Adam of Usk was a medieval lawyer and wrote an account of English history for the period between 1377 to 1404. He was born at Usk, in Monmouthshire and was sent to study at Oxford University by Edmund Mortimer, the Earl of March. At Oxford he became a law student and excelled in the subject. From around 1390 until 1397/9 he was advocate at the court of the Archbishop of Canterbury. When Henry Bolingbroke invaded England in 1399 to become King Henry IV Adam joined the invading army alongside Thomas Arundel, the Archbishop of Canterbury. After the defeat of Richard II, Adam was appointed as a commissioner in the old king's deposition and visited Richard in prison. King Henry was pleased with the work Adam did, but in 1402 for some reason Adam was banished and left England for Rome. It was here that his skills again were recognised and he became a papal chaplain and the auditor of the Sacred Palace (Rota). While in Rome was was assigned the bishoprics of both Hereford and St. David's but was not allowed to take up the positions by those back in England. In around 1411 Adam secretly returned to England and may have been pardoned by the King, but after the death of Thomas Arundel in 1414 he lost the person who was his patron and never rose to the important roles that he had enjoyed before.Biography
Biography
Please note that the TimeRef website is currently being redesigned.
Adam (of Usk)
| Born | circa 1352 | Born At | |
| Died | 1430 | Buried At |
| Born | circa 1352 / |
| Died | 1430 / |
Adam of Usk was a medieval lawyer and wrote an account of English history for the period between 1377 to 1404. He was born at Usk, in Monmouthshire and was sent to study at Oxford University by Edmund Mortimer, the Earl of March. At Oxford he became a law student and excelled in the subject. From around 1390 until 1397/9 he was advocate at the court of the Archbishop of Canterbury. When Henry Bolingbroke invaded England in 1399 to become King Henry IV Adam joined the invading army alongside Thomas Arundel, the Archbishop of Canterbury. After the defeat of Richard II, Adam was appointed as a commissioner in the old king's deposition and visited Richard in prison. King Henry was pleased with the work Adam did, but in 1402 for some reason Adam was banished and left England for Rome. It was here that his skills again were recognised and he became a papal chaplain and the auditor of the Sacred Palace (Rota). While in Rome was was assigned the bishoprics of both Hereford and St. David's but was not allowed to take up the positions by those back in England. In around 1411 Adam secretly returned to England and may have been pardoned by the King, but after the death of Thomas Arundel in 1414 he lost the person who was his patron and never rose to the important roles that he had enjoyed before.
Family Tree Details
Adam (of Usk) (b.1352? - d.1430)
Adam (of Usk) (b.1352? - d.1430)
See Also
People
Other
Timeline
On this day in history:
3D Virtual Reconstructions
Transport yourself back up to a thousand years and explore historical buildings as they may have appeared in the past. Built using the popular game development tool Unity 3D, these reconstructions will run in the most of the popular web browsers on your desktop or laptop computer.
Page Navigation
