Walter Curle (or Curll; 1575 – 1647) was an English bishop, a close supporter of

William Laud William Laud (; 7 October 1573 – 10 January 1645) was a bishop in the Church of England. Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury by Charles I in 1633, Laud was a key advocate of Charles I's religious reforms, he was arrested by Parliament in 1640 ...

. Born in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, he was educated at St Albans School and at Christ's College, Cambridge (matriculated c. 1592), transferring to

Peterhouse Peterhouse is the oldest constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Today, Peterhouse has 254 undergraduates, 116 full-time graduate students and 54 fellows. It is quite o ...

( BA c. 1595; MA in 1598), of which college he later was elected Fellow. He was bishop of Winchester from 1632 to 1646. When in 1645 Parliamentary forces under

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three K ...

captured Winchester, he went into exile at

Soberton Soberton is a village in the Meon Valley, Hampshire, England, east of the A32 and a few miles south of the village of Droxford. It appears in the Domesday Book as "Sudbertone" or "Sudbertune". For administration, it is in the Hampshire County C ...

. He was deprived of his See by Parliament on 9 October 1646, as episcopacy was abolished for the duration of the Commonwealth and the

Protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over most of its int ...

. He was bishop of Rochester in 1628, and

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 D ...

from 1629 to 1632. His translation caused the vacancy as Rector of

Bemerton Bemerton, once a rural hamlet and later a civil parish to the west of Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, is now a suburb of that city. Modern-day Bemerton has areas known as Bemerton Heath, Bemerton Village and Lower Bemerton. History In 1086, the ...

that gave the poet

George Herbert George Herbert (3 April 1593 – 1 March 1633) was an English poet, orator, and priest of the Church of England. His poetry is associated with the writings of the metaphysical poets, and he is recognised as "one of the foremost British devoti ...

a living there. He was Dean of

Lichfield Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west o ...

1622 to 1628.Deans of Lichfield , British History Online
/ref> Curll's son Walter Curll was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14t ...

in 1678 (see

Curll baronets The Curll Baronetcy, of Soberton in the County of Southampton, was a title in the Baronetage of England. It was created on 20 June 1678 for Walter Curll, the son of the Right Reverend Walter Curll, Bishop of Winchester The Bishop of Winchest ...

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Biographical data
{{DEFAULTSORT:Curle, Walter 1575 births 1647 deaths Bishops of Rochester Bishops of Bath and Wells Bishops of Winchester 17th-century Church of England bishops Deans of Lichfield People from Hatfield, Hertfordshire People educated at St Albans School, Hertfordshire Alumni of Christ's College, Cambridge