William of Wrotham
Encyclopedia
William of Wrotham or William de Wrotham (died c.
1217) was a medieval English royal administrator and clergyman. Although a 13th-century source says that William held a royal office under King Henry II of England
(reigned 1154–1189), the first contemporary reference to William is in 1197, when he was put in charge of the royal tin mines, along with a few other offices. He also held ecclesiastical office, eventually occupying the office of Archdeacon of Taunton. William was also placed in charge of the royal fleet in the south of England in 1205, and was one of those responsible for the development of Portsmouth
as a naval dockyard.
, Kent, which was near Wrotham
, and perhaps held that land from the Archbishops of Canterbury
. William had a brother Richard, who is attested as receiving lands from William in 1207.
According to the late 13th-century Hundred Rolls
, King Henry II gave William the office of steward of Exmoor
as well as lands at North Petherton
, Somerset
. William held the prebend of St Decumans in the cathedral chapter
of Bath Cathedral
perhaps as early as 1194, but certainly by 9 May 1204, when he is specifically mentioned as holding that office. He claimed to have held the office as early as 1194 during a dispute with Savaric FitzGeldewin
, the Bishop of Bath and another canon of the cathedral, Roger Porretanus, who claimed the prebend. By 23 December 1205, William had secured a papal judgment against Roger.
William may have owed his advancement in royal service to Geoffrey fitz Peter, a royal judge, who in 1197 granted William a manor at Sutton-at-Hone
, Kent, which was supposed to become a hospital
, but instead eventually became a property of the Knights Hospitaller
, forming a preceptory for that order. William was also responsible for Geoffrey's lands at Lydford
, Devon from 1197. Also from 1197, William held the office of chief forester of Somerset, but it is unclear to whom he owed this office.
, who was Archbishop of Canterbury as well as Justiciar
, appointed William to the administration of the royal stannaries
, or tin mines, and in 1198 William was placed in charge of the stannaries, an office later known as the Lord Warden of the Stannaries
. He retained this office until 1215, with only one brief interruption in 1200. During his control of the mines, they became much more lucrative for the king, accounting for a total of ₤1100 in William's first year of administration.
In 1198 and 1199, William was Sheriff of Devon
and Sheriff of Cornwall
, along with another royal servant, as well as serving as a royal justice. By 12 September 1204, William was Archdeacon of Taunton in the Diocese of Bath, and he witnessed the election of Jocelin of Wells
as the new bishop of the diocese
. In 1205, William was jointly placed in charge of the mints of London and Canterbury, along with Reginald de Cornhill
, with whom he also shared the collection of the tax of a fifteenth on merchants
, a post the two had held since 1202. William also was placed in charge of vacant ecclesiastical offices, collecting their revenues for the king. He performed this office for the Diocese of Winchester
in 1204, for Glastonbury Abbey
in 1205, and for Whitby Abbey
in 1206 and 1209.
William's main administrative work, however, concerned the navy. In 1205 he was one of the keepers of the royal fleet along the south coast of England. In the same year, he was also in charge of naval spending for the attempted invasion of France. In 1206. In 1206, he was in charge of the naval forces in the Cinque Ports
as well as commanding the fleet that invaded Poitou that year. From then until 1215 he was effectively King John's
naval commander, and helped to develop Portsmouth as a royal dockyard. John rewarded William for his service with churches in Sheppey
and East Malling, which were granted in 1207, as well as the overseeing of the royal forests in Cornwall and Devon. Other grants included lands in Dartford
and Sutton-at-Hone which had escheat
ed to the crown, lands in Westminster and a prebend in the royal ecclesiastical foundation at Hastings.
on England during John's reign, William supported John, and remained in England. The medieval chronicler Roger of Wendover
named William as one of the "evil advisors" to John. But in 1215, William joined the baronial rebellion against John, and lost his naval offices and the royal forester's office for Somerset, as well as custody of Lydford Castle. In the summer of 1217, however, he rejoined the royalist cause, returning to the side of King Henry III
, John's son. This action regained him some of his lost lands.
William last appeared in documents on 25 July 1217, and was dead by 16 February 1218, probably before 2 December 1217, when someone else is mentioned as archdeacon. On 16 February 1218, John Marshall became the guardian of Richard, William's nephew and heir, who was the son of Richard, William's brother.
Circa
Circa , usually abbreviated c. or ca. , means "approximately" in the English language, usually referring to a date...
1217) was a medieval English royal administrator and clergyman. Although a 13th-century source says that William held a royal office under King Henry II of England
Henry II of England
Henry II ruled as King of England , Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Count of Nantes, Lord of Ireland and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland and western France. Henry, the great-grandson of William the Conqueror, was the...
(reigned 1154–1189), the first contemporary reference to William is in 1197, when he was put in charge of the royal tin mines, along with a few other offices. He also held ecclesiastical office, eventually occupying the office of Archdeacon of Taunton. William was also placed in charge of the royal fleet in the south of England in 1205, and was one of those responsible for the development of Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
as a naval dockyard.
