St William of York (d. 1154) archbishop of York
Elected in a time of civil war
William
Fitzherbert had a turbulent ecclesiastical career. He became a political
football between two factions squabbling for the throne of England
during a period the 12th century known as the Anarchy (1135-54).
William's mother Emma was half-sister of Stephen of Blois, who
claimed the throne of England after the death of Henry I in 1135, even
though Henry had named his daughter, the Empress Matilda, (also
Stephen’s first cousin) as his successor.
Both contestants were
grandchildren of William the Conqueror. The English barons and Pope
Innocent II favoured Stephen, while the Normans favoured Matilda.
(Matilda had been married to the Holy Roman Emperor Henry V. He died
and she later married Geoffrey of Anjou, by whom she had three sons, the
eldest of whom eventually - 1154 - became Henry II of England).
William was
treasurer of York Minster when the archbishop died there in 1141. He had
the majority of the chapter vote, along with Stephen’s support, in the
election for archbishop.
However, the archbishop of Canterbury, Theobald of Bec, a supporter
of the claims of the Empress Matilda, refused to recognise William's
election or to consecrate him. So Stephen's brother, Henry of
Winchester, did so, without papal approval.
The clergy of York, however,
were quite happy with him, seeing him as kind-hearted, generous to the
poor and personally austere.
Election disputed and a rival appointed
The
disappointed minority in the election had supported the Cistercian abbot
of Fountains, Henry Murdac. The Yorkshire Cistercians, with the help of
Bernard of Clairvaux, accused William of simony, unchastity and
intrusion, and appealed to the Pope.
The papacy itself was in dispute at the time and when it was
resolved, the new pope, a Cistercian, Eugenius III, suspended
William, deposed him, and appointed Henry Murdac. But when Henry Murdac
tried to take possession of the see, the clergy of York refused to admit
him.
So although he was nominally archbishop from 1147-53, he retired
to Beverley.
During this time, William first took refuge with his friend the King
of Sicily. He later came back to England and went to Winchester where
his uncle was bishop. Here he lived devoutly as a monk until 1153.
By
then the civil war was settled and Bernard of Clairvaux, Pope Eugenius
and Henry Murdac had all died.
The Anarchy (1135-54)
In the meantime, battles
were being waged on the ground as well as for the Pope's influence
between Stephen and Matilda.
In 1141, her forces defeated and captured
Stephen at the battle of Lincoln. But Stephen escaped and Matilda
eventually went back to France.
Stephen remained as king but eventually
at the Treaty of Wallingford (1153) he relinquished the kingdom to
Matilda's son, the 20-year old Henry II.
William's re-installation as archbishop
In 1153
when the war was over, a new pope, Anastasius IV, conferred the
archbishop's pallium on William and he entered York in triumph in April
1154. So many people turned out to greet him that the bridge over the
Ouse collapsed under their weight. The fact that no one was killed was
seen as a miracle.
His death and veneration
On Trinity
Sunday, William was celebrating Mass when he was taken ill. His
archdeacon Osbert was suspected of putting poison in his chalice, but
this was never proved.
He died on 8 June. Miracles took place at his tomb, and in 1227 he
was canonised by Pope Honorius III. His remains lie in a sarcophus under
the altar in the western crypt of York Minster.
A mosaic pavement,
created by the students from York College of Art in 1980, represent the
waters of the Ouse, recalling the miracle that accompanied his
installation. The great 15th century north choir transept window in York
Minster commemorates his life and the miracles attributed to him in 110
panels.
His feast day is 8th June and his veneration is largely local to
York. St William's College, next to the Minster, is the home for
chancery priests of the cathedral.