Hugh Oldham

For the Canadian football player, seeHugh Oldham (Canadian football).

The Right Reverend Hugh Oldham
Bishop of Exeter
Effigy of Hugh Oldham (d. 1519), Bishop of Exeter, Oldham Chapel, south aisle, Exeter Cathedral
Church	Roman Catholic
See	Exeter
Installed	12 January 1505
Term ended	25 June 1519
Predecessor	John Arundel
Successor	John Vesey
Orders
Consecration	5 January 1505 byWilliam Warham
Personal details
Born	c. 1452 Lancashire,England
Died	25 June 1519 Exeter,Devon
Buried	Exeter Cathedral

Statue of Hugh Oldham at Manchester Grammar School

Canting armsof Oldham:Sable, a chevron or between three owls argent on a chief of the second three roses gules

Hugh Oldham(c. 1452– 25 June 1519) was an English cleric who wasBishop of Exeter(1505–19) and a notable patron of education as a founder and patron ofManchester Grammar SchoolandCorpus Christi College, Oxford.

Born in Lancashire to a family of minor gentry, he probably attended both Oxford and Cambridge universities, following which he was a clerk at Durham, then a rector in Cornwall before being employed byLady Margaret Beaufort(mother ofKing Henry VII), rising to be the chancellor of her household by 1503. During this time he was preferred with many religious posts all over the country, being made archdeacon ofExeterin 1502 and finally bishop of that city in 1505, a decision that was probably influenced by Lady Margaret.

He was a conscientious bishop who ensured that only educated people were appointed to ecclesiastical posts. His patronage of educational establishments included the foundation ofThe Manchester Grammar SchoolandCorpus Christi College, Oxfordfor which he donated £4,000. After his death he was buried inExeter Cathedralin achantry chapelthat he had caused to be built for that purpose. The chapel is decorated with numerous carvings of owls, which were his personal device.

Early life

Oldham was one of the younger of six sons born to Roger Oldham and his wife Margery who were, the limited evidence suggests,yeomenor minorgentryatAncoats,which at the time was a village inNorth West England,but is now an inner city area ofManchester.There are few records of his early life, but it is known that he attended university, studyingcanon lawand either arts or civil law probably at Oxford, and he was later (in 1493) a bachelor of law at Cambridge.There is no contemporary evidence, however, that he was a member ofQueens' College, Cambridgeas was claimed byThomas Fullerin hisWorthies of Englandof 1662 and often repeated.

In 1475 he was described in a deed transferring property to him from his eldest brother James as a "clerk of Durham". At this time he was most likely either in the household of, or employed byLawrence Booth,Bishop of Durham, whose family came from the same area as Oldham's and by whom James had also been employed.He was rector ofLanivetin Cornwall between 1488 and 1493, when he resigned the living on a pension of £12.At this time he was also a servant toWilliam Smyth,who was keeper of thehanaperin theCourt of Chancery.In 1492 he was thereceiverforLady Margaret Beaufort's estates in theWest Country,and by 1503 he had risen to be the chancellor of her household.

In the years following 1490, Oldham was made acanonof the cathedrals of Exeter, Lichfield, Lincoln, St Paul's, Salisbury and York. In 1496 William Smyth, who was by thenBishop of Coventry and Lichfield,appointed him to the non-residential post of master of the hospital of St John in Lichfield, to which Smyth had recently added a free grammar school and almshouse. The year 1499 saw him established asdeanof Wimborne in Dorset, and in 1502 he was madearchdeaconof Exeter.In 1503, he had sufficient prestige to be present at the placing of the foundation stone of theHenry VII Lady ChapelatWestminster Abbey.

Bishop of Exeter

Bishop Oldham's coat of arms.Differencesof his arms form the arms ofOldham Metropolitan Borough Counciland of his foundationsManchester Grammar SchoolandCorpus Christi College, Oxford

Heraldic escutcheon on tomb of Hugh Oldham (d.1519), Bishop of Exeter:Dexter:Gules, a sword erect in pale argent, hilted or surmounted by two keys addorsed in saltire of the last(See of Exeter)impaling:Sable, a chevron or between three owls argent on a chief of the second three roses gules (Oldham).The arms of Oldham can also be seen sculpted in stone on the tower of the Bishop's Palace, Exeter

Possibly with some influence from Lady Margaret Beaufort (who was the mother of the then reigning king,Henry VII), Oldham was appointed asBishop of Exeteron 24 November 1504, and wasconsecratedin the post on 12 January 1505. He evidently took his duties as bishop seriously and ensured that only educated people, such as university graduates, were raised to most of the important roles under his control. He also instigated examinations to select the best candidates forordination.

