The Rev Hugh Boswell Chapman (5 November 1853 – 1 April 1933) was a British Liberal politician and Anglican priest. He was a Progressive member of the

London County Council London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kno ...

from 1889 to 1892.

Early life

Chapman was born in London in 1853, the son of Henry Chapman and his wife Priscilla (née Wakefield). Gen Sir Edward Chapman (1840-1926) and Sir Arthur Wakefield Chapman (1849- 1926) were older brothers. He was the grandson of the philanthropist and statistician Edward Wakefield and great-grandson of the Quaker philanthropist

Priscilla Wakefield Priscilla Wakefield, ''nee'' Priscilla Bell (31 January 1751 – 12 September 1832) was an English Quaker philanthropist. Her writings cover feminist economics and scientific subjects and include children's non-fiction.Ann B. Shteir, "Wakefield ...

. He was educated at

Tonbridge School (God Giveth the Increase) , established = , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent day and boarding , religion = , president = , head_label ...

Hughes-Hughes, WO, ''The Register of Tonbridge School from 1820 to 1893'', (1893: Richard Bentley) p 141. and Keble College, Oxford (BA, 1875).''Crockford's Clerical Directory'', 1932, p 223.

Clerical career

He was ordained deacon in 1878 and priest in 1881. He served his title under the Rev the Hon Adelbert Anson (subsequently a bishop in Canada) at St Mary Magdalene, Woolwich (1878-1880) and then at St Paul's, Newington (also known as St Paul's, Lorrimore Square) (1881-1885), arriving at the latter shortly after the Bishop of Rochester, Dr

Thorold Thorold is a city in Ontario, Canada, located on the Niagara Escarpment. It is also the seat of the Regional Municipality of Niagara. The Welland Canal passes through the city, featuring lock 7 and the Twin Flight Locks. History The first s ...

, had imposed an Evangelical Vicar on the extreme Anglo-Catholic parish, prompting the mass exodus of the congregation to the nearby

St Agnes, Kennington Park St Agnes, Kennington Park, is an Anglo-Catholic church in south London in the Diocese of Southwark, though it is under the episcopal oversight of the Bishop of Fulham. The church is situated in the Borough of Southwark placed behind Kennington ...

. During his time at Lorrimore Square he was

Chaplain to the Forces The Royal Army Chaplains' Department (RAChD) is an all-officer department that provides ordained clergy to minister to the British Army. History The Army Chaplains' Department (AChD) was formed by Royal Warrant of 23 September 1796; until the ...

in Egypt during the

Anglo-Egyptian War The British conquest of Egypt (1882), also known as Anglo-Egyptian War (), occurred in 1882 between Egyptian and Sudanese forces under Ahmed ‘Urabi and the United Kingdom. It ended a nationalist uprising against the Khedive Tewfik Pasha. It ...

of 1882. He was Vicar of St Luke's, Camberwell (1885-1909) and then Chaplain at the

Savoy Chapel The King's Chapel of St John the Baptist in the Precinct of the Savoy, also known as the King's Chapel of the Savoy, is a church in the City of Westminster, London. Facing it are 111 Strand, the Savoy Hotel, the Institution of Engineering and T ...

(1909-1933). Chapman was a proponent of the Normyl treatment for alcoholism. He was an active supporter of

Father Damien Father Damien or Saint Damien of Molokai, SS.CC. or Saint Damien De Veuster ( nl, Pater Damiaan or '; 3 January 1840 – 15 April 1889), born Jozef De Veuster, was a Roman Catholic priest from Belgium and member of the Congregation of the Sac ...

's leper hospital in Hawaii. He established a "Hugh Boswell" Lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at St Luke's; the Bishop of Rochester, the Rt Rev Edward Talbot was initiated as a member in 1901. St Luke's had a notable reputation under Chapman: Princess Mary, the Duchess of Teck (the mother of Queen Mary) was a regular visitor, and he was responsible for decorations being installed by

John Ruskin John Ruskin (8 February 1819 20 January 1900) was an English writer, philosopher, art critic and polymath of the Victorian era. He wrote on subjects as varied as geology, architecture, myth, ornithology, literature, education, botany and pol ...

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Herbert Horne Herbert Percy Horne (1864 in London – 1916 in Florence, Italy) was an English poet, architect, typographer and designer, art historian and antiquarian. He was an associate of the Rhymers' Club in London. He edited the magazines ''The Centur ...

Frederic Shields Frederic James Shields (14 March 1833 – 26 February 1911) was a British artist, illustrator, and designer closely associated with the Pre-Raphaelites through Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Ford Madox Brown. Early years Frederic James Shields ...

Selwyn Image Selwyn Image (17 February 1849, Bodiam, Sussex – 21 August 1930, London) was an important British artist, designer, writer and poet associated with the Arts and Crafts Movement. He designed stained-glass windows, furniture, embroidery, and w ...

, and

Edward Burne-Jones Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones, 1st Baronet, (; 28 August, 183317 June, 1898) was a British painter and designer associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood which included Dante Gabriel Rossetti, John Millais, Ford Madox Brown and Holman ...

. (The church was bombed in 1941, and rebuilt.) The Savoy Chapel was widely known during Chapman's incumbency as a location where divorced persons were permitted to marry or to have their civil marriages blessed. Notable weddings included that of Consuelo, Duchess of Marlborough and Lt Col Jacques Balsan in 1921 and Edith Stuyvesant Vanderbilt and Senator

Peter Goelet Gerry Peter Goelet Gerry (September 18, 1879 – October 31, 1957) was an American lawyer and politician who served in the United States House of Representatives and later, as a U.S. Senator from Rhode Island. He is the only U.S. Senator in American hi ...

in 1925. A condition of such 'benedictory' services was that there be no publicity. Nevertheless, in 1926 Chapman refused to marry Lord Sholto Douglas and Mrs Mendelssohn Pickles, on the basis they were the guilty parties in their respective divorces. Chapman's successor as Chaplain, the Rev Cyril Cresswell, immediately brought an end to the marriage of divorced persons in the Chapel.

London County Council

Chapman was elected to the newly-formed

for Camberwell North (in which St Luke's was situated) in 1889 as a Progressive. He did not seek re-election in 1892. His brother, Cecil Maurice Chapman, was a

Moderate Party The Moderate Party ( sv, Moderata samlingspartiet , ; M), commonly referred to as the Moderates ( ), is a liberal-conservative political party in Sweden. The party generally supports tax cuts, the free market, civil liberties and economic lib ...

member for

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

from 1895 to 1898.

Works

Chapman was the author of a number of books. *''The Seven Last Words of Love'' (1885: Griffith Farran & Co) *''Sermons in Symbols'' (1888: Swan Sonnenschein, Lowrey & Co) *''Where is Christ?'' (1890: Swan Sonnenschein & Co) *''Steps to the Higher Life'' (1897: Swan Sonnenschein & Co) *''Proverbs in Practice'' (1909: F. H. Morland) *''At the Back of Things'' (1911: Duckworth & Co) *''The soul of women’s suffrage'' (1912: Corrigan & Wilson) *''Home Truths about the War'' (1917: G. Allen & Unwin)

Personal life

Chapman was unmarried. During his incumbency at the Savoy Chapel, he lived at the National Club, at 12 Queen Anne’s Gate. He died in a nursing home in 1933, aged 79.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chapman, Hugh People educated at Tonbridge School Alumni of Keble College, Oxford Members of London County Council 1853 births 1933 deaths Progressive Party (London) politicians