John Kemp

His Eminence

John Kemp
His Eminence; John Kemp
Cardinal, Archbishop of Canterbury; Primate of All England
Church	Catholic Church
Appointed	21 July 1452
Term ended	22 March 1454
Predecessor	John Stafford
Successor	Thomas Bourchier
Orders
Consecration	3 December 1419; by Louis d'Harcourt
Created cardinal	18 December 1439; (Cardinal priest),; and 21 July 1452; (Cardinal bishop);
Personal details
Born	c. 1380; Olantigh, Kent
Died	22 March 1454; Canterbury, Kent
Buried	Canterbury Cathedral
Nationality	English
Alma mater	Merton College, Oxford

John Kemp (c. 1380 – 22 March 1454, surname also spelled Kempe) was a medieval English cardinal, Archbishop of Canterbury, and Lord Chancellor of England.

Biography

Kemp was the son of Thomas Kempe, a gentleman of Olantigh, in the parish of Wye near Ashford, Kent, and Beatrix Lewkenor, daughter of Sir Thomas Lewkenor.^[1] He was born about 1380 and educated at Merton College, Oxford.^[2]

Kemp practised as an ecclesiastical lawyer, was an assessor at the trial of John Oldcastle, and in 1415 was made dean of the Court of Arches but did not do a good job as dean. He then passed into the royal service, and being employed in the administration of Normandy was eventually made chancellor of the duchy.^[3] He was briefly archdeacon of Durham.^[4] In 1418 he was made Keeper of the Privy Seal which he retained until 1421.^[5] Early in 1419 he was elected Bishop of Rochester, and was consecrated at Rouen on 3 December.^[6] In February 1421 he was translated to Chichester,^[7]and in November following to London.^[8]

During the minority of Henry VI Kemp had a prominent position in the English council as a supporter of Henry Beaufort,^[3] whom he succeeded as chancellor in March 1426.^[9] In this same year on 20 July he was promoted to the Archbishop of York.^[10] Kemp held office as chancellor for six years, consistently supporting Henry Beaufort against Humphrey of Gloucester.^[3] His resignation on 28 February 1432^[9] was a concession to Gloucester. He still enjoyed Beaufort's favour, and retaining his place in the council was employed on important missions, especially at the congress of Arras in 1435, and the conference at Calais in 1438.^[2]

In December 1439 Kemp was created a cardinal priest,^[11] and during the next few years took less share in politics. He supported William de la Pole, Earl of Suffolk over the king's marriage with Margaret of Anjou; but afterwards there arose some difference between them, due in part to a dispute about the nomination of the cardinal's nephew, Thomas Kempe, to the bishopric of London.^[3] At the time of Suffolk's fall in January 1450 Kemp once more became chancellor.^[9] His appointment may have been because he was not committed entirely to either party. In spite of his age and infirmity he showed some vigour in dealing with Jack Cade's rebellion, and by his official experience and skill did what he could for four years to sustain the king's authority.^[2]

Kemp was rewarded by his translation to Canterbury in July 1452,^[12] when Pope Nicholas V added as a special honour the title of cardinal-bishop of Santa Rufina.^[13] As Richard of York gained influence, Kemp became unpopular; men called him "the cursed cardinal," and his fall seemed imminent^[2] when he died suddenly on 22 March 1454.^[12] He was buried at Canterbury, in the choir.^[2]

Kemp was a politician first, and hardly at all a bishop; and he was accused with some justice of neglecting his dioceses, especially at York.^[2] Still he was a capable official, and a faithful servant to Henry VI, who called him "one of the wisest lords of the land".^[14] He founded Wye College near his birthplace, which became part of the University of London before closing in 2009.^[15]

