Archibald Hamilton Charteris (lawyer)
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Archibald Hamilton Charteris (13 December 1835 – 24 April 1908) was a Scottish theologian, a Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, professor of biblical criticism at the
University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
and a leading voice in Church reforms. He is credited as being the father of the Woman's Guild and founder of "Life and Work" magazine.


Life

He was born in
Wamphray Newton Wamphray is a village in Dumfries and Galloway. Wamphray is the name of the surrounding parish and of the Wamphray Water, which flows south-west through the Wamphray Glen to join the River Annan near the small village, or hamlet, of Newt ...
,Obituary of Matthew Charteris, BMJ, July 1897
Dumfriesshire Dumfriesshire or the County of Dumfries or Shire of Dumfries (''Siorrachd Dhùn Phris'' in Gaelic) is a historic county and registration county in southern Scotland. The Dumfries lieutenancy area covers a similar area to the historic county. I ...
, the eldest son of John Charteris (1803Formatting correction.1871), the parish schoolmasterLife and Work, May 1908, obituary and his wife, Jean Hamilton (1809-1886), daughter of Archibald Hamilton a farmer at Broomhills. Charteris studied Divinity at the
University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
graduating MA in 1854 and then did postgraduate studies in both Tubingen and Bonn University in Germany. In 1858 he was ordained a parish minister of St Quivox in Ayrshire in place of Rev Stair Park McQuhae, his patron being Alexander Haldane Oswald of Auchincruive House. In 1859 he translated to
New Abbey New Abbey ( gd, An Abaid Ùr) is a village in the historical county of Kirkcudbrightshire in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It is south of Dumfries. The summit of the prominent hill Criffel is to the south. History The village has a wealt ...
in
Galloway Galloway ( ; sco, Gallowa; la, Gallovidia) is a region in southwestern Scotland comprising the historic counties of Wigtownshire and Kirkcudbrightshire. It is administered as part of the council area of Dumfries and Galloway. A native or ...
and then
Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
. In 1868 he became Professor of Biblical Criticism at the
University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
, until his retirement due to ill health in 1898. He was
moderator of the General Assembly The moderator of the General Assembly is the chairperson of a General Assembly, the highest court of a Presbyterian or Reformed church. Kirk sessions and presbyteries may also style the chairperson as moderator. The Oxford Dictionary states t ...
in 1892 and founded Edinburgh's Deaconess Hospital in 1894. Charteris also led the foundation of the St Ninian's Mission next to the Deaconess Hospital on Pleasance in 1891. In 1913, the attached mission church was named Charteris Memorial in his memory. Since 2016, the complex has been known as the Greyfriars Charteris Centre in his memory. He was appointed a Chaplain-in-Ordinary in Scotland to
King Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria a ...
in October 1901. Charteris was a conservative Biblical scholar, and a mild
Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...
. In April 1875, he was accused of writing an anonymous review in the
Edinburgh Evening Courant The ''Edinburgh Courant'' was a broadsheet newspaper from the 18th century. It was published out of Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland. Its first issue was dated February 14–19, 1705 and was sold for a penny. It was Scotland's first regional newsp ...
of
William Robertson Smith William Robertson Smith (8 November 184631 March 1894) was a Scottish orientalist, Old Testament scholar, professor of divinity, and minister of the Free Church of Scotland. He was an editor of the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' and contributo ...
's article on the Bible in the
Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various t ...
. His criticism led indirectly to Robertson Smith's trial for heresy in the Free Church of Scotland. However, it was perhaps as a churchman that Charteris exercised his greatest influence. He was instrumental in initiating the Church's Committee of Christian Life and Work in 1869. He founded the magazine '' Life and Work'' in 1879, and began the Young Men's Guild and the Woman's Guild. He also was a leading proponent of the restoration of the office of Deaconess within the Church. In 1887 he founded the Church of Scotland's Woman's Guild. In 1880 he passed the editorship of ''Life and Work'' to Rev John McMurtrie. In 1900-1901 he is listed as living in Cameron House on Dalkeith Road (now part of
Edinburgh University The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted ...
's Pollock Halls of Residence). He died on the afternoon of Friday 24 April 1908. He is buried with his parents in his home town of
Wamphray Newton Wamphray is a village in Dumfries and Galloway. Wamphray is the name of the surrounding parish and of the Wamphray Water, which flows south-west through the Wamphray Glen to join the River Annan near the small village, or hamlet, of Newt ...
.


Family

His brother was Matthew Charteris, Regius Professor of Materia Medica and Therapeutics at
Glasgow University , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...
. His wife was the philanthropist Catherine Charteris, daughter of Sir Alexander Anderson (advocate and Lord Provost of Aberdeen). They married on 18 November 1863 in Aberdeen, but had no children.


Sources

''Dictionary of Scottish Church History and Theology'' Wright, D.F. ''et al.'' (eds) Edinburgh 1993 {{DEFAULTSORT:Charteris, Archibald 19th-century Ministers of the Church of Scotland Moderators of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland 1835 births 1908 deaths Scottish Calvinist and Reformed theologians Academics of the University of Edinburgh People from Dumfries and Galloway Alumni of the University of Edinburgh British biblical scholars Scottish literary critics