The Abbot of Glastonbury was the head (or abbot) of the Anglo-Saxon and eventually Benedictine house of Glastonbury Abbey at Glastonbury in Somerset, England.
The following is a list of abbots of Glastonbury:
Abbots
| Name | Dates | Works | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| St Benignus | ?458–469 | (reputed) | |
| 'Worgret' | c.601–? | ||
| 'Lademund' | c.663–c.667 | ||
| 'Bregored' | c.667 | ||
| Berhtwald | c.667–676/7 | Archbishop of Canterbury 693–731 | |
| Haemgils | 676/7–701/2 | ||
| Beorhtwald | 701/2–709/10 | ||
| Ealdberht | 709/10–718/9 | Church of SS Peter & Paul built by King Ine | |
| Ecgfrith | 718/19–? | ||
| Walhstod | 729 | (rejected by some sources) | |
| Coengils | ?–737 | ||
| Tunberht | 737–? | ||
| Tyccea | 754–760 | ||
| Guba | 760–762 | ||
| Wealdhun | 762–794 | ||
| Beaduwulf | 794–800 | ||
| Muca | 802–824 | ||
| Guthlac | 824–851 | ||
| Ealhmund | 851–867 | ||
| Hereferth | 867–891 | (now thought probably to come before Ealhmund) | |
| Stithheard | 891–922 | ||
| Aldhun | 922–? | ||
| Cuthred | |||
| Ælfric? | |||
| Ecgwulf | |||
| St Dunstan | 940–957+ | Lengthened Ine's church and added a tower. Raised the level of the cemetery and constructed various monastic buildings. | later Archbishop of Canterbury |
| ?Ælfric | occurs after Dunstan in some lists | (probably spurious) | |
| Ælfstan | occurs in some lists after Ælfric | (probably spurious) | |
| Sigar | c.970–975(?) | later Bishop of Wells 975–997 | |
| Ælfweard | c.975–1009 | ||
| Brihtred (Beorhtred) | 1009–? | ||
| Brihtwig (Brihtwine) | c. 1017–1024 | later Bishop of Wells | |
| Æthelweard (Aegelweard) | c.1024–1053 | ||
| Æthelnoth | 1053–1078 | deposed by Lanfranc | |
| Thurstan | c.1077–after 1096 | Began a new church | 1091. Translation of relics of St Benignus from Meare |
| Herluin | 1100–1118 | Rebuilt Thurstan's church on a grander scale | |
| Seffrid Pelochin | 1120/1–1125 | Bishop of Chichester from 1125 to 1145 | |
| Henry of Blois | 1126–1171 | Built a bell tower, chapter house, cloister, lavatory, refectory, dormitory, infirmary, the 'castellum', an outer gate, a brewery and stables | also Bishop of Winchester from 1129 |
| Robert of Winchester | 1173–1180 | Built a chamber and chapel | previously Prior of Winchester |
| Peter de Marcy | 1186. New St Mary's Chapel consecrated. Work on Great Church begun. | 1184 (25 May). Great Fire | |
| Henry de Sully | 1189–1193 | supposed tomb of King Arthur and Queen Guinevere discovered in the cemetery c. 1190 Later Bishop of Worcester 1193–1195 | |
| Savaric FitzGeldewin | 1193–1205 | also Bishop of Bath and Glastonbury | |
| (Master William Pica) | (1198–1200) | (elected 1198 but election quashed 1200) | |
| Jocelin of Wells | 1206–1219 | also Bishop of Bath and Glastonbury from 1206 to 1242 | |
| William of St Vigor | 1219–1223 | ||
| Robert of Bath | 1223–1235 | Deposed 29 March 1235 | |
| Michael of Amesbury | 1235–c.1252 | Carried work on the choir forward | |
| Roger of Ford | 1252–1261 | died 2 October 1261, buried at Westminster | |
| Robert of Petherton | 1261–1274 | Built abbot's chamber | died 31 March 1274 |
| John of Taunton | 1274–1291 | Choir completed; west end of nave and galilee built. King Arthur's remains transferred to new tomb 1278. | died 7 October 1291 |
| John of Kent | 1291–1303 | ||
| Geoffrey Fromond | 1303–1322 | Spent £1,000 on buildings: completed various parts of the Great Church | |
| Walter of Taunton | 1322–1323 | Built pulpitum at west end of choir | died 23 January 1323 |
| Adam of Sodbury | 1323–1334 | Completed vaulting of nave of Great Church; worked on great hall and built a new chapel on the Tor | Concealed Hugh le Despenser and Robert Baldock, Lord Chancellor at the end of Queen Isabella and Roger Mortimer's Overthrow of Edward II in 1326 |
| John of Breynton | 1334–1342 | Completed abbot's great hall and worked on various other related buildings including prior's hall | |
| Walter de Monington | 1342–1375 | Extended choir by 40 feet, adding 2 bays. Completed abbot's chapel and infirmary. King Arthur's tomb transferred 1368. | |
| John Chinnock (John Chynnock) | 1375–1420 | 1382. Restored chapel and rededicated it to SS Michael & Joseph; rebuilt cloisters, erected or repaired the dormitory and fratry. | |
| Nicholas Frome | 1420–1456 | Finished chapter house, rebuilt misericord house and great chamber; constructed bishop's quarters and a wall around abbey precincts. Probably responsible for the abbot's kitchen. | |
| John Selwood | 1456–1493 | Built parish church of St John Baptist. Erected pilgrims' inn. | |
| Richard Beere | 1493–1524 | Began Edgar Chapel; built crypt under Lady Chapel and dedicated it to St Joseph; built a chapel of the Holy Sepulchre at south end of nave; built the Loretto chapel; added vaulting under central tower and flying buttresses at east end of choir; built St Benignus' Church and rebuilt Tribunal | |
| Richard Whiting | 1525–1539 | Completed Edgar Chapel | Hanged on Glastonbury Tor, 15 November 1539. |
See also
Notes
- ^ Geoffrey Ashe (1973), King Arthur's Avalon, Fontana
- ^ Knowles Heads of Religious Houses: England and Wales, I 940–1216 pp. 50–52
- ^ Knowles Heads of Religious Houses: England & Wales I 940–1216 pp. 248–250
- ^ Smith Heads of Religious Houses: England & Wales, II 1217–1377 pp. 46–47
- Close Rolls 1224–1468.
Sources
- Carley, James P. (1988). Glastonbury Abbey'. New York: St. Martin's Press.
- Knowles, David; London, Vera C. M.; Brooke, Christopher (2001). The Heads of Religious Houses, England and Wales, 940–1216 (2nd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-80452-3.
- Close Rolls. Westminster: Parliament of England. 1224–1468.
- Smith, David M.; London, Vera C. M. (2001). The Heads of Religious Houses, England and Wales II. 1216–1377. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-80271-7.