Robert James Carr (1774–1841) was an English churchman,

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 ...

in 1824 and

Bishop of Worcester The Bishop of Worcester is the Ordinary (officer), head of the Church of England Anglican Diocese of Worcester, Diocese of Worcester in the Province of Canterbury, England. The title can be traced back to the foundation of the diocese in the ...

in 1831.

Early life

Born 9 May 1774 and christened 9 June at

Feltham Feltham () is a town in West London, England, from Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it became part of the London Borough of Hounslow in 1965. The parliamentary constituency of Feltham and Heston (UK Parliament constituency), Felt ...

, London he was the eldest son of the Reverend Colston Carr, at the time vicar of Feltham, and his wife Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Bullock. His elder sister, Elizabeth Ann, married Sir James Lloyd , and his younger brother was Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Henry William Carr . His father, later vicar of

Ealing Ealing () is a district in west London (sub-region), west London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. It is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Pl ...

, was chaplain first to the King's younger brother Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and, after his death, to the King's younger son,

Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn (Edward Augustus; 2 November 1767 – 23 January 1820) was the fourth son and fifth child of King George III and Queen Charlotte. His only child, Queen Victoria, Victoria, became Queen of the United Ki ...

. He received his primary education at a school his father ran in

Twickenham Twickenham ( ) is a suburban district of London, England, on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historic counties of England, Historically in Middlesex, since 1965 it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, who ...

, before being sent to Merchant Taylors' School, London. From there he went up in 1792 to

Worcester College, Oxford Worcester College ( ) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. The college was founded in 1714 by the benefaction of Sir Thomas Cookes, 2nd Baronet (1648–1701) of Norgrove, Worcestershire, whose coat of arms was ad ...

, gaining the degrees of BA in 1796, MA in 1806 and both BD and DD in 1820.

Career

Following his father and grandfather into the Church of England, he was ordained priest in 1798 by the

Bishop of Salisbury The Bishop of Salisbury is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of Salisbury in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers much of the counties of Wiltshire and Dorset. The Episcopal see, see is in the Salisbur ...

and held various appointments until 1804, when he became vicar of

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

. A busy fishing port and holiday resort, it was where the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

, the future King

George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death in 1830. At the time of his accession to the throne, h ...

, spent much time and a friendship began between the two men which lasted for life. When the Prince became King in 1820, he was able to advance his friend, who was appointed

Deputy Clerk of the Closet The Deputy Clerk of the Closet is the Domestic Chaplain to the Monarch, Sovereign of the United Kingdom. The office was created in 1677. Since 1931, the Deputy Clerk is also the sub-dean of the Chapel Royal (under the Clerk of the Closet). The De ...

, Dean and Canon of Hereford and

Canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...

Salisbury Cathedral Salisbury Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is an Church of England, Anglican cathedral in the city of Salisbury, England. The cathedral is regarded as one of the leading examples of Early English architecture, ...

and of

Chichester Cathedral Chichester Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Chichester. It is located in Chichester, in West Sussex, England. It was founded as a cathedral in 1075, when the seat of th ...

. Four years later he was consecrated bishop of Chichester, giving up his posts at Brighton and Salisbury. In 1827 he was promoted to

Clerk of the Closet The College of Chaplains of the Ecclesiastical Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom is under the Clerk of the Closet, an office dating from 1437. It is normally held by a diocesan bishop, who may, however, remain in office after leav ...

and in 1828 was made a canon of

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of St Paul the Apostle, is an Anglican cathedral in London, England, the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London in the Church of Engl ...

, giving up his posts at Hereford. In the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

, he was one of the bishops who voted against the Roman Catholic Relief Bill in 1829 and, while not speaking against the measure, opposed it in other ways. During the King's last illness, he was in constant attendance at

Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a List of British royal residences, royal residence at Windsor, Berkshire, Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, about west of central London. It is strongly associated with the Kingdom of England, English and succee ...

and was able to help with two matters on the king's conscience: his estrangement from his brother, the

Duke of Sussex Duke of Sussex is a substantive title, one of several Royal dukedoms in the United Kingdom, royal dukedoms in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It is a hereditary title of a specific rank of nobility in the British royal family. It has been c ...

