Tomb Of John And Mary Newton Approximately 20 Metres South Of Church Of Saints Peter And Paul

TOMB OF JOHN AND MARY NEWTON

This is a chest tomb of grey granite, dated 1893, standing approximately 20 metres south of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul in Olney. It comprises a plain base with a shallow-pitched top slab featuring a cavetto-moulded underside. Inscriptions in leaded capital letters appear on all four sides.

The north side bears the names and dates: John Newton died 21 December 1807 aged 82, and Mary Newton died 15 December 1790 aged 61. The west side records that these remains were removed from the Church of St Mary Woolnoth in London and re-interred here on 25 January 1893. The east side notes that the monument was erected by numerous subscribers who revered Newton's memory and valued his works. The south side carries an epitaph written by Newton himself for a memorial tablet that remains in St Mary Woolnoth: "JOHN NEWTON, CLERK. ONCE AN INFIDEL AND LIBERTINE A SERVANT OF SLAVES IN AFRICA, WAS BY THE RICH MERCY OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST PRESERVED RESTORED, PARDONED AND APPOINTED TO PREACH THE FAITH HE HAD LONG LABOURED TO DESTROY. NEAR 16 YEARS AS CURATE OF THIS PARISH AND 28 YEARS AS RECTOR OF ST MARY WOOLNOTH."

John Newton was born in Wapping in 1725. His father was a master mariner and his mother, who died when he was six, introduced him to dissenting Christianity. At age 11 he went to sea with his father. As a young man he fell in love with Mary Catlett, daughter of friends of his late mother, and they married in 1750. Between 1745 and 1754 Newton worked on slave ships, serving as captain on three voyages. He was involved in every aspect of the slave trade, inspecting and choosing slaves from African communities, and his log books record the torture of rebellious slaves. In 1748, during a terrible storm, he experienced what he later described as his conversion to devout Christianity, consolidated through conversations with another slave captain.

In 1754 Newton became surveyor of tides at Liverpool and devoted his spare time to theological study, becoming one of the area's leading theological laymen. In 1764, through the patronage of the evangelical 2nd Earl of Dartmouth, he was made curate-in-charge at the Church of Saints Peter and Paul, Olney. That same year he published his autobiography, 'An Authentic Narrative', which established him as a leading figure of the evangelical revival. He remained at Olney for 16 years, becoming famous as a preacher and writer; the church grew so crowded that a gallery was added. During the 1770s he worked with his parishioner, the poet William Cowper, on a collection of 'Olney Hymns' published in 1779, which included 'Amazing Grace'.

In 1780 Newton became rector of St Mary Woolnoth in London, where his reputation and status attracted large congregations. In 1785-6 William Wilberforce sought his counsel during his evangelical conversion; Newton advised him to use political means to do God's work, counsel that led Wilberforce to pursue the abolition campaign. In 1788 Newton published his pamphlet 'Thoughts upon the African Slave Trade', which revealed his past as a slave trader, condemned the trade, and expressed regret at his involvement. Later that year he provided detailed evidence to a parliamentary select committee examining the slave trade, describing the treatment and conditions suffered by slaves in transit. His singular position as a figure of moral authority with first-hand experience of the slave trade made his contribution to the abolition movement extremely valuable.

John Newton died in December 1807, shortly after the Abolition Act passed into law. He was buried beside his wife, who had died in 1790, in the crypt of St Mary Woolnoth. However, the construction of Bank Underground station necessitated the removal of both bodies, and they were re-interred at Olney on 25 January 1893. A subscription to raise funds for this reinterment was begun in London by Newton's admirers and led in Olney by William Hill Collingridge, who in 1900 gave his house, the former home of William Cowper, to the town as the Cowper and Newton Museum. New oak coffins were made bearing the original plaques, though Newton's was subsequently removed and is now displayed in the Olney church.

The tomb stands in the south-east corner of the churchyard. Directly to the east is a small monument commemorating Newton's father-in-law, George Catlett, who died in 1777 whilst visiting the Newtons. The Church of Saints Peter and Paul stands at the south end of the town on the banks of the River Ouse. To the north of the church is the vicarage with attached coach-house, which was once Newton's home.