Rowland Lee

For those of the same or similar names, see Rowland Lee (disambiguation).

Bishop Rowland Lee (c. 1487 – 28 January 1543) was an English administrator and bishop of Coventry and Lichfield.

Life

He belonged to a Northumberland family and was educated at Cambridge. Having entered the Church he obtained several livings owing to the favour of Cardinal Wolsey; after Wolsey's fall he rose high in the esteem of Henry VIII and of Thomas Cromwell, serving both king and minister in the business of suppressing the monasteries, and he is said to have celebrated Henry's secret marriage with Anne Boleyn in January 1533. Whether this be so or not, Lee took part in preparing for the divorce proceedings against Catherine of Aragon, and in January 1534 he was elected Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield, or Chester as the see was often called, taking at his consecration the new oath to the king as head of the English Church and not seeking confirmation from the pope. As bishop he remained in Henry's personal service, endeavouring to establish the legality of his marriage with Anne, until May 1534 when he was appointed lord president of the Council of Wales and the Marches.^[1]

As the lord president, on the direction of Thomas Cromwell, he set out to bring law and order to the Welsh regions. ^[1] What ensued was a reign of terror, in which Lee decided the best way to deal with the 'lawless' Welsh was to convict and hang with impunity. Lee claimed to have hanged 5000 Welshmen in his five years; possibly an exaggeration, but in any event indicates the character of the man described as a "great despiser of Welshmen" by Dafydd Jenkins.

Lee was also disliked by the gentry for his scant respect; he once boasted to have hanged "Five of the best blood in the county of Shropshire".^[2]

The "hanging Bishop" was said to be disappointed and incensed when the first Act of Union was enacted in 1536, as he believed the Welsh could not be trusted as part of England. He died at Shrewsbury, and was buried in St Chad's Church.^[2]

References

1 2 Chisholm 1911.
1 2 Jones 2004.

Attribution

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Lee, Rowland". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
Jones, Michael A. (2004). "Lee, Rowland". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/16307. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)

Church of England titles
Preceded by Geoffrey Blyth	Bishop of Lichfield 1534–1543	Succeeded by Richard Sampson

Archdeacons of Cornwall

High Medieval	Roland Alnothus Ernaldus Hugo de Auco William A. Walter Ralph Luce Peter Galterus Walter Fitz Rogo Simon Martin Thomas John Rof Jordan Geofrey de Bismano Robert de Tefford John de Esse Henry de Bolleghe

Late Medieval	William Bodrugan Adam de Carleton Walter Nicholas de Scotton Annibale Cardinal di Ceccano Adam de Carleton (again) John de St Paul Papal grants: John Harewell Thomas David Alexander Neville Royal grants: William Cusance Nicholas de Newton Thomas de Orgrave Robert Braybrooke Nicholas Braybrooke Richard Lentwardyn Edward Dantsey John Bremore Richard Penels William Fylham Walter Trengof Richard Helyer Henry Trevilian John Selot Thomas Marke William Sylke

Early modern	Thomas Harrys Bernard Oldham John Fulford Hugh Ashton Richard Sampson Rowland Lee Thomas Bedyll Thomas Wynter John Pollard Hugh Weston John Rixman George Harvey Roger Alley Thomas Somaster Nicholas Marston William Hutchinson Jasper Swift William Parker Martin Mansogg/Nansogg William Parker (again) Robert Peterson Robert Hall George Hall Edward Cotton Edward Drew Lancelot Blackburne ? Charles Fleetwood George Allanson John Sleech George Moore

Late modern	William Short John Bull John Sheepshanks William Phillpotts John Cornish Stamford Raffles-Flint Guy Hockley John Holden Frederick Boreham Peter Young Arnold Wood Raymond Ravenscroft Trevor McCabe Rodney Whiteman Roger Bush Bill Stuart-White

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