, and the possible breach of his

coronation oath An oath of office is an oath or affirmation a person takes before assuming the duties of an office, usually a position in government or within a religious body, although such oaths are sometimes required of officers of other organizations. Suc ...

in allowing Catholic emancipation. In 1831 the new king,

William IV William IV (William Henry; 21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. The third son of George III, William succeeded hi ...

, promoted him to the bishopric of Worcester, in fulfilment, as it was understood at the time, of a promise made by the late king. He then gave up his post at St Paul's, being succeeded by

Sydney Smith Sydney Smith (3 June 1771 – 22 February 1845) was an English wit, writer, and Anglican cleric. Besides his energetic parochial work, he was known for his writing and philosophy, founding the ''Edinburgh Review'', lecturing at the Royal Inst ...

. When the House of Lords voted on the

Reform Bill The Reform Acts (or Reform Bills, before they were passed) are legislation enacted in the United Kingdom in the 19th and 20th century to enfranchise new groups of voters and to redistribute seats in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the U ...

in 1832 he abstained. After the death of the king in 1837, he was replaced as Clerk of the Closet and had no further influence at court. He was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the Fellows of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...

in 1831. He died on 24 April 1841, aged 67, in

The Old Palace, Worcester The Old Palace, Worcester is an English listed historic building, built c.1200, adjacent to Worcester Cathedral in the Church of England Diocese of Worcester, which is within the Province of Canterbury. History The old palace was built for ...

and was buried on 3 May beside his wife in

Hartlebury Hartlebury is a village and civil parish in the Wychavon district of Worcestershire, England. It is south of Kidderminster. The village had a population of 2,549 in the 2001 Census. The village is green-buffered from surrounding villages exc ...

churchyard. His only published works were sermons preached for charitable purposes.

Family

In 1797 at Twickenham he married Nancy (1774–1841), youngest daughter of John Wilkinson, a wealthy businessman who lived at

Roehampton Roehampton is an area in southwest London, sharing its SW15 postcode with neighbouring Putney and Kingston Vale, and takes up a far western strip, running north to south, in the London Borough of Wandsworth. It contains a number of large counc ...

, and his wife Sibella Berdoe. They had nine children, of whom only four survived: *Maria (1801–1888), who in 1842 married the Worcester solicitor and MP

William Laslett William Emmerson Kendrick Laslett (baptised 14 October 1799 – 26 January 1884) was an English lawyer, landowner and Member of Parliament. Early life Christened in Worcester on 14 October 1799, he was the eldest son of Thomas Emmerson Laslett ...

. They separated shortly after, without children, and the unhappy episode was fictionalised in the 1861 novel

East Lynne ''East Lynne, or, The Earl's Daughter'' is an 1861 English sensation novel by Ellen Wood, writing as Mrs. Henry Wood. A Victorian-era bestseller, it is remembered chiefly for its elaborate and implausible plot centering on infidelity and dou ...

. *Sybella Jane (1802–1879), who married the Sussex landowner Charles Peckham Peckham and had eight children. Her granddaughter Sibylla Wallace married the zoologist Stanley Smyth Flower. *Elizabeth Lloyd (1804–1885), who married the Reverend Thomas Baker, a first cousin of

Fanny Brawne Frances "Fanny" Brawne Lindon (9 August 1800 – 4 December 1865) is best known as the fiancée and muse to English Romantic poet John Keats. As Fanny Brawne, she met Keats, who was her neighbour in Hampstead, at the beginning of h ...

. He was chaplain to her father at Chichester and later rector of Hartlebury. They had nine children, a great-grandson being Air Marshal Sir John Baker-Carr. * George Kirwan (1810–1877), who changed his surname to Carr Lloyd and became a Sussex landowner.

References

Attribution

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Carr, Robert James 1774 births 1841 deaths People educated at Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood Alumni of Worcester College, Oxford Deans of Hereford Bishops of Chichester Bishops of Worcester Fellows of the Royal Society Clerks of the Closet