William Warelwast
Encyclopedia
William Warelwast, sometimes known as William de Warelwast (died 1137) was a medieval Norman cleric and Bishop of Exeter
in England. Warelwast was a native of Normandy, but little is known about his background before 1087, when he appears as a royal clerk for King William II of England
. Most of his royal service to William was as a diplomatic envoy, as he was heavily involved in the king's dispute with Anselm
, the Archbishop of Canterbury
, which was the beginning of the Investiture Controversy
in England. He went several times to Rome as an emissary to the papacy on business related to Anselm, one of whose supporters, the medieval chronicler Eadmer
, alleged that Warelwast bribed the pope and the papal officials to secure favourable outcomes for King William.
Possibly present at King William's death in a hunting accident, Warelwast served as a diplomat to the king's successor, Henry I
. After the resolution of the Investiture Controversy Warelwast was rewarded with the bishopric
of Exeter
in Devon
, but he continued to serve Henry as a diplomat and royal judge. He began the construction of a new cathedral at Exeter
, and he probably divided the diocese into archdeaconries. Warelwast went blind after 1120, and following his death in 1137 was succeeded by his nephew, Robert Warelwast
.
, which – according to historian – implies that he was an Augustinian canon or spent some of his early years in a house of such canons. Several medieval chroniclers hostile to Warelwast, including Eadmer, claim that he was illiterate, but his career suggests otherwise, as it involved the extensive use of written documents. He must also have been an accomplished speaker, given the number of times he was used as a diplomat. He was possibly educated at Laon
, where later in life he sent his nephew, Robert Warelwast, to school. Another nephew, William, became the bishop's steward.
Warelwast may have been a clerk for King William I of England
, as a confirmation charter from the time of King Stephen
(reigned 1135–1154) records that a grant of churches in Exeter was given to Warelwast by "Willelmus, avus meus", or "William, my grandfather/ancestor"; Stephen was a grandson of William I, who reigned 1066–1089. But this charter may be a forgery, or the Willelmus referred to may have been William II rather than William I. The charter itself is insufficient evidence to confidently assert that Warelwast served William I, even though most such grants were made as a reward for royal service. It may have been that Warelwast was awarded land by William I not because he was a royal servant but because he was a relative; certainly the late-medieval writer William of Worcester claimed that Warelwast was related to the king.
s for the king. As well as being a royal clerk, Warelwast acted as a judge in a legal case between St Florent Abbey in Saumur
and Fécamp Abbey
, heard before King William II some time between 1094 and 1099 at Foucarmont
.
Warelwast served the king as an envoy to Pope Urban II
in 1095, when the king was seeking to have the newly appointed Archbishop of Canterbury, Anselm of Canterbury, removed from office. He visited the pope with another royal clerk, Gerard, with orders to recognize Urban as pope in return for Anselm's deposition, at least according to Eadmer, an Anselm partisan. The two clerks travelled very quickly, as they did not leave before 28 February 1095 and were back in England by 13 May 1095. Eadmer claimed that the ambassadors were supposed to acquire a pallium
, the symbol of an archbishop's authority, for the king to give to his new choice as archbishop. But although the king may have instructed his envoys to attempt to secure these objects, he was probably willing to negotiate and to settle for less. The two clerks returned with a papal legate
, Walter of Albano
, who accepted the king's recognition of Urban but refused to allow Anselm's deposition. The king did nevertheless manage to secure recognition of his royal rights in the church, and a concession that no papal legates or communications would be sent without his approval. It may well be that the king always regarded Anselm's deposition as unlikely.
Warelwast was probably sent as an envoy to Urban in 1096 to bribe the pope into recalling the papal legate Jarento, who had been sent to England to protest the king's conduct towards the church. In addition to his ambassadorial duties Warelwast acted as a royal justice under King William; the records of one case have survived.
