William Cumin facts for kids

William Cumin (also known as de Comyn or de Commines) was an important person in England and Scotland around the 1100s. He worked for kings and tried to become a bishop. He was even a top legal official, called a Justiciar, in Scotland.

William Cumin's Story

Early Life and Career

Many people named Cumin worked as clerks. Clerks were like important secretaries or administrators for kings and church leaders. William Cumin was one of them. He worked for King Henry I of England and King Henry II of England. He also worked for church leaders in France.

By 1125, William Cumin was an Archdeacon of Worcester. This was an important role in the church. Later, he became the chancellor for King David I of Scotland. A chancellor was a high-ranking official, like a chief minister. King David was the uncle of the Empress Matilda, a very powerful woman at the time.

William Cumin learned a lot from Geoffrey Rufus. Geoffrey was also a chancellor and later became the Bishop of Durham. In 1138, William Cumin was captured during a battle called the Battle of the Standard. But he was soon set free with help from a church official named Alberic of Ostia.

The Durham Dispute

When Bishop Geoffrey Rufus died, most of the Durham area was controlled by King David of Scotland. King David wanted to choose the next bishop. He tried to put his own chancellor, William Cumin, in charge of the church in Durham.

King David even stopped the burial of the old bishop. He said the burial couldn't happen until William Cumin was allowed to take over. Around May 1141, William Cumin moved into the Durham church area. However, he was never officially made a bishop. This process is called being "consecrated."

Soon after, Empress Matilda lost power in London. This made things harder for William Cumin. He still had some support from people in Durham. But others, like an archdeacon named Ranulf, were against him. The Pope's representative in England also opposed him.

A Difficult Time

By 1142, King David had stopped supporting William Cumin. Cumin then tried to use a fake letter from the Pope to get himself consecrated. But it didn't work.

Around March 1143, Pope Innocent II took away Cumin's church positions. He was also "excommunicated," which meant he was temporarily removed from the church.

During this time, William Cumin's soldiers caused a lot of trouble for the people of Durham. They took things and made life very hard. People suffered greatly because of the conflict.

The Pope then ordered a new election for the Bishop of Durham. William of St. Barbara was chosen. But William Cumin still had support from some powerful local leaders. He kept control of the church building for a while.

Resolution and Later Life

In 1144, William Cumin finally agreed to a deal. He gave up his claim to be Bishop of Durham. In return, his nephew, Richard, received some land. William Cumin was put in prison for a short time. After that, he went to southern England. There, he found support from a church leader named Gilbert Foliot.

Around 1146, Theobald of Bec, who was the Archbishop of Canterbury, helped Cumin. Theobald asked the Pope to forgive Cumin. By 1152, William Cumin got some of his church positions back. He was again the Archdeacon of Worcester by 1157. He likely passed away around 1158 or 1159.

William Cumin had two nephews who were knights in Scotland. They both died during the conflicts in Durham before 1144. Another nephew, Richard Comyn, received land as part of the deal in Durham. Richard was an ancestor of the important Comyn family in Scotland.

See also

• Lawrence of Durham