Arthur Young (1693–1759) was an English

clergyman Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

and a religious writer. He was much concerned with the "idolatrous corruptions" he found in early religion.

Life

Young was born in 1693, the son of Bartholomew Young (died 12 August 1724) of

Bradfield Combust Bradfield Combust (or Burnt Bradfield) is a village and former manor and civil parish, now in the parish of Bradfield Combust with Stanningfield in Suffolk, England, located on the A134 between Windsor Green and Great Whelnetham. In 1961 ...

in Suffolk. He was educated at

Pembroke Hall, Cambridge Pembroke College (officially "The Master, Fellows and Scholars of the College or Hall of Valence-Mary") is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college is the third-oldest college of the university and has over 700 ...

, graduating

LL.B. Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

in 1716, and proceeding

LL.D. Legum Doctor (Latin: “teacher of the laws”) (LL.D.) or, in English, Doctor of Laws, is a doctorate-level academic degree in law or an honorary degree, depending on the jurisdiction. The double “L” in the abbreviation refers to the early ...

in 1728. In 1719 he was instituted to the rectories of Bradfield Combust and Bradfield St Clare. On 27 June 1746 he was installed a

prebendary A prebendary is a member of the Roman Catholic or Anglican clergy, a form of canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in particular seats, usually at the back of th ...

of Canterbury and in 1748 presented to the vicarage of

Exning Exning is a village and civil parish in the West Suffolk district of Suffolk in eastern England. It lies just off the A14 trunk road, roughly east-northeast of Cambridge, and south-southeast of Ely. The nearest large town is Newmarket. T ...

in Suffolk, with a dispensation allowing him to hold it with Bradfield St Clare. He was also chaplain to

Arthur Onslow Arthur Onslow (1 October 169117 February 1768) was an English politician. He set a record for length of service when repeatedly elected to serve as Speaker of the House of Commons, where he was known for his integrity. Early life and educat ...

speaker of the House of Commons Speaker of the House of Commons is a political leadership position found in countries that have a House of Commons, where the membership of the body elects a speaker to lead its proceedings. Systems that have such a position include: * Speaker of ...

and a

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

for Suffolk. Young died on 26 June 1759 at Bradfield Combust, where he had inherited from his father an estate of about 200 acres. He was buried at All Saints' Church in Bradfield Combust, where a marble memorial plaque, to him and his wife Anne Lucretia, can still be found. There is a separate, additional plaque to Anne Lucretia, who died on 6 October 1785.

Family

Young married Anna Lucretia, daughter of John Coussmaker of

Weybridge Weybridge () is a town in the Borough of Elmbridge in Surrey, England, around southwest of central London. The settlement is recorded as ''Waigebrugge'' and ''Weibrugge'' in the 7th century and the name derives from a crossing point of the ...

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

. They had two sons, John and

Arthur Arthur is a common male given name of Brittonic languages, Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. An ...

, and a daughter, Elizabeth Mary, who married John Tomlinson of

East Barnet East Barnet is an area of north London within the London Borough of Barnet bordered by New Barnet, Cockfosters and Southgate. It is a largely residential suburb whose central area contains shops, public houses, restaurants and services, and ...

. The elder son John Young, fellow of

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

, broke his neck in 1786 while hunting with

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

. In 1793 the younger son, Arthur, was appointed Secretary to the newly created Board of Agriculture.

Works

*''An Historical Dissertation on Idolatrous Corruptions in Religion from the Beginning of the World, and on the Methods taken by Divine Providence in reforming them'', London, 1734, 2 vols. 8vo. This sets out to explain the rise of

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in the ...

and

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

in place of idolatry.ODNB entry by Edward Irving Carlyle (rev. B. W. Young
Young, Arthur (1693–1759)
retrieved 19 September 2016 *''A Dissertation on the Gospel Demoniacks'', London, 1760, 8vo. This was prompted by a reply from

Richard Smalbroke Richard Smallbrooke (1672 – 22 December 1749) was an English churchman, Bishop of St David's and then of Lichfield and Coventry. Life The son of Samuel Smallbrooke (buried 23 May 1701) of Rowington,Burial: https://www.familysearch.org/a ...

Bishop of St. David's The Bishop of St Davids is the ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of St Davids. The succession of bishops stretches back to Saint David who in the 6th century established his seat in what is today the city of St Davids in Pembrokeshire, ...

, to Thomas Woolston's ''Discourse on the Miracles of Our Saviour'' and published posthumously.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Young, Arthur People from the Borough of St Edmundsbury 1693 births 1759 deaths 18th-century English people Alumni of Pembroke College, Cambridge English chaplains Anglican chaplains Anglican writers English justices of the peace