St. Richard of Chichester

19th century?
Stained glass
Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Eastbourne

In 1244 the bishop of Chichester died, having designated Richard to be his successor. However, Henry III coveted the income from the lands held by the diocese and tried to install one of his men as bishop. The Pope objected and consecrated Richard himself. So Richard took the office, but Henry took all the income and forbade the bishop to take up residence in the cathedral or the episcopal residence. Undeterred, Richard served the diocese as an itinerant embracing a life of poverty among his people.

St. Richard is listed in the Martyrologium Romanum for April 3: "In England, Saint Richard, Bishop of Chichester, was notable for his holiness and the glory of his miracles" (my translation). The holiness and miracles are set forth in the vitae printed in the Acta Sanctorum, April vol. 1, 277-318. He is also covered in Butler, II, 22-25.

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Photographed at the church by Richard Stracke, shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.