StJohnsAshfield Centenary Sutton p20 William Cowper

William Macquarie Cowper (known in his youth as Macquarie; 3 July 1810 – 14 June 1902) was an Australian

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

archdeacon and

Dean of Sydney St Andrew's Cathedral (also known as St Andrew's Anglican Cathedral) is a cathedral church of the Anglican Diocese of Sydney in the Anglican Church of Australia. The cathedral is the seat of the Anglican Archbishop of Sydney and Metropolitan o ...

. Cowper was born in Sydney, the son of the Revd

William Cowper William Cowper ( ; 26 November 1731 – 25 April 1800) was an English poet and Anglican hymnwriter. One of the most popular poets of his time, Cowper changed the direction of 18th-century nature poetry by writing of everyday life and scen ...

, assistant colonial chaplain, and his second wife, Ann (née Barrell) . Educated by his father and at the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

, he graduated BA from Magdalen Hall in 1833 and MA in 1835. Following admission to deacon´s order, he was appointed

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...

of St Petrox,

Dartmouth Dartmouth may refer to: Places * Dartmouth, Devon, England ** Dartmouth Harbour * Dartmouth, Massachusetts, United States * Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada * Dartmouth, Victoria, Australia Institutions * Dartmouth College, Ivy League university i ...

, and ordained

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

in 1834. He returned to Australia in 1836 and was made chaplain at Port Stephens,

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

where he remained for 20 years. He then became Acting Principal of

Moore Theological College Moore Theological College, otherwise known simply as Moore College, is the theological training seminary of the Diocese of Sydney in the Anglican Church of Australia. The president of the Moore Theological College Council is ''ex officio'' t ...

, Sydney, for a few months after the college opened at Liverpool on 1 March 1856, following which he became incumbent of St. John´s,

Bishopthorpe Bishopthorpe is a village and civil parish three miles south of York in the City of York unitary authority area and ceremonial county of North Yorkshire, England. Bishopthorpe is close to the River Ouse, and has a population of 3,174, increas ...

. In 1858 Cowper succeeded his father at

St Philip's Church ''Riceyman Steps'' is a novel by British novelist Arnold Bennett, first published in 1923 and winner of that year's James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction. It follows a year in the life of Henry Earlforward, a miserly second-hand bookshop ow ...

, Sydney. Later the same year he was appointed Archdeacon and Dean of Sydney. In 1869 he left St Philip¨s for the cathedral parish, which he occupied until his death. He several times acted as commissary for bishops Frederic Barker and

Alfred Barry Alfred Barry (15 January 18261 April 1910) was the third Bishop of Sydney serving 1884–1889. Over the course of his career, Barry served as headmaster of independent schools, Principal of King's College London university and founded Anglic ...

during their absences in England. In 1896 he was chosen

Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

of the Australian College of Theology. He was admired for his piety and kindliness. He published ''Episcopate of the Right Reverend Frederic Barker, D.D.'' in 1888 and his autobiography, ''The Autobiography and Reminiscences of William Macquarie Cowper'', was published soon after his death. Cowper died, aged 91, at the Deanery in Sydney on 14 June 1902, and was buried at St Jude's cemetery, Randwick. He was married twice and was survived by his children.

References

* K. J. Cable
Cowper, William Macquarie (1810 - 1902)
''

Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...

'', Volume 3, MUP, 1969, pp. 480–482. * * Peter G. Bolt, William Cowper (1778-1858). The Indispensable Parson. The Life and Influence of Australia's First Parish Clergyman (Camperdown, NSW: Bolt Publishing Services, 2009). *

External links

Parish Church of St Philip, Sydney
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cowper, William Macquarie 1810 births 1902 deaths Deans of Sydney Anglican archdeacons in Australia Academic staff of Moore Theological College Alumni of Magdalen Hall, Oxford