Bunhill Fields
Encyclopedia
Bunhill Fields is a cemetery in the London Borough of Islington
, north of the City of London
, and managed by the City of London Corporation. It is about 4 hectares (10 acres) in extent, although historically was much larger.
It was used as a burial site for Nonconformists
from the late 17th century until the middle of the 19th century and contains the graves of many notable people.
Bunhill Fields was part of the manor of Finsbury
(originally Fensbury), which is of great antiquity, the manor having its origins as a prebend of St Paul's Cathedral established in 1104.
In 1315 the prebendary manor was granted by Robert de Baldock to the Mayor and commonalty of London, enabling more general public access to a large area of fen or moor stretching from the City of London's boundary (London Wall), to the village of Hoxton.
In 1498 part of the otherwise unenclosed landscape was set aside to form a large field for the exercise of archers and other military citizens, and even today this part of the manor still bears the name "Artillery Ground
". Next to this lies Bunhill Fields, the name deriving from "Bone Hill", which is possibly a reference to the district having been used for occasional burials from at least Saxon
times, though more likely it derives from the unusual events of the mid-16th century. For, in about 1549, cart-loads of human bones were periodically brought here – some one thousand loads in total – to make space in St Paul's charnel house
for new interments. The dried bones were simply deposited on the moor and capped with a thin layer of soil, leading to such topographical elevation of the otherwise damp, flat fens, that three windmills could safely be erected in a spot that came to be known as Windmill Hill.
In keeping with this tradition, in 1665 the City of London Corporation decided to use some of the fen or moor fields as a common burial ground for the interment of bodies of inhabitants who had died of the plague and could not be accommodated in the churchyards. Although enclosing walls for the burial ground were completed, the ground was, it appears, never consecrated or actually used by the authorities for burials. Instead, a Mr Tindal took over the lease. He allowed extramural burials in its unconsecrated soil, which became popular with Nonconformists – those citizens of London or surrounding villages who treasured the independence of their religious beliefs and therefore practised Christianity outside of the Church of England
. The burial ground, which became known as "Tindal's Burial Ground" attracted mainly dissenters from the Established Church who were of a Protestant persuasion, partly owing to their much larger numbers in the locality than other faiths who did not conform to the Church of England's ways, such as Catholics or Jewish citizens. Nonetheless, the burial ground was open for interment to anyone who could afford the fees.
Something of its 17th-century origins can be seen today in an inscription at the entrance gate to Bunhill Fields: This church-yard was inclosed with a brick wall at the sole charges of the City of London, in the mayoralty of Sir John Lawrence, Knt., Anno Domini 1665; and afterwards the gates thereof were built and finished in the mayoralty of Sir Thomas Bloudworth, Knt., Anno Domini, 1666.
In 1769 an Act of Parliament gave the City of London Corporation the right to continue to lease the ground from the prebendal estate for a further 99 years. This enabled the City authorities to continue to let the ground to their tenant as a burial ground; although in 1781 the Corporation decided to take over the management of the burial ground directly.
So many historically important Protestant nonconformists chose this as their place of interment, that the 19th-century poet and writer Robert Southey
gave Bunhill Fields the memorable appellation: the Campo Santo of the Dissenters; a phrase that also came to be commonly applied to its 'daughter' cemetery at Abney Park
.
Thousands of Quakers (members of the Religious Society of Friends
) are buried in the neighbouring Quaker Burying Ground. This was purchased as the burial place for London Quakers in 1661, becoming their first freehold burial land in London.
Two decades before its closure, a group of City nonconformists led by George Collison
, secured a site for a new landscaped alternative – in Stoke Newington. This was named Abney Park Cemetery
, and opened in 1840. Here too all parts were to be made available for the burial of any person, regardless of religious creed, making Abney Park Cemetery the only Victorian garden cemetery in Britain with "no invidious dividing lines" and a unique nondenominational chapel (see the architecture of William Hosking
).
The neighbouring Nonconformists' ground, the Quaker Burying Ground, was also closed for burials in 1855.
