John Marshall Lang | |
|---|---|
 Lang in 1900 | |
| Principal of theUniversity of Aberdeen | |
| In office 1900–1909 | |
| Preceded by | Sir William Geddes |
| Succeeded by | Sir George Adam Smith |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1834-05-14)14 May 1834 Glassford,South Lanarkshire,Scotland |
| Died | 2 May 1909(1909-05-02) (aged 74) Aberdeen,Aberdeenshire, Scotland |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 8 includingCosmo,Marshall, andNorman |
| Alma mater | University of Glasgow |
| Profession | Minister, author, and university administrator |
John Marshall LangCVO[1] (1834 – 2 May 1909) was aChurch of Scotlandminister andauthor.[2] He served asModerator of the General Assembly in 1893 and later becamePrincipal of the University of Aberdeen in 1900.
He was born in the manse atGlassford into an eminentecclesiastical family on 14 May 1834. His father was the minister Gavin Lang.[3] His mother was Agnes Roberton Marshall. He was the second of eleven children, includingRobert Hamilton Lang.[4]
He studied Sciences atGlasgow University but did not graduate. He then trained as a minister at Divinity Hall In Glasgow, He was ordained by theChurch of Scotland at theKirk of St Nicholas inAberdeen. In 1858 he moved to the more rural parish ofFyvie. He later served inAnderston inGlasgow and Morningside Church inEdinburgh.
In 1893 he succeededArchibald Charteris asModerator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland and was succeeded in turn in 1894 by RevRobert Herbert Story.[5] His third sonCosmo Gordon Lang wasArchbishop of Canterbury from 1928 to 1942; his fifth sonMarshall Buchanan Lang was Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland from 1935 to 1936;[6] and another son,Norman MacLeod Lang wasBishop suffragan of Leicester (in theChurch of England).
In early 1900 he moved toAberdeen, having been elected as Principal ofAberdeen University on 31 March of that year in place of Rev ProfWilliam Robinson Pirie.[7][8] He lived at Chanonry Lodge at 13 Chanonry, midway betweenKing's College, Aberdeen andSt Machar's Cathedral.[9] In his role as Principal he was created a Commander of theRoyal Victorian Order (CVO) by KingEdward VII during a visit to the university in 1906.[10]
He died on 2 May 1909 at the Chanonry Lodge and is buried in the eastern enclosure attaching the east end ofSt Machar's Cathedral.[11]
In 1859 he was married to Hannah Agnes Keith (1840-1921), daughter of Rev Dr Peter Hay Keith of Hamilton.[12]
They had seven sons and one daughter: his eldest sonMarshall Buchanan Lang also served as Moderator, his third sonCosmo Gordon Lang later becomingArchbishop of Canterbury. His youngest son David Marshall Lang (1878-1925) is buried inWarriston Cemetery in north Edinburgh.
| Academic offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Principal and Vice-Chancellor of theUniversity of Aberdeen 1900—1909 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
