he was collated by his friend and fellow Wykehamist,

Thomas Beckington Thomas Beckington (also spelt Beckynton; c. 139014 January 1465) was the Bishop of Bath and Wells and King's Secretary in medieval England under Henry VI. Life Beckington was born at Beckington in Somerset, and was educated at Winchester an ...

, to the chancellorship of Wells Cathedral. On 22 February 1453 – 1454, Chaundler was elected

Warden A warden is a custodian, defender, or guardian. Warden is often used in the sense of a watchman or guardian, as in a prison warden. It can also refer to a chief or head official, as in the Warden of the Mint. ''Warden'' is etymologically identic ...

of New College ; on 22 October following he supplicated for the degree of B.C.L., but 'vacat' is noted on the margin of the register, and on 3 March 1454-5, as warden of New College, he graduated D.D. On 6 July 1457, on the resignation of George Neville, Chaundler was elected

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

of Oxford University; he held the office until 15 May 1461, when Neville was again appointed, and from 1463 to 1467 Chaundler acted as

vice-chancellor A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus within a university system. In most Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth and former Commonwealth n ...

. Outside the university, Chaundler held many ecclesiastical preferments. He was rector of Hardwick,

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...

, parson of

Meonstoke Meonstoke is a village in Hampshire, England, in the Meon Valley where it cuts through the Middle Chalk of the South Downs. Old Winchester Hill is at the edge of the parish to the east. It sits on the eastern bank of the River Meon. On the no ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

, and

prebendary A prebendary is a member of the Roman Catholic or Anglican clergy, a form of canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in particular seats, usually at the back of the ...

of Bole in

York Cathedral The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Archbis ...

in 1466. On 25 February 1466-7, he was admitted chancellor of York, and in the same month he was granted a canonry and prebend in St. Stephen's, Westminster. Soon afterwards he became chaplain to

Edward IV Edward IV (28 April 1442 – 9 April 1483) was King of England from 4 March 1461 to 3 October 1470, then again from 11 April 1471 until his death in 1483. He was a central figure in the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars in England ...

, and on 18 December 1467 was granted the rectory of All Hallows, London. He resigned this living in 1470, and on 15 August 1471 was collated to the prebend of Cadington Major in St. Paul's Cathedral. He gave up this prebend in 1472, and on 4 June was re-elected chancellor of Oxford University, George Neville having sided against Edward IV during Warwick's revolt. Chaundler held the chancellorship until 1479, serving during the same period on the commission of the peace for Oxford ; he resigned the wardenship of New College in 1475. On 27 January 1475-6, he was collated to the prebend of Wildland in St. Paul's Cathedral, and in the following month he exchanged the prebend of Cadington Major for that of South Muskham in Southwell Church. On 23 March 1481-2, he was installed

dean of Hereford The Dean of Hereford is the head (''primus inter pares'' – first among equals) and chair of the chapter of canons, the ruling body of Hereford Cathedral. The dean and chapter are based at the ''Cathedral Church of Blessed Virgin Mary and St Eth ...

; he resigned the prebend of South Muskham in 1485, the chancellorship of York in 1486, and the prebend of Wildland before 1489; but on 16 December 1486 he received the prebend of Gorwall and Overbury in Hereford Cathedral. He died on 2 November 1490, and was buried in

Hereford Cathedral Hereford Cathedral is the cathedral church of the Anglican Diocese of Hereford in Hereford, England. A place of worship has existed on the site of the present building since the 8th century or earlier. The present building was begun in 1079. S ...

Bibliography

*''Collocutiones septem et allocutiones duae de laudibus Willelmi de Wykeham, Wintoniensis episcopi''; c. 1460 *''Liber apologeticus de omni statu humanae naturae (A defence of human nature in every state)''

Notes

;Attribution

References

*''Personennamen des Mittelalters. PMA. Nomina Scriptorum Medii Aevi.'' compiled by Claudia Fabian at the Bavarian State's Library. Munich: Saur. 2000, p. 124. *''Review of Thomas Chaundler, Liber Apologeticus'', ed. Doris Enright-Clark Shoukri, in ''

Medium Aevum The Society for the Study of Medieval Languages and Literature (SSMLL) is a learned society that supports scholarly research and publication on the culture of the Middle Ages. It is best known for publishing the international academic journal ''M ...

'' 44 (1975), 327–329. {{DEFAULTSORT:Chaundler, Thomas 1418 births 1490 deaths People of the Tudor period 15th-century English writers English dramatists and playwrights English illustrators Wardens of New College, Oxford Vice-Chancellors of the University of Oxford Chancellors of the University of Oxford Deans of Hereford Medieval drama English male dramatists and playwrights