Victor Guazzelli

Victor Guazzelli (19 March 1920 – 1 June 2004) was a Roman Catholic bishop. He served as an auxiliary bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Westminster (1970–1996) and held the titular see of Lindisfarne (1970–2004). He was known as a devoted supporter of social justice.

Biography

Victor Guazzelli was born in Stepney on 19 March 1920 of Italian immigrants from Lucca, Tuscany. His father, Cesare Guazzelli, worked as an iceman. Two of his three sisters died from childhood pneumonia. At the age of nine, Victor told his father he wanted to enter the priesthood. Cesare gave his blessing, and in 1935 Victor left for the English College, Lisbon, a Roman Catholic seminary. Whilst attending the seminary, World War II broke out and Victor was unable to return to London until 1945, by which time he was already a priest]. His father had died during his absence. Now fluent in Portuguese and Italian, Victor took up a post at St Patrick's, Soho Square, before being recalled to the seminary in Lisbon as bursar, and to teach Church History and Scripture.