Christopher Maude Chavasse, (9 November 1884 – 10 March 1962) was a British athlete, soldier and religious leader from the

Chavasse family The Chavasse family in the West Midlands is a British family of Catholic origin. When Claude Chavasse came from the borders of France and Savoy, he settled in Burford, Oxfordshire. His entry in the Burial Register there (April 1734) states: Claud ...

. He competed at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London, served in the First World War and was later the Bishop of Rochester.

Early life

Chavasse was the son of

Francis Chavasse Francis James Chavasse (27 September 1846 – 11 March 1928) was an Anglican priest and bishop and father of Captain Noel Chavasse. After serving in parishes in Preston, London, and Oxford, for eleven years from 1889 he was principal of the evang ...

, a

Bishop of Liverpool The Bishop of Liverpool is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Liverpool in the Province of York.''Crockford's Clerical Directory'', 100th edition, (2007), Church House Publishing. . The diocese stretches from Southport in the n ...

and founder of

St Peter's College, Oxford St Peter's College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford and is located in New Inn Hall Street, Oxford, United Kingdom. It occupies the site of two of the university's medieval halls, dating back to at least the 14th ...

and his wife Edith Maude. His twin brother,

Noel Godfrey Chavasse Captain Noel Godfrey Chavasse, (9 November 1884 – 4 August 1917) was a British medical doctor, Olympic athlete, and British Army officer from the Chavasse family. He is one of only three people to be awarded a Victoria Cross twice. The Battl ...

, won the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

and bar. Christopher was the elder of the two by 20 minutes. The twins had two other brothers and three sisters. Christopher and Noel Chavasse both attended Magdalen College School in

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 ...

(1896–1900) followed by

Liverpool College Liverpool College is a school in Mossley Hill, Liverpool, England. It was one of the thirteen founding members of the Headmasters' Conference (HMC). History Liverpool College was the first of many public schools founded in the Victorian ...

(1900–1904) before progressing to

Trinity College, Oxford (That which you wish to be secret, tell to nobody) , named_for = The Holy Trinity , established = , sister_college = Churchill College, Cambridge , president = Dame Hilary Boulding , location = Broad Street, Oxford OX1 3BH , coordinates ...

, competing in both rugby, lacrosse and athletics. They competed on the British team at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London: Christopher came second in his preliminary heat of the 400 metres shortly after Noel came third in his heat of the same event. Neither advanced to the semi-finals. He was also an

England lacrosse England Lacrosse is the national governing body for lacrosse in England. The sport is managed through the Men's and Women's Playing Committees and the leagues administered by region: the South of England Men's Lacrosse Association (SEMLA), Nor ...

international.

Clergy

Christopher was

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 ...

a priest on

Trinity Sunday Trinity Sunday is the first Sunday after Pentecost in the Western Christian liturgical calendar, and the Sunday of Pentecost in Eastern Christianity. Trinity Sunday celebrates the Christian doctrine of the Trinity, the three Persons of God: th ...

1911 (22 May), by his father the

, at

Liverpool Cathedral Liverpool Cathedral is the Cathedral of the Anglican Diocese of Liverpool, built on St James's Mount in Liverpool, and the seat of the Bishop of Liverpool. It may be referred to as the Cathedral Church of Christ in Liverpool (as recorded in th ...

. After being ordained, he was appointed to the St Helens Parish Church staff. The former Liverpool RU player played mostly in the `A` Team as an amateur, and made his debut for the St Helens RLFC first team in the 24 points to 2 home victory over

Hunslet Hunslet () is an inner-city area in south Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is southeast of the city centre and has an industrial past. It is situated in the Hunslet and Riverside ward of Leeds City Council and Leeds Central parliamentar ...

on the 2 Jan 1910. The "Flying Curate", as he became known, played on the and scored three tries in six matches for the Saints.

Military service

During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Chavasse served as a chaplain in the Royal Army Chaplains' Department of the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

. On 15 August 1916, he was promoted from chaplain to the Forces 4th Class (equivalent to captain) to chaplain to the Forces 3rd Class (equivalent to major). On 30 September 1918, he was promoted to chaplain to the Forces 2nd Class (equivalent to lieutenant colonel).

Career

After the First World War, Chavasse rose through the ranks of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

. He served as rector of

St Aldate's, Oxford St Aldate's () is a street in central Oxford, England, named after Saint Aldate, but formerly known as Fish Street. The street runs south from the generally acknowledged centre of Oxford at Carfax. The Town Hall, which includes the Museum ...

