Harold Browne

Edward Harold Browne (usually called Harold; 6 March 1811 – 18 December 1891) was a bishop of the Church of England.

Early life and education

He was born on 6 March 1811 at Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, the second son of Robert Browne of Morton House, in Buckinghamshire, and of Sarah Dorothea Steward; and younger brother to Thomas Gore Browne. He was educated at Eton College and Emmanuel College, Cambridge.^[1] After securing his BA in 1832, he won the Crosse theological scholarship in 1833, the Tyrwhitt Hebrew scholarship in 1834, and the Norrisian prize in 1835. He graduated with his MA in 1836, was elected fellow of Emmanuel in 1837, and appointed senior tutor in 1838. In 1854 he was elected Norrisian Professor of Divinity at Cambridge. He took the BD in 1855 and the DD in 1864.^[2]

Early career

He was ordained deacon in on 26 November 1836 by Joseph Allen, Bishop of Ely^[3] and priest, again by Allen, on 3 December 1837. In 1841, he accepted a curacy in Exeter (St Sidwell's), but in 1843 moved to Wales as Vice-Principal of St David's College. In 1849, he took a benefice in Cornwall, to which was attached a prebendal stall in Exeter Cathedral, which he exchanged in 1857 for a canonry in the same and the living of Heavitree.

Later career

In 1854, he was appointed to the Norrisian chair of divinity at the University of Cambridge but held his livings in the Diocese of Exeter concurrently. (The Cornish benefice was the vicarage of Kenwyn and Kea.) On 29 March 1864 he was consecrated Bishop of Ely by Charles Longley, Archbishop of Canterbury (assisted by Connop Thirlwall, Bishop of St David's and Henry Philpott, Bishop of Worcester) at Westminster Abbey;^[4] he was enthroned at Ely Cathedral on 26 April. During his time at Ely he returned to his home town for the re-opening of a newly refurbished church of St. Mary the Virgin, Aylesbury in 1869. In December 1873, he was translated to the see of Winchester; he was enthroned at Winchester Cathedral on 11 December.

Browne resigned his See in 1890 and died at Shales House near Bitterne on 18 December 1891.^[2]

Legacy

Browne was a High Churchman and in 1885, Browne set up the first diocesan organisation of the Mothers' Union, which had previously been a simple parish meeting chaired by Mary Sumner in Old Alresford. He was a moderating influence in the conflict arising from Essays and Reviews and the Pentateuch criticism of J. W. Colenso. His Exposition of the Thirty-Nine Articles (2 vols.) 1850, 1853 held its place as a standard work for many years.^[5]

Marriage and family

In 1840, he married Elizabeth Carlyon (daughter of Philip Carlyon).^[2]

Styles and titles

• 1811–1836: Harold Browne Esq
• 1836–1849: The Reverend Harold Browne
• 1849–1854: The Reverend Prebendary Harold Browne
• 1854–1857: The Reverend Prebendary Professor Harold Browne
• 1857–1864: The Reverend Canon Professor Harold Browne
• 1894–1884: The Right Reverend Doctor Harold Browne

References

1. ↑ "Browne, Edward Harold (BRWN827EH)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge. 
2. 1 2 3 Buckland 1901.
3. ↑ Kitchin, George (1895). Edward Harold Browne, D.D., Lord Bishop of Winchester and Prelate of the Most Noble Order of the Garter. London: John Murray. p. 46. Retrieved 5 September 2014. 
4. ↑ Kitchin, George (1895). Edward Harold Browne, D.D., Lord Bishop of Winchester and Prelate of the Most Noble Order of the Garter. London: John Murray. p. 254. Retrieved 5 September 2014. 
5. ↑ "Browne, Edward Harold" in: Cross, F. L. (ed.) (1957) The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. London: Oxford University Press; p. 201

Sources

Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Browne, Edward Harold.

Attribution

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Buckland, Augustus Robert (1901). "Browne, Edward Harold". In Sidney Lee. Dictionary of National Biography, 1901 supplement​. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 

External links

• "Bibliographic directory" from Project Canterbury
• Memoir of Harold Browne, by G. W. Kitchin, 1895
• Kitchin, G. W. (1895) Edward Harold Browne, D.D. London: John Murray