George or Joris van Egmont (c. 1504, in Egmond – 26 September 1560, in

Saint-Amand Abbey Saint-Amand Abbey (''Abbaye de Saint-Amand''), once known as Elno, Elnon or Elnone Abbey, is a former Rule of St. Benedict, Benedictine abbey in Saint-Amand-les-Eaux, Nord (département), Nord, France. History The abbey was founded around 633-6 ...

) was a Christian religious authority and a bishop, who served as

Bishop of Utrecht List of bishops and archbishops of the diocese and archdioceses of Utrecht. Medieval diocese from 695 to 1580 Founders of the Utrecht diocese * * * * * Bishops * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ...

from 1535 to 1560.

Biography

George was the son of Jan III van Egmont. In 1526 he became

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 ca ...

and later

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

of the chapter of

Liège Liège ( , , ; wa, Lîdje ; nl, Luik ; german: Lüttich ) is a major city and municipality of Wallonia and the capital of the Belgian province of Liège. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east of Belgium, not far fro ...

. Next he became abbot of

(since destroyed in the wars 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 i ...

and

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...

) at

Saint-Amand-les-Eaux Saint-Amand-les-Eaux (; former nl, Sint-Amands-aan-de-Skarpe, link=no) is a commune in the Nord department, northern France. It lies on the river Scarpe, 12 km northwest of Valenciennes. In French, the town people are named ''Amandinois'' ...

, south of

Tournai Tournai or Tournay ( ; ; nl, Doornik ; pcd, Tornai; wa, Tornè ; la, Tornacum) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It lies southwest of Brussels on the river Scheldt. Tournai is part of Eurome ...

Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, french: Charles Quint, it, Carlo V, nl, Karel V, ca, Carles V, la, Carolus V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain ( Castile and Aragon) fr ...

appointed him bishop of Utrecht in 1534 as a favour to the Dutch

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The character ...

. Because he had to be ordained as priest, his consecration as bishop was delayed for over a year. George stayed in Saint-Amand, and had a

vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pre ...

manage the bishopric for him. He acted unsuccessfully against the rise of

Calvinism Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John C ...

Legacy

The stained glass window he donated with the theme of the baptism of Christ still exists in the Janskerk in Gouda. This window was designed and made by

Dirk Crabeth Dirk (or Dirck) Pietersz Crabeth (1501–1574) was a Dutch Renaissance glass painter, tapestry designer, and mapmaker. He was employed by the Janskerk (Gouda) during the 16th century, where he created eight of the stained glass windows during t ...

in 1557-8. After his death he was buried in Saint-Amand Abbey, but his heart was interred in a

cenotaph A cenotaph is an empty tomb or a monument erected in honour of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been reinterred elsewhere. Although the vast majority of cenot ...

St. Martin's Cathedral, Utrecht St. Martin's Cathedral, Utrecht, or Dom Church ( nl, Domkerk), is a Gothic church dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours, which was the cathedral of the Diocese of Utrecht during the Middle Ages. It is the country's only pre-Reformation cathedral, ...

. A portrait of George van Egmont from c. 1535, painted by his friend

Jan van Scorel Jan van Scorel (1 August 1495 – 6 December 1562) was a Dutch painter, who played a leading role in introducing aspects of Italian Renaissance painting into Dutch and Flemish Renaissance painting. He was one of the early painters of the Ro ...

, is located in the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam. {{DEFAULTSORT:Egmond, George Van 1500s births 1559 deaths Bishops of Utrecht 16th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the Holy Roman Empire George People from Egmond