author
William Gascoyne-Cecil
1863–1936
A Church of England bishop from one of Britain’s best-known political families, he wrote with firsthand curiosity about faith, public life, and a changing world. His career joined parish work, episcopal leadership, and a distinctly personal streak that made him memorable to contemporaries.
1 Audiobook
Changing China
by William Gascoyne-Cecil, Lady Florence Mary Bootle-Wilbraham Cecil
About the author
Born in 1863 at Hatfield House, Rupert Ernest William Gascoyne-Cecil was the second son of Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, the 3rd Marquess of Salisbury. He was educated at Eton and University College, Oxford, and was ordained in 1887.
Much of his working life was spent in the Church of England. He served as rector of Hatfield for 28 years before becoming Bishop of Exeter in 1916, a post he held until his death in 1936. Accounts of his life describe him as generally well liked and a little eccentric, which seems to have added to his reputation rather than hurt it.
He also wrote, including Changing China, a book associated with his travels and interests beyond parish and diocesan life. Married in 1887, he and his wife Florence had seven children, and the family suffered heavy loss in the First World War when three of their sons were killed.