George Day (c. 1501 – 2 August 1556) was the

Bishop of Chichester The Bishop of Chichester is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Chichester in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers the counties of East and West Sussex. The see is based in the City of Chichester where the bishop's sea ...

Life

He graduated at the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a public collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world's third oldest surviving university and one of its most pr ...

in 1520–21, and became a

Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

St. John's College, Cambridge St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge founded by the Tudor matriarch Lady Margaret Beaufort. In constitutional terms, the college is a charitable corporation established by a charter dated 9 April 1511. The ...

on 19 September 1522. Though apparently always 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 let ...

in belief, Day submitted to the assumption by Henry VIII of ecclesiastical supremacy. He was made Master of St John's in 1537, Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University, and Provost of

King's College, Cambridge King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, the college lies beside the River Cam and faces out onto King's Parade in the centre of the cit ...

(though not a fellow of it) by special exercise of the royal authority, in 1538. Consecrated Bishop of Chichester in 1543 by

Thomas Cranmer Thomas Cranmer (2 July 1489 – 21 March 1556) was a leader of the English Reformation and Archbishop of Canterbury during the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI and, for a short time, Mary I. He helped build the case for the annulment of Henry ...

, he firmly opposed the spread of the

Protestant 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 ...

under

Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour and the first E ...

. He answered in a Catholic sense Cranmer's written questions on the "Sacrament of the Altar", defended the Catholic doctrine in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...

, and voted against the bills for

Communion under both kinds Communion under both kinds in Christianity is the reception under both "species" (i.e., both the consecrated bread and wine) of the Eucharist. Denominations of Christianity that hold to a doctrine of Communion under both kinds may believe that ...

, and for the introduction of the new

Prayer Book A prayer book is a book containing prayers and perhaps devotional readings, for private or communal use, or in some cases, outlining the liturgy of religious services. Books containing mainly orders of religious services, or readings for them are ...

. In his own

diocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associa ...

his preaching was so effective that, in October 1550, the Council felt it necessary to send "Dr. Cox, the king's

almoner An almoner (} ' (alms), via the popular Latin '. History Christians have historically been encouraged to donate one-tenth of their income as a tithe to their church and additional offerings as needed for the poor. The first deacons, mentioned ...

, to appease the people by his good doctrine, which are troubled through the

seditious Sedition is overt conduct, such as speech and organization, that tends toward rebellion against the established order. Sedition often includes subversion of a constitution and incitement of discontent toward, or insurrection against, establ ...

preaching of the Bishop of Chichester and others." In the following December, Day was brought before the Council to answer for his disregard of an injunction to have "all the altars in every church taken down, and in lieu of them a table set up", – himself preaching on the occasion, if possible in his

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

. After repeated interrogations, his final answer was that "he would never obey to do this thing, thinking it a less evil to suffer the body to perish than to corrupt the soul with that thing that his conscience would not bear". For this "

contempt Contempt is a pattern of attitudes and behaviour, often towards an individual or a group, but sometimes towards an ideology, which has the characteristics of disgust and anger. The word originated in 1393 in Old French contempt, contemps, ...

" he was

imprisoned Imprisonment is the restraint of a person's liberty, for any cause whatsoever, whether by authority of the government, or by a person acting without such authority. In the latter case it is "false imprisonment". Imprisonment does not necessari ...

in the Fleet Prison, and after further questionings was deprived of his

bishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

in October 1551. From the Fleet, he was transferred in June 1552 into the keeping of

Thomas Goodrich Sir Thomas Goodrich (also spelled Goodricke; died 10 May 1554) was an English ecclesiastic and statesman who was Bishop of Ely from 1534 until his death. Life He was a son of Edward Goodrich of East Kirkby, Lincolnshire and brother of Henry ...

, Bishop of Ely and at that time

Lord Chancellor The lord chancellor, formally the lord high chancellor of Great Britain, is the highest-ranking traditional minister among the Great Officers of State in Scotland and England in the United Kingdom, nominally outranking the prime minister. Th ...

, in whose custody he remained until the death of

. Queen Mary restored him at once to his dignity, besides naming him her

. In re-establishing the ancient worship she had, however, to proceed cautiously. Contemporary chroniclers record that Cranmer conducted Edward's funeral "without any cross or light", and "with a communion in English", though "the Bishop of Chichester preached a good sermon". Day again preached at Mary's coronation. His formal absolution and confirmation in his bishopric by Cardinal Pole, as Papal Legate, is dated 31 January 1555. Day was involved in the trial of the Protestant martyr

Richard Woodman Captain Richard Martin Woodman LVO (born 1944) is an English novelist and naval historian who retired in 1997 from a 37-year nautical career, mainly working for Trinity House, to write full-time. Writing His main work is 14 novels about the ca ...

. His death occurred only a year and a half after he was restored by Pole. He was buried in

Chichester Cathedral Chichester Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Chichester. It is located in Chichester, in West Sussex, England. It was founded as a cathedral in 1075, when the seat of ...

. William Day, Bishop of Winchester, was his brother.

References

Bibliography

*Privy Council Acts, III, IV (London, 1891) *

Francis Aidan Gasquet Francis Aidan Cardinal Gasquet (born Francis Neil Gasquet; 5 October 1846 – 5 April 1929) was an English Benedictine monk and historical scholar. He was created Cardinal in 1914. Life Gasquet was the third of six children of Raymond Gasquet, ...

and

Edmund Bishop Edmund Bishop (17 May 1846 in Totnes – 17 February 1917 in Barnstaple) was an English Roman Catholic historian of Christian liturgy. He collaborated with Francis Aidan Gasquet, OSB, in the writing of two notable works in this field. Life Bis ...

, ''Edward VI and the Common Prayer Book'' (London, 1890) *

Camden Society The Camden Society was a text publication society founded in London in 1838 to publish early historical and literary materials, both unpublished manuscripts and new editions of rare printed books. It was named after the 16th-century antiquary a ...

, ''Grey Friar's and Wriothesley's Chronicles'' (London, 1852–1877) * John Stow, ''Annals'' (London, 1615), II *Edgar Edmund Estcourt, ''Anglican Ordinations'' (London, 1873) *

Joseph Gillow Joseph Gillow (5 October 1850, Preston, Lancashire – 17 March 1921, Westholme, Hale, Cheshire) was an English Roman Catholic antiquary, historian and bio-bibliographer, "the Plutarch of the English Catholics". Biography Born in Frenchwood Hous ...

, ''Bibl. Dict. Eng. Cath.'', s. v. *

James Gairdner James Gairdner (22 March 1828 – 4 November 1912) was a British historian. He specialised in 15th-century and early Tudor history, and among other tasks edited the '' Letters and Papers of the Reign of Henry VIII'' series. Son of John Gairdn ...

, ''Eng. Church in the Sixteenth Century'' (London, 1902).

External links

Source
{{DEFAULTSORT:Day, George 1500s births 1556 deaths 16th-century English Roman Catholic bishops Alumni of the University of Cambridge Bishops of Chichester Cambridge University Orators Fellows of St John's College, Cambridge Masters of St John's College, Cambridge Clergy from Shropshire Provosts of King's College, Cambridge Vice-Chancellors of the University of Cambridge