Peter des Roches

Peter des Roches (died 9 June 1238) was bishop of Winchester in the reigns of King John of England and his son Henry III. He was not an Englishman, but rather a native of the Touraine, in north-central France.[1]

Peter des Roches
Bishop of Winchester
Head of the effigy on Roches' tomb in Winchester Cathedral
Appointed	1205
Term ended	9 June 1238
Predecessor	Richard Poore
Successor	Ralph Neville
Other posts	Precentor of Lincoln Archdeacon of Poitiers
Orders
Consecration	24 March 1206 by Pope Innocent III
Personal details
Died	9 June 1238
Denomination	Catholic
Chief Justiciar of England
In office 1213 – c.1215
Monarch	John Henry III
Preceded by	Geoffrey Fitz Peter
Succeeded by	Hubert de Burgh

Biography

Towards the end of Richard I's reign, Peter became Lord Chamberlain and an influential counsellor. He held the ecclesiastical offices of Archdeacon of Poitiers, treasurer of Poitiers, and was a precentor of the diocese of Lincoln in 1204.[2]

In early 1205, through John's influence, Peter was elected to the see of Winchester.[3] His election was disputed but, on appeal, confirmed on 25 September 1205 by Pope Innocent III.[4] Peter was consecrated on 24 March 1206.[3] Nonetheless, the new bishop stood by John's side during the whole period of the papal interdict set upon him due to John's refusal to accept Stephen Langton as Archbishop of Canterbury despite Papal warning.

In 1213 Peter was made Chief Justiciar in succession to Geoffrey Fitz Peter.[5] This promotion was justified by the fidelity with which Peter supported the king through the First Barons' War. However, by 1215, Hubert de Burgh was Chief Justiciar.[5] In 1216, Peter was named Sheriff of Hampshire.[6]

At the battle of Lincoln in 1217 Peter led a division of the royal army and earned some distinction by his valour; but he played a secondary part in the government so long as William Marshal held the regency. After Marshal's death in 1219 Peter led the baronial opposition to Hubert de Burgh, with varying success. At first the justiciar was successful.

Peter was responsible for founding several monasteries in England and France,[7] including Titchfield Abbey[8] and Netley Abbey,[7] both in Hampshire, England, and La Clarté-Dieu[7] in Poitou, France. He gave his protection to the first group of Dominican friars to come to England in 1221.[9]

In 1225 a plot to ship Eleanor of Brittany, who as cousin to Henry III always posed a potential threat to the crown and was thus viewed as a state prisoner and then confined at Bristol Castle, away to France, was reported. The plot might have been false and only fabricated to discredit Peter, and he eventually fell out of royal favor in spring 1234.[10]

Crusading bishop

Peter participated in the Sixth Crusade alongside William Briwere, who was Bishop of Exeter.[11] An army of other crusaders accompanied them to the East, although whether they were English or mercenaries recruited on the Continent is unclear. The contingent left from Brindisi in August 1227.[12] Both bishops were influential advisors to Frederick II the Holy Roman Emperor[11] even though Pope Gregory IX had ordered that no one collaborate with Frederick, who was at the time excommunicated. Both bishops ignored the papal orders and worked closely with Frederick's agents and Frederick himself. The financial resources both bishops brought were especially appreciated by the crusaders.[11] Both bishops witnessed the treaty on 18 February 1229 with the Sultan of Cairo that restored Jerusalem to the Christians,[11] the Treaty of Jaffa.[12] After the crusade, he spent time in Italy.[6]

Peter died on 9 June 1238.[3]

Legends

The Lanercost Chronicle relates that Peter, out hunting one day, encountered King Arthur, dined with him, and asked for a token of their meeting. Arthur told him to close his hand, then open it, whereupon a butterfly flew out. For the rest of his life Roches was able to repeat this miracle, so that he became known as the Butterfly Bishop.[13][14]

Citations

1. Vincent Peter des Roches p. 18
2. British History Online Precentors of Lincoln Archived 14 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine accessed on 2 November 2007
3. Fryde, et al. Handbook of British Chronology p. 276
4. British History Online Bishops of Winchester Archived 14 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine accessed on 2 November 2007
5. Fryde, et al. Handbook of British Chronology p. 72
6. Vincent "Roches, Peter des (d. 1238)" Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
7. Thompson, A. Hamilton (1953). Netley Abbey. Her Majesty's Stationery Office. p. 3. ISBN 0-11-670020-3.
8. Burton Monastic and Religious Orders in Britain p. 229
9. Burton Monastic and Religious Orders in Britain p. 112
10. G. Seabourne. "Eleanor of Brittany and her Treatment by King John and Henry III", Nottingham Medieval Studies, Vol. LI (2007), pp. 73-110.
11. Tyerman England and the Crusades pp. 99–101
12. Tyerman God's War pp. 744–745
13. Vincent Peter des Roches p. 480
14. Stevenson, Joseph (ed.). Chronicon de Lanercost (in Latin). p. 23 (fol.176).

References

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Peter des Roches". Encyclopædia Britannica. 21 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 292–293.
• British History Online Bishops of Winchester accessed on 2 November 2007
• British History Online Precentors of Lincoln accessed on 2 November 2007
• Burton, Janet (1994). Monastic and Religious Orders in Britain: 1000–1300. Cambridge Medieval Textbooks. Cambridge UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-37797-8.
• Fryde, E. B.; Greenway, D. E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I. (1996). Handbook of British Chronology (Third revised ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-56350-X.
• Tyerman, Christopher (1988). England and the Crusades, 1095–1588. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. ISBN 0-226-82013-0.
• Tyerman, Christopher (2006). God's War: A New History of the Crusades. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press. ISBN 978-067402387-1.
• Vincent, Vincent (2004). "Roches, Peter des (d. 1238)" ((subscription or UK public library membership required)). Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (Revised January 2008 ed.). Oxford University Press. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
• Vincent, Nicholas (1996). Peter des Roches. An alien in English politics, 1205-1238. Cambridge Studies in Medieval Life and Thought. Cambridge UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-55254-0.

Political offices
Preceded by Geoffrey Fitz Peter	Chief Justiciar 1213 – c. 1215	Succeeded by Hubert de Burgh
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by Richard Poore	Bishop of Winchester 1205–1238	Succeeded by Ralph Neville