The Church of England c.1689-c.1833: From Toleration to Tractarianism ed. by John Walsh, Colin Haydon, and Stephen Taylor

Abstract

118BOOK REVIEWS erroneously appears as "Vervay" and "Vevay." Some of Marshall's characters are inadequately identified: Mr. Knowles is Hanserd KnoUys; Mr. Thorne is George Thorne; Mr. Lawrence is Richard Lawrence; all were nonconformist ministers. Marshall is so intent on tarring me with the brush of whiggery that he retitled one of my books to give it a whiggish flavor! I was astonished to read that "in [my] view die agendawas already set and that it aU must inevitably end in 1776 and another, but more long-lasting, 'glorious revolution' " (p. 13). In fact, I would argue strenuously against such an interpretation. The errors, misrepresentations, and critical omissions mar a book that otherwise has much to offer. Richard L. Greaves Florida State University The Church ofEngland c. 1689-c. 1833: From Toleration to Tractarianism. Edited by John Walsh, Colin Haydon, and Stephen Taylor. (New York: Cambridge University Press. 1993. Pp. xii, 372. $6995.) Ecclesiastical historians have devoted Uttie scholarly attention to die Church of England during the Hanoverian era. To date, Norman Sykes's 1934 publication , Church and State in England in the Eighteenth Century, remains die only comprehensive monographic study of eighteenth-century Anglicanism. Presenting die most current research and historiography on this neglected theme, John Walsh, Colin Haydon, and Stephen Taylor offer an anthology of richly detailed essays designed to reassess die conventional view of the Georgian Church as a static, indifferent, and corrupt institution. Beginningwidi a sound overview ofthe Church during the 'long' eighteendicentury (i.e., c. 1689-c. 1833), the editors divide the book into diree parts, widi each part containing several essays examining specific aspects of die Hanoverian Church. Contrary to die somnolent, irreverent entity portrayed by Victorian churchmen, these essays demonstrate that the Georgian Church was a vital force in English ltfe. Between the Revolution Settlement of 1689 and die Tractarian movement of the 1830's, the established Church faced many new social and political developments. Protestant dissenters received legal protection to worship outside of the Anglican fold. Increased urbanization created a need for energetic clergymen to serve parishes in rapidly growing towns and cities. Clerical pluralism and non-residence existed in many parts of die kingdom, particularly, as Vivian Barrie-Curien reveals, in die diocese of London (pp. 86-109). SimUarly to the Restoration Church, poUtics remained inextricably linked to religious issues characterized by conflicts between High Church Tories and Whig Low churchmen. Throughout the period, the three principal schools of Anglican churchmanship—High Church, Low Church, and Evangelicals—competed for the hearts and minds of clergy and laity alike. But religious labels should be used cautiously, for as BOOK REVIEWS119 John Walsh and Stephen Taylor observe, "What makes the taxonomy ofChurch groups particularly difficult is the way in which political definitions became periodically entangled with religious ones" (p. 34). What emerges from diis volume is a rehabilitated image of die eighteenthcentury Anglican Church. Despite abuses such as pluralism and non-residence, Jeremy Gregory and Mark Smith describe the pastoral zeal of the Anglican clergy. Whatever their dieological and devotional tendencies, many clergymen conscientiously performed their parochial duties. Sunday schools and charity schools were created, and clerics emphasized catechetical instruction in ordiodox Anglican beliefs. In some localities such as die parochial chapelry of Saddleworth, much attention was given to building and repairing parish churches. An expanding population, among other things, forced church audiorities to increase parish space. Thus, centers of Anglican pastoral activity and extensive church building, such as Saddleworth, counter the traditional view of a negligent and lax Hanoverian Church. SimUar essays by John Spurr, Craig Rose, and Elizabeth Elbourne show the centrality of Anglican lay and clerical voluntary groups in English religious life. For example, die Societies for die Reformation of Manners (SRM) promoted godly living and die reform of people's behavior. Many lay Anglicans formed voluntary associations to express their piety and to spread holiness and devotional practices within the Church. The Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK) stressed holy Uving, instruction in die Anglican catechism, and the performances of charitable works. Comprised of predominantly lay members, the SPCK believed that works ofcharity and the teaching of Anglican orthodoxy "would reassert the spiritual and political primacy of the Church...