author
James Craigie Robertson
1813–1882
A Scottish-born Anglican scholar who spent much of his life in Canterbury, he is best remembered for his wide-ranging histories of the Christian Church. His work combined clerical experience with a deep interest in medieval Christianity and church institutions.
1 Audiobook
Sketches of Church History, from A.D. 33 to the Reformation
by James Craigie Robertson
About the author
Born in Aberdeen in 1813, he was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge, after an early schooling that appears to have been unusually varied. He was ordained in the Church of England in 1836, served curacies, and in 1846 became vicar of Bekesbourne near Canterbury.
Much of his reputation rests on his historical writing. While living at Bekesbourne, he devoted himself heavily to research and produced major works including History of the Christian Church, later expanded as History of the Christian Church from the Apostolic Age to the Reformation. He also wrote on Thomas Becket and edited important historical materials connected with medieval church history.
His church career continued alongside his scholarship: he was made a canon of Canterbury in 1859 and later served as professor of ecclesiastical history at King's College London from 1864 to 1874. He died in Canterbury in 1882, leaving behind a body of work valued for its seriousness, range, and lasting usefulness to readers of church history.