Author: Hall, Peter
Biography:
HALL, Peter (1803-49: ODNB)
According to Alumni Oxonienses he was the third son of James Hall, arm. (armiger), "of St. George's Bloomsbury"--but that most probably simply designates his parish and does not mean that his father was a clergyman. The name of his mother is not known. He was born in London on 31 Dec. 1803 and was educated at Winchester College and Brasenose College, Oxford (matric. 1822, BA 1825, MA 1830). He was ordained deacon in 1827, priest in 1828, and served as curate at St. Edmund's, Salisbury from 1828 to 1833. It was probably during his term at Salisbury that he married; the name of his wife is not known, but they had three daughters who outlived him, as did their mother. Appointed rector at Milston, Wilts., in 1834, he left for a succession of London parishes soon after, allegedly for the sake of his wife's health. In 1843 they moved to Bath, where he became minister of St. Thomas's Chapel. Suffering ill health himself, he went to the spa town of Great Malvern in 1849 but died of self-inflicted wounds there on 10 Sept. He was buried in the churchyard of Great Malvern Priory. He was a prolific writer who published sermons, schoolbooks, and treatises on theological issues. He edited and translated the Greek and Latin prayers of Launcelot Andrewes in 1830, and in 1837-9 brought out an edition of the 12 vols. of the works of Bishop Joseph Hall (1574-1656), whom he claimed as an ancestor. He pursued antiquarian interests in a periodical, The Crypt (1827-8), in accounts of church memorials at Winchester and Salisbury, and in monographs on the topography of parts of Wiltshire, Hampshire, and Dorset. (ODNB 1 Jan. 2022; ancestry.com 1 Jan. 2022; findmypast.com 1 Jan. 2022; CCEd 1 Jan. 2022; GM 2nd ser. 32 [1849], 542-3; Alumni Oxonienses; Bell's Weekly Messenger 1 Oct. 1849) HJ