[3] William of Malmesbury, the medieval chronicler, called him "a very skilled doctor, not in theoretical knowledge, but in practice.
[5] The abbey had recently lost its abbot Alfsige, and was according to Domesday Book the owner of large estates in and near the town.
[11] In 1090 he transferred the seat, or administration, of the bishopric to Bath Abbey,[8][12] probably as an attempt to increase the revenues of his see.
[14] John rebuilt the monastic church at Bath, which had been damaged during one of Robert de Mowbray's rebellions.
[15] He also reformed the administration of his diocese, setting up archdeacons and organising a court for hearing ecclesiastical cases.
[6] In 1092, he helped with the consecration of Old Sarum Cathedral,[5] although its roof was almost immediately damaged by a storm and required decades of repair.
[18] After the accession of King Henry I of England, John received a confirmation of the grant of the city of Bath, paying 500 pounds of silver for the verification.
[5] William of Malmesbury claimed he was generous and affable, although the chronicler acknowledged that the bishop treated the canons of Wells abominably.
[15] William also recorded that John was a heavy drinker and not given to self-restraint, but that his health was good and he lived to be old.
[15] John's canons of Wells disliked him because he reduced their income and destroyed some of their buildings as part of the movement of the see to Bath.