R. H. Charles

R. H. Charles


Robert Henry (R.H.) Charles (1855-1931) was an Irish biblical scholar and theologian. He is known, in particular, for the English translations of apocryphal and pseudo-graphic works, as well as for publications including the Jubilees (1895), The Book of Enoch (1906) and The Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs (1908), which were widely used. He wrote articles in the British Encyclopedia of 1911, attributed to the initials "R. H. C. S." He was born in Cookstown, Tyrone, on August 6, 1855, and was educated at Belfast Academy, King's College, Belfast, and Trinity College in Dublin, with periods in Germany and Switzerland. He received his doctorate and became a professor of biblical Greek at Trinity College. He also became Archdeacon of Westminster in 1919 and served until his death in 1931. He is buried in Westminster Abbey.