The Reverend John Henry Copleston (8 August 1841 – 22 November 1918) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

first-class cricketer and clergyman. The son of The Reverend John Gaius Copleston, he was born in August 1841 at Lamyatt, Somerset. He was educated at

Winchester College Winchester College is a public school (fee-charging independent day and boarding school) in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382 and has existed in its present location ever since. It is the oldest of the ...

, before going up to

St John's College, Oxford St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded as a men's college in 1555, it has been coeducational since 1979.Communication from Michael Riordan, college archivist Its founder, Sir Thomas White, intended to pro ...

. While studying at Oxford, Copleston played two

first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is one of three or more days' scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officiall ...

matches for

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

separated by two years. His first match came against the

Marylebone Cricket Club Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London. The club was formerly the governing body of cricket retaining considerable global influence ...

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

in 1860, with his second appearance coming at Oxford against the same opposition in 1862. Despite appearing in these matches for Oxford, he did not gain a

blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between violet and cyan on the spectrum of visible light. The eye perceives blue when obs ...

. After graduating from Oxford, he took holy orders in the

Anglican Church 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 the ...

. He held several ecclesiastical posts in the

West Country The West Country (occasionally Westcountry) is a loosely defined area of South West England, usually taken to include all, some, or parts of the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, and, less commonly, Wiltshire, Gloucesters ...

, starting at

West Buckland, Devon West Buckland is a small village and former manor located east-south-east of Barnstaple in North Devon, England. South Molton is the nearest town. The hamlet of Elwell lies to its north-east. The civil parishes of East Buckland and West B ...

where he was the canon from 1864–68. He moved to

Kilkhampton Kilkhampton ( kw, Kylgh) is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in northeast Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village is on the A39 road#Atlantic Highway, A39 about four miles (6 km) north-northeast of Bude. Kilk ...

in the neighbouring county of

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

in 1868 to take the post of rector, which he held until 1871. He returned to West Buckland in 1871, where he was the rector until 1880. Remaining in Devon, he moved to

Offwell Offwell is a village and civil parish in East Devon in the English county of Devon, approximately 2 miles south-east from the nearest town, Honiton. Offwell can be accessed by the nearby A35 road. Offwell is a small village with a primary school ...

in 1880 to take the post of rector there, the fifth member of his family to do so. From 1895 he simultaneously held the post of rural dean for

Dunkeswell Dunkeswell is a village and civil parish in East Devon, England, located about north of the town of Honiton. At the 2001 census, the parish had a population of 1,553, reducing to 1,361 at the 2011 Census. There is an electoral ward with the ...

and

Honiton Honiton ( or ) is a market town and civil parish in East Devon, situated close to the River Otter, north east of Exeter in the county of Devon. Honiton has a population estimated at 11,822 (based on mid-year estimates for the two Honiton Ward ...

until 1910. He served as the rector at Offwell until his death in November 1918. In addition to playing first-class cricket, Copleston was also a leading figure in Devon cricket, playing for the county for thirty years prior to the formation of

Devon County Cricket Club Devon County Cricket Club (Devon Cricket) is one of 20 minor county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Devon. The team is currently a member of the National Counties Champion ...

. His great-grandfather was

Edward Copleston Edward Copleston (2 February 177614 October 1849) was an English churchman and academic, Provost of Oriel College, Oxford, from 1814 till 1828 and Bishop of Llandaff from 1827. Life Born into an ancient West Country family, Copleston was born ...

, the

Bishop of Llandaff The Bishop of Llandaff is the ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of Llandaff. Area of authority The diocese covers most of the County of Glamorgan. The bishop's seat is in the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul (the site of a ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Copleston, John 1841 births 1918 deaths People from Mendip District People educated at Winchester College Alumni of Corpus Christi College, Oxford English cricketers Oxford University cricketers 19th-century English Anglican priests 20th-century English Anglican priests