Bishop of Debra, Vicar Apostolic of the London District, founder of Sedgley Park.

Richard Challoner was born on 29th September 1691 , the son of a Presbyterian winecooper also called Richard , of Lewes in Sussex. When his father died , his mother , Grace , became housekeeper for the Gage family , notable Catholic gentry , at the Firle Estate in Lewes.  No one knows if his mother was already a Catholic or whether she converted.  Richard , at the age of eleven , found himself in Northamptonshire at another staunch Catholic household. He was baptised into the Catholic faith at the home of the Holman family.They resided at Warkworth in Northants. This family had a bloody past as Lady Anastasia Holman's father , the Viscount Stafford , had been executed for treason by Henry VIII ( he was involved in The Popish Plot). Obviously this place was a hotbed of Catholicism and the family chaplain was the well-known controversial writer, Fr. John Gother ( ironically also born into Presbyterianism). He instructed Richard Challoner in the Catholic faith and , seeing his potential as a future priest , organised for him to be sent to Douai English College in Amiens , France . Gother himself died aboard a ship bound for Lisbon the year Richard arrived at Douai. Richard entered the college on 29 July, 1705 and spent the next twenty-five years there. He was very gifted in most of the subjects taught and the usual twelve year course was completed in just eight. In 1708 , Richard tool the 'college oath' , which obliged that he would return to England when requested as a missionary. At the age of twenty-two he was appointed as a Professor , his skills at Humanities being very highly developed. On March 28th 1716 , he was ordained as a priest and graduated as a  Bachelor in Divinity in 1719. Douai recognised Challoner's quality and 1720 saw him appointed Vice-President of the College to Dr. Witham. This was a supervisory role , in which Challoner was responsible not just for the students , but also the 'profs'and was an office which involved the supervision of both professors and students throughout everyday life at the College. Richard was also appointed as Professor of Theology as well as Prefect of Studies, so his responsibilities also stretched into exactly what and how the students were to study.

Gother had taught Richard well and imbued some of his thoughts into his charge's mind. Richard began passing on the beliefs and principles that his mentor had instilled in him. He was a tireless teacher , gently enforcing his views onto the students with great success. Such was his piety that his fellows were totally open to what he believed and was imparting to them.  In 1727 he became a Doctor of Divinity and the next year he published his first work "Think Well on't". Whether it was Richard's decision or the wish of the Holy See , but it was now time to return to England and in 1730 he set off for London. 

His role was to be a missionary. It was hard and at times dangerous work , even though the Penal Laws were no longer enforced as severely as in his youthful days. He had to adopt various disguises in order to meet and celebrate Mass with small number of Catholics around London. The idea was to meet secretly and not attract attention , as it was very illegal to be a priest and there were rewards offered for reporting Popery. Mass was said in ale houses and even in cock pits. Richard also had other duties beside saying Mass. He also worked very hard with the poor , visiting prisons etc. in order to 'save souls' by converting the inmates to the Catholic faith. Again , dangerous work , so Richard had to don various disguises , adopt names and basically move from lodging to lodging so as not to endanger himself and just as importantly , those willing to put him up. Moving from house to house was basically to be his life. After the stability of Douai this must have been a massive culture shock.

Challoner's spare time was used in study and writing. He produced "The Catholic Christian instructed in the Sacraments, Sacrifice and Ceremonies of the Church" which led to awful trouble as he ridiculed , in the preface ,  a recent work by popular Anglican Dr. Conyers Middleton ( Middleton's latest offering had attacked the RC Church , comparing Popery to Paganism.) . Middleton went to the law so Challoner decided that it might be best to go back to Douai to let the dust settle.

The year was1738, and it was whilst back in Douai that Dr.Witham - the President - died. The whole College wanted Richard as the new President. Who better? He had acted as Prefect of Studies , Vice President ,and was a D.D. He had also had a victory of sorts against the hated anti-Catholic Middleton. But Vicar Apostolic of the London District , Dr. Benjamin Petre , had spotted Challoner's talent and wanted him back in London as a Bishop. News reached Petre that Richard had already been created President of Douai. Petre put his foot down and hurried organised 'briefs' that appointed Challoner to the See of Debra as Bishop - elect. If you ever go to Ingatestone Hall , in Essex ( the Seat of the Petre family) , there are some nice walks you can take. Lime Walk is where Benjamin Petre was saved by his dog when he was 'set upon'. Apparently the ghost of the dog still patrols!