Following closure of the Bunhill Fields Burial Ground, its future remained uncertain for a while since its lessee, the City of London Corporation, was perilously close to expiry of its lease, scheduled for Christmas 1867. In a move to prevent the land from being built upon on expiry of the lease, the Corporation formed the Special Bunhill Fields Burial Ground Committee in 1865 which became formally known as the Bunhill Fields Preservation Committee.
Appointed by the Corporation, the committee consisted on twelve advisors under the chairmanship of Charles Reed FSA (son of the Congregational philanthropist Dr Andrew Reed) who rose to prominence as the first MP
for Hackney and Chairman of the first School Board for London before being knighted. Along with his interest in making Bunhill Fields into a parkland landscape, he was similarly interested in the wider educational and public benefits of Abney Park Cemetery
, of which he was a prominent director.
Following the work of the committee, the City of London Corporation obtained an Act of Parliament, the Bunhill Fields Burial Ground Act 1867, "for the Preservation of Bunhill Fields Burial Ground ... as an open space". The legislation enabled the corporation to continue to maintain the site when the freehold reverted to the Church Commissioners; provided it was laid out as a public open space with seating, gardens, and the restoration of some of its most worthy monuments. The new park was opened by the Lord Mayor on October 14, 1869.
The nearby Quaker Burial ground was similarly landscaped. It became maintained at private expense by the Quakers which today provides open space around a Quaker Meeting House (the remnant of Bunhill Memorial Buildings erected in 1881 that remains after bomb damage in 1942).
The main burial ground was also severely damaged by German
bombing during World War II
, necessitating an expansion of the public park area in 1960, such that close to half of the former burial ground became laid out and maintained as a public garden with open access. The rest remains attractively landscaped though enclosed behind railings, to protect the areas with more delicate monuments and the whole is maintained by the City of London Corporation. Legislation in 1960 transferred the freehold to the Corporation.
Today, the earliest monumental inscription that can still be seen in the main Bunhill Fields Burial Ground reads: Grace, daughter of T. Cloudesly, of Leeds. Feb. 1666. (Maitland's Hist. of London, p. 775.) Many monuments of historical note can be visited, in particular,
Close by are the burial of many other eminent nonconformists such as the ministers Dr John Owen
(d. 1683) and Dr Goodwin (d. 1679). A more complete listing of the burials of well known figures is provided below.
London Borough of Islington
The London Borough of Islington is a London borough in Inner London. It was formed in 1965 by merging the former metropolitan boroughs of Islington and Finsbury. The borough contains two Westminster parliamentary constituencies, Islington North and Islington South & Finsbury...
, north of the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
, and managed by the City of London Corporation. It is about 4 hectares (10 acres) in extent, although historically was much larger.
It was used as a burial site for Nonconformists
Nonconformism
Nonconformity is the refusal to "conform" to, or follow, the governance and usages of the Church of England by the Protestant Christians of England and Wales.- Origins and use:...
from the late 17th century until the middle of the 19th century and contains the graves of many notable people.
Historical background
Finsbury
Finsbury is a district of central London, England. It lies immediately north of the City of London and Clerkenwell, west of Shoreditch, and south of Islington and City Road. It is in the south of the London Borough of Islington. The Finsbury Estate is in the western part of the district...
(originally Fensbury), which is of great antiquity, the manor having its origins as a prebend of St Paul's Cathedral established in 1104.
In 1315 the prebendary manor was granted by Robert de Baldock to the Mayor and commonalty of London, enabling more general public access to a large area of fen or moor stretching from the City of London's boundary (London Wall), to the village of Hoxton.
In 1498 part of the otherwise unenclosed landscape was set aside to form a large field for the exercise of archers and other military citizens, and even today this part of the manor still bears the name "Artillery Ground
Artillery Ground
The Artillery Ground in Finsbury is one of London's most centrally located cricket grounds, situated just off the City Road immediately north of the City of London...
". Next to this lies Bunhill Fields, the name deriving from "Bone Hill", which is possibly a reference to the district having been used for occasional burials from at least Saxon
Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
times, though more likely it derives from the unusual events of the mid-16th century. For, in about 1549, cart-loads of human bones were periodically brought here – some one thousand loads in total – to make space in St Paul's charnel house
Charnel house
A charnel house is a vault or building where human skeletal remains are stored. They are often built near churches for depositing bones that are unearthed while digging graves...
for new interments. The dried bones were simply deposited on the moor and capped with a thin layer of soil, leading to such topographical elevation of the otherwise damp, flat fens, that three windmills could safely be erected in a spot that came to be known as Windmill Hill.
