Robert Gray DD (1809 - 1872)

Born 3 Oct 1809 in Bishops Wearmouth, Durham, England,

Ancestors

Husband of Sophia Wharton (Myddleton) Gray — married 3 Sep 1836 in Durham

Descendants

Died 1 Sep 1872 at age 62 in Cape Town, South Africa

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Jenna Gray [send private message]

Preceeded By (position established)

Rt Rev Robert Gray First Bishop of Cape Town 1847 - 1873

Suceeded by William West Jones

Biography

Robert Gray DD is Notable.

Robert was the first Bishop of Cape Town, South Africa and founder of one of South Africa's most prestigious boy's schools.

Early Life

Robert Gray was the 12th son of Robert Gray and Elizabeth Camplin, born on 3 October 1809 in Bishopwearmouth, Durham.^[1][2] [[Gray was christened in Bishopwearmouth, Durham on 4 December 1809.^[3]

By the time he was 22, Gray was one of only six children still alive—his sister, Fanny, dying from 'chest trouble' while in Barbados with Gray.^[2]

Entering University College, Oxford in 1827, Gray gained a fourth-class honorary degree.^[1]

Family

Gray married Sophy Myddleton.^[4] They had three children:

1. Louisa Gray^[5]
2. Charles Gray^[5]
3. Florence (Gray) Frere

Career

Soon after being appointed the first Bishop of Cape Town, Gray went on to found Bishops Diocesan College, what would become one of South Africa's most prestigious private schools, on 13 March 1849.^[6]

While Bishop of Cape Town, Gray (a traditionalist) wanted the Bishop of Natal, John Clenso, brought up on charges of heresy for his overly-evangelical views.^[7] Clenso was convicted in church courts and removed.^[7]

Death and Burial

Robert Gray died on 1 September 1872 in Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa.^[8] He is buried in St Saviour's Anglican Church Cemetery, Cape Town.^[8]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} Pocock, Nicholas and Peter Hinchliff. "Robert Gray (1809–1872). Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2020. [1].
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Wilke, Terry. The Bishops Chapels. Cape Town: Bishops Diocesan College, 2018. Page 9. : Copy in possession of Aidan Bizony
3. ↑ "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JMRF-ZLX : 13 Jul 2023). Bishopwearmouth, Durham, England, Christenings; Robert Gray, 4 Dec 1809.
4. ↑ Wilke, Terry. The Bishops Chapels. Page 10.
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1} UK Census 1841 at Old Park, Auckland, Stockton, Durham
   

   Robert Gray, age 30 born Durham occupation Clerk

   Sophia, wife, age 25, not born Durham

   Louisa, daughter, age 3, born Durham

   Charles, son, 9 months, born Durham

6. ↑ Day, E. Hermitage. Robert Gray: First Bishop of Cape Town. London: SPCK, 1930.
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1} Encyclopaedia Britannica Online Editors. "Developments in worldwide Anglicanism." Encyclopaedia Britannica Online. Accessed 19 Mar 2020.
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1} St Saviour's Anglican Church Cemetery (Claremont, Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa). Find A Grave: Memorial #156883659 Grave of Robert Gray. Photographed by Scooter T, 9 Jan 2016.

   Robert Gray D.D. First Bishop of Capetown and Metropolitan

   Fell asleep on 1st September 1872

Sources

• Gray, C.N.. Life of Robert Gray: Bishop of Cape Town and Metropolitan of Africa'. London, Cambridge, and Oxford: Rivingtons, 1876.
• Wikidata: Item Q7344923
• Wikipedia: Robert_Gray_(bishop_of_Cape_Town)