James Francis Turner (1829 – 27 April 1893) was the second Bishop of Grafton and Armidale in the 19th century.

Early life and education

Turner was born in Yarmouth,

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

in 1829, the son of Lord Justice Sir George James Turner and Louisa Jones. He was educated at

Charterhouse School Charterhouse is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) in Godalming, Surrey, England. Founded by Thomas Sutton in 1611 on the site of the old Carthusian monastery in Charter ...

, then apprenticed for four years in an architect's office. In 1848 he matriculated at

Durham University Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university in Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament (UK), Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by r ...

, where he graduated BA in 1851, licence in theology 1852, and MA in 1853. He was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

deacon in 1852, and priest in 1853, by

Edward Maltby Edward Maltby (6 April 1770 – 3 July 1859) was an English clergyman of the Church of England. He became Bishop of Durham, controversial for his liberal politics, for his ecumenism, and for the great personal wealth that he amassed. Early ...

Clerical career

From 1852-54, Turner was

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 ...

Bishop Cosin's Hall Bishop Cosin's Hall was a college of the University of Durham, opened in 1851 as the university's third college and named after 17th century Bishop of Durham John Cosin. It closed in 1864 due to a fall in student recruitment at the university ...

in the

University of Durham Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate public research university in Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by royal charter in 1837. It was the first recognised university to ...

, where he also designed the chapel of Hatfield Hall. He was curate of

Walton, Somerset Walton is a village and civil parish on the Polden Hills in Somerset, England, west of Street. The parish includes the hamlet of Asney. History Saxon pressure seems to have driven the Britons from the immediate area around 650 A.D. About 700 ...

from 1857, then rector of

North Tidworth Tidworth is a garrison town and civil parish in south-east Wiltshire, England, on the eastern edge of Salisbury Plain. Lying on both sides of the A338 about north of the A303 primary route, the town is approximately west of Andover, south o ...

from 1858, as well as

rural dean In the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion as well as some Lutheran denominations, a rural dean is a member of clergy who presides over a "rural deanery" (often referred to as a deanery); "ruridecanal" is the corresponding adjective ...

Amesbury Amesbury () is a town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. It is known for the prehistoric monument of Stonehenge which is within the parish. The town is claimed to be the oldest occupied settlement in Great Britain, having been first settl ...

from 1868. He was appointed Bishop of Grafton and Armidale after the first appointed bishop, Collinson Sawyer, drowned shortly after taking up the office.”The Story of The Anglican Church in Australia” Symonds, E. London, SPCK, 1898 He was consecrated a bishop on 24 February 1869 in

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. Since 1066, it has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British m ...

, by

Archibald Campbell Tait Archibald Campbell Tait (21 December 18113 December 1882) is an Archbishop of Canterbury in the Church of England and theologian. He was the first Scottish Archbishop of Canterbury and thus, head of the Church of England. Life Tait was born ...

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...

, George Selwyn

Bishop of New Zealand The Diocese of Auckland is one of the thirteen dioceses and ''hui amorangi'' ( Māori bishoprics) of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. The Diocese covers the area stretching from North Cape down to the Waikato River, ...

, and six other prelates. He was vice-president of the

English Church Union The Church Union is an Anglo-Catholic advocacy group within the Church of England. History The organisation was founded as the Church of England Protection Society on 12 May 1859 to challenge the authority of the English civil courts to determi ...

, an

Anglo-Catholic Anglo-Catholicism comprises beliefs and practices that emphasise the Catholicism, Catholic heritage (especially pre-English Reformation, Reformation roots) and identity of the Church of England and various churches within Anglicanism. Anglo-Ca ...

group. In late 1892, he resigned his post due to illness; on his way back to England, he died in Rome, aged 64, and is buried in the

Protestant Cemetery, Rome The Non-Catholic Cemetery (), also referred to as the Protestant Cemetery () or the English Cemetery (), is a private cemetery in the Rioni of Rome, rione of Testaccio in Rome. It is near Porta San Paolo and adjacent to the Pyramid of Cestius, ...

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Turner, James Francis 1829 births Alumni of University College, Durham Anglican bishops of Grafton and Armidale 19th-century Anglican bishops in Australia 1893 deaths People from Great Yarmouth