DR. JOHN SHARP
CONTEXT
Born in Rothbury, Northumberland in 1723, Dr. John Sharp was the eldest of the 8 surviving children of Thomas Sharp (1693-1758), Archdeacon of Northumberland, and Judith Wheler (d.1757). The Sharps were a prominent clerical family, having made their wealth in agriculture and cloth manufacturing in Yorkshire. Dr. Sharp’s paternal grandfather, also named John (1645-1714), had been Archbishop of York. His siblings were notable in their own right, including William Sharp (1729-1810), surgeon to King George III, and abolitionist Granville Sharp (1735-1813). For more information on Granville Sharp see our Black History module document on the Yorke-Talbot opinion.
Dr. Sharp attended Trinity College, Cambridge where he was awarded a Batchelor of Arts degree in 1743/4; a Master of Arts in 1747; and a Doctor of Divinity in 1759. He was ordained as a deacon at Ely, Cambridgeshire in 1748, and as a priest in 1749, before taking the post as Rector of Hartburn, Northumberland.
Dr. Sharp married Mary Dering in Ripon Cathedral, Yorkshire on 4th December 1752. They had a daughter, Anne Jemima, in 1762.
Following his father’s death in 1758, Dr. John Sharp became a senior trustee of Lord Crewe’s Charity and took personal charge of Bamburgh Castle. He succeeded as perpetual curate of Bamburgh in 1773, a position previously held by his brother Thomas.
Dr. Sharp’s first act was the restoration of Bamburgh Castle. He commissioned the repairing of the keep, and the court room to accommodate the manorial courts. The court room was also initially used as a free school for poor boys. He paid almost £320 for this work from his own funds, before it was repaid by the trustees. This is equivalent to about £39,142 in 2023 (Bank of England – Inflation Calculator).
Dr. Sharp devoted the rest of his life to the Lord Crewe estates, the improvement of the castle, and the setting up of a range of innovative philanthropic ventures which benefitted those living within the estates and beyond. Upon his death in 1792, Dr. Sharp gifted his personal library to Lord Crewes’ Charity. This was originally kept at Bamburgh Castle but was deposited with Durham University in 1958.
The Lord Crewe Trustees sold Bamburgh Castle to Lord Armstrong of Cragside in 1894 when it could no longer afford the repairs and upkeep of the castle.
Under the terms of Lord Crewe’s will, the Trustees had a wide discretion in disposing of the surplus income of the estates for charitable purposes. As the surplus increased, Dr. Sharp devised a number of charities based at Bamburgh Castle. These became known as the Bamburgh Charities. Startlingly modern in their approach to welfare, many of these survived into the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Education: After initially setting up a school in the court room, John commissioned two free schools to be set up in the castle – one for boys and one for girls – along with appointing school teachers. Prospective students needed to petition the Trustees to be considered for admission, along with letters or signatories of recommendation. The school later became a boarding school for impoverished and orphaned girls. A larger school was established in 1877 for 120 children.
Corn Charity: From 1766, John set up a granary within the castle so that grain could be sold to the poor at a special low price. This grew to encompass additional goods such as barley, beans, oats and peas. A cheap shop was established after John’s death supplying miscellaneous subsidised groceries and household goods.
Medicine: An infirmary and dispensary were set up in 1772. Poor local applicants, on production of a certificate of recommendation could receive free medical treatment. With the help of his brother William, John appointed a surgeon, and purchased state of the art medical equipment and supplies from London. This was in operation until 1920.
Shipwrecks and Sailors: Worried about the frequency of shipwrecks along the coast, John rebuilt the ramparts and castle walls in order to set up accommodation for shipwrecked sailors. The sailors could stay at the castle for 7 days at the expense of the Trustees. He also arranged for a signal gun to fire to warn ships away from the rocks in foggy weather, and established an 8-mile patrol of the coast on stormy nights to assist shipwreck survivors. John also commissioned Lionel Lukin to construct the Lukin Boat in 1789, the first patented lifeboat in the world, making Bamburgh the first lifeboat station. For additional information and learning activities on Dr John Sharp’s initiatives on shipwrecks and the Lukin Lifeboat, see our module Shipwrecks & Rescues.
