Victor de Waal

Victor Alexander de Waal (born 2 February 1929)[1] is a British Anglican priest. He was the Dean of Canterbury from 1976 to 1986.

The Very Reverend

Victor de Waal
Dean of Canterbury
ChurchChurch of England
Installed1976
Term ended1986
PredecessorIan White-Thomson
SuccessorJohn Simpson
Personal details
Birth nameVictor Alexander de Waal
Born (1929-02-02) 2 February 1929
DenominationAnglicanism
ParentsHendrik de Waal
Elisabeth von Ephrussi
SpouseEsther Aline Lowndes-Moir
ChildrenAlex de Waal
Edmund de Waal
Thomas de Waal
EducationTonbridge School
Alma materPembroke College, Cambridge

Early life

Victor de Waal was born in Amsterdam, the son of Hendrik de Waal, a Dutch businessman, and Elisabeth of the Ephrussi family. His mother was born to a well-known Jewish family at the Ephrussi Palace in Vienna. Although she converted to Christianity this did not protect her from the racial policy of Nazi Germany.[2] Before the outbreak of World War II, the family moved to Britain and stayed there after the war, though retaining for many years their Dutch citizenship.[3]

The family came to live in Tunbridge Wells when he was a boy and he was educated at Tonbridge School and Pembroke College, Cambridge. His second cousin once removed was the Right Revd Hugo de Waal, Bishop of Thetford.[4]

Career

He served as chaplain of King's College, Cambridge from 1959 to 1963 and the University of Nottingham from 1963 to 1969,[5] and chancellor of Lincoln Cathedral.

From 1976 to 1986, he served as the Dean of Canterbury.[6][7]

He helped with the research into his family history by his son, Edmund de Waal, which culminated in the book The Hare with Amber Eyes.[8]

De Waal is an Honorary Fellow of the Institute of Advanced Research in the Humanities and Social Sciences of the University of Birmingham.[9]

Personal life

He married Esther Aline Lowndes-Moir, author (as Esther de Waal) of books on spirituality, especially Celtic. Among their sons are John de Waal, a barrister; Alex de Waal (born 1963), a writer on Africa; Edmund de Waal (born 1964), a ceramic artist; and Thomas de Waal (born 1966), a writer. He later separated from his wife.[10]

Works
  • What is the Church, 1969, SCM Press.
  • The Politics of Reconciliation - Zimbabwe's first decade, 1990

References
  1. "FindArticles.com - CBSi". Findarticles.com. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
  2. "The artist whose secret family history became the surprise book of the". Evening Standard. 22 December 2010. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  3. Himes, Mavis (2016). The Power of Names: Uncovering the Mystery of What We Are Called. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 96. ISBN 9781442259799. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  4. "The Right Rev Hugo de Waal". The Independent. 8 January 2007. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  5. What is the Church, SCM Press, 1969
  6. Allchin (The Rev. Canon), A.M. (27 April 1980). The Living Church | Enthronement at Canterbury. Morehouse-Gorham Company. p. 50. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  7. Vogel, Carol (29 August 2013). "Edmund de Waal Prepares for an Exhibition". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  8. Moore, Charles (21 January 2012). "The Spectator's Notes | The Spectator". The Spectator. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  9. Richardson, Alan; Bowden, John (1983). The Westminster Dictionary of Christian Theology. Westminster John Knox Press. p. 16. ISBN 9780664227487. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  10. Wullschlager, Jackie (28 March 2014). "Lunch with the FT: Edmund de Waal". Financial Times. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  • Obituary of his cousin Hugo de Waal (1935–2007), former Bishop of Thetford.


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