Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 13.djvu/70

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RICHARD


44


RICHARD


became St. Edmund's intimate friend and follower. He approved the archbishop's action in opposing the king on the question of the vacant sees, accompanied him in his exile to Pontigny, was present at Soissy when he died, and made him a model in life. Richard supplied Matthew Paris with material for his biogra- phy, and, after attending the translation of his relics to Pontignv in 1249, wrote an account of the incident in a letter published by Matthew Paris (Historia major, V, VI). Retiring to the house of the Domini- cans at Orleans, Richard studied theology, was or- dained priest, and, after founding a chapel in honour of St. Edmund, returned to England where he became Vicar of Deal and Rector of Charring. Soon afterwards he was induced by Boniface of Savoy, the new Arch- bishop of Canterbury, to resume his former office of chancellor.

In 1244 Ralph Neville, Bishop of Chichester, died; the election of Robert Passelewe, Archdeacon of Chi- chester, to the vacant see, was quashed b}^ Boniface at a synod of his suffragans, held 3 June, 1244, and on his recommendation the chapter elected Richard, their choice being immediately confirmed by the arch- bishop. Henrj' III was indignant, as Robert Passe- lewe was a favourite, and he refused to surrender to Richard the temporalities of his see. The Saint took his case to Innocent IV, w^ho consecrated him in per- son at Lyons, 5 March, 1245, and sent him back to England. But Henry was immovable. Thus home- less in his own diocese, Richard was dependent on the charity of his clergy, one of whom, Simon of Tarring, shared with him the little he possessed. At length, in 1246, Henry was induced by the threats of the pope to deliver up the temporalities. As bishop, Richard lived in great austerity, giving away most of his revenues as alms. He compiled a number of statutes which regu- late in great detail the lives of the clergy, the celebra- tion of Divine service, the administration of the sacra- ments, church privileges, and other matters. Every priest in the diocese was bound to obtain a copy of these statutes and bring it to the diocesan synod (Wil- kins, "Concilia", I, 688-93); in this way the standard of life among the clergy was raised considerably. For the better maintenance of his cathedral Richard insti- tuted a yearly collection to be made in every parish of the diocese on Easter or Whit Sunday. The mendi- cant orders, particularly the Dominicans, received special encouragement from him.

In 12.50 Richard was named as one of the collectors of the subsidy for the crusades (Bliss, "Calendar of Papal Letters", I, 263) and two years later the king appointed him to preach the crusade in London. He made strenuous efforts to rouse enthusiasm for the cause in the Dioceses of Chichester and Canterbury, and while journeying to Dover, where he was to conse- crate a new church dedicated to St. Edmund, he was taken ill. Upon reaching Dover, he went to a hospital called "Maison Dieu", performed the consecration ceremony on 2 April, but died the next morning. His body was taken back to Chichester and buried in the cathedral. He was solemnly canonized by Urban IV in the Franciscan church at Viterbo, 12G2, and on 20 P'eb. a papal licence for the translation of his relics to a new shrine was given; but the unsettled state of the country prevented this until 16 .Junf, 1276, when the translation wa,s performed by Archbishop Kilwardby in the presence of lOdward I. This shrine, which stood in the feretory behind the high altar, was rifled and destroyed at the Reformation. The much-restored altar tomb in the south transept now commonly assigned to St. Richard has no evidence to support its claim, and no relics are known to exist. The feast is celebrated on 3 April. The most accurate v(;rsion of St. Richard's will, which has been frequently printed, is that given by Blaauw in "Sussex Archaeological Collections", I, 164-92, with a translation and valu- able notes. His life was written by his confessor


Ralph Bocking shortly after his canonization and another short life, compiled in the fifteenth century, was printed by Capgrave. Both these are included in the notice of St. Richard in the Bollandist "Acta Sanctorum".