Early life
Little is known of William's background or his family's background, except that his father, Godwin, held land in ShipbourneShipbourne
Shipbourne lies in the English county of Kent, in an undulating landscape traversed by the small streams of the River Bourne, set in a clay vale at the foot of the wooded Sevenoaks Greensand Ridge....
, Kent, which was near Wrotham
Wrotham
Wrotham is a village situated on the Pilgrims' Way in Kent, at the foot of the North Downs. It is located one mile north of Borough Green and approximately five miles east of Sevenoaks. It is within the junction of the M20 and M26 motorways....
, and perhaps held that land from the Archbishops 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...
. William had a brother Richard, who is attested as receiving lands from William in 1207.
According to the late 13th-century Hundred Rolls
Hundred Rolls
The Hundred Rolls are a census of England and parts of what is now Wales taken in the late thirteenth century. Often considered an attempt to produce a second Domesday Book, they are named for the hundreds by which most returns were recorded....
, King Henry II gave William the office of steward of Exmoor
Exmoor
Exmoor is an area of hilly open moorland in west Somerset and north Devon in South West England, named after the main river that flows out of the district, the River Exe. The moor has given its name to a National Park, which includes the Brendon Hills, the East Lyn Valley, the Vale of Porlock and ...
as well as lands at North Petherton
North Petherton
North Petherton is a small town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated on the edge of the eastern foothills of the Quantocks, and close to the edge of the Somerset Levels.The town has a population of 5,189...
, Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
. William held the prebend of St Decumans in the 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...
of 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...
perhaps as early as 1194, but certainly by 9 May 1204, when he is specifically mentioned as holding that office. He claimed to have held the office as early as 1194 during a dispute with Savaric FitzGeldewin
Savaric FitzGeldewin
Savaric fitzGeldewin was an Englishman who became Bishop of Bath and Glastonbury in England. Related to his predecessor as well as to the German Emperor Henry VI, he was elected bishop on the urging of his predecessor, who urged his election on the cathedral chapter of Bath...
, the Bishop of Bath and another canon of the cathedral, Roger Porretanus, who claimed the prebend. By 23 December 1205, William had secured a papal judgment against Roger.
William may have owed his advancement in royal service to Geoffrey fitz Peter, a royal judge, who in 1197 granted William a manor at Sutton-at-Hone
Sutton-at-Hone
Sutton-at-Hone is a village south of Dartford in Kent, England. It is part of the Dartford local government district and the civil parish of Sutton-at-Hone and Hawley. It is represented by Dartford Borough Councilors Pat Coleman and Tony Martin....
, Kent, which was supposed to become a hospital
Hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....
, but instead eventually became a property of the Knights Hospitaller
Knights Hospitaller
The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta , also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta , Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalrous, noble nature. It is the world's...
, forming a preceptory for that order. William was also responsible for Geoffrey's lands at Lydford
Lydford
Lydford, sometimes spelled Lidford, is a village, once an important town, in Devon situated north of Tavistock on the western fringe of Dartmoor in the West Devon district.-Description:The village has a population of 458....
, Devon from 1197. Also from 1197, William held the office of chief forester of Somerset, but it is unclear to whom he owed this office.
Royal service
In 1197, Hubert WalterHubert Walter
Hubert Walter was an influential royal adviser in the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries in the positions of Chief Justiciar of England, Archbishop of Canterbury, and Lord Chancellor. As chancellor, Walter began the keeping of the Charter Roll, a record of all charters issued by the...
, who was Archbishop of Canterbury as well as Justiciar
Justiciar
In medieval England and Ireland the Chief Justiciar was roughly equivalent to a modern Prime Minister as the monarch's chief minister. Similar positions existed on the Continent, particularly in Norman Italy. The term is the English form of the medieval Latin justiciarius or justitiarius In...
, appointed William to the administration of the royal stannaries
Stannary
The word stannary is historically applied to:*A tin mine, especially in Cornwall or Devon, South West England*A region containing tin works *A chartered entity comprising such a region, its works, and its workers...
, or tin mines, and in 1198 William was placed in charge of the stannaries, an office later known as the Lord Warden of the Stannaries
Lord Warden of the Stannaries
The Lord Warden of the Stannaries used to exercise judicial and military functions in Cornwall, United Kingdom, and is still the official who, upon the commission of the monarch or Duke of Cornwall for the time being, has the function of calling a Stannary Parliament of tinners...
. He retained this office until 1215, with only one brief interruption in 1200. During his control of the mines, they became much more lucrative for the king, accounting for a total of ₤1100 in William's first year of administration.
In 1198 and 1199, William was Sheriff of Devon
High Sheriff of Devon
The High Sheriff of Devon is the Queen's representative for the County of Devon, a territory known as his bailiwick. Selected from three nominated people, he holds his office over the duration of a year. He has judicial, ceremonial and administrative functions and executes High Court...
and Sheriff of Cornwall
High Sheriff of Cornwall
High Sheriffs of Cornwall: a chronological list:Note: The right to choose High Sheriffs each year is vested in the Duchy of Cornwall, rather than the Privy Council, chaired by the Sovereign, which chooses the Sheriffs of all other English counties, other than those in the Duchy of...
