Antony Bek (bishop of Durham)

Antony Bek (also spelled Beck and Beke; c. 1245 – 3 March 1311) was a bishop of Durham and the Patriarch of Jerusalem(1306–1311).

Early life

Bek and his elder brother Thomas Bek were members of a family of knights.<ref>Prestwich Edward Ip. 138</ref> Their father was Walter Bek, who held lands at Eresby in Lincolnshire.<ref name=ODNB>Fraser "Bek, Antony (I) (c. 1245 – 1311)" Oxford Dictionary of National Biography</ref> Another brother was John Beke, 1st Baron Beke of Eresby, who held the family lands in Eresby.<ref>Powell House of Lords p. 227 footnote 39</ref> Walter had married Eve, the niece of Walter de Gray, Archbishop of York.<ref>Cokayne, The Complete Peerage, new edition, Volume II p. 89</ref> Bek was born about 1245 and was Walter's third son.<ref name=ODNB/> Both Thomas and Antony were educated at Oxford University, where they studied from 1267 to 1270.<ref name=ODNB/>

Having entered the clergy, Bek received several benefices and soon attracted the attention of the Lord Edward,<ref name=EB>{{#if: |

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  }}{{#ifeq:  ||}}</ref> the heir of King Henry III of England. He was Archdeacon of Durham by 1275, as well as precentor of York and held prebends at Lichfield, London, and Wells.<ref>Greenway "Archdeacons of Durham diocese: Durham" Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066–1300 pp. 37–39</ref> Bek accompanied Edward when the prince went on Crusade in 1270.<ref>Prestwich Edward I p. 69</ref> When Edward returned from crusading, he appointed Bek to the office of Keeper of the wardrobe on 21 September 1274,<ref name=EdwardI92>Prestwich Edward I p. 92</ref> but Bek held the office for only about a month, and was replaced in October with his brother Thomas Bek.<ref>Fryde Handbook of British Chronology p. 79</ref> Edward named Bek the constable of the Tower of London in 1275.<ref name=ODNB/> In November 1277 Bek was one of the councillors sent by Edward to negotiate with Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, Prince of Wales. The result was the Treaty of Aberconwy which required Llywelyn to give up hostages, pay a large fine, give up claims to some lands and pay homage to King Edward.<ref>Prestwich Edward I p. 180</ref> Bek was also sent to Aragon to negotiate the marriage of Edward's daughter Eleanor to the heir of Aragon, Alfonso.<ref>Prestwich Edward I p. 321</ref>

Bishop of Durham

Edward I secured Bek's election as bishop of Durham in 1283.<ref name=EB/> He was elected on 9 July 1283 and consecrated on 9 January 1284.<ref name=Handbook242>Fryde, et al. Handbook of British Chronology p. 242</ref> During his consecration, Bek had the remains of Saint William of York moved to a new shrine in York Minster.<ref name=ODNB/> Bek was enthroned at Durham Cathedral on 25 December 1285.<ref name=BHODurham>Greenway "Durham: Bishops" Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae pp. 29–32</ref> Bek was sent to Scotland after the death of King Alexander III of Scotland in 1286, to act on Edward's behalf for Alexander's heir Margaret of Norway, who was bethrothed to Edward's son Prince Edward.<ref>Prestwich Plantagenet England p. 231</ref> However, Margaret died soon after this, and Edward was brought in to decide the succession of the Scottish throne.<ref name=EdwardI369>Prestwich Edward I p. 369–370</ref> Bek was employed by King Edward in the negotiations and also served as a spokesman.<ref name=ODNB/> In November 1292, Edward decided in favor of John Balliol, and Bek assisted in the enthronement of Balliol at Scone soon after.<ref name=EdwardI369/>

Service for Edward I

In 1293, Bek was excommunicated by the Archbishop of York because Bek had allowed the king's officers to arrest two clerks while Bek was in Scotland on a royal mission. In response, a legal case was brought against the archbishop in Parliament alleging that because Bek was acting as the king's officer at the time, he wasn't acting as bishop but as earl palatine, and thus the excommunication was actually an affront to the royal dignity. Before the case could be decided, the archbishop yielded and was fined.<ref>Prestwich Edward I p. 352</ref> In 1294 the king sent Bek, along with others, on a diplomatic errand to the German king Adolf of Nassau and the archbishop of Cologne.<ref name=EB/> The embassy was attempting to secure allies for Edward's war against King Philip IV of France.<ref>Prestwich Edward I p. 386</ref>

