William Gordon (c. 1499 – 6 August 1577) was a 16th-century Scottish

noble A noble is a member of the nobility. Noble may also refer to: Places Antarctica * Noble Glacier, King George Island * Noble Nunatak, Marie Byrd Land * Noble Peak, Wiencke Island * Noble Rocks, Graham Land Australia * Noble Island, Great B ...

and

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...

, the last of the pre-

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 ...

bishops of Aberdeen The Bishop of Aberdeen (originally Bishop of Mortlach, in Latin Murthlacum) was the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of Aberdeen, one of Scotland's 13 medieval bishoprics, whose first recorded bishop is an early 12th-century cleric named Nech ...

owing allegiance to the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. Born in

Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire ( sco, Aiberdeenshire; gd, Siorrachd Obar Dheathain) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the County of Aberdeen which has substantially differe ...

, he was the son of Janet Stewart, the daughter of

John Stewart, 1st Earl of Atholl John Stewart, 1st Earl of Atholl (15 September 1512), also known as Sir John Stewart of Balveny, was a Scottish nobleman and ambassador. Life He was the oldest child of Joan Beaufort, widow of James I of Scotland, and her second husband, Sir ...

, and her husband

Alexander Gordon, 3rd Earl of Huntly Alexander Gordon, 3rd Earl of Huntly (died 1524) was a Scottish nobleman. He was a member of Parliament, a member of the Privy Council, a regent and Lieutenant of the kingdom. Biography He was the son of George Gordon, 2nd Earl of Huntly and hi ...

.Dowden, ''Bishops of Scotland'', p. 141; Macfarlane, "Gordon, William (d. 1577)". As a youth, Gordon studied at the

University of Aberdeen The University of Aberdeen ( sco, University o' 'Aiberdeen; abbreviated as ''Aberd.'' in List of post-nominal letters (United Kingdom), post-nominals; gd, Oilthigh Obar Dheathain) is a public university, public research university in Aberdeen, Sc ...

, 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 ...

and the

University of Angers The University of Angers (french: Université d'Angers; UA) is a public university in western France, with campuses in Angers, Cholet, and Saumur. It forms part of thAngers-Le Mans University Community History The University of Angers was init ...

, graduating in Civil law and

Canon Law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...

.Macfarlane, "Gordon, William (d. 1577)". His high aristocratic birth and educational record brought him to the attention of King

James V of Scotland James V (10 April 1512 – 14 December 1542) was List of Scottish monarchs, King of Scotland from 9 September 1513 until his death in 1542. He was crowned on 21 September 1513 at the age of seventeen months. James was the son of James IV of Sco ...

, who in 1537 wrote to

Pope Paul III Pope Paul III ( la, Paulus III; it, Paolo III; 29 February 1468 – 10 November 1549), born Alessandro Farnese, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 13 October 1534 to his death in November 1549. He came to ...

, requesting that the latter reserve benefices for Gordon. He had in fact been Archdeacon of Caithness, briefly in 1529. William Gordon was

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 the

diocese of Moray The Diocese of Moray was one of the most important of the medieval dioceses of the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland. Its territory was in central northern Scotland. History It was founded in the early years of the 12th century by David I ...

between 1540 and 1546, and for a short time Archdeacon of Dunblane in 1545. In either March or April 1545,

Mary of Guise Mary of Guise (french: Marie de Guise; 22 November 1515 – 11 June 1560), also called Mary of Lorraine, was a French noblewoman of the House of Guise, a cadet branch of the House of Lorraine and one of the most powerful families in France. She ...

, the mother of

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of Scot ...

, wrote to the Pope requesting that Gordon be made

coadjutor The term coadjutor (or coadiutor, literally "co-assister" in Latin) is a title qualifier indicating that the holder shares the office with another person, with powers equal to the other in all but formal order of precedence. These include: * Coadj ...

(designated successor) to Bishop William Stewart of Aberdeen, as the latter was suffering from bad health. Stewart in fact died on 10 April, and with the support of Governor Châtellerault, Gordon was provided to the see on 17 May, receiving

consecration Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

in either late December 1545 or early January of the following year. In the first few years of his episcopate, Gordon made a determined, unsuccessful effort to stamp out the growth of

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

ism. In 1549 the Scottish provincial council convened to reform the Scottish church. Bishop Gordon was, arguably, part of the problem, as he had fathered eight children by an unmarried woman named Janet Knowles whom he supported with episcopal revenues. In 1560 the Scottish Church broke its ties to Rome, banned

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...

and established an independent Scottish Church. Gordon was not an enthusiastic supporter of the latter and after the return of

- a Roman Catholic - to Scotland and her takeover of the kingdom, he assumed a low profile and the Queen issued a decree of protection to the

, of which Gordon was chancellor; Gordon's nephew, moreover, was the staunchly Catholic

George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly (151428 October 1562) was a Scottish nobleman. Life He was the son of John Gordon, Lord Gordon, and Margaret Stewart, daughter of James IV and Margaret Drummond. George Gordon inherited his earldom and estat ...

. After the downfall of

, in 1567, Bishop Gordon appears to have accepted the authority 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 ...

since he retained his see until his death on 6 August 1577.Keith, ''Historical Catalogue'', p. 122; Macfarlane, "Gordon, William (d. 1577)"; Watt, ''Fasti Ecclesiae'', p. 4. He died at Old Aberdeen, in the

Bishop 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 ...

Palace A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome which ...

, and was buried in St Machar's Cathedral.

Notes

References

* Dowden, John, ''The Bishops of Scotland'', ed. J. Maitland Thomson, (Glasgow, 1912) * Keith, Robert, ''An Historical Catalogue of the Scottish Bishops: Down to the Year 1688'', (London, 1924) * Macfarlane, Leslie J., "Gordon, William (d. 1577)", in the ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 200
accessed 22 Feb 2007
* Watt, D.E.R., ''Fasti Ecclesiae Scotinanae Medii Aevi ad annum 1638'', 2nd Draft, (St Andrews, 1969) {{DEFAULTSORT:Gordon, William (Bishop) 16th-century births 1577 deaths Alumni of the University of Aberdeen Bishops of Aberdeen University of Angers (pre-1793) alumni People from Aberdeenshire University of Paris alumni Burials at St Machar's Cathedral Younger sons of earls Kingdom of Scotland expatriates in France Scottish bishops 1560–1638