John Meare ( – 10 May 1710) 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 ...

clergyman and academic administrator at the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

. Meare was the son of John Meare of

Horton, Cheshire Horton-by-Malpas is a former civil parish, now in the parish of Shocklach Oviatt and District, in the Borough of Cheshire West and Chester and ceremonial county of Cheshire in England. In 2001 it had a population of 62. The parish included the h ...

. He matriculated at

Brasenose College, Oxford Brasenose College (BNC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It began as Brasenose Hall in the 13th century, before being founded as a college in 1509. The library and chapel were added in the mi ...

in 1665, aged 16, graduating

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

1669,

M.A. A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

1671, B.D. &

D.D. A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ra ...

1684. He was ordained deacon on 22 September 1678 and priest on 15 June 1679, both ordinations performed by John Fell, Bishop of Oxford in

Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford Christ Church Cathedral is the cathedral of the Anglican diocese of Oxford, which consists of the counties of Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Berkshire. It is also the chapel of Christ Church, a college of the University of Oxford. This dual r ...

. In the church, Meare was appointed Rector of

Great Rollright Great Rollright is a village in the civil parish of Rollright, about north of Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire. Archaeology The megalithic Rollright Stones are about west of Great Rollright, near the Warwickshire village of Long Compton. Par ...

, Oxfordshire in 1687; Rector of

Middleton Cheney Middleton Cheney is a village and civil parish in West Northamptonshire, England. The village is about east of Banbury in Oxfordshire and about west-northwest of Brackley. The A422 road between Banbury and Brackley used to pass through Middle ...

, Northamptonshire in 1693; and Canon of

Wells Cathedral Wells Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England, dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, whose cathedra it holds as mother church of the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Built as a ...

in 1703. Meare was elected Principal (head) of

on 7 May 1681. He also served as

Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford is the chief executive and leader of the University of Oxford. The following people have been vice-chancellors of the University of Oxford (formally known as The Right Worshipful the Vice-Chancel ...

1697–1698. He was so unpopular as Vice-Chancellor that the Warden of All Souls prayed aloud that he might be transported to the colonies. By January 1709, Meare had lost his mental faculties. As the college statutes required his assent for decisions, his incapacity caused the college administration to grind to a halt, prompting a dispute between the Fellows and

William Wake William Wake (26 January 165724 January 1737) was a priest in the Church of England and Archbishop of Canterbury from 1716 until his death in 1737. Life Wake was born in Blandford Forum, Dorset, and educated at Christ Church, Oxford. He took ...

(the college Visitor as Bishop of Lincoln) on how to proceed. Meare died on 10 May 1710.

References

1640s births 1710 deaths Alumni of Brasenose College, Oxford Principals of Brasenose College, Oxford Vice-Chancellors of the University of Oxford {{UOxford-stub