James Burns (1808 – 11 April 1871) was a Scottish publisher and author. During the last half of the nineteenth century his work in the cause of Catholic literature and the music of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

contributed much to the rapid advancement of the Church in

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

and to the many conversions that were made throughout that period.

Life

Burns was born near Montrose,

Angus Angus may refer to: Media * ''Angus'' (film), a 1995 film * ''Angus Og'' (comics), in the ''Daily Record'' Places Australia * Angus, New South Wales Canada * Angus, Ontario, a community in Essa, Ontario * East Angus, Quebec Scotland * An ...

. His father was a

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

minister and sent him to a college in

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 ...

with the idea that he should follow the same calling. But feeling no inclination for it, he left the school in 1832 and went to London where he found employment with a publishing firm. He acquired a knowledge of the trade and then set up for himself in a modest way. He soon won success and

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

ministers adopted him in their literary campaign of tracts and polemic publications. He then became a "

Puseyite The Oxford Movement was a 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 University of O ...

", or High Church man. From his press were issued books of a high literary tone in the series he called ''

The Englishman's Library ''The Englishman's Library'' was an English book series of the 1840s, a venture of the publisher James Burns. It ran eventually to 31 volumes. The title had been used already in 1824, for ''The Englishman's library'', edited by E. H. L., publis ...

'' and ''The Fireside Library''. The

Oxford Movement The Oxford Movement was a 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 University of O ...

under

John Henry Newman John Henry Newman (21 February 1801 – 11 August 1890) was an English theologian, academic, intellectual, philosopher, polymath, historian, writer, scholar and poet, first as an Anglican ministry, Anglican priest and later as a Catholi ...

drew him within its range, and he became a Catholic convert in 1847. The Anglican publications of the old house were sold off. Burns succeeded, in a comparatively brief time, in building up a reputation as publisher of Catholic literature. To his "Popular Library"

Cardinal Wiseman Nicholas Patrick Stephen Wiseman (3 August 1802 – 15 February 1865) was a Cardinal of the Catholic Church who became the first Archbishop of Westminster upon the re-establishment of the Catholic hierarchy in England and Wales in 1850. Born ...

contributed '' Fabiola'' and

Cardinal Newman John Henry Newman (21 February 1801 – 11 August 1890) was an English theologian, academic, intellectual, philosopher, polymath, historian, writer, scholar and poet, first as an Anglican priest and later as a Catholic priest and cardi ...

, '' Callista''. Other volumes from well-known writers, prayer books, and books of devotion made the name of the firm of

Burns & Oates Burns & Oates was a British Roman Catholic publishing house which most recently existed as an imprint of Continuum. Company history It was founded by James Burns in 1835, originally as a bookseller. Burns was of Presbyterian background and he g ...

a household name.Brian Alderson
Some Notes on James Burns as a Publisher of Children's Books
''Bulletin John Rylands Library'', escholar.manchester.ac.uk, p. 122. Retrieved 4 November 2020. Burns himself also wrote constantly on

church music Church music is Christian music written for performance in church, or any musical setting of ecclesiastical liturgy, or music set to words expressing propositions of a sacred nature, such as a hymn. History Early Christian music The onl ...

, and edited and republished many compositions. He died from cancer in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Family

His widow, who was also a convert, survived him twenty-two years, dying a member of the Ursuline community at

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

, U.S.A., January, 1893. Of his five daughters, four entered the Ursuline Order and the other became a

Sister of Charity Many religious communities have the term Sisters of Charity in their name. Some ''Sisters of Charity'' communities refer to the Vincentian tradition, or in America to the tradition of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, but others are unrelated. The ...

. His only son was ordained a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

, serving for a long time as chaplain at

Nazareth House Nazareth House, also known as St. Andrew's Parish House, is a historic building in Rochester, Monroe County, New York, United States. It is a three-story, brick institutional building built in 1893 and enlarged in 1911. The original section is a ...

Hammersmith Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. ...

, London.

References

;Attribution * The entry cites: **''Catholic Family Annual'' (New York, 1884); **''London Tablet and Weekly Register'', files (15 April 1871).

External links

*
Burns and Lambert
at LC Authorities – partnership with Sir John Lambert (1815–1892), chronology, street addresses)
"New Publications - James Burns, 17 Portman Street, Portman Square"
- publisher's advertisement in final pages of Sewell's ''Christian Morals'', 1840 (

) {{DEFAULTSORT:Burns, James 1808 births 1871 deaths Converts to Roman Catholicism from Anglicanism British book publishers (people) Scottish Roman Catholics People from Montrose, Angus 19th-century British businesspeople