Restitutus () was a

Romano-British The Romano-British culture arose in Britain under the Roman Empire following the Roman conquest in AD 43 and the creation of the province of Britannia. It arose as a fusion of the imported Roman culture with that of the indigenous Britons, ...

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

, probably from

Londinium Londinium, also known as Roman London, was the capital of Roman Britain during most of the period of Roman rule. It was originally a settlement established on the current site of the City of London around AD 47–50. It sat at a key cros ...

(London), one of the British delegation who attended the church

synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word '' synod'' comes from the meaning "assembly" or "meeting" and is analogous with the Latin word mean ...

or Council held at Arles (

Arelate Arles (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Arle ; Classical la, Arelate) is a coastal city and commune in the South of France, a subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the former province o ...

), in

Gaul Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...

, in AD 314. The list of those who signed the ''Acta'', the decisions made by the council, included three bishops, along with a "

presbyter Presbyter () is an honorific title for Christian clergy. The word derives from the Greek ''presbyteros,'' which means elder or senior, although many in the Christian antiquity would understand ''presbyteros'' to refer to the bishop functioning a ...

" and a "

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

", from Britain. The British bishops were

Eborius Eborius or Eburius ( fl. 314) is the first bishop of Eboracum (the later York) known by name. Biography Eborius is only mentioned as one of the three bishops from Roman Britain attending the Council of Arles in 314. That council was convoke ...

"de civitate Eboricensi" – from the city of

Eboracum Eboracum () was a fort and later a city in the Roman province of Britannia. In its prime it was the largest town in northern Britain and a provincial capital. The site remained occupied after the decline of the Western Roman Empire and ultimat ...

(

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

); Restitutus "de civitate Londenensi" – from the city of

(London); and Adelfius "de civitate Colonia Londenensium" – from the "'' colonia'' of the people of London". The text, which survives only in a number of later manuscript copies, is clearly corrupt in assigning two bishops to London. Since London was not a ''colonia'', most authorities have agreed that Adelfius' see is misrecorded, with proposed alternatives including Lindum (Lincoln) or

Camulodunum Camulodunum (; la, ), the Ancient Roman name for what is now Colchester in Essex, was an important castrum and city in Roman Britain, and the first capital of the province. A temporary "strapline" in the 1960s identifying it as the "oldest re ...

(Colchester). Notwithstanding the debate about the role of Adelfius, it seems most probable that the identification of Restitutus as Bishop of London was correct. However, no more is known about him, nor about his predecessors and successors in the Romano-British see of London. His name does not appear in the list of supposed early "

Archbishops of London In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdio ...

" that the 16th-century historian

John Stow John Stow (''also'' Stowe; 1524/25 – 5 April 1605) was an English historian and antiquarian. He wrote a series of chronicles of English history, published from 1565 onwards under such titles as ''The Summarie of Englyshe Chronicles'', ''The ...

attributed to

Jocelin of Furness Jocelyn of Furness ( fl. 1175–1214) was an English Cistercian hagiographer, known for his Lives of Saint Waltheof, Saint Patrick, Saint Kentigern and Saint Helena of Constantinople. He is probably responsible for the popular legendary associa ...

. Stow himself noted this anomaly, and the fact that Restitutus was listed as a bishop and not an archbishop; this, he felt, cast doubt on the authenticity of the list of archbishops. Later writers attempted to reconcile the two sources, usually by inserting Restitutus into "Jocelin's" list, either between Hilarius and Guitelinus, or after Guitelinus.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:RESTITUTUS 3rd-century births 4th-century deaths 4th-century Romano-British bishops Bishops of London

See also

References