Shortly before Anselm went into exile in 1097 Warelwast searched his baggage, probably looking for communications to the pope, either from Anselm or other English bishops rather than for valuables, and in particular for any letters of complaint. Warelwast was the king's envoy at Rome when during his exile Anselm petitioned to have the king excommunicated, which according to Eadmer, who was also present, Warelwast succeeded in preventing by bribing the pope and papal officials. The king had sent Warelwast to Urban at Christmas 1098, with his reply to a letter the pope had written ordering the restoration of Anselm's estates.
Warelwast may have been with the hunting party on 2 August 1100 in which King William was accidentally killed, as he was one of the witnesses to the letter sent on 5 August 1100 from William IIs brother, the new King Henry I to Anselm recalling the archbishop. King Henry continued to use Warelwast as an ambassador, sending him to Rome in 1101 to bring back Pope Paschal II
's reply to a letter written by Henry immediately after his accession. Henry was seeking a reconciliation with the papacy, and confirmed to the pope the rights and obedience which his father had rendered, but he also requested the same rights within the Church as his father had enjoyed, chiefly the lay investiture
of bishops and the granting of the symbols of episcopal authority by laymen. Paschal declined to grant Henry those rights.
It was Warelwast who told Anselm in 1103 that the king would not permit his return to England. This came after a failed joint mission by Warelwast and Anselm to Paschal attempting to resolve the dispute between Henry and the archbishop over the king's investiture of bishops, a dispute generally known as the Investiture Controversy. It is quite likely that the king had given instructions that if the mission failed, Warelwast was to inform Anselm that he should only to return to England if he agreed with the king's position in the dispute. In 1106 Warelwast was the king's negotiator in the discussions that led to the settlement of the Investiture Controversy in England. The king ultimately lost little, relinquishing the right to actually give the symbols of episcopal authority to a newly elected bishop in return for continuing to receive homage
from the bishops. Early in 1106 Warelwast was sent to Bec Abbey
, where Anselm was residing in exile, to inform him of the settlement and deliver to the archbishop the king's invitation to return to England. In May 1107 Warelwast acted as the king's envoy at Paschal's council at Troyes
, where Paschal was attempting to secure support for Bohemond of Antioch's proposed campaign against Byzantium
. Warelwast probably relayed to the pope the news that King Henry would make no contribution to Bohemond's efforts.
Henry had reserved the episcopal see
of Exeter for Warelwast since the death of Osbern FitzOsbern
in 1103, but the controversy over investiture meant that his election and consecration were not possible before a settlement was reached. Instead the king gave Warelwast the office of Archdeacon of Exeter after Osbern's death. The medieval chronicler William of Malmesbury
records that Warelwast had earlier tried to remove Osbern from office, but this story probably originates with Eadmer and is of dubious veracity. While archdeacon, Warelwast is recorded as being present at the transfer of a Devon church to Bath Cathedral
. He was elected Bishop of Exeter, and was consecrated on 11 August 1107, by Anselm at the royal palace of Westminster. Other bishops consecrated at the same time included William Giffard
to Winchester
, Roger of Salisbury
to Salisbury
, Reynelm
to Hereford
, and Urban to Llandaff
. Warelwast's elevation was a reward for his diplomatic efforts in the investiture crisis. The mass consecration signalled the end of the investiture crisis in England.
After his consecration Warelwast continued to serve the king, often appearing on documents or in accounts of the royal court. The bishop served the king as a messenger, once more carrying messages to Anselm in 1108. He also served as a royal judge, hearing a case at Tamworth in 1114 and another at Westbourne the same year. He was with the king in Normandy in 1111, 1113, and 1118, and may have been in Normandy more frequently. During Henry's reign Warelwast was a witness to 20 of the king's charters.
