James Harkness (born 20 October 1935) is a

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Reformation of 1560, when it split from the Catholic Church ...

minister.

Biography

Harkness was born in Thornhill, Dumfries and Galloway on 20 October 1935 and educated at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

. He was Assistant Minister at North Morningside. He joined the Royal Army Chaplains' Department (RAChD) in 1961 and served four years with the

King's Own Scottish Borderers The King's Own Scottish Borderers (KOSBs) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Scottish Division. On 28 March 2006 the regiment was amalgamated with the Royal Scots, the Royal Highland Fusiliers (Princess Margaret's O ...

and four years with the Queen’s Own Highlanders. He was in

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

between 1969 and 1970 and then Deputy Warden of the RAChD Centre until 1974. He was then Senior Chaplain in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

(1974–75) and then the 4th Division (1975–78). He was Assistant Chaplain General in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

(1980–81), Senior Chaplain to the

1st British Corps I Corps ("First Corps") was an army corps in existence as an active formation in the British Army for most of the 80 years from its creation in the First World War until the end of the Cold War, longer than any other corps. It had a short-lived ...

(1981–82) and to the

BAOR There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine (BAOR). Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War and the other after the Second World War. Both formations had areas of responsibility located ...

(1982–84). In 1985 he became Deputy Chaplain General to the British Armed Forces after which he was Chaplain General from 1987 to 1995- the first non Anglican appointment. He was Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland from 1995 to 1996 when he became Dean of the Chapel Royal in Scotland- a post he held for a

decade A decade () is a period of ten years. Decades may describe any ten-year period, such as those of a person's life, or refer to specific groupings of calendar years. Usage Any period of ten years is a "decade". For example, the statement that "du ...

. An Honorary Chaplain to the Queen in Scotland, he has been

Dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

to the

Venerable Order of St 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 British monarchy ...

since 2005. He was appointed Officer to the

in December 1988 and

Knight of the Venerable Order of St 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 c ...

in January 2012.

References

People from Thornhill, Dumfries and Galloway Moderators of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland 20th-century Ministers of the Church of Scotland Chaplains General to the Forces Honorary Chaplains to the King Deans of the Chapel Royal in Scotland Officers of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Order of the Bath Knights Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Alumni of the University of Edinburgh 1935 births Living people Scottish military chaplains 20th-century Scottish clergy {{Christian-clergy-stub