William Henry Havergal

William Henry Havergal

William Henry Havergal (18 January 1793–19 April 1870) was an Anglican clergyman, writer, composer and hymnwriter, and a publisher of sermons and pamphlets. He was the father of the hymn-writer and poet Frances Ridley Havergal and the clergyman and organist Henry East Havergal (1820–1875).

Havergal was born in High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire and ed­u­cat­ed at the Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood and St Edmund Hall, Oxford, where he gained a BA in 1815 and an MA in 1819. He was or­dained deacon in 1816 and priest in 1817, and became rector of Astley in Worcestershire in 1829, St. Ni­cho­las, Worcester in 1842 and Shares­hill near Wolverhampton in 1860. He died at Leamington Spa, Warwickshire and is buried at Ast­ley.

Early life

Havergal, only son of William Havergal, who died 2 Sept. 1854, by Mary, daughter of Thomas Hopkins, was born at Chipping Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, on 18 Jan. 1793; commenced his education at Princes Risborough in 1801, and entered the Merchant Taylors' School in July 1806. During his holidays he cultivated music, and from the age of fourteen often played the organ in his parish church. He was originally intended for the medical profession, but eventually went to Oxford, matriculating from St. Edmund's Hall on 10 July 1812. He graduated B.A. 1816, M.A. 1819, and was ordained 24 March 1816.

He became an assistant curate under Thomas Tregenna Biddulph, at the churches of St. James, Bristol, and Creech Heathfield. In June 1820 he became curate in charge of Coaley, Gloucestershire, and lecturer of Dursley, and took pupils. On 25 June 1822 he became curate of Astley, Worcestershire. He visited Cornwall and Yorkshire in 1826 and two following years as a deputation from the Church Missionary Society.

Music

On 14 June 1829 he was thrown out of a carriage and received concussion of the brain, which disabled him for some years. He found relief in music. His first public composition was an anthem-like setting of Heber's "From Greenland's Icy Mountains", the proceeds of which (180l.) he devoted to the Church Missionary Society. In 1836 appeared Op. 36, "An Evening Service in E flat and One Hundred Antiphonal Chants". One of these, a "Recte et Retro" chant in C, sometimes called Worcester chant, became very widely known. In the same year the Gresham prize medal was awarded him for an "Evening Service in A", Op. 37. In 1841 a second medal was gained by an anthem, "Give Thanks", Op. 40.

He became well known by his exertions for the restoration of metrical psalmody to its original purity. He published in 1844 a reprint of Ravenscroft's scarce work, "The Whole Booke of Psalmes". In 1847 he brought out the "Old Church Psalmody", Op. 43, which is the parent of most modern collections of church hymn tunes. "A Hundred Psalm and Hymn Tunes", Op. 48, entirely his own composition, was published in 1859. Handel and Corelli were his models, and his aim was to preserve purity of style.

He also wrote songs, rounds, and catches for the young, besides carols, hymns, and sacred songs, for which he composed both words and music. Many of the sacred songs and carols appeared in the earlier volumes of "Our Own Fireside", and were republished under the title of "Fireside Music". His sacred song "Summer Tide is Coming" and his psalm tune "Evan" are widely known.

On 13 Nov. 1829 he was presented to the rectory of Astley, whence he removed in June 1845 to St. Nicholas rectory, Worcester, and was soon after appointed an honorary canon of Worcester Cathedral. He all but lost his sight in 1832, and it was never entirely restored. For a long time he could not read printed music or decipher his own handwriting.

Final years and death

Through weakened health in March 1860 he resigned St. Nicholas and was presented to the country vicarage of Shareshill, near Wolverhampton. In 1867 increasing infirmities forced him to lay aside all regular parish work and remove to Leamington, where, with the exception of visits to the continent, he continued to reside. He died at Pyrmont Villa, Binswood Terrace, Leamington, on 19 April 1870, and was buried at Astley on 23 April.

