Bishop of Exeter

Bishop of Exeter
Bishopric
anglican
Arms of the Bishop of Exeter: Gules, a sword erect in pale argent hilted or surmounted by two keys addorsed in saltire of the last[1]
Incumbent: Robert Atwell
Province	Canterbury
Diocese	Exeter
Cathedral	Exeter Cathedral
First incumbent	Leofric
Formation	1050

The Bishop of Exeter is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Exeter in the Province of Canterbury.^[2] The current incumbent, since 30 April 2014, is Robert Atwell.^[3] The incumbent signs his name as his Christian name or forename followed by Exon., abbreviated from the Latin Episcopus Exoniensis ("Bishop of Exeter").

From the first bishop until the sixteenth century the Bishops of Exeter were in full communion with the Roman Catholic Church. However, during the Reformation the church in England broke away from the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church, at first temporarily and later more permanently. Since the Reformation, the Bishop and Diocese of Exeter has been part of the Church of England and of the Anglican Communion.

History

The history of Christianity in the South West of England remains to some degree obscure. At a certain point the historical county of Devon formed part of the diocese of Wessex. About 703 Devon and Cornwall were included in the separate Diocese of Sherborne and in 900 this was again divided, the Devon bishop having from 905 his seat at Tawton (now Bishop's Tawton) and from 912 at Crediton, birthplace of St Boniface. Lyfing became Bishop of Crediton in 1027 and shortly afterwards became Bishop of Cornwall.

The two dioceses of Crediton and Cornwall, covering Devon and Cornwall, were permanently united under Edward the Confessor by Lyfing's successor Bishop Leofric, hitherto Bishop of Crediton, who became first Bishop of Exeter under Edward the Confessor, which was established as his cathedral city in 1050. At first the abbey church of St Mary and St Peter, founded by Athelstan in 932 and rebuilt in 1019, served as the cathedral.

Cathedral

The present cathedral was begun by Bishop William de Warelhurst in 1112, the transept towers he built being the only surviving part of the Norman building, which was completed by Bishop Marshall at the close of the twelfth century. The cathedral is dedicated to St Peter.

As it now stands, the cathedral is in the decorated style. It was begun by Bishop Quinel (1280–1291), continued by Bishops Bytton and Stapeldon, and completed, much as it has since remained, by Bishop Grandisson during his long pontificate of 42 years.

In many respects Exeter cathedral resembles those of France rather than others found in England. Its special features are the transept towers and the choir, containing much early stained glass. There is also an episcopal throne, separated from the nave by a choir screen (1324) and a stately West front. In a comparison with certain other English cathedrals, it is perhaps disadvantaged by the absence of a central tower and a general lack of elevation, but it is undoubtedly very fine.

Organization

The bishops of Exeter, like the general population of the diocese, always enjoyed considerable independence, and the see was one of the largest and richest in England. The remoteness of the see from London prevented it from being bestowed on statesmen or courtiers, so that over the centuries the roll of bishops possessed more capable scholars and administrators than in many other sees. The result was a long and stable line of bishops, leading to active Christian observance in the area.

The diocese contained 604 parishes grouped in four archdeaconries: Cornwall, Barnstaple, Exeter, and Totnes. There were Benedictine, Augustinian, Premonstratensian, Franciscan and Dominican religious houses, and four Cistercian abbeys.

Modern history

This wealthy diocese was forced to cede land during the reign of Henry VIII, when Bishop Vesey was obliged to surrender fourteen of twenty-two manors, and the value of the see was reduced to a third of what it had been. Vesey, despite his Catholic sympathies, held the see until 1551, when he finally had to resign, and was replaced by the Bible translator Miles Coverdale. Following the accession of Mary, in 1553, Vesey was restored, but died soon after in 1554. He was succeeded by James Turberville, the last Catholic Bishop of Exeter. Turberville was removed from the see by the Protestant Elizabeth I in 1559, and died in prison, probably in or about 1570.

Henry Phillpotts served as Lord Bishop of Exeter from 1830 to his death in office in 1869. He was England's longest serving bishop since the 14th century. The diocese was divided in 1876 along the border of Devon and Cornwall, creating the Diocese of Truro (but five parishes which were at the time in Devon were included in this diocese as they had always been within the Archdeaconry of Cornwall). The diocese covers the County of Devon. The see is in the City of Exeter where the seat is located at the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter which was founded as an abbey possibly before 690. The current incumbent is the Lord Bishop of Exeter

