Archdeacon of Bedford
The Archdeacon of Bedford is an ecclesiastical post in the Church of England Diocese of St Albans in the Province of Canterbury. Historically the post was in the Diocese of Lincoln, then from 1837 in the Diocese of Ely, England. On 13 April 1914, the archdeaconry became a part of the Diocese of St Albans. The present holder of the office is Dave Middlebrook, collated Archdeacon on 30 March 2019. Seal. The 12/13th c. brass seal-matrix of the Archdeacon of Bedford was found in South Lincolnshire in 2003 by a metal detectorist, in almost perfect condition . It displays a legend in Latin: SIGILLUM ARCHIDIACONI BEDEFORDI(A)E ("Seal of the Archdeacon of Bedford"). Of two heraldic shields, that shown at dexter displays the arms of Cantilupe (modern): "Gules, three leopard's faces jessant-de-lys or", as used by Saint Thomas de Cantilupe (d.1282), Bishop of Hereford, and later adopted as the arms of the See of Hereford. The reason for the use of the Cantilupe arms on the seal is unclear, the surviving (but incomplete) list of Archdeacons of Bedford does not include a member of the Cantilupe family. The office of Archdeacon of Bedford had no  connection with the See of Hereford and is known to have been under the control of the See of Lincoln, hence a possible reason for the location the object was found in. The Cantilupe family were feudal barons of Eaton (Bray) in Bedfordshire and were seated (amongst many other places) at Eaton Castle, near Dunstable, not too far from the town of Bedford. A junior branch (see Baron Cantilupe) was seated at Greasley Castle in Nottingham and at Withcall in Lincolnshire, in which county they were prominent. Nicholas de Cantilupe, 3rd Baron Cantilupe (c.1301–1355) of Greasley founded the Cantilupe Chantry  in Lincoln Cathedral and was buried in the Cathedral where survives his mutilated recumbent effigy. However the armorials of the Greasley branch include a "fess vair", not shown on the seal. The style of the seal with the gothic architectural elements date it to the 13/14th. centuries. Measurements: 32 mm x 51 mm; weight 2.5 g.