Francis Ignatius Neale (June 3, 1756December 20, 1837), also known as Francis Xavier Neale, was an American
Catholic priest
The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in common English usage ''priest'' refe ...
and
Jesuit
The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
who led several academic and religious institutions in Washington, D.C., and
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
. He played a substantial role in the
Jesuit order's resurgence in the United States.
Born to a prominent Maryland family, Neale was educated at the
Colleges of Bruges and Liège, where he was ordained a
priest
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...
. When Neale returned to the United States in 1788, he became the pastor of the church at
St. Thomas Manor, where he aligned himself with the rural clergy in opposing Bishop
John Carroll's founding of
Georgetown College
Georgetown College is a private Christian liberal arts college in Georgetown, Kentucky. Chartered in 1829, Georgetown was the first Baptist college west of the Appalachian Mountains.
The college offers over 40 undergraduate degrees and a Mas ...
, believing it would draw resources away from the Jesuits' rural
manors. He would conflict with Carroll over various issues for much of his life.
In 1790, Neale oversaw the establishment of the first Catholic church in Washington, D.C.,
Holy Trinity Church
Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...
, of which he was pastor for 27 years. He also established the
Church of St. Mary in
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city (United States), independent city in Northern Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of Washington, D.C., D.C. The city's population of 159,467 at the 2020 ...
, and was its visiting pastor. Neale was briefly the acting
president of Georgetown College, and later became its president in 1809. His tenure was considered unsuccessful, as the number of students declined dramatically due to his implementation of strict monastic discipline.
When the Jesuit order was restored in the United States in 1806, Neale joined the Society and became the
master of novices
In the Christian Church, a novice master or master of novices (), is a member of an institute of consecrated life who is responsible for the training and government of the novitiate in that institute. In religious institutes for women, the novic ...
at
Georgetown. He was also made treasurer of the Jesuits' Maryland mission. He spent his later years as the
spiritual director
Spiritual direction is the practice of being with people as they attempt to deepen their relationship with the divinity, divine, or to learn and grow in their personal spirituality. The person seeking direction shares stories of their encounters ...
to the
nun
A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service and contemplation, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 5 ...
s at the
Georgetown Visitation Monastery
The Monastery of the Visitation, Georgetown is a monastery of the Visitation Order in the District of Columbia, United States of America.
History
Founding
This monastery was founded by Alice Lalor, native of County Kilkenny, Ireland, who ...
and the pastor at St. Thomas Manor.
Early life
Francis Ignatius Neale was born on June 3, 1756,
at Chandler's Hope, the Neale family estate near
Port Tobacco
Port Tobacco, officially Port Tobacco Village, is a town in Charles County, Maryland, United States. The population was 13 at the 2010 census, making Port Tobacco the smallest incorporated town in Maryland.
Overview
This was historically the te ...
,
located in
Charles County
Charles County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 166,617. The county seat is La Plata. The county was named for Charles Calvert (1637–1715), third Baron Baltimore. The ...
of the British
Province of Maryland
The Province of Maryland was an Kingdom of England, English and later British colonization of the Americas, British colony in North America from 1634 until 1776, when the province was one of the Thirteen Colonies that joined in supporting the A ...
.
He was born into a prominent Maryland family; among his ancestors was Captain
James Neale
Captain James Neale (1615 – 1684) was an influential early immigrant to Maryland.
Early life
Neale was born in 1615, to Jane Baker and Raphael Neale of Drury Lane, London and of Wollaston, Northamptonshire, England. One of his daughters was ...
, one of the settlers of the Maryland Colony, who arrived in 1637 upon receiving a royal grant of in what would become Port Tobacco.
Neale's parents, William Neale and Anne Neale (), had thirteen children, and all seven of the boys, including Francis, the youngest, were sent to the
Colleges of St Omer, Bruges, and Liège. Two of Francis Neale's brothers died during their studies, and four of the surviving five became Catholic
priests
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, ...
. One brother,
Leonard
Leonard or ''Leo'' is a common English language, English masculine given name and a surname.
The given name and surname originate from the Old High German ''Leonhard'' containing the prefix ''levon'' ("lion") from the Greek wikt:Λέων#Greek, Λ ...
, would go on to become president of
Georgetown College
Georgetown College is a private Christian liberal arts college in Georgetown, Kentucky. Chartered in 1829, Georgetown was the first Baptist college west of the Appalachian Mountains.
The college offers over 40 undergraduate degrees and a Mas ...
and the
Archbishop of Baltimore
The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Baltimore () is the archdiocese of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church in northern and western Maryland in the United States. It is the metropolitan see of the Ecclesiastical Province of Baltimore.
