George Bernard Cronshaw (1872–1928) was a Chaplain, Fellow and Bursar of The Queen's College

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

and later Principal of

St Edmund Hall St Edmund Hall (also known as The Hall and Teddy Hall) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. The college claims to be "the oldest surviving academic society to house and educate undergraduates in any university" and was the last ...

, Oxford. He was well known for his charitable works outside of university life holding governorships of several schools and his association with British hospitals especially the

Radcliffe Infirmary The Radcliffe Infirmary was a hospital in central north Oxford, England, located at the southern end of Woodstock Road on the western side, backing onto Walton Street. Closed in 2007, after refurbishment the building was re-opened in October ...

in Oxford.

Early life

George was the second son of Rev. Christopher Cronshaw,

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. Raised in

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

, which now includes parts of

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, he attended

Manchester Grammar School The Manchester Grammar School (MGS) is a highly Selective school, selective Private_schools_in_the_United_Kingdom, private day school for boys aged 7-18 in Manchester, England, which was founded in 1515 by Hugh Oldham (then Bishop of Exeter). ...

and went up to Queen's College, Oxford as a Berry

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where he graduated with a first class in Chemistry. Leaving Oxford, he attended

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

Clergy School and was subsequently ordained into a

curacy A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' () 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 who are ass ...

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, Leeds.''The Times'' (1928a)

Oxford career

George Cronshaw returned to Oxford in 1898 as

Chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intellige ...

at his old college, Queen's whilst holding a curacy at St Cross Church, Holywell. He remained chaplain for thirty years during which time he strongly supported the college music society and choir. In 1900, resigned his curacy and was appointed lecturer in Chemistry, whereupon he organised the college chemistry laboratory in

Queen's Lane Queen's Lane is a historic street in central Oxford, England, named after Queen's College, to the south and west. St Edmund Hall, a constituent college of the University of Oxford, is located on the southern end of this street. Location At t ...

. In May 1902 he was elected a

Fellow A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned society, learned or professional society, p ...

of the college, and in 1905 became Junior

Bursar A bursar (derived from ''wikt:bursa, bursa'', Latin for 'Coin purse, purse') is a professional Administrator of the government, administrator in a school or university often with a predominantly financial role. In the United States, bursars usual ...

rising to Senior Bursar in 1912 at which time he relinquished all teaching responsibilities. Outside of the college he was Junior

Proctor Proctor (a variant of ''wikt:procurator, procurator'') is a person who takes charge of, or acts for, another. The title is used in England and some other English-speaking countries in three principal contexts: # In law, a proctor is a historica ...

for the University from 1909 to 1910 and served as a member of the

Hebdomadal Council The Hebdomadal Council was the chief executive body for the University of Oxford from its establishment by the Oxford University Act 1854 until its replacement, in the Michaelmas term of 2000, by the new University Council. Chaired by the Vice- ...

from 1911 until 1923. In addition, he acted as Visitor to the Museum, Acting Curator of the

Schools A school is the educational institution (and, in the case of in-person learning, the building) designed to provide learning environments for the teaching of students, usually under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of ...

and a member of the Boards of Natural History and Medicine. He was also chairman and secretary of the Committee of College Bursars. As treasurer of

St Hugh's College, Oxford St Hugh's College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford. It is located on a site on St Margaret's Road, to the north of the city centre. It was founded in 1886 by Elizabeth Wordsworth as a ...

he oversaw their move to the current premises in

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Schools and hospitals

Outside of university he was a member of the governing bodies of

King Edward VI School, Southampton King Edward VI School (also known as King Edward's, or KES) is a selective co-educational private day school founded in Southampton, England, in 1553. The Senior and Sixth Form site is on Hill Lane, Southampton whilst the Preparatory School is ...

and both

Heversham Heversham is a village and civil parish in the Westmorland and Furness unitary authority area of Cumbria, England. In the 2001 census the parish had a population of 647, increasing at the 2011 census to 699. It is situated above the marshe ...

and

Keswick School Keswick School is a coeducational 11–18 academy in Cumbria, United Kingdom rated 'Outstanding' by Ofsted in 2024 with 1200 pupils on roll. There are 260 students in the sixth form and 40 boarders. The school is the successor of th ...

s. He was chairman of governors for

St. Bees School St Bees School is a co-educational fee-charging school, located in the West Cumbrian village of St Bees, England. In 1583, it was founded by Edmund Grindal, the Archbishop of Canterbury, as a free grammar school for boys. The school remaine ...

. From 1910 to 1928 he was chairman and treasurer of the committee for the

whilst being a member of the committee of the British Hospital Association. At the Radcliffe, he helped to establish the throat and ear, maternity and electrical departments. He helped to obtain for the hospital the

Headington Headington is an eastern suburb of Oxford, in the county of Oxfordshire, England. It is at the top of Headington Hill overlooking the city in the Thames valley below, and bordering Marston, Oxford, Marston to the north-west, Cowley, Oxfordshire ...

Manor House and Children's Convalescent Home in Cowley and established a countywide contributory scheme that put the hospital on a sound financial footing. It was for such achievements that the Oxford City Council recommended that the freedom of the City be conferred upon him.

Church and freemasonry

In church life, he undertook the duties of examining chaplain to a number of dioceses: to the

Bishop of Chichester The Bishop of Chichester is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Chichester in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers the counties of East Sussex, East and West Sussex. The Episcopal see, see is based in t ...

from 1919 to 1921 and from 1921 to the

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.''The Times'' (1928b) It was observed that he would often cycle 10 or 20 miles out of Oxford on a Sunday to preach or take service in a county parish. He married late in life (1925) to Dorothy Wardle of Scarthwaite near

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; they had no children. An active

freemason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

, Cronshaw was three times Master of the

Apollo University Lodge Apollo University Lodge No 357 is a Masonic Lodge based at the University of Oxford aimed at past and present members of the university. It was consecrated in 1819, and its members have met continuously since then. University of Oxford Membersh ...

, Grand Senior Warden of the Provincial Grand Lodge of Oxfordshire and Grand Chaplain in the Grand Lodge of England.

St Edmund Hall

George Cronshaw's continuous hard work took its toll on his health and after a bout of

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in 1928 he was offered, in May of that year, the position of Principal of

St Edmund Hall, Oxford St Edmund Hall (also known as The Hall and Teddy Hall) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. The college claims to be "the oldest surviving academic society to house and educate undergraduates in any university" and was the las ...

which at that time still had close ties to Queen's College. In accepting the position, upon the retirement of G.B. Allan, he agreed to give up all his other duties and appointments. However, it was too late to save his health; he took to his bed ill, weeks after his appointment, and he died in his residence at the Hall on 20 December. He was succeeded as Principal by A.B. Emden who had himself only recently been appointed to Vice-Principal.''The Times'' (1929)

Notes

References

*''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' (1928a) "Rev. G. B. Cronshaw. Principal Of St. Edmund Hall, Oxford", Obituary, 21 December (45082), p. 19 (col. 'A') *''The Times'' (1928b) "University News: New Principal of St Edmund Hall, Oxford", 31 May (44907), p. 16 (col. 'D') *''The Times'' (1929) "University News: New Principal of St Edmund Hall", 9 January (45096), p. 14 (col. 'C') ** Free access to online copies of ''The Times'' is often possible in the UK through membership of a county library service {{DEFAULTSORT:Cronshaw, George Bernard 1872 births 1928 deaths Alumni of the Queen's College, Oxford Fellows of the Queen's College, Oxford People educated at Manchester Grammar School Principals of St Edmund Hall, Oxford