Robert Edward Trefusis (24 January 18439 July 1930) was the first suffragan

Bishop of Crediton The Bishop of Crediton is an episcopal title which takes its name from the town of Crediton in Devon, England. The title was originally used by the Anglo-Saxons in the 10th and 11th centuries for a diocese covering Devon and Cornwall. It is now ...

from 1897 to 1930.

Origins

Trefusis was born in

Bideford Bideford ( ) is a historic port town on the estuary of the River Torridge in north Devon, south-west England. It is the main town of the Torridge local government district. Toponymy In ancient records Bideford is recorded as ''Bedeford'', ' ...

in 1843, the second son of George Trefusis (1793–1849), a younger son of

Robert Trefusis, 17th Baron Clinton Robert George William Trefusis, 17th Baron Clinton (1764 – 1797) of Trefusis in Cornwall and Heanton Satchville, Petrockstowe in Devon, was an English peer. He was the son of Robert Cotton Trefusis and his wife, Hon. Anne St John, and great-gre ...

(1764–1797).

Career

Trefusis was educated at

Cheltenham College ("Work Conquers All") , established = , closed = , type = Public school Independent SchoolDay and Boarding School , religion = Church of England , president = , head_label = Head , head = Nicola Huggett ...

and

Exeter College, Oxford (Let Exeter Flourish) , old_names = ''Stapeldon Hall'' , named_for = Walter de Stapledon, Bishop of Exeter , established = , sister_college = Emmanuel College, Cambridge , rector = Sir Richard Trainor ...

Ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform var ...

in 1866, he began his ordained ministry as a

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''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 w ...

Buckingham Buckingham ( ) is a market town in north Buckinghamshire, England, close to the borders of Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire, which had a population of 12,890 at the 2011 Census. The town lies approximately west of Central Milton Keynes, sou ...

. He was then appointed by his cousin

Mark Rolle Hon. Mark George Kerr Rolle (1835–1907; Mark George Kerr Trefusis), of Stevenstone, St Giles in the Wood, Devon, was High Sheriff of Devon in 1864, a DL of Devon and High Steward of Barnstaple. Due to an inheritance from his uncle by ma ...

Lord of the Manor Lord of the Manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England, referred to the landholder of a rural estate. The lord enjoyed manorial rights (the rights to establish and occupy a residence, known as the manor house and demesne) as well as s ...

and patron of the living, as

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 pr ...

Chittlehampton Chittlehampton is a village and civil parish in the North Devon district of Devon, England. The parish is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Swimbridge, Filleigh, South Molton, Satterleigh and Warkleigh, High Bickington, ...

. The parish church of Chittlehampton was dedicated to the little-known St Urith, believed to have been a local Saxon maiden born and martyred within the parish, and Trefusis named one of his daughters Hyeritha Trefusis in her honour. She became known to local parishioners as "Miss Urith". He subsequently served for 33 years as Bishop suffragan of Crediton; he was also additionally

Archdeacon of Barnstaple The Archdeaconry of Barnstaple or Barum is one of the oldest archdeaconries in England. It is an administrative division of the Diocese of Exeter in the Church of England. History The Diocese of Exeter was divided into four archdeaconries in N ...

from 1909. He was consecrated a bishop on St Matthias' Day (24 February 1897), by

Frederick Temple Frederick Temple (30 November 1821 – 23 December 1902) was an English academic, teacher and churchman, who served as Bishop of Exeter (1869–1885), Bishop of London (1885–1896) and Archbishop of Canterbury (1896–1902). Early life T ...

, Archbishop of Canterbury, at

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Gra ...

. He died on 9 July 1930."Obituary – Bishop Trefusis A Long Ministry In Devon". ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' ...

'' Thursday, Jul 10, 1930; pg. 16; Issue 45561; col A He celebrated the dedication of the

Exeter War Memorial Exeter War Memorial, also known as The Northernhay War Memorial is a war memorial in Northernhay Gardens in the city of Exeter, Devon. Designed by John Angel, it was erected by public subscription in 1923 and cost over £6,000. History At t ...

References

1843 births People educated at Cheltenham College Alumni of Exeter College, Oxford People from Bideford Bishops of Crediton 19th-century Church of England bishops 20th-century Church of England bishops Archdeacons of Barnstaple 1930 deaths {{Anglican-bishop-stub