Portal:Crusades/Selected biography/3
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Hubert Walter (died July 13, 1205) was chief justiciar of England and archbishop of Canterbury in the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries. He owed his early advancement to his uncle Ranulf de Glanvill, who helped him become a clerk in the Exchequer. Walter served King Henry II of England in many different ways, not only in the financial administration. After an unsuccessful candidacy to the see of York, Walter was elected bishop of Salisbury shortly after the ascension of King Henry's son Richard I to the throne of England.
Walter accompanied King Richard on the Third Crusade, and was one of the principal persons involved in raising Richard's ransom after the king had been captured in Germany while returning home from Crusade. As a reward for his faithful service, Walter was selected to become the next Archbishop of Canterbury in 1193. Walter also served as justiciar for Richard until 1198. While justiciar, Walter was responsible for raising the money that Richard needed to prosecute his wars in France. He also set up a system of justice that involved the selection of four knights in each hundred to administer justice, a system that was the beginnings of justices of the peace. He also revived the dispute of his predecessor to set up a church in rivalry to Christ Church Priory in Canterbury, that was eventually settled by the pope ordering him to quit the plan.
With Richard's death in 1199 and the elevation of Richard's brother John to the throne, Hubert was named Lord Chancellor of England, an office he held until his death in 1205. Hubert had been instrumental in ensuring that John became king, and it was Hubert that crowned John. While chancellor, Hubert began the keeping of the Charter Roll, a record of all charters issued by the chancery. Walter also served John as a diplomat, undertaking a number of missions to France. Walter was not noted for holiness in life or learning, but historians have judged him one of the most outstanding governmental ministers in English History.
