Journal Article

The shadow of patronage: Lewis Stephens and ‘the ecclesiastical climbers’

Abstract

Drawing extensively on hitherto unexplored manuscript sources, this article outlines, first, the functioning of patronage within the eighteenth‐century church, with particular reference to the formation of Lewis Stephens's clerical identity. This provides a foundation for, second, the interrogation of Stephens's satirical compositions, and especially the depiction of his former patron Archbishop Lancelot Blackburne. Finally, the relationship between Stephens's contributions to public religious discourse, clerical conduct and private literary compositions and those of other leading satirists and writers of the period is analysed in order to illuminate the interplay between the roles of clergyman and writer in Walpolean Britain.

Attached files

Authors

Reed, Daniel

Oxford Brookes departments

Department of History, Philosophy and Culture

Dates

Year of publication: 2018
Date of RADAR deposit: 2019-11-04

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Related resources

This RADAR resource is the Accepted Manuscript of The shadow of patronage: Lewis Stephens and ‘the ecclesiastical climbers’