Richard of Chichester
Overview
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
(canonized
Canonization
Canonization is the act by which a Christian church declares a deceased person to be a saint, upon which declaration the person is included in the canon, or list, of recognized saints. Originally, individuals were recognized as saints without any formal process...
1262) who was Bishop of Chichester. His shrine
Shrine
A shrine is a holy or sacred place, which is dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, daemon or similar figure of awe and respect, at which they are venerated or worshipped. Shrines often contain idols, relics, or other such objects associated with the figure being venerated....
in Chichester Cathedral
Chichester Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, otherwise called Chichester Cathedral, is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Chichester. It is located in Chichester, in Sussex, England...
was a richly-decorated centre of pilgrimage
Pilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...
which was destroyed in 1538.
Richard was born in the town of Wyche (modern Droitwich, Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
) and was an orphan member of a gentry family. On the death of their parents Richard's elder brother was heir to the estates but he was not old enough to inherit, so the lands were subject to a feudal wardship; on coming of age his brother took possession of his lands but would have had to pay a medieval form of death duty
Feudal relief
Feudal Relief was a one-off "fine" or form of taxation payable to an overlord by the heir of a feudal tenant to licence him to take possession of his fief, i.e. an estate-in-land, by inheritance...
that left him so impoverished, that he had to get Richard to work for him on the farm.
Unanswered Questions
