William of Bitton (died 1264) was a medieval English

Bishop of Bath and Wells 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 Do ...

Life

William was probably born in

Bitton Bitton is a village and civil parish of South Gloucestershire in England, to the east of the Greater Bristol area on the River Boyd. It is in South Gloucestershire. The parish of Bitton has a population of 9,307, and apart from the village ...

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

.Shaw "Button, William" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' He was a relative of

Walter Giffard Walter Giffard (April 1279) was Lord Chancellor of England and Archbishop of York. Family Giffard was a son of Hugh Giffard of Boyton in Wiltshire,Greenway Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300: Volume 6: York: Archbishops' a royal justice, ...

and uncle of William of Bitton II, his two successors in the office of Bishop of Bath and Wells.Greenway
Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066-1300: Volume 7: Bath and Wells: Bishops
' He was also uncle of Thomas of Bitton, precentor, archdeacon and dean of Wells,Greenway
Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066-1300: Volume 7: Bath and Wells: Deans of Wells
' and

Bishop of Exeter The Bishop of Exeter is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Exeter in the Province of Canterbury. Since 30 April 2014 the ordinary has been Robert Atwell.

. William was an official of

Jocelin of Wells Jocelin of Wells (died 19 November 1242) was a medieval Bishop of Bath (and Glastonbury). He was the brother of Hugh de Wells, who became Bishop of Lincoln. Jocelin became a canon of Wells Cathedral before 1200, and was elected bishop in 1206 ...

in 1231 and was

subdean {{Unreferenced, date=June 2019 A sub-dean is a person who acts as an assistant to a dean either in church circuit as a priest or minister or an academic institution. They are, however, not a vice-dean. A vice-dean is a person who can deputize a de ...

of Wells in 1233.Greenway
Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066-1300: Volume 7: Bath and Wells: Subdeans of Wells
' He was named

Archdeacon of Wells The Archdeacon of Wells has been a senior clergy position in the Church of England Diocese of Bath and Wells sin the English reformation, before which it was part of the Roman Catholic Church. The post, having oversight over the archdeaconry of We ...

by 7 May 1238 and held the office until he was elected bishop.Greenway
Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066-1300: Volume 7: Bath and Wells: Archdeacons of Wells
' During the election of his predecessor, he championed the cause of the

canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western can ...

s of Wells, who had been excluded from the election of

Roger of Salisbury Roger of Salisbury (died 1139), was a Norman medieval bishop of Salisbury and the seventh Lord Chancellor and Lord Keeper of England. Life Roger was originally priest of a small chapel near Caen in Normandy. He was called "Roger, priest of the ch ...

in 1244. William was elected about 24 February 1248 and consecrated 14 June 1248.Fryde, et al. ''Handbook of British Chronology'' p. 228 In 1251 he signed the proclamation of excommunication against any who did not observe the clauses of

Magna Carta (Medieval Latin for "Great Charter of Freedoms"), commonly called (also ''Magna Charta''; "Great Charter"), is a royal charter of rights agreed to by King John of England at Runnymede, near Windsor, on 15 June 1215. First drafted by the ...

dealing with ecclesiastical rights. He served King

Henry III of England Henry III (1 October 1207 – 16 November 1272), also known as Henry of Winchester, was King of England, Lord of Ireland, and Duke of Aquitaine from 1216 until his death in 1272. The son of King John and Isabella of Angoulême, Henry a ...

by going to Spain in 1253 to bring back a prospective daughter-in-law for the king. In 1257, the bishops made specific reference to William's conflict with the

Abbot of Glastonbury __NOTOC__ The Abbot of Glastonbury was the head (or abbot) of Anglo-Saxon and eventually Benedictine house of Glastonbury Abbey at Glastonbury in Somerset, England. The following is a list of abbots of Glastonbury: Abbots See also * Abbot's Ki ...

in their communications with the king. But mainly, he worked in his diocese, as he issued rules and regulations in the diocese dealing with liturgical and judicial matters for both the laity and clergy. However, he lost a long fight with the abbot of Glastonbury

Roger Forde Roger is a given name, usually masculine, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", "honour") and ', ' ( ...

over the right of the bishop to visit and regulate the affairs of

Glastonbury Abbey Glastonbury Abbey was a monastery in Glastonbury, Somerset, England. Its ruins, a grade I listed building and scheduled ancient monument, are open as a visitor attraction. The abbey was founded in the 8th century and enlarged in the 10th. It wa ...

, and by the end of his term as bishop, the abbey was independent of the diocese in all but name. William died on 3 April 1264. He was buried in the Lady Chapel at

Wells Cathedral Wells Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England, dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, whose cathedra it holds as mother church of the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Built as a ...

on 8 April 1264. His tomb had disappeared by the 18th century. He should not be confused with his nephew the second

William of Bitton William of Bitton (died 1264) was a medieval English Bishop of Bath and Wells. Life William was probably born in Bitton in Gloucestershire.Shaw "Button, William" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' He was a relative of Walter Giffard ...

who was also Bishop of Bath and Wells, but who died in 1274.

Notes

Citations

References

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:William of Bitton I Bishops of Bath and Wells Archdeacons of Wells 1264 deaths Year of birth unknown 13th-century English Roman Catholic bishops People from Bitton