William Nicolson (1655 - 1727)

Born 3 Jun 1655 in Plumbland, Cumberland, England

Husband of Elizabeth (Archer) Nicolson — married 3 Jun 1686 in Kendal, Westmorland, England

Descendants

Died 14 Feb 1727 at age 71 in Derry, County Londonderry, Ireland

Biography

Birth

William Nicolson was born on 3 June 1655 in Cumberland to father Joseph Nicolson and mother Mary Briscoe, fourth daughter of John Brisco of Crofton.^[1] William Nicolson was the eldest son of Reverand Joseph Nicolson, rector of Plumbland.^[2] He is reknowned as an antiquary, biographist, politician, scholar, author and divine leader of church doctrine.

Cumberland, England

William was the grandson of Joseph Nicolson of Averas Holme, near Carlisle, and his grand mother was Radigunda Scott of Stanwix. He appears to be of Scotch descent.^[3] Mr. Loftie, is quoted in the book; The County Families of Titled and Untitled Aristocracy of England, Wales, Scotland, that William Nicolson was "born June 3, 1655, most likely in Plumbland since his father was Joseph Nicolson, having been rector there till his death in 1686". Registers of his birth are not available due to registers of that parish being non-existent at that time.^[4]

Education

William Nicolson's early education was obtained at Dovenby School near Bridekirk, Cumbria, England. He then attended Queen's College, Oxford were he matriculated, 1 July 1670 at the age of 15. He graduated with a B.A. 23 Feb 1675-6, was elected a Fellow on 6 Nov 1679 and received his M.A. on 3 July 1679.^[2] William became a D.D., by diploma, on 25 June 1702.^[4]

In 1678, William Nicolson came under the patronage of the then, Secretarty of State, Sir Joseph Williamson, and was sent to Leipzig, Germany to learn the German language. He remained in Leipzig for five months.^[5]

Church positions

Ordained a deacon in December of 1679 and soon appointed the chaplain by Rev. Edward Rainbow, then bishop of Carlisle, to the position of Vicar at Torpenhow-(1681-1698). Appointed to the vicarage on 17 Nov 1681.^[4]

Prebendary of Carlisle Cathedral in 1681-Prebendary of Carlisle in succession to William Still in 1681. A prebendary is a member of the Roman Catholic clergy, a form of canon with the role of the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. It usually garners a stipend.^[6]

Great Salkeld Church

Archdeacon and Rector at Salkeld-(1682-1702). Located in Eden, Cumbria. (In the Anglican church there are three basic titles of leadership-bishop, priest and or a deacon. The Archdeacon is appointed to assist the bishop. The vicar or rector is the parish priest.)^[7] He resided at Great Salkeld until 1702. While in residing at Salkeld he built outhouses at the rectory, constructed new school buildings and erected a wall around the churchyard.^[2]

Archdeacon of Carlisle-Appointed 3 Oct 1682 along with Rector of Salkeld.^[5]

Appointment at Addingham - 2 Feb 1698-9 was inducted by vertue of a mandate from ye Lord Bishop of Carlisle.^[4]

Carlisle Cathedral

Bishop of Carlisle-(1702- 1711). Resigned Addingham in 1702 to become Bishop of Carlisle. Nominated to the diocese of Carlisle on 8 May 1702. He was recommended to this position on the border of Scotland for his knowledge of local history and families having been raised in the area and for his strong political connections and nuances to many of the causes of the heightened political tensions during the Jacobite era.^[8]

Bishop of Derry-(1718-1727). William Nicolson translated from Carlisle and moved to Ireland. The diocese of Derry is located in Londonderry, Northern Ireland.^[9] Appointed by letters patent on 2 May 1718.^[5]

Translated to Cashel on 28 January 1727 but was never moved due to his untimely death in February, 1727.

