The Church of England and Victorian Oxford: The History of the Oxford Churchmen's Union, 1860–1890

Published in 1991, this historical study examines the intersection of ecclesiastical politics and academic life in late nineteenth-century Oxford. The text explores the formation and development of the Oxford Churchmen’s Union, a group that emerged during a period of intense theological debate within the Church of England, reflecting the broader anxieties of the Victorian intellectual elite as they navigated the shift between traditional religious authority and the burgeoning secularization of higher education.

The author, historian Michael J. Turner, conducted this research to contextualize how specific groups of scholars and clergy sought to protect the Anglican identity of the University of Oxford. The work is noted for its meticulous use of primary archival materials, offering a window into the institutional mechanisms used by the Union to exert political influence, and is received by scholars primarily as a specialized contribution to the historiography of nineteenth-century British religious movements.