Victor Whitechurch
Encyclopedia
Victor Lorenzo Whitechurch (12 March 1868 – 25 May 1933) was a Church of England
clergyman and author
.
He wrote many novels on different themes. He is probably best known for his detective stories
featuring Thorpe Hazell
, which featured in the Strand Magazine
, Railway Magazine
, Pearson's and Harmsworth's Magazines. Hazell was a vegetarian railway detective, whom the author intended to be as far from Sherlock Holmes
as possible. Another character was the spy Captain Ivan Koravitch. He also wrote religious books, as well as novels set in the church (see below).
Whitechurch's stories were admired by Ellery Queen
and Dorothy L. Sayers
for their "immaculate plotting and factual accuracy: he was one of the first writers to submit his manuscripts to Scotland Yard for vetting as to police procedure."
in 1904. In 1913 he became Chaplain
to the Bishop of Oxford
, and an honorary canon
of Christ Church
. In 1918 he became Rural Dean
of Aylesbury
.
On returning to Frattenbury, Canon Smith champions the cause of reform, in particular improvements to slum housing to the anger of his church colleagues and the city magnates, who spread rumours of his supposed time in Monte Carlo.
He sends a £20 note he found in the stranger's jacket to someone threatened with bankruptcy. Unfortunately this turned out to be stolen in a bank robbery, and Canon Smith is embarrassed by having to admit in court how he came by the note to clear the accused.
All comes right when his friend Jane Rutland receives another letter about the "clergyman" and she is able to tip off the police to get him arrested. Canon Smith goes to the bank robber in the cells to thank him for opening his eyes to others' points of view, and shows his forgiveness. The novel ends with his engagement to Jane Rutland.
The book has been adapted for both the stage and radio .
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
clergyman and author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
.
He wrote many novels on different themes. He is probably best known for his detective stories
Detective fiction
Detective fiction is a sub-genre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an investigator , either professional or amateur, investigates a crime, often murder.-In ancient literature:...
featuring Thorpe Hazell
Thorpe Hazell
Thorpe Hazell is a fictional detective created by the British author Victor Lorenzo Whitechurch. Hazell was a vegetarian railway expert, whom the author intended to be as far from Sherlock Holmes as possible. Short stories about Thorpe Hazell appeared in the Strand Magazine, Railway Magazine,...
, which featured in the Strand Magazine
Strand Magazine
The Strand Magazine was a monthly magazine composed of fictional stories and factual articles founded by George Newnes. It was first published in the United Kingdom from January 1891 to March 1950 running to 711 issues, though the first issue was on sale well before Christmas 1890.Its immediate...
, Railway Magazine
The Railway Magazine
The Railway Magazine is a monthly British railway magazine, aimed at the railway enthusiast market, that has been published in London since July 1897. it has been, for three years running, the railway magazine with the largest circulation in the U.K., having a monthly average sale during 2009 of...
, Pearson's and Harmsworth's Magazines. Hazell was a vegetarian railway detective, whom the author intended to be as far from Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
as possible. Another character was the spy Captain Ivan Koravitch. He also wrote religious books, as well as novels set in the church (see below).
Whitechurch's stories were admired by Ellery Queen
Ellery Queen
Ellery Queen is both a fictional character and a pseudonym used by two American cousins from Brooklyn, New York: Daniel Nathan, alias Frederic Dannay and Manford Lepofsky, alias Manfred Bennington Lee , to write, edit, and anthologize detective fiction.The fictional Ellery Queen created by...
and Dorothy L. Sayers
Dorothy L. Sayers
Dorothy Leigh Sayers was a renowned English crime writer, poet, playwright, essayist, translator and Christian humanist. She was also a student of classical and modern languages...
for their "immaculate plotting and factual accuracy: he was one of the first writers to submit his manuscripts to Scotland Yard for vetting as to police procedure."
Career
Whitechurch was educated at Chichester Grammar School and Chichester Theological College. After various positions as curate he became vicar of St. Michael's, BlewburyBlewbury
Blewbury is a village and civil parish at the foot of the Berkshire Downs about south of Didcot. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire.-Prehistory:...
in 1904. In 1913 he became Chaplain
Chaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
to the Bishop of Oxford
Bishop of Oxford
The Bishop of Oxford is the diocesan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Oxford in the Province of Canterbury; his seat is at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford...
, and an honorary canon
Canon (priest)
A canon is a priest or minister who is a member of certain bodies of the Christian clergy subject to an ecclesiastical rule ....
of Christ Church
Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford
Christ Church Cathedral is the cathedral of the diocese of Oxford, which consists of the counties of Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Berkshire. It is also, uniquely, the chapel of Christ Church, a college of the University of Oxford.-History:...
. In 1918 he became Rural Dean
Rural Dean
In the Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church, a Rural Dean presides over a Rural Deanery .-Origins and usage:...
of Aylesbury
Aylesbury
Aylesbury is the county town of Buckinghamshire in South East England. However the town also falls into a geographical region known as the South Midlands an area that ecompasses the north of the South East, and the southern extremities of the East Midlands...
.
Works
- The Chronicle of St George (1891, editor)
- The Course of Justice (a novel) (1903)
- The Canon in Residence (1904)
- The Locum Tenens: a novel (1906)
- The Canon's Dilemma (1909)
- Concerning Himself, The story of an ordinary man (1909)
- Off the main road - A village comedy (1911)
- Thrilling Stories of the Railway (1912)
- Left in charge (1912)
- A Downland Corner (1912)
- Three Summers - A Romance (1915)
- Parochial Processions: their value and organisation (1917)
- The Templeton Case (1924)
- A Bishop out of Residence (1924)
- Downland Echoes (1924)
- The Adventures of Captain Ivan Koravitch (1925)
- Concerning Right and Wrong. A plain man's creed (1925)
- If riches increase (1923)
- The Dean and Jecinora (1926)
- The Truth in Christ Jesus (1927)
- The Crime at Diana's Pool (1927)
- Shot in the Downs (1927)
- Mixed Relations (1928)
- First and Last (1929)
- Murder at the Pageant (1930)
- Murder at the College (1932)
- Mute Witnesses: Being certain annals of a Downland Village (1933)
Canon in Residence - Plot summary
The Reverend John Smith is a conventional cleric, who learns on holiday he has been promoted to be Canon in Residence of Frattenbury Cathedral. While staying at a hotel he meets a fellow Englishman, who tells him the clergy are too divorced from reality. This stranger drugs Rev Smith and takes his clerical clothing, leaving in return his garish clothing, which Rev Smith is forced to wear for the rest of his holiday in St Moritz. However because of this, he learns a great deal that the dog collar would have prevented. Meanwhile the stranger adopts Rev Smith's name and goes off gambling and quaffing vast quantities of champagne in Monte Carlo, to the horror of an Englishwoman there who writes to her friends in Frattenbury about him.On returning to Frattenbury, Canon Smith champions the cause of reform, in particular improvements to slum housing to the anger of his church colleagues and the city magnates, who spread rumours of his supposed time in Monte Carlo.
He sends a £20 note he found in the stranger's jacket to someone threatened with bankruptcy. Unfortunately this turned out to be stolen in a bank robbery, and Canon Smith is embarrassed by having to admit in court how he came by the note to clear the accused.
All comes right when his friend Jane Rutland receives another letter about the "clergyman" and she is able to tip off the police to get him arrested. Canon Smith goes to the bank robber in the cells to thank him for opening his eyes to others' points of view, and shows his forgiveness. The novel ends with his engagement to Jane Rutland.
The book has been adapted for both the stage and radio .