Anthony John Russell (born 25 January 1943) is a retired

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

. He was the Diocesan Bishop of Ely from 2000 to 2010, having previously served as an

area bishop A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Catholic Church, a suffragan Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop leads a diocese within an ecclesiastical province other than the principal diocese, the Metropolitan ...

in the

Diocese of Oxford The Diocese of Oxford is a Church of England diocese that forms part of the Province of Canterbury. The diocese is led by the Bishop of Oxford (currently Steven Croft (bishop), Steven Croft), and the bishop's seat is at Christ Church Cathedral, ...

from 1988.

Early life

Russell was educated at

Uppingham School Uppingham School is a public school (English fee-charging boarding and day school for pupils 13–18) in Uppingham, Rutland, England, founded in 1584 by Robert Johnson, the Archdeacon of Leicester, who also established Oakham School. ...

St Chad's College, Durham St Chad's College is one of the Colleges of Durham University#Types of College, recognised colleges of Durham University. Founded in 1904 as St Chad's Hall for the training of Church of England clergy, the college ceased theological training in ...

(he gained a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree) and

Trinity College, Oxford Trinity College (full name: The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity in the University of Oxford, of the foundation of Sir Thomas Pope (Knight)) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in E ...

, where he earned a

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of Postgraduate education, graduate study and original resear ...

(DPhil) degree. He studied for ordination at Ripon College Cuddesdon.

Ecclesiastical career

Russell was made a deacon during

Advent Advent is a season observed in most Christian denominations as a time of waiting and preparation for both the celebration of Jesus's birth at Christmas and the return of Christ at the Second Coming. It begins on the fourth Sunday before Chri ...

1970 (13 December) by

Launcelot Fleming William Launcelot Scott Fleming (7 August 1906 – 30 July 1990) was a Scottish Church of England, Anglican bishop. He was the Bishop of Portsmouth (Anglican), Bishop of Portsmouth and later the Bishop of Norwich. He was also noted as a geol ...

Bishop of Norwich The Bishop of Norwich is the Ordinary (Catholic Church), ordinary of the Church of England Anglican Diocese of Norwich, Diocese of Norwich in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers most of the county of Norfolk and part of Suffolk. Th ...

, and ordained a priest the

Michaelmas Michaelmas ( ; also known as the Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, the Feast of the Archangels, or the Feast of Saint Michael and All Angels) is a Christian festival observed in many Western Christian liturgical calendars on 29 Se ...

following (26 September 1971) by William Llewellyn, Bishop of Lynn – both times at

Norwich Cathedral Norwich Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Norwich, Norfolk, England. The cathedral is the seat of the bishop of Norwich and the mother church of the dioc ...

; he was then a curate in the Hilborough group of parishes in the

Diocese of Norwich The Diocese of Norwich is an ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Church of England, forming part of the Province of Canterbury in England. Its origins trace back to the early medieval bishopric of See of Elmham, Elmham and Thetford, which were ...

from 1970 to 1973. From 1973 to 1976 he was

priest-in-charge A priest in charge or priest-in-charge (previously also curate-in-charge) in the Church of England is a priest in charge of a parish who is not its incumbent; they will normally work on a short-term contract and have less freedom to act within the ...

of Preston-on-Stour with Whitchurch and of

Atherstone Atherstone is a market town and civil parish in the North Warwickshire district of Warwickshire, England. Located in the far north of the county, Atherstone is on the A5 national route, and is adjacent to the border with Leicestershire which ...

on Stour in the Diocese of Coventry. For the next 11 years he was the

vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English p ...

of Preston-on-Stour and Whitchurch with Atherstone and also canon theologian of

Coventry Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Saint Michael, commonly known as Coventry Cathedral, is the seat of the Bishop of Coventry and the Diocese of Coventry within the Church of England. The cathedral is located in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midla ...

. From 1973 to 1982 he was chaplain of the Arthur Rank Centre and its director from 1983 to 1988. From 1983 to 1988 Russell served as a

chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intellige ...

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

. In 1987, he was nominated as Bishop Suffragan of Dorchester in the Diocese of Oxford and was consecrated on 2 February 1988 by Robert Runcie,

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...

, at

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. Since 1066, it has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British m ...

; before being nominated as the

Bishop of Ely The Bishop of Ely is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Ely in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese roughly covers the county of Cambridgeshire (with the exception of the Soke of Peterborough), together with ...

in 2000. Russell initiated proceedings in the church courts against the Vicar of Trumpington, Tom Ambrose. He retired on 28 February 2010.

Works and personal life

Russell has published a number of books, especially on the role of the church in the countryside. These include ''The Country Parson'' (1993), ''The Country Parish'' (1986) and ''The Clerical Profession'' (1980). He is a leading spokesman for the church on rural and farming matters. Russell, as a keen horseman, upon appointment as area Bishop of Dorchester, changed his Oxfordshire episcopal residence in order to secure suitable stabling.

Other positions

*Member of the Rural Development Commission and was the Archbishops' Commissioner on Rural Areas. *Vice president of the Royal Agricultural Society. *RASE President from 2004 to 2005. *President of the East of England Agricultural Society from 2007 to 2008. **He was made a fellow of the Royal Agricultural Societies in 2008. *Governing council of

Radley College Radley College, formally St Peter's College, Radley or the College of St. Peter at Radley, is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (independent boarding school) for boys near the village of Radley, in Oxfordshire, in the United Kingd ...

. *President of the Woodard Corporation, a federation of 44 Anglican schools in the private and maintained sectors. *Member of the Rural Development Commission (1991–99). *Trustee of the Rural Housing Trust (1983–2006). *President of the Cambridgeshire Rural Community Council. *Admitted to the House of Lords in 2007 and left upon his retirement. *Honorary fellow of Wolfson College and St Edmund's College at Cambridge University (2000) and St Chad's College at Durham University (2007). *Honorary fellow of Trinity College Oxford (2011)

References

External links

Diocese of Ely website profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, Anthony 1943 births Living people People educated at Uppingham School Bishops of Ely Anglican bishops of Dorchester Alumni of St Chad's College, Durham Alumni of Trinity College, Oxford Alumni of Ripon College Cuddesdon Fellows of St Edmund's College, Cambridge Fellows of Trinity College, Oxford Fellows of Wolfson College, Cambridge Honorary chaplains to the King 20th-century Church of England bishops 21st-century Church of England bishops