Opening as a burial ground
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
. The burial ground, which became known as "Tindal's Burial Ground" attracted mainly dissenters from the Established Church who were of a Protestant persuasion, partly owing to their much larger numbers in the locality than other faiths who did not conform to the Church of England's ways, such as Catholics or Jewish citizens. Nonetheless, the burial ground was open for interment to anyone who could afford the fees.
In 1769 an Act of Parliament gave the City of London Corporation the right to continue to lease the ground from the prebendal estate for a further 99 years. This enabled the City authorities to continue to let the ground to their tenant as a burial ground; although in 1781 the Corporation decided to take over the management of the burial ground directly.
So many historically important Protestant nonconformists chose this as their place of interment, that the 19th-century poet and writer Robert Southey
Robert Southey
Robert Southey was an English poet of the Romantic school, one of the so-called "Lake Poets", and Poet Laureate for 30 years from 1813 to his death in 1843...
gave Bunhill Fields the memorable appellation: the Campo Santo of the Dissenters; a phrase that also came to be commonly applied to its 'daughter' cemetery at Abney Park
Abney Park Cemetery
Abney Park in Stoke Newington, in the London Borough of Hackney, is a historic parkland originally laid out in the early 18th century by Lady Mary Abney and Dr. Isaac Watts, and the neighbouring Hartopp family. In 1840 it became a non-denominational garden cemetery, semi-public park arboretum, and...
.
Thousands of Quakers (members of the Religious Society of Friends
Religious Society of Friends
The Religious Society of Friends, or Friends Church, is a Christian movement which stresses the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. Members are known as Friends, or popularly as Quakers. It is made of independent organisations, which have split from one another due to doctrinal differences...
) are buried in the neighbouring Quaker Burying Ground. This was purchased as the burial place for London Quakers in 1661, becoming their first freehold burial land in London.
Closure as a burial ground
In 1852 the Burial Act was passed which enabled places such as Bunhill Fields to be closed once they became full. Its Order for closure was made in December 1853 and the final burial (Elizabeth Howell Oliver) took place on January 5, 1854. By this date approximately 120,000 interments had taken place.Two decades before its closure, a group of City nonconformists led by George Collison
George Collison
George Collison was an English Congregationalist and educator associated with Hackney Academy or Hackney College, which became part of New College London - itself part of the University of London.-Early life:...
, secured a site for a new landscaped alternative – in Stoke Newington. This was named Abney Park Cemetery
Abney Park Cemetery
Abney Park in Stoke Newington, in the London Borough of Hackney, is a historic parkland originally laid out in the early 18th century by Lady Mary Abney and Dr. Isaac Watts, and the neighbouring Hartopp family. In 1840 it became a non-denominational garden cemetery, semi-public park arboretum, and...
, and opened in 1840. Here too all parts were to be made available for the burial of any person, regardless of religious creed, making Abney Park Cemetery the only Victorian garden cemetery in Britain with "no invidious dividing lines" and a unique nondenominational chapel (see the architecture of William Hosking
William Hosking
William Hosking FSA was a writer, lecturer, and architect who had an important influence on the growth and development of London in Victorian times...
).
The neighbouring Nonconformists' ground, the Quaker Burying Ground, was also closed for burials in 1855.
Opening as a community garden
Appointed by the Corporation, the committee consisted on twelve advisors under the chairmanship of Charles Reed FSA (son of the Congregational philanthropist Dr Andrew Reed) who rose to prominence as the first MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Hackney and Chairman of the first School Board for London before being knighted. Along with his interest in making Bunhill Fields into a parkland landscape, he was similarly interested in the wider educational and public benefits of Abney Park Cemetery
Abney Park Cemetery
Abney Park in Stoke Newington, in the London Borough of Hackney, is a historic parkland originally laid out in the early 18th century by Lady Mary Abney and Dr. Isaac Watts, and the neighbouring Hartopp family. In 1840 it became a non-denominational garden cemetery, semi-public park arboretum, and...
