William Palmer

PALMER, William. b. Mixbury, Oxfordshire, 12 July 1811; d. Rome, 8 April 1879. He was the son of the rector of Mixbury, and the elder brother of Roundell Palmer*. He was educated at home and at Rugby School, followed by Magdalen College, Oxford, where he was a brilliant student (BA 1831) who was elected to a Fellowship in 1832. He remained at Magdalen until 1855, with a break for two years (1834-36) as Classics Tutor at the newly-founded University of Durham. During this time he was much influenced by the Oxford Movement*, and became particularly interested in the Russian Orthodox Church. He visited Russia in 1840-41, and again in 1842, hoping to interest the Russian Church in some form of...