Bishop of Barbados
Encyclopedia
The Anglican diocese
of Barbados
was set up in 1824, as one of two covering the whole Caribbean
. Before that, the area was nominally under the charge of the Bishop of London
, a situation that had been assumed to hold from 1660 onwards. In 1813, the then Bishop of London denied it was his responsibility, and so it turned out that appointments to the Church in the Colonies were recommended by the local governor, in this case of the Leeward Islands. (Ref. Correspondence in Lambeth Palace archives).
The Barbados diocese initially also covered Trinidad
, British Guiana
, the Leeward Islands
and the Windward Islands
. It was later divided up, on the retirement in 1841/2 of the first Bishop: his three Archdeacons took charge as the Bishop of Antigua
(Daniel Gateward Davis), of Barbados
(Parry) and the Bishop of British Guiana
(William Piercy Austin
).
The official residence was located at Bishop's Court Hill located along Upper Colleymore Rock Road. (Highway 6)
There is also a Roman Catholic diocese.
Diocese
A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...
of Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
was set up in 1824, as one of two covering the whole Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
. Before that, the area was nominally under the charge of the Bishop of London
Bishop of London
The Bishop of London is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers 458 km² of 17 boroughs of Greater London north of the River Thames and a small part of the County of Surrey...
, a situation that had been assumed to hold from 1660 onwards. In 1813, the then Bishop of London denied it was his responsibility, and so it turned out that appointments to the Church in the Colonies were recommended by the local governor, in this case of the Leeward Islands. (Ref. Correspondence in Lambeth Palace archives).
The Barbados diocese initially also covered Trinidad
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
, British Guiana
British Guiana
British Guiana was the name of the British colony on the northern coast of South America, now the independent nation of Guyana.The area was originally settled by the Dutch at the start of the 17th century as the colonies of Essequibo, Demerara, and Berbice...
, the Leeward Islands
Leeward Islands
The Leeward Islands are a group of islands in the West Indies. They are the northern islands of the Lesser Antilles chain. As a group they start east of Puerto Rico and reach southward to Dominica. They are situated where the northeastern Caribbean Sea meets the western Atlantic Ocean...
and the Windward Islands
Windward Islands
The Windward Islands are the southern islands of the Lesser Antilles, within the West Indies.-Name and geography:The Windward Islands are called such because they were more windward to sailing ships arriving in the New World than the Leeward Islands, given that the prevailing trade winds in the...
. It was later divided up, on the retirement in 1841/2 of the first Bishop: his three Archdeacons took charge as the Bishop of Antigua
Bishop of Antigua
The Anglican diocese of Antigua and the Leeward Islands was formed in 1842, as the diocese of Barbados, then one of two covering the Caribbean, was sub-divided.There is also a Catholic diocese.-List of Anglican bishops of Antigua:...
(Daniel Gateward Davis), of Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
(Parry) and the Bishop of British Guiana
Anglican Diocese of Guyana
The Anglican Diocese of Guyana is one of eight within the Province of the West Indies. Its cathedral is St. George's Cathedral, Georgetown. The current bishop is the Rt Rev Cornell Jerome Moss....
(William Piercy Austin
William Piercy Austin
William Piercy Austin was the inaugural and long serving Bishop of Guyana from 1842 until his death . Educated at Exeter College, Oxford and ordained in 1831 he was in rapid succession Curate , Vicar and Rural Dean of Georgetown, Guyana, then Archdeacon and Bishop...
).
The official residence was located at Bishop's Court Hill located along Upper Colleymore Rock Road. (Highway 6)
There is also a Roman Catholic diocese.
Anglican Bishops of Barbados
- 1824–1842 William Coleridge (1789–1849)
- 1842–1869 Thomas ParryThomas Parry (bishop)Thomas Parry was a Welsh clergyman and Bishop of Barbados from 1842 to 1869.-Background and education:He was born the fourth son of Edward Parry, a clergyman in North Wales, who at that time was rector of Llanferres, Denbighshire...
(1795–1870) - 1873–1881 John MitchinsonJohn Mitchinson (bishop)The Rt Rev John Mitchinson, DD was a Bishop of Barbados who later served as Master of Pembroke College, Oxford. He was born in Durham on 23 September 1833 and educated at Durham School and Pembroke College, Oxford. He was an Assistant Master at Merchant Taylors’ then Headmaster of The King's...
(1833–1918) - 1882–1899 Herbert BreeHerbert BreeThe Rt Rev Herbert Bree, DD was a Colonial Anglican Bishop from 1882 until 1899.Born in 1828, Herbert Bree was educated in Bury St Edmunds and at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge. He was ordained in 1852. After curacies in Suffolk he held incumbencies at Harkstead and Brampton before...
(1828–1899) - 1900–1916 Proctor Swaby (1844–1916)
- 1917–1930 Alfred Berkeley (1862–1938)
- 1930–1945 David Bentley (1882–1970)
- 1945–1951 James Hughes (1894–1979)
- 1951–1960 Gay Mandeville (1894–?)
- 1960–1972 Lewis Evans (1904–1996)
- 1972–1993 Drexel GomezDrexel Gomez-Life and ministry:Gomez was born on the Berry Islands.He graduated from St Chad's College, Durham University in 1959. He was consecrated as the Bishop of Barbados and in 1997 was elected the Bishop of the Bahamas & the Turks & Caicos Islands. He was elected Archbishop and Primate of the Province...
(born 1937) - 1993–2000 Rufus Brome (born 1935)
- 2000–present John HolderJohn Holder (bishop)John Walder Dunlop Holder is the current Anglican Archbishop of the West Indies and holds the See of Barbados. He was born in 1948, educated at Codrington College and ordained in 1974.-References:...
(born 1948)