Political standing

Not only was William Nicolson a prominent figure in the church and ecclesiatic principles, he was also an active participant in the Tory party in 1702 and later moved his allegiance to the Whig cause and "Revolutionary principles".^[5] He was reknowned as a scholar, a clergyman and a bibliographer. He also is reknowned for his informative diaries of the early eighteenth century. He attended parlimentary sessions most noticably while in residence in London. The parliamentary duties of an early eighteenth century bishop were linked with party responsibilties. At this time in history were the important "Convocation Controversy of 1697-1701" and the recalled "Convocation of Canterbury in 1701". His political standing became more pronounced in the early 1700's and finally in 1717 he committed a serious blunder by angering the queen to such an extent, he was transferred out of the country to Ireland. In April of 1718 he moved to the role of bishop of Derry, Londonderry, Ireland where he resided until his death.^[10]

Life Story

One cannot separate the rich and full life of William Nicolson between church, politics, family and history. He was accepted as an astute scholar always enhancing his knowledge of the past. He was interested in archealogy of the ancients and how civilizations progressed. He was interested in moving people into the present times keeping old traditions at their heart yet accepting that some changes and progress were indeed beneficial. He valued learning and promoted such for all. He pursued books and knowledge his entire life. One of his quotes from his diary states, "I am abundantly convinced that, if ancient history were more heeded, and better understood, we would be much more at quiet than we are. What a blessing it would be if true learning would replace 'the many rascally disputes about the matters of religion' which are now in fashion!"^[11]

Family

Family was important to William Nicolson having married on 3 Jun 1686-7 in Kendal, Westmorland to Elizabeth Archer.^[12] Elizabeth was the last daughter of John Archer (1672-1735) of Oxenholm. Elizabeth had eight children with the Reverend and was with him for all his transfers and church positions. After their move to Ireland, she became ill in 1712 and spent much of the year bedridden. On 16 Nov 1712 she passed away.^[8]

Children-

Thomas Nicolson-Born in 1688, died young, 1694.^[8]

Joseph Nicolson-(1689-1728) Chancellor of Lincoln^[13] Death Date: 9 Sep 1728^[14]

John Nicolson- (1692- )^[15]

Mary Nicolson- (1699-1727) Mary Nicholson: Event Type: Christening Event Date: 17 Mar 1699, Event Place: Carlisle, Cumberland, England, United Kingdom Sex: Female Mother's Name: Eliz. Nicholson^[16] married Thomas Benson, died 1727.

Catherine Nicolson-Unmarried in 1777^[8] Catherine spent her entire life serving her father and remaining a spinster until her death.

Elizabeth Nicolson-(1700- ) ^[17] Elizabeth Nicolson married Rev. Bellingham Mauleverer (1689-1752) in 1722 in Ireland.^[8]

Anne Nicolson-(1702- ) Baptised on 12 April 1702.^[18] Also refered to as Nancy by bishop Nicolson. Nancy remained a spinster until the move to Northern Ireland. In 1725 she agreed to marry J. Bolton, an alderman of Derry, Ireland.^[8]

Susanna Nicolson-Born sometime after 1703. While living on her own in Dublin, Susan caught a cold in the spring and died very quickly of pneumonia in 1720 in Dublin.^[8]

Death

William Nicolson died on 14 February 1726-7 having suffered a stroke at his desk in his study in Derry, Londonderry, Ireland. He was buried without monument in the Cathedral of Derry. Rev William Nicolson: BIRTH 1655: Plumbland, Allerdale Borough, Cumbria, England DEATH 1727 (aged 71–72): Londonderry, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland BURIAL: Saint Columb's Cathedral,Londonderry, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland MEMORIAL ID 184802589: ^[19] His will is printed in the fourth volume of the ‘Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmoreland Antiquarian and Archæological Society.’^[20]

