Short answers, pulled from the story.
Stephen Gardiner entered the world in Bury St Edmunds on the 27th of July 1483, though historians still debate the exact year. His father remains a mystery, possibly John Gardiner or William Gardiner, a wealthy cloth merchant who ensured his son received an excellent education.
By 1520, Stephen Gardiner had earned a doctorate in civil law, followed by a doctorate in canon law the next year. No scholar could dispute his pre-eminence in these fields during that era.
Stephen Gardiner resisted ecclesiastical authorities visiting his Winchester diocese during this period and wrote at least 25 indignant letters to Somerset claiming reforms were both theologically wrong and unconstitutional. He entered the Tower of London in June 1548 after refusing satisfactory answers from the Privy Council.
Queen Mary I freed state prisoners including Stephen Gardiner upon entering London in 1553 and restored him to his bishopric while appointing him Lord Chancellor. She placed the crown on her head during coronation ceremonies as he became her leading councillor.
Bishop Stephen Gardiner died at Westminster on the 12th of November 1555 after falling ill toward month-end. His body lay temporarily buried in a vault at St Mary Overie church before transfer to Winchester Cathedral in February 1556.