{{Short description|English Catholic monk and martyr}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2020}} {{Use British English|date=April 2018}}
{{Saint|name=Hugh Faringdon|image=Hugh-faringdon-belmont-stained-glass.jpg|caption=Stained glass window at Belmont Abbey|titles=Abbot of Reading, Martyr|birth_date=c. 1490|birth_place=probably Faringdon|death_date=14 November 1539 (aged 48 - 49)|death_place=Reading Abbey, Reading, England|feast_day=15 November|honored_in=Catholic Church|beatified_date=13 May 1895 by Pope Leo XIII|attributes=reliquary, pastoral staff, martyr's palm, noose in neck|honorific-prefix=Blessed|honorific-suffix=O.S.B.}}
'''Hugh Faringdon''', {{post-nominals|list=O.S.B.}} (died 14 November 1539), earlier known as '''Hugh Cook''', later as '''Hugh Cook alias Faringdon''' and '''Hugh Cook of Faringdon''', was an English Benedictine monk who presided as the last Abbot of Reading Abbey in the town of Reading in Berkshire, England. At the dissolution of the monasteries under King Henry VIII of England, Faringdon was accused of high treason and executed. He was declared a martyr and beatified by the Catholic Church in 1895.
==Life== thumb|Hugh Faringdon plaque, English Martyrs Church, Liebenrood Road, Reading|263x263pxBorn Hugh Cook, he adopted the surname of Faringdon when he became a monk, sometime before 1500. The use of this surname suggests that he came from Faringdon, a town some {{convert|30|mi}} northwest of Reading. However, it is also significant that he subsequently used the arms of the Cook family of Kent, suggesting that he had connections there.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=mlX8aCewPS8C&dq=Bl.+John+Eynon&pg=PA387 Camm, Bede. ''Lives of the English Martyrs''] Longmans, 1914, p. 358{{PD-notice}}</ref> He is believed to have been educated within the abbey, and later served as the sub-cellarer of the abbey.<ref name=dnb>{{cite ODNB | title = Cook, Hugh | date = September 2004| url = http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/9159 | first = Claire | last = Cross | doi = 10.1093/ref:odnb/9159 | accessdate = 12 June 2009}}</ref>
Hugh Faringdon was elected Abbot of Reading Abbey in 1520, upon the death of Abbot Thomas Worcester. As well as his spiritual duties, he also took up the civil duties expected at that time of a mitred abbot, being appointed as Justice of the Peace and to various governmental Commissions for Berkshire from 1526 to 1538.<ref name=dnb/>
At first, Faringdon's relationship with King Henry VIII of England appeared supportive. King Henry was his guest on 30 January 1521, and he later became one of the royal chaplains. Among Henry's New Year gifts in 1532 was £20 in a white leather purse to the Abbot of Reading.<ref name="wainewright">[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07518a.htm Wainewright, John. "Blessed Hugh Faringdon." The Catholic Encyclopedia] Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910.{{PD-notice}}</ref> When the king was hunting in the neighborhood, the abbot would take the opportunity of sending him presents of Kennet trout or hunting knives.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Morris|first1=John|url=http://archive.org/details/livesoftheenglis01unknuoft|title=Lives of the English martyrs : declared blessed by Pope Leo XIII, in 1886 and 1895|last2=Bowden|first2=Henry Sebastian|last3=Keogh|first3=Edward S.|last4=Phillips|first4=George E.|last5=Camm|first5=Bede|date=1914|publisher=London : Longmans, Green|others=Kelly – University of Toronto}}</ref>
Faringdon seems to have taken the king's side during the divorce controversy. While Henry was seeking authorities to support his views on matrimonial law, Faringdon sent him books he believed would serve that purpose.<ref name="DNB">{{cite DNB|wstitle=Faringdon, Hugh|volume=18|page=206}}</ref> He sat in Parliament from 1523 to 1539 and, in 1530, he signed, with other members of the House of Lords, a letter to the Pope pointing out the evils likely to result from delaying the divorce desired by the King; and, again in 1536, he signed the Articles of Faith drawn up in Convocation which virtually acknowledged the supremacy of the Crown over the Church. On Sunday, 4 November 1537, he sang the requiem and dirge for Queen Jane Seymour at St. George's Chapel, Windsor, and was present at the burial on 12 November. As late as March 1538, he was in favour, being placed in the commission of the peace for Berkshire.<ref name=wainewright/>
