Ivor Stanley Watkins (10 November 189624 October 1960) was an

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 ...

who served in two posts between 1946 and his death. Watkins was born in 1896 and educated at

Hereford Cathedral School Hereford Cathedral School is a private, co-educational boarding and day school for pupils of ages 3 to 18 years, from nursery to sixth form. Its headmaster is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference. The school's premises a ...

. During the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he served in the

Royal Army Medical Corps The Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) was a specialist corps in the British Army which provided medical services to all Army personnel and their families, in war and in peace. On 15 November 2024, the corps was amalgamated with the Royal Army De ...

as a stretcher-bearer and was gassed. He spent considerable time in hospital where he learnt the 3-card trick which he used to entertain children. After the war he briefly attended the emergency ordination school at

Knutsford Knutsford () is a market town and civil parish in the Cheshire East district, in Cheshire, England; it is located south-west of Manchester, north-west of Macclesfield and south-east of Warrington. The population of the parish at the 2021 Uni ...

before gaining a place at

Trinity Hall, Cambridge Trinity Hall (formally The College or Hall of the Holy Trinity in the University of Cambridge, colloquially "Tit Hall" ) is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1350, it is th ...

where he was awarded a degree in history and theology. He was made deacon on

Trinity Sunday Trinity Sunday is the first Sunday after Pentecost in the Western Christianity, Western Christian liturgical year, liturgical calendar, and the Sunday of Pentecost in Eastern Christianity. Trinity Sunday celebrates the Christian doctrine of the ...

1924 (15 June) at St John's Bedminster (his title parish) and ordained a priest that

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 ...

(21 December 1924) at

Bristol Cathedral Bristol Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Bristol, England. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bristol. The cathedral was originally an abbey dedicated to St ...

, both times by George Nickson,

Bishop of Bristol The Bishop of Bristol heads the Church of England Diocese of Bristol in the Province of Canterbury, in England. The present diocese covers parts of the counties of Somerset and Gloucestershire together with a small area of Wiltshire. The see ...

. Following a

curacy A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' () of souls of a parish. In this sense, ''curate'' means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy who are ass ...

in Bedminster, he rose steadily in the

Church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

hierarchy, being successively

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 ''St Gregory’s''

Horfield Horfield is a suburb of the city of Bristol, in southwest England. It lies on Bristol's northern edge, its border with Filton marking part of the boundary between Bristol and South Gloucestershire. Bishopston lies directly to the south. Monk ...

rural dean In the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion as well as some Lutheran denominations, a rural dean is a member of clergy who presides over a "rural deanery" (often referred to as a deanery); "ruridecanal" is the corresponding adjective ...

, then Archdeacon of Bristol before elevation to that diocese's

suffragan bishop A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Catholic Church, a suffragan bishop leads a diocese within an ecclesiastical province other than the principal diocese, the metropolitan archdiocese; the diocese led b ...

ric as Bishop of Malmesbury. He was consecrated a bishop on All Saints' Day 1946 (1 November) 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 ...

. Watkins was considered for promotion to several diocesan bishoprics over the next ten years. He was regarded as a 'somewhat advanced' Anglo-Catholic. When the vacancy at Wakefield arose in 1948,

Clement Attlee Clement Richard Attlee, 1st Earl Attlee (3 January 18838 October 1967) was a British statesman who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951 and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955. At ...

, the prime minister at that time responsible for recommending nominations to bishoprics, wrote:

I do not consider this man suitable for appointment to a See. I think he is narrow-minded.

Watkins' name was prominent to fill vacancies at Portsmouth in 1949, Gloucester in 1953 and Durham, Lincoln and Peterborough in 1955–1956. Archbishop

Michael Ramsey Arthur Michael Ramsey, Baron Ramsey of Canterbury (14 November 1904 – 23 April 1988), was a British Anglican bishop and life peer. He served as the 100th Archbishop of Canterbury in the Church of England. He was appointed on 31 May 1961 and ...

, newly translated from Durham to York, wanted Watkins to succeed him at Durham but the Archbishop of Canterbury opposed the nomination. Instead Watkins was appointed to Guildford. In his short time at Guildford, Watkins proved very successful. He 'won the hearts and minds of both clergy and laity by his active and diligent pastoral ministry. He died in office in 1960 aged 63.

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

, Tuesday, October 25, 1960; p. 13, issue 54911, col A, Bishop Of Guildford ''Obituary Rt. Rev. I. S. Watkins''

References

1896 births People educated at Hereford Cathedral School Alumni of Trinity Hall, Cambridge Archdeacons of Bristol Bishops of Swindon (previously Malmesbury) Bishops of Guildford 1960 deaths 20th-century Church of England bishops Royal Army Medical Corps soldiers British Army personnel of World War I {{ChurchofEngland-bishop-stub