Thomas Robinson (1749–1813) was an English cleric, known for his volumes of ''Scripture Characters''.

Life

He was born at Wakefield, Yorkshire, on 10 September 1749, the fourth son of James Robinson, a

hosier Hosiery, (, ) also referred to as legwear, describes garments worn directly on the feet and legs. The term originated as the collective term for products of which a maker or seller is termed a hosier; and those products are also known generically ...

there. He was sent at an early age to the Wakefield grammar school, and entered

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

as a

sizar At Trinity College Dublin and the University of Cambridge, a sizar is an Undergraduate education, undergraduate who receives some form of assistance such as meals, lower fees or lodging during his or her period of study, in some cases in retur ...

in 1768. In April 1771 he was elected a scholar of his college, in 1772 he graduated as seventh wrangler (M.A. 1775), and in October of the same year he was made a fellow of his college. Around 1772 Robinson was ordained to the joint curacies of

Witcham Witcham is a small village near Ely in Cambridgeshire, England. The village is surrounded by fenland farms and has a village hall and a 13th-century church dedicated to St Martin. It has a pub called the White Horse, which was the winner of t ...

and Wichford in the

Isle of Ely The Isle of Ely () is a historic region around the city of Ely, Cambridgeshire, Ely in Cambridgeshire, England. Between 1889 and 1965, it formed an Administrative counties of England, administrative county. Etymology Its name has been said to ...

, then from 1773 to 1778 he was afternoon lecturer at All Saints',

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

, and chaplain to the infirmary. In 1778 he was appointed to a lectureship newly founded in St. Mary's Church, Leicester. Later on in the same year he was made vicar of St. Mary's. He founded a number of charities there. Robinson died at Leicester on 24 March 1813, and was buried on the 29th in the chancel of St. Mary's. His funeral sermon was preached by Edward Thomas Vaughan, who published a memoir of Robinson, with a selection of his letters, in 1815. The religious state of Leicester at the time, and Robinson's contribution, were described in a published eulogy by Robert Hall shortly after Robinson's death.

Works

At St. Mary's in 1784 Robinson began the series of discourses on sacred biography by which he was best known. The earliest appeared in the ''

Theological Miscellany Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ana ...

'' of 1784, and the whole series was eventually printed under the title of ''Scripture Characters'' (1793, 4 vols.; 10th edit. 1815; abridgment, 1816). He wrote also ''The Christian System Unfolded, or Essays on the Doctrines and Duties of Christianity'' (1805, 3 vols.), and some shorter pieces. A collective edition of his ''Works'' was published in 8 vols. London, 1814.

Family

Robinson was twice married. By his first wife, who died in 1791, he had a son

Thomas Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

(1790–1873) who became

master of the Temple The Temple Church, a royal peculiar in the Church of England, is a church in the Inner and Middle Temples located between Fleet Street and the River Thames, built by the Knights Templar for their English headquarters in the Temple precinct. ...

. His second wife, whom he married in 1797, was the widow of James Gerard, Warden of Wadham College, Oxford.

Notes

External links

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, Thomas 1749 births 1813 deaths 18th-century English Anglican priests Fellows of Trinity College, Cambridge People from Wakefield 19th-century English Anglican priests 18th-century Anglican theologians 19th-century Anglican theologians