Citations

^ Davies, R.G. "Kemp [Kempe], John (1380/81 — 1454)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/15328. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Kempe, John". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 15 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 725.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Archbishop John Kemp (1380?-1454)". Luminarium: Encyclopedia Project. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
^ Tout, Thomas Frederick (1892). "Kemp, John (1380?–1447)" . In Lee, Sidney (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 30. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
^ Fryde et al. 1996, p. 95.
^ Fryde et al. 1996, p. 267.
^ Fryde et al. 1996, p. 239.
^ Fryde et al. 1996, p. 259.
^ ^a ^b ^c Fryde et al. 1996, p. 87.
^ Fryde et al. 1996, p. 282.
^ Miranda, Salvador. "John Kemp". The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church. Archived from the original on 11 March 2016. Retrieved 26 December 2009.
^ ^a ^b Fryde et al. 1996, p. 234.
^ Plea Rolls of the Court of Common Pleas; Year: 1460, his titles listed & administrators named: second entry in: http://aalt.law.uh.edu/AALT1/H6/CP40no800/aCP40no800fronts/IMG_0398.htm
^ Clere, Edmund (1896). "Letter to John Paston, A.D. 1455, 9 Jan". In Gairdner, James (ed.). The Paston letters, 1422–1509. Westminster: A. Constable.
^ "Wye College Heritage Statement" (PDF). Ashford Borough Council. Canterbury Archaeological Trust. 17 July 2017. Retrieved 13 June 2022.

Bibliography

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.
Hook, Walter Farquhar (1867). Lives of the Archbishops of Canterbury. Vol. V. London: Richard Bentley. pp. 188–267.

External links

Hutchinson, John (1892). "John Kemp" . Men of Kent and Kentishmen (Subscription ed.). Canterbury: Cross & Jackman. p. 83.

Political offices
Preceded by Henry Ware	Lord Privy Seal 1418–1421	Succeeded by John Stafford
Preceded by Henry Beaufort	Lord Chancellor 1426–1432	Succeeded by John Stafford
Preceded by John Stafford	Lord Chancellor 1450–1454	Succeeded by The Earl of Salisbury
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by Richard Young	Bishop of Rochester 1419–1421	Succeeded by John Langdon
Preceded by Henry Ware	Bishop of Chichester 1421–1422	Succeeded by Thomas Polton
Preceded by Richard Clifford	Bishop of London 1422–1426	Succeeded by William Grey
Preceded by Richard Fleming	Archbishop of York 1426–1452	Succeeded by William Booth
Preceded by John Stafford	Archbishop of Canterbury 1452–1454	Succeeded by Thomas Bourchier
Preceded by Bandello Bandelli	Cardinal Priest of Santa Balbina 1439–1452	Succeeded by Amico Agnifili
Preceded by John of Toledo	Cardinal-bishop of Santa Rufina 1452–1454	Succeeded by Bernard de Languissel

[ODNB-1] Davies, R.G. "Kemp [Kempe], John (1380/81 — 1454)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/15328. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)

[EB1911-2] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Kempe, John". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 15 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 725.

[luminarium-3] "Archbishop John Kemp (1380?-1454)". Luminarium: Encyclopedia Project. Retrieved 22 March 2024.

[DNB-4] Tout, Thomas Frederick (1892). "Kemp, John (1380?–1447)" . In Lee, Sidney (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 30. London: Smith, Elder & Co.

[FOOTNOTEFrydeGreenwayPorterRoy199695-5] Fryde et al. 1996, p. 95.

[FOOTNOTEFrydeGreenwayPorterRoy1996267-6] Fryde et al. 1996, p. 267.

[FOOTNOTEFrydeGreenwayPorterRoy1996239-7] Fryde et al. 1996, p. 239.

[FOOTNOTEFrydeGreenwayPorterRoy1996259-8] Fryde et al. 1996, p. 259.

[FOOTNOTEFrydeGreenwayPorterRoy199687-9] Fryde et al. 1996, p. 87.

[FOOTNOTEFrydeGreenwayPorterRoy1996282-10] Fryde et al. 1996, p. 282.

[11] Miranda, Salvador. "John Kemp". The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church. Archived from the original on 11 March 2016. Retrieved 26 December 2009.

[FOOTNOTEFrydeGreenwayPorterRoy1996234-12] Fryde et al. 1996, p. 234.

[13] Plea Rolls of the Court of Common Pleas; Year: 1460, his titles listed & administrators named: second entry in: http://aalt.law.uh.edu/AALT1/H6/CP40no800/aCP40no800fronts/IMG_0398.htm

[14] Clere, Edmund (1896). "Letter to John Paston, A.D. 1455, 9 Jan". In Gairdner, James (ed.). The Paston letters, 1422–1509. Westminster: A. Constable.

