Background
He was born in August 1683, his father being a prosperous brewer at Chiswick, Middlesex.
He was born in August 1683, his father being a prosperous brewer at Chiswick, Middlesex.
He was educated at Street Paul"s School, and was admitted in 1701 to Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. He graduated Bachelor of Arts 1704, Master of Arts
1708, Bachelor of Divinity 1716, Doctor of Divinity 1725. He was a fellow of his college in 1707, and a moderator in the university in 1708. On 6 October 1724 he was chosen Master of his college, and held the office till 20 February 1744.
Soon after his appointment he was presented by Bishop Thomas Greene to the rectory of Conington in Cambridgeshire, and afterwards to that of Hadstock in Essex.
The latter he held for many years. In 1730 and 1731 he was a reforming vice-chancellor of the university, in particular prohibiting the practice of exhuming bodies from the neighbouring churchyard, for dissection by medical students.
After refusing the bishopric of Gloucester in 1734, Mawson was consecrated bishop of Llandaff, 18 February 1739. This diocese he administered for two years, and in 1740 was translated to Chichester.
On the death of Sir Thomas Gooch in 1754, he was translated again, to Ely, where he remained for the rest of his life.
He was buried in his cathedral of Ely, and a monument was erected to his memory by his chaplain and executor, Doctor Warren. To King"s College, Cambridge, he made a large loan for their new buildings. At Ely he gave £1,000 to the cathedral.
He also endowed Corpus Christi in 1754 with property sufficient to found twelve scholarships.