Edmund Freke

Edmund Freke (also spelled Freake or Freak; c. 1516–1591) was an English dean and bishop.

Edmund Freke
Bishop of Worcester
Church	Church of England
Diocese	Diocese of Worcester
Installed	1584
Term ended	1591 (death)
Predecessor	John Whitgift
Successor	Richard Fletcher
Other post(s)	Bishop of Rochester & Archdeacon of Canterbury (1572–1575) Bishop of Norwich (1575–1584)
Personal details
Born	c. 1516 Essex
Died	1591 (aged 74–75)
Nationality	English
Denomination	Anglican
Alma mater	Cambridge University

Monument to Edmund Freke, Worcester Cathedral

Life

He was born in Essex, and educated at Cambridge,^[1] gaining his M.A. there c. 1550.^[2]

In 1565 he was appointed Canon of the sixth stall at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, a position he held until 1572.

He was Dean of Salisbury and Dean of Rochester from 1571 to 1572 when he became Bishop of Rochester and was simultaneously Archdeacon of Canterbury in commendam.^[3] In 1575, he became Bishop of Norwich.^[4] There, unlike his predecessor John Parkhurst, he campaigned hard to impose uniformity in his diocese.^[5][6]

In 1579 he tried and then burnt a Norfolk plowright, Matthew Hamont, for heresy.

In 1584, he became Bishop of Worcester.^[4] He was also appointed Lord Almoner, a position he held until his death.^[7]