Robert Burnell was an English bishop who served as Lord Chancellor of England from 1274 to 1292.
35 Facts About Robert Burnell
1.
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When Edward went on the Eighth Crusade in 1270, Burnell stayed in England to secure the prince's interests.
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Robert Burnell served as regent after the death of King Henry III of England while Edward was still on crusade.
4.
In 1275 Robert Burnell was elected Bishop of Bath and Wells, after Edward had appointed him Lord Chancellor in 1274.
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Robert Burnell was behind the efforts of the royal officials to enforce royal rights during his term of office as chancellor, including the implementation of the Quo warranto procedures.
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Robert Burnell helped with the legislative and legal reforms of Edward's reign.
7.
Robert Burnell went abroad on diplomatic missions for Edward, and for a time governed Gascony.
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Robert Burnell's father was probably Roger Burnell, who died in about 1259.
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Robert Burnell had three brothers, two of whom died fighting the Welsh at the Battle of Moel-y-don in 1282; the third, Hugh, died in 1286.
10.
Robert Burnell worked as a clerk in the royal chancery, the office responsible for the writing of documents, before moving to the household of Prince Edward, later King Edward I of England.
11.
Robert Burnell held the office of chancellor to Edward from the time of the Battle of Evesham in 1265 until 1270, when Edward left on crusade.
12.
Prince Edward tried to have Robert Burnell elected to the Archbishopric of Canterbury in 1270, but was frustrated by the Canterbury cathedral chapter's members, who instead elected their prior, William Chillenden.
13.
Robert Burnell did not accompany the prince on crusade in late 1270, although he had originally planned to do so.
14.
The historian Richard Huscroft considers that Robert Burnell gained valuable experience governing England during Edward's absence, ensuring Robert Burnell's dominance in the English government after Edward's return.
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Robert Burnell was the chief and most influential of Edward I's advisers during the first half of his reign.
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Robert Burnell heard many requests and petitions from those who desired patronage or other advancements, and was diligent and active in dealing with routine business.
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Robert Burnell played a leading role in the legislation introduced by King Edward.
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Robert Burnell was instrumental in the enforcement of royal writs and enactments, including the Statutes of Westminster, enacted in 1275,1285, and 1290.
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Robert Burnell was responsible for the decision to force the Court of Chancery to settle in London, rather than following the king and his court around the country.
20.
Robert Burnell left the court each year at Lent, when he returned to his diocese and attended to its affairs.
21.
Peckham appointed Robert Burnell to be his deputy when the archbishop went to Wales in 1282.
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Robert Burnell was active in the king's foreign policy, especially towards France, Scotland and Wales, and undertook a number of diplomatic missions to those countries.
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Robert Burnell was employed in Gascony during the late 1280s, helping to administer that duchy and to reorganise its government.
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Robert Burnell showed himself sensitive to the Gascon desire for independence and did not attempt to impose the same systems of government that were used in England.
25.
In Welsh affairs, Robert Burnell attended a number of councils dealing with Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, Prince of Wales, and in 1277 he escorted Llywelyn to Westminster, where Llywelyn pledged homage to Edward.
26.
Robert Burnell was present during Edward's conquest of Wales in the 1280s; he witnessed documents in Rhuddlan in 1282, and subsequently at Conwy and Caernarfon.
27.
Sometime before 1290 Robert Burnell vowed to go on crusade to help reinforce the crusader city of Acre, which was threatened by Muslims in the late 1280s, but he never fulfilled his obligation.
28.
Robert Burnell amassed great wealth, and acquired numerous estates in Shropshire, Worcestershire, Somerset, Kent, Surrey and elsewhere.
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Robert Burnell kept a magnificent household, sufficient for him to be able to host a parliament at his home in Acton Burnell in autumn 1283.
30.
Robert Burnell married off a number of young female relatives, rumoured to be his daughters, to noblemen.
31.
Amabilla Robert Burnell married a member of a royal justice's family, and a Joan Robert Burnell was the subject of a guarantee to the bishop that the son of William of Greystoke would marry her.
32.
Robert Burnell built extensively at Acton Robert Burnell Castle, and large parts of his house have survived.
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Robert Burnell built the chapel and great hall in the Bishop's Palace in Wells.
34.
Robert Burnell was a dominant figure during the first part of Edward's reign, and he controlled most aspects of royal administration.
35.
Robert Burnell was involved not only in domestic issues but in foreign relations, a responsibility he retained for two decades after Edward's return to England in 1274.