List of bishops

Pre-Reformation

Pre-Reformation Bishops of Exeter
From	Until	Incumbent	Notes
1050	1072	Leofric	The first bishop who had transferred the sees of Crediton and Cornwall to Exeter
1072	1103	Osbern FitzOsbern
1107	1138	William Warelwast
1138	1155	Robert Warelwast
1155	1160	Robert of Chichester
1161	1184	Bartholomew Iscanus
1186	1191	John the Chanter
1194	1206	Henry Marshal
1206	1214	See vacant	Due to Pope Innocent III's interdict against King John's realms.
1214	1223	Simon of Apulia
1224	1244	William Briwere	Also recorded as William Brewer
1245	1257	Richard Blund	Also recorded as Richard Blundy
1258	1280	Walter Branscombe	Also recorded as Walter Bronescombe
1280	1291	Peter Quinel	Also recorded as Peter de Quivel or Quivil
1291	1307	Thomas Bitton	Also recorded as Thomas de Bytton
1308	1326	Walter de Stapledon
1326	1327	James Berkeley
1327		John Godeley	Also recorded as John Godele. Elected, but quashed.
1327	1369	John Grandisson
1370	1394	Thomas de Brantingham	Also recorded as Thomas Brantyngham
1395	1419	Edmund Stafford
1419		John Catterick	Also recorded as John Ketterick. Translated from Lichfield.
1420	1455	Edmund Lacey	Also recorded as Edmund Lacy. Translated from Hereford.
1455	1456	John Hales	Appointed, but resigned before consecration.
1458	1465	George Neville	Translated to York
1465	1478	John Booth
1478	1487	Peter Courtenay	Translated to Winchester
1487	1492	Richard Foxe	Translated to Bath and Wells
1493	1495	Oliver King	Translated to Bath and Wells
1496	1502	Richard Redman	Translated from St Asaph; later translated to Ely
1502	1504	John Arundel	Translated from Lichfield
1505	1519	Hugh Oldham
Source(s):[4][5][6]

During the Reformation

Bishops of Exeter during the Reformation
From	Until	Incumbent	Notes
1519	1551	John Vesey (resigned)
1551	1553	Myles Coverdale
1553	1554	John Vesey (restored)
1555	1560	James Turberville
Source(s):[4][5][6]

Post-Reformation

Post-Reformation Bishops of Exeter
From	Until	Incumbent	Notes
1560	1571	William Alley	Also recorded as William Alley
1571	1578	William Bradbridge
1579	1594	John Woolton
1595	1597	Gervase Babington	Translated to Worcester
1598	1621	William Cotton
1621	1626	Valentine Cary
1627	1641	Joseph Hall	Translated to Norwich
1642	1659	Ralph Brownrigg
1660	1662	John Gauden	Translated to Worcester
1662	1667	Seth Ward	Translated to Salisbury
1667	1676	Anthony Sparrow	Translated to Norwich
1676	1688	Thomas Lamplugh	Translated to York
1689	1707	Sir Jonathan Trelawney Bt	Translated from Bristol; later translated to Winchester
1708	1716	Ofspring Blackall
1717	1724	Lancelot Blackburne	Translated to York
1724	1742	Stephen Weston
1742	1746	Nicholas Clagett	Translated from St David's
1747	1762	George Lavington
1762	1777	Frederick Keppel
1778	1792	John Ross
1792[7]	1796	William Buller
1797	1803	Reginald Courtenay	Translated from Bristol
1803	1807	John Fisher	Translated to Salisbury
1807	1820	George Pelham	Translated from Bristol; later translated to Lincoln
1820	1830	William Carey	Translated to St Asaph
1830	1830	Christopher Bethell	Translated from Gloucester; later translated to Bangor
1831	1869	Henry Phillpotts
1869	1885	Frederick Temple	Translated to London
1885	1900	Edward Bickersteth
1901	1903	Herbert Edward Ryle	Translated to Winchester
1903	1916	Archibald Robertson
1916	1936	Lord William Cecil
1936	1948	Charles Curzon	Translated from Stepney
1949	1973	Robert Mortimer
1973	1985	Eric Mercer	Translated from Birkenhead
1985	1999	Hewlett Thompson	Translated from Willesden
1999	30 June 2013[8]	Michael Langrish	Translated from Birkenhead
30 April 2014	present	Robert Atwell	[3]Translated from Stockport
Source(s):[4][6]

See also

• Bishop of Crediton
• Bishop of Cornwall

References

1. Debrett's Peerage, 1968, p.432
2. Crockford's Clerical Directory, 100th edition, (2007), Church House Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7151-1030-0.
3. Diocese of Exeter – Election of new Bishop of Exeter formally confirmed (Accessed 9 May 2014)
4. Fryde, E. B.; Greenway, D. E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I. (1986). Handbook of British Chronology (Third Edition, revised ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 246–248. ISBN 0-521-56350-X.
5. Horn, J. M. (1962). "Bishops of Exeter". Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1300–1541: Volume 9: Exeter Diocese. British History Online. pp. 1–3.
6. "Historical successions: Exeter (including precussor offices)". Crockford's Clerical Directory. Retrieved 18 July 2012.
7. The London Gazette: no. 13457. p. 694. 8 September 1792.
8. BBC News – Bishop Langrish retires from office (Accessed 1 July 2013)

Sources

• Some text adapted from Catholic Encyclopaedia, 1908.