, along with another royal servant, as well as serving as a royal justice. By 12 September 1204, William was Archdeacon of Taunton in the Diocese of Bath, and he witnessed the election of Jocelin of Wells
Jocelin of Wells
Jocelin of Wells, also known as Jocelinus Thoteman or Jocelin Troteman, was a medieval Bishop of Bath and Wells. He was the brother of Hugh de Wells, who became Bishop of Lincoln. Jocelin became a canon of Wells Cathedral before 1200, and was elected bishop in 1206...
as the new bishop of the diocese
Diocese
A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...
. In 1205, William was jointly placed in charge of the mints of London and Canterbury, along with Reginald de Cornhill
Reginald de Cornhill
Reginald de Cornhill was an English administrator under King John.His father, Gervase, had also been High Sheriff of Kent in 1170-74 and his brother Henry de Cornhill sheriff of London. He became the King's Justiciar, High Sheriff of Kent from 1189 to 1193 and 1196 to 1215 and High Sheriff of...
, with whom he also shared the collection of the tax of a fifteenth on merchants
Taxation in medieval England
Taxation in medieval England was the system of raising money for royal and governmental expenses. During the Anglo-Saxon period, the main forms of taxation were land taxes, although custom duties and fees to mint coins were also imposed. The most important tax of the late Anglo-Saxon period was the...
, a post the two had held since 1202. William also was placed in charge of vacant ecclesiastical offices, collecting their revenues for the king. He performed this office for the Diocese of 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:...
in 1204, for Glastonbury Abbey
Glastonbury Abbey
Glastonbury Abbey was a monastery in Glastonbury, Somerset, England. The ruins are now a grade I listed building, and a Scheduled Ancient Monument and are open as a visitor attraction....
in 1205, and for Whitby Abbey
Whitby Abbey
Whitby Abbey is a ruined Benedictine abbey overlooking the North Sea on the East Cliff above Whitby in North Yorkshire, England. It was disestablished during the Dissolution of the Monasteries under the auspices of Henry VIII...
in 1206 and 1209.
William's main administrative work, however, concerned the navy. In 1205 he was one of the keepers of the royal fleet along the south coast of England. In the same year, he was also in charge of naval spending for the attempted invasion of France. In 1206. In 1206, he was in charge of the naval forces in the Cinque Ports
Cinque Ports
The Confederation of Cinque Ports is a historic series of coastal towns in Kent and Sussex. It was originally formed for military and trade purposes, but is now entirely ceremonial. It lies at the eastern end of the English Channel, where the crossing to the continent is narrowest...
as well as commanding the fleet that invaded Poitou that year. From then until 1215 he was effectively King John's
John of England
John , also known as John Lackland , was King of England from 6 April 1199 until his death...
naval commander, and helped to develop Portsmouth as a royal dockyard. John rewarded William for his service with churches in Sheppey
Isle of Sheppey
The Isle of Sheppey is an island off the northern coast of Kent, England in the Thames Estuary, some to the east of London. It has an area of . The island forms part of the local government district of Swale...
and East Malling, which were granted in 1207, as well as the overseeing of the royal forests in Cornwall and Devon. Other grants included lands in Dartford
Dartford
Dartford is the principal town in the borough of Dartford. It is situated in the northwest corner of Kent, England, east south-east of central London....
and Sutton-at-Hone which had escheat
Escheat
Escheat is a common law doctrine which transfers the property of a person who dies without heirs to the crown or state. It serves to ensure that property is not left in limbo without recognised ownership...
ed to the crown, lands in Westminster and a prebend in the royal ecclesiastical foundation at Hastings.
Later years
During the interdictInterdict
The term Interdict may refer to:* Court order enforcing or prohibiting a certain action* Injunction, such as a restraining order...
on England during John's reign, William supported John, and remained in England. The medieval chronicler Roger of Wendover
Roger of Wendover
Roger of Wendover , probably a native of Wendover in Buckinghamshire, was an English chronicler of the 13th century.At an uncertain date he became a monk at St Albans Abbey; afterwards he was appointed prior of the cell of Belvoir, but he forfeited this dignity in the early years of Henry III,...
named William as one of the "evil advisors" to John. But in 1215, William joined the baronial rebellion against John, and lost his naval offices and the royal forester's office for Somerset, as well as custody of Lydford Castle. In the summer of 1217, however, he rejoined the royalist cause, returning to the side of King Henry III
Henry III of England
Henry III was the son and successor of John as King of England, reigning for 56 years from 1216 until his death. His contemporaries knew him as Henry of Winchester. He was the first child king in England since the reign of Æthelred the Unready...
, John's son. This action regained him some of his lost lands.
William last appeared in documents on 25 July 1217, and was dead by 16 February 1218, probably before 2 December 1217, when someone else is mentioned as archdeacon. On 16 February 1218, John Marshall became the guardian of Richard, William's nephew and heir, who was the son of Richard, William's brother.