John Ewer (died 1774) was an English

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 ...

and

bishop of Bangor The Bishop of Bangor is the ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of Bangor. The see is based in the city of Bangor where the bishop's seat (''cathedra'') is at Cathedral Church of Saint Deiniol. The ''Report of the Commissioners appointed ...

. He is now remembered for an attack on the American colonists, prompted by their indifference to

episcopacy A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Life

The son of Edward Ewer, born at

Belchamp St Paul Belchamp St Paul is a village and civil parish in the Braintree district of Essex, England. The village is west of Sudbury, Suffolk, and northeast of the county town, Chelmsford. The parish is northwest of Belchamp Otten and Belchamp Walter, ...

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

, and matriculated in 1724 at

King's College, Cambridge King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, the college lies beside the River Cam and faces out onto King's Parade in the centre of the city ...

, of which he became Fellow in 1727. He took the degrees of B.A. 1728, M.A. 1733, and D.D. 1756. On leaving college he was appointed assistant-master at Eton. He afterwards become tutor to

John Manners, Marquess of Granby Lieutenant-General (United Kingdom), Lieutenant-General John Manners, Marquess of Granby, (2 January 1721 – 18 October 1770) was a Kingdom of Great Britain, British soldier and the eldest son of the John Manners, 3rd Duke of Rutland, 3rd Duk ...

(1721-1770), who presented him to the richly endowed rectory of

Bottesford, Leicestershire Bottesford is a village and civil parish in Leicestershire, England. It lies in the Vale of Belvoir and forms part of the Borough of Melton, as its largest village, on the borders of Leicestershire with Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire. Locati ...

, in 1735: Ewer went as Lord Granby's tutor on his Grand Tour of 1739-1740. On 1 March 1738 he was appointed by patent to a canonry of Windsor, with which he subsequently held the rectory of

West Ilsley West Ilsley is a village and civil parish in Berkshire, England. The population of the village at the 2011 Census was 332. Location and amenities It is situated in West Berkshire, north of Newbury on the Berkshire Downs. The companion village ...

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

. In 1749 he became rector of

Dengie Dengie is a village and civil parish in the Maldon district of Essex, England, with a population of 119 at the 2011 census. It gives its name to the Dengie peninsula and hundred and to the Dengie Special Protection Area. The place-name 'Dengi ...

, and on 4 November 1751 was instituted prebendary of Moreton cum Whaddon in

Hereford Cathedral Hereford Cathedral is the cathedral church of the Anglican Diocese of Hereford in Hereford, England. A place of worship has existed on the site of the present building since the 8th century or earlier. The present building was begun in 1079. S ...

. He was raised to the see of Llandaff on 13 September 1761. Ewer took occasion, in a sermon preached before the

Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Societi ...

, 20 February 1767, to reproach the American colonists because they failed to see any use for bishops or episcopally ordained ministers. He then proceeded to brand them as "infidels and barbarians" living in "dissolute wickedness, and the most brutal profligacy of manners". There were replies from Charles Chauncy of Boston, in ''A Letter to a Friend'', dated 10 December 1767, and in a ''Letter'' to Ewer himself, by

William Livingston William Livingston (November 30, 1723July 25, 1790) was an American politician who served as the first governor of New Jersey (1776–1790) during the American Revolutionary War. As a New Jersey representative in the Continental Congress, he sig ...

, governor of New Jersey, in 1768. Ewer was translated to Bangor on 20 December 1768. He died on 28 October 1774 at his seat near

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Englan ...

. He married on 14 September 1743, Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Barnardiston of Wyverstone, Suffolk, who survived him; he left a daughter, Margaret Frances Ewer.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ewer, John Year of birth missing 1774 deaths Bishops of Bangor Bishops of Llandaff 18th-century Welsh Anglican bishops People educated at Eton College Alumni of King's College, Cambridge Fellows of King's College, Cambridge Canons of Windsor People from Braintree District 18th-century Anglican theologians Teachers at Eton College