William Bernard Ullathorne (7 May 180621 March 1889) was an English

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Minister (Christianity), Christian clergy who is an Ordinary (church officer), ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which me ...

who held high offices in the

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during the nineteenth century.

Early life

Ullathorne was born in

Pocklington Pocklington () is a market town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish at the foot of the Yorkshire Wolds in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, its population was 10,123. It lies east of York, and ...

East Riding of Yorkshire The East Riding of Yorkshire, often abbreviated to the East Riding or East Yorkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and west, S ...

, the eldest of ten children of William Ullathorne, a prosperous businessman with interests in groceries, draperies and spirits, and Hannah (née Longstaff), who converted to Roman Catholicism when she married. When he was nine years of age, Ullathorne's family relocated to

Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, sub ...

, where he began his schooling. He was a descendant of Saint

Thomas More Sir Thomas More (7 February 1478 – 6 July 1535), venerated in the Catholic Church as Saint Thomas More, was an English lawyer, judge, social philosopher, author, statesman, theologian, and noted Renaissance humanist. He also served Henry VII ...

through his great-grandmother, Mary More. At 12 he was taken from school and placed in his father's office to learn the management of accounts. The intention was to send him to school again, but Ullathorne wished to go to sea, and at the age of 15, with his parents' permission, he made the first of several voyages to the

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and

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. While attending Mass in Memel he experienced something in the nature of a conversion, and on his return asked the mate if he had any religious books. Ullathorne was given a translation of Marsollier's ''Life of St Jane Frances de Chantal'', which deepened his religious devotion. At the end of this voyage he returned home. In February 1823, aged 16, he was sent to

Downside School Downside School (formally The College of St Gregory the Great, Downside but simply referred to as Downside) is an 11–18 mixed, Roman Catholic, independent, day and boarding school in Stratton-on-the-Fosse, Somerset, England. It was establish ...

, near

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

, where he was mentored by

John Bede Polding John Bede Polding OSB (18 November 179416 March 1877) was an English Benedictine monk and the first Roman Catholic Archbishop of Sydney, Australia. Early life Polding was born in Liverpool, England, on 18 November 1794. His father was of Du ...

, afterwards the first Archbishop of Sydney, who influenced him greatly., ''The English Vicars Apostolic'', p. 242.

Priesthood

In 1823 Ullathorne entered the monastery of

Downside Abbey Downside Abbey is a Benedictine monastery in England and the senior community of the English Benedictine Congregation. Until 2019, the community had close links with Downside School, for the education of children aged 11 to 18. Both the abbey ...

, taking the vows in 1825, taking the additional name "Bernard", after

Bernard of Clairvaux Bernard of Clairvaux, Cistercians, O.Cist. (; 109020 August 1153), venerated as Saint Bernard, was an abbot, Mysticism, mystic, co-founder of the Knights Templar, and a major leader in the reform of the Benedictines through the nascent Cistercia ...

. He was ordained priest in 1831, and in 1832 went to

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

as vicar-general to Bishop

William Placid Morris William Placid Morris OSB (29 September 1794 – 18 February 1872) was a London-born Roman Catholic bishop. Morris was ordained a priest of the Order of Saint Benedict on 29 June 1817 and was assigned to missionary work in London, first at the ch ...

(1794–1872), whose jurisdiction extended over the Australian missions. It was mainly Ullathorne who caused

Pope Gregory XVI Pope Gregory XVI (; ; born Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari; 18 September 1765 – 1 June 1846) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 2 February 1831 to his death in June 1846. He had adopted the name Mauro upon enteri ...

to establish the hierarchy in Australia. In 1836, Bede Polding sent Ullathorne back to Britain, to recruit more Benedictines. While in England, he visited

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, where he met

Mary Aikenhead Mother Mary Frances Aikenhead (19 January 1787 – 22 July 1858) was born in Daunt's Square off Grand Parade, Cork, Ireland. Described as one of nursing's greatest leaders, she was the founder of the Catholic religious institute, the Religi ...

. He returned to Australia in 1838 with five

Sisters of Charity Many religious communities have the term Sisters of Charity in their name. Some ''Sisters of Charity'' communities refer to the Vincentian tradition alone, or in America to the tradition of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton (whose sisters are also of ...

. Ullathorne returned to England in 1841, suffering what Judith F Champ says would in modern terminology be described as "burnout". He then took charge of the Roman Catholic mission at

Coventry Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centurie ...

