William Bull was born in Irthlingborough on 22nd December, 1738 into a family of good Puritan stock whose forefathers were yeomen. William was the third son of John Bull, who although he belonged to this Puritan family had fallen into what were described as ‘evil courses’, and the children were taken under the roof of their grandfather Francis, a simple and pious yeoman living on his own freehold, where they were brought up in all Puritan strictness.1
Francis Bull was a warm friend of the House of Hanover. In the Rebellion of 1745 he had furnished a horse and sent his son John Bull to join the Army marching against the Pretender. No evidence has come to light as to exactly how far he got in defence of his sovereign, where he went or what he did when he got there, so we must perhaps surmise.
When Bonnie Prince Charlie, otherwise known as the Young Pretender, raised an army in the Scottish Highlands in a bid to gain London and the throne, little thought was given to how it may have affected this area2. However, once the intruders had reached Derby local people became fearful of what might happen and exaggerated stories of what might be the result of the blood-lust of the Highlanders began to cause concern and panic. The County Magazine told how fearful Wellingburians, along with many from the surrounding villages, took to the extensive woodlands surrounding Hardwick and Sywell, where they buried their treasured possessions for safety.
Dr. Philip Doddridge of Castle Hill Baptist Church in Northampton joined the Northampton Mercury in crying out against the cruelties and abominations of the invaders and so effective were their warnings that one woman in Northampton killed her two children and herself in fear of the abuse and torture that might be forthcoming. Doddridge, backed by the Mercury proposed that a corps of Volunteers be formed and the Earl of Halifax and Lord Montagu raised a troop of horse. These two, and the Duke of Bedford each raised detachments of foot soldiers 800 strong. The Duke of Cambridge arrived at Northampton and planned to challenge the Scots on Harlestone Heath.3
News of the approaching Scots was carried by the Mercury in a special edition, followed by another ‘special’ a few hours later when it became known that the Scots had given up the thrust to the south and had turned back towards the north – the Invasion was over. It would be lovely to be able to confirm that John Bull was one of those volunteer horsemen gathered on Harlestone Heath waiting to defend his fellow men, and particularly women and children, from what the belligerent Scots might have in store for them, but without evidence we must content ourselves with thinking back to what might have been.
The eldest son of Francis was Christopher, also a zealous Puritan and he lived at Brigstock.4
In his memoires of William Bull, his grandson Revd Josiah Bull recalled that the family, led by grandfather Francis, gathered together early on Sabbath morning and the day commenced with reading for a considerable time from Poole’s, or the Assembly’s Annotations. They then proceeded to Wellingborough to attend public worship at the Meeting House in Cheese Lane.5 The time between the morning and afternoon services was spent in the vestry reading scripture and prayers. Having returned home they then passed the evening in religious exercises. On the sacred day no idle words were allowed and scarcely might a smile play upon one’s countenance.6
Josiah also revealed that the family wished that William’s father had been more circumspect in both his walk and conversation than he sometimes was. He should have remained the Puritan and avoided flirtations with a certain ‘scarlet lady’ either in Ritualistic Churches, or anywhere else! This left his readers in no doubt whatsoever that John Bull had well and truly gone astray!
William Bull’s early life in Irthlingborough had certainly been eventful and he apparently had three narrow escapes from death.7 At an early age he had fallen into a well, of which there were many in Irthlingborough, and was not rescued until animation was suspended, and was, with very great difficulty restored to life.
On another occasion he was clinging to the back of a companion who was swimming across the river when he fell off in a part where the water was rather deep. Fortunately, he was rescued by his father who was obviously resting from further dallying with the scarlet woman at the time. His third near encounter with death came when he was hit on the head by a stone. He carried the resulting scar on his skull for the rest of his life.
Josiah also informs us that William Bull had a great thirst for knowledge as well as a marvellous memory. It is said that when he was about 12 or 14 years of age, he had listened to a sermon being preached, and some time afterwards was able to repeat it word perfectly. He learned to read Hebrew with no help but an old Bible with Hebrew letters heading the section of the 119th psalm. He also possessed Whiston’s Mathematics, and made such progress in the science as to become, while still in his teens, a contributor to Martin’s Mathematical Magazine.8
What was described as ‘a disordered state of mind’ compelled him to give up his secular occupation, and he left his grandfather’s house to live with his elder brother John in Bedford. There he improved his knowledge of Latin under the direction of the Revd Samuel Saunderson, and learned Greek with the assistance of the Revd James Belsham, at that time the pastor of the Independent Chapel at Newport Pagnell, but residing in Bedford.9
In 1750 William Bull entered the Dissenting Academy at Daventry to study for the ministry. He was then sent to the Independent Chapel at Newport Pagnell to read a prepared sermon but relapsed into his own interpretation of the text. So impressed were his listeners that on 11th October, 1764 he was ordained to the charge of the chapel succeeding Belsham. In order to increase his limited income, he received pupils for instruction. Among his scholars were some who afterwards obtained good positions in the world, like Sir John Leach, Master of the Rolls. To the surprise of many who thought he should seek higher office, he stayed at Newport until his death at the age of 76 on 23rd July, 1814.
