The Bishop of Wakefield was the ordinary of the now-defunct Church of England Diocese of Wakefield in the Province of York.[1] The diocese was based in Wakefield in West Yorkshire, covering the City of Wakefield, Barnsley, Kirklees and Calderdale. The see was centred in the City of Wakefield where the bishop's seat (cathedra) was located in the Cathedral Church of All Saints, a parish church elevated to cathedral status in 1888.
The diocesan bishop's residence was Bishop's Lodge, Wakefield. The office existed from the founding of the diocese in 1888 under Queen Victoria until its dissolution on 20 April 2014. The cathedral contains a memorial to Walsham How, first Bishop of Wakefield. The last diocesan Bishop of Wakefield was Stephen Platten, the 12th Bishop of Wakefield, who signed +Stephen Wakefield and was in post when his diocese was dissolved.
Upon the creation of the Diocese of Leeds[2] on 20 April 2014, the see was dissolved and its territory added to the new diocese, within which the suffragan see of Pontefract has since been translated to the area Bishop of Wakefield.[3]
| Bishops of Wakefield | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| From | Until | Incumbent | Notes |
| 1889 | 1897 | William Walsham How | Translated from Bedford. Nominated on 26 May 1888. Died in office on 10 August 1897. |
| 1897 | 1928 | Rodney Eden | Translated from Dover. Nominated on 29 October 1897. Retired in 1928 and died on 7 January 1940. |
| 1928 | 1938 | James Seaton | Nominated on 15 October 1928 and consecrated on 1 November 1928. Died in office on 26 May 1938. |
| 1938 | 1945 | Campbell Hone | Translated from Pontefract. Nominated on 19 August 1938. Retired on 15 September 1945 and died on 16 May 1967. |
| 1946 | 1948 | Henry McGowan | Previously Archdeacon of Aston. Nominated on 13 November 1945 and consecrated on 2 February 1946. Died on office on 8 September 1948 |
| 1949 | 1958 | Roger Wilson | Previously Archdeacon of Nottingham. Nominated on 8 March 1949 and consecrated on 25 April 1949. Translated to Chichester on 16 April 1958. |
| 1958 | 1967 | John Ramsbotham | Translated from Jarrow. Nominated 22 April 1958. Retired on 30 November 1967 and died on 16 December 1989. |
| 1968 | 1976 | Eric Treacy | Translated from Pontefract. Nominated on 30 January 1968 and confirmed on 8 March 1968. Retired on 30 September 1976 and died on 13 May 1978. |
| 1977 | 1985 | Colin James | Translated from Basingstoke. Nominated on 30 November 1976 and confirmed on 7 January 1977. Translated to Winchester in 1985. |
| 1985 | 1992 | David Hope | Translated to London. Afterwards translated to York. |
| 1992 | 2002 | Nigel McCulloch | Translated from Taunton. Afterwards translated to Manchester. |
| 2003 | 2014 | Stephen Platten | Previously Dean of Norwich. He was the last diocesan Bishop of Wakefield; his see was dissolved on 20 April 2014.[4][5] |
| Source(s):[6][7] | |||
Assistant bishops
Among those who have served as assistant bishops in the diocese were:
- 1924: Rupert Mounsey CR, former Bishop of Labuan and Sarawak (1909–1916)[8]
- 1967 – 1975 (d.): Victor Shearburn CR, former Bishop of Rangoon[9]
- 1981–1985: Patrick Harris, Rector of Kirkheaton, former Bishop of Northern Argentina (later Bishop of Southwell)[10]
References
- ↑ The Diocese of Wakefield Archived 2012-09-18 at archive.today. (Official website). Retrieved on 18 November 2008.
- ↑ The Church of England – Synod approves new Diocese of Leeds for West Yorkshire and The Dales
- ↑ Moving towards a new diocese for West Yorkshire and the Dales (Accessed 9 July 2013)
- ↑ Bradford Diocese – General Synod votes for new diocese (Accessed 9 July 2013)
- ↑ People. Bishop of Wakefield Archived 2008-12-31 at the Wayback Machine. (Official website). Retrieved on 18 November 2008.
- ↑ "Historical successions: Wakefield". Crockford's Clerical Directory. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
- ↑ Fryde et al. 1996, Handbook of British Chronology, pp. 275–276.
- ↑ "Mounsey, William Robert (Rupert)". Who's Who. A & C Black. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
- ↑ "Shearburn, Victor George". Who's Who. A & C Black. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
- ↑ "Church Times: Deaths, 8 January 2021". Retrieved 10 January 2021.
Sources
- Fryde, E. B.; Greenway, D. E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I., eds. (1996). Handbook of British Chronology (Reprinted 2003, 3rd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-56350-X.