, where he recovered his health and spirits. Ullathorne had turned down bishoprics in Hobart, Adelaide, and Perth as he did not wish to return to Australia. In 1847 he was consecrated bishop as Vicar Apostolic of the Western District, in succession to Bishop C.M. Baggs (1806–1845), but was transferred to the Central District in the following year. Ullathorne helped found St Osburg's Church in Coventry.

Bishop of Birmingham

On the re-establishment of the hierarchy in

England and Wales England and Wales () is one of the Law of the United Kingdom#Legal jurisdictions, three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. Th ...

, he became the first Roman Catholic

Bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of the Diocese of Birmingham. During his nearly four decades of tenure at the see 67 new churches, 32 convents and nearly 200 mission schools were built. In 1888 he retired and received from

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII (; born Gioacchino Vincenzo Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2March 181020July 1903) was head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 until his death in July 1903. He had the fourth-longest reign of any pope, behind those of Peter the Ap ...

the

honorary title A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify their generation, official position, military rank, professional or academic qualification, or nobility. In some languages, titles may be ins ...

of Archbishop of

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. He died at

Oscott College St Mary's College in New Oscott, Birmingham, sometimes called Oscott College, is the Roman Catholic seminary of the Archdiocese of Birmingham in England and one of two seminaries of the Catholic Church in England and Wales in England, with Allen ...

and his monument is in the

crypt A crypt (from Greek κρύπτη (kryptē) ''wikt:crypta#Latin, crypta'' "Burial vault (tomb), vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, Sarcophagus, sarcophagi, or Relic, religiou ...

St Chad's Cathedral, Birmingham The Metropolitan Cathedral Church and Basilica of Saint Chad is a Catholic cathedral in Birmingham, England. It is the mother church of the Archdiocese of Birmingham and is dedicated to Saint Chad of Mercia. Designed by Augustus Welby Pugin ...

, although he was buried in the sanctuary of the Church of St Dominic and the Immaculate Conception at

Stone, Staffordshire Stone is a market town and civil parish in Staffordshire, England; it is situated approximately 7 miles (11 km) north of the county town of Stafford, 7 miles (11 km) south of Stoke-on-Trent and 15 miles (24 km) north of Rugeley. As a notable c ...

. There is Bishop Ullathorne Catholic School in

which is named after him.

Works

Of Ullathorne's theological and philosophical works, the best known are: ''The Endowments of Man'' (1880), ''The Groundwork of the Christian Virtues'' (1882), ''Christian Patience'' (1886). For an account of his life see his ''Autobiography'', edited by A. T. Drane (London).
''Substance of a Sermon Against Drunkenness Preached to the Catholics of Divers Parts of New South Wales''
Dublin: Richard Coyne, 1840.
''Sermons, With Prefaces''
London: T. Jones, 1842.
''The Blessing of the Calvary on the Grace Dieu Rocks''
London: Charles Dolman, 1843.
''The Office of a Bishop: A Discourse Delivered at the Solemn Thanksgiving for the Re-establishment of the Hierarchy''
London: Thomas Richardson and Son, 1850.
''The Immaculate Conception of the Mother of God: An Exposition''
London: Richardson and Son, 1855.
''On Certain Methods of the Rambler and the Home and Foreign Review: A Second Letter to the Clergy of the Eiocese of Birmingham''
London: Thomas Richardson and Son, 1863.
''History of the restoration of the Catholic hierarchy in England''
London: Burns, Oates, and Company, 1871.
''The Döllingerites, Mr. Gladstone, and Apostates From the Faith: A Letter to the Catholics of his Diocese''
London: Thomas Richardson and Son, 1874.
''The Endowments of Man Considered in Their Relations With his Final End: A Course of Lectures''
London: Burns & Oates, 1880.
''The Groundwork of the Christian Virtues''
Burns & Oates, 1882.
''Christian Patience, the Strenghth & Discipline of the Soul''
London: Burns & Gates, Limited, 1886.

Notes

References

* * * T. L. Suttor,

, ''

Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...

'', Vol. 2, MUP, 1967, pp 544–546; retrieved 15 October 2009 * *
"The autobiography of Archbishop Ullathorne : with selections from his letters"
at Archive.org * *

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ullathorne, William Bernard 1806 births 1889 deaths 19th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in the United Kingdom Australian Roman Catholic priests 19th-century Roman Catholic bishops in England Roman Catholic archbishops of Birmingham English Benedictines Benedictine bishops People educated at Downside School Our Lady of La Salette People from Pocklington Apostolic vicars of England and Wales People from Scarborough, North Yorkshire History of Catholicism in the United Kingdom