John Owen

Educated at St Paul's School and at Cambridge, where he studied at Magdalene and Corpus Christi Colleges, he went on to become a fellow of Corpus Christi. In the early 1790s he traveled on the continent and narrowly escaped unrest in Lyons during the French Revolution, experiences that later fed into his published travel writing.

After returning to England, he was ordained and served in church posts including Fulham and later Paglesham and Park Chapel, Chelsea. He also published sermons and religious and political reflections, showing a strong interest in the public questions of his day.

He is especially remembered for his long work with the British and Foreign Bible Society. From soon after its foundation in 1804 until his death in 1822, he served as its principal secretary and wrote in its defense, including a history of its first ten years.