William Nicholas Darnell

William Nicholas Darnell (1776–1865) was an English cleric, academic and antiquarian. Life He was the son of William Darnell, a wine-merchant of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, where he was born on 14 March 1776. He was educated at Newcastle grammar school under Hugh Moises and his nephew Edward Moises. He matriculated at Corpus Christi College, Oxford in 1792, at age 16, elected to the Durham scholarship. He graduated B.A. in 1796, M.A. in 1800, and B.D. in 1808, and became a Fellow and tutor of the college. He was ordained deacon in 1801 and priest in 1802. Darnell was appointed university examiner in 1801, 1803, and 1804, and select preacher in 1807. Among his pupils at Corpus was John Keble, who in 1847 dedicated to Darnell a volume of sermons "in ever grateful memory of invaluable helps and warnings received from him in early youth." In 1809 Darnell left Oxford in 1809, having been presented by Archdeacon Charles Thorp to the rectory of St Mary-le-Bow, Durham, which he held until 1815. Then he was moved by Shute Barrington to the vicarage of Stockton-upon-Tees, with a prebend in Durham Cathedral. From 1820 to 1827 he was perpetual curate of St Margaret's Church, Durham, and from 1827 to 1831 vicar of Norham; for some years before 1828 he had held the Yorkshire vicarage of Lastingham, a preferment from Lord Eldon.