Bishop Oldham's coat of arms, shown here, are described as "Sable, a chevron or, between three Owls proper; on a chief of the second, three Roses gules."Oldham adopted the owl as his personal device. It was aplay on wordsorrebusbased on his surname, which would probably have been pronounced at the time asowl-dom.

From 1510 to 1513 he was one of a group of bishops who resisted, largely successfully, what they considered were undue claims made byWilliam Warham,Archbishop of Canterbury, regarding theprobate courts.In 1511 he regulated many cathedral matters by the issue of statutes, and he was not shy in confronting other religious houses when he thought it appropriate. He successfully annexed Warland Hospital in Totnes from theTrinitarian Orderin 1509.This was done, as was the similar annexation of Clyst Gabriel at Sowton, to help finance the provision of regular meals for the twentyvicars choralat his Cathedral.

He was initially successful in his litigation against Richard Banham, the abbot ofTavistock Abbey,who in 1513 had declared his abbey exempt from the bishop's right ofepiscopalvisitation.Oldham quicklyexcommunicatedhim, but after Banham's personal appeal that he be "absolved from his censures", Oldham reinstated him, on payment of five pounds. However, soon afterwards Banham appealed to Archbishop William Warham andRichard FitzJames,Bishop of London, who decided early in 1514 that since he had not produced any evidence of papal exemption, he had to submit to the bishop. Still not satisfied, Banham appealed directly to Rome and eventually received apapal bull,dated 14 September 1517, that exempted him totally from episcopal jurisdiction and took the Abbey under the sole protection of theHoly See,on payment of twenty shillings annually.These events are in direct contrast to what was written in 1601 byFrancis Godwinin hisCatalogue of the Bishops of Englandwhere he stated that it was Oldham who was excommunicated by the pope as a result of this dispute. Godwin's version of events was followed by several later historians,but Mumford (1936) flatly stated that "there is no record of any such excommunication".

Hugh Oldham had a brother, Bernard, who also followed a religious career. At Hugh's request, Lady Margaret Beaufort had seen that he was installed as rector inCrewkerne,Somerset, in around 1495. While there, Bernard helpedJohn Combe,a lawyer andprecentorof Exeter Cathedral, who came from Crewkerne, establish afree grammar school in the town.After Lady Margaret's death in 1509, Hugh spent a long time with his brother in Crewkerne,and arranged for him to beArchdeacon of Cornwall,a post which he held from 1509 to 1515.On 5 April 1515 Bernard was made treasurer of Exeter Cathedral, but he died within a month of taking up the post.

George Oliver in hisLives of the Bishops of Exeter(1861), relates an anecdote, originally told byJohn Hookerin the late 16th century, regarding the bishop's punctuality of dining at eleven o'clock in the morning, and of supping at five o'clock in the afternoon. Apparently to ensure precision he had a house-clock to strike the hours, and a servant to look after it. If the bishop was prevented by important business from coming to table at the appointed time, the servant would delay the clock's striking the hour until he knew that his master was ready. Sometimes, if asked what was the hour, the servant would humorously answer, "As your lordship pleaseth," at which the bishop would smile and go his way.Hooker also summed up his opinion of Bishop Oldham in these words: "A man having more zeal than knowledge and more devotion than learning; somewhat rough in speeches but friendly in doings [...] albeit he was not very much learned, yet a great favourer and a friend both to learning and to learned men".

Interest in education

As bishop, Oldham showed a keen interest in education, probably influenced by his brother Bernard's experiences in Crewkerne.He donated £4,000and land in Chelsea towardsCorpus Christi College, Oxford,which his friend and former Bishop of Exeter,Richard Foxewas in the process of establishing.In 1513, Foxe's original intention had been for the college to be formonks,similar to the long-establishedDurham CollegeandCanterbury College,both at Oxford. However, Oldham appears to have persuaded Foxe to found asecularcollege instead, along the lines ofNew CollegeorMagdalen,supposedly telling him that "monks were but a sort of bussing [buzzing] flies... whose state could not long endure" —showing, according to some, that Oldham was well aware of the comingReformation.In return for his generosity, daily prayers for him were recited in the new chapel at Corpus Christi both during his lifetime and after his death,and the college still has a contemporary portrait of him.

