John Whitgift | |
|---|---|
| Archbishop of Canterbury | |
 | |
| Church | Church of England |
| Diocese | Canterbury |
| Installed | August 1583 |
| Term ended | 29 February 1604 |
| Predecessor | Edmund Grindal |
| Successor | Richard Bancroft |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 1560 |
| Consecration | 21 April 1577 by Edmund Grindal |
| Personal details | |
| Born | c. 1530 Great Grimsby, Lincolnshire, England |
| Died | 29 February 1604 (aged 73/74) Lambeth, London, England |
| Buried | Croydon, Surrey |
| Parents | Henry Whitgift |
| Signature |  |
John Whitgift (c. 1530 – 29 February 1604) was theArchbishop of Canterbury from 1583 to his death. Noted for his hospitality, he was somewhat ostentatious in his habits, sometimes visitingCanterbury and other towns attended by a retinue of 800 horses. Whitgift's theological views were often controversial.
He was the eldest son of Henry Whitgift, amerchant, of GreatGrimsby, Lincolnshire, where he was born, probably between 1530 and 1533. The Whitgift family is thought to have originated in the relatively close Yorkshire village ofWhitgift, adjoining theRiver Ouse.
Whitgift's early education was entrusted to his uncle, Robert Whitgift,abbot of the neighbouringWellow Abbey, on whose advice he was sent to St Anthony's School, London. In 1549 he matriculated atQueens' College, Cambridge, and in May 1550 he moved toPembroke Hall, Cambridge, where the martyrJohn Bradford was his tutor. In May 1555 he was elected a fellow ofPeterhouse.[1]
Having taken holy orders in 1560, he became chaplain toRichard Cox, Bishop ofEly, who collated (that is, appointed) him to the rectory ofTeversham, just to the east ofCambridge. In 1563 he was appointedLady Margaret's Professor of Divinity at theUniversity of Cambridge, and his lectures gave such satisfaction to the authorities that on 5 July 1566 they considerably augmented his stipend. The following year he was appointedRegius Professor of Divinity, and became master first of Pembroke Hall (1567) and then ofTrinity in 1570. He had a principal share in compiling the statutes of the university, which passed thegreat seal on 25 September 1570, and in the November following he was chosen asvice-chancellor.
While at Cambridge he formed a close relationship withAndrew Perne, sometime vice-chancellor. Perne went on to live with Whitgift in his old age. Puritan satirists would later mock Whitgift as "Perne's boy" who was willing to carry his cloak-bag – thus suggesting that the two had enjoyed ahomosexual relationship.[2]
Whitgift taughtFrancis Bacon and his older brotherAnthony Bacon at Cambridge University in the 1570s.[3] As their tutor, Whitgift bought the brothers their early classical text books, including works byPlato,Cicero and others.[4]Whitgift's authoritarian beliefs and conservative religious teachings had a profound impact on Bacon, as did his teaching on natural philosophy and metaphysics.[5] Bacon would later disavow Whitgift, writing toElizabeth I to warn her against Whitgift's attempts to root out the "careful and diligent preachers in each parish".[6]
Whitgift's theological views were controversial. An aunt with whom he once lodged wrote that "though she thought at first she had received a saint into her house, she now perceived he was a devil".Thomas Macaulay's description of Whitgift as "a narrow, mean, tyrannical priest, who gained power by servility and adulation..." is, according to the author of his 1911Encyclopædia Britannica entry, "tinged with rhetorical exaggeration; but undoubtedly Whitgift's extreme High Church notions led him to treat the Puritans with exceptional intolerance". In a pulpit controversy withThomas Cartwright regarding the constitutions and customs of the Church of England, his oratorical effectiveness proved inferior, but he was able to exercise arbitrary authority: together with other heads of the university, he deprived Cartwright of his professorship, and in September 1571 Whitgift exercised his prerogative as master of Trinity to strip him of his fellowship. In June of the same year Whitgift was nominated Dean of Lincoln. In the following year he publishedAn Answere to a Certain Libel entitled anAdmonition to the Parliament, which led to further controversy between the two churchmen. From 1572 to 1577 he was Rector ofSt Margaret's church inLaceby in Lincolnshire. On 24 March 1577, Whitgift was appointedBishop of Worcester, and during the absence of SirHenry Sidney in Ireland in 1577 he acted as vice-president ofWales.
