James Hews Bransby (17 March 1783 – 4 November 1847) was an English Unitarian minister. He was noted for eccentric behaviour.

Life

Bransby was a native of Ipswich. His father, John Bransby (d. 17 March 1837, aged seventy-five), was an instrument maker, a fellow of the

Royal Astronomical Society (Whatever shines should be observed) , predecessor = , successor = , formation = , founder = , extinction = , merger = , merged = , type = NGO ...

, and author of a treatise on ''The Use of the Globes'', 1791, and editor of the ''Ipswich Magazine'', 1799. The son became heterodox in opinion, and was educated for the Unitarian ministry, in the academy maintained at

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

from 1799 to 1804 by

Timothy Kenrick Timothy Kenrick (1759–1804) was a Welsh Unitarian minister, biblical commentator, and dissenting academy tutor. Life The third son of John Kenrick of Wynn Hall in the parish of Ruabon, Denbighshire, by Mary, daughter of Timothy Quarrell of Lla ...

and Joseph Bretland. On 1 May 1803 he was invited to become minister at the "new meeting" (founded 1802) to the old

presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

congregation at Moreton Hampstead,

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

. Here he kept a school, and among his pupils was

John Bowring Sir John Bowring , or Phraya Siamanukulkij Siammitrmahayot, , , group=note (17 October 1792 – 23 November 1872) was a British political economist, traveller, writer, literary translator, polyglot and the fourth Governor of Hong Kong. He was a ...

, in whose autobiography Bransby features. In 1805 Bransby moved to

Dudley Dudley is a large market town and administrative centre in the county of West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically an exclave of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the ...

. He continued to keep a preparatory school for boys. His eccentricities gradually excited considerable remark, particularly as he developed a tendency towards

kleptomania Kleptomania is the inability to resist the urge to steal items, usually for reasons other than personal use or financial gain. First described in 1816, kleptomania is classified in psychiatry as an impulse control disorder. Some of the main cha ...

. At length he committed a breach of trust, involving

forgery Forgery is a white-collar crime that generally refers to the false making or material alteration of a legal instrument with the specific intent to defraud anyone (other than themself). Tampering with a certain legal instrument may be forbidd ...

, which was condoned on condition of his leaving Dudley in 1828 forever. He was succeeded, on 1 July 1829, by Samuel Bache. Bransby then moved to

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

. Intriguingly he appears as a witness to Edward Mason (probably a lead miner who was illiterate, and almost certainly a monoglot Welsh-speaker) on his marriage at Llanbadarn Fawr near

Aberystwyth Aberystwyth () is a university and seaside town as well as a community in Ceredigion, Wales. Located in the historic county of Cardiganshire, means "the mouth of the Ystwyth". Aberystwyth University has been a major educational location in ...

in 1811, long before his departure from Dudley in 1828. He supported himself by teaching in Caernarfon, by editing a paper, and by odd jobs of literary work. He would borrow a manuscript and, after improvements, send it to a magazine as his own. An irresistible impulse led him on one occasion to revisit Dudley for a few hours; as he stood gazing at his old meeting-house he was recognised, but spared. Late in life he occasionally preached again. Bransby died suddenly at Bron Hendref, a substantial house on the outskirts of

Caernarfon Caernarfon (; ) is a royal town, community and port in Gwynedd, Wales, with a population of 9,852 (with Caeathro). It lies along the A487 road, on the eastern shore of the Menai Strait, opposite the Isle of Anglesey. The city of Bangor is ...

, on 4 November 1847, aged 64 years, where he is listed in 1841 as keeping a school. His wife, Sarah, daughter of J. Isaac, general Baptist minister at Moreton Hampstead, predeceased him on 28 October 1841. His executor was his sister-in-law, Aann Isaac, who acted as Bransby's school Drawing Mistress.\; Census for Caernarfon 1841

Publications

Bransby left behind him a mass of compromising papers, which fell by chance into the hands of Franklin Baker, and were probably destroyed. Besides addresses, sermons, and pamphlets, Bransby published: *''Maxims, Reflections, and Biographical Anecdotes'', 1813. *''Selections for Reading and Recitation'', 1814, 2nd edit. 1831, with title ''The School Anthology''. *''A Sketch of the History of Carnarvon Castle'', 1829, 3rd edit. 1832. *''An Account of the ... Wreck of the Newry'', 1830 (not published; reprinted ''Christian Reformer'', 1830, pp. 486 sq.) *''A Narrative of the ... Wreck of the Rothsay Castle'', 1831, (chart; reprinted ''Christian Reformer'', 1831, pp. 405 sq.; this and the foregoing have details derived from personal knowledge). *''Brief Notices of the late Rev. G. Crabbe Carnarvon'', 1832. *''The Port Folio … anecdotes'', 1832. *''A Brief Account of the remarkable Fanaticism prevailing at Water Stratford … 1694'', Carnarvon, 1835. *''Description and Historical Sketch of Beddgelert'', Carnarvon, 1840. *''Evans' Sketch … eighteenth edition … with an account of several new sects'', 1842; edition of the compendium of "all religions", first published 1794 by John Evans; Bransby included " Puseyites", and plagiarised several friends. *''A Description of Carnarvon,'' Carnarvon, 1845. *''A Description of Llanberis'', Carnarvon, 1845. In 1834 Bransby printed in the ''Christian Reformer'' (p. 837) a letter from

Samuel Taylor Coleridge Samuel Taylor Coleridge (; 21 October 177225 July 1834) was an English poet, literary critic, philosopher, and theologian who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake Poe ...

, 19 January 1798, explaining his withdrawal from "the candidateship for the ministerial office at Shrewsbury." In 1835 he reprinted there (p. 12) an overlooked letter of John Locke; and in 1841 a series of papers, signed "Monticola", contained most of his additions to Evans.

References

Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Bransby, James Hews 1783 births 1847 deaths 19th-century English clergy Clergy from Ipswich English Unitarian ministers