Hamish Francis Gambon Swanston (1933 – 8 September 2013) was a British theologian and historian. Swanston was born in

Great Yarmouth Great Yarmouth (), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside town and unparished area in, and the main administrative centre of, the Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. A pop ...

at Swanston House. His family originated from Swanston near Edinburgh. He graduated from

Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills (Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_chan ...

in 1954 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English. He was ordained as a Roman Catholic priest in 1960. At the University of Kent at Canterbury in 1977, he became the first Catholic to head a Department of Theology at a British university since the Reformation. He lectured regularly on various topics, notably including seventeenth and eighteenth century European opera, on which he has spoken at the Kennedy Center and the

Los Angeles Opera The Los Angeles Opera is an American opera company in Los Angeles, California. It is the fourth-largest opera company in the United States. The company's home base is the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, part of the Los Angeles Music Center. Leadersh ...

Center.

Selected works

His publications include: *''Community Witness'' *''Ideas of Order'' *''A Language for Madness'' *''Studies in the Sacraments'' (two volumes) *''In Defence of Opera'' *''Handel'' *''Celebrating Eternity Now: A Study in the Theology of St Alphonsus de Liguori''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Swanston, Hamish 1933 births 2013 deaths British theologians People from Oban People from Great Yarmouth Alumni of St Cuthbert's Society, Durham