William de Beaufeu

William de Beaufeu^[a][b] was a medieval Bishop of Thetford and a major landholder mentioned in the Domesday Book.^[1]

William de Beaufeu
Bishop of Thetford
Appointed	25 December 1085
Term ended	1091
Predecessor	Herfast
Successor	Herbert de Losinga
Orders
Consecration	1086
Personal details
Died	1091
Denomination	Catholic

Life

William's land holdings were mainly in the county of Norfolk and Suffolk.^[1] He was a royal clerk before he was nominated to the see of Thetford^[2] on 25 December 1085 and consecrated in 1086. He died in 1091.^[3] He was probably related to Richard de Beaufou Bishop of Avranches from 1134 to 1142.^[4]

Notes

1. Sometimes William de Beaufai, William of Bello Fargo or William of Belfou
2. The place where the name comes from is probably fr:Beaufour (Normandy, now Calvados département) : Belfou 1040 - 1066, Bellafagus 1195 "beautiful beech-tree", confused later with another place-name (Orne département) Beaufai : Belfai 1092, De Bello Fayaco ar. 1345 "beautiful beech wood"