James Brown Craven

Who was James Brown Craven?

Archdeacon James Brown Craven was author of the History of the Church in Orkney and several other works on ecclesiastical history. He was a founder and the first president of the Orkney Antiquarian Society.

The son of Rev J E Craven, Free Church of Scotland minister at Newhills, near Aberdeen, he went to Orkney in 1876 to be rector of the newly built Episcopalian St.Olaf's Church in Kirkwall, and stayed there until his death.

He was the author of Count Michael Maier, doctor of philosophy and of medicine, alchemist, Rosicrucian, mystic, 1568–1622: life and writings published in 1910.

Also the author of Doctor Robert Fludd, the English Rosicrucian: life and writings pub. 1890

He was made Doctor of Divinity at Aberdeen University in 1908.