Thomas Tenison

Thomas Tenison (29 September 1636 – 14 December 1715) was an English church leader and served as the Archbishop of Canterbury from 1694 until he passed away. As the highest leader in the Church of England, he played an important role in religious and public life during his time. One of his notable duties was crowning two British monarchs, which showed his significant influence in national events. His work helped shape the church and its relationship with the government in the late 17th and early 18th centuries.

Life

Thomas Tenison was born in Cottenham, Cambridgeshire, to a family of Anglican clergymen. He studied at Norwich School and later at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, where he graduated in 1657. He worked as a curate and was known for his care during a time of plague.

Tenison became a doctor of divinity and served in important church positions. He supported the Glorious Revolution and was eventually made Archbishop of Canterbury in 1694. He was respected for his open religious views and worked to support schools and libraries.

Archbishop of Canterbury

Thomas Tenison served as the Archbishop of Canterbury from 1694 until he passed away in 1715. During his time in this important role, he had the responsibility of crowning two British monarchs. He also attended Queen Mary during her final days and preached her funeral sermon in Westminster Abbey. In 1695, he became one of the seven lords justices who helped govern while King William was away leading the army. Tenison was also appointed to the Privy Council of England and given the title "The Right Honourable" for life.

Under Queen Anne

Thomas Tenison worked closely with Gilbert Burnet and attended King William near the end of his life. He crowned Queen Anne, but during her time as ruler, he did not have much support from her. The Queen felt he leaned too much toward a simpler style of church services and disagreed with him about who could choose bishops. She ignored his suggestions and picked Sir Jonathan Trelawny, 3rd Baronet to be the Bishop of Winchester. Later, John Sharp, the Archbishop of York, became more favored by the Queen.

Tenison helped with plans to unite with Scotland in 1706 but was not a major political figure in the later years of Queen Anne’s rule. He supported the idea that George I should be the next king after Anne. When Anne passed away, Tenison helped choose a leader until George I could arrive, and he crowned George I on 20 October 1714. This was the last time the Archbishop asked the people if they accepted their new King. Tenison passed away a year later in London.

Other works

Thomas Tenison wrote several books in addition to his sermons, including The Creed of Mr Hobbes Examined in 1670 and Baconia, or Certain Genuine Remains of Lord Bacon in 1679. He also helped start the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, an organization that supported Christian missions.

Family

Thomas Tenison married Anne, the daughter of Richard Love, but they did not have any children. One of his cousins, Edward Tenison (1673–1735), became the Bishop of Ossory in Ireland from 1730 to 1735. Another relative, Richard Tennison (1642–1705), served as the Bishop of Meath. Thomas supported Richard’s career and left money to Richard’s five sons in his will.

Thomas was known for his strong build when he was young, though he suffered from gout later in life. He was also related to Julian Tenison-Woods.

Armorials

Archbishop Tenison's coat of arms combined the official arms of the see of Canterbury with the Tenison family arms. The Canterbury arms appear on the right side, showing a blue background with a silver cross and four smaller crosses. The Tenison family arms are on the left side, featuring a red background with a silver diagonal band and three gold lion faces.

These arms were based on older designs used by families in England, showing Tenison's connection to important historical heritage. A famous poet, Alfred, Lord Tennyson, also used a similar design, though he was not directly related to Archbishop Tenison.

Suspected discovery of his coffin

In 2016, workers found 30 lead coffins during updates at the Garden Museum. The museum is located in an old church called St Mary-at-Lambeth. One of the coffins had a special hat, called an archbishop's mitre, on top of it. They recognized two archbishops by nameplates on their coffins, and church records suggested that three more archbishops, including Thomas Tenison, were also buried there.