Bizarrely , it was Challoner himself who raised the legitimacy of his appointment. Richard wanted to be President of Douai and argued that as he was born & brought up a Protestant , the appointment was flawed. It caused a delay but Dr. Petre was determined. New ' briefs' were issued in November 1740 and Richard had to bite the bullet. The delay had lasted a year but Dr. Richard Challoner's consecration took place on 29th January 1741, in the private chapel at Hammersmith.

Bishop Challoner's first duty was to visit his District or Vicariate. This seems straightforward but unfortunately his District included not just 10 counties in the South England , but also the Channel Islands , Maryland and Pennsylvania in America ( still British possessions until the American Revolution which occured during Richard's rule.) There were also some of the West Indies included. Although never visiting overseas , he often wrote letters with instructions , including one to the Jesuits in Maryland , conveying notice of suppression ordered by Pope Clement XIV ... "To obey the orders I have rec[eive]d from above, I notify to you by this the Breve of the total dissolution of the Society of Jesus...."  ( Oct 16th 1773). It even took three years to visit the 10 home counties. Richard , whilst travelling around his District , took the opportunity to write , which was one of his great loves. In 1740 he brought out a prayer book for the laity, called "Garden of the Soul", which proved very popular for decades. Another pet hobby needed to be satisfied. Richard was worried about English Martyrs being forgotton so wrote two volumes of   "Memoirs of Missionary Priests". These volumes gave accounts of martyrs from 1577 to 1681. This work became the standard work on the topic and he may have gained his interest in martyrdom from his upbringing with the Gages and Holmans.

In 1745 he produced one of his greatest works "Britannia Sancta", detailing the lives of the English, Scottish, and Irish saints. Another work for which he would become famous worldwide was the revised edition of the Douay Bible and Reims New Testament.  It revolutionised the way the Bible was set out.  Nearly all subsequent English versions are based on it and an American edition was published in Philadelphia in 1805. 

"Meditations for every Day of the Year" was writted in 1753, a bookthat  was extremely popular , selling out and needed lots of re-editions to satisfy demand. It was translated into Italian and French so his voice was now being heard across Europe. Richard had now become an important figure in the Catholic Church. In 1753 Challoner became involved in a dispute over the hearing of confession. Only Bishops can give permission to priests to hear someone's confession. Those rules had been in place for centuries. Some of the clergy argued that any priest should be able to hear confession.  Pope Benedict XIV had to make a pronouncement which basically put an end to the dispute and Challoner and his fellow Bishops were satisfied that their power was not becoming eroded.

In 1758 Dr. Petre, Vicar Apostolic of the London District, died. The Petre family were one of the most important Catholic families in England. His death signalled  Dr. Challoner, as his coadjutor (or assistant ) , as his successor. Richard was now 69 years old. His health was pretty poor after a lifetime it seemed on the road. He had worked incessantly all his priestly life - and the added burden of this office played on his mind and body. He applied immediately for a coadjutor. Rome appointed Rev. James Talbot and with a lot of the hard graft falling to Talbot , Richard's health recovered somewhat.  Challoner was now spending all his time in London , writing and publishing a book each year , though mainly translations. " British Martyrology , which was an original work , was published in 1761. All this time , Talbot carried out the visitations within the Vicariate.

Richard had now supplied the English Church with a Bible more easily read as well as a Penny Catechism. He was instinctively an educationalist - teaching was everything - learning was the way to fulfilment and , just as important , to convert Protestants to Catholicism. It was also an important step in getting more priests An idea grew over the years and he now had the time and energy ( just) to put his idea into operation. He spotted a man of missionary zeal and good business acumen , one Father William Errington. He asked him to find a suitable premises to open a Catholic School for the English Middle Classes. Other Bishops were taken aback as they thought that opening schools might agitate Protestants who had , over the last few years , stopped harrassing them. Richard was determined though , and Sedgley Park opening in 1763 , with 12 pupils under President Rev. Hugh Kendal. Another school was opened at Standon Lordship ( St. Edmund's College, Old Hall)  and he also founded a school for 'poor girls' at Brook Green, Hammersmith. Nor were the clergy themselves ignored when it came to education.  Richard instituted regular conferences  for the priests of London. Another subject played on his mind and he set himself a task to help combat poverty in his Vicariate. Challoner had worked all his life with the poor , aged , disabled and infirm. When not writing , these had been his main concern. So it is no surprise that he came up with the idea of  the "Benevolent Society for the Relief of the Aged and Infirm Poor" which lasted up to the 1900s. 

