Thomas Vowler Short (16 September 1790 – 13 April 1872) was an English academic and clergyman, successively

Bishop of Sodor and Man The Bishop of Sodor and Man is the Ordinary of the Diocese of Sodor and Man (Manx Gaelic: ''Sodor as Mannin'') in the Province of York in the Church of England. The diocese only covers the Isle of Man. The Cathedral Church of St German where ...

and

Bishop of St Asaph The Bishop of St Asaph heads the Church in Wales diocese of St Asaph. The diocese covers the counties of Conwy county borough, Conwy and Flintshire, Wrexham county borough, the eastern part of Merioneth in Gwynedd and part of northern Powys. The ...

Life

He was the eldest son of William Short, Archdeacon of Cornwall, with Elizabeth Hodgkinson, and was born at

Dawlish Dawlish is a seaside resort town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Teignbridge district in Devon, England. It is located on the south coast of England at a distance of from the city of Exeter and a similar distance from the to ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

, where his father was then curate. After spending a year at Exeter grammar school Short was sent to

Westminster School Westminster School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Westminster, London, England, in the precincts of Westminster Abbey. It descends from a charity school founded by Westminster Benedictines before the Norman Conquest, as do ...

in 1803. He went with a studentship to

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...

, in 1809. He took a first class in classics and in mathematics in 1812, and in the following year was ordained deacon by the bishop of Oxford. He graduated B.A. 1813, M.A. 1815, B.D. 1824, D.D. 1837. He married Mary Conybeare in 1833. In 1814 Short became

perpetual curate Perpetual curate was a class of resident parish priest or incumbent curate within the United Church of England and Ireland (name of the combined Anglican churches of England and Ireland from 1800 to 1871). The term is found in common use mainly ...

of Drayton, Oxfordshire, but he resigned this post to concentrate on a college tutorship. Circumstances, however, led him to become in 1816 the incumbent of Cowley, Oxfordshire; in 1823 of Stockleigh Pomeroy,

; and in 1826 of Kingsworthy,

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

. In 1821 he was Whitehall preacher. At Christ Church he became successively tutor and censor (1816–29), librarian (1823), catechist and Busby lecturer (1825), and in 1823 he served as proctor. He worked to improve the examination system at Oxford, but the changes he sought were not effected until after he had ceased to reside. Though Short left Christ Church before the

Oxford Movement The Oxford Movement was a theological movement of high-church members of the Church of England which began in the 1830s and eventually developed into Anglo-Catholicism. The movement, whose original devotees were mostly associated with the Un ...

really began, he was intimate with most of its leaders.

Edward Pusey Edward Bouverie Pusey (; 22 August 180016 September 1882) was an English Anglican cleric, for more than fifty years Regius Professor of Hebrew at the University of Oxford. He was one of the leading figures in the Oxford Movement, with interest ...

, a favourite pupil, acknowledged his influence, with affection and respect. Short examined

John Henry Newman John Henry Newman (21 February 1801 – 11 August 1890) was an English Catholic theologian, academic, philosopher, historian, writer, and poet. He was previously an Anglican priest and after his conversion became a cardinal. He was an ...

for his degree, and John Keble was among his close friends. In 1829 Short went to reside at Kingsworthy, but in 1831 he accepted an offer from

Lord Chancellor The Lord Chancellor, formally titled Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom. The lord chancellor is the minister of justice for England and Wales and the highest-ra ...

Brougham of the rectory of

St George's, Bloomsbury St George's, Bloomsbury, is a parish church in Bloomsbury, London Borough of Camden, United Kingdom. It was designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor and consecrated in 1730. The church crypt houses the #Museum of Comedy, Museum of Comedy. History The C ...

. He married, in 1833, Mary (Davies), widow of John Conybeare. In 1837 he was appointed deputy

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 ...

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

, and four years later bishop of Sodor and Man. During an episcopate of five years Short mainly resided in the diocese, visiting the parishes and promoting the education of candidates for holy orders. In 1846 he was translated, on

Lord John Russell John Russell, 1st Earl Russell (18 August 1792 – 28 May 1878), known as Lord John Russell before 1861, was a British Whig and Liberal statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1852 and again from 1865 to 186 ...

's recommendation, to the see of St. Asaph. Here he for many years gave half of his episcopal income towards the needs of the diocese. Short resigned the see in 1870. On the 13 April 1872, Short died at the

Gresford Gresford (; ) is a village and community in Wrexham County Borough, Wales. According to the 2001 Census, the population of the community, which also includes the village of Marford, was 5,334, reducing to 5,010 at the 2011 census. The Grad ...

Vicarage. All Saints Primary School, Gresford, was built in his memory.

Works

In addition to tracts and single sermons, Short published: * 'Letters to an Aged Mother' (anon.), London, 1811. * 'Twenty Sermons on the Fundamental Truths of Christianity,' Oxford, 1829 * 'Sketch of the History of the Church of England,' Oxford, 1832 * 'Sadoc and Miriam' (anon.), London, 1832

References

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Short, Thomas Vowler 1790 births 1872 deaths People educated at Westminster School, London Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Bishops of St Asaph Bishops of Sodor and Man English sermon writers 19th-century Church of England bishops People from Dawlish