George van Egmond

George or Joris van Egmont (c. 1504, in Egmond – 26 September 1559, in Saint-Amand Abbey) was a Christian religious authority and a bishop, who served as bishop of Utrecht from 1535 to 1559.

George van Egmond
Bishop of Utrecht
George van Egmond (Jan van Scorel, 1535)
Church	Catholic Church
Diocese	Archdiocese of Utrecht
Appointed	26 February 1535
Term ended	26 September 1559
Predecessor	William of Enckenvoirt
Successor	Frederik V Schenck van Toutenburg
Orders
Consecration	1536
Personal details
Born	c. 1504 Egmond
Died	26 September 1559 Saint-Amand Abbey

Biography

George was the son of Jan III van Egmont. In 1526 he became canon and later deacon of the chapter of Liège. Next he became abbot of Saint-Amand Abbey (since destroyed in the wars of the Protestant Reformation and French Revolution) at Saint-Amand-les-Eaux, south of Tournai. Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor appointed him bishop of Utrecht in 1534 as a favour to the Dutch nobility. Because he had to be ordained as priest, his consecration as bishop was delayed for over a year. George stayed in Saint-Amand, and had a vicar manage the bishopric for him. He acted unsuccessfully against the rise of Calvinism.

Legacy

George van Egmont in prayer on the right side of a large stained glass window he donated to the Janskerk (Gouda).

Cenotaph memorial to George van Egmont in St. Martin's Cathedral, Utrecht

The stained glass window he donated with the theme of the baptism of Christ still exists in the Janskerk in Gouda. This window was designed and made by Dirk Crabeth in 1557-8.

Egmond coat of arms

After his death he was buried in Saint-Amand Abbey, but his heart was interred in a cenotaph in St. Martin's Cathedral, Utrecht. A portrait of George van Egmont from c. 1535, painted by his friend Jan van Scorel, is located in the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam.