Suffragans Nomination Act 1888
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The Suffragan Bishops Act 1534 ( 26 Hen. 8. c. 14) is an act of the
Parliament of England The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England from the 13th century until 1707 when it was replaced by the Parliament of Great Britain. Parliament evolved from the Great Council of England, great council of Lords Spi ...
that authorised the appointment of
suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Catholic Church, a suffragan bishop leads a diocese within an ecclesiastical province other than the principal diocese, the metropolitan archdiocese; the diocese led ...
(i.e., assistant)
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 ...
s 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 ...
. The tradition of appointing suffragans named after a town in the diocese other than the town the diocesan bishop is named after can be dated from this act. The act named
Thetford Thetford is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Breckland District of Norfolk, England. It is on the A11 road (England), A11 road between Norwich and London, just east of Thetford Forest. The civil parish, coverin ...
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Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...
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Taunton Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England. It is a market town and has a Minster (church), minster church. Its population in 2011 was 64,621. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century priory, monastic foundation, owned by the ...
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Shaftesbury Shaftesbury () is a town and civil parish in Dorset, England. It is on the A30 road, west of Salisbury, Wiltshire, Salisbury and north-northeast of Dorchester, Dorset, Dorchester, near the border with Wiltshire. It is the only significant hi ...
, Molton, Marlborough,
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, Penrydd,
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, Hull,
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, Penrith,
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, St Germans and the
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as specific suitable suffragan sees. This act was partly in force in Great Britain at the end of 2010. The repeal by the
Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1969 The Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1969 (c. 52) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The act implemented recommendations contained in the first report on statute law revision made by the Law Commission. The enactments which were re ...
of section 2 of the
Act of Supremacy The Acts of Supremacy are two acts passed by the Parliament of England in the 16th century that established the English monarchs as the head of the Church of England; two similar laws were passed by the Parliament of Ireland establishing the E ...
( 1 Eliz. 1. c. 1) (1558) does not affect the continued operation, so far as unrepealed, of the Suffragan Bishops Act 1534. Since 1898, notwithstanding anything contained in the Suffragan Bishops Act 1534 it has been lawful to nominate, present and appoint as suffragan bishop persons already consecrated as a bishop and, in that case, the letters patent presenting them do not require their consecration. The Dioceses Measure 1978 concerns petitions to make appointments under this act. Until 1898, men already in episcopal orders were sometimes made
assistant bishop An assistant bishop in the Anglican Communion is a bishop appointed to assist a diocesan bishop. Church of England In the established Church of England, assistant bishops are usually retired (diocesan or suffragan bishop, suffragan) bishops – in ...
s instead.


Provisions


Section 2

In section 2 of the act, the words from "and have such capacitie" to the end were repealed b
section 15(2)(a)
of the Dioceses Measure 1978. This repeal does not invalidate any commission given to a suffragan bishop which was in force immediately before the commencement of that Measure (s. 15(3)). Section 15(4) provides for such commissions to continue in force until the date on which the suffragan bishop to whom the commission was given ceases to hold that office, or the date on which the commission is revoked by the bishop of the diocese, whichever first occurs. So long as any such commission remains in force so much of section 2 of the Suffragan Bishops Act 1534 as is repealed by 15(2)(a) of that Measure continues, notwithstanding the repeal, to apply to the suffragan bishop to whom the commission was given (s. 15(5)).


Section 4

In section 4 of the act, the words from "nor use" to the end were repealed by section 15(2)(b) of the Dioceses Measure 1978. This repeal does not invalidate any commission given to a suffragan bishop which was in force immediately before the commencement of that Measure (s. 15(3)). Section 15(4) provides for such commissions to continue in force until the date on which the suffragan bishop to whom the commission was given ceases to hold that office, or the date on which the commission is revoked by the bishop of the diocese, whichever first occurs. So long as any such commission remains in force so much of section 2 of the Suffragan Bishops Act 1534 as is repealed by 15(2)(b) of that Measure continues, notwithstanding the repeal, to apply to the suffragan bishop to whom the commission was given (s. 15(5)).


Section 6

In section 6 of the act, the words "of the bishop to whom he shall be suffragan" were substituted for the words "where he shall have comyssyon" by section 15(6) of the Dioceses Measure 1978.


Section 7

Section 7 of the act was repealed by part V of schedule 1 to the
Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1977 The Statute Law (Repeals) Act 1977 (c. 18) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The act was partly in force in Great Britain at the end of 2010. The act implemented recommendations contained in the eighth report on statute law ...
.


1534 titles

Those titles mandated by the 1534 act currently in use as suffragan sees today are indicated in bold type:


Other suffragan titles

Since the passage of the Suffragans Nomination Act 1888, it has been lawful to create suffragan sees named for other towns. These have so far included (those titles currently in use as suffragan sees today are indicated in bold type): * Bishop of Aston (Birmingham, 15 July 1954) * Bishop of Barking (Chelmsford; initially St Albans) * Bishop of Barrow-in-Furness (Carlisle, 6 April 1889) * Bishop of Basingstoke (Winchester) * Bishop of Beverley (York) * Bishop of Birkenhead (Chester) * Bishop of Bolton (Manchester, 8 February 1984) * Bishop of Bradford (Leeds, 20 April 2014) * Bishop of Bradwell (Chelmsford, 20 December 1967) * Bishop of Brixworth (Peterborough, 26 July 1988) * Bishop of Buckingham (Oxford, 22 November 1913) * Bishop of Burnley (Blackburn; initially Manchester) *
Bishop of Coventry The Bishop of Coventry is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Coventry in the Province of Canterbury. In the Middle Ages, the Bishop of Coventry was a title used by the bishops known today as the Bishop of Lichf ...
(Worcester; ''now a diocese'') * Bishop of Crediton (Exeter) * Bishop of Croydon (Southwark; initially Canterbury) * Bishop of Derby (Southwell; ''now a diocese'') * Bishop of Doncaster (Sheffield, 4 February 1972) * Bishop of Dorchester (Oxford, 2 February 1939) * Bishop of Dorking (Guildford; initially Winchester) *
Bishop of Dudley The Bishop of Dudley is an Episcopal polity, episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Anglican Diocese of Worcester, Diocese of Worcester, in the Province of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name after the town ...
(Worcester, 24 October 1973) * Bishop of Dunwich (St Edmundsbury and Ipswich, 14 August 1934) *
Bishop of Ebbsfleet The Bishop of Ebbsfleet is a suffragan bishop who fulfils the role of a provincial episcopal visitor in the Church of England. From its creation in 1994 to 2022, the Bishop of Ebbsfleet served traditionalist Anglo-Catholic parishes that reject t ...
(Canterbury, 8 February 1994) * Bishop of Edmonton (London, 29 May 1970) * Suffragan Bishop in Europe (Europe) *
Bishop of Fulham The Bishop of Fulham is a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of London in the Church of England. The bishopric is named after Fulham, an area of south-west London; the see was erected under the Suffragans Nomination Act 1888 by Order in Council ...
(London, 1 February 1926) * Bishop of Grimsby (Lincoln, 15 July 1935) * Bishop of Hertford (St Albans) *
Bishop of Horsham The Bishop of Horsham is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop (area bishop from 1984 to 2013) of the Church of England Diocese of Chichester, in the Province of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name after the market town of Horsh ...
(Chichester) * Bishop of Huddersfield (Leeds, 20 April 2014) * Bishop of Hulme (Manchester, 11 October 1923) * Bishop of Islington (London) * Bishop of Jarrow (Durham) *
Bishop of Kensington The Bishop of Kensington is an episcopal title used by an area bishop of the Church of England Diocese of London, in the Province of Canterbury, England. The Bishop of Kensington is responsible for a part of Greater London, including Kensington, ...
(London) * Bishop of Kingston-upon-Thames (Southwark) * Bishop of Kirkstall (Leeds; formerly Bishop of Richmond, in Ripon diocese) * Bishop of Lancaster (Blackburn, 24 July 1936) * Bishop of Lewes (Chichester) * Bishop of Loughborough (Leicester, 12 April 2017) *
Bishop of Ludlow The Bishop of Ludlow was an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Hereford, which is within the Province of Canterbury, England. The See of Ludlow was erected under the Suffragans Nomination Act 1888 by O ...
(Hereford, 23 September 1981) * Bishop of Lynn (Norwich, 26 June 1963) *
Bishop of Maidstone The Bishop of Maidstone is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Canterbury, in the Province of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name after the county town of Maidstone in Kent. Canterbury suff ...
(Canterbury) * Bishop of Middleton (Manchester, 10 August 1926) * Bishop of Plymouth (Exeter, 21 November 1922) *
Bishop of Ramsbury The Bishop of Ramsbury is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Salisbury, in the Province of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name from the village of Ramsbury in Wiltshire, and was first use ...
(Salisbury, 24 October 1973) * Bishop of Reading (Oxford) * Bishop of Repton (Derby, 18 May 1965) *
Bishop of Richborough The Bishop of Richborough is a suffragan bishop and provincial episcopal visitor for the whole of the Province of Canterbury in the Church of England. Since 2025, Luke Irvine-Capel has served as Bishop of Richborough. History The see was erec ...
(Canterbury, 8 February 1994) * Bishop of Ripon (Leeds; formerly Bishop of Knaresborough, in Ripon diocese) * Bishop of Selby (York, 20 December 1938) * Bishop of Sheffield (York; ''now a diocese'') * Bishop of Sherborne (Salisbury, 6 February 1925) *
Bishop of Sherwood The Bishop of Sherwood is an Episcopal polity, episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Southwell and Nottingham, in the Province of York, England. History The title takes its name after the royal forest ...
(Southwell, 18 May 1965) * Bishop of Southwark (Rochester; ''now a diocese'') * Bishop of Stafford (Lichfield) * Bishop of Stepney (London) * Bishop of Stockport (Chester) * Bishop of Swindon (Bristol; formerly Bishop of Malmesbury, 25 July 1927) * Bishop of Tewkesbury (Gloucester) * Bishop of Tonbridge (Rochester, 11 September 1958) *
Bishop of Wakefield The Bishop of Wakefield is an episcopal title which takes its name after the city of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England. The title was first created for a diocesan bishop in 1888, but it was dissolved in 2014. The Bishop of Wakefield is ...
(Leeds; formerly Bishop of Pontefract, in Wakefield diocese, 27 October 1930) *
Bishop of Warrington __NOTOC__ The Bishop of Warrington is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Liverpool, in the Province of York, England. The title takes its name after the town of Warrington in Cheshire; the current b ...
(Liverpool) * Bishop of Warwick (Coventry, 19 December 1979) * Bishop of Whalley (Blackburn; initially Manchester, 28 June 1909) * Bishop of Whitby (York, 30 July 1923) * Bishop of Willesden (London, 8 August 1911) *
Bishop of Wolverhampton The Bishop of Wolverhampton is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Lichfield, in the Province of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name after the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands; th ...
(Lichfield, 6 February 1979) * Bishop of Woolwich (Southwark) In 2015, research by the Church's Legal Office on behalf of the
Dioceses Commission In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associated ...
uncovered fourteen "forgotten" suffragan Sees which had been erected by Orders-in-Council in 1889 but never filled.Church of England — Dormant Suffragan SeesArchived
30 May 2016, which accessed 4 March 2020)
The Dioceses Commission has advised that these may be revived and filled just as any other dormant See might. The see of
Oswestry Oswestry ( ; ) is a market town, civil parish and historic railway town in Shropshire, England, close to the England–Wales border, Welsh border. It is at the junction of the A5 road (Great Britain), A5, A483 road, A483 and A495 road, A495 ro ...
was filled by the consecration of Paul Thomas on 2 February 2023, and the see of Wigan was filled by the translation of Ruth Worsley from Taunton on 4 April 2025; but the others remain unfilled. By Order-in-Council dated 6 April 1889: * Bishop of Alnwick (Newcastle) * Bishop of Bishopwearmouth (Durham) * Bishop of Halifax (Leeds; formerly Wakefield) * Bishop of Hexham (Newcastle) * Bishop of Kendal (Carlisle) * Bishop of Rochdale (Manchester) * Bishop of Wigan (Liverpool) By Order-in-Council dated 5 July 1889: * Bishop of Aylesbury (Oxford) * Bishop of Boston (Lincoln) * Bishop of Chelsea (London) * Bishop of Cirencester (Gloucester) * Bishop of Leominster (Hereford) * Bishop of Northampton (Peterborough) *
Bishop of Oswestry The Bishop of Oswestry is a suffragan bishop of the Diocese of Lichfield who fulfils the role of a provincial episcopal visitor in the Church of England. Since 2023, Paul Thomas has been the Bishop of Oswestry. Background Following the first ...
(Lichfield) Further — besides that of Penrydd (now in St David's diocese), erected by the 1534 Act — six further Welsh Sees were erected following the 1888 Act: at
Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...
(in Llandaff diocese), Carnarvon (Bangor),
Holyhead Holyhead (; , "Cybi's fort") is a historic port town, and is the list of Anglesey towns by population, largest town and a Community (Wales), community in the county of Isle of Anglesey, Wales. Holyhead is on Holy Island, Anglesey, Holy Island ...
(Bangor),
Monmouth Monmouth ( or ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Monmouthshire, Wales, situated on where the River Monnow joins the River Wye, from the Wales–England border. The population in the 2011 census was 10,508, rising from 8 ...
(then in Llandaff, now a diocesan See),
Wrexham Wrexham ( ; ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in the North East Wales, north-east of Wales. It lies between the Cambrian Mountains, Welsh mountains and the lower River Dee, Wales, Dee Valley, near the England–Wales border, borde ...
(St Asaph) and
Swansea Swansea ( ; ) is a coastal City status in the United Kingdom, city and the List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, second-largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of ...
(then in St Davids, now a diocesan See as Swansea and Brecon).


Notes


References

*
Halsbury's Statutes ''Halsbury's Statutes of England and Wales'' (commonly referred to as ''Halsbury's Statutes'') provides updated texts of every Public General Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, Measure of the Welsh Assembly, or Church of England Me ...
,


External links

* {{Authority control Acts of the Parliament of England 1534 Acts of the Parliament of England concerning religion Acts of the Parliament of England still in force Episcopacy in Anglicanism Christianity and law in the 16th century 1534 in Christianity Parliamentary Acts of the English Reformation