Henry Spencer Stephenson
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Henry Spencer Stephenson (4 November 1871 – 4 June 1957) was a British minister and a member of the
Spencer family The Spencer family is an aristocratic family in the United Kingdom. From the 16th century, its members have held numerous titles including the dukedom of Marlborough, the earldoms of Sunderland and Spencer, and the Churchill barony. Two prom ...
. He served as Chaplain to King George VI and Queen Elizabeth II, participating in the coronation procession of Queen Elizabeth.


Personal life and ordained ministry

Henry Spencer Stephenson was born on 4 November 1871 in
Mahabaleshwar Mahabaleshwar () is a small town and a municipal council in Satara district, Maharashtra, India. It is a place of pilgrimage for Hindus because Krishna river has its origin here. The British colonial rulers developed the town as a hill station ...
,
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, during the
British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was him ...
. He was the son of Lieut. Col. Sussex Vane Stephenson of the
Scots Fusilier Guards The Scots Guards (SG) is one of the five Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. Its origins are as the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland. Its lineage can be traced back to 1642, although it was only placed on the ...
and his wife, Augusta Melita Spencer. His father died of cholera in
Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...
, India, on 28 June 1872. In 1882 Stephenson's mother married the Reverend Edward Mallet Young, but there were no children from this marriage, leaving Stephenson an only child. Stephenson was educated at the leading public school
Sherborne Sherborne is a market town and civil parish in north west Dorset, in South West England. It is sited on the River Yeo, on the edge of the Blackmore Vale, east of Yeovil. The parish includes the hamlets of Nether Coombe and Lower Clatcombe. ...
, where his step-father was headmaster, and subsequently studied at
Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge or Oxford. ...
, where he received his BA degree in 1893, promoted to an MA degree in 1897. He was ordained a deacon in 1895 and a priest in 1896. Stephenson's first religious appointment was as Curate of Willington, Durham, from 1895 to 1900. His next assignment was as
Rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...
of
Allendale, Northumberland Allendale, often marked on maps as ''Allendale Town'', is a village and civil parish in south west Northumberland, England. It is located within the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. At the 2001 census, the parish had a populat ...
, in 1900, serving there until 1909. He then moved to Gateshead to serve 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 pre ...
of Christ Church from 1909 to 1914, then becoming Rector of Gateshead in 1914. Stephenson was a commissioner of
Boy Scouts Boy Scouts may refer to: * Boy Scout, a participant in the Boy Scout Movement. * Scouting, also known as the Boy Scout Movement. * An organisation in the Scouting Movement, although many of these organizations also have female members. There are ...
and chairman of his diocesan branch of the
Church of England Temperance Society The temperance movement in the United Kingdom was a social movement that campaigned against the recreational use and sale of alcohol, and promoted total abstinence (teetotalism). In the 19th century, high levels of alcohol consumption and drunke ...
. For his religious service, he was made an honorary Canon of Durham in 1922 and a Freeman of Gateshead in 1946. Stephenson died in hospital in
north-east England North East England is one of nine official regions of England at the first level of ITL for statistical purposes. The region has three current administrative levels below the region level in the region; combined authority, unitary authority ...
on 4 June 1957.


Chaplain to two British monarchs

Stephenson was appointed Chaplain to King George on 30 September 1938, replacing Canon Harold Costley-White, DD, who resigned. After King George's death, he continued to serve as Chaplain to Queen Elizabeth, participating as Chaplain during her
coronation A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the presentation of ot ...
in 1953.


Family connections

Through his mother, Stephenson was connected to the
Spencer family The Spencer family is an aristocratic family in the United Kingdom. From the 16th century, its members have held numerous titles including the dukedom of Marlborough, the earldoms of Sunderland and Spencer, and the Churchill barony. Two prom ...
of England and the Smalls of Dirnanean of Perthshire, Scotland. His maternal grandfather was General Sir
Augustus Spencer General The Hon. Sir Augustus Almeric Spencer (25 March 1807 – 28 August 1893) was a British Army officer and a member of the Spencer family. Military career Born the third son of Francis Spencer, 1st Baron Churchill, Spencer was commissione ...
, third son of
Francis Spencer, 1st Baron Churchill Francis Almeric Spencer, 1st Baron Churchill DCL FRS (26 December 1779 – 10 March 1845) was a British peer and Whig politician from the Spencer family. Born Lord Francis Almeric Spencer, he was the second youngest of the 4th Duke of Marlbo ...
, and Commander-in-Chief of the
Bombay Army The Bombay Army was the army of the Bombay Presidency, one of the three presidencies of British India. It was established in 1662 and governed by the East India Company until the Government of India Act 1858 transferred all presidencies to the d ...
between 1869 and 1875. Stephenson's father had been serving as his father-in-law's military secretary at the time of his death. A maternal great-grandfather was Perthshire native General Sir Archibald Campbell. commander of British forces in the
First Anglo-Burmese War The First Anglo-Burmese War ( my, ပထမ အင်္ဂလိပ်-မြန်မာ စစ်; ; 5 March 1824 – 24 February 1826), also known as the First Burma War, was the first of three wars fought between the British and Burmes ...
and later administrator of the colony of
New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...
, Canada.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephenson, Henry Spencer 1871 births 1957 deaths People from Satara district British chaplains Anglican chaplains 20th-century English Anglican priests People educated at Sherborne School Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge
Henry Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) * Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...
People from Allendale, Northumberland People from Gateshead