The Archd ...
, and another,
Charles
Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''* ...
, also became a prominent
Jesuit
The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
.
One sister, Anne, entered the
Order of Poor Clares as a
nun
A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service and contemplation, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 5 ...
, in
Aire-sur-la-Lys
Aire-sur-la-Lys (; ; literally "Aire on the Lys (river), Lys") is a Communes of France, commune in the Pas-de-Calais Departments of France, department in northern France.
Geography
The commune is located 16 kilometres (10 mi) southeast of ...
, France.
William Matthews, Neale's nephew through his sister Mary, was another future president of Georgetown.
In 1773,
Pope Clement XIV
Pope Clement XIV (; ; 31 October 1705 – 22 September 1774), born Giovanni Vincenzo Antonio Ganganelli, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 May 1769 to his death in September 1774. At the time of his elec ...
ordered the worldwide
suppression of the Society of Jesus
The suppression of the Society of Jesus was the removal of all members of the Jesuits from most of Western Europe and their respective colonies beginning in 1759 along with the abolition of the order by the Holy See in 1773; the papacy acceded ...
.
This meant Neale was unable to enter the Jesuit order as he intended,
but he continued his
seminary
A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as cle ...
studies at the college in
Liège
Liège ( ; ; ; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the Liège Province, province of Liège, Belgium. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east o ...
. Following his
ordination
Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...
as a
priest
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...
on April 3, 1788,
he immediately left for the United States.
Maryland missions
In 1789,
John Carroll, the Bishop of Baltimore, founded the long-planned Georgetown College in the
District of Columbia
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...
, the first Catholic institution of higher education in the United States.
As early as 1785, Carroll had requested that
Charles Plowden return a cohort of Maryland Jesuits studying at the college in Liège to the United States so that they could staff the fledging college.
He intended Neale, in particular, to play a significant role in the college's early years.
Carroll's requests went unfulfilled until November 1788, when Neale, having completed his studies at Liège, arrived in
Baltimore
Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...
. Carroll initially assigned Neale to the Jesuit estate of
St. Thomas Manor, near Port Tobacco.
Neale enjoyed the rural life, and aligned with those Jesuits stationed at the Jesuits' rural Maryland
manors who opposed Carroll's establishment of a college. He frequently expressed in correspondence with Carroll his belief that the Jesuits should direct their efforts to ministering to rural congregations in
Southern Maryland
Southern Maryland, also referred to as SoMD, is a geographical, cultural and historic region in Maryland composed of the state's southernmost counties on the Western Shore of the Chesapeake Bay. According to the state of Maryland, the region incl ...
, rather than on higher education. Neale's relationship with Carroll soured when Neale accused his superior of giving insufficient support to the rural missions, and Carroll chastised Neale for poorly managing his congregation's finances, such as failing to obtain orders for the new American-printed
Douay–Rheims Bible
The Douay–Rheims Bible (, ), also known as the Douay–Rheims Version, Rheims–Douai Bible or Douai Bible, and abbreviated as D–R, DRB, and DRV, is a translation of the Bible from the Latin Vulgate into English made by member ...
.
Eventually, Neale became the most outspoken opponent of Carroll's efforts to establish Georgetown College, which he believed to be at the expense of the Maryland Jesuits' rural manors.
Establishment of Georgetown Chapel
In 1790, the governor of Maryland,
Thomas Sim Lee
Thomas Sim Lee (October 29, 1745 – November 9, 1819) was an American planter, patriot and politician who served as Maryland Governor for five one-year terms (1779-1783 and 1792-1794), as well as in the Congress of the Confederation (1783–84) ...
, requested that a priest be sent to the rapidly expanding city of
Frederick Frederick may refer to:
People
* Frederick (given name), the name
Given name
Nobility
= Anhalt-Harzgerode =
* Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670)
= Austria =
* Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria fro ...
. Carroll sought to transfer Neale to Frederick from St. Thomas Manor, but Neale fell ill at about that time and was unable to go.
Later that year,
Carroll appointed Neale as the first pastor of the yet-to-be-built Georgetown Chapel,
reasoning that Neale's prominent ancestry and acquaintance with many distinguished families in
Georgetown would aid him in raising funds to support the nascent church.
Neale did not arrive in Georgetown until January 13, 1792, after recovering from his period of ill health.

Neale proved to be a successful pastor of the church.
He succeeded in raising considerable funds from Catholics in
Montgomery,
Prince George's, Charles, and
St. Mary's counties in Maryland during the first several months of his tenure. This allowed construction on the chapel to begin quickly, and its foundation was complete by the end of 1792; the
superstructure
A superstructure is an upward extension of an existing structure above a baseline. This term is applied to various kinds of physical structures such as buildings, bridges, or ships.
Aboard ships and large boats
On water craft, the superstruct ...
was completed the following year.
As the new church occupied the entire width of its lot, Neale sought to protect it and its adjacent cemetery from encroachment by purchasing land on either side as a buffer. Contributions proved to be inadequate, and he resorted to supplementing donations with his own funds. He would again contribute his own money fifteen years later to purchase the remainder of the block's width, where the
Holy Trinity School now stands.
Construction on the Georgetown Chapel was complete by March 1794.
As the first Catholic church in the District of Columbia,
the Georgetown Chapel drew parishioners from as far as
Dumfries
Dumfries ( ; ; from ) is a market town and former royal burgh in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, near the mouth of the River Nith on the Solway Firth, from the Anglo-Scottish border. Dumfries is the county town of the Counties of Scotland, ...
and
Great Falls in
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
and
Bladensburg in Maryland.
The size of the congregation increased rapidly, and the church soon became overcrowded, despite the erection of makeshift sheds on the sides of the church to augment the size of the building.
In 1796, the parish established a mission church in
Alexandria
Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...
, which was the first Catholic church in the state of Virginia. Neale ministered to this church, but its location was considered too remote, so he purchased a former
Methodist
Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...
meeting house more centrally located in Alexandria, and named it the
Church of St. Mary.
Relations between Neale and Carroll continued to deteriorate, as Neale resisted Carroll's attempts to sell some of the Jesuits' rural properties. In April 1797, Carroll directed Neale to transfer from Georgetown to the Jesuit's
White Marsh Manor, as had been tentatively discussed at a previous meeting of the clergy, despite Neale's opposition. Before this order could be given effect, several wealthy parishioners and
lay trustees of the Georgetown Chapel intervened to petition Carroll to keep Neale at Georgetown;
Carroll acquiesced,
and Neale remained as pastor until 1817, when he was succeeded by
Benedict Joseph Fenwick
Benedict Joseph Fenwick (September 3, 1782 – August 11, 1846) was an American Catholic prelate, Jesuit, and educator who served as the Bishop of Boston from 1825 until his death in 1846. In 1843, he founded the College of the Holy Cross in ...
.
In the meantime, Neale had become a prominent member of the Select Body of Clergy of the Corporation of Roman Catholic Clergymen of Maryland,
a civil corporation beyond Carroll's authority composed of priests who had been Jesuits before the order's suppression. Neale was made the legal agent of the corporation in 1798.
Georgetown College
In addition to his priestly duties at the Georgetown Chapel, Neale also worked at Georgetown College as treasurer ''pro tempore'', which was his sole source of income, room and board.
In August 1797, a special committee of Maryland clergy was drawn up to determine the future of the college. It resolved that the institution was to be run by a five-member board of directors, composed of Maryland clergy who were selected from and by their peers. The effect of this resolution was to deprive Carroll and the incumbent
Sulpician
The Society of Priests of Saint-Sulpice (; PSS), also known as the Sulpicians, is a society of apostolic life of Pontifical Right for men, named after the Church of Saint-Sulpice, Paris, where it was founded. The members of the Society add the ...
president of the college,
Louis William DuBourg, of any official control of the school. Neale was selected as one of the five directors. At the board's first meeting in October 1797, Neale was elected vice president of the college, whose duties largely corresponded to those of his existing role of treasurer.
He would hold the position of vice president for ten years.

When the president of Georgetown College,
Robert Molyneux, was forced to resign the presidency due to declining health in December 1808,
Neale was made the acting president,
until a permanent successor could be found in his nephew, William Matthews, in March 1809.
Following the end of Matthews' tenure, Neale succeeded him as president on November 1, 1809.
[.] He instituted the same severe monastic discipline that his brother, Leonard, had previously implemented at the college during his presidency. Students were required to follow a daily regimen, which heavily focussed on religious activities. Although this resulted in a considerable number of students entering the priesthood, it led to a significant decrease in the number of non-Catholic students and a severe decline in the overall number of students.
Enrollment was also affected by competition for students with
St. Mary's Seminary and University
St. Mary's Seminary and University is a Catholic Church, Catholic seminary located within the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore, Archdiocese of Baltimore in Baltimore, Maryland; it was the first seminary founded in the United States after ...
in Baltimore.