When the commissioners arrived to take the surrender of Reading Abbey, they reported favourably of the abbot's willingness to conform, but the surrender of the abbey does not survive, and it is not therefore known whether or not Faringdon actually signed it.<ref name="DNB"/>
thumb|right|Bas-relief of execution of Hugh Faringdon, at Reading Abbey ruins.|351x351px
In 1539, Faringdon was indicted for high treason after being accused of having assisted the Northern rebels with money. He was tracked down at Bere Court, his manor at Pangbourne, and taken back to the Tower of London, where he spent two months.<ref>Nash ''RBH: Hugh Cook of Faringdon's Memorial''</ref> As a mitred abbot, he was entitled to be tried by Parliament, but no scruples troubled the chancellor, Thomas Cromwell. His death sentence was therefore passed before his trial began.<ref name=wainewright/> Along with John Rugg, a known associate, and John Eynon, the priest of St Giles' Church in Reading, he was found guilty and hanged, drawn and quartered before the inner Abbey gatehouse on 14 November 1539.{{cn|date=November 2025}} alt=Map of Reading Abbey before its destruction.|thumb|upright=1.35|Map of Reading Abbey before its destruction. The inner court and gatehouse where Farringdon and his companions were murdered is clearly visible John Rugg had been charged with taking and concealing one of the Abbey's celebrated relics, being the purported hand of St. Anastasius. The monks of Reading, not under suspicion of complicity in the Abbot's alleged treason, were given pensions normally set upon monks and nuns at the dissolution of their monasteries.<ref name=dnb/>
==Legacy== Hugh Faringdon was declared a martyr of the Catholic Church and beatified by the Pope Leo XIII in 1895 and his feast day is 15 November.
There are stained glass windows of Blessed Hugh in the following churches:
* St James' Church, the Roman Catholic parish church that occupies part of the footprint of the now ruined Reading Abbey. His two martyred companions are also commemorated.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.jameswilliam-reading.org.uk/the-north-aisle.html |title=The North Aisle |publisher=Roman Catholic Parish of St James and St William of York Reading |accessdate=25 October 2017 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20171025190029/http://www.jameswilliam-reading.org.uk/the-north-aisle.html |archivedate=25 October 2017 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Eyes |first=Billy Blue |date=2018-12-22 |title=The Church Explorer: St James RC Church Reading |url=https://thechurchexporer.blogspot.com/2018/12/st-james-rc-church-reading.html |access-date=2022-09-30 |website=The Church Explorer}}</ref> * Saint Meinrad Archabbey, in Saint Meinrad, Indiana, along with beatified companions Whiting and Beche<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gibson |first=Paul |date=2018-10-28 |title=What are the Beatitude Stained Glass Windows at Saint Meinrad Archabbey? |url=https://biblequestions.info/2018/10/28/what-are-the-beatitude-stained-glass-windows-at-saint-meinrad-archabbey/ |access-date=2022-09-30 |website=BibleQuestions.info |language=en-US}}</ref> * Belmont Abbey outside Hereford<ref>{{Citation |last=Thomson |first=Aidan McRae |title=Blessed Hugh Faringdon |date=2010-04-24 |url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/amthomson/8496091114/ |access-date=2022-09-30}}</ref>
A plaque at the English Martyrs Church in Liebenrood Road, Reading, commemorates him.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.readingmuseum.org.uk/blog/last-abbot-reading|title=The Martyrdom of Hugh Faringdon, last Abbot of Reading |publisher=Museum of Reading |accessdate=25 October 2017}}</ref>
