Godfrey Ludham (died 1265) was

Archbishop of York The archbishop of York is a senior bishop in the Church of England, second only to the archbishop of Canterbury. The archbishop is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and the metropolitan bishop of the province of York, which covers the ...

from 1258 to 1265.

Life

Ludham's parents were Richard and Eda of

Ludham Ludham is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the English county of Norfolk, in the Norfolk Broads, at the end of a dyke leading to Womack Water and flowing into the River Thurne. It lies to the East of Ludham Bridge, which ...

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

, and he had a brother Thomas who was also a priest.Greenway
Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300: Volume 6: York: Archbishops
''

Matthew Paris Matthew Paris, also known as Matthew of Paris (; 1200 – 1259), was an English people, English Benedictine monk, English historians in the Middle Ages, chronicler, artist in illuminated manuscripts, and cartographer who was based at St A ...

gives him the name Godfrey Kineton, but without any explanation of why that was his name. He attended a university, for he bore the title of ''magister'' but the exact university is unknown.Smith "Ludham, Godfrey de" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' Ludham was a clerk of Archbishop

Walter de Gray Walter de Gray (died 1 May 1255) was an English prelate and Diplomat, statesman who was Archbishop of York from 1215 to 1255 and Lord Chancellor from 1205 to 1214. His uncle was John de Gray, who was a bishop and royal servant to King John of ...

before 17 June 1226 and was the rector of the moiety of Pengston by 26 August 1228. He was named

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" (or alternatively, "first ...

of York by September 1249, and may have held that office by 1244.Greenway
Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300: Volume 6: York: Precentors
' Ludham served as

Dean of York The Dean of York is the member of the clergy who is responsible for the running of the York Minster cathedral. As well as being the head of the cathedral church of the diocese and the metropolitical church of the province, the Dean of York holds ...

from 1256 to 1258Greenway
Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300: Volume 6: York: Deans
'' before being elected as Archbishop of York about 25 July 1258. He was consecrated on 22 September 1258Fryde, et al. ''Handbook of British Chronology'' p. 282 by Pope Alexander IV at

Viterbo Viterbo (; Central Italian, Viterbese: ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in the Lazio region of Italy, the Capital city, capital of the province of Viterbo. It conquered and absorbed the neighboring town of Ferento (see Ferentium) in ...

. His brother Thomas was papal chaplain, and held

prebends A prebendary is a member of the Catholic or Anglican clergy, a form of canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in particular seats, usually at the back of the choir s ...

York Minster York Minster, formally the Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, is an Anglicanism, Anglican cathedral in the city of York, North Yorkshire, England. The minster is the seat of the archbishop of York, the second-highest of ...

and

Southwell Minster Southwell Minster_(church), Minster, strictly since 1884 Southwell Cathedral, and formally the Cathedral and Parish Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is a Church of England cathedral in Southwell, Nottinghamshire, England. The cathedral is the s ...

.Greenway
Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300: Volume 6: York: Prebendaries: Wetwang
' He was enthroned at York Minster sometime around Christmas of 1258. While archbishop, Ludham visited monasteries, and issued a set of synodal decrees for York were issued in 1259. He excommunicated the monks of Beverley because they had intruded into archiepiscopal property. In 1261 he put an interdict on the city of York for unspecified offences against the cathedral chapter and himself. Unfortunately, no register of his acts survives, so no detailed study of his time as archbishop is possible. He, however, does not seem to have played any part in the political life of the kingdom. In 1191 John, Count of Mortain, (later King

John of England John (24 December 1166 – 19 October 1216) was King of England from 1199 until his death in 1216. He lost the Duchy of Normandy and most of his other French lands to King Philip II of France, resulting in the collapse of the Angevin Empi ...

) had granted the church of Walesby and its chapelry of Haughton to the church of St Mary,

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine, in northwestern France. It is in the prefecture of Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one ...

, and in 1257, Ludham confirmed Rouen's authority to present Walesby's vicar, and specified among his dues and duties the chapel of Hockton with its tithes, and the joint funding with Rouen of repairs, rebuilding, books, vestments and other alterages. Ludham died on 12 January 1265, and was buried in the south

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform ("cross-shaped") cruciform plan, churches, in particular within the Romanesque architecture, Romanesque a ...

of York Minster. In 1968 his tomb was opened and studied because of construction work in the cathedral, and his body had evidently been embalmed. A

mitre The mitre (Commonwealth English) or miter (American English; American and British English spelling differences#-re, -er, see spelling differences; both pronounced ; ) is a type of headgear now known as the traditional, ceremonial headdress of ...

was on his head, and he had his

pallium The pallium (derived from the Roman ''pallium'' or ''palla'', a woolen cloak; : pallia) is an ecclesiastical vestment in the Catholic Church, originally peculiar to the pope, but for many centuries bestowed by the Holy See upon metropolitan bish ...

as well as a

crozier A crozier or crosier (also known as a paterissa, pastoral staff, or bishop's staff) is a stylized staff that is a symbol of the governing office of a bishop or abbot and is carried by high-ranking prelates of Roman Catholic, Eastern Catholi ...

and silver chalice and paten.

Notes

Citations

References

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ludham, Godfrey 1265 deaths Archbishops of York Deans of York 13th-century English Roman Catholic archbishops Burials at York Minster Year of birth unknown People from Ludham