At the college, Neale established the first
Sodality of the Blessed Virgin
The Sodality of Our Lady, also known as the Sodality of the Blessed Virgin Mary (in Latin, ''Congregationes seu sodalitates B. Mariæ Virginis''), is a Roman Catholic Marian society founded in 1563 by young Belgian Jesuit Jean Leunis (or Jan) a ...
in the United States.
He also purchased to expand the campus for student recreation.
Neale had little interest in managing the academic affairs of the college, and upon assuming the presidency, transferred responsibility for the school's academics to the vice president.
As he simultaneously held other pastoral and administrative positions, he was largely absent from the college. Carroll's evaluation was that the college had "sunk to the lowest degree of discredit."
Neale's tenure came to an end in August 1812, and
Giovanni Antonio Grassi
Giovanni Antonio Grassi (anglicized as John Anthony Grassi; 10 September 1775 – 12 December 1849) was an Italian Catholic priest and Jesuit who led many academic and religious institutions in Europe and the United States, including Georgeto ...
was named as his successor.
Involvement in the restored Jesuits

In response to the request of Emperor
Paul I of Russia
Paul I (; – ) was Emperor of Russia from 1796 until his assassination in 1801.
Paul remained overshadowed by his mother, Catherine the Great, for most of his life. He adopted the Pauline Laws, laws of succession to the Russian throne—rules ...
,
Pope Pius VII
Pope Pius VII (; born Barnaba Niccolò Maria Luigi Chiaramonti; 14 August 1742 – 20 August 1823) was head of the Catholic Church from 14 March 1800 to his death in August 1823. He ruled the Papal States from June 1800 to 17 May 1809 and again ...
issued a
bull
A bull is an intact (i.e., not Castration, castrated) adult male of the species ''Bos taurus'' (cattle). More muscular and aggressive than the females of the same species (i.e. cows proper), bulls have long been an important symbol cattle in r ...
in 1801 partially lifting the 1773 order of suppression by permitting the Jesuits to officially resume operation in the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...
(which they had been already doing unofficially).
Bishop Carroll had long sought to restore the Jesuit order in the United States, and aimed to do so by submitting the Maryland Jesuits to the jurisdiction of the Jesuits' Russian province.
He was wary that such an arrangement would contravene the pope's order and might draw the attention of political enemies of the Jesuits.
Neale and his brother, Charles, led a group of clergy in persistently urging Carroll to effectuate the arrangement.
Carroll was eventually persuaded,
and a Jesuit
novitiate
The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether ...
was formally opened on October 10, 1806, in a house offered for use by Neale, across the street from the now-Holy Trinity Church.
[
The newly appointed superior of the Maryland Jesuits, Robert Molyneux, named Neale as the ]master of novices
In the Christian Church, a novice master or master of novices (), is a member of an institute of consecrated life who is responsible for the training and government of the novitiate in that institute. In religious institutes for women, the novic ...
. His selection drew some criticism from the European Jesuits sent at Carroll's request to aid the re-establishment of the Jesuits in the United States, on the grounds that Neale had never been trained in a Jesuit novitiate,[ and that he would simultaneously be a novice himself.] As well as serving as master of novices, Neale assumed the role of treasurer of the Jesuit's Maryland mission. During the War of 1812
The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...
, Neale had most of the Jesuits' livestock in St. Inigoes removed to White Marsh, to keep them safe from looting by the British.
Later life
Upon the death of his brother Leonard in 1817, Neale assumed his duties as spiritual director
Spiritual direction is the practice of being with people as they attempt to deepen their relationship with the divinity, divine, or to learn and grow in their personal spirituality. The person seeking direction shares stories of their encounters ...
to the nuns of the Georgetown Visitation Monastery
The Monastery of the Visitation, Georgetown is a monastery of the Visitation Order in the District of Columbia, United States of America.
History
Founding
This monastery was founded by Alice Lalor, native of County Kilkenny, Ireland, who ...
. He suffered a stroke while in Alexandria. Though this necessitated that he relinquish the full-time position, he continued to hear the nuns' confessions until his death. After his recovery, he once again took up missionary work in rural Maryland. He returned to St. Thomas Manor, where he became pastor of its church, later known as St. Ignatius Church. He served in this office from 1819 until 1837. Neale died on December 20, 1837, and he was buried in the cemetery at St. Thomas Manor.
Notes
References
Citations
Sources
*
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*
*
*
*
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*
*
*
*
*
External links
Appearance
in the records of the Georgetown Slavery Archive
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Neale, Francis
1756 births
1837 deaths
People from Port Tobacco Village, Maryland
People educated at Stonyhurst College
19th-century American Jesuits
Pastors of Holy Trinity Catholic Church (Washington, D.C.)
Presidents of Georgetown University
Year of birth unknown