John Eyre (January 1754 – 28/29 March 1803) was an English

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...

clergyman. He helped in establishing some of the major national evangelical institutions.

Early life

The son of John Eyre of Bodmin, he was born there in January 1754, and baptised on 25 February. He was educated in classics by the Rev. John Fisher, master of Bodmin grammar school, and in mathematics by the Rev. Joseph Thorpe, rector of Forrabury and Trevalga, Cornwall, in his private school at Forrabury. When fifteen years old he was apprenticed to Mr. Oliver, a clothier of

Tavistock Tavistock ( ) is an ancient stannary and market town within West Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy from which its name derives. At the 2011 census the three electoral wards (North, South and South West) had a population of 13 ...

; and soon afterwards began preaching in the town. At the end of his apprenticeship he returned to his father's business at Bodmin, and preached in the town hall. Eyre's father expelled him from home. Through a friend Eyre was able to enter

Trevecca College Trefeca (also Trefecca, Trevecca, and Trevecka), located between Talgarth and Llangorse Lake in what is now south Powys in Wales, was the birthplace and home of the 18th-century Methodist leader Howell Harris ( cy, Hywel Harris, italic=no). It w ...

, and with the

Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion The Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion is a small society of evangelical churches, founded in 1783 by Selina Hastings, Countess of Huntingdon, as a result of the Evangelical Revival. For many years it was strongly associated with the Calvinist ...

he ministered at Tregony, Cornwall, Lincoln, and Mulberry Gardens Chapel, London. Working among the dissenters, he also desired to take orders in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

, and he matriculated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, in 1778. On 30 May 1779 he was ordained deacon by

Robert Lowth Robert Lowth ( ; 27 November 1710 – 3 November 1787) was a Bishop of the Church of England, Oxford Professor of Poetry and the author of one of the most influential textbooks of English grammar. Life Lowth was born in Hampshire, England, G ...

, and on 19 December 1779 he was advanced to the priesthood by Thomas Thurlow. He was curate at Weston in 1779, to Cecil at Lewes until 1781, then at Reading, and at Chelsea, serving in both places under Cadogan until 1785.

In Hackney

About the end of 1785 year Eyre was appointed minister of Homerton, often then called Ram's Chapel after its founder and he opened a school at Well Street, Hackney.

Robert Aspland Robert Aspland (13 January 1782 – 30 December 1845) was an English Unitarian minister, editor and activist. To be distinguished from his son Robert Brook Aspland (1805-1869). Life Aspland was the son of Robert Aspland and his second wife, Ha ...

was one of his pupils, and Daniel Wilson another. The '' Evangelical Magazine'' was planned by Eyre, and he edited and contributed to its volumes until 1802. It was a joint venture of Church of England and dissenting ministers, with the first number appearing in July 1793. He was one of the founders of the

London Missionary Society The London Missionary Society was an interdenominational evangelical missionary society formed in England in 1795 at the instigation of Welsh Congregationalist minister Edward Williams. It was largely Reformed in outlook, with Congregational m ...

(1794–5), and he encouraged Edward Hanson in establishing a

dissenting academy The dissenting academies were schools, colleges and seminaries (often institutions with aspects of all three) run by English Dissenters, that is, those who did not conform to the Church of England. They formed a significant part of England's edu ...

at Idle, about 1800. A scheme originated in 1796 by Eyre and others to sending out evangelical preachers into the counties south of London, and from this arose Hackney Theological College, opened in 1803. William Jay noted how Eyre, a

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

in theology, was asked to preach at John Wesley's chapel in

Moorfields Moorfields was an open space, partly in the City of London, lying adjacent to – and outside – its northern wall, near the eponymous Moorgate. It was known for its marshy conditions, the result of the defensive wall acting like a dam, ...

, and gave no offence.

Death

After a long illness Eyre died on 28 or 29 March 1803, and was buried in a vault on the south side of the communion-table in Homerton Chapel, 5 April. His funeral sermon was preached by

Rowland Hill Sir Rowland Hill, KCB, FRS (3 December 1795 – 27 August 1879) was an English teacher, inventor and social reformer. He campaigned for a comprehensive reform of the postal system, based on the concept of Uniform Penny Post and his soluti ...

. In November 1785 he had married Mary Keene, from near Reading, who died at Well Street, Hackney, 20 June 1827, aged 69, and was buried by her husband's side on 29 June. Eyre's sermon at the opening of Cheshunt College was published, with related documents, in 1792. A memoir of Eyre by

George Collison George Collison (1772–1847) was an English Congregationalist and educator associated with Hackney Academy or Hackney College, which became part of New College London—itself part of the University of London. Early life Collison was born i ...

appeared in the ''Evangelical Magazine'' for June and July 1803.

References

* ;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Eyre, John 1754 births English Christian religious leaders English evangelicals English Calvinist and Reformed ministers 1803 deaths People from Bodmin