As the Lord President, under the direction of Thomas Cromwell, he set out to bring law and order to the Welsh regions.[3] What ensued was a reign of terror, in which Leigh decided the best way to deal with the 'lawless' Welsh was to convict and hang without impunity. It is claimed that Bishop Leigh hanged 5,000 Welshmen in his five years; probably an exaggeration, but in any event indicates the character of the man described as a "great despiser of Welshmen" by Dafydd Jenkins.
Leigh was also disliked among the gentry for giving them scant respect, despite being related to them; he once boasted to have hanged "Five of the best blood in the county of Shropshire".[4]
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. Leigh died at Shrewsbury, and was buried there in St Chad's Church.[4]
^The History of the Life and Times of Cardinal Wolsey, Joseph Grove, Vol. III, p. 322
^Perceval, Arthur Philip. An Apology for the Doctrine of Apostolical Succession: With an Appendix, on the English Orders. second edition (London: Rivington, 1841) p. 188.
Lichfield and Coventry Diocese @ www.nationalarchives.gov.uk
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.)
rowland, bishop, bishop, rowland, leigh, 1487, january, 1543, english, clergyman, served, bishop, coventry, lichfield, 1534, also, lord, president, marches, under, king, henry, viii, contents, life, also, references, external, links, attributionlife, edithis, . Bishop Rowland Lee or Leigh c 1487 28 January 1543 was an English clergyman who served as Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield 1534 43 and also as Lord President of the Marches under King Henry VIII Contents 1 Life 2 See also 3 References 4 External links 4 1 AttributionLife EditHis family hailed from Isell Cumberland and he was educated at Cambridge After being ordained as a priest Leigh obtained several livings under the patronage of Cardinal Wolsey 1 despite Wolsey s fall he rose high in the esteem of Henry VIII and of Thomas Cromwell by pursuing the policy of suppressing the monasteries and is believed to have been rewarded by officiating at Henry s secret marriage to Anne Boleyn in January 1533 Whether so or not Bishop Leigh took a lead part in preparing for the divorce proceedings against Catherine of Aragon before in January 1534 being elected as Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield the last to hold that title or Chester as the see was otherwise known pledging at his consecration the new oath to the King as sovereign head of the Church of England rather than to the Pope he was consecrated a bishop on 19 April 1534 by Thomas Cranmer Archbishop of Canterbury assisted by John Longland Bishop of Lincoln and Christopher Lord suffragan bishop of Canterbury and Bishop of Sidon 2 He served as a prelate to the royal household advocating the legality of Henry s marriage with Queen Anne until May 1534 when he was appointed Lord President of the Council of Wales and the Marches 3 As the Lord President under the direction of Thomas Cromwell he set out to bring law and order to the Welsh regions 3 What ensued was a reign of terror in which Leigh decided the best way to deal with the lawless Welsh was to convict and hang without impunity It is claimed that Bishop Leigh hanged 5 000 Welshmen in his five years probably an exaggeration but in any event indicates the character of the man described as a great despiser of Welshmen by Dafydd Jenkins Leigh was also disliked among the gentry for giving them scant respect despite being related to them he once boasted to have hanged Five of the best blood in the county of Shropshire 4 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 Leigh died at Shrewsbury and was buried there in St Chad s Church 4 See also EditList of the Bishops of the Diocese of Lichfield and its precursor officesReferences Edit The History of the Life and Times of Cardinal Wolsey Joseph Grove Vol III p 322 Perceval Arthur Philip An Apology for the Doctrine of Apostolical Succession With an Appendix on the English Orders second edition London Rivington 1841 p 188 a b Chisholm 1911 a b Jones 2004 External links EditLichfield and Coventry Diocese www nationalarchives gov ukAttribution Edit This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain Chisholm Hugh ed 1911 Lee Rowland Encyclopaedia 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 titlesPreceded byGeoffrey Blyth Bishop of Lichfield1534 1543 Succeeded byRichard Sampson This article about a British Catholic bishop or archbishop is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Rowland Lee bishop amp oldid 1050314975, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
