Roger Niger
Bishop of London
Elected1228
Term ended29 September 1241
PredecessorEustace of Fauconberg
SuccessorFulk Basset
Other post(s)Archdeacon of Colchester
Orders
Consecration10 June 1229
Personal details
Bornc. 1173
probably Maldon, Essex
Died29 September 1241
London
DenominationCatholic

Roger Niger (died 1241) was a thirteenth-century cleric who became Bishop of London. He is also known as Saint Roger of Beeleigh.

Life

A plan of Beeleigh Abbey in Essex, showing the location of the shrine that housed Saint Roger's heart

In 1192 Niger was named a canon of St Paul's Cathedral, London, and he held the prebend of Ealdland in the diocese of London. In 1218 he was promoted to Archdeacon of Colchester.[1] He was elected Bishop of London in 1228, and was consecrated bishop on 10 June 1229.[2][3]

Niger died on 29 September 1241[2] or on 2 October 1241[3] and during his burial in Old St Paul's Cathedral, there was an eclipse of the sun. There was a tomb memorial to him in the quire there.[4] His heart was taken to Beeleigh Abbey near Maldon in Essex. Both sites became places of pilgrimage and he was referred to as a saint, although no formal canonisation has been located. He was, however, called a saint by at least one Pope. In 1391, Pope Boniface IX granted relaxation to penitents visiting and giving alms to Beeleigh Abbey on the anniversary of his death.[5]

Citations

  1. ^ Greenway Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066-1300: Volume 1, St. Paul's, London: Archdeacons: Colchester
  2. ^ a b Fryde, et al. Handbook of British Chronology p. 258
  3. ^ a b Greenway Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066-1300: Volume 1, St. Paul's, London: Bishops
  4. ^ "Memorials of St Paul's Cathedral" Sinclair, W. p93: London; Chapman & Hall, Ltd; 1909
  5. ^ Page and Round (ed.) "House of Premonstratensian Canons: Abbey of Beeleigh by Maldon" History of the County of Essex: Volume 2

References

  • Fryde, E. B.; Greenway, D. E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I. (1996). Handbook of British Chronology (Third revised ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-56350-X.
  • Greenway, Diana E. (1968). "Archdeacons: Colchester". Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066-1300. Vol. 1, St. Paul's, London. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 29 October 2007.
  • Greenway, Diana E. (1968). "Bishops". Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1066-1300. Vol. 1, St. Paul's, London. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 29 October 2007.
  • Page, William; Round, J. Horace, eds. (1907). "House of Premonstratensian Canons: Abbey of Beeleigh by Maldon". A History of the County of Essex Volume 2. London: Victoria County History. Retrieved 18 March 2007.

Further reading

Catholic Church titles Preceded byEustace of Fauconberg Bishop of London 1228–1241 Succeeded byFulk Basset

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