Sir Edward Petre, 3rd Baronet (1631 – 15 May 1699) was an English

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

who became a close adviser to King James II and was appointed a privy councillor.

Early life

Petre was the son of Francis Petre, 1st Baronet, of Cranham (Essex), head of a junior branch of the family of the Barons Petre, by his marriage to Elizabeth Gage, a daughter of John Gage, both

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. In 1649 he was sent for his education to the Jesuit College at St Omer and entered the Society of Jesus in 1652, taking his final vows in 1671.

Career

Petre served as a chaplain and adviser to

James II of England James II and VII (14 October 1633 – 16 September 1701) was King of England and Monarchy of Ireland, Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII from the death of his elder brother, Charles II of England, Charles II, on 6 February 1 ...

and was an unpopular and galvanising presence at James's court. James, as a Roman Catholic reigning over a nation of

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

s, aroused much ire, and much of it was directed at Petre, his close advisor on religious matters. Before James's accession in 1685, Petre was vice-provincial of his order. James soon made him clerk of the closet, a position without political power. Later that year, James wrote to ask

Pope Innocent XI Pope Innocent XI (; ; 16 May 1611 – 12 August 1689), born Benedetto Odescalchi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 21 September 1676 until his death on 12 August 1689. Political and religious tensions with ...

to make Petre a bishop ''in partibus'', but Innocent refused. In 1686, Roger Palmer, James's ambassador to

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, renewed the application, while James urged it forcibly on Ferdinando d'Adda, the papal nuncio in

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. James and Castlemaine continued to push for a bishop's position for Petre through 1687, and further requested that Petre be made a

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to * Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae ***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...

, but the pope steadfastly refused. James contemplated making Petre Anglican

Archbishop of York The archbishop of York is a senior bishop in the Church of England, second only to the archbishop of Canterbury. The archbishop is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and the metropolitan bishop of the province of York, which covers the ...

when the see fell vacant, but the pope would not grant Petre a dispensation to hold it, and he even directed Petre's superiors to rebuke him for his excessive ambition. Petre was made a privy counsellor and Clerk of the Closet the same year. After his nomination to the Privy Council, the popular charges against Petre became more fervid than ever, reaching their height in insinuations made about the controversial birth of

James Francis Edward Stuart James Francis Edward Stuart (10 June 16881 January 1766), nicknamed the Old Pretender by Whigs (British political party), Whigs or the King over the Water by Jacobitism, Jacobites, was the House of Stuart claimant to the thrones of Ki ...

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

, in 1688. Like many at James's court, Petre at first trusted Robert Spencer, but he was also among the first to detect that minister's duplicity and to break with him. Modern scholars have given mixed reviews of Petre's behaviour, and contemporary sources on both sides are biased. The ''

Catholic Encyclopedia ''The'' ''Catholic Encyclopedia: An International Work of Reference on the Constitution, Doctrine, Discipline, and History of the Catholic Church'', also referred to as the ''Old Catholic Encyclopedia'' and the ''Original Catholic Encyclopedi ...

'' says of him "with little gift for politics, nor paying much heed to them, he was nevertheless severely blamed when things went wrong. He was also regardless, almost callous, as to what was said about him by friend or foe." Petre fled to France soon after William III's armies landed in England, and he remained with James in his exile. He became head of his old college of St Omer in 1693. He was later transferred to Valten in Flanders, where he died in 1699.

References

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Petre, Edward 1631 births 1699 deaths

Edward Edward is an English male name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortunate; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-S ...

17th-century English Jesuits Baronets in the Baronetage of England History of Catholicism in England English Jacobites Members of the Privy Council of England Clerks of the Closet Recusants