Spencer Leeson

Spencer Stottisbury Gwatkin Leeson[1] was an eminent[2] headmaster[3] and Anglican bishop[4] in the mid 20th century.

[7] Although he had just been awarded a 1st in classical moderations and was on his way to further academic distinction, he enlisted in the army in August 1914, soon after the outbreak of the First World War.

[8] He was commissioned into the Middlesex Regiment and his first posting was to Gibraltar, where he gained the rare experience of guarding German-American prisoners who had been intercepted whilst attempting to reach Germany.

[14] He was ordained and consecrated a bishop that All Saints' Day (1 November) at Westminster Abbey[15] by Geoffrey Fisher, Archbishop of Canterbury;[16] and held this post until his death on 27 January 1956.

[17] By then, his hyperactivity and zeal had damaged his health, so that when Archbishop Garbett of York announced his retirement in 1955, Leeson was not in the running.