Roger Niger

Bishop of London, Saint
The basics

Quick Facts

IntroBishop of London, Saint
A.K.A.Rogerus Niger Roger le Noir Roger de Bileye
A.K.A.Rogerus Niger Roger le Noir Roger de Bileye
PlacesUnited Kingdom England
wasPriest
Work fieldReligion
Gender
Male
Religion:Catholic church
Birth1173, Maldon, Maldon, Essex, United Kingdom
Death1241 (aged 68 years)
The details

Biography

Roger Niger (died 1241) was a thirteenth-century cleric who became Bishop of London. He is also known as Saint Roger of Beeleigh.

Life

A plan of Beeleigh Abbey showing the location of the shrine that housed Saint Roger's heart

In 1192 Niger was named a canon of St Paul's Cathedral, London, and he held the prebend of Ealdland in the diocese of London. In 1218 he was promoted to Archdeacon of Colchester. He was elected Bishop of London in 1228, and was consecrated bishop on 10 June 1229.

Niger died on 29 September 1241 or on 2 October 1241 and during his burial in St Paul's Cathedral, there was an eclipse of the sun. His heart was taken to Beeleigh Abbey near Maldon in Essex. Both sites became places of pilgrimage and he was referred to as a saint, although no formal canonisation has been located. He was, however, called a saint by at least one Pope. In 1391, Pope Boniface IX granted relaxation to penitents visiting and giving alms to Beeleigh Abbey on the anniversary of his death.

Citations

The contents of this page are sourced from Wikipedia article on 28 Jun 2020. The contents are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license.