Church of Ireland Succession

Sources

1. ↑ Hayton, D.W. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. 2021. here's a link to the book; accessed 16 Mar 2021.
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2} Stephen, Sir Ledlie,ed. Dictionary of National Biography, Volumes 1-22. London, England: Oxford University Press, 1921-1922. Retrieved from Hathitrust.org. here's a link to the book; accessed 20 Mar 2021.
3. ↑ Walford, Edward, The county families of the United Kingdom, or, Royal manual of the titled and untitled aristocracy of England, Wales, Scotland. London, Chatto & Windus, 1886, (pg.948). Retrieved from HathiTrust.org.here's a link to the book; accessed 16 March 2021.
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3} Nightingale, B. The ejected of 1662 in Cumberland & Westmorland, their predecessors and successors. Manchester: University press, 1911. pg. 363. Retrieved from Hathitrust.org here's a link to the book; accessed 16 Mar 2021.
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3} Nicolson, William. The London diaries of William Nicolson, Bishop of Carlisle 1702-1718. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1985. Retrieved from Archive.org here's a link to the book; accessed 17 Mar 2021.
6. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Prebendary," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, here's a link to Wikipedia; accessed March 17, 2021.
7. ↑ DeBrett's of London, How to address members of Clergy.here's a link to the reference; accessed 17 Mar 2021.
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6} James, Francis Godwin, North Country bishop: A biography of William Nicolson. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1956. Retrieved from Archive.org. here's a link to the book; accessed 23 Mar 2021.
9. ↑ Diocese of Derry, Northern Ireland. here's a link to the source; accessed 17 Mar 2021.
10. ↑ Nicholls, C. S. (Christine Stephanie)., Blake, R., Lee, S., Stephen, S. Leslie. (1921). The Dictionary of national biography. London: Oxford University Press. Retrieved from HathiTrust.org, here's a link to the book; accessed 20 Mar 2021.
11. ↑ Thoresby, Letters, I, 299-301: N. to Thoresby, 9 Aug, 1697. Retrieved from Archives.org, here's a link to the book; accessed 20 Mar 2021.
12. ↑ "England Marriages, 1538–1973, Document Information:GS Film Number 1471685: Digital Folder Number:007561512: Indexing Project (Batch) Number M00311-8: System Origin: ODM. "England Marriages, 1538–1973 ", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NK38-8ZB here's a link to FamilySearch]; accessed 13 Mar 2021.
13. ↑ England, Select Births and Christenings, 1538-1975: Name:Joseph Nicolson, Gender: Male Baptism Date: 1689, Baptism Place: Aspatria,Cumberland,England, Father: William Nicolson, FHL Film Number: 90560. here's a link to Family Search; accessed 20 Mar 2021.
14. ↑ FindAGrave.com. Joseph Nicolson BIRTH: 1689, DEATH: 9 Sep 1728 (aged 38–39), BURIAL: Lincoln Cathedral, Lincoln, City of Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England MEMORIAL ID: 206154534,here's a link to FindAGrave; accessed 18 Mar 2021.
15. ↑ England, Cumbria Parish Registers, 1538-1990 Event Type: Baptism, Event Date: 10 Jun 1692 Event Place: Cumbria, England, Sex: Male, Father's Name:Willm Nicholson, England, Cumbria Parish Registers, 1538-1990, Document Information: Digital Folder Number: 007909019, Image Number: 00141 "England, Cumbria Parish Registers, 1538-1990", database, FamilySearch here's a link to FamilySearch; accessed 12 Jan 2021.
16. ↑ England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975, Document Information: GS Film Number: 90582, Digital Folder Number: 004018472, Image Number: 00029, Indexing Project (Batch) Number: I04491-8, System Origin: EASY, Record Number: 70, "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975", database, FamilySearch ( https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JQDJ-YPF : 21 March 2020).
17. ↑ England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975 Document Information:Digital Folder Number 7 7529253 Microfilm Number 845229 , 476868: Originating System ODM Indexing Batch P00141-1 "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975", database, FamilySearch ( https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NPKJ-FR6 : 21 September 2020), Elizabeth Nicholls, 1700.
18. ↑ England, Cumbria Parish Registers, 1538-1990 Document Information:Digital Folder Number:007561522 Image Number 01060, "England, Cumbria Parish Registers, 1538-1990", database, FamilySearch ( https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:44D1-1BN2 : 16 January 2020), Anne Nicholson, 1702.
19. ↑ FindAGrave.com. here's a link to FindAGrave; accessed 17 Mar 2021.
20. ↑ Courtney, William Prideaux, Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900, Volume 41 Nicolson, William. Smith, Elder & Co.: 1990. Retrieved from en.m.wikisource.org here's a source to Wikisource; accessed 17 Mar 2021.

• Fasti ecclesiae Hibernicae: the succession of the prelates and members of the Cathedral bodies of Ireland by Henry Cotton, 1789-1879
• Vol 1 - The Province of Munster, Pg 18
• Vol 3. - The Province of Ulster, Pg 322

See also

• Wikipedia contributors, "William Nicolson," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=William_Nicolson&oldid=1001746395 (accessed March 16, 2021).

Acknowledgments

This profile has been improved by a member of the England Project's Orphan Trail.