During the period in question in Edward II, two men held this office.
John Stratford
(* around 1275; † 23 August 1348) travelled frequently to the Curia as a diplomat. Against the will of Edward II, Pope John XXII appointed Stratford Bishop of Winchester in 1323. He continued to take on diplomatic missions. Among other things, the king sent him to France in 1325 to persuade Isabella to return. After landing in England with Mortimer, Stratford joined them. He was a member of the delegation that persuaded Edward II to abdicate at Kenilworth Castle. After initial support, he came into conflict with Mortimer, but managed to avoid being too closely associated with Leicester or Kent. Edward III appointed him chancellor in 1330. Three years later he became Archbishop of Canterbury.
Adam Orleton
(* around 1275, † 18 July 1345) was also diplomatically active with the Curia. From 1314 he was the permanent representative of the English Crown in Avignon. Three years later, against the wishes of Edward II, the Pope appointed him Bishop of Hereford. Orleton became a member of the Council of State. During the uprising of the Marcher Lords, he supported Mortimer, but initially managed to avoid impeachment after his defeat. When this was pronounced by Parliament in 1324, Orleton obtained that his case be heard by the ecclesiastical jurisdiction. Before a verdict could be reached, Isabella and Mortimer landed in England. Orleton immediately supported them. He spoke out in favour of deposing Edward II and was also among the delegation sent to see the king at Kenilworth Castle. The Pope made him Bishop of Worcester, which met with fierce opposition from Mortimer. Edward III ultimately confirmed the appointment. He continued to use him as a diplomat after Mortimer’s fall and in 1333 Orleton became Bishop of Winchester.
Edward II
It is not always quite clear which bishop is appearing, as only BISHOP is used as the role description. In [Scene 1] it is clearly the Bischof of Coventry. In [Scene 2] und [Scene 4] the Archbishop of Canterbury, as he enforced Gaveston’s exile. Edward II gives his crown to an unspecified bishop in [Scene 18].1 Historically it was the Bishop of Winchester. In [Scene 20], when he brings the crown to Isabella and Mortimer, he is also addressed as such by the Queen. At the coronation of Edward III in [Scene 21] a bishop is also present. Whether it is the one who delivered the crown or the Archbishop of Canterbury is not clear from the text. Possibly these bishops are to be seen as an allegorical figure.2
