Thomas Griffiths (2 June 1791 – 19 August 1847) was an English Catholic prelate who served as

Vicar Apostolic of the London District The Apostolic Vicariate of the London District was an ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in England and Wales. It was led by a vicar apostolic who was a titular bishop. The apostolic vicariate was created in 1688 and was dissolved ...

from 1836 until his death.

Life

St. Edmund's College, Old Hall

Griffiths was born in London, and was the first and only

educated wholly in England. At the age of thirteen he was sent to St. Edmund's College, Old Hall, where he went through the whole course, and was ordained priest in 1814. Four years later he was chosen as president, at the age of 27. He ruled the college for fifteen years, and did much to give the college a sound financial basis.

Vicar Apostolic

He was then appointed coadjutor to Bishop Bramston, then Vicar Apostolic of the London District. He was consecrated as Titular Bishop of Olena at St. Edmund's College, 28 October 1833. Within three years Bishop Bramston died, and Bishop Griffiths succeeded him.Ward, Bernard. "Thomas Griffiths." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 11 January 2019 A biographical sketch by one of his priests describes Griffiths as "...silent, meditative, bland, inoffensive, ever too happy to serve and oblige everyone; patient, enduring, forgiving; unmoved by slights, unkindness, or even insults -a man after God's own heart, full of faith, of hope, of love; not one thing today and another tomorrow, but ever consistent and the same."Father Thomas of St. George's, Southwark. "Saint George's and the Late Bishop Griffiths", ''The New Catholic Weekly Magazine'', August 28, 1847, p. 266
/ref> The agitation for a regular Catholic hierarchy in England became more and more pronounced and as a preliminary measure, in 1840, the four ecclesiastical "districts" into which England had been divided since the reign of

James II of England James II and VII (14 October 1633 – 16 September 1701) was King of England and Monarchy of Ireland, Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII from the death of his elder brother, Charles II of England, Charles II, on 6 February 1 ...

were subdivided to form eight, Dr. Griffiths retaining the new London District. Soon after this, the

Oxford movement The Oxford Movement was a theological movement of high-church members of the Church of England which began in the 1830s and eventually developed into Anglo-Catholicism. The movement, whose original devotees were mostly associated with the Un ...

and attendant Catholic conversions began: and the immigration of Irish Catholics grew. At the same time the growth of the British colonies, many of which had been until lately ruled as part of the London District, brought him into contact with the government. In all these spheres Griffiths discharged his duties with practical ability; but it was thought that he would not have the breadth of view or experience necessary for initiating the new hierarchy, and (according to Bishop Ullathorne) this was the reason why its establishment was postponed. When Griffiths died, somewhat unexpectedly, in 1847 Ullathorne himself preached the funeral sermon. The body of the deceased prelate was laid temporarily in the vaults of Moorfields Church; but two years later it was removed to St. Edmund's College, where a new chapel by

Augustus Pugin Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin ( ; 1 March 1812 – 14 September 1852) was an English architect, designer, artist and critic with French and Swiss origins. He is principally remembered for his pioneering role in the Gothic Revival architecture ...

was in course of erection, and a special chantry was built to receive the body of Griffiths, to whose initiative the chapel was due. An oil painting of Griffiths is at Archbishop's House,

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

; another, more modern, at St. Edmund's College.

References

;Attribution * The entry cites: **

Thompson Cooper Thompson Cooper (8 January 1837 – 5 March 1904) was an English journalist, man of letters, and compiler of reference works. He became a specialist in biographical information, and is noted as the most prolific contributor to the Victorian e ...

in ''

Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

'', s.v; **

Joseph Gillow Joseph Gillow (5 October 1850, Preston, Lancashire – 17 March 1921, Westholme, Hale, Cheshire) was an English Roman Catholic antiquary, historian and bio-bibliographer, "the Plutarch of the English Catholics". Biography Born in Frenchwood Ho ...

, Bib. Dict., Eng. Cath. s. v., ** Bernard Nicholas Ward, ''History of St. Edmund's College'' (London, 1893); ** William Maziere Brady, ''Annals of the Catholic Hierarchy''; **E. Price in Dolman's Magazine, VI; **Cox in ''Catholic Directory'' for 1848. {{DEFAULTSORT:Griffiths, Thomas 1791 births 1847 deaths Apostolic vicars of England and Wales 19th-century Roman Catholic bishops in England