DOCUMENTS
This portrait of Dr. John Sharp hangs in Bamburgh Castle. Dr. Sharp is wearing his clerical garments. He has a set of plans of Bamburgh Castle at his left hand. The view out of the window shows a rough sea with a vessel in distress. This is reference to the charity for shipwrecked sailors that was established by the Lord Crewe’s Charity. The volume at Dr. Sharp’s feet is titled ‘Patients Admitted’, a reference to the Dispensary. The figures in the background are likely to represent recipients of the good works of the Charity.
This is a document relating to Dr. Sharp’s involvement with the building work at Bamburgh Castle. It provides details of the cost of labour and materials for some of the work. The items listed at the top of the first page were used in the manufacture of plaster. Hair, probably horse hair from the tail of a horse, was used to help bind the plaster and prevent shrinkage. Riddling lime was larger pieces of lime produced as part of the kiln production process. Lime was used to bind plaster. The lime would have been obtained from local lime kilns. The entries relating to payment of wages give an indication of what the various trades were paid, for example, we learn that John Robson was employed for three days in November boxing the window of the Inner Low Room and working at the plasterer’s scaffold. He earned four shillings (20p) for this work.
Dr. John Sharp became a trustee of the Lord Crewe’s Charity in 1758 succeeding his father, Archdeacon Thomas Sharp. One of Dr. Sharp’s early tasks was to fit up Bamburgh Castle as a place of residence. He lived at the Castle himself some of the time. Dr. Sharp personally supervised the renewal and preservation of the square and circular towers and other buildings along the south-east front, the curtain walls, battlements, ramparts and gatetower, and the erection of a battery platform toward the sea. Dr. Sharp financed some of this work himself and went on to endow a fund with property in order to provide money for the maintenance of the fabric.
This document is an extract from a deed of gift made by Dr. Sharp on 17 November 1778 relating to repairs on the Great Tower, Bamburgh Castle. The document comprises a series of instructions to the contractor about the work to be undertaken. The document appears to be a draft. It is written in a rough hand and includes some corrections. The condition of the document suggests that it may have suffered from damp at some point.
FURTHER READING
The Charities of Nathaniel, Lord Crewe and Dr John Sharp 1721-1976 by CJ Stranks published by the Dean and Chapter of Durham 1976.
Memoirs of Nathaniel, Lord Crewe edited by Rev. Andrew Clark printed for the Camden Society 1893.
The Good Sharps by Hester Grant, Penguin Random House 2020
Dilston Hall…A Visit ot Bamburgh Castle with an account of Lord Crewe’s charties etc by WS Gibson published by Longman, Brown, Green and Longmans 1850
Dorothy and the Forsters of Bamburgh by John Bird, published by John Bird 1982
Bamburgh Belford Warenmouth Spindleston Outchester by Frank Graham published by Frank Graham 1976
Lord Crewe’s Charity website: https://www.lordcrewescharity.org.uk/
Northumberland Archives exhibition on Lord Crewe’s Charity: https://northumberlandarchives.com/exhibitions/crewe/1.html
Bamburgh Research Project website: https://bamburghresearchproject.wordpress.com/
Northumberland Archives blog on the electrifying machine: https://northumberlandarchives.com/test/2020/05/05/the-electrifying-machine-bamburgh-castle/
BBC Free Thinking feature on Bamburgh Castle surgery: https://dralun.wordpress.com/2015/11/02/bbc-free-thinking-feature-bamburgh-castle-surgery-c-1770-1800/
Article on overcrowded and underfunded 18th century hospitals: https://dralun.wordpress.com/2014/10/06/overcrowded-and-underfunded-18th-century-hospitals-and-the-nhs-crisis/
Article on 18th century medical jobs at Bamburgh Castle: https://dralun.wordpress.com/2014/01/22/do-you-need-a-doctor-applying-for-medical-jobs-in-the-eighteenth-century/
Article on 18th century medical job wages at Bamburgh Castle: https://dralun.wordpress.com/2014/01/24/negotiating-a-pay-rise-18th-century-style/
History Today article on Bamburgh Castle infirmary and dispensary: https://www.historytoday.com/hidden-hospital-bamburgh-castle-infirmary-and-dispensary
Article on Dr John Sharp: https://www.philanthropynortheast.com/the-philanthropists/sharp-dr-john
Bamburgh Bones website: https://bamburghbones.org/