The Rt Rev. Hugh of Wells
(d.1235)

Died aged unknown

Hugh of Wells (died 7 February 1235) was a medieval Bishop of Lincoln. He began his career in the diocese of Bath, where he served two successive bishops, before joining royal service under King John of England. He served in the royal administration until 1209, when he was elected to the see, or bishopric, of Lincoln. When John was excommunicated by Pope Innocent III in November 1209, Hugh went into exile in France, where he remained until 1213. When he returned to England, he continued to serve both John and John's son King Henry III, but spent most of his time in his diocese. He introduced new administrative methods into the diocese, as well as working to improve the educational and financial well-being of his clergy and to secure the canonisation of his predecessor Hugh of Avalon as a saint in 1220. Although the medieval writer Matthew Paris accused Hugh of being opposed to monastic houses and monks, there is little evidence of the bishop being biased, and after his death on 7 February 1235 parts of his estate were left to religious houses, including nunneries.

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Commemorated on 1 plaque

St John Street Until 1840 and the creation of Priory Road, the main entry to Wells from Glastonbury was via Southover and St John Street, named after the Priory of the Hospital of St John the Baptist, founded c1220 by Bishop Jocelyn and his brother Bishop Hugh of Lincoln. The Priory was a religious community dedicated to worship, nursing the sick, and helping the poor and the disabled. It comprised the Prior and ten Brothers. The Priory was dissolved by Henry VIII in 1539, but the main Priory buildings survived until 1859, being then demolished and replaced by the Central School, whose buildings still exist but are now converted into dwellings. The adjacent house, called The Priory, was probably the Prior's lodging, and contains significant mediaeval remains.

1 Priory Road, Wells, United Kingdom where they was