John William Cunningham (1780–1861) was an evangelical clergyman of 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 Britain ...

. He was known also as a writer and an editor.

Life

Cunningham was born in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

on 3 January 1780. He was educated at private schools, his last tutor being the Rev. H. Jowett of

Little Dunham Little Dunham is a village situated in the Breckland District of Norfolk and covers an area of 749 hectares (2.9 square miles) with a population of 309 at the 2001 census. The village lies south of its sister village Great Dunham and by road ...

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

; there he formed a close friendship with his fellow-pupils

Charles Grant Charles or Charlie Grant may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Charles Jameson Grant (), American editorial cartoonist * Charles L. Grant (1942–2006), American novelist * Charles Grant (actor) (born 1957), American actor * Charles Grant (dancer ...

and Robert Grant. Cunningham entered St. John's College, Cambridge. He was fifth wrangler in 1802, and was elected to a fellowship at his college. After passing some months with the Grants in Edinburgh, Cunningham was ordained in 1802 to the curacy of Ripley, Surrey. He became curate to John Venn, vicar of Clapham and prominent in the Clapham sect. In 1811 Cunningham became vicar of Harrow, the presentation to which had been bought by his father-in-law. He held this post until his death on 30 September 1861. Cunningham was elected in 1818 an honorary life-governor of the

Church Missionary Society The Church Mission Society (CMS), formerly known as the Church Missionary Society, is a British mission society working with the Christians around the world. Founded in 1799, CMS has attracted over nine thousand men and women to serve as mission ...

, and was editor of the ''

Christian Observer The ''Christian Observer'' was a London evangelical periodical, serving a readership in the Church of England. It appeared from 1802 to 1874. History The ''Christian Observer'' was founded by William Hey "in response to the dissenters' ''Leeds ...

'' from 1850 to 1858.

Works

One of his books, the ''Velvet Cushion'', gave an account from the

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...

point of view of the parties in the church of England since the

English Reformation The English Reformation took place in 16th-century England when the Church of England broke away from the authority of the pope and the Catholic Church. These events were part of the wider European Protestant Reformation, a religious and poli ...

, and was a popular success. In it Venn was described by Cunningham under the name "Berkely". The first edition was published in 1814, the tenth in 1816. He also wrote: * ''World without Souls'', 1805 (6th ed. 1816). * ''Christianity in India'' (an essay on the duty of introducing the Christian religion), 1808. * ''Observations'' in reply to Edward Maltby's ''Thoughts on the Danger of circulating the Scriptures among the Lower Orders'', 1812. * ''Church of England Missions'', 1814. * ''De Rancé'', a poem. * ''Conciliatory Suggestions on Regeneration'', 1816. * ''Observations on Friendly Societies'', 1817. * ''Sancho, or the Proverbialist'', 1817. * ''Cautions to Continental Travellers'', 1818. * Two volumes of sermons, 1822–4, and other separate sermons.

Family

On 30 July 1805 Cunningham married, firstly, Sophia, daughter of Robert Williams of Moor Park, Surrey, who died in 1821. They had nine children together; the eldest son, Charles Thornton Cunningham, was lieutenant-governor of Saint Kitts from 1839 till his death in 1847. In June 1827 Cunningham married, secondly, Mary, daughter of

Harry Calvert Lieutenant General Sir Harry Calvert, 1st Baronet (March 1763 – 3 September 1826) was a British general. Military career Calvert was born in 1763 at Hampton, near London. He was educated at Harrow, and at the age of fifteen, was commission ...

, and sister of Sir Harry Verney, who died in 1849. By her he had three children, of whom Henry Stewart Cunningham was a judge in Bengal, and Mary Richenda married

James Fitzjames Stephen Sir James Fitzjames Stephen, 1st Baronet, KCSI (3 March 1829 – 11 March 1894) was an English lawyer, judge, writer, and philosopher. One of the most famous critics of John Stuart Mill, Stephen achieved prominence as a philosopher, law re ...

, judge of the high court of justice.

References

Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Cunningham, John William 1780 births 1861 deaths 19th-century English writers Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge Fellows of St John's College, Cambridge 19th-century English Anglican priests 19th-century English male writers