The Right Reverend Henry Holbeach | |
|---|---|
| Bishop of Lincoln | |
| Church | Church of England |
| Diocese | Lincoln |
| Elected | c. 1547 |
| Installed | c. 1547 |
| Term ended | 1551 (death) |
| Predecessor | John Longland |
| Successor | John Taylor |
| Other post(s) | Prior of Worcester (1536–1540) Bishop suffragan of Bristol (1538–1544) Dean of Worcester (1542–1544) Bishop of Rochester (1544–1547) |
| Orders | |
| Consecration | 24 March 1537 by John Hilsey |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Henry Rands c. 1477 |
| Died | 2 August 1551 Nettleham, Lincolnshire, England |
| Buried | 7 August 1551, Nettleham |
| Nationality | English |
| Denomination | Anglican |
Henry Holbeach (c. 1477 – 2 August 1551) was an English clergyman who served as the last Prior and first Dean of Worcester, a suffragan bishop, and diocesan bishop of two Church of England dioceses.
Born as Henry Rands (or Randes) in Holbeach, Lincolnshire, he assumed the name of his birthplace on becoming a monk at Crowland Abbey. He proceeded to Cambridge (Bachelor of Theology (BTh) 1527, Doctor of Theology (DTh) 1534),[1] and became prior of Buckingham College, Cambridge.[2]
In 1536, he was elected the Prior of Worcester,[3] and two years later he also became the Bishop of Bristol, a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of Worcester.[4] Following the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1540, the priory was re-established as a cathedral with Holbeach becoming the first Dean of Worcester in 1542.[5] In 1544, he became Bishop of Rochester,[6] and finally in 1547 Bishop of Lincoln.[7]
He is believed to have been the first of the English (post reformation) bishops to have been married, his wife Joan proving his will on 5 October 1551 and he left a son Thomas Randes. According to his descendant, Cater Rand, he was "one of the compilers of the liturgy". Holbeach developed the sweating sickness and died on 2 August 1551 at Nettleham (some accounts give 6 August as date of death) and was buried there on 7 August 1551.