Walter de Coutances was a medieval Anglo-Norman bishop of Lincoln and archbishop of Rouen. He began his royal service in the government of Henry II, serving as a vice-chancellor. When Richard I, King Henry’s son, became king in 1189, Coutances absolved Richard for his rebellion against his father. He then accompanied Richard to Sicily as the king began the Third Crusade.
About Walter de Coutances in brief
Walter de Coutances was a medieval Anglo-Norman bishop of Lincoln and archbishop of Rouen. He began his royal service in the government of Henry II, serving as a vice-chancellor. When Richard I, King Henry’s son, became king in 1189, Coutances absolved Richard for his rebellion against his father and invested him as Duke of Normandy. He then accompanied Richard to Sicily as the king began the Third Crusade, but events in England prompted Richard to send the archbishop back to England to mediate between William Longchamp, the justiciar whom Richard had left in charge of the kingdom, and Prince John. He remained in the office until late 1193, when he was summoned to Germany by the king, who was being held in captivity there. Coutances became a hostage for the final payment of Richard’s ransom on the king’s release in February 1194. After John lost control of Normandy in 1204, the arch Archbishop did not resist the new government of King Philip II of France. He died in November 1207 and was buried in his cathedral. He was usually given the title of magister, which signified that he had received an education in a school; most likely he attended the schools of Paris. He may have been associated with the Beaumont family faction at court before beginning work for the king. By 1169 Coutances held a canonry in Rouen Cathedral. During the 1170s a group of royal clerks rose to prominence, among them Coutances, Walter Map, Ralph Diceto, John of Oxford, Richard of Ilchester, and Geoffrey Ridel.
In 1177 he became Chancellor de Flanders and sent Coutances on diplomatic missions to King Henry de Lisieux, the Bishop of Lisux. It does not appear that Coutances’ attempt to drive Arnulf Arnulf from Normandy to his diocese might have been a sustained one. On his return to England in July 1178 he was given custody of the abbeys of Wilton and Ramsey, which were being held by the new King Wilton, pending the election of the new abbot. He became Archdeacon of Oxford by 1173, certainly by 1176. He was the chaplain to Henry the Young King, eldest living son of King Henry, when the younger Henry rebelled against his dad in 1173. He probably owed the position to his brother, Roger fitzReinfrid, a layman and royal justice during the reign of king Henry II of England. He also accumulated a number of ecclesiastical offices, becoming successively canon of Rouan Cathedral, treasurer of Rouin, and archdeacon. He eventually became Bishop of Lincoln in 1183. He did not remain there long, for he was translated to Rouen in late 1184. He later became Chancellor of England, when Ralph Warneville of England was crowned King of England in 1177. He is thought to have been involved in Norman affairs, including a dispute with Richard over the ownership of Andely manor.
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