Guildford Snippets – Do You Know? No.1

Published on: 6 May, 2018
Updated on: 6 May, 2018

By Nick Bale, Guildford Town Guides

As town guides, we often come across intriguing snippets about Guildford people and places. These curious facts are a fun way to test your knowledge or ingenuity.

Each week, throughout the spring and summer, we will ask a question, and if you know the answer or can add any information, please leave a reply in the box below. The replies will be published in a week’s time and I will give the answer in a new post along with the next question.

The George Abbot statue in Guildford High Street, pictured by Nick Bale.

The first question is about George Abbot, the Guildford boy who rose to national prominence as Archbishop of Canterbury in 1611.

In later life, George Abbot was notorious because he killed a man in a hunting accident. Curiously, another Archbishop of Canterbury in the 20th century also had killed other human beings but without the same notoriety. Who was he?

You can find out more about George Abbot’s extraordinary life in a guided walk starting at Tunsgate Arch at 2.30pm on Tuesday, May 8.

Visit www.guildfordwalks.org.uk for further information.

Responses to Guildford Snippets – Do You Know? No.1

John Lomas Reply

May 6, 2018 at 9:46 pm

This is presumably a reference to Robert Runcie, who was a tank commander in the D Day landings.
Steve Munfield Reply

May 6, 2018 at 10:00 pm

Lord Runcie,who served in the Second World War.
M. Bedforth Reply

May 7, 2018 at 6:10 pm

Robert Alexander Kennedy Runcie, Baron Runcie, MC PC (2 October 1921 – 11 July 2000) during the Second World War.
J E Davey Reply

May 7, 2018 at 9:27 pm

Robert Runcie. He was a tank commander in the Second World War and fought from Normandy onwards.

In May 1945, he was among the first British soldiers to enter the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp.