Edmund Rich of Abingdon,
Archbishop of Canterbury
16 November -- Commemoration
If celebrated as a Lesser Festival,
Common of Bishops, page 483
Edmund Rich was born in about the year 1175, the son of a
merchant who himself became a monk later in life. Edmund
was educated at Oxford
and in Paris. After also teaching in both places, he became
Treasurer of Salisbury Cathedral in 1222 and was eventually
made Archbishop of Canterbury in 1233. He was a reforming
Bishop and, as well as bringing gifts of administration to
his task, appointed clergy of outstanding talent to senior
positions in the Church. He also acted as peacemaker
between the king and his barons, many believing that his
actions averted civil war. He died on this day in the year
1240.