Bishop owes his life to Norfolk lifeboat crew

A retired Norfolk bishop has just discovered that he owes his life to the family of a recently retired Cromer lifeboat coxswain which sparked a cheerful reunion.

 

Bishop David Leake retired to his family home in the North Norfolk village of East Runton six years ago and recently started researching his family history.

His father, Canon Alfred Leake travelled in 1926 as a missionary to Argentina. David was born in Argentina where he served with the Anglican Church together with his wife Rachel for forty years. He became the Anglican Bishop of Argentina before his retirement and move to Norfolk in 2003.  

 

In the course of working through his father's letters and papers in readiness to deposit them in the Norfolk County Hall record archive, Bishop David discovered a cutting from a Norfolk paper dated November 1893. There he found recorded a gallant rescue by the Cromer lifeboat of three East Runton fishermen. The fishermen had gone out to sea and in the course of the day a very strong wind began to blow creating very heavy seas. The fishermen were in danger and had it not been for the brave response and endeavours of the lifeboat crew they would certainly have ended in a watery grave.

 

The fascinating discovery is that one of the fishermen in the boat was Bishop David's great-grandfather and the coxswain of the lifeboat was the great-grandfather of recently retired Coxswain Richard Davies, also living in East Runton. The other fishermen were Bishop David's grandfather and great-uncle.

 

Bishop Leake said "The bottom line is that if Coxswain Richard Davies' great-grandfather had not rescued my great-grandfather I would not be here, so I owe a lot to the famous Davies lifeboat dynasty".

 

David Leake and and Richard Davies recently got together for a photo opportunity and reminisce about their grandfathers' adventures [pictured above].