Amazingly the work of Challoner & his fellow priests over those years was done under extreme harrassment. Though less in danger towarsds the end of his days, he was always on the move and often had to escape informers who were after the reward of £100 for the conviction of a priest.  In those days priests could only be identified by the words they spoke or caught saying Mass. They wore no distiguishing garb , dressing like the ordinary middle class man in the street. The Government of the day was thoughtful of Catholicism and the future. Much blood had been spilled on both sides.  In 1778 the Catholic Relief Act was passed , which at least rescinded priests being jailed for life for simply being a Papist. It was a small concession but amazingly it ignited a wave of resentment , culminating in 1780 with the Gordon Riots. Chapels and houses of Catholics were attacked and plundered by mobs. Richard was immediately put into hiding. From his safe house in London he could hear raging mobs who were searching for him baying for his blood. He thought he would be dragged through the streets and killed if they found him.He was nearly ninety and was in fear of his life. Thankfully he remained out of their clutches and found an escape route to Finchley. But the incident was the end for Richard. He was deeply affected by it.

Richard Challoner never recoved from the Riots. He sank lower and lower and finally suffered a massive stroke which killed him after two days. He died in Milton , Berkshire on 10th January 1781 in the home of a friend , Brian Barrett and was buried in the Parish Church , one of the Churches most important characters.

Dr.Richard Challoner's other writings not mentioned above were: "Grounds of Catholic Doctrine" 91732); "Unerring Authority of the Catholic Church" (1732); "Short History of the Protestant Religion" (1733); "A Roman Catholick's Reasons why He cannot Conform" (1734); "The Touchstone of the New Religion" (1734); "The Young Gentleman Instructed in the Grounds of the Christian Religion" (1735); "A Specimen of the Spirit of the Dissenting Teachers" (1736); "The Catholic Christian Instructed" (1737); "Rheims Testament", ed. with F. Blyth (1738); translation of St. Augustine's "Confessions" (1740?); "The Ground of the Old Religion" (1742); "A Letter to a Friend concerning the Infallibility of the Church" (1743); "A Papist Misrepresented and Represented", abridged from Gother; "Remarks on Two Letters against Popery" (1751); "Instructions for the Jubilee" (1751); "The Wonders of God in the Wilderness: Lives of the Fathers of the Deserts" (1755); "The Life of St. Teresa", abridged from Woodhead (1757); "Manual of Prayers" (1758); "A Caveat against the Methodists" (1760); "The City of God of the New Testament" (1760); "The Morality of the Bible" (1762); "Devotion of Catholics to the Blessed Virgin" (1764); "Rules of Life for a Christian" (1766). He also issued some minor works in the nature of tracts and pastoral letters. Ref: Catholic Encyclopediae

Born in London, 14 October, 1752: died at Wolverhampton, 19 April, 1826.

John was sent to Sedgley Park at the age of twelve. He stayed only for one year as Bishop Challoner had his eye on the boy for priesthood and organised his transfer to the Douai English College in Amiens. John undertook the twelve year course , remaining at Douai until the age of 25 years. On completion of the course , John would be aware that his presence would be required back in England.

