William Stanley (priest)

William Stanley (1647–1731) was an English churchman and college head, Master of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, Archdeacon of London and Dean of St Asaph.

Life

He was son of William Stanley, gentleman, of Hinckley, Leicestershire, by his wife Lucy, daughter of William Beveridge, D.D., vicar of Barrow-upon-Soar, and sister to Bishop William Beveridge. He was born at Hinckley in 1647, and baptised there on 22 August the same year. He was educated in a school at Ashley, Lancashire, by Jeremy Crompton, and was on 4 July 1663 admitted a sizar of St. John's College, Cambridge, where he graduated B.A. in 1666. He was elected a fellow of Corpus Christi College in 1669, and commenced M.A. in 1670.^[1]

After being ordained priest in 1672, he became a university preacher in 1676, and graduated B.D. in 1678. He became curate of Hadham Magna, Hertfordshire, and chaplain to Arthur Capell, 1st Earl of Essex, who presented him to the rectory of Raine Parva, Essex, on 20 October 1681. This he gave up for the rectory of St. Mary Magdalen, Old Fish Street, London. He was preferred to the prebend of Codington Major in St Paul's Cathedral, 18 September 1684. At this time he was engaged in a scheme for printing an edition of the English Bible, with a plain practical and Protestant commentary, the portion assigned to him being the minor prophets; but the plan was eventually abandoned.

He was appointed chaplain to the Princess of Orange on the dismissal of John Covel in 1685, and before he proceeded to Holland the archbishop of Canterbury conferred upon him the Lambeth degree of D.D., 12 November 1685. As soon as Mary was seated upon the throne of England, he was advanced to the post of clerk of the closet with a salary of 200l. a year settled upon him for life. In 1689 he became canon residentiary of St. Paul's; on 13 August 1690 he was collated by Bishop Henry Compton to the rectory of Hadham Magna; and on 5 March 1692 he was appointed archdeacon of London. The natural tone of his voice was so loud that when taking part in the cathedral services he was heard above all the other singers. A humorous account was given of him by Richard Steele in The Tatler, under the name and character of Stentor. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1689 ^[2]

He was unanimously chosen master of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, 13 July 1693, in succession to John Spencer, and served the office of vice-chancellor of the university in the same year. On 18 January 1694 he was created D.D. at Cambridge. He resigned the mastership in 1698, and he accepted the deanery of St. Asaph on 7 December 1706, at the request of Bishop Beveridge. He defrayed the whole cost an Act of Parliament (it annexed prebends and sinecures to the four Welsh sees in order to relieve the widows and children of the Welsh clergy from the distress of paying mortuaries to the bishops upon the death of every incumbent). He died on 9 October 1731, and was buried in St. Paul's Cathedral.

Works

Besides some occasional sermons, Stanley published:

'A Discourse concerning the Devotions of the Church of Rome, especially as compared with those of the Church of England' (anon.), London, 1685; reprinted in Edmund Gibson's Preservative against Popery (1738), vol. ii., and in Edward Cardwell's Enchiridion Theologicum (1837), vol. iii.
'The Faith and Practice of a Church of England Man,' (anon.), London (3 editions), 1688; 1700; 1702; 1707; Boston, U.S. 1815; 1841; 1848; reprinted in the 'Churchman's Remembrancer' (1807), vol. ii. and in 'Tractarianism no Novelty,' 1854.
'Catalogus Librorum Manuscriptorum in Bibliotheca Collegii Corporis Christi in Cantabrigia, quos legavit Matthaeus Parkerus Archiepiscopus Cantuariensis,' London, 1722.

Family

He married Mary, second daughter of Sir Francis Pemberton, and had three sons Thomas, William, and Francis. His widow died on 28 April 1758, aged 85.

References

^ "Stanley, William (STNY663W)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
^ "Library and Archive catalogue". Royal Society. Retrieved 1 March 2012.

Attribution

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: "Stanley, William (1647-1731)". Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.

Academic offices
Preceded by John Spencer	Master of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge 1693–1698	Succeeded by Thomas Green

[1] "Stanley, William (STNY663W)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.

[2] "Library and Archive catalogue". Royal Society. Retrieved 1 March 2012.

[1]

[2]

v t e Deans of St Asaph
Medieval	Llywelyn ap Madog William Spridlington Richard Courtenay Hugh Holbeche John Blodwell David Blodwell John Tapton
Early modern	Fouke Salisbury Richard Puskyn John Gruffith Maurice Blayne John Lloyd Hugh Evans Thomas Banks Andrew Morris David Lloyd Humphrey Lloyd Nicholas Stratford George Bright Daniel Price William Stanley William Powell William Herring William Shipley
Late modern	William Shipley Charles Luxmoore Armitage James John Owen Watkin Williams Shadrach Pryce Llewelyn Wynne Jones John Du Buisson Spencer Ellis Harold Charles Raymond Renowden Kerry Goulstone Chris Potter Nigel Williams

v t e Archdeacons of London and of Charing Cross
High Medieval	Edward Reinger William de Beaumis Hugh de Mareni Nicholas Peter de Waltham Alard de Burnham Peter of Blois Walter Gilbert de Plesseto William of Sainte-Mère-Église Geoffrey de Lucy William de Rising Peter de Newport John Chishull William Passemer Geoffrey de Mortuo Mari Richard Swinefield Robert de Ros Richard de Gravesend
Late Medieval	John de Bedford John de Sancto Claro Peter de Dene Bego de Cavomonte Reginald de Sancto Albano Hélie de Talleyrand-Périgord Richard de Aston Pontius de Podio Barzaco Itherius de Concoreto Edmund Howard John of Thoresby Richard Kilvington Peter Cardinal du Cros James de Beaufort John Barnet Fortanerius Vassalli, Patriarch of Grado Adam de Hertington Thomas Baketon Thomas Stowe Reginald Kentwood John Snell Richard Moresby William Fallan Richard Martyn John de Gigliis John Forster Pedro de Ayala William Horsey John Young, suffragan bishop Geoffrey Wharton William Cliffe Thomas Bedyll Richard Gwent
Early modern	Edward Moylle John Wymmesley John Harpsfield John Mullins Theophilus Aylmer Thomas Paske John Dolben Thomas Lamplugh Edward Stillingfleet Thomas Tenison William Stanley Robert Tyrwhit Edward Cobden John Jortin Anthony Hamilton Richard Beadon William Bingham Joseph Pott William Hale
Late modern	Piers Claughton Edwin Gifford William Sinclair Ernest Holmes Ernest Sharpe Oswin Gibbs-Smith George Appleton Martin Sullivan Sam Woodhouse Frank Harvey George Cassidy Peter Delaney David Meara Nick Mercer Luke Miller
Charing Cross	John Klyberg Bill Jacob Rosemary Lain-Priestley, Archdeacon for the Two Cities Adam Atkinson Katherine Hedderly

Authority control databases
International	ISNI VIAF WorldCat
National	Germany United States Netherlands
Other	SNAC