John Fraser lso, more commonly then, Frisel or Frisell(died 1507) was a late medieval

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Minister (Christianity), Christian clergy who is an Ordinary (church officer), ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which me ...

. Born about 1429, or 1430 if later tradition can be believed, with strong connections to the

burgh A burgh ( ) is an Autonomy, autonomous municipal corporation in Scotland, usually a city, town, or toun in Scots language, Scots. This type of administrative division existed from the 12th century, when David I of Scotland, King David I created ...

Linlithgow Linlithgow ( ; ; ) is a town in West Lothian, Scotland. It was historically West Lothian's county town, reflected in the county's historical name of Linlithgowshire. An ancient town, it lies in the Central Belt on a historic route between Edi ...

, Fraser held a variety of high-level ecclesiastical positions in Scotland, including being the first

Dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean * Dean Sw ...

Restalrig Restalrig ( ) is a small residential suburb of Edinburgh, Scotland (historically, an estate and independent parish). It is located east of the city centre, west of Craigentinny and to the east of Lochend, Edinburgh, Lochend, both of which it ...

collegiate church In Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college of canons, a non-monastic or "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-governing corporate body, headed by a dignitary bearing ...

(which he helped to found) before becoming Bishop of Ross in 1497, a position he held until his death in 1507.

Early career

Fraser was a university graduate, M. A., and he seems to have been the John Fraser who was Dean of the Faculty of Arts at the

University of St Andrews The University of St Andrews (, ; abbreviated as St And in post-nominals) is a public university in St Andrews, Scotland. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, f ...

in 1479. He is found as

Provost Provost may refer to: Officials Ecclesiastic * Provost (religion), a high-ranking church official * Prince-provost, a high-ranking church official Government * Provost (civil), an officer of local government, including the equivalent ...

of the

of Abernethy on 2 February 1476; it is not known when he obtained this position, and the latest documentation of a previous provost occurs all the way back on 13 March 1445. He can be found as the Official of the

diocese of Dunblane The Diocese of Dunblane or Diocese of Strathearn was one of the thirteen historical dioceses of Scotland, before the abolition of episcopacy in the Scottish Church in 1689. Roughly, it embraced the territories covered by the old earldoms of St ...

on 26 August 1476. He was litigating to gain the

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 ...

ship of

Elgin Cathedral Elgin Cathedral, a historic ruin in Elgin, Moray, northeast Scotland, was dedicated to the Holy Trinity. It was established in 1224 on land granted by King Alexander II of Scotland, Alexander II and stood outside the burgh of Elgin, close to ...

in 1480, although nothing more of this is heard. He is found as rector of the

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

Douglas Douglas may refer to: People * Douglas (given name) * Douglas (surname) Animals * Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking * Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civil ...

on 28 August 1481.Dowden, ''Bishops'', p. 223. After the election of

Robert Blackadder Robert Blackadder (died 28 July 1508) was a medieval Scottish prelate, diplomat and politician, who was Abbot of Melrose, Bishop-elect of Aberdeen and Bishop of Glasgow; when the latter was elevated to an archbishopric in 1492, he became the f ...

Bishop of Aberdeen The Bishop of Aberdeen (originally Bishop of Mortlach, in Latin Murthlacum) was the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of Aberdeen, one of Scotland's 13 medieval bishoprics, whose first recorded bishop is an early 12th-century cleric named Nech ...

on 14 July 1480, Fraser received provision to the now vacant position of Archdeacon of Aberdeen; he did not secure the position because of the lack of royal support, but was still claiming the position in 1488.

Collegiate church of Restalrig

Fraser was the first Dean of the new collegiate church erected on 13 November 1487 at

Midlothian Midlothian (; ) is registration county, lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area and one of 32 council areas of Scotland used for local government. Midlothian lies in the east-central Lowlands, bordering the City of Edinburgh council ar ...

. Fraser petitioned the pope for the creation of the collegiate church on 6 May, to be dedicated to the "Holy and Indivisible Trinity" and the

Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...

; the church had and was benefiting from the patronage of King

James III of Scotland James III (10 July 1451/May 1452 – 11 June 1488) was King of Scots from 1460 until his death at the Battle of Sauchieburn in 1488. He inherited the throne as a child following the death of his father, King James II, at the siege of Roxburg ...

, and the church was called at the time the "King's chapel" or "chapel royal". Fraser founded a chaplaincy in the new collegiate church, to which he donated a tenement he had built in the

Canongate The Canongate is a street and associated district in central Edinburgh, the capital city of Scotland. The street forms the main eastern length of the Royal Mile while the district is the main eastern section of Edinburgh's Old Town. David ...