, of which he was a prominent director.
Following the work of the committee, the City of London Corporation obtained an Act of Parliament, the Bunhill Fields Burial Ground Act 1867, "for the Preservation of Bunhill Fields Burial Ground ... as an open space". The legislation enabled the corporation to continue to maintain the site when the freehold reverted to the Church Commissioners; provided it was laid out as a public open space with seating, gardens, and the restoration of some of its most worthy monuments. The new park was opened by the Lord Mayor on October 14, 1869.
The nearby Quaker Burial ground was similarly landscaped. It became maintained at private expense by the Quakers which today provides open space around a Quaker Meeting House (the remnant of Bunhill Memorial Buildings erected in 1881 that remains after bomb damage in 1942).
The main burial ground was also severely damaged by German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
bombing during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, necessitating an expansion of the public park area in 1960, such that close to half of the former burial ground became laid out and maintained as a public garden with open access. The rest remains attractively landscaped though enclosed behind railings, to protect the areas with more delicate monuments and the whole is maintained by the City of London Corporation. Legislation in 1960 transferred the freehold to the Corporation.
Today, the earliest monumental inscription that can still be seen in the main Bunhill Fields Burial Ground reads: Grace, daughter of T. Cloudesly, of Leeds. Feb. 1666. (Maitland's Hist. of London, p. 775.) Many monuments of historical note can be visited, in particular,
- John BunyanJohn BunyanJohn Bunyan was an English Christian writer and preacher, famous for writing The Pilgrim's Progress. Though he was a Reformed Baptist, in the Church of England he is remembered with a Lesser Festival on 30 August, and on the liturgical calendar of the Episcopal Church on 29 August.-Life:In 1628,...
, author of Pilgrim's Progress (a book translated into more languages than any other apart from the Bible) - Dr Isaac WattsIsaac WattsIsaac Watts was an English hymnwriter, theologian and logician. A prolific and popular hymnwriter, he was recognised as the "Father of English Hymnody", credited with some 750 hymns...
, the celebrated 'Father of Hymnology' whose hymns have been sung worldwide and was also a poet and educationalist.
Close by are the burial of many other eminent nonconformists such as the ministers Dr John Owen
John Owen (theologian)
John Owen was an English Nonconformist church leader, theologian, and academic administrator at the University of Oxford.-Early life:...
(d. 1683) and Dr Goodwin (d. 1679). A more complete listing of the burials of well known figures is provided below.
Notable graves
Notable burials here include:- Thomas BayesThomas BayesThomas Bayes was an English mathematician and Presbyterian minister, known for having formulated a specific case of the theorem that bears his name: Bayes' theorem...
(1702–1761), mathematician, clergyman, and friend of Richard PriceRichard PriceRichard Price was a British moral philosopher and preacher in the tradition of English Dissenters, and a political pamphleteer, active in radical, republican, and liberal causes such as the American Revolution. He fostered connections between a large number of people, including writers of the... - John BellersJohn BellersJohn Bellers was an English educational theorist and Quaker, author of Proposals for Raising a College of Industry of All Useful Trades and Husbandry .-Life:...
, (1654–1725), political and educational theorist and writer. - William BlackburnWilliam BlackburnWilliam Blackburn was the leading prison architect of the Georgian Era. Following the principles of John Howard, his designs aimed to provide inmates with dry and airy cells....
(1750–1790), architect and surveyor - William BlakeWilliam BlakeWilliam Blake was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his lifetime, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of both the poetry and visual arts of the Romantic Age...
(1757–1827), painter, engraver, poet, and mystic - John BradfordJohn Bradford (dissenting minister)John Bradford , was an English dissenting minister.Bradford, was born at Hereford in 1750, the son of a clothier, educated at Hereford grammar school, and at Wadham College, Oxford, where he took the degree of B.A. On leaving college he accepted a curacy at Frilsham in Berkshire, where he married...