On his ordination in 1777 he returned to England. In 1779 he was sent to Winchester. The town was one of the few in southern England which openly allowed a Catholic Chapel to operate. The Penal Laws were still in operation but basically no one bothered and papists more or less had freedom of religion , unlike most other areas in England. John was summoned to assist a Fr. Nolan who was looking after French Prisoners of War held in the town. Fever had broken out among the soldiers and soon Nolan himself became a victim. Fr. Milner was appointed to take Nolan's place

Milner remained in Winchester for twenty-three years. Winchester was his 'mission'. He set about rebuilding the chapel , organising educational establishments and trying to convert as many as possible to the Catholic faith. It was the days of the French Revolution which played havoc with the minds of the ruling classes of England. They had enough on their plate worrying if their own locals were going to start chopping off heads , so left Catholics to their own devices for at least a little while. The English Catholics had no love for the Reign of Terror. The religion was going through turmoil because the Revolutionaries were guillotining priests as quicky as they were the nobility. Hundreds of priests bizarrely fled to the one country where it was illegal for them to exist - England. More bizarre was the Government welcoming them with open arms. It probably shows that out of the two , a priest or a Frenchman , they preferred the priest. 700 clergy arrived in 'the old unfinished King's House' just outside the city of Winchester. John lost no time coming into contact with them. As a fluent French speaker and fellow Catholic , you can understand that John suddenly found himself part of a substantial Catholic community. Milner had suddenly become an important man. Milner had nothing but praise for them and must have empathised with their position - driven from their own homes to dwell in another country because of their beliefs.

Basically France was chopping off any head it fancied did not fit in with their Revolutionary ideals. This extended to females. English Convents in France , Belgium and the Netherlands were breaking up because of the dangers. Nuns , penniless and helpless , fled back to England in their hundreds. Milner took it upon himself to establish a 'mission' and included Benedictine Nuns who had come over from Brussels . Franciscan Nuns were also welcomed and John had a good relationship with both Orders throughout his life.

John was now established in a safe haven of Catholicism and in 1798 he began writing.  "History of Winchester" appeared in that year and was well received by Catholics.  However he came into conflict with a Dr. Sturges, a Prebendary of Winchester Cathedral. Milner was not one to mince words with Protestants or indeed with anyone who he thought was anti-Catholic , or worse still , anti-Milner. "Letters to a Prebendary" and "The End of Religious Controversy" , were published. The former created a feud between the two men . On the orders of the Bishop , the latter work was withheld in order to 'keep the peace'. It didn't see the light of day for twenty years. 

Lay Catholics were causing worry to Bishops across England.. Milner decided to involve himself with these 'public affairs' ( politics) . An anti-pope movement amongst the laity was beginning , often referred to as the Cisalpine Movement. It was not so much anti pope as pro-acceptance of the House of Hanover and a split with the Jacobite ambitions.  Milner's gained one of his greatest enemies , Charles Butler , who suggested laying aside some practices that Protestants couldn't agree with in order to produce a Catholic revival in England. Milner had an almost fanatical allegiance to the Pope and his authority so battled this movement with all his might , picking up as many enemies as a ship picks up barnacles. He wrote bitterly against this 'Catholic Committee' as it was called and its member , often in the most disparaging and insulting terms. This only made matters worse between the two factions. The Cisalpine Movement died away but the issues raised refused to go away. Some 1500 Catholics , including all the Vicars Apostolic , signed a document , the object of which was to bring about Catholic Emancipation. But their error was to suggest get rid of Papal infallability which Milner could not stomach. It had a Cisalpine tone and two of the Vicars Apostolic withdrew their names almost immediately.

Mr. Pitt who was then Prime Minister promised to introduce a Bill of 'Catholic Relief'. The draft document was found to contain an oath which all Catholics would be obliged to take. Oaths in those days were generally strictly adhered to so this was controversial in the extreme. They were also to be referred to as "Protesting Catholic Dissenters". A meeting of the four Vicars Apostolic was held at Hammersmith (the HQ of Catholicism since Challoner's days) , in October, 1789, with John Milner attending as a theological adviser. They unanimously condemned the oath and the new appelation. During the following year the Bishops of the Northern and London Districts died. A great effort was made by some to make Bishop Charles Berington , a keen Cisapine sympathiser ,  Vicar Apostolic to the London District - the most important post in England. Berington was Vicar Apostolic to the Midland District . Rome was warned and instead a Dr. Douglass, a Yorkshireman, was appointed - and who had not been involved in any of the arguments. Pitt drafted a new oath. Three of the four Vicars objected.  Pitt brought forward The Relief Bill in February, 1791, and seeing problems , the Bishops called for their rottweiler Milner to their come to their aid.

