Thomas Bradwardine

c.1290-1349. Archbishop of Canterbury in 1349. A native of Chichester, he studied at Merton College, Oxford, achieving great distinction in mathematics and divinity, and earning the nickname “the Profound Doctor.” At Oxford he was elected chancellor and professor of divinity. Among other honors he was appointed chaplain and confessor to Edward III, whom he accompanied abroad on his French campaign. He was appointed archbishop of Canterbury in 1349, but died of the Black Death* within forty days of consecration. Through his influence Oxford University was freed from subservience to the bishop of Oxford. In theology, Bradwardine's attack on Pelagianism* in which he stressed God's grace and irresistible will as the ultimate cause of events paved the way for the later development of the doctrine of predestination. He also wrote extensively on mathematical subjects.