In 1115 Henry sent Warelwast back to Rome to negotiate with Paschal, who was angry that the king was prohibiting papal legates in England, not allowing clerics to appeal to the papal court, and was failing to secure papal sanction for church councils or the translation of bishops. Warelwast was unable to change the pope's mind, but he did manage to prevent sanctions against the king. Henry also employed Warelwast as a papal envoy during the Canterbury–York disputes over the primacy in the English Church, with visits in 1119, 1120, and possibly also in 1116.
in 1118, a provincial synod
for Normandy. In his diocese of Exeter he began the construction of a new cathedral in about 1114; it was consecrated in 1133. The existing two towers in the transept
s date from that period. He also replaced the secular clergy
staffing collegiate churches with regular canons: at Plympton
in 1121 with canons from Aldgate
in London, and in 1127 at the church in Launceston in Cornwall
. In addition he founded a house of regular canons at Bodmin
. Royal charters survive that granted several churches in Cornwall, Devon, and Exeter to Warelwast.
Warelwast's relations with his cathedral chapter
were good, and no disputes arose during his episcopate. It was not until late in his bishopric that the diocese was split into multiple archdeacon
ries, which appears to have happened in 1133. Warelwast instituted the two offices of treasurer and precentor
for the cathedral chapter, as well as the first sub-archdeacons, who were under the archdeacons. Sub-archdeacons are not attested again at Exeter until the episcopate of Bartholomew Iscanus
, who was bishop from 1161–1184. William of Malmesbury felt that during Warelwast's episcopate the cathedral chapter relaxed its communal living, which previously had been strong. It is likely that during Warelwast's episcopate the canons of the cathedral chapter quit living in a communal dormitory.
Warelwast went blind in his later years, starting in about 1120, which William of Malmesbury regarded as a fitting punishment for Warelwast's alleged attempts to remove his predecessor from office early. He died on about 26 September 1137, and was buried in the priory at Plympton. He may have resigned his see prior to his death. The 16th-century antiquary John Leland thought that Warelwast resigned his see before 1127, became a canon at Plympton, and died in 1127. Although Leland's year of death is incorrect, it is possible that Warelwast became a canon shortly before his death. The Annales Plymptonienses records that Robert of Bath
, the Bishop of Bath, gave Warelwast his last rites
on 26 September 1137, and records that the dying bishop was made a member of the collegiate church at Plympton. Warelwast's nephew Robert Warelwast succeeded as Bishop at Exeter in 1138; Robert had been appointed archdeacon of Exeter by his uncle.
The historian C. Warren Hollister
described William Warelwast as a "canny and devoted royal servant".
Bishop of Exeter
The Bishop of Exeter is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Exeter in the Province of Canterbury. The incumbent usually signs his name as Exon or incorporates this in his signature....
in England. Warelwast was a native of Normandy, but little is known about his background before 1087, when he appears as a royal clerk for King William II of England
William II of England
William II , the third son of William I of England, was King of England from 1087 until 1100, with powers over Normandy, and influence in Scotland. He was less successful in extending control into Wales...
. Most of his royal service to William was as a diplomatic envoy, as he was heavily involved in the king's dispute with Anselm
Anselm of Canterbury
Anselm of Canterbury , also called of Aosta for his birthplace, and of Bec for his home monastery, was a Benedictine monk, a philosopher, and a prelate of the church who held the office of Archbishop of Canterbury from 1093 to 1109...
, the Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
, which was the beginning of the Investiture Controversy
Investiture Controversy
The Investiture Controversy or Investiture Contest was the most significant conflict between Church and state in medieval Europe. In the 11th and 12th centuries, a series of Popes challenged the authority of European monarchies over control of appointments, or investitures, of church officials such...
in England. He went several times to Rome as an emissary to the papacy on business related to Anselm, one of whose supporters, the medieval chronicler Eadmer
Eadmer
Eadmer, or Edmer , was an English historian, theologian, and ecclesiastic. He is known for being a contemporary biographer of his contemporary archbishop and companion, Saint Anselm, in his Vita Anselmi, and for his Historia novorum in Anglia, which presents the public face of Anselm...