In August 1583 he was appointedArchbishop of Canterbury to replaceEdmund Grindal, who had been placed under house arrest after his disagreement withQueen Elizabeth over "prophesyings" and died in office. Whitgift placed his stamp on the church of the Reformation, and shared Elizabeth's hatred ofPuritans. Although he wrote to Elizabeth remonstrating against the alienation of church property, Whitgift always retained her special confidence. In his policy against the Puritans and in his vigorous enforcement of the subscription test he thoroughly carried out her policy of religious uniformity.
He drew up articles aimed at nonconforming ministers, and obtained increased powers for theCourt of High Commission. In 1586, he became a privy councillor. His actions gave rise to theMartin Marprelate tracts, in which the bishops and clergy were strongly opposed. By his vigilance the printers of the tracts were discovered and punished, though the main writerJob Throkmorton evaded him. Whitgift had nine leadingpresbyterians includingThomas Cartwright arrested in 1589–90, and though their trial in the Star Chamber for sedition did not result in convictions they did agree to abandon their movement in return for freedom.[7]
Whitgift took a strong line against theBrownist movement and theirUnderground Church in London led byHenry Barrow andJohn Greenwood. Their services were repeatedly raided and members held in prison. Whitgift repeatedly interrogated them through the High Commission, and at the Privy Council. WhenBurghley asked Barrow his opinion of the Archbishop, he responded: "He is a monster, a miserable compound, I know not what to make him. He is neither ecclesiastical nor civil, even that second beast spoken of in revelation."[8] Whitgift was the prime mover behind theAct against Seditious Sectaries which was passed in1593, makingSeparatist Puritanism a felony, and he had Barrow and Greenwood executed the following morning.[9][10]
In the controversy betweenWalter Travers andRichard Hooker, he prohibited the former from preaching, and he presented the latter with the rectory of Boscombe inWiltshire, to help him complete hisEcclesiastical Polity, a work that in the end did not represent Whitgift's theological or ecclesiastical standpoints. In 1587, he had Welsh preacherJohn Penry brought before the High Commission, and imprisoned; Whitgift signed Penry'sdeath warrant six years later.
In 1595, in conjunction with the Bishop of London and other prelates, he drew up theCalvinist instrument known as theLambeth Articles. Although the articles were signed and agreed by several bishops they were recalled by order of Elizabeth, claiming that the bishops had acted without her explicit consent. Whitgift maintained that she had given her approval.
Whitgift attended Elizabeth on her deathbed, andcrownedJames I. He was present at theHampton Court Conference in January 1604, at which he represented eight bishops.
He died atLambeth at the end of the following month. He was buried in Croydon at the Parish Church of St John Baptist (nowCroydon Minster): his monument there with his recumbent effigy was practically destroyed when the church burnt down in 1867.
Whitgift is described by his biographer, Sir George Paule, as of "middle stature, strong and well shaped, of a grave countenance and brown complexion, black hair and eyes, his beard neither long nor thick." He left several unpublished works, included in theManuscripts Angliae. Many of his letters, articles and injunctions are calendared in the published volumes of theState Papers series of the reign of Elizabeth. HisCollected Works, edited for theParker Society by John Ayre (3 vols., Cambridge, 1851–1853), include the controversial tracts mentioned above, two sermons published during his lifetime, a selection from his letters toCecil and others, and some portions of his previously unpublished manuscripts.
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In his later years he concerned himself with various administrative reforms, including fostering learning among the clergy, abolishing non-resident clergy, and reforming the ecclesiastical courts.[11]
Whitgift set up charitable foundations (almshouses), nowThe Whitgift Foundation, inCroydon, the site of a palace, a summer retreat of Archbishops of Canterbury.[12] It supports homes for the elderly and infirm, and runs three independent schools –Whitgift School, founded in 1596,[13]Trinity School of John Whitgift and, more recently,Old Palace School for girls, which is housed in the formerCroydon Palace.
Whitgift Street nearLambeth Palace (the official London residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury) is named after him. Whitgift Close inLaceby inLincolnshire, where he was Rector ofSt Margaret's church from 1572 to 1577, is also named for him.
A comprehensive school in his home town of Grimsby,John Whitgift Academy, is named after him.[14]
TheWhitgift Centre, a major shopping centre in Croydon, is named after him. It is built on land still owned by theWhitgift Foundation.
Season 7, Episode 6 of theBad Gays podcast covers his life.[15]
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Whitgift, John".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 28 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.| Academic offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Regius Professor of Divinity at Cambridge 1567–1569 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Matthew Hutton | Master of Pembroke College, Cambridge 1567 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Master of Trinity College, Cambridge 1567–1577 | Succeeded by |
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