Thomas de Cantilupe (c. 1218 – 25 August 1282; also spelled Cantelow, Cantelou, Canteloupe, Latinised to de Cantilupo) was Lord Chancellor of England and Bishop of Hereford. He was canonised in 1320 by Pope John XXII. He has been noted as "an inveterate enemy of the Jews", and his demands that they be expelled from England were cited in the evidence presented for his canonization.
Thomas was the third son of William II de Cantilupe (died 1251) (anciently Cantelow, Cantelou, Canteloupe, etc, Latinised to de Cantilupo), 2nd feudal baron of Eaton Bray in Bedfordshire, who was steward of the household to King Henry III (as his father William I de Cantilupe (died 1239) had been to Henry's father King John). Thomas's mother was Millicent (or Maud) de Gournai (died 1260), a daughter of Hugh de Gournai and widow of Amaury VI of Montfort-Évreux (died 1213), Earl of Gloucester. He was born at Hambleden in Buckinghamshire, a manor belonging to his mother's first husband but awarded to her during her lifetime as her dowry. Thomas's uncle was Walter de Cantilupe (died 1266), Bishop of Worcester.
Cantilupe was educated at Oxford, Paris and Orléans, and was a teacher of canon law at the University of Oxford, where he became Chancellor in 1261.
During the Second Barons' War, Cantilupe favoured Simon de Montfort and the baronial party. He represented the barons before King Louis IX of France at Amiens in 1264.
On 25 February 1264, when he was Archdeacon of Stafford, Cantilupe was made Lord Chancellor of England, but was deprived of the office after de Montfort's death at the Battle of Evesham, and lived abroad for a while. Following his return to England, he was again appointed Chancellor of Oxford University, where he lectured on theology and held several ecclesiastical appointments.
In 1274, Cantilupe attended the Second Council of Lyons and on 14 June 1275, he was appointed Bishop of Hereford, being consecrated on 8 September 1275.
Cantilupe was now a trusted adviser of King Edward I and when attending royal councils at Windsor Castle or at Westminster he lived at Earley in Berkshire. Even when differing from the king's opinions, he did not forfeit his favour.
Cantilupe asked special permission from Edward I to preach to the Jews of Hereford to convert them. Later, during the coin clipping crisis, where large numbers of Jews were targeted and accused of tampering with the currency, Cantilupe objected to the use of a converted Jew to investigate the charges. He then demanded that any unconverted Jews should be expelled from the Kingdom as “enemies of God and rebels against the faith” (inimici Dei et rebelles fidei), threatened to resign and broke down in tears. The King was reported to have capitulated to his demands.
Cantilupe had a "great conflict" in 1279 with the "Red Earl", Gilbert de Clare, 7th Earl of Gloucester, 6th Earl of Hertford, concerning hunting rights in Malvern, Worcestershire, and a ditch dug by de Clare. The issue was settled by costly litigation.
After the death in 1279 of Robert Kilwardby, Archbishop of Canterbury, a friend of Cantilupe's, and formerly his confessor, a series of disputes arose between him and John Peckham, the new archbishop. The disagreements culminated in Peckham excommunicating Cantilupe, who proceeded to Rome to pursue the matter with the pope.
Death, burial, and canonization
Cantilupe died at Ferento, near Orvieto, in Italy, on 25 August 1282, on his way to Rome. He is buried in Hereford Cathedral. His cult was swiftly established at Hereford, and his canonization was promoted by his protege, the next Bishop, Richard Swinefield. Miracles were recorded by 1283; however Cantilupe's dispute with Peckham continued to haunt him after his death, as Peckham was outraged that Cantilupe was being put forward as a saint, as Cantilupe was still excommunicated in his view, which would preclude him for consideration.
Supporters of his cult included Edward I, who attended the ceremony to translate Cantilupe's body to its new position in 1287, seen as a step towards confirmation of his sainthood. Edward I is recorded as saying that he was keen "to have as a sympathetic patron in heaven him whom we had in our household on earth".
Among the evidence gathered and submitted to the Pope was evidence of his hostility to Jews, particularly his insistence to Edward I that those that did not convert should be expelled from England.
One of the many miracles cited in his cause of canonization was the supposed raising from the dead of William Cragh, a Welsh rebel who was hanged in 1290, eight years after Cantilupe's death.
A papal inquiry was convened in London on 20 April 1307 to determine whether or not Cantilupe had died excommunicate, since this would have precluded his being canonized. Forty-four witnesses were called and various letters produced, before the commissioners of the inquiry concluded that Cantilupe had been absolved in Rome before his death. It was difficult for his cause of death to be determined as much of his body had disintegrated.
After a papal investigation lasting almost 13 years, Cantilupe was canonized by Pope John XXII on 17 April 1320. His feast day was fixed on 2 October.
His shrine became a popular place of pilgrimage, but only its base survived the Reformation until a new upper section (a feretory) was recreated in 2008 under the guidance of Nicholas Quayle. The new section is in vivid colours with a painted scene of the Virgin and Child holding the Mappa Mundi. A reliquary containing his skull has been held at Downside Abbey in Somerset since 1881.