Richard de Bury

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Richard de Bury (1281–1345). Bishop of Durham. From Bury St Edmunds, Richard studied at Oxford and became a Benedictine monk at Durham. He was appointed tutor to Prince Edward and, after his succession in 1327 as Edward III, was given great preferment. In 1333 he was made bishop of Durham and in 1334–5 was chancellor. A patron of learning, he was said to have more books than all the other bishops combined. His own treatise Philobiblon, a guide to library practice, was first printed in 1473. He endowed a library at Oxford attached to Durham College, laying down careful rules for its management. After the Reformation, the college was absorbed into Trinity College.

J. A. Cannon

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