Aldred Totally Explained

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:For the Australian politician, see Ken Aldred. Aldred, or Ealdred (died 11 September 1069), English ecclesiastic, was Abbot of Tavistock, Bishop of Worcester, Bishop of Hereford, and Archbishop of York. He was related to a number of other ecclesiastics of the time period. After entering the monastery at Winchester, he became abbot of Tavistock Abbey around 1027. In 1046 he was named to the see of Worcester. Aldred, besides his episcopal duties, served the Edward the Confessor, the king of England, as a diplomat and as a military leader. He worked to bring one of the king's relatives, Edward the Exile, home from Hungary. He undertook a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, the first bishop from England to do so.
In 1060 he was elected to the see of York, but had a difficult time obtaining papal approval for the election. When King Edward died, some sources state that it was Aldred that crowned Harold Godwinson as King of England. Aldred supported Harold as king, but when Harold was defeated at the Battle of Hastings, Aldred first supported Edgar the Ætheling, but eventually supported King William the Conqueror. It was Aldred that crowned King William on Christmas Day in 1066. William never quite trusted Aldred or the other English leaders, and Aldred had to accompany William back to Normandy in 1067, but he was back in York by the time of his death in 1069. Aldred supported the churches and monasteries of his diocese with gifts and building projects.

Early life

Aldred probably was from the west of England, and possibly was related to Lyfing, his predecessor as bishop of Worcester. Aldred was also related to Wilstan or Wulfstan, who under Aldred's influence became Abbot of Gloucester. The Handbook of British Chronology Third Edition says he was named bishop of Hereford in 1056, holding the see until 1060, when he resigned the see, but other sources say that he merely administered the see while it was vacant. or that he was bishop of Hereford from 1055 to 1060. He was made bishop of Worcester in 1046, and held that office until 1062, when he resigned the see of Worcester. At Worcester, he may have acted as his predecessor Lyfing's suffragan before formally assuming the bishopric. In 1050, Aldred went to Rome "on the king's errand." This errand was apparently to secure papal approval for the moving of the see of Crediton to Exeter, and may also have been to secure the release of the king from a vow to go on pilgrimage, if post-Conquest sources are to be believed. It was through Aldred's intercession that Sweyn was restored to his earldom. Aldred probably helped Sweyn not only because Aldred was a supporter of Earl Godwin's family but because Sweyn's earldom was close to his bishopric. As recently as 1049 Irish raiders had allied with King Gruffydd ap Rhydderch of Gwent in raiding along the River Usk. Aldred unsuccessfully tried to drive off the raiders, but was routed. This failure underscored Aldred's need for a strong earl in the area to protect against raids. In 1051, when he was sent to intercept Harold Godwinson and his brothers as they fled England after their father's outlawing, Aldred "could not, or would not" capture the brothers.
King Edward sent Aldred in 1054 to the Emperor Henry III to obtain that monarch's help in returning Edward the Exile, son of Edmund Ironside, to England. Edward the Exile was in Hungary with King Andrew I at the time. In this mission Aldred was somewhat successful and obtained some insight into the working of the German church during a stay of a year with Hermann II, archbishop of Cologne. The main objective of the mission, however, was a failure, as he failed to secure the return of Edward. The main reason for the failure was the fact that Henry III's relations with the Hungarians were strained, and the emperor was unable or unwilling to help Aldred. After Aldred's return to England he took charge of the sees of Hereford and Ramsbury, In 1058 made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, and he was the first English bishop to make the journey. William of Malmesbury says of Aldred that by "amusing the simplicity of King Edward and alleging the custom of his predecessors, had acquired, more by bribery than by reason, the archbishopric of York while still holding his former see." On his arrival in Rome, however, charges of simony, or the buying of ecclesiastical office, and lack of learning were brought against him, and his elevation to York was refused by Pope Nicholas II, who also deposed him from Worcester. although he was required to give up the see of Worcester in 1062, when papal legates arrived in England to hold a council and make sure that Aldred relinquished Worcester. While archbishop, he built at Beverley, expanding on the building projects begun by his predecessor Cynesige, as well as repairing and expanding other churches in his diocese. John of Worcester stated that Aldred crowned King Harold II in 1066, although the Norman chroniclers mention Stigand as the officiating prelate. It was Aldred who crowned William on Christmas Day 1066, and at Whitsun 1068 performed the coronation of Matilda, William's wife. Aldred was back at York before 1069, as he died at York on September 11 1069 Aldred did to restore discipline in the monasteries and churches under his authority, This was part of Aldred's promotion of the cult of St John.

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