Bishop of Ross

In the 1490s, Fraser became a royal councillor and Clerk of the Register. Some time before 10 September 1497, Fraser was elected through royal influence to the bishopric of Ross, vacant at least three, possibly five years, since the death of the previous bishop, John Guthrie.Watt, ''Fasti Ecclesiae'', p. 269. He received papal provision on 14 March 1498.Dowden, ''Bishops'', p. 223; Watt, ''Fasti Ecclesiae'', p. 269. On 5 May, the Florentine clerk Ilarion de Portiis acting in Fraser's name paid the papacy 600 gold

florins The Florentine florin was a gold coin (in Italian ''Fiorino d'oro'') struck from 1252 to 1533 with no significant change in its design or metal content standard during that time. It had 54 grains () of nominally pure or 'fine' gold with a pu ...

. His name appeared in Scottish sources datable to 3 December as "elect and confirmed of Ross." He was granted the temporalities of the bishopric on 3 January 1499, by which time he had probably received consecration. On 10 March 1504, Bishop Fraser was present at a meeting of the parliament; on 10 May, he is recorded as granting his cathedral at

Fortrose Fortrose is a town and former royal burgh on the Black Isle in the Highland (council area), Highland council area of Scotland, about northeast of Inverness. The town is known for its ruined 13th-century Fortrose Cathedral, cathedral, and as ...

an annual rent of £10 from a tenement he owned in the

. On 15 September 1506, King

James IV of Scotland James IV (17 March 1473 – 9 September 1513) was List of Scottish monarchs, King of Scotland from 11 June 1488 until his death at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. He inherited the throne at the age of fifteen on the death of his father, James I ...

, while at the Chanonry of Ross, granted to the bishop part of the lands of the toun of Arkbol, in the earldom of Ross. The ''History of the Frazers'' (Wardlaw MS) claimed that he died on 5 February 1507, aged 78. According to tradition one of the three funeral effigies in

Fortrose Cathedral Fortrose Cathedral was the Cathedral, episcopal seat (''cathedra'') of the Christianity in medieval Scotland, medieval Scottish Diocese of Ross (Scotland), diocese of Ross in the Highland region of Scotland near the city of Inverness. It is prob ...

is that of Bishop Fraser. The tradition – attested in the Wardlaw MS ''History of the Frazers'' – that he was

Abbot of Melrose The Abbot and then Commendator of Melrose was the head of the monastic community of Melrose Abbey, in Melrose in the Borders region of Scotland. The abbots of the earlier Northumbrian foundation from Lindisfarne are not included here. The secon ...

and

Prior of Beauly The Prior of Beauly (later Commendator of Beauly) was the head of the Valliscaulian monastic community and lands of Beauly Priory, Beauly, Inverness-shire. It was probably founded in 1230. It became Cistercian on 16 April 1510. The following are a ...

is now thought to be spurious. Professor Donald Watt omitted him from his list of chancellors of

Glasgow Cathedral Glasgow Cathedral () is a parish church of the Church of Scotland in Glasgow, Scotland. It was the cathedral church of the Archbishop of Glasgow, and the mother church of the Archdiocese of Glasgow and the province of Glasgow, from the 12th ...

, a position he was also widely believed to have held.Watt, ''Fasti Ecclesiae'', pp. 160–3; see Dowden, ''Bishops'', p. 222 and Keith, ''Historical Catalogue'', both of whom alleged he was chancellor there.

Notes

References

* Cowan, Ian B. & Easson, David E., ''Medieval Religious Houses: Scotland With an Appendix on the Houses in the Isle of Man'', Second Edition, (London, 1976) *

Dowden, John John Dowden /d͡ʒɒn ˈdaʊdən/ (29 June 1840 – 30 January 1910) was an Irish-born bishop and ecclesiastical historian. He served in the Scottish Episcopal Church as the Bishop of Edinburgh. Life He was born in Cork on 29 June 1840, ...

, ''The Bishops of Scotland'', ed. J. Maitland Thomson, (Glasgow, 1912) * Keith, Robert, ''An Historical Catalogue of the Scottish Bishops: Down to the Year 1688'', (London, 1824) * Watt, D. E. R., ''Fasti Ecclesiae Scotinanae Medii Aevi ad annum 1638'', 2nd Draft, (St Andrews, 1969) * Watt, D. E. R. & Shead, N. F. (eds.), ''The Heads of Religious Houses in Scotland from the 12th to the 16th Centuries'', The Scottish Records Society, New Series, Volume 24, (Edinburgh, 2001)

External links

Am Baile
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Fraser, John 15th-century births 1507 deaths Bishops of Ross (Scotland) People from Linlithgow 15th-century Scottish Roman Catholic bishops 16th-century Scottish Roman Catholic bishops