H.vRDY, Descriplire catalogue of AfSS. relating to the history of Great Britain and Ireland, III (London, 1871), 136-9; Ada SS., April, I (Venice, 1768), 277-318; C.*.pgr\ve, Nave legenda Anglim (London, 1516), 269; Paris, Historia major, ed. Madden in R. S., II. Ill (London, 1866); Annales moiiaf!tici, ed. Luard in R. S. (London, 1864); Flares historiarum, ed. Idem in R. S., II (London, 1890); Rishanger's Chronicle, ed. Riley in R. S. (London, 186.5); Trivet, ed. Hog, Annales sex regum Anglice (London, 1845); Calendar of Papal Letters, ed. Buss, I (London. 1893); Vita di S. Ricardo vescovo di Cicestria (Milan, 17()6); Stephens, Memorials of the See of Chichester (London, 1876), 83-98, contains the best modern life; Wallace, St. Edmund of Canterbury (London, 1893), 196-205; Gasquet, Henry III and the Church (London, 190.5), 222, 343; Challoner, Britannia sancta (London, 174.5), 206-13; Stanton, Menology of England and Wales (London, 1887), 141-3.

G. Roger Hudleston.

Richard Fetherston, Blessed, priest and martyr, d. at Smithfield, 30 July, 1.540. He was chaplain to Catharine of Aragon and schoolmaster to her daugh- ter. Princess Mary, afterwards queen. He is called sacrce theologice Doctor by Pits (Do illustribus Anglia; scriptoribus, 729). He was one of the theologians ap- pointed to defend Queen Catharine's cause in the divorce proceedings before the legates WoLsey and Campeggio, and is said to have written a treatise "Contra divortium Henrici et Catharina;, Liber unus". No co])y of this work is known to exi.st. He took part in the session of Convocation which began in April, 1529, and was one of the few members wlio refused to sign the Act declaring Henry's marriage with Catharine to be illegal ah initio, through the pope's inability to grant a dispensation in such a case. In 1534 he was called upon to take the Oath of Su- premacy and, on refusing to do so, was committed to the Tower, 13 Dec, 1534. He seems to have remained in prison till 30 July, 1540, when he was hanged, drawn, and quartered at Smithfield, together with the Catholic theologians, Thomas Abel and Edward Powell, who like himself had been councillors to Queen Catharine in the divorce proceedings, and three here- tics, Barnes, Garret, and Jerome, condemned for teaching Zwinglianism. All six were drawn through the streets u])on tlirce hurdles, a Catholic and a heretic on each hurdle. The Protestants were burned, and the three Catholics executed in the usual manner, their limbs being fixed over the gates of the city and their heads being placed upon poles on London Bridge. Richard was beatified by Leo XIII, 29 Dec, 1886.

Pits, De illustribus Angliir scriptoribus (Paris, 1619), 729; Sander, tr. Lewis, Rise and Growth of the Anglican Schism (Lon- don, 1877), 65, 67, 150; Burnet, History of the Reformation. ed. PococK (Oxford, 1865), I, 260, 472, 566-67; IV, 555, 563; Tanner, Bibliotheca Brilannico-Hibernica (London, 1748), 278; Original Letters Relative to the English Reformation (Parker Society, Cambridge, 1846), I, 209; Calendar of Stale Papers, Henry VIII, ed. Gairdner (London. 1882. 1883, 1885), VI. 311, 1199; VII, 5.30; VIII, 666, 1001.

G. Roger Hudleston.

Richard Kirkman, Blessed. See William Lacy, Blessed.

Richard of Cirencester, chronicler, d. about 1400. He was the coini)iler of a chronicle from 447 to 1066, entitled "Speculum Historiale de Gestis Regum Anglia;". The work, which is in four books, is of little hi.storical value, but contains several charters granted to Westminster Abbey. Nothingisknownof Richard's life except that he was a monk of Westminster, who made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem in 1391, was still at Westminster in 1397, and that he lay sick in the in- firmary in 1400. Two other works are attributed to him: "De Officiis", and "Super Symbolum Majus et Minus", but neither is now extant. In the eighteenth century his name was used by Charles Bertram as the pretended author of his forgery "Richardus Copenen- sis de situ Britannise", which deceived Stukeley and many subsequent antiquarians and historians, includ-