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Stephen Gardiner
(c. 1497—1555) theologian, administrator, and bishop of Winchester
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(c. 1490–1555)
Bishop of Winchester (1531–51; 1553–55). A protégé of Thomas Wolsey, he assisted in the negotiations to secure Henry VIII's divorce from Catherine of Aragon. He defended the royal supremacy over the Church, most notably in De Vera Obedientia (1535), but was opposed to Protestantism. Under Edward VI he was imprisoned (1548–53) and deprived of his see. Mary I restored him to Winchester, made him Lord Chancellor, and relied on him until his death.
Subjects: History
