John Hudson (1773 – 31 October 1843) 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 ...

mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, structure, space, models, and change. History On ...

and

clergyman Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

. He was notable for being a

senior wrangler The Senior Frog Wrangler is the top mathematics undergraduate at the University of Cambridge in England, a position which has been described as "the greatest intellectual achievement attainable in Britain." Specifically, it is the person who a ...

as well as the tutor of

George Peacock George Peacock FRS (9 April 1791 – 8 November 1858) was an English mathematician and Anglican cleric. He founded what has been called the British algebra of logic. Early life Peacock was born on 9 April 1791 at Thornton Hall, Denton, nea ...

Early life

John Hudson was the son of John Hudson, a farmer at Haverbrack in the parish of

Beetham Beetham is a village and civil parish in Cumbria, England, situated on the border with Lancashire, north of Carnforth. It is part of the Arnside and Silverdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. In the 2001 census the parish had a populatio ...

. He attended Heversham School and entered

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

in 1793. He became

in 1797, also winning the

Smith's prize The Smith's Prize was the name of each of two prizes awarded annually to two research students in mathematics and theoretical physics at the University of Cambridge from 1769. Following the reorganization in 1998, they are now awarded under the n ...

in that year, and obtained his MA in 1800.

Career

He became a Fellow, in 1798, and tutor, in 1807, of

, where he notably tutored

: he also tutored John Martin Frederick Wright. In 1815, he became the vicar of

Kendal Kendal, once Kirkby in Kendal or Kirkby Kendal, is a market town and civil parish in the South Lakeland district of Cumbria, England, south-east of Windermere and north of Lancaster. Historically in Westmorland, it lies within the dale of th ...

, Westmoreland. In 1815, he married the daughter of an army officer by the name of Culliford. At Cambridge, Hudson also tutored

Charles James Blomfield Charles James Blomfield (29 May 1786 – 5 August 1857) was a British divine and classicist, and a Church of England bishop for 32 years. Early life and education Charles James Blomfield was born in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, the eldest son (and ...

who became a prominent bishop. As a bishop, Blomfield visited Hudson's parish and at a dinner party declared "I remember well, Mr. Hudson, how much I stood in awe of you at College." To which Hudson retorted, "Perhaps so, but your Lordship has turned the tables on me now." Hudson died at Haverbrack, Tuesday, 31 October 1843 at the age of 71 and was buried in the interior of the parish church at

References

* ''

The Gentleman's Magazine ''The Gentleman's Magazine'' was a monthly magazine founded in London, England, by Edward Cave in January 1731. It ran uninterrupted for almost 200 years, until 1922. It was the first to use the term ''magazine'' (from the French ''magazine'' ...

'', Dec 1843, p. 662 * Cornelius Nicholson, ''The annals of Kendal'', 1861, pp. 374–375. 1773 births 1843 deaths 18th-century English mathematicians 19th-century English mathematicians Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Fellows of Trinity College, Cambridge Senior Wranglers {{UK-mathematician-stub