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The second phase of the Battle of Falkirk

Taking part in Edward's campaigns in Scotland, the bishop received the surrender of King John I of Scotland at Brechin in 1296, and led one division of the English army at the Battle of Falkirk in 1298.<ref>Rose Kings in the North p. 154</ref><ref name=EB/> During the Falkirk campaign, but before the battle itself, a section of the army under Bek captured Dirleton Castle.<ref name=ODNB/>

In 1300, soon after his return to England, Bek became involved in a quarrel with Richard de Hoton, Prior of Durham<ref name=EB/> and the cathedral chapter. Both Hoton and the chapter were attempting to assert their independence from oversight by the bishop. Bek deposed and excommunicated the prior, and locked the cathedral and the priory up. Appeals from both sides were made to the king, but the prior had previously secured the support of several of the king's advisors. Attempts to secure a negotiated settlement failed, and other disputes over lands and rights escalated the dispute. At sometime after 1301 the king confiscated the lands of the bishop. A settlement in 1303 which restored the bishop's lands, did not settle the dispute between the prior and the bishop. In 1304, further charges were brought against the bishop by the prior and the cathedral chapter, including a serious one of imprisoning a royal messenger. The issue of the messenger led to the lands of the bishop once more being confiscated in 1305. The bishop secured the support of Pope Clement V<ref name=EdwardI541>Prestwich Edward I p. 541–545</ref> who named Bek Patriarch of Jerusalem on 26 February 1306.<ref name=BHODurham/> Further actions against the bishop were stopped by the death of the king in 1307.<ref name=EdwardI541/>

Service under Edward II

Bek conducted the funeral service for King Edward I on 27 October 1307 at Westminster Abbey.<ref>Prestwich Edward I p. 558</ref> In September, shortly after the death of Edward I, Edward II restored Bek's lands and rights. Bek's title of patriarch made him the senior ecclesiastic in England, and it was probably due to that status that he was named the main investigator of the Templars in 1308. In 1309, he finally managed to visit the priory at Durham, and the new prior announced that he and the chapter would not institute any more legal proceedings against the bishop stemming from the dispute.<ref name=ODNB/>

Death and legacy

The bishop died at Eltham Palace near London<ref name=ODNB/> on 3 March 1311.<ref name=Handbook242/> He was buried on 3 May 1311 in Durham Cathedral.<ref name=ODNB/> Bek served as an important advisor to King Edward I throughout most of his term as bishop, only losing that status at the end of Edward's reign due to the dispute with the Durham prior.<ref>Prestwich Edward I p. 437</ref> His extravagance was legendary, and his retinue was large, and consisted of 140 knights.<ref>Moorman Church Life p. 175 footnote1</ref> Bek was a wealthy man, and his personal estate at his death was valued at 6000 marks.<ref name=ODNB/> He built at Auckland Castle,<ref>Pettifer English Castles p. 25</ref> Somerton Castle in Lincolnshire<ref>Pettifer English Castles p. 144</ref> and elsewhere. He also built Durham Castle's Great Hall.<ref>Pettifer English Castles p. 29</ref> Some efforts were made after the bishop's death to have him canonized, but nothing came of these efforts. Bek was known for his chastity and bravery also.<ref name=ODNB/>

Bek's elder brother, Thomas Bek, was Bishop of St David's and a trusted servant of Edward I.<ref name=EdwardI92/><ref name=EB/> Two other relations were Thomas Bek, who was Bishop of Lincoln, and Antony Bek, who was Bishop of Norwich.<ref>Morgan "Bek family (per. c. 1150 – c. 1350)" Oxford Dictionary of National Biography</ref>

References

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Further reading

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• Hunter Blair, C.H., Medieval Seals of the Bishops of Durham, published in Archaeologia, or, Miscellaneous Tracts Relating to Antiquity, published by the Society of Antiquaries of London, Vol. 72, 1922, pp. 5–6, re: seal of Bishop Bek; physical seal held at National Archives, Kew, "Anthony Bek, Bishop of Durham, counter seal", ref: SC 13/F36 [1]