
Richard de Ledrede (died 1360/1361), also known as Richard Ledred, was a 14th-century churchman in Ireland who served as
Bishop of Ossory
.
The Bishop of Ossory () is an Episcopal polity, episcopal title which takes its name after the ancient of Kingdom of Ossory in the Provinces of Ireland, Province of Leinster, Ireland. In the Catholic Church it remains a separate title, but i ...
. His long tenure as Bishop was marked by bitter controversies and repeated quarrels with his colleagues, both lay and clerical.
Life
Richard was probably born between about 1260 and 1270. A report of 1356 that he was by that date a
centenarian
A centenarian is a person who has reached the age of 100. Because life expectancies at birth worldwide are well below 100, the term is invariably associated with longevity. The United Nations estimated that there were 316,600 living centenarian ...
is believed to be an exaggeration, although he was certainly so advanced in years that his fitness to perform his duties was questioned.
[Neary 1984, p. 273.] His name is thought to relate to
Leatherhead
Leatherhead is a town in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England, about south of Central London. The settlement grew up beside a ford on the River Mole, from which its name is thought to derive. During the late Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon ...
in
Surrey
Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...
, England, but this may be misleading: other evidence suggests a family connection with the county of
Somerset
Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...
.
A
Franciscan
The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...
of the
Order of Friars Minor
The Order of Friars Minor (commonly called the Franciscans, the Franciscan Order, or the Seraphic Order; Post-nominal letters, postnominal abbreviation OFM) is a Mendicant orders, mendicant Catholic religious order, founded in 1209 by Francis ...
, he served as
Bishop of Ossory
.
The Bishop of Ossory () is an Episcopal polity, episcopal title which takes its name after the ancient of Kingdom of Ossory in the Provinces of Ireland, Province of Leinster, Ireland. In the Catholic Church it remains a separate title, but i ...
from May 1317 until his death in 1360/1361.
Kilkenny witch trials
Ledrede was known as a "scourge of heresy and
witchcraft
Witchcraft is the use of Magic (supernatural), magic by a person called a witch. Traditionally, "witchcraft" means the use of magic to inflict supernatural harm or misfortune on others, and this remains the most common and widespread meanin ...
", and was a central figure in the Kilkenny witch trials of 1324, when among the accused were
Alice Kyteler and her servant
Petronella de Meath.
Petronella was
burnt at the stake
Death by burning is an execution, murder, or suicide method involving combustion or exposure to extreme heat. It has a long history as a form of public capital punishment, and many societies have employed it as a punishment for and warning agai ...
, but Alice contrived to break out of prison and flee the country, almost certainly with the assistance of her brother-in-law
Roger Utlagh (or Outlawe), the
Lord Chancellor of Ireland
The Lord High Chancellor of Ireland, commonly known as the Lord Chancellor of Ireland, was the highest ranking judicial office in Ireland until the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922. From 1721 until the end of 1800, it was also the hi ...
, who had always maintained her innocence. The two men quarrelled bitterly about Ledrede's conduct of the Trials: Roger joined with the Seneschal of Kilkenny, Andrew le Poer, and others in having the Bishop imprisoned for a time, and the Bishop after his release in turn tried unsuccessfully to have Roger tried for
heresy
Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, particularly the accepted beliefs or religious law of a religious organization. A heretic is a proponent of heresy.
Heresy in Heresy in Christian ...
. This resulted in a humiliating defeat for Ledrede when a Commission of Inquiry, which was headed by
William de Rodyard, a future
Chief Justice of the Irish Common Pleas
The chief justice of the Common Pleas for Ireland was the presiding judge of the Court of Common Pleas in Ireland, which was known in its early years as the Court of Common Bench, or simply as "the Bench", or "the Dublin bench". It was one of the ...
and included most of the
magnate
The term magnate, from the late Latin ''magnas'', a great man, itself from Latin ''magnus'', "great", means a man from the higher nobility, a man who belongs to the high office-holders or a man in a high social position, by birth, wealth or ot ...
s of Ireland, both lay and clerical, declared Roger to be a pious and zealous Christian, and cleared him entirely of any suggestion of heresy.
