William Awdry (24 January 1842 – 4 January 1910) was the inaugural

Bishop of Southampton The Bishop of Southampton is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Winchester, in the Province of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name after the city of Southampton in Hampshire. The current b ...

and

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

who subsequently served South Tokyo. He was the fourth son of Sir John Wither Awdry and his second wife Frances Ellen Carr, second daughter of Thomas Carr Awdry was educated at

Winchester College Winchester College is a public school (fee-charging independent day and boarding school) in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382 and has existed in its present location ever since. It is the oldest of the ...

“Who was Who” 1897–1990 London, A & C Black; page 30 and

Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. One of Oxford's oldest colleges, it was founded around 1263 by John I de Balliol, a landowner from Barnard Castle in County Durham, who provided the f ...

. While at Oxford, he rowed in the

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

eight in the

Boat Race Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other wate ...

in 1863 and 1864 and his crew won both times.

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 va ...

in 1865 his early career was an academic one. He obtained a first-class in Literae Humaniores in 1865; and he was successively

fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

and

lecturer Lecturer is an List of academic ranks, academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. T ...

The Queen's College, Oxford The Queen's College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford, England. The college was founded in 1341 by Robert de Eglesfield in honour of Philippa of Hainault. It is distinguished by its pred ...

, 1866–1868,

second master Second master was a rating introduced into the Royal Navy in 1753 that indicated a deputy master (naval), master on third-rate Ship of the Line, ships of the line or larger. Second masters were paid significantly more than master's mates, £5 5s ...

at his old school and finally

headmaster A head master, head instructor, bureaucrat, headmistress, head, chancellor, principal or school director (sometimes another title is used) is the teacher, staff member of a school with the greatest responsibility for the management of the school ...

Hurstpierpoint Hurstpierpoint is a village in West Sussex, England, southwest of Burgess Hill, and west of Hassocks railway station. It sits in the civil parish of Hurstpierpoint and Sayers Common which has an area of 2029.88 ha and a population ...

, 1873–1879. In 1879 he became a canon residentiary at

Chichester Cathedral Chichester Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Chichester. It is located in Chichester, in West Sussex, England. It was founded as a cathedral in 1075, when the seat of the ...

and principal of the nearby

Theological College A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

. After seven years he was appointed

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 pref ...

of Amport, his final post before ascending to the episcopate. Awdry was consecrated Bishop Suffragan of

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

Archbishop Benson Edward White Benson (14 July 1829 – 11 October 1896) was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1883 until his death. Before this, he was the first Bishop of Truro, serving from 1877 to 1883, and began construction of Truro Cathedral. He was previousl ...

at St. Paul's Cathedral on June 29, 1895. Awdry was appointed Bishop of Osaka in 1896 and was then installed as the Bishop of South Tokyo in 1897, after the death of Bishop Edward Bickersteth. As the Bishop of South Tokyo, Awdry led the diocese during a period of growth, improved Anglo-Japanese diplomatic relations, as well as rapid social and political change. The

Nippon Sei Ko Kai The ''Nippon Sei Ko Kai'' ( ja, 日本聖公会, translit=Nippon Seikōkai, lit=Japanese Holy Catholic Church), abbreviated as NSKK, sometimes referred to in English as the Anglican Episcopal Church in Japan, is the national Christian church rep ...

, benefited from greater protections enshrined in the

Meiji Constitution The Constitution of the Empire of Japan (Kyūjitai: ; Shinjitai: , ), known informally as the Meiji Constitution (, ''Meiji Kenpō''), was the constitution of the Empire of Japan which was proclaimed on February 11, 1889, and remained in for ...

of 1899, but a new era of Japanese nationalist politics and an expansionist foreign policy also tested the leadership of the young church. As Bishop, Awdry was also instrumental in founding the Central Theological College, Tokyo.

Family

In 1868 Awdry married Frances Emily, daughter of the Rt Rev.

George Moberly George Moberly (10 October 1803 – 6 July 1885) was an English cleric who was headmaster of Winchester College, and then served as Bishop of Salisbury from 1869 until his death. Life He was born in St Petersburg, Russia in 1803, the seventh s ...

, Bishop of Salisbury. There were no children from the marriage. A nephew, Rev. W. Awdry was the creator of

Thomas the Tank Engine Thomas the Tank Engine is an anthropomorphised fictional tank locomotive in the British ''Railway Series'' books by Wilbert Awdry and his son, Christopher, published from 1945. He became the most popular and famous character in the series, ...

and author of the acclaimed children's

Railway Series ''The Railway Series'' is a series of British books about a railway known as the North Western Railway, located on the fictional Island of Sodor. There are 42 books in the series, the first published in May 1945 by the Rev. Wilbert Awdry. Twe ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Awdry, William 1842 births 1910 deaths People educated at Winchester College Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford Fellows of The Queen's College, Oxford Bishops of Southampton Anglican bishops of Osaka Anglican bishops of South Tokyo Anglican missionaries in Japan British expatriates in Japan Principals of Chichester Theological College English Anglican missionaries Presidents of the Oxford Union

Family

See also

References