, alleged that Warelwast bribed the pope and the papal officials to secure favourable outcomes for King William.
Possibly present at King William's death in a hunting accident, Warelwast served as a diplomat to the king's successor, Henry I
Henry I of England
Henry I was the fourth son of William I of England. He succeeded his elder brother William II as King of England in 1100 and defeated his eldest brother, Robert Curthose, to become Duke of Normandy in 1106...
. After the resolution of the Investiture Controversy Warelwast was rewarded with the bishopric
Episcopal See
An episcopal see is, in the original sense, the official seat of a bishop. This seat, which is also referred to as the bishop's cathedra, is placed in the bishop's principal church, which is therefore called the bishop's cathedral...
of Exeter
Exeter
Exeter is a historic city in Devon, England. It lies within the ceremonial county of Devon, of which it is the county town as well as the home of Devon County Council. Currently the administrative area has the status of a non-metropolitan district, and is therefore under the administration of the...
in Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
, but he continued to serve Henry as a diplomat and royal judge. He began the construction of a new cathedral at Exeter
Exeter Cathedral
Exeter Cathedral, the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter at Exeter, is an Anglican cathedral, and the seat of the Bishop of Exeter, in the city of Exeter, Devon in South West England....
, and he probably divided the diocese into archdeaconries. Warelwast went blind after 1120, and following his death in 1137 was succeeded by his nephew, Robert Warelwast
Robert Warelwast
-Life:Warelwast and his successor, Robert of Chichester are often confused. Warelwast was the nephew of the previous bishop, William Warelwast, and was appointed archdeacon of Exeter by his uncle. He had been educated at Laon, sent there by his uncle to study under Master Anselm of Laon.Warelwast...
.
Early life
Little is known of Warelwast's background or family before 1087. Later in life he was involved in founding Augustinian houses of canonsCanon (priest)
A canon is a priest or minister who is a member of certain bodies of the Christian clergy subject to an ecclesiastical rule ....
, which – according to historian – implies that he was an Augustinian canon or spent some of his early years in a house of such canons. Several medieval chroniclers hostile to Warelwast, including Eadmer, claim that he was illiterate, but his career suggests otherwise, as it involved the extensive use of written documents. He must also have been an accomplished speaker, given the number of times he was used as a diplomat. He was possibly educated at Laon
Laon
Laon is the capital city of the Aisne department in Picardy in northern France.-History:The hilly district of Laon, which rises a hundred metres above the otherwise flat Picardy plain, has always held strategic importance...
, where later in life he sent his nephew, Robert Warelwast, to school. Another nephew, William, became the bishop's steward.
Warelwast may have been a clerk for King William I of England
William I of England
William I , also known as William the Conqueror , was the first Norman King of England from Christmas 1066 until his death. He was also Duke of Normandy from 3 July 1035 until his death, under the name William II...
, as a confirmation charter from the time of King Stephen
Stephen of England
Stephen , often referred to as Stephen of Blois , was a grandson of William the Conqueror. He was King of England from 1135 to his death, and also the Count of Boulogne by right of his wife. Stephen's reign was marked by the Anarchy, a civil war with his cousin and rival, the Empress Matilda...
(reigned 1135–1154) records that a grant of churches in Exeter was given to Warelwast by "Willelmus, avus meus", or "William, my grandfather/ancestor"; Stephen was a grandson of William I, who reigned 1066–1089. But this charter may be a forgery, or the Willelmus referred to may have been William II rather than William I. The charter itself is insufficient evidence to confidently assert that Warelwast served William I, even though most such grants were made as a reward for royal service. It may have been that Warelwast was awarded land by William I not because he was a royal servant but because he was a relative; certainly the late-medieval writer William of Worcester claimed that Warelwast was related to the king.
Royal clerk under King William II
The first reliable mentions of Warelwast occur early in the reign of King William II, when Warelwast appears as authorizing writWrit
In common law, a writ is a formal written order issued by a body with administrative or judicial jurisdiction; in modern usage, this body is generally a court...
s for the king. As well as being a royal clerk, Warelwast acted as a judge in a legal case between St Florent Abbey in Saumur
Saumur
Saumur is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France.The historic town is located between the Loire and Thouet rivers, and is surrounded by the vineyards of Saumur itself, Chinon, Bourgueil, Coteaux du Layon, etc...
and Fécamp Abbey
Fécamp Abbey
Fécamp Abbey is a Benedictine abbey in Normandy, northern France.The abbey was the first producer of Bénédictine, a herbal liqueur, based on brandy.-First foundation:...
, heard before King William II some time between 1094 and 1099 at Foucarmont
Foucarmont
Foucarmont is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.-Geography:A large village of farming and associated light industry, situated by the banks of the river Yères, in the Pays de Bray, some southeast of Dieppe, at the junction of the D928, the...
.
Warelwast served the king as an envoy to Pope Urban II
Pope Urban II
Pope Urban II , born Otho de Lagery , was Pope from 12 March 1088 until his death on July 29 1099...
in 1095, when the king was seeking to have the newly appointed Archbishop of Canterbury, Anselm of Canterbury, removed from office. He visited the pope with another royal clerk, Gerard, with orders to recognize Urban as pope in return for Anselm's deposition, at least according to Eadmer, an Anselm partisan. The two clerks travelled very quickly, as they did not leave before 28 February 1095 and were back in England by 13 May 1095. Eadmer claimed that the ambassadors were supposed to acquire a pallium
Pallium
The pallium is an ecclesiastical vestment in the Roman Catholic Church, originally peculiar to the Pope, but for many centuries bestowed by him on metropolitans and primates as a symbol of the jurisdiction delegated to them by the Holy See. In that context it has always remained unambiguously...
, the symbol of an archbishop's authority, for the king to give to his new choice as archbishop. But although the king may have instructed his envoys to attempt to secure these objects, he was probably willing to negotiate and to settle for less. The two clerks returned with a papal legate
Papal legate
A papal legate – from the Latin, authentic Roman title Legatus – is a personal representative of the pope to foreign nations, or to some part of the Catholic Church. He is empowered on matters of Catholic Faith and for the settlement of ecclesiastical matters....
, Walter of Albano
Walter of Albano
Walter of Albano or Gualterio was the cardinal-bishop of the Diocese of Albano in Italy from 1091 to 1101. He served as papal legate to England in May 1095, where he secured the recognition of Pope Urban II by King William II of England...
, who accepted the king's recognition of Urban but refused to allow Anselm's deposition. The king did nevertheless manage to secure recognition of his royal rights in the church, and a concession that no papal legates or communications would be sent without his approval. It may well be that the king always regarded Anselm's deposition as unlikely.
Warelwast was probably sent as an envoy to Urban in 1096 to bribe the pope into recalling the papal legate Jarento, who had been sent to England to protest the king's conduct towards the church. In addition to his ambassadorial duties Warelwast acted as a royal justice under King William; the records of one case have survived.
Shortly before Anselm went into exile in 1097 Warelwast searched his baggage, probably looking for communications to the pope, either from Anselm or other English bishops rather than for valuables, and in particular for any letters of complaint. Warelwast was the king's envoy at Rome when during his exile Anselm petitioned to have the king excommunicated, which according to Eadmer, who was also present, Warelwast succeeded in preventing by bribing the pope and papal officials. The king had sent Warelwast to Urban at Christmas 1098, with his reply to a letter the pope had written ordering the restoration of Anselm's estates.
Royal service for King Henry I
Pope Paschal II
Pope Paschal II , born Ranierius, was Pope from August 13, 1099, until his death. A monk of the Cluniac order, he was created cardinal priest of the Titulus S...
