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In February of 1870, the Convocation of Canterbury appointed a committee to study the idea of a new English translation of the Bible. Twenty-six scholars served on the company translating the Old Testament and 27 for the New Testament. Many of the leading Protestant Bible scholars in the U.S. were invited to also form committees for the purpose of assisting the work of their trans-oceanic confreres.
The New Testament was completed in 407 meetings stretching over 10 years, and it was presnted to the Convocation on May 17th, 1881. The Old Testament revision required 792 days and was completed in 1884. The Apocrypha was finished in 1895.
The new version (especially the New Testament) was controversial, being veiwed by most as too thoroughgoing. The translators had made a decision to always use the same English word for the same Greek word (which plan had been rejected by the 1611 version scholars), but faithful churchgoers regarded the changes in their Bible as petty and pedantic. Scholars of Greek also argued over the changes in the meanings of idiomatic phrases as Classical Greek evolved into 1st century Greek.
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