Henry de Blois

Henry of Winchester
Bishop of Winchester
Contemporary plaque showing Henry of Blois, now in the British Museum
Appointed	4 October 1129
Term ended	8 August 1171
Predecessor	William Giffard
Successor	Richard of Ilchester
Orders
Consecration	17 November 1129
Personal details
Born	c. 1096 Blois, Loir-et-Cher, Centre, France
Died	8 August 1171 (aged 72/3) City of Winchester
Buried	8 August 1171 Winchester Cathedral
Denomination	Roman Catholicism
Parents	Stephen Henry, Count of Blois Adela of Normandy
Previous post	Abbot of Glastonbury

Henry of Blois (c. 1098 – 8 August 1171), often known as Henry of Winchester, was Abbot of Glastonbury Abbey from 1126, and Bishop of Winchester from 1129 to his death. He was a younger son of Stephen Henry, Count of Blois by Adela of Normandy, daughter of William the Conqueror and Matilda of Flanders. Thus, he was a younger brother of Stephen, King of England.

Henry was one of five sons of Stephen II, Count of Blois, by Adela of Normandy (daughter of William the Conqueror) and the younger brother of King Stephen. His birth date is uncertain, along with his siblings but he was the 4th and youngest son and he was most likely born at Blois c.1096, before his father left on the first crusade, possibly c.1100, soon after his father's return. Henry's father died in 1102 while on crusade during the Second Battle of Ramla, leaving an estate with more than 350 castles and large properties in France including Chartres.

Henry was educated at Cluny and adhered to the principles of Cluniac reform, which included a sense of intellectual freedom and humanism, as well as a high standard of devotion and discipline.

Henry was brought to England by King Henry I, to be Abbot of Glastonbury. On 4 October 1129, he was given the bishopric of Winchester and allowed to keep his beloved Glastonbury Abbey. He was consecrated bishop on 17 November 1129. He had ambitions to become Archbishop of Canterbury, but refused to abandon his work and obligations to Glastonbury. Soon after his appointment to the see of Winchester, Henry came to resent his subservience to Canterbury. He therefore set about building a power-base to persuade the king to create a third, West Country archdiocese with himself at the head. This scheme was unsuccessful. However, on 1 March 1139, during the reign of his brother Stephen, Henry obtained a commission as papal legate, which gave him higher rank than Theobald of Bec, Archbishop of Canterbury, making him the most powerful figure in the English Church during the troubled times of the so-called "Anarchy". Thus, when his brother was unavailable, Henry of Blois was the most powerful, and possibly the wealthiest, man in England.