Robert Wright Stopford, (20 February 1901 – 13 August 1976) was a British

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.

Early life and education

Stopford was born in

Garston, Merseyside Garston is a district of Liverpool, in Merseyside, England. Historically in Lancashire, it is bordered by the suburbs of Aigburth, Allerton, and Speke. It lies on the Eastern banks of the River Mersey. History In medieval times, Garston w ...

(then in

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

) to John William Stopford, a timber merchant born in Galway, Ireland. He was educated at Coatham School in

Redcar Redcar is a seaside town on the Yorkshire Coast in the Redcar and Cleveland unitary authority. It is in the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire, England, and is located east of Middlesbrough. The Teesside built-up area's Redcar subdiv ...

and

Liverpool College Liverpool College is a coeducational day and boarding school in Mossley Hill, Liverpool, England. It was one of the thirteen founding members of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference, Headmasters' Conference. History Liverpool Coll ...

, where he was Head of House (Littler's). He continued his education at

Hertford College, Oxford Hertford College ( ), previously known as Magdalen Hall, is a colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on Catte Street in the centre of Oxford, directly opposite the main ga ...

, where he graduated with a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

degree. At Oxford he obtained first classes in classical honour moderations (1922) and modern history (1924). He was subsequently an Honorary Fellow of Hertford College, Oxford, and a Fellow of

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

. He received a

Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (DD or DDiv; ) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity (academic discipline), divinity (i.e., Christian theology and Christian ministry, ministry or other theologies. The term is more common in the Englis ...

degree from the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

and a

Doctor of Civil Law Doctor of Civil Law (DCL; ) is a degree offered by some universities, such as the University of Oxford, instead of the more common Doctor of Laws (LLD) degrees. At Oxford, the degree is a higher doctorate usually awarded on the basis of except ...

degree from the

University of Durham Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate public research university in Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by royal charter in 1837. It was the first recognised university to ...

. Stopford was married with two children.

Ministry

*Michaelmas 1932 made deacon *Michaelmas 1933 ordained priest *1932–1935 Chaplain,

Oundle School Oundle School is a public school (United Kingdom), public school (English Private schools in the United Kingdom, fee-charging boarding school, boarding and day school) for pupils 11–18 situated in the market town of Oundle in Northamptonshire ...

*1935–1940 Principal of Trinity College (Kandy),

Ceylon Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

*1940–1946 Principal of

Achimota College Achimota School ( /ɑːtʃimoʊtɑː/ ), formerly Prince of Wales College and School at Achimota, later Achimota College, now nicknamed Motown, is a co-educational boarding school located at Achimota in Accra, Greater Accra, Ghana. The school ...

, Gold Coast *1946–1947 Rector of

Chipping Barnet Chipping Barnet or High Barnet is a suburban market town in north London, forming part of the London Borough of Barnet, England. It is a suburban development built around a 12th-century settlement, and is located north-northwest of Charing C ...

*1947–1955 Moderator—Secretary, Council of 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 ...

Training Colleges *1952–1955

Honorary Chaplain to the Queen An Honorary Chaplain to the King is a member of the clergy within the United Kingdom who, through long and distinguished service, is appointed to minister to the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, monarch of the United Kingdom. When the reigning mona ...

; General Secretary, the National Society; Secretary, the

Schools Council The Schools Council was from 1964 to 1984 the body which co-ordinated secondary school examinations in England and Wales, and advised the government on matters to do with such examinations. It succeeded the Secondary Schools Examinations Council a ...

*11 June 1955 consecrated bishop *1955–1956 Bishop suffragan of Fulham (jurisdiction: northern Europe) *June 1956-1961

Bishop of Peterborough The Bishop of Peterborough is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Peterborough in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers the counties of Northamptonshire (including the Soke of Peterborough) and Rutland. The see is in ...

*1961–1973

Bishop of London The bishop of London is the Ordinary (church officer), ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury. By custom the Bishop is also Dean of the Chapel Royal since 1723. The diocese covers of 17 boroughs o ...

(

confirmed In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. The ceremony typically involves laying on of hands. Catholicis ...

25 September 1961; retired June 1973) *1961–1976 Privy Counsellor * 17 October 1961-1973 Dean of Her Majesty's Chapels Royal. *1974–76 Vicar-General in Jerusalem *1975 Chairman of the D'Oyly Carte Opera Trust *8 February 1976: installed

Bishop of Bermuda The Bishop of Bermuda is an episcopal title given to the ordinary of the Anglican Church of Bermuda, one of six extra-provincial Anglican churches within the Church of England overseen by the Archbishop of Canterbury. The present Bishop is Nic ...

at Hamilton Cathedral During his tenure as Bishop of London, Stopford formalised the system of assigning districts to the oversight of suffragans, adapted the diocese's organisation to the 1964 creation of

Greater London Greater London is an administrative area in England, coterminous with the London region, containing most of the continuous urban area of London. It contains 33 local government districts: the 32 London boroughs, which form a Ceremonial count ...

, and initiated the 1970 experimental

area scheme 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 by ...

Legacy

Bishop Stopford's School in Enfield and

Bishop Stopford School Bishop Stopford School is a secondary school and sixth form with academy status in Kettering, Northamptonshire, England. The school is located in the Headlands, Kettering. The current headteacher is Jill Silverthorne. Former students of Bish ...

Kettering Kettering is a market town, market and industrial town, industrial town in the North Northamptonshire district of Northamptonshire, England, west of Cambridge, England, Cambridge, southwest of Peterborough, southeast of Leicester and north- ...

are named after him. A boarding house, Stopford House, at

Achimota School Achimota School (Help:IPA/English, /ɑːtʃimoʊtɑː/ ), formerly Prince of Wales College and School at Achimota, later Achimota College, now nicknamed Motown, is a co-educational boarding school located at Achimota in Accra, Greater Accra Reg ...

Accra Accra (; or ''Gaga''; ; Ewe: Gɛ; ) is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , had a population of ...

, Ghana, was named in his honour. He was appointed KCVO in 1973, shortly before he retired as

References

External links

Trinity College, Sri LankaBishop Stopford School in KetteringThe Achimota Trust
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stopford, Robert 1901 births 1976 deaths Alumni of Hertford College, Oxford Fellows of King's College London Bishops of Fulham 20th-century Anglican bishops of Gibraltar Bishops of Peterborough Bishops of London Deans of the Chapel Royal 20th-century Anglican bishops in the Middle East Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom People educated at Liverpool College Knights Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Anglican bishops of Jerusalem 20th-century Anglican bishops in Bermuda Anglican bishops of Bermuda Heads of schools in Ghana Honorary chaplains to the King Teachers at Oundle School Clergy from Liverpool People educated at Coatham School

Early life and education

Ministry

Legacy

See also

References

External links