(1750–1805) English dissentingEnglish DissentersEnglish Dissenters were Christians who separated from the Church of England in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.They originally agitated for a wide reaching Protestant Reformation of the Established Church, and triumphed briefly under Oliver Cromwell....
minister - John BunyanJohn BunyanJohn Bunyan was an English Christian writer and preacher, famous for writing The Pilgrim's Progress. Though he was a Reformed Baptist, in the Church of England he is remembered with a Lesser Festival on 30 August, and on the liturgical calendar of the Episcopal Church on 29 August.-Life:In 1628,...
(1628–1688), author of Pilgrim's ProgressThe Pilgrim's ProgressThe Pilgrim's Progress from This World to That Which Is to Come is a Christian allegory written by John Bunyan and published in February, 1678. It is regarded as one of the most significant works of religious English literature, has been translated into more than 200 languages, and has never been... - Thomas Fowell BuxtonThomas Fowell BuxtonSir Thomas Fowell Buxton, 1st Baronet was an English Member of Parliament, brewer, abolitionist and social reformer....
(1758–1795), anti-slavery philanthropist - Eleanor CoadeEleanor CoadeEleanor Coade was a devout Baptist and remained unmarried until her death on 16 November 1821 in Camberwell Grove, Camberwell, London. Her obituary notice was published in The Gentleman's Magazine which declared her ‘the sole inventor and proprietor of an art which deserves considerable notice’...
, Pioneer of the artificial stone known as 'Coade' stone - Dr John ConderJohn ConderJohn Conder D.D. was an Independent minister at Cambridge who later became President of the Independent College, Homerton in the parish of Hackney near London.-Life:...
, President of Homerton CollegeIndependent College, HomertonIndependent College, Homerton, later Homerton Academy, was a dissenting academy just outside London, England, in the 18th and early 19th centuries.-Background:... - Cromwells, two tombs bear the family name – "R Cromwell" and "H Cromwell"
- Daniel DefoeDaniel DefoeDaniel Defoe , born Daniel Foe, was an English trader, writer, journalist, and pamphleteer, who gained fame for his novel Robinson Crusoe. Defoe is notable for being one of the earliest proponents of the novel, as he helped to popularise the form in Britain and along with others such as Richardson,...
(1661–1731), author of Robinson CrusoeRobinson CrusoeRobinson Crusoe is a novel by Daniel Defoe that was first published in 1719. Epistolary, confessional, and didactic in form, the book is a fictional autobiography of the title character—a castaway who spends 28 years on a remote tropical island near Trinidad, encountering cannibals, captives, and... - Lt. Gen. Charles FleetwoodCharles FleetwoodCharles Fleetwood was an English Parliamentary soldier and politician, Lord Deputy of Ireland from 1652–55, where he enforced the Cromwellian Settlement. At the Restoration he was included in the Act of Indemnity as among the twenty liable to penalties other than capital, and was finally...
(? – 1692), married eldest daughter of Oliver CromwellOliver CromwellOliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
and fought in The Civil WarEnglish Civil WarThe English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists... - James FosterJames Foster (baptist minister)James Foster was an English Baptist minister.-Early life:Foster was born and baptized at Exeter, 6 September 1697. Most of our biographical knowledge of him comes from memoirs attached to a sermon preached at his funeral by his friend and colleague, Caleb Fleming...
(1697–1753), Baptist minister and author of Essay on Fundamentals, one of the first non-conformist texts. - George FoxGeorge FoxGeorge Fox was an English Dissenter and a founder of the Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as the Quakers or Friends.The son of a Leicestershire weaver, Fox lived in a time of great social upheaval and war...
(1624–1691), a founder of the Quaker movement - John GillJohn Gill (theologian)John Gill was an English Baptist pastor, biblical scholar, and theologian who held to a firm Calvinistic soteriology. Born in Kettering, Northamptonshire, he attended Kettering Grammar School where he mastered the Latin classics and learned Greek by age 11...
(1697–1771), author of the Exposition of the Bible and the Body of Divinity - Thomas HardyThomas Hardy (political reformer)Thomas Hardy was an early Radical, the founder and also the first Secretary of the London Corresponding Society....