[arch-15] "Wye College Heritage Statement" (PDF). Ashford Borough Council. Canterbury Archaeological Trust. 17 July 2017. Retrieved 13 June 2022.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

v t e English Lord Chancellors under the House of Lancaster (1399–1461; 1470–1471)
Henry IV (1399–1413)	Thomas Arundel (1399) John Scarle (1399–1401) Edmund Stafford (1401–1403) Henry Beaufort (1403–1405) Thomas Langley (1405–1407) Thomas Arundel (1407–1410) Duke of Exeter (1410–1412) Thomas Arundel (1412–1413)
Henry V (1413–1422)	Henry Beaufort (1413–1417) Thomas Langley (1417–1422)
Henry VI (1422–1461) (1470–1471)	Thomas Langley (1422–1424) Henry Beaufort (1424–1426) John Kemp (1426–1432) John Stafford (1432–1450) John Kemp (1450–1454) 5th Earl of Salisbury (1454–1455) Thomas Bourchier (1455–1456) William Waynflete (1456–1460) George Neville (1460–1461; 1470–1471)

v t e Archdeacons of Durham
High Medieval	Sole archdeacons: Leobwine Thurstan Turgot of Durham Michael Senior archdeacons: Robert Wazo Vacant Burchard du Puiset Aimeric Simon de Ferlington William of Laneham Archdeacons of Durham: Robert de Cortuna Robert de Sancta Agatha Antony Bek William of Louth William de St Botulph
Late Medieval	Thomas de Goldesburgh Amaury de Beaumont Robert de Taunton Thomas de Neville William de Westle John de Kyngeston John de Stokes Alexander Neville Giacomo Cardinal Orsini Agapitus Cardinal de Colonna Pileus Cardinal de Prata Marius Cardinal Bulcano John Maundour Hugh Herle Thomas de Weston Alan de Newark John Hovyngham John Kemp Gabriel Cardinal Condulmier Robert Gilbert Robert Rolleston William Scrope George Neville Thomas Rotherham Ralph Booth Thomas Colston Roger Leyburn William Franklyn
Early modern	Bernard Gilpin John Ebden John Pilkington William Morton Gabriel Clark Denis Granville Robert Booth George Sayer Samuel Dickens Benjamin Pye Richard Prosser Charles Thorp
Late modern	Edward Prest Henry Watkins John Quirk, Bishop of Jarrow Samuel Knight, Bishop of Jarrow James Gordon, Bishop of Jarrow Egbert Lucas John Cobham Michael Perry Derek Hodgson Trevor Willmott Stephen Conway Ian Jagger Libby Wilkinson

v t e Bishops of Rochester
Pre-Conquest	Justus Romanus Paulinus of York Ithamar Damianus Putta Cwichelm Gebmund Tobias Aldwulf Dunn Eardwulf Diora Waermund (I) Beornmod Tatnoth Badenoth Waermund (II) Cuthwulf Swithwulf Ceolmund Cyneferth Burgric Beorhtsige Ælfstan Godwine (I) Godwine (II) Siward
Conquest to Reformation	Arnost Gundulf Ralph d'Escures Ernulf John (I) John (II) Ascelin Walter Waleran Gilbert Glanvill Benedict of Sausetun Henry Sandford Richard Wendene Lawrence of St Martin Walter de Merton John Bradfield John Kirkby Thomas Ingoldsthorpe Thomas Wouldham Hamo Hethe John Sheppey William Whittlesey Thomas Trilleck Thomas Brinton William Bottlesham John Bottlesham Richard Young John Kemp John Langdon Thomas Brunce William Wells John Low Thomas Rotherham John Alcock John Russell Edmund Audley Thomas Savage Richard FitzJames John Fisher
Post-Reformation	John Hilsey Nicholas Heath Henry Holbeach Nicholas Ridley John Ponet John Scory Maurice Griffith Edmund Allen Edmund Gheast Edmund Freke John Piers John Young William Barlow Richard Neile John Buckeridge Walter Curle John Bowle John Warner Episcopacy abolished (Commonwealth) John Warner John Dolben Francis Turner Thomas Sprat Francis Atterbury Samuel Bradford Joseph Wilcocks Zachary Pearce John Thomas Samuel Horsley Thomas Dampier Walker King Hugh Percy George Murray Joseph Wigram Thomas Legh Claughton Anthony Thorold Randall Davidson Edward Talbot John Harmer Linton Smith Christopher Chavasse David Say Michael Turnbull Michael Nazir-Ali James Langstaff Jonathan Gibbs

