Guide to the Papers of Bishop Edmund Hobhouse (as filmed by the AJCP), 1847-1957

Summary

Collection number:

M715

Creator:

Hobhouse, Edmund, Bishop

Extent:

8 items

Language:

English

Preferred citation:

Acknowledgement of use of this material should refer to the location of the original material and to the Australian Joint Copying Project.Items from this collection should include references to the location of the original material and to the AJCP nla.obj number, which serves as the online identifier for the digital copy.

Example: M Series: Journal of Capt. James Cook, 18 February-23 September 1770, British Library Add. MS 27885 (AJCP ref: http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-987654321)

Availability:

Available

Access conditions:

Available for reference.

Background

Content Summary:

1. Approximately 170 letters 1858-64 written by Hobhouse and his wife to relatives in England, most of them addressed to his sister Eliza but some of those obviously intended for circulation within the family. The letters contain: descriptions of the voyage to New Zealand; the settlement at Nelson; details of domestic and church life; Hobhouse's numerous journeys around his vast diocese and his work among the settlers and the Maoris. Mary Elizabeth Hobhouse sometimes accompanied her husband on his travels and her letters describe the countryside around Nelson and settlers there, as well as her impressions of visitors to the district and of churchmen. Domestic life in New Zealand is outlined in great detail, but the letters also reveal her interest in the provision of schooling for local children. Nearly all the letters are accompanied by typed transcripts.

2. Diaries kept by Hobhouse and journals written for his wife 1859-64 relate details of the voyage in 1859 from Sydney to Nelson to attend the first Provincial Synod at Wellington, news of which is also included.

3. Letters and papers 1864 concerning Hobhouse's resignation, written by G.A. Selwyn, his wife Sarah, M.A. Martin and Edmund Hobhouse.

4. Four letters 1859-64 from Caroline Abraham, wife of Bishop C.J. Abraham, to Eliza Hobhouse.

5. Obituary notices 1904 for Hobhouse from English and New Zealand newspapers.

6. Miscellaneous items, including correspondence, mainly on ecclesiastical matters, between Hobhouse, G.A. Selwyn and C.J. Abraham; photographs and drawings of New Zealand, including several of Nelson; and a typed copy of 'Outline of My Life' by Hobhouse.

Biographical / Historical:

Edmund Hobhouse (1817-1904) was born in London. His father Henry Hobhouse (1776-1854) was under-secretary of the Home Office (1817-27) and the Keeper of the State Papers. His brothers included the lawyer and judge Arthur Hobhouse (1819-1904), 1st Baron Hobhouse, and Reginald Hobhouse (1818-1895), archdeacon of Bodmin. His nephew Henry Hobhouse (1854-1937) was a landowner and a member of the House of Commons from 1885 to 1906.

Edmund Hobhouse was educated at Eton and Balliol College, Oxford, and studied theology at Durham University. He was elected a fellow of Merton College, Oxford, in 1841 and ordained a priest in 1842. From 1843 to 1858 he was vicar of St Peter's-in-the-East, Oxford, and worked closely with Bishop Samuel Wilberforce. He was a friend of G.A. Selwyn, the Bishop of New Zealand, and was considered for the position of Bishop of Christchurch. Instead, he was selected as the first Bishop of Nelson and was ordained by the Archbishop of Canterbury in September 1858.

Hobhouse arrived in New Zealand in January 1859 and attended the first General Synod in Wellington in March. He held the first diocesan synod in August 1859 and devoted much of his time in organising the parochial structure of the diocese of Nelson and improving the administration of endowments. He subsidised diocesan finances from his private income. He failed in his attempts to set up schools for Maori children, but he did establish a boy's school in Nelson. There were insufficient clergy, but he was able to recruit his former curate, R.H. Codrington, and his cousin H.M. Turton. He travelled extensively through his large diocese.

Hobhouse was poor at delegation and tended to overwork and his health deteriorated. His popularity declined, with accusations that he was intolerant and a high churchman. There were strains in his relations with Selwyn and he felt that the support of his clergy was inadequate. In August 1864 he announced that he would resign, but that he would remain in the diocese as a parish priest. The resignation took effect in 1865. The death of his wife led him to reconsider his decision and he left New Zealand in June 1866.

In England Hobhouse held the living of Beech Hill, near Reading, before re-joining Selwyn as Assistant Bishop of Lichfield in 1869. He was chancellor of the Lichfield diocese in 1874-75. He retired in 1881 and lived in Wells, Somerset, for the rest of his life. He was an active member of the Somerset Record Society and edited two of its volumes.

Hobhouse married Mary Elizabeth Brodrick in 1858 and they had two sons, Edmund and Walter. She died in October 1864. In 1868 he married Anna Maria Williams, the daughter of the Warden of New College, Oxford.

Related

Existence and Location of Copies:

The original AJCP microfilm of the records filmed from this collection is available at the National Library of Australia [https://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn584752] as well as other institutions holding AJCP microfilm.

Existence and Location of Originals:

This material was originally filmed at the residence of Miss Dorothy Hobhouse, London, England.

The papers of Bishop Hobhouse are now held by the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand. For further information see: Edmund Hobhouse at the Alexander Turnbull Library. (https://natlib.govt.nz/collections/a-z/manuscripts-collection).

Conditions Governing Access:

Available for access.

Conditions Governing Use:

Many of the records digitised as part of the AJCP are still in copyright. Readers wishing to publish or reproduce documents should seek permission, in the first instance, from the owner of the original material.

Preferred citation:

Acknowledgement of use of this material should refer to the location of the original material and to the Australian Joint Copying Project.Items from this collection should include references to the location of the original material and to the AJCP nla.obj number, which serves as the online identifier for the digital copy.

Example: M Series: Journal of Capt. James Cook, 18 February-23 September 1770, British Library Add. MS 27885 (AJCP ref: http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-987654321)

Location of this collection:

National Library of Australia

Parkes Place

Canberra ACT 2600, Australia

Contact:

Contact us