Ledrede was in turn summoned before the
Irish Privy Council
His or Her Majesty's Privy Council in Ireland, commonly called the Privy Council of Ireland, Irish Privy Council, or in earlier centuries the Irish Council, was the institution within the Dublin Castle administration which exercised formal execut ...
to justify his actions, and also to account for certain charges he had made against
Alexander de Bicknor
Alexander de Bicknor (1260s? – 14 July 1349; usually spelt "Bykenore" in original Middle English sources) was an official in the Plantagenet kingdom under Edward I of England, Edward II of England, and Edward III of England. Best known to histo ...
,
Archbishop of Dublin
The Archbishop of Dublin () is an Episcopal polity, archiepiscopal title which takes its name from Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Since the Reformation in Ireland, Reformation, there have been parallel apostolic successions to the title: ...
, but instead he fled the country in order to plead his case at the
Papal Court
The papal household or pontifical household (usually not capitalized in the media and other nonofficial use, ), called until 1968 the Papal Court (''Aula Pontificia''), consists of dignitaries who assist the pope in carrying out particular ceremon ...
. Bicknor followed him there to argue his side of the case. Bicknor enjoyed the goodwill of King
Edward III
Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring royal authority after t ...
, who sent a message to the Papal Court describing Ledrede ominously as a man notorious for stirring up
rebellion
Rebellion is an uprising that resists and is organized against one's government. A rebel is a person who engages in a rebellion. A rebel group is a consciously coordinated group that seeks to gain political control over an entire state or a ...
, and urging them not to believe anything he said. Following mediation by the
Curia
Curia (: curiae) in ancient Rome referred to one of the original groupings of the citizenry, eventually numbering 30, and later every Roman citizen was presumed to belong to one. While they originally probably had wider powers, they came to meet ...
, the two clerics were persuaded to drop their accusations against each other. However further differences arose between them in later years, in particular over Bicknor's sheltering of heretics who had fled from persecution in the Diocese of Ossory.
Other controversies
Ledrede again incurred the royal displeasure in 1355–56 when he
excommunicated
Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to deprive, suspend, or limit membership in a religious community or to restrict certain rights within it, in particular those of being in communion with other members of the con ...
William de Bromley
William de Bromley (died c.1370) was a 14th-century dignitary and Crown official in Ireland.
He was probably originally from Cheshire. He acted as an attorney to Elizabeth, Countess of Ormond. He was prebendary of Lusk, County Dublin. He was ...
, the
Lord Treasurer of Ireland
The Lord High Treasurer of Ireland was the head of the Exchequer of Ireland, and chief financial officer of the Kingdom of Ireland. The designation ''High'' was added in 1695.
After the Acts of Union 1800 created the United Kingdom of Great Brit ...
, apparently in order to prevent him from collecting the King's revenue in the Diocese, resulting in a serious financial loss to the Crown. The Bishop, realising that he had blundered, made a humble submission to the King and was
pardoned
A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...
.
Ledrede also pursued a vendetta against Arnold le Poer, the
Seneschal
The word ''seneschal'' () can have several different meanings, all of which reflect certain types of supervising or administering in a historic context. Most commonly, a seneschal was a senior position filled by a court appointment within a royal, ...
of Kilkenny, who had also defended Alice Kyteler, and like Roger, was a relative of Alice by marriage. The two men had always detested each other, and Ledrede had a personal grudge against le Poer, as it was le Poer who had arrested and imprisoned him, probably at Roger Utlagh's bidding. Less fortunate than Utlagh and Bicknor, le Poer was imprisoned, and died in prison in 1331 while awaiting trial for heresy.
Later life and legacy
Ledrede's last years seem to have been peaceful enough, and were mainly occupied in making improvements to
St Canice's Cathedral
St Canice's Cathedral (, ), also known as Kilkenny Cathedral, is a cathedral of the Church of Ireland in Kilkenny city, Ireland. It is in the ecclesiastical province of Province of Dublin (Church of Ireland), Dublin. Previously the cathedral o ...
. In his last years, an effort was made by the
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 ...
,
John of Thoresby, to replace him on the grounds of his great age, but it was evidently decided to leave him in peace until he died.
Sixty short Latin hymns by him are preserved in the
Red Book of Ossory.
Works
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References
Further reading
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Richard de Ledrede
Bishops of Ossory
Friars Minor
1360s deaths
Year of birth unknown
Year of death uncertain