SUNDAY SUPPLEMENT: For his first essay of 2025, Croydon Minster archivist DAVID MORGAN delves back almost one thousand years, to the time of William the Conqueror and the appointment of a new Archbishop of Canterbury

Norman conquest: Archbishop Lanfranc proved to be crucial to King William I

Who should be the next Archbishop of Canterbury?

The Crown Nominations Committee, chaired by Lord Evans of Weardale, a former Director-General of MI5, will be the group of people who will choose potential successors to Justin Welby, the 105th Archbishop of Canterbury. Welby announced before Christmas that he would be standing down from his role as the head of the Church in England. Not for the first time, the role and status of the Archbishop has been absorbed in controversy.

Back in the year 1070, in a tempestuous time following the Norman invasion of England, a rather different process to appoint a new Archbishop of Canterbury was underway.

Norman Duke William, or William the Conqueror as we know him today, faced many challenges after he defeated English King Harold in the Battle of Hastings of 1066 and took the English throne. One of his pressing issues was what to do with the leading Saxon families who had sided with the slain Harold.

Stigand, the Archbishop of Canterbury, was one of those troublesome figures.

In a long church career, Stigand been an advisor to Queen Emma, the wife of King Cnut, he had led the burial service for Edward the Confessor and tried, unsuccessfully, to put the boy king Edgar Aetheling on the throne after Harold’s death.

It must, therefore, have been with some trepidation that Archbishop Stigand went forward to greet William as he approached London following the invasion in October 1066. William accepted him though, insisting that Stigand accompany him when he went back to Normandy for a short time.

However, in 1070, William invited official representatives from the Pope to visit England. At this pre-Reformation era, England still, like the rest of Europe, looked to Rome for guidance in spiritual matters and its senior church appointments, such as the role of Archbishop of Canterbury.

Saxon problem: Stigand as featured in the Bayeux Tapestry following the invasion of England

During the visit of the papal delegation, Stigand was charged with usurping the position of Archbishop of Canterbury as well as not relinquishing his post of Bishop of Winchester. Stigand was relieved of his church appointments and imprisoned in Winchester, where he died two years later.

William now influenced the choice of the replacement Archbishop, and chose an Italian-born lawyer who was the abbot of St Stephen’s Benedictine monastery at Caen in Normandy. Lanfranc was over 60 years old and regarded as the greatest theologian of his generation, but he was initially hesitant about taking the lead role in the church in England.

As it was William who had appointed him to his monastery role, Lanfranc decided it was his duty to respond positively for a second time.

The Saxons were less enthusiastic, however, to have a Benedictine abbot from a French monastery shoe-horned into the top church job in England.

Many would have been keen to find out about Lanfranc, the mysterious Mediterranean monk. It probably didn’t take too long before a story about how Lanfranc took holy orders began to circulate, although the historical evidence for parts of the story is sketchy at best.

Lanfranc certainly came to the attention of William, then the Duke of Normandy, when he began teaching in the small town of Avranches, before he had taken any Holy orders. Going for a walk one day, Lanfranc was attacked by robbers who left him tied him to a tree. Lanfranc cried out for help, but no one came. As darkness fell, Lanfranc realised that he was in an awful predicament.

Fearing for his life, Lanfranc prayed that if he ever got out of the woods alive, he would become a monk and devote his life to God.

After dawn had broken, he heard footsteps. Calling out for help again, some travellers responded to his cries and came to his aid. Thankful that his prayers had been answered, Lanfranc asked them for directions to the nearest monastery. After a walk through the valley, Lanfranc came upon an abbey. Lanfranc discovered an impoverished house with an abbot and a few monks. After declaring that he wished to become a monk and then hearing the Benedictine rules read to him, Lanfranc entered the house as a novice.

The monastery was at Le Bec-Hellouin. The year was 1042. Lanfranc was 37 years old.

Architects of Norman England: the White Tower, the oldest part of the Tower of London, was built by one of Lanfranc’s priestly colleagues, Gundulf

Lanfranc must have been a charismatic figure, as three years later he became the prior of the monastery, as well as resuming his teaching. Here he spent nearly nearly 20 years, building an outstanding reputation for teaching. Pope Nicholas II sent several young proteges to study there and hear Lanfranc’s lessons on scripture.

One historian described his monastery as “a seminary of bishops and abbots”. Among his students was a future Archbishop of Canterbury, Anselm, a future Archbishop of York, Thomas, and Gundulf, who became Bishop of Rochester.

Lanfranc was consecrated as Archbishop of Canterbury on August 29 1070 by William, Bishop of London, Walkelin, Bishop of Winchester, Giso, Bishop of Wells, Walter, Bishop of Hereford, and Seward, the then Bishop of Rochester.

Gundulf was a key figure of support for Lanfranc when he took up his Archbishop’s duties. Gundulf had taken holy orders in a way not dissimilar to Lanfranc. He had been on a pilgrimage to Palestine, had been on board a ship which was caught in a terrible storm and on his return, he took up his prayerful pledge and became a monk at Bec and a friend of Lanfranc. The two travelled across the Channel in the same boat.

