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With the gradual abolition of the legal restrictions on the activities of Catholics in England and Wales in the early 19th century, Rome decided to proceed to bridge the gap of the centuries from Queen Elizabeth I by instituting Catholic dioceses on the regular historical pattern. Thus Pope Pius IX issued the Bull '' Universalis Ecclesiae '' of 29 September 1850 by which thirteen new dioceses which did not formally claim any continuity with the pre-Elizabethan English dioceses were created. One of these was the diocese of Clifton. In the early period from 1850 the diocese was a suffragan of the Metropolitan See of Westminster, but a further development was the creation under Pope Pius X , on 28 October 1911 , of a new Province of Birmingham, to which Clifton then was transferred. Prior to 1850 the diocese's territory formed part of the Vicariate Apostolic of the Western District, one of the four vicariates established in 1688 , which had included all Wales and the six south-western Counties Of England . In 1840 a general redivision of the vicariates took effect. Wales became a separate vicariate, and thenceforth the district consisted of the English counties only. As the Vicars Apostolic resided chiefly at Bath in Somerset , when the district was divided in 1850 into the two dioceses of Clifton and Plymouth , it was fitting that the last Vicar Apostolic Of The Western District , Dr. Joseph William Hendren ( 1791 - 1866 ), consecrated in 1848 , should become the first Bishop of Clifton. Thus the new diocese is in continuity with the old vicariate. In this capacity the Bishop of Clifton retains possession of the archives of the Western District, one of the most important sources of information for the history of the Church in England from 1780 to 1850 . The papers earlier in date perished during the Gordon Riots in 1780. Besides these valuable archives there is at Bishop's House an interesting series of portraits of the vicars Apostolic of the Western District and of the bishops of Clifton. A year after the foundation of the new diocese Dr. Hendren was translated to become Bishop Of Nottingham and was succeeded by Dr. Thomas Burgess ( 1791 - 1854 ). On 28 June , 1852 , a cathedral chapter, consisting of a provost and ten canons, was erected. On the death of Bishop Burgess, 27 November , 1854 , there was a long vacancy, and the administration of the diocese was given provisionally to Archbishop George Errington, coadjutor to Cardinal Wiseman. This arrangement lasted until February 1857 , when the Honourable and Reverend William Joseph Hugh Clifford ( 1823 - 1893 ), son of The Seventh Lord Clifford , was appointed bishop, being consecrated by Pope Pius IX in person. His long episcopate lasted for thirty-six years, ending with his death on the 14 August 1893 . His successor was Dr. William Robert Brownlow ( 1836 - 1901 ), famous as an Archaeologist , and whose well-known work on the Catacomb s, written conjointly with Dr. James Spencer Northcote , was a classical work of reference. Dr. Brownlow died on 9 November , 1901 , and was succeeded by the Right Reverend George Ambrose Burton , consecrated 1 May 1902 . The diocese at present covers an area of 10,912 km² of the Counties of Gloucestershire , Somerset and Wiltshire together with the Bristol area. The See is in the town of Clifton in the City Of Bristol where the seat is located at the Cathedral Church Of The Apostles . The diocese, which is under the patronage of "Our Lady Conceived without Sin" and Saints Peter and Paul , is divided into six rural Deaneries . There are 107 parishes (2004). The clergy number about 128 diocesan priests and about 71 regulars, the latter including the Benedictines of the famous abbey and school at Downside . The Dominican s, Franciscan s, Carmelite s, Cistercian s, and Jesuits are also represented in the diocese. The College Of Saints Peter And Paul , Prior Park , founded by Benedictines and afterwards conducted by secular priests, is now in the hands of the Fathers Of The Society Of The Holy Ghost . The current bishop is the Right Reverend Declan Robert Lang , 9th Bishop of Clifton. List of the Bishops of the Catholic Diocese of Clifton, England and its precursor offices REFERENCES SEE ALSO |
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