Born
into an illustrious and influential family, Thomas was the son of
William de Cantelupe, a minister to King John, and Millicent (or Maud)
de Gournay, the Dowager Countess of Evreux and Gloucester. He had four
brothers and three sisters.
His education was entrusted to his
uncle, Walter de Cantelupe, the Bishop of Worcester, who sent Thomas
first to Oxford and then to Paris. In 1245, while yet a student, Thomas
attended the first Council of Lyons. After his ordination to the
priesthood in France, he returned to Oxford to teach canon law. In 1262
he was chosen chancellor of the university, and though considered a
strict disciplinarian, was known for his charity to poor students.
In
1264 he was appointed Lord Chancellor of England, and was renowned for
his prudence, courage, blameless life, scrupulous justice, and disregard
of human respect and the least bribe, but did not hold office long.
In
1275 he was appointed Bishop of Hereford, a diocese he found in a bad
state owing to civil wars and the pusillanimity of his two predecessors.
One after another he met, defied and overcame the lords. He rebuked and
excommunicated public sinners equally publicly, especially those in
high places who set a bad example. He was also a trusted advisor to King
Edward I.
Yet, as it is with truly courageous shepherds, they
are just as tender and attentive as they are combative, and it is said
that whenever he was among the young, he would personally inquire if
they had received the sacrament of Confirmation. Receiving a negative
answer, he would personally supply what was needed and confirm them
himself.
Unhappily, toward the end of his life, Thomas entered
into a great dispute with John Peckham, Archbishop of Canterbury, over
questions of jurisdiction and other particular cases. This disagreement
ended by the metropolitan excommunicating Thomas who traveled to Italy
to settle the matter with Pope Martin IV who, despite the fulminations
in Peckham’s letters, received him kindly. Thomas was ultimately
absolved.
Pending the consideration and outcome of his appeal,
Thomas retired to Montefiascone but succumbed to the fatigues and the
heat, and died in Orvieto on August 25, 1282. His remains were later
transferred to Hereford and he was buried in the cathedral. He was
canonized in 1320.
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