Oldham may also have patronizedBrasenose College, Oxford,which his former masterWilliam Smythhad founded in 1509. The historianJohn Hookerstated that Oldham's advances to Smyth were rebuffed, but evidence of the patronage existed in the form of his coat of arms that used to be set in a library window there. He apparently also offered help toExeter College, Oxford,established in 1314 by one of his predecessors at Exeter,Bishop Stapledon,but in this case there is no evidence to contradict Hooker's statement that his offer was rejected.

Oldham's interests also extended to lower levels of education. He ensured that the younger members of Exeter's cathedral choir attended the city high school, for instance,but his main endowment in this field was made back in his home country of Lancashire. On 2 July 1515 he signed an endowment trust deed establishing the Manchester Free Grammar School for Lancashire Boys which later becameThe Manchester Grammar School.This deed promoted "godliness and good learning" and promised that any boy showing sufficient academic ability, regardless of background, could attend, free of charge.A site was purchased in September 1516 and construction took place between April 1517 and August 1518. The total cost, as shown by a bill signed by Oldham, was £218.13s.5d, most of which must have been given by Oldham himself.

Oldham's tomb in Exeter Cathedral

Oldham's death, his chapel and tomb

Some of about 59 sculpted owlrebuseson the walls, ceiling and tomb in the chantry chapel of Bishop Oldham

The owl-dom rebus. A depiction of the stone carving in Oldham's chantry

Sir John Speke, a wealthy Devon knight, and Bishop Oldham jointly planned the construction of two newchantry chapelsin complementary positions off the north and south choir-aisles ofExeter Cathedral.Oldham's chapel, off the south aisle, was apparently complete by 1513.It was dedicated to St Saviour, and Oldham intended his body to rest there. Speke died on 28 April 1518 and was interred in his tomb off the north aisle.On 16 December of the same year, Oldham drew up his will in which he gave £80 for the vicars choral to celebrate a daily mass for his soul at his tomb.He died just six months later, on 25 June 1519.

His body lies in his chantry chapel which is decorated with numerous carvings of the owl that was his personal device. One of the owls carries a scroll in its beak, bearing the letters "DOM".His tomb is surmounted by a brightly painted, but rather crudely carved effigy,typical of the general decline in the quality of sepulchral monuments of the early 16th century.The tomb was restored by Corpus Christi College in the late 19th century.It was restored again and recoloured, together with many other monuments in the Cathedral, between 1956 and 1967.

Legacy

Bishop Oldham is well remembered by Manchester Grammar School: on a Sunday at the end of June each year representatives from the school hold a commemorative service in Exeter Cathedral during which a wreath is laid on his tomb.Since 2005 the school has held an annual Hugh Oldham Lecture,with speakers that have included Astronomer RoyalMartin Rees,historianMichael WoodandLord Winston.And in 2001 the Bishop of Exeter,Michael Langrishgave a speech to the London Section of the Old Mancunians' Association in which he emphasised two facets of Bishop Oldham's life, both of which he said have relevance today: the importance of learning and education that is broad-based, humane and directed to the well-being of society, and to be open to the future and critically appreciative of what it might be.A life-size bronze statue of the bishop, sculpted by William Macmillan in 1931, stands in the school grounds,and the school's badge still incorporates Oldham's owls.

Hugh Oldham Lads Club, one of the firstLads Clubsin Manchester and similar in its purpose to the laterSalford Lads Club,was founded by the educatorAlexander Devinein 1887 as a result of his concern for the welfare of children. It continued until 1958.

Sources

• Erskine, Audrey; Hope, Vyvyan; Lloyd, John (1988).Exeter Cathedral - A Short History and Description.The Dean & Chapter of Exeter Cathedral.ISBN0-9503320-4-6.
• Lepine, David;Orme, Nicholas(2003).Death and Memory in Medieval Exeter.New series. Vol. 46. Devon and Cornwall Record Society.ISBN0-901853-46-1.
• Oliver, George (1861).Lives of the Bishops of Exeter and a History of the Cathedral.Exeter: William Roberts. Archived fromthe originalon 26 July 2011.Retrieved3 January2010.
• Orme, Nicholas(1986), "Sir John Speke and his Chapel in Exeter Cathedral",Report and Transactions of the Devonshire Association,118
• Pickerill, J. B. (2001),The Portcullis and the Owl - An account of the times of Hugh Oldham and his Patroness(PDF),The Manchester Grammar School Old Boys Network, archived fromthe original(PDF)on 27 July 2011,retrieved7 January2011

Further reading

• Mumford, Alfred Alexander (1936).Hugh Oldham, 1452? - 1519, Bishop of Exeter, principal benefactor of Corpus Christi College, Oxford, and founder of the Manchester Grammar School.London: Faber.