John Cotter Macdonnell (1821 – 9 September 1902) was Dean of Cashel from 1862 to 1873."A New History of Ireland" T. W. Moody, F. X. Martin, F.J. Byrne and Cosgrove, A: Oxford, OUP, 1976
Biography Macdonnell was educated at Trinity College, Dublin"Macdonnell, Very Rev. John Cotter", Who Was Who, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 1920–2014; online edn, Oxford University Press, 2014, accessed 6 May 2014 and was placed in the first class in the final divinity examination in 1846. Further studies saw him receive the Master of Arts (MA) in 1855, Bachelor of Divinity (BD) in 1856, and the Doctorate of Divinity (DD) in 1860.
He was ordained deacon in 1846 and priest in 1847, and began his career as a Curate at St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin. He was the Incumbent Vicar of Laracor from 1854 to"Ecclesiastical", Belfast News-Letter (Belfast, Ireland), Monday, 2 December 1861; Issue 15137 1862 before his years as Dean 1862–1873. That year, he was asked by his college friend William Connor Magee (at this point Bishop of Peterborough) to become Vicar of St Mary's Leicester,"Ecclesiastical intelligence". The Sheffield & Rotherham Independent (Sheffield, England), Thursday, 3 April 1873; p. 2; Issue 5267 moving two years later in 1875 to Rector of Walgrave,"Ecclesiastical Intelligence", The Hampshire Advertiser (Southampton, England), Saturday, 17 July 1875; p. 2; Issue 3035 and in 1880 to Rector of Misterton, Leicestershire;"Preferments and Appointments", The Bristol Mercury and Daily Post (Bristol, England), Saturday, 22 May 1880; Issue 9990 He was private chaplain to Bishop Magee throughout his time as bishop of Peterborough (1873–1891), and in 1878 was appointed an Honorary Canon of Peterborough Cathedral,"Multiple News Items", The Morning Post (London, England), Friday, 20 December 1878; p. 6; Issue 33223 changing in 1883 to a Residentiary Canon at Peterborough."Ecclesiastical News", Liverpool Mercury (Liverpool, England), Thursday, 7 June 1883
He wrote several books including a biography of his old friend, Life and Correspondence of William Magee (1896),"Archbishop Magee's Life", Leeds Mercury (Leeds, England), Friday, 16 October 1896; Issue 18263 described at the time as one of the more outspoken pieces of ecclesiastical biography printed. He also wrote "The Doctrine of Atonement" (1858), "Shall we commute?" (1869),Marsh Library and an Essay on Cathedrals in Ireland (1872).
He died at his house in Peterborough after a long illness on 9 September 1902, and he was buried in Peterborough Cathedral four days later. His wife had died seven years earlier, and he was survived by a son, Frederick T. Macdonnell, and a daughter Charlotte Jane Macdonnell, who married Sir Shirley Salt, 3rd Baronet.
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