George Ridding

George Ridding (16 March 1828 – 30 August 1904) was an English headmaster and bishop.

George Ridding
George Ridding from the Illustrated Guide to the Church Congress (1897)
Born	(1828-03-16)16 March 1828 Winchester, England
Died	30 August 1904(1904-08-30) (aged 76)
Nationality	British
Occupation	headmaster

Life

George Ridding was born at Winchester College, of which his father, the Rev. Charles Ridding, vicar of Andover, was a fellow.^[1]

He was educated at Winchester College and at Balliol College, Oxford. He became a fellow of Exeter College, Oxford and was a tutor from 1853 to 1863. In 1853 he married Mary Louisa Moberly, who died within a year of her marriage. Ordained Priest by the Bishop of Oxford 20 September 1856 in St John the Baptist Church, Oxford.^[2] He was appointed second master of Winchester College in 1863, and on the retirement of his father-in-law, George Moberly, he succeeded to the headmastership.^[1] The gate between College Meads and Lavender Meads bears his name.

During the tenure of this office (1867–1884) he carried out successfully a series of radical reforms in the organisation of the school, resulting in a great increase both in its reputation and numbers. In 1884, he became the first Bishop of Southwell, and brought his powers of organisation and conspicuous tact and moderation to bear on the management of the new diocese.^[1] There is a bronze statue of him in Southwell Minster by F. W. Pomeroy.

He took an active share in its educational and social work, and was materially assisted in these respects by his second wife, Lady Laura Palmer, daughter of the 1st Earl of Selborne.^[3] He resigned his see a short time before his death.^[1] His brothers Charles Ridding and William Ridding were also clergy, while another brother Arthur Ridding was a librarian; all three brothers had played first-class cricket.

• 
  Painting of George Ridding, Headmaster of Winchester College,
  by Walter William Ouless
• 
  George Ridding, by Leslie Ward, 1901

References

1. Chisholm 1911.
2. Oxford University & City Herald, 27/09/1856
3. Serena Kelly, ‘Ridding , Lady Laura Elizabeth (1849–1939)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 accessed 22 Nov 2017

Sources

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Ridding, George". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 23 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 316.
• Church Quarterly Review (July 1905).
• J.V. Beckett, ‘Dr George Ridding: First Bishop of Southwell, 1884-1904’ in Transactions of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire, Vol. 116 (2012)
• Lee, Sidney, ed. (1912). "Ridding, George" . Dictionary of National Biography (2nd supplement). London: Smith, Elder & Co.
• Kenyon, F. G.; Curthoys, M. C. "Ridding, George (1828–1904)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/35750. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)

Church of England titles
Preceded by New diocese	Bishop of Southwell 1884–1904	Succeeded by Edwyn Hoskyns
Academic offices
Preceded by George Moberly	Headmaster of Winchester College 1867-1884	Succeeded by William Fearon