Legacy

Havergal was the author of:
# ‘A Good and Satisfied Old Age. Some account of George Vaughan, a sermon,’ 1847.
# ‘Death for Murder, the Doctrine of the Holy Scriptures,’ 1849.
# ‘Sermons, chiefly on Historical Subjects, from the Old and New Testament,’ 1853, 2 vols.
# ‘A History of the Old Hundredth Psalm Tune,’ with specimens, 1854; in which work he attempted to prove that William Franc was the composer.
# ‘A Wise and Holy Child. An account of E. Edwards.’ 1855.
# ‘The Faithful Servant. Two sermons on the death of the Rev. J. East,’ 1856.
# ‘Six Lectures on the Ark of the Covenant,’ 1867.
# ‘Pyrmont, an eligible place for English patients who require chalybeate or saline waters,’ edited by Mrs. C. A. Havergal, 1871.

He also wrote, selected, harmonised, and arranged, upwards of thirty works and pieces of music.

Wives and children

He married (1), 2 May 1816, Jane, fifth daughter of William Head of East Grinstead—she died 5 July 1848; and (2), on 29 July 1851, Caroline Ann, daughter of John Cooke of Gloucester—she died 26 May 1878. His children, Henry East Havergal, Francis Tebbs Havergal and Frances Ridley Havergal, are separately noticed. Another daughter, Maria Vernon Graham Havergal, who died 22 June 1887, wrote several books, and an autobiography which was edited by her sister, Jane Miriam Havergal, who married, October 1842, Henry Crane. Mrs. Crane also published records of her father's life.

References

*DNB

External links

* [http://www.cyberhymnal.org/bio/h/a/v/havergal_wh.htm Cyberhymnal]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Havergal, William Henry and Frances Ridley — (1793 1879)    • William Henry, the father, 1793 1870    He was born at Chipping Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, and educated at Merchant Taylors School, London, and St. Edmund s Hall, Oxford. He was ordained a deacon in 1816 and priest in 1817 and was …   British and Irish poets

  • Henry East Havergal — (1820–1875) was a priest in the Church of England and an organist.Havergal, eldest son of William Henry Havergal (1793–1870), was born at Coaley, Gloucestershire, 22 July 1820. His mother died in 1848 and his father remarried in 1851. His sister …   Wikipedia

  • Havergal — Den Familiennamen Havergal tragen: Frances Ridley Havergal (1836–1879), englische religiöse Dichterin William Henry Havergal (1793–1870), anglikanischer Geistlicher und Autor Diese Seite ist eine Begriffsklärung zur Unterscheidung mehrerer mit… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Frances Ridley Havergal — Anglican PortalFrances Ridley Havergal (December 14 1836 – June 3 1879) was an English religious poet and hymn writer. Thy Life for Me is one of her best known hymns. She also wrote hymn melodies, religious tracts, and works for children.LifeShe… …   Wikipedia

  • Havergal Brian — William (Havergal) Brian (January 29, 1876 ndash; November 28, 1972), was a British classical composer.Brian acquired a legendary status at the time of his rediscovery in the 1950s and 1960s for the number of symphonies he had managed to write 32 …   Wikipedia

  • Havergal Brian — William Havergal Brian (* 29. Januar 1876 in Dresden, Staffordshire; † 28. November 1972 in Shoreham by Sea, Sussex), war ein englischer Komponist. Leben und Werk Brian erwarb sich einen legendären Ruf zur Zeit seiner Wiederentdeckung in den… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Frances Ridley Havergal — (* 14. Dezember 1836 in Astley, Worcestershire, England; † 3. Juni 1879 in Caswell Bay, Wales) war eine englische religiöse Dichterin und Komponistin. Leben Frances Ridley Havergal (ihr zweiter V …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Frances Havergal — Dieser Artikel oder Abschnitt bedarf einer Überarbeitung. Näheres ist auf der Diskussionsseite angegeben. Hilf mit, ihn zu verbessern, und entferne anschließend diese Markierung …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Francis Tebbs Havergal — (1829–1890), author and editor.The youngest son of William Henry Havergal was born 27 Aug. 1829. He was a bible clerk of New College, Oxford (B.A. 1852, M.A. 1857); he became vicar choral in Hereford Cathedral, 1853–1874, vicar of Pipe and Lyde,… …   Wikipedia

  • William Blake — – Porträt von Thomas Phillips William Blake (* 28. November 1757 in London; † 12. August 1827 ebenda) war ein englischer Dichter, Naturmystiker, Maler und der Erfinder der Reliefradierung. Sowohl …   Deutsch Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”