's reply to a letter written by Henry immediately after his accession. Henry was seeking a reconciliation with the papacy, and confirmed to the pope the rights and obedience which his father had rendered, but he also requested the same rights within the Church as his father had enjoyed, chiefly the lay investiture
Investiture
Investiture, from the Latin is a rather general term for the formal installation of an incumbent...
of bishops and the granting of the symbols of episcopal authority by laymen. Paschal declined to grant Henry those rights.
It was Warelwast who told Anselm in 1103 that the king would not permit his return to England. This came after a failed joint mission by Warelwast and Anselm to Paschal attempting to resolve the dispute between Henry and the archbishop over the king's investiture of bishops, a dispute generally known as the Investiture Controversy. It is quite likely that the king had given instructions that if the mission failed, Warelwast was to inform Anselm that he should only to return to England if he agreed with the king's position in the dispute. In 1106 Warelwast was the king's negotiator in the discussions that led to the settlement of the Investiture Controversy in England. The king ultimately lost little, relinquishing the right to actually give the symbols of episcopal authority to a newly elected bishop in return for continuing to receive homage
Homage
Homage is a show or demonstration of respect or dedication to someone or something, sometimes by simple declaration but often by some more oblique reference, artistic or poetic....
from the bishops. Early in 1106 Warelwast was sent to Bec Abbey
Bec Abbey
Bec Abbey in Le Bec Hellouin, Normandy, France, once the most influential abbey in the Anglo-Norman kingdom of the twelfth century, is a Benedictine monastic foundation in the Eure département, in the Bec valley midway between the cities of Rouen and Bernay.Like all abbeys, Bec maintained annals...
, where Anselm was residing in exile, to inform him of the settlement and deliver to the archbishop the king's invitation to return to England. In May 1107 Warelwast acted as the king's envoy at Paschal's council at Troyes
Troyes
Troyes is a commune and the capital of the Aube department in north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about southeast of Paris. Many half-timbered houses survive in the old town...
, where Paschal was attempting to secure support for Bohemond of Antioch's proposed campaign against Byzantium
Byzantium
Byzantium was an ancient Greek city, founded by Greek colonists from Megara in 667 BC and named after their king Byzas . The name Byzantium is a Latinization of the original name Byzantion...
. Warelwast probably relayed to the pope the news that King Henry would make no contribution to Bohemond's efforts.
Henry had reserved the episcopal see
Episcopal See
An episcopal see is, in the original sense, the official seat of a bishop. This seat, which is also referred to as the bishop's cathedra, is placed in the bishop's principal church, which is therefore called the bishop's cathedral...
of Exeter for Warelwast since the death of Osbern FitzOsbern
Osbern FitzOsbern
- Life :FitzOsbern was a relative of King Edward the Confessor as well as being a royal chaplain. During Edward's reign he received the church at Bosham, near Chichester. He was one of those present at the consecration of Westminster Abbey at Christmas 1065. He was a steward for King William I of...
in 1103, but the controversy over investiture meant that his election and consecration were not possible before a settlement was reached. Instead the king gave Warelwast the office of Archdeacon of Exeter after Osbern's death. The medieval chronicler William of Malmesbury
William of Malmesbury
William of Malmesbury was the foremost English historian of the 12th century. C. Warren Hollister so ranks him among the most talented generation of writers of history since Bede, "a gifted historical scholar and an omnivorous reader, impressively well versed in the literature of classical,...
records that Warelwast had earlier tried to remove Osbern from office, but this story probably originates with Eadmer and is of dubious veracity. While archdeacon, Warelwast is recorded as being present at the transfer of a Devon church to Bath Cathedral
Bath Abbey
The Abbey Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, Bath, commonly known as Bath Abbey, is an Anglican parish church and a former Benedictine monastery in Bath, Somerset, England...
