Robert Lowder Seaborn (July 9, 1911 – February 15, 1993) was a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

minister of the

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 ...

faith. He was the Anglican Bishop of Newfoundland in Canada from 1965 to 1980. Born in

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he attended Normal Model School and completed high school at the

University of Toronto Schools University of Toronto Schools (UTS) is an independent secondary day school affiliated with the University of Toronto in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The school follows a specialized academic curriculum, and admission is determined by a written exam ...

. He earned a BA in Classics in 1932 and a degree in divinity at

University of Trinity College Trinity College (occasionally referred to as the University of Trinity College) is a University of Toronto#Colleges, federated college of the University of Toronto located at the University of Toronto#St. George campus, St. George campus in Down ...

at the

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and spent 1936–37 at

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

. He was ordained deacon in 1934, priest in 1935 and served as assistant curate in his initial parish, St. Simon-the-Apostle Church in

, followed by St. James' Cathedral

from 1937 to 1941. He then became rector of St. Peter's in

Cobourg Cobourg ( ) is a town in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in Southern Ontario east of Toronto and east of Oshawa. It is the largest town in and seat of Northumberland County. Its nearest neighbour is Port Hope, to the west. It is ...

(1941–48).

World War II

During

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Seaborn spent a winter training in Debert,

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and then was posted overseas in the spring of 1943. He served as Padre for the 1st Battalion, Canadian Scottish Regiment from 1943 to 1945 and participated in the D-Day

Normandy Landings The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on 6 June 1944 of the Allies of World War II, Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during the Second World War. Codenamed Operation Neptune and ...

. As part of that landing he held individual services on all three ships over which the Canadian Scottish Regiment was scattered. He won a Military Cross during the Juno Beach fighting for carrying wounded to safety while under fire. He was awarded the "Croix de Guerre" by the French Government. On July 15, 1944, he appeared in a photograph saying a prayer over a soldier of the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division. This photo has appeared many times since in publications related to World War II and served as the basis for a stained glass window located in

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Post-World War II

Following the war, Seaborn returned to the Anglican Church of Canada, serving as Rector of the Anglican Cathedral of the Holy Trinity,

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and Dean of Quebec, (1948–57), Rector of St. Mary's Kerrisdale

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(1957–58), and in both

Corner Brook Corner Brook ( 2021 population: 19,316 CA 29,762) is a city located on the west coast of the island of Newfoundland in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Corner Brook is the fifth largest settlement in Newfoundland and Labrado ...

and St. John's,

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...

. Bishop Seaborn was the 15th Metropolitan of the Ecclesiastical Province of Canada, serving from 1975 to 1980. In 1976 he oversaw reorganization of the one Newfoundland diocese into three - the Diocese of Eastern Newfoundland and Labrador with its cathedral at St. John's, the Diocese of Central Newfoundland (Gander) and the Diocese of Western Newfoundland (Corner Brook). This made him the 8th and final Bishop of Newfoundland and the only one to be named Metropolitan of Canada. During the 1960s he was involved in the integration of the Anglican, United Church, Salvation Army, and Presbyterian educational services in Newfoundland. Along with his wife, Mary Elizabeth (Betty), he spearheaded the founding of KillDevil Camp in

Gros Morne National Park Gros Morne National Park is a Canadian national park and World Heritage Site located on the west coast of Newfoundland. At , it is the second largest national park in Atlantic Canada after Torngat Mountains National Park, which has an area o ...

in Western

. The camp's central building has since been named Seaborn Lodge. Seaborn later returned to

and served as chancellor of

at the

from 1982 to 1990 and Bishop Ordinary to the

Canadian Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...

from 1980 to 1986. Bishop Seaborn died in

on February 15, 1993. His brother, J. Blair Seaborn, was a longtime Canadian civil servant and diplomat."James Blair Seaborn"
''The Canadian Encyclopedia''.

Honorary degrees

Montreal Diocesan Theological College Montreal Diocesan Theological College (known as Montreal Dio) is a theological seminary of the Anglican Church of Canada. It offers the Master of Divinity, Diploma in Ministry, to candidates for ordination and other students, from Anglican, United ...

- 1980 *

Memorial University Memorial University of Newfoundland, or MUN (), is a Public university, public research university in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, based in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, St. John's, with satellite campuses in Corner Brook ...

- Doctor of Laws - Spring Convocation, May 1972 *

Bishop's University Bishop's University () is a small English-language Liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Lennoxville, a borough of Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. The founder of the institution was the Anglican Diocese of Quebec, Anglican Bishop of Quebec ...

- Doctor of Civil Laws, 1962

External links

Finding Aid No. 1953 - National Archives of Canada
pdf document
Sound Recordings My Army Recollections - University of Victoria
mp3 files
Photo taken at Spotted Island, LabradorConfirmation Photo taken at Spotted Island, Labrador

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Seaborn, Robert 1911 births 1993 deaths Anglican bishops of Newfoundland Anglican bishops of Eastern Newfoundland and Labrador Clergy from Toronto Trinity College (Canada) alumni University of Toronto alumni 20th-century Anglican Church of Canada bishops