(1752–1832), political reformer and founder of the London Corresponding SocietyLondon Corresponding SocietyLondon Corresponding Society was a moderate-radical body concentrating on reform of the Parliament of Great Britain, founded on 25 January 1792. The creators of the group were John Frost , an attorney, and Thomas Hardy, a shoemaker and metropolitan Radical... - Joseph HartJoseph HartJoseph Hart was an 18th-century Calvinist minister in London. His works include "Hart's Hymns", a much-loved hymn book amongst evangelical Christians throughout its lifetime of over 200 years, which includes the well-known hymn, "Come ye sinners, poor and needy".One of Joseph Hart's early...
(1712–1768), hymn writer and Calvinist minister in London - Jabez Carter HornblowerJabez Carter HornblowerJabez Carter Hornblower was an English pioneer of steam power, the son of Jonathan Hornblower.Jabez Carter Hornblower was born in Broseley, Staffordshire, England on 21 May 1744, the eldest child of steam engineer Jonathan and Ann Carter Hornblower. He gained his engineering skills working for his...
(1744–1814), Steam engine pioneer. - John HyattRev. John HyattJohn Hyatt was an Englishman of simple rural upbringing who found Wesleyan theology as a young man. He went on to become a much loved and revered driving force of early Methodism in London, becoming influential in the First Great Awakening. He was to be found preaching regularly in the East End...
(1767–1826), One of the founding preachers of Calvinist Methodism at Whitefield's Tabernacle, Tottenham Court RoadWhitefield's Tabernacle, Tottenham Court RoadWhitefield's Tabernacle, Tottenham Court Road, a church in London, England; also called Tottenham Court Road Chapel, was built in 1756 for George Whitefield. It was enlarged in 1759...
1806–1828. - Theophilus LindseyTheophilus LindseyTheophilus Lindsey was an English theologian and clergyman who founded the first avowedly Unitarian congregation in the country, at Essex Street Chapel.-Life:...
(1723–1808), a founder of Unitarianism - Paul Henry MatyPaul Henry MatyPaul Henry Maty was an English librarian.He was born in London, the son of the librarian Matthew Maty and was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge. He vacated a Trinity fellowship to marry in 1775. In 1777 he published his religious doubts about the 39 articles in the Gentleman's Magazine...
(1744–1787) British Museum librarian. - David NasmithDavid NasmithDavid Nasmith founded The City Mission Movement in the UK, the US and in Europe.-Biography:Born in Glasgow Scotland in March 1799, Nasmith commenced working in manufacturing as an apprentice...
(1799-1839) founder of the City Mission MovementCity MissionThe City Mission movement started in Glasgow in January 1826 when David Nasmith, founded the Glasgow City Mission . It was an interdenominational agency working alongside churches and other Christian agencies to provide for the spiritual and material welfare of those in need.Agencies in the... - Thomas NewcomenThomas NewcomenThomas Newcomen was an ironmonger by trade and a Baptist lay preacher by calling. He was born in Dartmouth, Devon, England, near a part of the country noted for its tin mines. Flooding was a major problem, limiting the depth at which the mineral could be mined...
(1663–1729) Steam Engine Pioneer (exact site of burial unknown) - Joseph NightingaleJoseph NightingaleJoseph Nightingale was a prolific English writer and preacher. He was particularly noted for his topographic writing and his interest in shorthand.-Life:...
(1775–1824), writer and preacher - John OwenJohn Owen (theologian)John Owen was an English Nonconformist church leader, theologian, and academic administrator at the University of Oxford.-Early life:...
(1616–1683), Puritan divine and statesman - Dame Mary Page (1672–1728), wife of Sir Gregory PageGregory PageThe heads of three successive generations of the same English family were each named Gregory Page. A wealthy family whose fortune was not inherited but initially accumulated through trade, the Pages were closely associated with the development of north-west Kent during the 18th century.-First...
- Apsley Pellatt (1763–1826), glass manufacturer.
- Richard PriceRichard PriceRichard Price was a British moral philosopher and preacher in the tradition of English Dissenters, and a political pamphleteer, active in radical, republican, and liberal causes such as the American Revolution. He fostered connections between a large number of people, including writers of the...
