Robert Knopwood (2 June 1763 – 18 September 1838) was an early clergyman and diarist in Australia.
Knopwood was the third child and only surviving son of Robert Knopwood (from a wealthy Norfolk family) and his wife Elizabeth, née Barton of Threxton, Norfolk, England. Knopwood was educated at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, and graduated B.A. in 1786, M.A. in 1790. Knopwood was ordained deacon in December 1788 and priest a year later. Havin...
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Robert Knopwood (2 June 1763 – 18 September 1838) was an early clergyman and diarist in Australia.
Knopwood was the third child and only surviving son of Robert Knopwood (from a wealthy Norfolk family) and his wife Elizabeth, née Barton of Threxton, Norfolk, England. Knopwood was educated at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, and graduated B.A. in 1786, M.A. in 1790. Knopwood was ordained deacon in December 1788 and priest a year later. Having inherited a fortune as a young man, he became a member of the gambling set associated with the Prince Regent and quickly lost his money. He obtained a position as chaplain in the navy, and was appointed to Colonel Collins's expedition which, after the failure of the Port Phillip settlement, landed on the site of Hobart on 19 February 1804. Knopwood's salary as chaplain to the settlement was £182 10s. per annum. He was appointed a magistrate on the following 17 March.
Knopwood kept a diary for more than 30 years. It is now in the Mitchell...
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