, from 1922 to 1928 and as rector of St Peter-le-Bailey, Oxford from 1927 to 1940. He became the first

master Master or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles * Ascended master, a term used in the Theosophical religious tradition to refer to spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans *Grandmaster (chess), National Master ...

of St Peter's Hall, Oxford upon its founding in 1929, continuing the work of his father, who had died in 1928. He was succeeded in 1940 by Julian Thornton-Duesbery. He was nominated Bishop of Rochester on 19 March 1940, consecrated on 25 April the same year and served in that position until his resignation on 30 September 1960.Fryde et al., p. 269. In 1948, a sermon given by Chavasse about

Belshazzar's Feast Belshazzar's feast, or the story of the writing on the wall (chapter 5 in the Book of Daniel), tells how Belshazzar holds a great feast and drinks from the vessels that had been looted in the destruction of the First Temple. A hand appears and ...

was featured as a religious short film produced by J. Arthur Rank. In 1943 Chavasse was chairman of the Archbishops' Commission on Evangelism which published the controversial report '' Towards the Conversion of England''. In accordance with his hope for mass evangelisation, in 1955 Chavasse supported the Crusade of

Billy Graham William Franklin Graham Jr. (November 7, 1918 – February 21, 2018) was an American evangelist and an ordained Southern Baptist minister who became well known internationally in the late 1940s. He was a prominent evangelical Christi ...

at Harringay Arena. Chavasse gave his views on

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to pe ...

informally to the Wolfenden Committee, disagreeing with the eventual proposal of the committee to allow same-sex relationships to be legal in private, and arguing that "homosexual practice is alarmingly catching". In 1951 Chavasse founded

Bennett Memorial Diocesan School Bennett Memorial Diocesan School is an all ability co-educational academy in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England, which caters for students from age 11 to 18. History The school was founded on 17 October 1951 by Lady Elena Bennett of Matfield ...

in Tunbridge Wells with the school's main benefactress Lady Elena Bennett. The school was founded on 17 October 1951 and opened to students on 8 January 1953, to 400 students and only 18 teachers. Bennett Memorial is a

school based within the

Diocese of Rochester The Diocese of Rochester is a Church of England diocese in the English county of Kent and the Province of Canterbury. The cathedral church of the diocese is Rochester Cathedral in the former city of Rochester. The bishop's Latin episcopal signa ...

, having been founded while Chavasse served as the Bishop of Rochester. He founded Rochester Theological College in 1959, which was intended for mature students. Chavasse also served briefly as an original trustee of St Peter's College upon its incorporation in 1961.Constitution of The College of St. Peter le Bailey

Personal life

Chavasse married Beatrice Willink shortly after the First World War, in July 1919. They had three sons: Noel, their eldest son named in honour of his uncle

, who served as an aide to Bernard Montgomery during the war, Michael and John, and two daughters, Anna and Susan. In 1939, he lost a leg in a boating accident and was fitted with an artificial leg.

Honours and decorations

Chavasse was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC ...

(MC) during

. His citation, published in the '' London Gazette'' dating 25 August 1917, read: He was also awarded the Croix de Guerre (1914–1918) by the Republic of France "for distinguished services rendered during the course of the campaign". Chavasse's other World War I medals were the

1914 Star The 1914 Star, colloquially known as the Mons Star, is a British World War I campaign medal for service in France or Belgium between 5 August and 22 November 1914. Institution The 1914 Star was authorised under Special Army Order no. 350 in No ...

with clasp, the

British War Medal The British War Medal is a campaign medal of the United Kingdom which was awarded to officers and men of British and Imperial forces for service in the First World War. Two versions of the medal were produced. About 6.5 million were struck in si ...

, and the Victory Medal.See image of medals under the heading 'Honours and decorations' In the 1936

King's Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning British monarch's official birthday by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are prese ...

, he was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in its Military Division. In 1937, he was awarded the King George VI Coronation Medal. On 31 January 1941, he was awarded the

Efficiency Decoration The Efficiency Decoration, post-nominal letters TD for recipients serving in the Territorial Army of the United Kingdom or ED for those serving in the Auxiliary Military Forces, was instituted in 1930 for award to part-time officers after twe ...

(TD) for long service in the Territorial Army. In June 1946, he was appointed chaplain of the

Venerable Order of Saint John The Order of St John, short for Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (french: l'ordre très vénérable de l'Hôpital de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem) and also known as St John International, is a British royal order of ...

(CStJ). On 18 March 1959, he was commissioned as a deputy lieutenant (DL) by the

Lord Lieutenant of Kent This is a list of people who have served as Lord-Lieutenant of Kent. Since 1746, all Lords Lieutenant have also been Custos Rotulorum of Kent. Lords Lieutenant of Kent * Sir Thomas Cheney 1551–? *William Brooke, 10th Baron Cobham 3 July 1585 – ...

Notes

References

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Chavasse, Christopher Maude 1884 births 1962 deaths Military personnel from Oxfordshire 20th-century Church of England bishops Alumni of Trinity College, Oxford Athletes (track and field) at the 1908 Summer Olympics Bishops of Rochester British Army personnel of World War I British identical twins British lacrosse players British male sprinters Chavasse family (United Kingdom) Deputy Lieutenants of Kent English male sprinters English military chaplains English rugby league players Holders of a Lambeth degree Masters of St Peter's College, Oxford Officers of the Order of the British Empire Olympic athletes of Great Britain People educated at Liverpool College People from Oxfordshire Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1914–1918 (France) Recipients of the Military Cross Royal Army Chaplains' Department officers St Helens R.F.C. players World War I chaplains