Harold William Bradfield (20 September 18981 May 1960) was an

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

who served as Bishop of Bath and Wells from 1946 to 1960. Harold was born in

Lambeth Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, in the London Borough of Lambeth, historically in the County of Surrey. It is situated south of Charing Cross. The population of the London Borough of Lambeth was 303,086 in 2011. The area expe ...

, an only child whose father was a ‘Club and Smoking Room worker. He was at school at Dulwich College, and was 18 when he joined the City of London Yeomanry and the Army Cyclist Corps. He served in France in 1918-19 and, after the Great War ended, he was awarded the

Victory The term victory (from Latin ''victoria'') originally applied to warfare, and denotes success achieved in personal Duel, combat, after military operations in general or, by extension, in any competition. Success in a military campaign constitu ...

and British War Medals. In 1922, he completed a Batchelor of Divinity degree at

King's College, London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

, and was ordained and served in

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

as a curate and Vicar of St Mark’s, Heyside. In 1934, he was appointed Secretary of the Canterbury Diocesan Board of Finance and in 1942,

Archdeacon of Croydon The Archdeacon of Croydon is a senior ecclesiastical officer within the Diocese of Southwark. As such the deacon is responsible for the disciplinary supervision of the clergy within its five rural deaneries: Croydon Addington, Croydon Central, Cr ...

. Bradfield had been considered for bishoprics including Croydon in 1942, but concerns were expressed about his health because of over-exertion. Nevertheless, his reputation as ‘one of the ablest and most clearheaded men in administration and finance’ was emphasised by the Archbishop of Canterbury to the new Prime Minister,

Clement Attlee Clement Richard Attlee, 1st Earl Attlee, (3 January 18838 October 1967) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955. He was Deputy Prime Mini ...

, who was the key figure in the appointment process, and Bradfield was offered the bishopric of Bath and Wells.TNA PREM5/257 He remained in post until his death in 1960, the last in a series of bouts of ill-health. He gained national fame in 1953 when he was one of the Queen's supporters at her coronation. The occasion was one of the first major outside broadcasts, and Bradfield's distinctive spectacles and dark hair can be seen to the Queen's left, with Michael Ramsey of Durham, a future

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...

, to her right. Unusually for a Bishop of a major diocese in England in the 1949s and 1950s, Bradfield was not from a middle-class family nor had an

Oxbridge Oxbridge is a portmanteau of Oxford and Cambridge, the two oldest, wealthiest, and most famous universities in the United Kingdom. The term is used to refer to them collectively, in contrast to other British universities, and more broadly to de ...

degree. His success in the Church of England resulted from his own considerable strengths, particularly in the field of administration.

References

1898 births 1960 deaths Alumni of King's College London Archdeacons of Croydon Bishops of Bath and Wells Somerset County Cricket Club presidents Fellows of King's College London Holders of a Lambeth degree Canons of Canterbury People educated at Alleyn's School British Army personnel of World War I City of London Yeomanry (Rough Riders) soldiers Army Cyclist Corps soldiers {{ChurchofEngland-bishop-stub