Well, many of us will remember fondly the Baby-eating Bishop of Bath & Wells of Blackadder fame. I’m not writing about him, but of the Bold Battling Bishop of Norwich, who donned armour on 17th May 1383 and set off on a disastrous crusade against the French in Flanders.
Not long ago I wrote about Bishop Odo of Bayeux, a fighting bishop if ever there was one. Henry le Despenser, Bishop of Norwich, wasn’t a great tactician, nor was he very good at taking orders, but he had fighting spirit and led an army of “crusaders” that included many who were less than scrupulous. They were more intent upon lining their own pockets than carrying God’s banners. The result was a failed siege of Ypres and a shameful return to England to face the music for having disobeyed or ignored commands from the king and others.
You can read about the Bishop of Norwich’s Crusade in this article from which I have taken the above cartoon. Despenser paid dearly for his actions, was removed from office and both fined and ordered to pay the entire cost of the débâcle from his own pocket! Find the money to pay for a whole crusade? That’s pretty steep to say the least. I hope he had an enormous piggybank.
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