. He was elected Bishop of Exeter, and was consecrated on 11 August 1107, by Anselm at the royal palace of Westminster. Other bishops consecrated at the same time included William Giffard
William Giffard
William Giffard was the Lord Chancellor of England of William II and Henry I, from 1093 to 1101.Giffard was the brother of Walter Giffard earl of Buckingham. He also held the office of Dean of Rouen prior to his election as bishop. On 3 August 1100 he became bishop of Winchester by nomination of...
to Winchester
Diocese of Winchester
The Diocese of Winchester forms part of the Province of Canterbury of the Church of England.Founded in 676, it is one of the oldest and largest of the dioceses in England.The area of the diocese incorporates:...
, Roger of Salisbury
Roger of Salisbury
Roger was a Norman medieval Bishop of Salisbury and the seventh Lord Chancellor and Lord Keeper of England.-Life:...
to Salisbury
Diocese of Salisbury
The Diocese of Salisbury is a Church of England diocese in the south of England. The diocese covers Dorset and most of Wiltshire and is a constituent diocese of the Province of Canterbury. The diocese is led by the Bishop of Salisbury and the diocesan synod...
, Reynelm
Reynelm
Reynelm was a medieval Bishop of Hereford.-Life:Reynelm's origins are unknown, but Gundulf of Rochester, the Bishop of Rochester, may have been his patron, as a letter of 1101 implies that Gundulf ordained him a priest...
to Hereford
Diocese of Hereford
The Diocese of Hereford is a Church of England diocese based in Hereford, covering Herefordshire, southern Shropshire and a few parishes within Worcestershire in England; and a few parishes within Powys and Monmouthshire in Wales....
, and Urban to Llandaff
Diocese of Llandaff
The Diocese of Llandaff is a Church in Wales diocese. It is headed by the Bishop of Llandaff, whose seat is located at the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul in Llandaff, a suburb of Cardiff...
. Warelwast's elevation was a reward for his diplomatic efforts in the investiture crisis. The mass consecration signalled the end of the investiture crisis in England.
After his consecration Warelwast continued to serve the king, often appearing on documents or in accounts of the royal court. The bishop served the king as a messenger, once more carrying messages to Anselm in 1108. He also served as a royal judge, hearing a case at Tamworth in 1114 and another at Westbourne the same year. He was with the king in Normandy in 1111, 1113, and 1118, and may have been in Normandy more frequently. During Henry's reign Warelwast was a witness to 20 of the king's charters.
In 1115 Henry sent Warelwast back to Rome to negotiate with Paschal, who was angry that the king was prohibiting papal legates in England, not allowing clerics to appeal to the papal court, and was failing to secure papal sanction for church councils or the translation of bishops. Warelwast was unable to change the pope's mind, but he did manage to prevent sanctions against the king. Henry also employed Warelwast as a papal envoy during the Canterbury–York disputes over the primacy in the English Church, with visits in 1119, 1120, and possibly also in 1116.
Work as bishop
As a bishop, Warelwast attended the Council of Reims in 1119 along with three other bishops from England, as well as the Council of RouenRouen
Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...
in 1118, a provincial synod
Synod
A synod historically is a council of a church, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. In modern usage, the word often refers to the governing body of a particular church, whether its members are meeting or not...
for Normandy. In his diocese of Exeter he began the construction of a new cathedral in about 1114; it was consecrated in 1133. The existing two towers in the transept
Transept
For the periodical go to The Transept.A transept is a transverse section, of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In Christian churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform building in Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architecture...
s date from that period. He also replaced the secular clergy
Secular clergy
The term secular clergy refers to deacons and priests who are not monastics or members of a religious order.-Catholic Church:In the Catholic Church, the secular clergy are ministers, such as deacons and priests, who do not belong to a religious order...
staffing collegiate churches with regular canons: at Plympton
Plympton
Plympton, or Plympton Maurice or Plympton St Maurice or Plympton St Mary or Plympton Erle, in south-western Devon, England is an ancient stannary town: an important trading centre in the past for locally mined tin, and a former seaport...
in 1121 with canons from Aldgate
Aldgate
Aldgate was the eastern most gateway through London Wall leading from the City of London to Whitechapel and the east end of London. Aldgate gives its name to a ward of the City...
in London, and in 1127 at the church in Launceston in Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
. In addition he founded a house of regular canons at Bodmin
Bodmin
Bodmin is a civil parish and major town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated in the centre of the county southwest of Bodmin Moor.The extent of the civil parish corresponds fairly closely to that of the town so is mostly urban in character...
