Thomas Westfield
Encyclopedia
Thomas Westfield was an English churchman, Bishop of Bristol
and member of the Westminster Assembly
.
, where he was elected a scholar, and afterwards held a fellowship from 1599 to 1603. He graduated B.A. in 1593, M.A. in 1596, and B.D. in 1604. He was incorporated B.D. at Oxford on 9 July 1611, proceeded D.D. at Cambridge in 1615, and was reincorporated D.D. at Oxford on 26 March 1644. On 5 August 1619 he was admitted a student at Gray's Inn
.
After serving as curate at St. Mary-le-Bow under Nicholas Felton
, he was presented to the rectory of South Somercotes
in Lincolnshire
in 1600, which he exchanged on 18 December 1605 for the London living of St. Bartholomew, Smithfield, where David Dee had been deprived; Westfield was chaplain to Robert Rich, 1st Earl of Warwick
, the patron, and his son Henry
. On 28 April 1615 he was appointed to the rectory of Hornsey
, which he retained until 1637. On 14 November 1631 he was collated archdeacon of St. Albans, and on 17 December 1633 was included in a royal commission to exercise ecclesiastical jurisdiction in England and Wales. In 1631 he became president of Sion College
.
On the outbreak of the First English Civil War
he continued to reside in London, but, falling under suspicion of royalist sympathies, he was abused in the streets and sequestered from St. Bartholomew. He left for the king's forces, and on 26 April 1642 was consecrated bishop of Bristol, in succession to Robert Skinner
. Westfield held his other offices in commendam
with his bishopric, probably without deriving any revenue from them. The emoluments of his bishopric also were at first retained from him by the parliament, but on 13 May 1643 they were restored to him by order of the parliamentary committee of sequestrations out of respect for his character, and he was given a pass to Bristol. This good treatment may have been due to his consent to attend the Westminster Assembly
, which met on 1 July. Although his share in the proceedings was small, he was present at least at the first meeting. He died on 25 June 1644, and was buried in the choir in Bristol Cathedral
, where a monument was erected to him by his wife Elizabeth (d. 1653), daughter of Adolphus van Meetkerke and sister of Edward Meetkerke, president of Flanders. By her he had a daughter Elizabeth.
An emotive preacher, he was known as "Mournful Jeremy" and the "weeping prophet".
Bishop of Bristol
The Bishop of Bristol heads the Church of England Diocese of Bristol in the Province of Canterbury, in England.The present diocese covers parts of the counties of Somerset and Gloucestershire together with a small area of Wiltshire...
and member of the Westminster Assembly
Westminster Assembly
The Westminster Assembly of Divines was appointed by the Long Parliament to restructure the Church of England. It also included representatives of religious leaders from Scotland...
.
Life
He was born in the parish of St. Mary's, Ely, in 1573, and went the free school there. under Master Spight.' He proceeded to Jesus College, CambridgeJesus College, Cambridge
Jesus College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.The College was founded in 1496 on the site of a Benedictine nunnery by John Alcock, then Bishop of Ely...
, where he was elected a scholar, and afterwards held a fellowship from 1599 to 1603. He graduated B.A. in 1593, M.A. in 1596, and B.D. in 1604. He was incorporated B.D. at Oxford on 9 July 1611, proceeded D.D. at Cambridge in 1615, and was reincorporated D.D. at Oxford on 26 March 1644. On 5 August 1619 he was admitted a student at Gray's Inn
Gray's Inn
The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court in London. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wales, an individual must belong to one of these Inns...
.
After serving as curate at St. Mary-le-Bow under Nicholas Felton
Nicholas Felton
Nicholas Felton was an English academic, bishop of Bristol from 1617 to 1619, and then bishop of Ely.-Life:He was born in Great Yarmouth, and educated at Pembroke Hall, Cambridge. He was rector of St Mary-le-Bow church in London, from 1597 to 1617; and also rector at St Antholin, Budge Row...
