David Dolben (1581–1633) was a Welsh

bishop of Bangor The Bishop of Bangor is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Diocese of Bangor of the Church in Wales. The Episcopal see, see is based in the city of Bangor where the bishop's seat (''cathedra'') is at Bangor Cathedral, Cathedral Church of Sa ...

Life

He was born at Segrwyd, near

Denbigh Denbigh ( ; ) is a market town and a community (Wales), community in Denbighshire, Wales. It was the original county town of the Denbighshire (historic), historic county of Denbighshire created in 1536. Denbigh's Welsh name () translates to ...

, son of Robert Wynn Dolben. In 1602 he was admitted as a

sizar At Trinity College Dublin and the University of Cambridge, a sizar is an Undergraduate education, undergraduate who receives some form of assistance such as meals, lower fees or lodging during his or her period of study, in some cases in retur ...

to St. John's College, Cambridge, graduating B.A. in 1606 and M.A. 1609. Dolben was often referred to as the 'Beacon of Fitness'. On 18 January 1618 he was appointed vicar of Hackney, Middlesex, a benefice he held until May 1633. In 1621 he was made vicar of Llangerniew in his native county. In 1625 he became prebendary of Vaynol, or the golden prebend, in

St Asaph Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Saints Asaph and Cyndeyrn, commonly called St Asaph Cathedral (), is a cathedral in St Asaph, Denbighshire, north Wales. It is the episcopal seat of the Bishop of St Asaph. The cathedral dates back 1,400 years, while t ...

, a post he held until 1633, just before his death. In 1626 he was sworn capital burgess of Denbigh. In 1627 he became doctor of divinity. Towards the end of 1631 he was appointed bishop of Bangor. He was elected on 18 November and consecrated on 4 March 1632 by Archbishop George Abbot at

Lambeth Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, which today also gives its name to the (much larger) London Borough of Lambeth. Lambeth itself was an ancient parish in the county of Surrey. It is situated 1 mile (1.6 km) south of Charin ...

. Dolben was, however, in failing health, and intrigues began for the succession to his post. In the autumn of the same year he went down to a mortal sickness at the town house of his see in Shoe Lane,

Holborn Holborn ( or ), an area in central London, covers the south-eastern part of the London Borough of Camden and a part (St Andrew Holborn (parish), St Andrew Holborn Below the Bars) of the Wards of the City of London, Ward of Farringdon Without i ...

, where he died on 27 November. He was buried in Hackney parish church, where his monument, containing a half-length statue and a eulogistic description of him, still remains.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dolben, David 1581 births 1633 deaths Bishops of Bangor 17th-century Welsh Anglican bishops Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge