Thomas Burgess (bishop)

Burgess was born at Odiham in Hampshire and educated at Robert May's School, Odiham, at Winchester College, and at Corpus Christi College, Oxford (B.A. 1778, M.A. 1782). He was a precocious scholar. Before graduating, he edited a reprint of John Burton's Pentalogia, and in 1781 he brought out an annotated edition of Richard Dawes' Miscellanea Critica (reprinted, Leipzig, 1800). In 1783 he became a fellow of his college, and in 1784 he was ordained deacon and priest.[1];[2]

In 1785 Burgess was appointed chaplain to Shute Barrington, bishop of Salisbury.[3] In that capacity Burgess wrote The Salisbury Spelling Book, an introductory manual for teaching reading and writing, which became highly popular in Sunday school classes throughout the country : the first edition (1785) was followed rapidly by further editions.[4] From 1787 to 1803 he held the prebend of Wilsford and Woodford in Salisbury cathedral, resigning on his appointment as bishop of St Davids.[5] In 1788 Burgess published his Considerations on the Abolition of Slavery, in which he advocated the principle of gradual emancipation.

When Barrington was appointed bishop of Durham in 1791, Burgess moved to Durham with Barrington. From 1791 until 1825 he held a prebendal stall at Durham: holding in turn the 9th (1791-92),[6] 6th (1792-1820)[7] and 2nd (1820-1825) stalls.[8] At Durham he carried out evangelistic work among the poorer classes. A pen portrait of the Durham prebendaries in 1831 describes Burgess as 'silent in company, learned and intelligible in the pulpit ; addressing the understanding in sound and classical language, informing the ignorant as the sun dispels the darkness of night.'[9]

In 1803 Burgess was appointed to the vacant bishopric of St David's, then far the largest of the Welsh sees. He held the see for over twenty years, together with his prebendal stall in Durham. Burgess was "the first Welsh bishop for generations to devote himself to his duties... [He] was enthusiastically in favour of clergy who could preach in Welsh ... [and] equally enthusiastically in favour of giving church patronage to Welsh cultural activities." In 1804 a Welsh translation of a catechism written by Burgess was published at Carmarthen. To educate Welsh clergy for the diocese, Burgess founded and endowed St David's College, Lampeter (now the Lampeter campus of the University of Wales Trinity Saint David). On his death he left his library to the College. Burgess established the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge in the diocese and was a prime mover in the creation of the Cambrian Societies, organisers of the provincial eisteddfodau.[10]

In 1825 Burgess was translated Bishop of Salisbury, resigning his stall in Durham. He was the last Bishop of Salisbury to be ex officio Chancellor of the Order of the Garter before that honour passed to the Bishop of Oxford. Both at Salisbury and at St David's, Burgess founded a Church Union Society for the assistance of infirm and distressed clergymen. Burgess opposed both Unitarianism and Catholic Emancipation.[3] The latter policy led to several clashes with the Government: the Duke of Wellington told him sharply that he would do far more to strengthen the Protestant faith by staying in his diocese and minding his flock than he could by bombarding the Government with political pamphlets.

Thomas Burgess was a founding member of the Odiham Agricultural Society in 1783, and played a leading role in establishing the Royal Veterinary College. In 1820 he was appointed first president of the recently founded Royal Society of Literature.

He died on 19 February 1837, and was buried at Salisbury on 27 February.[11]

A list of his works, which are very numerous, will be found in his biography by John Scandrett Harford (2nd ed, 1841). In addition to those already referred to may be mentioned his Essay on the Study of Antiquities; First Principles of Christian Knowledge; Reflections on the Controversial Writings of Dr. Priestley; Emendationes in Suidam et Hesychium, et alios Lexicographos Graecos; The Bible, and nothing but the Bible, the Religion of the Church of England.[3]

• John Scandrett Harford, The life of Thomas Burgess, D.D., F.R.S., F.A.S. &c. &c. &c. late Lord Bishop of Salisbury, Orme, Brown, Green and Longmans, London.
• D T W Price, Yr Esgob Burgess a Choleg Llanbedr: Bishop Burgess and Lampeter College, University of Wales Press, Cardiff (ISBN 0-7083-0965-8)
• Tout, Thomas Frederick (1886). "Burgess, Thomas (1756-1837)" . In Stephen, Leslie (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography. 7. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
• Nigel Yates, Bishop Burgess and his world : culture, religion and society in Britain, Europe and North America in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, University of Wales Press, Cardiff (2007)