Maurice Henry Harland (17 April 1896 – 29 September 1986) was a 20th-century Anglican bishop, his most significant appointment being

Bishop of Durham The Bishop of Durham is the Anglican bishop responsible for the Diocese of Durham in the Province of York. The diocese is one of the oldest in England and its bishop is a member of the House of Lords. Paul Butler has been the Bishop of Durham ...

from 1956 to 1966. He was one of nine Diocesan bishops in England in the 1950s who had served as combatants in the Great War

Early life

Harland was born on 17 April 1896, the son of the Revd William George and Clara Elizabeth Harland and educated at St Peter's School, York. He went straight from school in 1914 as a volunteer to the

West Yorkshire Regiment ) , march = ''Ça Ira'' , battles = Namur FontenoyFalkirk Culloden Brandywine , anniversaries = Imphal (22 June) The West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own) (14th Foot) wa ...

soon after the

First World War 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 ...

broke out. He joined the Royal Field Artillery as a lieutenant in France in 1915, and transferred to the Royal Flying Corps in 1917. He was a Flying Officer Observer from June 1917, then a Flying Officer and from April 1918 a Lieutenant. He was on anti-submarine patrol duties in August 1918, and was with No. 212 Squadron RAF when he was demobilised in 1919.

Marries and begins ministry

demobilisation Demobilization or demobilisation (see spelling differences) is the process of standing down a nation's armed forces from combat-ready status. This may be as a result of victory in war, or because a crisis has been peacefully resolved and milit ...

he went to

Exeter College, Oxford (Let Exeter Flourish) , old_names = ''Stapeldon Hall'' , named_for = Walter de Stapledon, Bishop of Exeter , established = , sister_college = Emmanuel College, Cambridge , rector = Sir Richard Trainor ...

, graduating BA in 1922, MA 1927. After a period of study at

Leeds Clergy School Leeds Clergy School was a theological college of the Church of England which was founded in 1876 and closed in 1925. It was established by the Rev. John Gott, Vicar of Leeds and later Bishop of Truro, with the first principal being E C S Gibson, ...

he became a curate at St Peter's Leicester, during which time he married Agnes Winckley. They had two daughters.

Career progresses

After five years he was appointed successively

priest in charge A priest in charge or priest-in-charge (previously also curate-in-charge) in the Church of England is a priest in charge of a parish who is not its incumbent. Such priests are not legally responsible for the churches and glebe, but simply hold a ...

of St Anne's Conventional District,

Perpetual Curate Perpetual curate was a class of resident parish priest or incumbent curate within the United Church of England and Ireland (name of the combined Anglican churches of England and Ireland from 1800 to 1871). The term is found in common use mainly du ...

of St Matthew's Holbeck,

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popula ...

, Vicar of St Mary's,

Windermere Windermere (sometimes tautologically called Windermere Lake to distinguish it from the nearby town of Windermere) is the largest natural lake in England. More than 11 miles (18 km) in length, and almost 1 mile (1.5 km) at its wides ...

and

Rural Dean In the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion as well as some Lutheran denominations, a rural dean is a member of clergy who presides over a "rural deanery" (often referred to as a deanery); "ruridecanal" is the corresponding adjective ...

Ambleside Ambleside is a town and former civil parish, now in the parish of Lakes, in Cumbria, in North West England. Historically in Westmorland, it marks the head (and sits on the east side of the northern headwater) of Windermere, England's larges ...

. Harland's reputation in Windermere was considerable and, with the support of the influential Bishop of Carlisle, he was considered for the Diocesan bishopric of Blackburn before his appointment as suffragan Bishop of Croydon In 1946, Archbishop Fisher named him as his second choice for the vacancy at Bristol but George Cockin (Fisher's third choice) was appointed In 1947, Fisher pressed the case for Harland to go to Lincoln whose recent bishops had proved fragile in health. Harland, noted Fisher, was physically strong although not a scholar in the Lincoln tradition. Harland, therefore, was surprised to be offered the post. 'I have seen the Archbishop today and he has been so kind as to make it clear that I must accept your proposal to submit my name to the King for the Bishopric of Lincoln', he wrote to the Prime Minister. He was even more surprised to be offered Durham in 1956 since traditionally the post had been filled by a scholar who could comfortably blend with the University. The post had been offered to Kenneth Warner DSO, bishop of Edinburgh and, like Harland, a Great War combatant but Warner refused it. Harland wrote again that he had been pressed to accept the post by Archbishop Fisher. Harland made no secret of his limitations in a letter to the diocese. 'The announcement of my prospective translation comes as a quite staggering surprise to my wife and me. It fills me with trepidation.' He noted that Durham had a long history of bishops famous 'for saintliness, scholarship and learning. I am afraid I am quite outside that tradition' Harland suffered a curious habit of easily forgetting names which did not endear him to his clergy. But he excelled at being a 'layman's bishop'. Administratively and managerially competent, and admired for his pastoral work, he was a contrast to his successor, the dynamic, charismatic academic but rather disorderly Ian Ramsey.'The Improbable Bishop' by John S Peart- Binns, Memoir Club, 2010 He was alone amongst the episcopate in opposing the abolition of the death penalty for murder in debate in the House of Lords. This was his conclusion having spent many last nights with condemned men while at Lincoln.

Retirement

Harland resigned his see in 1966 and retired to

West Wittering West Wittering is a village and civil parish situated on the Manhood Peninsula in the Chichester district of West Sussex, England. It lies near the mouth of Chichester Harbour on the B2179 road southwest of Chichester close to the border with Ha ...

, living another 20 years before dying on 29 September 1986.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harland, Maurice Henry 1896 births 1986 deaths 20th-century Church of England bishops Alumni of Exeter College, Oxford Archdeacons of Croydon Bishops of Croydon Bishops of Durham Bishops of Lincoln British Army personnel of World War I Holders of a Lambeth degree People educated at St Peter's School, York Clergy from York Royal Field Artillery officers Royal Flying Corps officers West Yorkshire Regiment officers People from Malton, North Yorkshire