David Howard Nicholas Allenby
SSM, (28 January 1909 – 28 February 1995) was an English clergyman in the Anglican Church and a member of the religious order the
Society of the Sacred Mission
The Society of the Sacred Mission (SSM), with the associated Company of the Sacred Mission, is an Anglican religious order founded in 1893 by Father Herbert Kelly, envisaged such that "members of the Society share a common life of prayer and fello ...
. He held the position of
Bishop of Kuching from 1962 until 1968, and thereafter was an assistant bishop in the
Diocese of Worcester.
Early life
Allenby was born in Essex in 1909, the son of William Allenby, an actor and stage manager, and his wife Irene Lambert Allenby (née Spratly), a teacher. Allenby joined the
Society of the Sacred Mission
The Society of the Sacred Mission (SSM), with the associated Company of the Sacred Mission, is an Anglican religious order founded in 1893 by Father Herbert Kelly, envisaged such that "members of the Society share a common life of prayer and fello ...
at the age of 19, and was professed in 1933.
Clerical career
He trained for ordination at
Kelham Theological College and was ordained deacon in 1934 and priest in 1935. He was then a tutor at Kelham (1936–44) and then Rector of
St Michael and All Angels, Averham with Kelham (1944–57). During the latter incumbency he was also Rural Dean of Newark (1955–57). He was also a member of the
Church Assembly
The General Synod is the tricameral deliberative and legislative organ of the Church of England. The synod was instituted in 1970, replacing the Church Assembly, and is the culmination of a process of rediscovering self-government for the Church ...
(the predecessor of the
General Synod
The General Synod is the title of the governing body of some church organizations. Anglican Communion
The General Synod of the Church of England, which was established in 1970 replacing the Church Assembly, is the legislative body of the Church ...
). In 1957 he went to Australia as Warden of the Society's theological college,
St Michael's House, and Prior of the attached Priory. In the same year he was awarded a
Lambeth MA. He was Warden of the
Community of the Holy Name
The Community of the Holy Name (CHN) is an international Anglican religious order for women. The full name of the community is The Community of the Mission Sisters of the Holy Name of Jesus, usually shortened to Community of the Holy Name. The o ...
from 1961 to 1962.
In 1962 he was raised to the episcopate as
Bishop of Kuching in
Sarawak
Sarawak ( , ) is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia. It is the largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia. Sarawak is located in East Malaysia in northwest Borneo, and is ...
which, in 1963, became part of the new state of
Malaysia
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
. It was Allenby who first mooted the idea of a Province of South East Asia, in 1963: the
Church of the Province of South East Asia
The Church of the Province of South East Asia is an autonomous member of the Anglican Communion, created in 1996 with the four dioceses of Kuching, Sabah, Singapore and West Malaysia.
There are approximately 98,000 Anglicans within the pro ...
finally came into existence in 1996, over 30 years later. He retired from Kuching in 1968, being replaced by
Basil Temenggong, the first native Sarawakian bishop.
After his return from Malaysia in 1968, he was then an assistant bishop in the
Diocese of Worcester until 1991. He was also Chaplain to St Oswald's Hospital,
Worcester
Worcester may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England
** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament
* Worcester Park, London, Engl ...
(1973–74). Allenby was an original trustee of Holland House, the Worcester diocesan retreat house at
Cropthorne.
Personal life
Allenby died in 1995, aged 86. At the end of his life he was at Willen Hospice, founded by the Society in 1979 as the Hospice of St Mary and St John and named for the
Kelham Rood, which was then located in the garden of the Priory in Willen. He is buried in the churchyard of St Mary Magdalene,
Willen
Willen is a district of Milton Keynes, England and is also one of the ancient villages of Buckinghamshire to have been included in the designated area of the New City in 1967. The original village is now a small but important part of the larger ...
, along with other members of the Society.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allenby, Nicholas
1909 births
1995 deaths
People from Kuching
Anglican missionaries in Malaysia
20th-century Anglican bishops in Asia
Anglican bishops of Kuching