On 7th June, 1768 William Bull married Hannah Palmer of Bedford. Six children were born but only Thomas Palmer, born 15th July, 1773 attained maturity.10 The Revd Thomas Palmer Bull joined his father as co-pastor at Newport on 23rd October, 1800 and it is a remarkable fact that by 11th October, 1864 three generations of the Bull family in William, Thomas Palmer and Josiah had held, without a break, the pastoral office of the Newport Pagnell Chapel for one hundred years!
Revd William Bull was regarded as a deeply pious man and the means of converting many to Christ but he obviously had little sympathy, or regard for anyone not giving him their full attention. Whilst preaching at one service at Newport, he noticed a man having fallen asleep in the gallery. Lowering his voice, he brought his address to a quick end before informing the rest of the congregation that on this occasion he proposed to miss out the final hymn. He then instructed them to leave the building in silence. After the final person had crept out, William doused all the lights, quietly closed the door and locked it. This incident apparently became legend in the community and the tales of his over-night imprisonment in the unlit chapel as told by the unfortunate, and which probably were embellished with every telling, ensured that it was not forgotten for a very long time!
Soon after his arrival at Newport, William Bull formed an acquaintance with the Revd John Newton of Olney, resulting in a life-long intercourse and correspondence. Bull occasionally preached at the great house in Olney, where Mr. Newton conducted his prayer meetings with the assistance of the poet William Cowper. It was for these prayer meetings that Cowper composed some of the Olney hymns. Afterwards, William Bull became more acquainted with Cowper, and through Bull’s watchfulness several of Cowper’s poems were preserved from destruction.
He also induced Cowper to translate into English verse from some of the poems of Madame Guyon. They were afterwards printed at Newport Pagnell with a preface by William Bull. Cowper extolled his faithful friend in both his prose and verse.11
The Revd John Newton of Olney had once been heavily involved in the slave trade but became an abolitionist alongside William Wilberforce. It was at Olney Vicarage that William Bull met Mrs Wilberforce, aunt of William Wilberforce. She invited Bull to visit her in London, and there she introduced him to her brother, John Thornton.12
About this time the evangelicals projected a new academy to prepare men for the ministry. John Newton drew up a plan and a proposal was made for William Bull to superintend the arrangements, and thus turn Bull’s school into an academy. In 1782 he founded The Newport Pagnell Theological College, which was also known as The Academy. In 1783 the Academy started with two students but soon increased its numbers and continued for many years. In all it trained about one hundred ministers.
Bull’s acquaintance with Mrs Wilberforce and the Thorntons brought him into contact with many influential people in London, including prominent figures in the Clapham Sect and he was frequently invited to preach in London. It was recorded by Josiah Bull that although he was a confirmed nonconformist, most of William Bull’s most intimate friends were of the Established Church, but it was they who sought him, and not he who sought them.13
Although he had lived a long and busy life, William Bull’s health was never robust. At the beginning of 1814 he became weaker and died on 23rd July in his seventy-seventh year. The young boy who had been fostered out into his grandfather’s keeping and who narrowly survived being drowned in one of Irthlingborough many deep wells had certainly lived a very full and fruitful life.
He had also influenced much of the work of John Newton and William Cowper, the writers of the Olney Hymns. In fact, one can almost picture Newton handing him his original transcript of the hymn Amazing Grace with the request, “Well William, what do you think of my latest effort, and do you think it will ever catch on?”
In the Society Archive we have a copy of a terrier of Irthlingborough made by Wm Brasier in 1739, a year after Wm Bull was born and from that we can prove that Wm Bull’s father lived in Board Street, then known as Hencock Lane.14
- Dictionary of National Biography ↩︎
- County Magazine 1928 – story recorded in ‘A History of Wellingborough’ – John & Joyce Palmer ↩︎
- Now known as Harlestone Firs ↩︎
- N.M. 8 June 1934 ↩︎
- Both Meeting House and Lane sadly destroyed when the shopping mall was built and the destruction of the centre of Wellingborough begun in the 1960s and 1970s ↩︎
- Memorials written by Rev’d Josiah Bull M.A. & published in The Nonconformiston 23 November 1864 ↩︎
- N.M. 17 June 1932 ↩︎
- Dictionary of National Biography ↩︎
- Ibid ↩︎
- Bucks Standard 28 October 1935 ↩︎
- Dictionary of National Biography ↩︎
- Wikipedia – William Bull (Minister) ↩︎
- Memorial written by…. ↩︎
- The original terrier is lodged with the Northamptonshire Record Office Miscellaneous Volume 124 p134. ↩︎