William Waynflete

Study of the life of bishop of Winchester (1447-86), one of the great educationalists and patrons of learning of late medieval England.

This is the first modern study of William Waynflete, powerful and influential bishop of Winchester from 1447 to 1486. Waynflete was one of the great educationalists and patrons of learning of late medieval England, and his careerwas dominated by an interest in education. He played a leading role in some of the changes which transformed education in 15th-century England: the emergence in Oxford and Cambridge of new and larger colleges; the influence of continental humanist ideas which reshaped English thought; the introduction of the teaching of Greek; the composition of new grammars; and the introduction of printing as a means of disseminating the new learning.
Through her examination of Waynflete's career, Davis challenges the received view of the gangrenous corruption of the medieval church and instead supports recent research which suggests the truth to have been far more complex. As this biographyrecords, Waynflete himself was politically linked to Henry VI and the Lancastrian administration and most of his time was spent in southern England, However, he retained close links with his native Lincolnshire, and his committments there are also fully considered.

VIRGINIA DAVIS is lecturer in history at Queen Mary and Westfield College, University of London.