George Smalridge (''alias'' Smallridge; 18 May 1662 – 27 September 1719) was

Bishop of Bristol A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

(1714–1719).

Life

Smalridge was born at

Lichfield Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west o ...

, son of the Sheriff of Lichfield Thomas Smalridge, George received his early education, this being completed at

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

and at Christ Church, Oxford. His political opinions were largely modelled on those of his friend Francis Atterbury, with whom he was associated at Oxford and elsewhere. After being a tutor at Christ Church, he was minister of two chapels in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...

, and for six or seven years he acted as deputy for

William Jane William Jane (1645–1707) was an English academic and clergyman, Regius Professor of Divinity at Oxford from 1680. Life The son of Joseph Jane, he was born at Liskeard, Cornwall, where he was baptised on 22 October 1645. He was educated at Westm ...

, the regius professor of divinity at Oxford; his Jacobite opinions, however, prevented him from securing this position when it fell vacant in 1707. In 1711, he was made dean of

Carlisle Cathedral Carlisle Cathedral is a grade-I listed Anglican cathedral in the city of Carlisle, Cumbria, England. It was founded as an Augustinian priory and became a cathedral in 1133. It is also the seat of the Bishop of Carlisle.Tim Tatton-Brown and John ...

and canon of Christ Church, and in 1713 he succeeded Atterbury as dean of Christ Church. In the following year he was appointed

bishop of Bristol A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

, but retained his deanery. In 1715 Smalridge refused to sign the declaration against the pretender,

James Francis Edward Stuart James Francis Edward Stuart (10 June 16881 January 1766), nicknamed the Old Pretender by Whigs, was the son of King James II and VII of England, Scotland and Ireland, and his second wife, Mary of Modena. He was Prince of Wales fro ...

, defending his action in his Reasons for not signing the Declaration. In other ways also he showed animus against the

house of Hanover The House of Hanover (german: Haus Hannover), whose members are known as Hanoverians, is a European royal house of German origin that ruled Hanover, Great Britain, and Ireland at various times during the 17th to 20th centuries. The house or ...

, but his only punishment was his removal from the post of lord almoner to the king. The bishop was esteemed by

Swift Swift or SWIFT most commonly refers to: * SWIFT, an international organization facilitating transactions between banks ** SWIFT code * Swift (programming language) * Swift (bird), a family of birds It may also refer to: Organizations * SWIFT, ...

Steele Steele may refer to: Places America * Steele, Alabama, a town * Steele, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Steele, Kentucky, an unincorporated community * Steele, Missouri, a city * Lonetree, Montana, a ghost town originally called Steele ...

, Whiston and other famous men of his day, while

Dr Johnson Samuel Johnson (18 September 1709 – 13 December 1784), often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer. The ''Oxford D ...

declared his sermons to be of the highest class.

Works

*''Sixty Sermons, preached on Several Occasions'', 1726. Other editions 1827, 1832, 1853 and 1862. *The Life of GrabeThe Environs of London: Pancras 1795

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smalridge, George 1662 births 1719 deaths People from Lichfield Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Bishops of Bristol People educated at Westminster School, London 18th-century Church of England bishops Deans of Christ Church, Oxford Deans of Carlisle 17th-century Anglican theologians 18th-century Anglican theologians

Life

Works

References

Further reading

External links