v t e Bishops of London
Post-Augustine	Mellitus Cedd Wine Earconwald Waldhere Ingwald Ecgwulf Wigheah Eadberht Eadgar Coenwalh Eadbald Heathoberht Osmund Æthelnoth Ceolberht Deorwulf Swithwulf Heahstan Wulfsige Æthelweard Leofstan Theodred Brihthelm Dunstan Ælfstan Wulfstan Ælfhun Ælfwig Ælfweard Robert of Jumièges Spearhafoc
Post-Conquest	William the Norman Hugh d'Orevalle Maurice Richard de Belmeis I Gilbert Universalis Anselm (quashed) Robert de Sigello Richard de Belmeis II Gilbert Foliot Richard FitzNeal William of Sainte-Mère-Église Eustace of Fauconberg Roger Niger Fulk Basset Henry Wingham Richard Talbot Henry of Sandwich John Chishull Fulke Lovell Richard Gravesend Ralph Baldock Gilbert Segrave Richard Newport Stephen Gravesend Richard de Wentworth Ralph Stratford Michael Northburgh Simon Sudbury William Courtenay Robert Braybrooke Roger Walden Nicholas Bubwith Richard Clifford John Kemp William Grey Robert FitzHugh Robert Gilbert Thomas Kempe Richard Hill Thomas Savage William Warham William Barons Richard FitzJames Cuthbert Tunstall
During the Reformation	John Stokesley Edmund Bonner (1st) Nicholas Ridley Edmund Bonner (2nd)
Post-Reformation	Edmund Grindal Edwin Sandys John Aylmer Richard Fletcher Richard Bancroft Richard Vaughan Thomas Ravis George Abbot John King George Montaigne William Laud William Juxon Episcopacy abolished (Commonwealth) William Juxon Gilbert Sheldon Humphrey Henchman Henry Compton John Robinson Edmund Gibson Thomas Sherlock Thomas Hayter Richard Osbaldeston Richard Terrick Robert Lowth Beilby Porteus John Randolph William Howley Charles James Blomfield Archibald Campbell Tait John Jackson Frederick Temple Mandell Creighton Arthur Winnington-Ingram Geoffrey Fisher William Wand Henry Montgomery Campbell Robert Stopford Gerald Ellison Graham Leonard David Hope Richard Chartres Pete Broadbent (Acting) Sarah Mullally

v t e Archbishops of Canterbury
List of archbishops of Canterbury
Pre-Conquest	Augustine Laurence Mellitus Justus Honorius Deusdedit Wighard Theodore of Tarsus Berhtwald Tatwine Nothhelm Cuthbert Bregowine Jænberht Æthelhard Wulfred Feologild Ceolnoth Æthelred Plegmund Athelm Wulfhelm Oda Ælfsige Byrhthelm Dunstan Æthelgar Sigeric Ælfric of Abingdon Ælfheah Lyfing Æthelnoth Eadsige Robert of Jumièges Stigand
Conquest to Reformation	Lanfranc Anselm Ralph d'Escures William de Corbeil Theobald of Bec Thomas Becket Roger de Bailleul Richard of Dover Baldwin of Forde Reginald Fitz Jocelin Hubert Walter Reginald John de Gray Stephen Langton Walter d'Eynsham Richard le Grant Ralph Neville John of Sittingbourne John Blund Edmund of Abingdon Boniface William Chillenden Robert Kilwardby Robert Burnell John Peckham Robert Winchelsey Thomas Cobham Walter Reynolds Simon Mepeham John de Stratford John de Ufford Thomas Bradwardine Simon Islip William Edington Simon Langham William Whittlesey Simon Sudbury William Courtenay Thomas Arundel Roger Walden Thomas Arundel Henry Chichele John Stafford John Kemp Thomas Bourchier John Morton Thomas Langton Henry Deane William Warham Thomas Cranmer Reginald Pole
Post-Reformation	Matthew Parker Edmund Grindal John Whitgift Richard Bancroft George Abbot William Laud Episcopacy abolished (Commonwealth) William Juxon Gilbert Sheldon William Sancroft John Tillotson Thomas Tenison William Wake John Potter Thomas Herring Matthew Hutton Thomas Secker Frederick Cornwallis John Moore Charles Manners-Sutton William Howley John Bird Sumner Charles Longley Archibald Campbell Tait Edward White Benson Frederick Temple Randall Davidson Cosmo Lang William Temple Geoffrey Fisher Michael Ramsey Donald Coggan Robert Runcie George Carey Rowan Williams Justin Welby
Italics indicate a person who was elected but not confirmed.