Bernard Lord Manning was born in Lincolnshire, the son of a Congregationalist minister. He was educated at Cambridge University in Jesus College, where he later became a fellow and, for a period, college bursar. From 1933 to his death he was also a university lecturer in medieval history.
Although he never sacrificed his Congregationalist convictions, Manning had wide sympathies and appreciated many different Christian traditions. This is shown in his writings, which apart from obvious scholarship reveal his humor and wit. These are The People's Faith in the Time of Wyclif (1919), The Making of Modern English Religion (1929), Essays in Orthodox Dissent (1939), and The Hymns of Wesley and Watts (1942).
In the Cambridge Medieval History he wrote two chapters in the seventh volume on "Wyclif" and "Edward III" and "Richard II." He also published two volumes of sermons.