The Archdeacon of Durham is a senior ecclesiastical officer of the diocese of Durham (Church of England). They have, within the geographical area the archdeaconry of Durham, pastoral oversight of clergy and care of church buildings (among other responsibilities).
History
The first archdeacons in the diocese occur after the Norman Conquest – around the same time the post of archdeacon first started to occur elsewhere in England. There is no evidence of more than one archdeacon in the diocese until the mid-12th century, when two lines of office holders start to appear in sources. The titles "Archdeacon of Durham" and "Archdeacon of Northumberland" are not recorded until later in the century, although it is possible to discern which of the two lines became which post. Here are listed the sole archdeacons of Durham diocese, then those of the senior of two unnamed lines, then all those called Archdeacon of Durham.
The archdeaconry has been split twice: once on 23 May 1882, to create the Auckland archdeaconry after the Diocese of Newcastle was created from the diocese's other two archdeaconries and a second time in 1997, to create the Sunderland archdeaconry.
List of archdeacons
High Medieval
Sole archdeacons
bef. 1080–bef. 1083: Leobwine
aft. 1083–bef. 1093: Thurstan
11 August 1093– (res.): Turgot of Durham
bef. 1116–bef. 1128: Michael
Senior archdeacons
aft. 1122–bef. 1144 (dep.): Robert
bef. 1147–aft. 1155: Wazo
bef. 1158–bef. 1172: Vacant
bef. 1172–6 December 1196 (d.): Burchard du Puiset
bef. 1197–aft. 1217: Aimeric (also Archdeacon of Carlisle until aft. 1208) aft. 1217–bef. 1225 (d.): Simon de Ferlington bef. 1224–bef. 1244 (d.): William of Laneham Archdeacons of Durham bef. 1255–1255 (d.): Robert de Cortuna bef. 1257–aft. 1272: Robert de Sancta Agatha bef. 1275–aft. 1283 (res.): Antony Bek bef. 1284–1290 (res.): William of Louth bef. 1297–aft. 1309: William de St Botulph
Late Medieval
bef. 1331–bef. 1331 (d.): Thomas de Goldesburgh
aft. 1331–bef. 1333 (d.): Amaury de Beaumont
3 January 1334–bef. 1334 (res.): Robert de Taunton
31 March 1334–bef. 1361 (d.): Thomas de Neville
15 August 1362–bef. 1369 (d.): William de Westle
18 August 1369–bef. 1369 (res.): John de Kyngeston
6 November 1369–?: John de Stokes
bef. 1371–1373 (res.): Alexander Neville
bef. 1378–13 August 1379 (d.): Giacomo Cardinal Orsini, Dean of Salisbury (cardinal-deacon of San Giorgio in Velabro) bef. 1380–3 October 1380 (d.): Agapitus Cardinal de Colonna (cardinal-priest of Santa Prisca) 9 May 1381–bef. 1387 (deprived): Pileus Cardinal de Prata (cardinal-priest of Santa Prassede) Period of dispute: Pope's claimants 11 August 1387 – 8 August 1394 (d.): Marius Cardinal Bulcano (cardinal-deacon of Santa Maria Nova; judged proper archdeacon in 1393) King's/Bishop's claimants bef. 1387–bef. 1388: John Maundour 18 April 1388 – 1393 (d.): Hugh Herle 1393–bef. 1408 (d.): Thomas de Weston (unopposed after 1394)
8 October 1408 – 15 February 1409 (res.): Alan de Newark
16 February 1409 – 1417 (d.): John Hovyngham
13 October 1417 – 1419 (res.): John Kemp
bef. 1419: Gabriel Cardinal Condulmier (cardinal-priest of San Clemente; grant ineffective) 24 March 1419 – 1 August 1425 (res.): Robert Gilbert 14 August 1425–aft. 1440: Robert Rolleston bef. 1448–aft. 1448: William Scrope bef. 1452–1456 (res.): George Neville aft. 1456–bef. 1466: Thomas Rotherham aft. 1466–1497 (d.): Ralph Booth 20 April 1497–bef. 1500 (res.): Thomas Colston 20 January 1500 – 1503 (res.): Roger Leyburn bef. 1515–January 1556 (d.): William Franklyn (also Dean of Windsor, 1536–1553)
Early modern
bef. 1559–bef. 1560 (res.): Bernard Gilpin
22 May 1560–bef. 1563 (res.): John Ebden
5 December 1563–aft. 1602: John Pilkington
19 November 1603–bef. 1620 (d.): William Morton
9 September 1620 – 10 May 1662 (d.): Gabriel Clark
19 September 1662 – 1 February 1690 (deprived): Denis Granville (also Dean of Durham from 1684; non-juror) 15 May 1691–bef. 1730 (d.): The Hon Robert Booth 9 October 1730 – 25 July 1761 (d.): George Sayer 2 January 1762 – 23 August 1791 (d.): Samuel Dickens 10 September 1791 – 26 March 1808 (d.): Benjamin Pye 16 April 1808 – 2 December 1831 (res.): Richard Prosser 6 December 1831 – 10 October 1862 (d.): Charles Thorp