Dean Farrar’s “Divine Crusade” and Victoria’s “Little Wars”
Frederick William Farrar, better known as Dean Farrar (1831–1903), appears as a fascinating character, when considering his career: he almost occupied every single imaginable ecclesiastical top position, that of archbishop excluded. Noticeably, he was head master of Marlborough College (1871–76), ho...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Presses Universitaires de la Méditerranée
2007-12-01
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| Series: | Cahiers Victoriens et Edouardiens |
| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/cve/10494 |
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| Summary: | Frederick William Farrar, better known as Dean Farrar (1831–1903), appears as a fascinating character, when considering his career: he almost occupied every single imaginable ecclesiastical top position, that of archbishop excluded. Noticeably, he was head master of Marlborough College (1871–76), honorary chaplain to the Queen (1869–1873), even gaining access to the rank of chaplain to the House of Commons in 1890 and eventually to that of dean of Canterbury in 1895. So doing, he became closely connected to the metropolitan political decision-making centre, London, and to the breeding ground for the future members of Church of England clergy. As a consequence, these numerous experiences, both as a churchman deeply involved in public relations and a pedagogue, naturally fuelled his beliefs. Dean Farrar published widely, sermons but also countless philological works and even a few stories of English school-life, amongst which Eric (1858). Despite his extremely varied publications, Dean Farrar seems to remain faithful to the crusading spirit throughout his active life. Although the idea of the Crusades was given new prominence in the mid-nineteenth century through a dynamic historiography, it was far from being consensual. The object of this paper is therefore to see in what context Farrar’s call for a crusading spirit developed, how it could clash with or fit in the “Victorian frame of mind” and lastly, to ascertain the impact Dean Farrar’s claim for muscular, armed righteousness had in the late Victorian era. |
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| ISSN: | 0220-5610 2271-6149 |