women at the schools founded in Abbots Bromley. The extent of his success was recognised in 1870 when the University of Oxford bestowed on him the degree of DCL and he was made Canon of Manchester Cathedral by Gladstone. Woodard used the majority of the generous stipend which went with his position as Canon towards the funds for building the schools. In accordance with his firm Anglo-Catholic beliefs, and in contrast to similar although less successful work by Joseph Lloyd Brereton there were no concessions to either those Anglicans of the low church or to those belonging to non-conformist churches. The efforts of Woodard and his supporters raised about £500,000 by the time of his death in 1891, and Woodard succeeded in gaining the admiration of people like William Ewart Gladstone and Matthew Arnold. His tomb is in the chapel of Lancing College. Schools In his lifetime Nathaniel Woodard founded eleven schools and acquired a number of others. These include: 1848: Lancing College 1849: Hurstpierpoint College 1858: Ardingly College 1868: Denstone College (formerly: St Chad's) 1874: Abbots Bromley School for Girls (formerly: the School of St Mary and St Anne) 1880: King's College (Taunton) 1884: Ellesmere College (formerly: St Oswald's School) 1890: Worksop College (formerly: St Cuthbert's College) 1912: Queen Ethelburga's Collegiate 1964-1999 Cawston College (East of England) Legacy The schools he founded became known collectively as the "Woodard Schools", being joined by others to form an influential group. These are now administered by a holding company – The Woodard Corporation – a registered charity operating over 20 private schools with many other schools affiliated or associated with it. References Further reading Cowie, Leonard & Evelyn (1991). That One Idea: Nathaniel Woodard and His Schools. Ellesmere, Shropshire: Woodard Corporation Gibbs, David (2011). In Search of Nathaniel Woodard: Victorian Founder of Schools. Chichester: Phillimore. Heeney, Brian (1969) Mission to the Middle Classes: the Woodard schools, 1848-1891 Honey, J. R. de S. (1977). Tom Brown's Universe Kirk, K. E. (1937). The Story of the Woodard Schools. London: Hodder and Stoughton. Reprint 1952 Abbey Press, Berkshire. External links Woodard Corporation Local newspaper (Argus) story Local Teachers' Association (WSTA) website 19th-century English Anglican priests English Anglo-Catholics English educational theorists 1811 births 1891 deaths Alumni of Hertford College, Oxford Founders of English schools and colleges Anglo-Catholic clergy 19th-century British philanthropists