There is a panel painting of him in the Our Lady and Saint Anne Church in Caversham, Reading.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Gallery |url=https://www.ourladyandstanne.org.uk/gallery/ |access-date=2022-09-30 |website=Church of Our Lady and St Anne |language=en-US}}</ref>
He is also depicted on ''The Martyrdom of Hugh Faringdon, last Abbot of Reading'', painted by Harry Morley in 1917, and now in the collection of the Museum of Reading.<ref>[http://collections.readingmuseum.org.uk/index.asp?page=record&mwsquery=(%7Bsearch%7D=*%7Babbey%7D)&filename=REDMG&hitsStart=2 "Martyrdom of Hugh Faringdon, Last Abbot of Reading in 1539, Oil on canvas by Harry Morley - 1917", Reading Museum Collections]</ref>
The Blessed Hugh Faringdon Catholic School, a specialist performing arts college in Reading, is named after him,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://hughfaringdon.org/information/overview |last=Uttley |first=S. |title=Overview |publisher=Blessed Hugh Faringdon Catholic School |accessdate=27 July 2018 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180727184320/https://hughfaringdon.org/information/overview |archivedate=27 July 2018 |url-status=dead }}</ref> as also the Blessed Hugh Catholic Church in Faringdon.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.faringdon.org/roman-catholic-blessed-hugh.html |title=Blessed Hugh Roman Catholic Church |work=Faringdon community Website |accessdate=30 July 2018 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180730143035/http://www.faringdon.org/roman-catholic-blessed-hugh.html |archivedate=30 July 2018 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
A stone head of Hugh Faringdon was carved by Alex Wenham for the Reading Abbey Gateway, completed in 2021 to mark the Abbey's 900th anniversary.<ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbKF__BeTd0 | title=Abbey 900th Stone Carving – Sneak Preview | publisher=Reading Council | work=YouTube | date=2022 | accessdate=20 April 2025 }}</ref> This won a commendation in the 2022 Natural Stone Awards.<ref name="reading">{{cite news| url=https://media.reading.gov.uk/news/prestigious-award-for-readings-abbey-gateway-hugh-faringdon-carving | title=Prestigious award for Reading’s Abbey Gateway Hugh Faringdon Carving | location=UK | publisher=Reading Borough Council | date=7 December 2022 | access-date=20 April 2025 }}</ref> The plaster cast for the work is held in the collections of Reading Museum.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://collections.readingmuseum.org.uk/index.asp?page=record&mwsquery=({search}=*{queen})&filename=REDMG&hitsStart=259 | title=Hugh Cook Faringdon, Last Abbot of Reading: Plaster model by Alex Wenham – 2021 | publisher=Reading Museum | location=UK | access-date=20 April 2025 }}</ref>
==See also== * Richard Whiting, last Abbot of Glastonbury Abbey * Thomas Marshall, last Abbot of St John's Abbey, Colchester
==References== {{reflist|30em}} {{Catholic|wstitle=Blessed Hugh Faringdon}}
==External links== * [https://web.archive.org/web/20120224104749/http://www.readinglibraries.org.uk/services/local/faringdon.htm Reading Borough Libraries: Blessed Hugh Faringdon]
{{s-start}} {{s-rel|ca}} {{s-bef| before= Thomas III}} {{s-ttl | title= Abbot of Reading | years= 1520–1539 }} {{s-non|reason= Abbey dissolved}} {{s-end}} {{authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Faringdon, Hugh Cook}} Category:1539 deaths Category:English beatified people Category:Abbots of Reading Category:People associated with the Dissolution of the Monasteries Cook, Hugh Category:People executed under the Tudors for treason against England Category:16th-century English clergy Category:Benedictine abbots Category:Benedictine martyrs Category:Benedictine saints Category:Martyred Roman Catholic priests Category:16th-century Roman Catholic martyrs Category:Year of birth unknown Category:Executed people from Oxfordshire Category:People executed by the House of Tudor Category:People executed by the Kingdom of England by hanging, drawing and quartering Category:People executed under Henry VIII Category:Nine Martyrs of England and Wales Category:16th-century Christian abbots Category:16th-century English abbots