. Royal charters survive that granted several churches in Cornwall, Devon, and Exeter to Warelwast.
Warelwast's relations with his cathedral chapter
Cathedral chapter
In accordance with canon law, a cathedral chapter is a college of clerics formed to advise a bishop and, in the case of a vacancy of the episcopal see in some countries, to govern the diocese in his stead. These councils are made up of canons and dignitaries; in the Roman Catholic church their...
were good, and no disputes arose during his episcopate. It was not until late in his bishopric that the diocese was split into multiple archdeacon
Archdeacon
An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in Anglicanism, Syrian Malabar Nasrani, Chaldean Catholic, and some other Christian denominations, above that of most clergy and below a bishop. In the High Middle Ages it was the most senior diocesan position below a bishop in the Roman Catholic Church...
ries, which appears to have happened in 1133. Warelwast instituted the two offices of treasurer and precentor
Precentor
A precentor is a person who helps facilitate worship. The details vary depending on the religion, denomination, and era in question. The Latin derivation is "præcentor", from cantor, meaning "the one who sings before" ....
for the cathedral chapter, as well as the first sub-archdeacons, who were under the archdeacons. Sub-archdeacons are not attested again at Exeter until the episcopate of Bartholomew Iscanus
Bartholomew Iscanus
Bartholomew Iscanus was a medieval Bishop of Exeter.-Early life:Bartholomew was a native of Normandy, and was probably born in Millières, a village in the Cotentin near Lessay and Périers. He was a clerk of Theobald of Bec, Archbishop of Canterbury before becoming Archdeacon of Exeter in 1155...
, who was bishop from 1161–1184. William of Malmesbury felt that during Warelwast's episcopate the cathedral chapter relaxed its communal living, which previously had been strong. It is likely that during Warelwast's episcopate the canons of the cathedral chapter quit living in a communal dormitory.
Warelwast went blind in his later years, starting in about 1120, which William of Malmesbury regarded as a fitting punishment for Warelwast's alleged attempts to remove his predecessor from office early. He died on about 26 September 1137, and was buried in the priory at Plympton. He may have resigned his see prior to his death. The 16th-century antiquary John Leland thought that Warelwast resigned his see before 1127, became a canon at Plympton, and died in 1127. Although Leland's year of death is incorrect, it is possible that Warelwast became a canon shortly before his death. The Annales Plymptonienses records that Robert of Bath
Robert of Bath
Robert or sometimes Robert of Lewes was a medieval English Bishop of Bath.-Life:Robert was a native of England, but his ancestry was Flemish, probably of noble birth. His birthdate and when he became a monk are not known. He was a Cluniac and a monk of Lewes Priory and a protege of Henry of Blois...
, the Bishop of Bath, gave Warelwast his last rites
Last Rites
The Last Rites are the very last prayers and ministrations given to many Christians before death. The last rites go by various names and include different practices in different Christian traditions...
on 26 September 1137, and records that the dying bishop was made a member of the collegiate church at Plympton. Warelwast's nephew Robert Warelwast succeeded as Bishop at Exeter in 1138; Robert had been appointed archdeacon of Exeter by his uncle.
The historian C. Warren Hollister
C. Warren Hollister
Charles Warren Hollister was an American author and historian, "one of the best medieval generalists in the world" A professor emeritus, he was one of the founding members of the University of California Santa Barbara history department...
described William Warelwast as a "canny and devoted royal servant".