The Reign of Edward II (1307-27)

Summary

Overview

The early years of Edward IPs reign were bedevilled by the charges against the knights templars, laid originally by the king of France for purely political reasons, but extended by a compliant papacy to cover the whole of Europe. Councils were called in both Canterbury and York to deal with them, and although there was little enthusiasm on the part of the authorities to persecute the templars, the English church fell into line and condemned them as it was expected to do. A Canterbury convocation was held towards the end of 1309, which considered a number of reforms that were needed in the church, and which formulated a long list of complaints against the encroachments of the state on what the clergy regarded as church privileges. The council was prorogued to 1310 and again to 1311, when its main business concerned the templars, although a subsidy was granted to the king and some other business was also transacted. In 1312, the convocation met again, though apparently with some opposition to it from the clergy, and (against the king's wishes) it voted a subsidy to the archbishop for ecclesiastical expenses. However, its main business was once again the trial of the templars, which was finally concluded by their condemnation and the seizure of all their assets. The next convocation, held on 27 March 1313, seems to have been concerned mainly with the grant of a subsidy to the king. It was prorogued until 25 May, but never met again, since the archbishop died on 11 May.

In York, convocations met to consider the question of the templars, along the lines already laid down in the southern province, and similar subsidies were also granted in 1311 and 1313. It is with the second of these that the present edition begins, since it was held after the death of Archbishop Winchelsey of Canterbury. Archbishop Greenfield of York had been present in London when the Canterbury convocation met, and had witnessed the grant of four pence in the mark which the clergy had made to the king at that time. He wrote to John Nassington, his official, asking him to convene a convocation at York on 3 September 1313, so that an equivalent subsidy might be granted to the king. The subsidy was duly granted, but apart from that, no record of the convocation's proceedings has been preserved.