Lawrence Humphrey

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Lawrence Humphrey
Died1 February 1589 Edit this on Wikidata
OccupationTheologian

Lawrence Humphrey (or Laurence Humfrey)

President of Magdalen College, Oxford, and Dean successively of Gloucester and Winchester.[2]

Biography

Humphrey was born at Newport Pagnell, Buckinghamshire, England. He was first educated at the University of Cambridge.[3]

He was elected to a

Pietro Martire Vermigli, and on Mary's accession obtained leave from his college to travel abroad. He lived at Basel, Zürich, Frankfurt and Geneva
, making the acquaintance of the leading Swiss divines, whose ecclesiastical views he adopted. His leave of absence having expired in 1556, he ceased to be fellow of Magdalen.

Humphrey returned to England at

Puritanism
.

In 1564, Humphrey and his friend Thomas Sampson, Dean of Christ Church, Oxford, were called before Parker for refusing to wear the prescribed ecclesiastical vestments; and a prolonged struggle, the vestments controversy, broke out, in which Bullinger and other foreign theologians took part as well as most of the leading divines in England. In spite of Bullinger's advice, Humphrey refused to conform; and Parker wished to deprive him as well as Sampson. But the presidency of Magdalen was elective and the visitor of the college was not Parker but the Bishop of Winchester; and Humphrey escaped with temporary retirement. Parker, in fact, was not supported by the council; in 1566 Humphrey was selected to preach at St Paul's Cross, and was allowed to do so without the vestments.

In the same year, Humphrey took a prominent part in the ceremonies connected with Elizabeth's visit to Oxford. On this occasion he wore his doctor's gown and habit, which the queen told him became him very well; and his resistance now began to weaken. He yielded on the point before 1571 when he was made

Reformed churches; and in 1580 he was made Dean of Winchester. In 1585 he was persuaded by his bishop, Cooper, to restore the use of surplices
in Magdalen College chapel. He died on 1 February 1590 and was buried in the college chapel, where there is a mural monument to his memory; a portrait is in Magdalen College school.

Works

Humphrey was a prolific writer on theological and other subjects. At Parker's request, he wrote a life of his friend and patron Bishop Jewel, which was published in 1573 and was also prefixed to the edition of Jewel's works issued in 1600. One of his books against the Jesuits was included in vol. iii. of the Doctrina Jesuitarum per van os authores, published at La Rochelle (6 volumes, 1585–1586).

Family

About the beginning of the reign of

Elizabeth I, Lawrence married Joan Inkfordby, daughter of Andrew Inkfordby of Ipswich. By her he had seven sons and five daughters. Joan died 27 August 1611 "aged 74" and was buried at the church of Steeple Barton in Oxfordshire. Her eldest daughter Justina Dormer, wife of Caspar Dormer, esquire, erected a monument to her memory there. Her third daughter Judith was the third wife of Sir Edmund Carey (died 1637), brother of the Earl of Monmouth
.

References

  1. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/14156. (Subscription or UK public library membership
    required.)
  2. ^ "Humphrey, Laurence (DNB00)". Dictionary of National Biography. Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  3. ^ "Lawrence Humphrey". biblestudytools.com. Retrieved 18 July 2012.

Sources

Further reading

Academic offices
Preceded by
Richard Smyth
Regius Professor of Divinity at Oxford

1560–1589 		Succeeded by
Preceded by President of Magdalen College, Oxford
1561–1589 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Thomas Cowper
Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University

1571–1576 		Succeeded by
Herbert Westphaling
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