George Smith (bishop of Victoria)
Life
Life
----

Smith was born in [Wellington, Somerset](/wiki/Wellington%2C_Somerset "Wellington, Somerset") on 19 June 1815\. He obtained a [Bachelor of Arts](/wiki/Bachelor_of_Arts "Bachelor of Arts") (BA) in classics from [Magdalen Hall, Oxford](/wiki/Magdalen_Hall%2C_Oxford "Magdalen Hall, Oxford") in 1837 (and a [Master of Arts](/wiki/Master_of_Arts_%28Oxbridge_and_Dublin%29 "Master of Arts (Oxbridge and Dublin)") {MA Cantab} in 1843 and [Doctor of Divinity](/wiki/Doctor_of_Divinity "Doctor of Divinity") {DD} in 1849\) and was ordained in the [Church of England](/wiki/Church_of_England "Church of England"). He was made deacon on 20 October 1839 by [George Davys](/wiki/George_Davys "George Davys"), [Bishop of Peterborough](/wiki/Bishop_of_Peterborough "Bishop of Peterborough") and ordained priest in July 1840 by [Charles Longley](/wiki/Charles_Longley "Charles Longley"), [Bishop of Ripon](/wiki/Bishop_of_Ripon_%28modern_diocese%29 "Bishop of Ripon (modern diocese)").Bickley He rapidly became involved in the [Church Missionary Society](/wiki/Church_Missionary_Society "Church Missionary Society") and he and fellow priest Thomas McClatchie arrived in [Shanghai](/wiki/Shanghai "Shanghai") on 25 September 1844 to establish a mission. Poor health forced an early return to England, but Smith's *Narrative* of his period in China was published in 1847\.

Smith worked hard to raise money for further missionary work in China, and in 1849 was made bishop of the new diocese of [Victoria, Hong Kong](/wiki/Victoria%2C_Hong_Kong "Victoria, Hong Kong") and warden of the newly founded St Paul's Missionary College (see [St Paul's College](/wiki/St._Paul%27s_College%2C_Hong_Kong "St. Paul's College, Hong Kong")). He was consecrated a bishop on 29 May 1849 at [Canterbury Cathedral](/wiki/Canterbury_Cathedral "Canterbury Cathedral"),Handbook to the Diocese of Victoria (Hong Kong and South China) 1924\. [p. 11](https://web.archive.org/web/20140428164111/http://www.ttc.edu.sg/csca/skh/sc/hb-diov1924.pdf) by [John Bird Sumner](/wiki/John_Bird_Sumner "John Bird Sumner"), [Archbishop of Canterbury](/wiki/Archbishop_of_Canterbury "Archbishop of Canterbury").cf. [Biography of David Anderson at the *Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online*](http://www.biographi.ca/009004-119.01-e.php?&id_nbr=5339) (Anderson was the bishop of the "Far West" referred to by the Diocesan Handbook and consecrated in the same service as Smith.) With his new wife Lydia, *née* Brandram, Smith arrived in Hong Kong on 29 March 1850 and threw himself into missionary and educational work. He learned [Mandarin](/wiki/Mandarin_Chinese "Mandarin Chinese"), becoming sufficiently fluent to conduct services in it.

Smith was also responsible for missionary work in China and Japan. A weak constitution limited this work, but he nevertheless visited Japan (1860\), the [Ryukyu islands](/wiki/Ryukyu_Islands "Ryukyu Islands") (1850\), [India](/wiki/India "India") and [Ceylon](/wiki/Sri_Lanka "Sri Lanka") (1852–1853\), Australia (1859\), and elsewhere, partly to work for emigrants from China.

Smith had a misinformed sympathy on religious grounds for the [Taiping rebel movement](/wiki/Taiping_Rebellion "Taiping Rebellion") in the neighbouring Chinese Empire. In 1853 he wrote in letter to Archbishop Sumner: "The rebel chiefs profess to believe in Protestant Christianity; declare that they are commissioned by the Almighty to spread the knowledge of the one true God; have everywhere shown a determination to destroy idolatry of every kind; and now profess to await a further revelation of the divine will, ere they advance upon the northern capital [Peking](/wiki/Beijing "Beijing")".Biography of Charles Gordon. He was still sympathetic as late as 1863, when he protested to the Foreign Secretary (then [Earl Russell](/wiki/John_Russell%2C_1st_Earl_Russell "John Russell, 1st Earl Russell")), without checking his facts, over Hong Kong newspaper reports on the killing of Taiping prisoners in Taintsan by followers of the [Ever Victorious Army](/wiki/Ever_Victorious_Army "Ever Victorious Army") who were under command of [Charles George Gordon](/wiki/Charles_George_Gordon "Charles George Gordon") (but done without his knowledge).*Gordon: The Man Behind the Legend*, pp.66\-67\. At that stage he considered the Taiping sincere if somewhat heretical Christians, and he was supported by a strong lobby of merchants in Hong Kong who profited from supplying the rebels.

Smith left Hong Kong for the last time in 1864, retiring from the bishopric early the next year. He had arrived back in Britain by [St Peter's Day](/wiki/St%C2%A0Peter%27s_Day "St Peter's Day") (29 June 1864\), when he presented [Charles Bromby](/wiki/Charles_Bromby "Charles Bromby") for consecration as a bishop at [Canterbury Cathedral](/wiki/Canterbury_Cathedral "Canterbury Cathedral"). Over the following years, he occasionally assisted successive [Bishops of Winchester](/wiki/Bishops_of_Winchester "Bishops of Winchester") ([Sumner](/wiki/Charles_Sumner_%28bishop%29 "Charles Sumner (bishop)") and [Wilberforce](/wiki/Samuel_Wilberforce "Samuel Wilberforce") at least) in north Surrey (what is now South London).e.g.  \&  He died in his house at [Blackheath](/wiki/Blackheath%2C_London "Blackheath, London") (then in [Kent](/wiki/Kent "Kent"), now in Greater London), on 14 December 1871 after a short illness.


Who were some of the merchants that supported Smith's views in Hong Kong?