Edward Vernon-Harcourt: The Last Aristocratic Archbishop of York

Edward Vernon-Harcourt (1757–1847) was Archbishop of York from 1807 until his death at the age of 90.

As a younger son of a wealthy land-owning family, Archbishop Harcourt depended on good family and political connections to make progress in the Church. He had to combine his responsibility for one of the largest dioceses in the Church of England with his duties in parliament and at court and with providing for his family of 16 children. More supportive of reform of both parliament and the c...