Francis Underhill

For the American bond broker, see Francis Jay Underhill. For the American politician and Santa Barbara architect, see Francis Townsend Underhill.

Francis Underhill
Bishop of Bath and Wells
Underhill by Harry Morley; oil on canvas, 1940
DioceseDiocese of Bath and Wells
In office1937–1943
PredecessorBasil Wynne Willson
SuccessorWilliam Wand
Other post(s)Dean of Rochester (1932–1937)
Orders
Consecration30 November 1937
by Cosmo Lang
Personal details
Born(1878-05-16)16 May 1878
Died24 January 1943(1943-01-24) (aged 64)
NationalityBritish
DenominationAnglican
EducationShrewsbury School
Alma materExeter College, Oxford

Francis Underhill (16 May 1878 – 24 January 1943)[1] was an Anglican bishop in the first half of the 20th century.

Underhill was educated at Shrewsbury School and Exeter College, Oxford.[2] He was ordained in 1901 and was a curate at St Paul's Swindon and St Thomas the Martyr, Oxford and then Vicar of St Alban the Martyr, Birmingham until 1925. He was the first secretary of the Federation of Catholic Priests[3] and from 1925 until 1932 he was Warden of Liddon House,[4] and priest in charge of the Grosvenor Chapel, Mayfair when he was appointed Dean of Rochester, a position he held until his confirmation as Bishop of Bath and Wells in 1937. Shortly after confirmation, he was consecrated a bishop on St Andrew's Day 1937 (30 November), by Cosmo Lang, Archbishop of Canterbury, at St Paul's Cathedral.[5] An author,[6] he was a cousin of Evelyn Underhill.

  1. ^ "Obituary: The Rt Rev F Underhill", The Times, 25 January 1943; p6; Issue 49452; col E
  2. ^ Who was Who 1897–1990 London, A & C Black, 1991 ISBN 0-7136-3457-X
  3. ^ "Home". priests.org.uk.
  4. ^ "Liddon House New appointment, Rev Francis Underhill", The Times 11 November 1925; p8; Issue 44116; col C
  5. ^ "Consecration of three bishops". Church Times. No. 3906. 3 December 1937. p. 622. ISSN 0009-658X. Retrieved 17 April 2021 – via UK Press Online archives.
  6. ^ Amongst others he wrote The Catholic Faith in Practice (1918); The Life of Prayer in the World (1923); Can We Enjoy Religion? (1926); Prayer in Modern Life (1928); and Christian Life in the Modern World (1934) > British Library website accessed 1 November 2008