Adam Orleton^[a] (died 1345) was an Englishchurchman and royal administrator. He was the Bishop of Winchester (1333–1345),Worcester (1327–1333) andHereford (1317–1327) of theCatholic Church.

Orleton was born into aHerefordshire family, probably inHereford, notOrleton. Many of his family had beenChief Bailiffs of the city. The lord of the manor was RogerMortimer, to whose interests Orleton was loyal.^[1] His nephews wereJohn Trilleck, Bishop of Hereford andThomas Trilleck, Bishop of Rochester.^[2]

From the accession ofEdward II, Orleton was employed as a diplomat to the papal court, atAvignon from 1309, ofClement V andJohn XXII. A favourite of the latter, Orleton was nominatedbishop of Hereford by the pope^[3] on 15 May 1317, and consecrated on 22 May 1317,^[4] despite the protests of the king. During his episcopate the great central tower at Hereford, a wonder of its day, was built, but there is no reason to think him responsible for a matter under the jurisdiction of thedean and chapter. Despite his increasing political involvement withQueen Isabella andRoger Mortimer against Edward II, playing a significant role in the events of 1326,^[5] Orleton was an effective bishop in Hereford diocese, and reformed the scandalousWigmore Abbey and also the priory atAbergavenny andSt. Guthlac's priory in Hereford.^[6]

Orleton was translated to bebishop of Worcester on 25 September 1327,^[7] and lastly to bebishop of Winchester on 1 December 1333.^[8]

British historian Ian Mortimer has recently argued that Orleton'ssodomy accusations against Edward II in 1326-1327 may have been false, and that they may have been related to contemporarysmear campaigns against one's political adversaries, such as previous similar aspersions cast against PopeBoniface VIII byGuillaume de Nogaret, Chancellor to KingPhilip IV of France, as well as those involved in dispossession of theKnights Templar, during which Orleton was a primary antagonist of the order^[9]

One assessment stated that:

Bishop Adam, wary, unscrupulous, but at the same time vigorous and of unusual ability, played a great part in politics to the end of the wretched King's life. Some historians still believe that he recommended the murder; he certainly supported the deposition in Parliament, and went to Kenilworth as one of the commissioners to force the King's resignation. If thus interested in secular politics, he was no less watchful and vigilant in the affairs of his bishopric and the cathedral.^[10]

In 1327 Orleton briefly held the office ofLord High Treasurer, from January to March.^[11]

Orleton died on 18 July 1345.^[8]

InChristopher Marlowe's playEdward II, Orleton is given a role in Edward's death. This traditional story is not given credence by contemporary historians.

Orleton is a supporting character inLes Rois maudits (The Accursed Kings), a series of Frenchhistorical novels byMaurice Druon. He was portrayed byJean Lanier [fr] in the 1972French miniseries adaptation of the series, and by Serge Maillat in the 2005 adaptation.

• 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.
• Haines, Roy MartiThe Church and Politics in Fourteenth-Century England: The Career of Adam Orleton c. 1275–1345 1978
• McKisack, May,The Fourteenth Century
• Weir, AlisonIsabella: She-Wolf of France, Queen of England 2005

• "Adam of Orlton" .Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.

• 13th-century births
• 1345 deaths
• Bishops of Hereford
• Bishops of Winchester
• Bishops of Worcester
• 14th-century English Roman Catholic bishops
• Lord high treasurers of England

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