Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900/Stewart, Charles James
STEWART, CHARLES JAMES (1775–1837), bishop of Quebec, born on 13 April 1775, was third son of John Stewart, seventh earl of Galloway, by his second wife, Anne, second daughter of Sir James Dashwood of Kirtlington, bart. General Sir William Stewart (1774–1827) [q. v.] was an elder brother. Charles James was educated by private tutors, and matriculated from Corpus Christi College, Oxford, on 22 May 1792, graduating B.A. in 1795, M.A. in 1799, and B.D. and D.D. in 1816. In 1795 he was elected a fellow of All Souls', and in 1799 he was presented to the rectories of Overton-Longueville and Botolph Bridge in Huntingdonshire. In 1807 he undertook work in Canada on behalf of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, and was appointed to the mission of Saint Armand in Misisquoi Bay. From this time he devoted his life and fortune to the work of the church in North America, and as the result of his exertions, and partly of his liberality, twenty-four churches, some no doubt small and primitive, were erected. In 1817, after a visit to England, he removed to Hatley, a district farther east than Saint Armand; in 1819, to meet the needs of the growing number of emigrants, he became a visiting missionary, with the duty of travelling to the more remote parts of the diocese of Quebec.
In 1825 Stewart was selected to succeed Jacob Mountain [q. v.] as bishop of Quebec, and, proceeding to England, was consecrated on 1 Jan. 1826 at Lambeth. As bishop he did not suspend his laborious work, but journeyed incessantly throughout Upper and Lower Canada, seeking to supply by his personal efforts the deficient numbers of his clergy. In 1833 the first steps towards reducing the government grant to the church in North America threw fresh anxiety on him. Notwithstanding frequent visits to England, his labours broke down his constitution, which was not robust. In consequence of his infirmity, George Jehoshaphat Mountain [q. v.] was consecrated coadjutor-bishop of Montreal on 14 Feb. 1836, and later in the year Stewart returned on a visit to England. He died unmarried in London on 10 July 1837, and was buried at Kensal Green cemetery.
He was the author of several published charges and sermons.
[Morgan's Sketches of Celebrated Canadians; Christie's History of Lower Canada, iv. 411; Lives of Missionaries (Soc. for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 1865), North America, pp. 161–205; Waddilove's Stewart Missions (containing a few of Stewart's letters), 1838; Douglas's Peerage, ed. Wood, i. 624; Annals of the Colonial Church, Toronto (Soc. Prom. Chr. Knowl.); Foster's Alumni Oxon. 1715–1886.]