author
Henry Thomas Purchas
1860–1921
A New Zealand clergyman and church historian, he wrote closely observed accounts of Anglican life in Canterbury and the wider country. His books on Bishop Harper and the English Church in New Zealand still offer a vivid window into colonial religious history.
1 Audiobook
A History of the English Church in New Zealand
by Henry Thomas Purchas
About the author
Born in 1860, Henry Thomas Purchas became an Anglican priest in New Zealand and served in Canterbury, including periods as vicar of St Paul’s Papanui and later St Paul’s Glenmark. Contemporary and library records also note him as a canon of Christchurch Cathedral, and he died in 1921.
He is best remembered as the author of Bishop Harper and the Canterbury Settlement and A History of the English Church in New Zealand. Those works draw on his close knowledge of church life in New Zealand and helped preserve the story of Anglican communities, leaders, and institutions in the country.
Although not a widely known literary figure today, his writing remains useful for readers interested in New Zealand history, colonial society, and the development of the church there.