Richard Barre facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Richard Barre |
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| Archdeacon of Ely | |
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| Church | Catholic |
| Other posts | Archdeacon of Lisieux |
| Personal details | |
| Born | c. 1130 |
| Died | c. 1202 |
| Education | University of Bologna |
Richard Barre (born around 1130 – died around 1202) was an important English person in the Middle Ages. He was a judge, a church official, and a smart scholar. He studied law at the famous University of Bologna in Italy. After his studies, he worked for King Henry II of England. Later, he also worked for Henry's son, King Richard I.
Richard Barre was also involved in a big disagreement between King Henry II and Thomas Becket, who was the Archbishop of Canterbury. Becket was not happy with Barre. After King Henry died, Barre became a main judge for King Richard. He stopped being a judge when King John took the throne, as they had disagreed earlier. Barre was also a high-ranking church official called the Archdeacon of Ely. He wrote a book about the Bible for his friend and boss, William Longchamp, who was a bishop and the King's Chancellor.
Contents
Richard Barre's Early Life and Education
We don't know if Richard Barre was born in England or Normandy, which is part of France today. His last name, Barre, probably comes from a village in Normandy called La Barre. He was likely born around 1130. He had family connections to a knight family in Berkshire, England.
Barre studied law in Bologna, Italy, before 1150. He was a student there with Stephen of Tournai, who later became a bishop. Another student even wrote a short poem for Barre, saying he would handle important cases for bishops and kings. After finishing school, Barre might have worked for a bishop or an archdeacon. By 1165, he started working for King Henry II of England.
Working for King Henry II
Richard Barre worked for King Henry II during a big argument the king had with Thomas Becket. Becket was the Archbishop of Canterbury. He had left England in 1164 because he disagreed with the king about how much power the king should have over the Church in England.
Barre and the Becket Dispute
Because Barre was close to King Henry, Becket thought he was one of the king's "bad advisors." Becket even spoke out against Barre. In 1169, Barre was in Normandy with King Henry. He was part of a group of church leaders helping the king try to solve the problem with Becket.
Later in 1169, Barre was sent to Rome with other clerks. Their job was to complain to the Pope about how papal envoys had acted during talks with Becket. The talks failed, and Becket then punished many royal officials by removing them from the Church. Barre was not named directly, but some historians believe Becket thought he was already punished because of his friends.
In early 1170, King Henry sent Barre on another trip to the Pope in Rome. This mission was also about the dispute with Becket. Barre tried to get the Pope to lift the punishments Becket had given to royal officials, but he didn't succeed. There were rumors that Barre's mission also got permission for King Henry's son to be crowned by someone other than Becket. However, the Pope later said he never gave such permission.
After Becket's Murder
In December 1170, Thomas Becket was murdered. King Henry quickly sent Richard Barre to Rome again. Barre went with other important church leaders. Their goal was to tell the Pope that King Henry had nothing to do with Becket's murder. They wanted to show the king was shocked by what happened.
At first, Barre and his group were not allowed to meet the Pope. But eventually, they did. Their mission was not a complete success, but they did convince the Pope not to ban church services in England or punish the king. Soon after, Barre was given a new important church job: Archdeacon of Lisieux in Normandy. This was probably a reward for his hard work in Rome in 1171.
In September 1171, Barre also became a royal judge. For a short time in 1172 and 1173, he worked for King Henry's oldest son, who was also named Henry (often called Henry the Young King). But when the Young King rebelled against his father, Barre refused to join him. Barre returned to serve the elder King Henry. He even took the Young King's official seal with him.
Barre's Church Roles
Besides being Archdeacon of Lisieux, Barre held other church positions. He was a "prebend" (a type of church income) in the Diocese of Salisbury from 1177. He also had a prebend in the Diocese of Hereford from 1180 to 1184. He stayed Archdeacon of Lisieux until 1188. He spent most of the late 1170s and 1180s in Lisieux.
In 1179, he was in Rouen for a special event to show the body of a saint. He also gave land to a monastery in Normandy. In 1188, King Henry sent Barre on a diplomatic trip to Europe. Barre carried letters to the German Emperor, the King of Hungary, and the Emperor in Constantinople. King Henry was planning a crusade and needed their help for his journey. Barre's mission was to ask for safe passage and supplies. However, King Henry died in 1189 before the crusade could start, so nothing came of this trip.
Later Years and Death
After King Henry II died, Richard Barre started working for William Longchamp. Longchamp was the Bishop of Ely and a very powerful official in England. Longchamp made Barre the Archdeacon of Ely before July 4, 1190. Longchamp also sent Barre to be a royal judge in areas near Ely in 1190.
However, Longchamp was forced to leave England in late 1191. This happened because many English nobles and King Richard's brother, Prince John, were against him. King Richard was away on the Third Crusade at the time. Because Longchamp was in exile, Barre did not serve as a royal judge again until King Richard I returned to England in 1194. Even though Longchamp eventually came back to England, he didn't return to his diocese. So, Barre likely managed much of the church business in Ely during Longchamp's absence.
Barre as a Royal Judge
Richard Barre was one of the most important royal judges between 1194 and 1199. He also worked as a lawyer for the new Bishop of Ely, Eustace, who became bishop in 1197. But Barre had made Prince John angry. When John became king in 1199, Barre was no longer allowed to be a royal judge. He went back to Ely and focused on his church duties.
The last clear mention of Richard Barre in historical records is on August 9, 1202. At that time, he was working as a special judge for Pope Innocent III. He might have lived until 1213, as he was part of a papal group deciding a case that took place between 1198 and 1213. Barre remained friends with Stephen of Tournai, his old schoolmate, and they wrote letters to each other later in their lives.
Richard Barre's Writings
Richard Barre wrote a book about the Bible called Compendium de veteri et novo testamento. He dedicated this book to William Longchamp. The book organized parts of the Bible by different topics. Barre also added notes in the margins, similar to how legal scholars would add notes to Roman law texts.
Two copies of Barre's book still exist today. One is at the British Library (called Harley 3255), and the other is at Lambeth Palace (called MS 105). The Harley copy is shorter. A modern historian named Richard Sharpe studied both copies. He said the Harley copy "provides a well structured and systematic (though not complete) coverage of the whole Bible."
Because the book was dedicated to William Longchamp as "bishop, legate, and chancellor," it was probably written between January 1190 and October 1191. Longchamp held all three of those important jobs only during that time. The introduction to the book says it was meant for private use. Historian Sharpe thinks Barre probably wrote it for Longchamp to use when preparing his sermons.
A third copy of Barre's Compendium might have been at Leicester Abbey. A library list from the late 1400s mentions a book by Barre about the Bible with a similar title. This suggests it was likely another copy of his Compendium. The same list also shows five other books that Barre once owned. These included important law books and religious texts. The Leicester Abbey records also mention some funny poems that were said to be written by Barre.
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