(1733–1791), founder of life insurance principles - Thomas PringleThomas PringleThomas Pringle was a Scottish writer, poet and abolitionist, known as the father of South African Poetry, the first successful English language poet and author to describe South Africa's scenery, native peoples, and living conditions.Born at Blaiklaw , four miles south of Kelso in Roxburghshire he...
(1789–1834), Scottish poet and author, and Secretary to the Anti-Slavery SocietyAnti-Slavery SocietyThe Anti-Slavery Society or A.S.S. was the everyday name of two different British organizations.The first was founded in 1823 and was committed to the abolition of slavery in the British Empire. Its official name was the Society for the Mitigation and Gradual Abolition of Slavery Throughout the...
:(re-interred 1970, Eildon Church, Baviaans valley, South Africa) - John RipponJohn RipponJohn Rippon was an English Baptist minister and in 1787 published an important hymnal, A Selection of Hymns from the Best Authors, Intended to Be an Appendix to Dr. Watts’ Psalms and Hymns, commonly known as Rippon's Selection, which was very successful, and was reprinted 27 times in over 200,000...
(1750–1836), BaptistBaptistBaptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
clergyman, composer of many well known hymns - Thomas RosewellThomas RosewellReverend Thomas Rosewell was a non-conformist minister of Rotherhithe, Surrey who was found guilty of treason but subsequently pardoned by King Charles II.-Early years and education:...
(1630–1692), nonconformist minister of Rotherhithe - Richard 'Conversation' SharpRichard Sharp (politician)Richard Sharp, FRS, FSA , also known as "Conversation" Sharp, was a hat-maker, banker, merchant, poet, critic, British politician, but above all - doyen of the conversationalists.-Family background:...
(1759–1835) Prominent among the Dissenters' 'Deputies', critic, merchant and MP. - John Benjamin Tolkien, grandfather of writer J. R. R. TolkienJ. R. R. TolkienJohn Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion.Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Pembroke College,...
- Isaac WattsIsaac WattsIsaac Watts was an English hymnwriter, theologian and logician. A prolific and popular hymnwriter, he was recognised as the "Father of English Hymnody", credited with some 750 hymns...
(1674–1742), HymnHymnA hymn is a type of song, usually religious, specifically written for the purpose of praise, adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification...
Writer, Educationalist and Poet - Susanna WesleySusanna WesleySusanna Wesley , born Susanna Annesley, was the daughter of Dr. Samuel Annesley and Mary White, and the mother of John and Charles Wesley....
(1669–1742), mother of John WesleyJohn WesleyJohn Wesley was a Church of England cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, as founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...
, founder of MethodismMethodismMethodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement within Anglicanism. His younger brother... - George WhiteheadGeorge Whitehead (Quaker leader)George Whitehead was a leading early Quaker preacher, author and lobbyist remembered for his advocacy of religious freedom before three kings of England. His lobbying in defense of the right to practice the Quaker religion was influential on the Act of Uniformity, the Bill of Rights of 1689 and...
(1636–1723), Quaker leader and author of The Christian Progress of George Whitehead - Daniel WilliamsDaniel Williams (theologian)The Revd. Dr. Daniel Williams was a Welsh Presbyterian benefactor, minister and theologian.-Early ministry:Williams was born in Wrexham, Denbighshire, and was a cousin of Stephen Davies, minister at Banbury...
(1643–1716), founder of Dr Williams's LibraryDr Williams's LibraryDr Williams's Library is a small research library located in Gordon Square in Bloomsbury, London.-History:It was founded using the estate of Dr Daniel Williams as a theological library, intended for the use of ministers of religion, students and others studying theology, religion and... - Joshua BayesJoshua Bayes-Life:Bayes was son of the Rev. Samuel Bayes, who was ejected by the Act of Uniformity of 1662 from a living in Derbyshire, and after 1662 lived at Manchester until his death. Believed to be born in 1671, he received his entire secular education in the grammar school of his native town, Manchester...
(1671–1746), English Divine - Henry HunterHenry Hunter (divine)Henry Hunter was a Scottish minister who translated the works of noted scholars including Leonard Euler and Johann Kaspar Lavater.-Biography:...
(1741-1802), Scottish minister
- William Shrubsole
- Herschel Barnabus (1765-181?) Infamous London Playwright