STEPHEN GLYNNE'S CHURCH NOTES
Biographical History
Sir Stephen Glynne, 9th Baronet, was born on the 22nd of September 1807 to Sir Stephen Glynne, 8th Baronet and his wife Mary, daughter of Richard Griffin, 2nd Baron Braybrooke. He was the eldest son and the second of four children, his siblings being Catherine, Henry, and Mary Glynne.
Stephen Glynne inherited the titles and estates of his father in 1815 at the age of 7. Due to his age the finances of the estate were managed by trustees appointed by his father.
He was educated at Eton and Christ Church, Oxford, where he was a contemporary of William Ewart Gladstone. He undertook a grand tour of Europe in the summer of 1826. After education he returned to Hawarden and took control of his own estates. Glynne’s sister Catherine married William Ewart Gladstone in 1839.
Hawarden estate almost fell into bankruptcy in the late 1840s partly owing to the failure of Oak Farm brick and iron works near Stourbridge in Staffordshire, of which Glynne was a part owner. Part of the estate was sold and Hawarden Castle closed in 1848, reopening 4 years later when he arranged to share the home with Catherine and William Gladstone.
Glynne was a Liberal Member of Parliament for Flint Boroughs from 1832 to 1837 but sat as a Conservative for Flintshire from 1837 to 1847. He was also Lord Lieutenant of Flintshire from 1845 to 1871. During the 1841 election he started proceedings against the Chester Chronicle for libel after they published an article referring to rumours spread by Hugh Davies Griffith of Caerhun and John Taylor of Coed Du, Rhydymwyn, that Glynne was gay. The newspaper was forced to publish an apology and Glynne stopped the proceedings after being convinced that his election opponents were responsible for the libel.
Glynne was the first president of the Cambrian Archaeology Society, and from an early age he was interested in ecclesiology. He was a member of the Ecclesiology Society and helped edit the Hand-Book of English Ecclesiology (1847). He devoted months of each year to visiting and creating notebooks describing parish churches in all parts of Britain and Ireland.
Glynne died on the 17th of June 1874 in Shoreditch, London. He was buried in Hawarden Church, where there is a memorial to him by Matthew Noble. As he was unmarried the Glynne baronetcy ended with him. His estate was left to his nephew, William Henry Gladstone, the eldest son of Catherine and William Gladstone.
Scope and Content
The archive contains Sir Stephen Glynne’s notebooks. Begun in 1824, and spread across 106 volumes, they describe 5,150 churches in all counties (except Kent) in England and Wales, Scotland, Ireland and the Isle of Man. They give a detailed architectural description of each church, its furniture, monuments, etc., and are particularly valuable where the church has been altered by later restoration. Although the arrangement of the notes is by diocese, the notes were not entered into the volumes in any particular order, either alphabetical or chronological. Many entries, particularly those earlier than 1840, are undated. However, an index volume compiled by Sir Stephen c.1840 lists the churches visited in each county in chronological order, and (from 1840) gives the date of the visit.
Physical Description and Extent
The archive contains 108 volumes. Each volume of church notes is about 7" x 9" and usually contains 85 folios. Entries were generally written on the right-hand pages only, the opposite pages being used occasionally for later notes, sketches, etc.
Provenance
The provenance of the archive is not known. As Stephen Glynne’s estate was inherited by William Gladstone and then passed to his son, William Henry Gladstone, it seems likely that the archive was deposited at Gladstone’s Library by the Gladstone family as it was the home of William Gladstone’s collection of books and the Glynne-Gladstone Archive. This is known to have been the case for Sir Stephen Glynne’s books.
Arrangement
The volumes are arranged alphabetically by diocese. The notes were not entered into the volumes in any particular order, whether alphabetical or chronological.
Access and Finding Aid
The catalogue for the archive is available to be viewed here.
Material from the archive is available to be viewed upon request. To arrange a viewing, complete the Request to View Archives form and email it to [email protected] at least 14 day's prior to your intended visit.
Reprographics
All reprographics queries should be directed to [email protected]. Information about Gladstone’s Library’s reprographics services can be found here.
Related Collections
Records of Sir Stephen Glynne, 9th Baronet, including his correspondence are held in the Glynne-Gladstone Archive.
Gladstone’s Library also holds the Glynne collection, which contains 1000 books from the Glynne family dating from the 16th to the 19th century. The majority of these belonged to Sir Stephen Glynne, 9th Baronet.
The notes for some counties have been edited for publication and copies of these can be found in MainCAT in classmark V66.