Robert Hallam | |
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Bishop of Salisbury | |
Appointed | 1407 |
Term ended | 4 September 1417 |
Predecessor | Nicholas Bubwith |
Successor | John Chandler |
Orders | |
Consecration | 1407 |
Personal details | |
Died | 4 September 1417 |
Denomination | Roman Catholic |
Robert Hallam (a.k.a.Alum orHalam; died 4 September 1417) was anEnglish churchman,Bishop of Salisbury and English representative at theCouncil of Constance. He wasChancellor of theUniversity of Oxford from 1403 to 1405.[2]
Hallam was originally fromCheshire in northern England[3] and was educated at Oxford University. AsChancellor he, theProctors, and all others in the University were pardoned byKing Henry IV.[4] On leaving the chancellorship, he was nominated in May 1406 byPope Innocent VII asArchbishop of York, but the appointment was vetoed by King Henry IV in the same year.[5] However, in 1407 he was consecrated[6] byPope Gregory XII atSiena as Bishop of Salisbury.[citation needed] As bishop, Hallam supported various churches and shrines in his diocese with grants of episcopalindulgences.[7]
At theCouncil of Pisa in 1409, Hallam was one of the English representatives. On 6 June 1411,Antipope John XXIII (Baldassare Cardinal Cossa) purported to make Hallam apseudocardinal, but this title was not recognised.
At theCouncil of Constance, in November 1414, Hallam was the chief English envoy. There he took a prominent position, as an advocate of Church reform and of the superiority of the council to the pope. He played a leading part in the discussions leading to the deposition of Antipope John XXIII on 29 May 1415, but was less concerned with the trials ofJan Hus andJerome of Prague.Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, through whose influence the council had been assembled, was absent during the whole of 1416 on adiplomatic mission in France and England; but when he returned toConstance in January 1417, as the open ally of the English king, Hallam asHenry V's trusted representative obtained increased importance, and contrived to emphasise English prestige by delivering the address of welcome to Sigismund. Afterwards, under Henry's direction, he supported the emperor in trying to secure a reform of the Church, before the council proceeded to the election of a new pope. This matter was still undecided when Hallam died suddenly on 4 September 1417.[6] His executors were Masters Richard Hallum, John Fyton, John Hikke, with William Clynt, Thomas Hallum, Thomas Faukys, clerk, & Humfrey Rodeley[8]
After Hallam's death the cardinals were able to secure the immediate election of a new pope,Martin V, who was elected on 11 November: it has been said that the abandonment of the reformers by the English was due entirely to Hallam's death;[citation needed] but it is more likely that Henry V, foreseeing the possible need for a change of front, had given Hallam discretionary powers which the bishop's successors used. Hallam himself had the confidence of Sigismund and was generally respected for his straightforward independence. He was buried inConstance Cathedral, where his tomb near the high altar is marked by abrass of English workmanship.
His executors were suing various people for debt in Wiltshire & Oxfordshire
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: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)Academic offices | ||
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Preceded by | Chancellor of the University of Oxford 1403–1405 | Succeeded by |
Catholic Church titles | ||
Preceded by | Archbishop of York election quashed 1406–1407 | Succeeded by |
Preceded by | Bishop of Salisbury 1407–1417 | Succeeded by |