William HoughtonWilliam of Hothum; De Hotum, De Hothum, De Hozum, Bothum, De Honden, Heddon, Heddonem; in the ancient manuscripts of his order it is written De Odone. (date and place of birth unknown; died at

Dijon Dijon (, , ) (dated) * it, Digione * la, Diviō or * lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920. The earlies ...

, 1298) was an English Dominican who became a diplomat and

Archbishop of Dublin The Archbishop of Dublin is an archepiscopal title which takes its name after Dublin, Ireland. Since the Reformation, there have been parallel apostolic successions to the title: one in the Catholic Church and the other in the Church of Irelan ...

Life

It is not known in which convent in England he received the habit of St. Dominic—it is certain that he made his higher studies in the Convent of St. James in Paris—there he took his degrees and lectured with great success. In the general chapter of the order held in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

in 1282 he was chosen Provincial of England. His contemporaries all speak of a uniform sweetness and a singular charm and distinction of manner which won for him at once love and respect. He governed the English province for five years, when he was recalled to Paris to resume his public lectures on theology. His ability was recognized by the court of France, especially by the king,

Philip IV Philip IV may refer to: * Philip IV of Macedon (died 297 BC) * Philip IV of France (1268–1314), Avignon Papacy * Philip IV of Burgundy or Philip I of Castile (1478–1506) * Philip IV, Count of Nassau-Weilburg (1542–1602) * Philip IV of Spain ...

. But the English Dominicans wished him to return home, and they elected him provincial, which office he filled for a term of seven years. He became a

favourite A favourite (British English) or favorite (American English) was the intimate companion of a ruler or other important person. In post-classical and early-modern Europe, among other times and places, the term was used of individuals delegated si ...

King Edward I Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassa ...

, and received many marks of royal affection and esteem. Edward I sent Houghton to Rome as ambassador to propose to the Pope his royal desire to assist the pope in affording help to the Christians in the Holy Land. The king proposed the conditions of the Holy Siege and he did this through his minister, William Houghton, who was favourably received at Rome and obtained nearly all that he desired. He returned to England with a Brief from

Pope Nicholas IV Pope Nicholas IV ( la, Nicolaus IV; 30 September 1227 – 4 April 1292), born Girolamo Masci, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 22 February 1288 to his death on 4 April 1292. He was the first Franciscan to be ele ...

, dated Rome, 10 Nov. 1289. The See of Dublin had become vacant by the death of Archbishop

John de Sandford John de Sandford (died 2 October 1294) was Archbishop of Dublin. He was brother of Fulk Basset, archbishop of Dublin, and hence nephew of Sir Philip Basset (d. 1271), the justiciar, and of Fulk Basset, Bishop of London from 1241 until his death i ...

. Thomas de Chaddesworth, Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral Dublin, the successor named by the chapter, was not acceptable to the king, despite a long and impressive record of service to the Crown, so the see remained vacant from Oct., 1294, to June, 1297. Edward I appealed to

Pope Boniface VIII Pope Boniface VIII ( la, Bonifatius PP. VIII; born Benedetto Caetani, c. 1230 – 11 October 1303) was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 24 December 1294 to his death in 1303. The Caetani, Caetani family was of b ...

requesting the appointment of William Houghton. This wish was granted and Houghton was consecrated at

Ghent Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded in ...

by Anthony Beck,

Bishop of Durham The Bishop of Durham is the Anglican bishop responsible for the Diocese of Durham in the Province of York. The diocese is one of the oldest in England and its bishop is a member of the House of Lords. Paul Butler has been the Bishop of Durham ...

, in 1297. A war was raging between France and England and the two monarchs, Philip IV of France and Edward I of England, were brought by the mediation of Houghton to conclude a treaty of peace for two years. In 1298, Edward I sent Houghton to Boniface VIII as a legate to acquaint the pope with the conclusion of the treaty of peace. Having been received by the sovereign pontiff (20 June 1298) Houghton set out for England but on the way fell sick at Dijon (France) and died there 28 August 1298. By command of Edward I the remains were brought to London and laid in the Church of the Friars Preachers.

Works

He found time to write the following works: "Commentarii in Sententiarum Libros", "De immediata visione Dei tractatus", "De unitate formarum Tractatus", "Lecturæ Scholasticæ", and a speech in French on the rights of the English king.

References

* David Knowles, ''The Religious Orders in England'' (1979), p. 168

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Houghton, William 1298 deaths English Dominicans Archbishops of Dublin Year of birth unknown 13th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Ireland