, he was presented to the rectory of South Somercotes
South Somercotes
South Somercotes is a village and civil parish 8 miles north-east of Louth and around 2 miles south of North Somercotes, Lincolnshire, England...
in Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
in 1600, which he exchanged on 18 December 1605 for the London living of St. Bartholomew, Smithfield, where David Dee had been deprived; Westfield was chaplain to Robert Rich, 1st Earl of Warwick
Robert Rich, 1st Earl of Warwick
Robert Rich, 3rd Baron Rich, created 1st Earl of Warwick was the son of Robert Rich, 2nd Baron Rich, and Elizabeth Baldry.-Marriages and children:First married Penelope Devereux on 10 January, 1581...
, the patron, and his son Henry
Henry Rich, 1st Earl of Holland
Henry Rich, 1st Earl of Holland was an English aristocrat, courtier and soldier.-Life:He was the son of Robert Rich, 1st Earl of Warwick and of Penelope Devereux, Lady Rich, and the younger brother of Robert Rich, 2nd Earl of Warwick...
. On 28 April 1615 he was appointed to the rectory of Hornsey
Hornsey
Hornsey is a district in London Borough of Haringey in north London in England. Whilst Hornsey was formerly the name of a parish and later a municipal borough of Middlesex, today, the name refers only to the London district. It is an inner-suburban area located north of Charing Cross.-Locale:The ...
, which he retained until 1637. On 14 November 1631 he was collated archdeacon of St. Albans, and on 17 December 1633 was included in a royal commission to exercise ecclesiastical jurisdiction in England and Wales. In 1631 he became president of Sion College
Sion College
Sion College, in London, is an institution founded by Royal Charter in 1630 as a college, guild of parochial clergy and almshouse, under the 1623 will of Thomas White, vicar of St Dunstan's in the West....
.
On the outbreak of the First English Civil War
First English Civil War
The First English Civil War began the series of three wars known as the English Civil War . "The English Civil War" was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations that took place between Parliamentarians and Royalists from 1642 until 1651, and includes the Second English Civil War and...
he continued to reside in London, but, falling under suspicion of royalist sympathies, he was abused in the streets and sequestered from St. Bartholomew. He left for the king's forces, and on 26 April 1642 was consecrated bishop of Bristol, in succession to Robert Skinner
Robert Skinner
-Life:He was a Fellow of Trinity College, Oxford in 1613, and graduated M.A. in 1614.His father Edmund Skinner was rector of Pitsford, and Robert succeeded him in 1628. He was vicar of Launton from 1632....
. Westfield held his other offices in commendam
In Commendam
In canon law, commendam was a form of transferring an ecclesiastical benefice in trust to the custody of a patron...
with his bishopric, probably without deriving any revenue from them. The emoluments of his bishopric also were at first retained from him by the parliament, but on 13 May 1643 they were restored to him by order of the parliamentary committee of sequestrations out of respect for his character, and he was given a pass to Bristol. This good treatment may have been due to his consent to attend the Westminster Assembly
Westminster Assembly
The Westminster Assembly of Divines was appointed by the Long Parliament to restructure the Church of England. It also included representatives of religious leaders from Scotland...
, which met on 1 July. Although his share in the proceedings was small, he was present at least at the first meeting. He died on 25 June 1644, and was buried in the choir in Bristol Cathedral
Bristol Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity is the Church of England cathedral in the city of Bristol, England, and is commonly known as Bristol Cathedral...
, where a monument was erected to him by his wife Elizabeth (d. 1653), daughter of Adolphus van Meetkerke and sister of Edward Meetkerke, president of Flanders. By her he had a daughter Elizabeth.
An emotive preacher, he was known as "Mournful Jeremy" and the "weeping prophet".
Works
He was the author of two collections of sermons:- Englands Face in Isrels Glasse, or the Sinnes, Mercies, Judgments of both Nations, eight sermons, London, 1646; London, 1655; reprinted, with three other sermons, under the title 'Eleven choice Sermons as they were delivered . . . by Thomas Westfield . . . Bishop of Bristol,' London, 1656.
- The White Robe, or the Surplice vindicated, four sermons, 1660; new edit. 1669.