ADAM of MARSH (de Marisco). - Born toward the end of the 12th century in Somerset, he pursued his studies at Oxford where he earned degrees in the Faculty of Arts. Ordained a priest, he accepted from his uncle Richard, Bishop of Durham, a pastoral charge; but upon the latter’s death he renounced the ample income that had come to him and entered the Friars Minor at Worcester. Invited again to Oxford, he advanced in philosophy under the guidance of Robert Grosseteste and simultaneously obtained the mastership in theology, which enabled him to occupy around 1226 the theological chair of the Oxford convent that had hitherto been held by a secular master. He took part in the General Chapter of Assisi in 1239 and was among those who advocated a return to the primitive spirit of the Rule. From his position as regent of the Studium Generale, which he held until 1247, he enforced strict academic discipline and repeatedly, as chancellor, defended the threatened interests of the university. He also joined Simon de Montfort and Robert Grosseteste in defending national liberties and franchises. Shunning honors and feeling his strength wane, he abandoned everything to meet in peace the death that overtook him on 18 November 1258.
He enjoyed exceptional renown and the title of *doctor illustris*; Roger Bacon numbers him among the *maiores clerici de mundo et perfecti in scientia divina et humana* (Op. tert., chaps. 22, 23, 25).
His works, according to Little, are for the most part theological and scriptural exegesis and remain unpublished. Brewer (London 1858) published 247 letters, a substantial source for the religious, political, and doctrinal history of the first half of the 13th century.