Robert Hawker out and seek the distressed members of Christ’s body. It was not limited by parish boundaries or denomination but the needs of Christians were met where they were found. One of his earliest passions, whilst still a curate, was to start a Sunday school. The Sunday School movement may have been started when in 1780 Robert Raikes in Gloucester opened the first Sunday School. Children at that time had to work six days a week, leaving little time to study after work in the week. To counter the effects of ignorance and illiteracy the Sunday school movement started. Literacy was
Thomas Raikes had four sons and five daughters. Their eldest son Thomas became a noted London diarist; another son, Henry, became a churchman, eventually Chancellor of the Diocese of Chester. One of their daughters, Georgiana (d. 02 December 1861), married Lord William FitzRoy. Thomas Raikes Thomas Raikes ("the Elder") (28 March 1741 – 29 December 1813) was a British merchant particularly trading from London with Russia, a banker and newspaper proprietor. Notably, he was Governor of the Bank of England during the 1797 currency crisis, when the Bank was prohibited by the British Government from paying out in gold. Raikes was born