John McManners
| John McManners CBE FBA | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
25 December 1916 Ferryhill, County Durham, England |
| Died | 4 November 2006 (aged 89) Oxford, England |
| Other names | Jack McManners |
| Occupation | Historian, Professor, Chaplain |
| Spouse(s) | Sarah Carruthers Errington |
| Children | Hugh, Peter, Ann, Helen |
| Parent(s) | Joseph and Ann McManners |
John "Jack" McManners CBE FBA (25 December 1916 – 4 November 2006) was a British clergyman and historian of religion who specialized in the history of the Church and other aspects of religious life in 18th century France. He was Regius Professor of Ecclesiastical History at the University of Oxford from 1972 to 1984. He also served as Fellow and Chaplain of All Souls College, Oxford from 1964 to 2001.
McManners, known as Jack to his family and friends, was born in Ferryhill, County Durham to Joseph and Ann McManners. His mother was a school teacher who converted his coal miner father to the Anglican faith. His father entered the priesthood, eventually becoming the vicar of Ferryhill and subsequently a canon of Durham Cathedral. McManners attended Spennymoor grammar school before winning an exhibition to St Edmund Hall, Oxford in 1936. While at Oxford he took a First in Modern History in 1939.
In September 1939 Great Britain entered World War II prompting McManners immediately to volunteer for military service. He joined his local regiment the Royal Northumberland Fusiliers, where he made his name as a winger in their soccer team, and completed basic training. However, when the Army realised he had recently been awarded a First Class Honours degree, the Regiment shelved its plans for him to become a driving instructor. Instead he was sent to the OCTU at Fenham Barracks where he was put through basic training for a second time, and was commissioned. McManners served in the Western Desert Campaign and was at the Siege of Tobruk. He was made Adjutant of the First Battalion, under Commanding Officer Lt Col Forbes -Watson. Amongst other military skills, McManners had made himself an expert in the use of the sun compass. This paid off in the breakout from Tobruk. With a water truck and part of battalion headquarters, McManners managed to escape from the German encirclement of Tobruk. His plan involved driving at night through German Panzer units, then far south into the lethal and at that time unmapped Quattarra Depression. When the battalion re-grouped at Alexandria, only 10% remained, the rest captured or killed. He and Lt Col Forbes Watson reformed the battalion with men sent out from the UK, in time for the final battles of the Western Desert campaign - and El Alamein. McManners also served with the 210 British Liaison Unit (Greek Mission) in Alexandria to help prepare Greece for restoration of constitutional government. In his later years, McManners talked of his time as the Adjutant of his regiment's First Battalion - its Regular battalion, of the ten formed for the Second World War, to have been his greatest achievement.
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