Ralph Brownrigg or Brownrig (1592–1659) was bishop of Exeter from 1642 to 1646. He spent that time largely in exile from his see, which he perhaps never visited. He did find a position there for Seth Ward. He was both a Royalist in politics, and a

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

in religion,''...a

conforming Puritan Historians have produced and worked with a number of definitions of Puritanism, in an unresolved debate on the nature of the Puritan movement of the 16th and 17th century. There are some historians who are prepared to reject the term for historical ...

in close theological agreement with the now dominant faction''

an unusual combination of the period. Brownrigg opposed

Laudianism Laudianism was an early seventeenth-century reform movement within the Church of England, promulgated by Archbishop William Laud and his supporters. It rejected the predestination upheld by the previously dominant Calvinism in favour of free will, ...

in Cambridge during the 1630s and at the Short Parliament Convocation of 1640. Nominated to the

Westminster Assembly The Westminster Assembly of Divines was a council of divines (theologians) and members of the English Parliament appointed from 1643 to 1653 to restructure the Church of England. Several Scots also attended, and the Assembly's work was adopt ...

, he apparently took no part in it.

Life

He studied at

Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line ...

and

Pembroke Hall, Cambridge Pembroke College (officially "The Master, Fellows and Scholars of the College or Hall of Valence-Mary") is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college is the third-oldest college of the university and has over 700 ...

. He was awarded an M.A. in 1614 and a D.D. in 1626. He was Rector of St Margaret of Antioch,

Barley, Hertfordshire Barley is a village and civil parish in the district of North Hertfordshire, England. According to the 2001 census, it has a population of 659, increasing to 662 at the 2011 Census. The place-name refers to a lea or meadow and not to the grain-pr ...

, in 1621. He was Master of St Catharine's College, Cambridge, and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge, but in 1646 was ejected from both these positions, by the Parliamentary government. He was also deprived of his See by Parliament on 9 October 1646, as episcopacy was abolished for the duration of the Commonwealth and the

Protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over most of its int ...

. He took refuge with Thomas Rich, lord of the manor of

Sonning Sonning is a village and civil parish in Berkshire, England, on the River Thames, east of Reading. The village was described by Jerome K. Jerome in his book '' Three Men in a Boat'' as "the most fairy-like little nook on the whole river". Geo ...

Works

He continued to preach, for example at the

Temple Church The Temple Church is a Royal peculiar church in the City of London located between Fleet Street and the River Thames, built by the Knights Templar as their English headquarters. It was consecrated on 10 February 1185 by Patriarch Heraclius of J ...

, and a collection of sermons of his was published posthumously.

Notes

External links

Bibliographic directory
from Project Canterbury
Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brownrigg, Ralph 1592 births 1659 deaths Bishops of Exeter Westminster Divines Masters of St Catharine's College, Cambridge Alumni of Pembroke College, Cambridge Vice-Chancellors of the University of Cambridge 17th-century Church of England bishops