The Archdeacon of Northumberland is a senior ecclesiastical officer within the Diocese of Newcastle. As such she or he is responsible for the disciplinary supervision of the clergyMeakin, T. ABCD: a basic church dictionary. Norwich, Canterbury Press, 2001 (Google Books, p. 50, accessed 23 May 2014) within the geographical area of the archdeaconry.
History The first archdeacons in the diocese occur after the Norman Conquest – around the same time the post of archdeacon first started to occur elsewhere in England. There is no evidence of more than one archdeacon in the diocese until the mid-12th century, when two lines of office holders start to appear in sources. The titles "Archdeacon of Durham" and "Archdeacon of Northumberland" are not recorded until later in the century, although it is possible to discern which of the two lines became which post. Here are listed the archdeacons of the junior of two unnamed lines, then all those called Archdeacon of Northumberland.
The ancient Archdeaconry of Northumberland was part of the Diocese of Durham until 23 May 1882, when the Diocese of Newcastle was formed from it and the Archdeaconry of Lindisfarne.
List of archdeacons
High Medieval Junior archdeacons bef. 1127–aft. 1153: Ranulph bef. 1155–aft. 1174: John Archdeacons of Northumberland bef. November 1174–aft. March 1195: William du Puiset bef. April 1197–aft. 15 February 1203: G. de Perche bef. 1 November 1211–May 1217 (res.): Richard Marsh (also Archdeacon of Richmond from February 1213) bef. 1 June 1218–aft. 11 November 1239: Alan de Lenna 26 July 1241: unknown archdeacon 5 April 1249–bef. 13 January 1254 (d.): Thomas de Anesty bef. 21 October 1256–bef. July 1257 (res.): Robert de Sancta Agatha bef. 9 October 1264–bef. 1269: Roger de Herteburn bef. 23 September 1271–: Richard de Middleton bef. 8 November 1275–: Thomas de Birland (res.): William de la Corner bef. 24 February 1291–: Nicholas de Welles
Late Medieval 4 March–December 1312 (d.): Robert Pickering 14 December 1312 – 1313 (res.): John de Nassington ?–1372 (res.): Thomas Charlton February 1328 – 1340 (d.): John Charlton 5 April 1340–bef. 1349: Edmund Haward bef. 1349–10 March 1362 (exch.): William de Salopia 10 March–bef. September 1362 (d.): John de Bamburgh 10 September 1362 – 17 August 1369 (exch.): Richard de Bernard Castle 17–18 August 1369 (res.): John de Kyngeston 19 August–26 November 1369 (exch.): Thomas Duffield 26 November 1369 – 23 January 1371 (exch.): William de Beverley 23 January 1371–?: John de Derby : Louis Cardinal de Fieschi (cardinal-deacon of Sant'Adriano al Foro) November 1400–?: John Repham ?–5 August 1405 (exch.): John de Dalton 5 August 1405–bef. December 1409: William Morwyk 5 December 1409 – 15 August 1410 (res.): John RickingaleODNB 1 February–27 April 1411 (res.): Henry Eton 13 October–10 December 1411 (res.): John Akum 10 December 1411–bef. March 1422 (res.): John Rickingale (again) 27 March 1422 – 8 November 1427 (exch.): Marmaduke Lumley 9 November 1427–aft. 1435: Robert Burton bef. 1456–bef. 1493 (d.): Robert Mason February 1493–bef. 1528: Ralph Scrope bef. March 1528–bef. 1558 (d.): Robert Davell
Early modern 3 November 1558 – 25 September 1559 (deprived): William Carter (deprived) –bef. 1566 (deprived): William King (later canon at Windsor) 21 August 1566–bef. 1573 (res.): Ralph Lever 20 October 1573–bef. 1578: Francis Bunney 25 September 1578 – 17 July 1581 (res.): John Bolde 29 October 1581–?: Ralph Tunstall 24 October 1599 – 1603 (res.): William Morton 13 April 1604 – 6 August 1619 (res.): John Cradock 7 August 1619 – 1620 (res.): Gabriel Clark 13 September 1620 – 1633: Francis Burgoyne –bef. 1636 (res.): Joseph Naylor 24 November 1636–?: William Flathers 9 May 1638–bef. 1644 (d.): Everard Gower –12 October 1676 (d.): Isaac Basire (sequestered) 30 October 1676 – 20 April 1685 (d.): William TurnerHutchinson, Hist. &Ant. Durham II 225 5 October 1685 – 10 November 1722 (d.): John Morton 27 February 1723 – 15 March 1758 (d.): Thomas SharpDNB 17 August 1758 – 6 December 1761 (d.): Thomas Robinson 21 April 1762 – 28 April 1792 (d.): John Sharp May 1792–20 April 1812 (d.): Robert Thorp May 1812–30 January 1826 (d.): Reynold Bouyer February 1826–13 March 1842 (d.): Thomas Singleton 9 April 1842–bef. 1853 (res.): William Forbes Raymond On 27 August 1842, an Order in Council divided the archdeaconry in two (effective that day), creating the new archdeaconry of Lindisfarne. 24 February 1853 – 17 February 1880 (d.): George Bland
Late modern 1880–June 1882 (res.): Henry Watkins 1882–23 September 1905 (d.): George Hamilton 1906–1917 (ret.): James Henderson 1918–16 July 1931 (d.): Charles Blackett-Ord 1931–1939 (res.): Leslie Hunter 1939–1954 (res.): Charles Ritchie 1955–1963 (res.): Ian White-Thomson 1963–1982 (ret.): Christopher Unwin 1983–1992 (ret.): William Thomas (afterwards archdeacon emeritus) 1993–2005 (ret.): Peter Elliott 10 April 200520 October 2018: Geoff Miller (became Dean of Newcastle; Acting Dean, 4 February20 October 2018) 24 March 2019November 2020: Mark Wroe (Acting since 4 February 2018; became Bishop of Berwick in January 2021) 23 September 2021 onwards: Rachel Wood (was acting archdeacon from November 2020)
References
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