Gundulf oversaw many of Lanfranc’s building projects. The first project was the rebuilding of the episcopal palace in Canterbury. His best-known architectural work was that of building the White Tower in the Tower of London.

Two years after his consecration, Lanfranc wrote a letter to Pope Nicholas II. In it, he was still complaining about his situation. He talked about how “the foreign tongue and barbarous English inhabitants” presented a greater challenge than he wished to endure. Lanfranc asked to be relieved of his episcopal duties and return to a monastical life.

Nicholas refused his request.

Roman ways: ‘Blessed’ Lanfranc, as featured here on an icon, brought the church in England more into line with the rest of Europe

It was a signal moment in English history and the history of the church in England, as Lanfranc began a major overhaul of the institution. Change never comes easy, especially for those entrenched in their views. It was no different in Lanfranc’s day. Many priests were upset by the new order. Some lost their posts.

Lanfranc discovered that Holy Communion in some churches was being administered with beer and sometimes with water. He issued a rule that it must be administered with wine, mixed with water. He also saw many altars made from wood. He ordered that in future, all must be constructed from stone.

After the meeting of the synod of 1076 in Winchester, it was forbidden that any future priests be married, although those who already had a wife were allowed to maintain their status quo. It was generally the case at that time that marriage was the rule and celibacy the exception, certainly among those canons in cathedrals.

Lanfranc also questioned the validity of some of the Anglo-Saxon saints and removed them from the church calendar. Dunstan was one of these, although his status would be restored a few centuries later.

Lanfranc replaced English bishops with Norman ones, all part of William’s efforts to “Normanise” England. It was not long before Wulfsten of Winchester remained as England’s only Saxon bishop.

Thomas of Bayeux, a former pupil of Lanfranc at Caen, was made Archbishop of York in 1070, though the two disputed which office, York or Canterbury, was superior. Lanfranc, perhaps calling on some of his legal background, managed to establish Canterbury as the superior office of the two.

Lasting legacy: the leper house at Canterbury, built in Lanfranc’s time, still stands

Lanfranc took a very dim view of simony in the church, the selling of church offices and roles or sacred objects. He found examples of clergy “buying” their promotion to higher office. Although he managed to control some of this corruption, it wasn’t until the Reformation more than 400 years later that the practice was stopped completely.

Medicine and education prospered during Lanfranc’s time. Two hospitals were established inside the city of Canterbury, together with a Leper House outside. The hospital of St John catered for the needy and the elderly, whilst the hospital of St Gregory was set up for the clergy and elderly priests.

Lanfranc’s view on the importance of doctors to a community could be seen in his support for a man named Albert. Described in letters as a “medicus”, Albert accompanied Lanfranc from Bec to Caen and then to Canterbury. Letters still in existence today describe how Anselm, who took over the prior’s role at Bec, wanted help from Albert to treat two monks who were ill.

He described in detail their symptoms. One of the monks was Lanfranc the Younger, nephew of the Archbishop, who recovered and later became Abbot of St Albans.

In terms of his usefulness to King William I, some historians liken Lanfranc’s role to that of Beckett in the court of Henry II and Wolsey with Henry VIII. In 1074, Lanfranc was instrumental in collecting together a military force which put down the revolt of Ralph, Earl of East Anglia, and Roger, Earl of Hereford.

Foundations: the oldest part of the Old Palace in Croydon town centre date back to the manor house acquired by Lanfranc

It is generally accepted that it was during the time of Lanfranc when a manor house at Croydon was purchased for the Archbishop’s estate, the beginning of the links between Canterbury and Croydon which are still in existence today.

King William’s commissioners visited Croydon when compiling the Domesday Book and it was recorded that they found the manor to be in Lanfranc’s possession.

Lanfranc’s name lives on in Croydon today in name of the school on Mitcham Road, though surprisingly, no street or road in the borough bears his name. However, in France there is a Rue Lanfranc in Avranches, in Bec-Hellouin and in Caen. There is even a square named after him in Bois-Guillame.

Perhaps Lanfranc’s quote from 1071 still echoed through many houses of the land: “I am a novice Englishman.”

• David Morgan, pictured right, is a former Croydon headteacher, now the volunteer education officer at Croydon Minster, who offers tours or illustrated talks on the history around the Minster for local community groups

If you would like a group tour of Croydon Minster or want to book a school visit, then ring the Minster Office on 020 688 8104 or go to the website on www.croydonminster.org and use the contact page

Some previous articles by David Morgan:

• ‘Wise, Prudent and Just’: the Archbishop buried in Croydon
  
• When Minster was the venue for an Anglo-Saxon peace treaty
  
• Christmas Eve marks cententary of the Croydon air disaster
  
• Broderick’s Minster visit revives memories of master musician
  
• Ghostly convocation that is hardly a good omen for the Palace
• The church fire that consumed a thousand years of history

• For the full archive of David Morgan’s history research, click here

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