Milner tackled the Government and demanded further revision of the oath. After his return to Winchester , the Protestant Bishop of St. David's proposed abolishing the Penal Laws and legalising the celebration of Mass. This appeased Cisalpine sympathisers and the Committee became a club which lasted only a few years. It had 40 - 50 members and , strangely , met at Oscott which they established as a school. Milner had a long memory and an unforgiving nature. He continued to write and speak in opposition to them. Amusingly , most of the members were from the Midlands. Milner received the news that he was to be consecrated as Bishop of Castabala. His face must have been a picture when he read that this included the very District where the majority of the Cisapline sympathises lived , the Midlands. John would have known Charles Berington , the former Vicar Apostolic m, very well - together with his Secretary John Kirk , former President at Sedgley Park. Most of the Cisapline sympathisers, known as The Staffordshire Clergy , were also very well known to John. And it was to this District ( or Vicariate) that John was called on to rule in 1803.

To be fair to John , he was a no nonsense figure but he tried to set aside his problems with them and they seem to have had a wary admiration for him and his ways. The tension between them decreased.

Milner, however, was cooking up a plan that would make him coadjuter of Bishop Douglass in London. In todays terms , with the right of succession on the death of Douglass , Milner would be the highest authority in England as Archbishop of Westminister. He was defeated in this despite his best efforts. The Pope though did allow John to visit London as often as necessary in order to argue Catholic Emanciptaion to to Government for the Irish.

When there John kept picking at faults in which the London Vicariate was run. More rows , more enemies were gained. He produced pamphletts , and spoke not just to individuals but actually dring sermons about what he thought the Vicar Apostolic of London was doing wrong.

A crisis occurred in 1813.  Dr. Poynter as at that time Vicar Apostolic of the London District. A Bill for the full emancipation of Catholics was introduced into the House of Commons by Grattan; but Lord Castlereagh and Mr. Canning introduced amending clauses giving the Crown a 'veto' on the appointment of Bishops, to be exercised only on the recommendation of a committee consisting chiefly of Catholic Peers. Milner and the Irish bishops maintained that no Catholic could assent to this without incurring schism. The other Vicars Apostolic did not go so far as this, though they opposed the clauses. The leading members of the Catholic Board ( of which Milner was a member), consisting chiefly of laymen, were in favour of accepting them as the necessary price to pay for emancipation. Milner, however, being Milner used all his influence to force the rejection of the Bill. He printed a "Brief Memorial" to this end, and distributed it among MPs. The Bill passed its second reading, but in committee the clause admitting Catholics to Parliament was defeated by a small majority of four votes, and the Bill was abandoned. Milner was delighted and boasted that he had scuppered the Bill. The Lay Members of the Catholic Board were mad at John and expelled him as a Member. In the meantime Dr. Poynter appealed to Rome for guidance in the expected event of the re-introduction of the Bill. The Pope was at that time a prisoner of Napoleon Bonaparte, and the Cardinals were all over Europe and were of little assistance. A Mgr. Quarantotti, Secretary of Propaganda, using the powers with which he had been provided with, issued a 'Rescript'  Dated February, 1814, it gave approval of the Bill as it stood. John Milner was mad at this and decided immediately to appeal to the Pope. He was at that point liberated from captivity and was on his way back to Rome. The Pope ordered the whole matter to be examined afresh and Milner again took credit , hving gone to Rome to state his case. To cut a long story short , English Catholics eventually conceded that some allegiance to the Crown was necessary. This went down badly in Ireland and we see the results of this even today. Eventually even John Milner accepted the inevitable.

On his return from Rome, Milner continued to write controversially. He used the  new "Orthodox Journal" as his way of getting his views out. He was as bolshy as ever he was and in the end he was reported to Rome who told him to stop writing in the Journal. 

Milner then decided to withdraw from public politics.He no longer worked with the Irish Bishops who had been close to his fanaticism.  He certainly would not have anything to do with his fellow Vicars Apostolic , though he stopped writing against them.. He devoted himself to literary work. In 1818 his "End of Controversy", perhaps the best known of all his books, appeared, and it was followed by a war of pamphlets and replies which went on for several years. Feeling his health failing, he applied for a coadjutor, and Rev. Thomas Walsh, President of Oscott College, was appointed. He was consecrated in 1825 when all the bishops of England met, and a reconciliation between Milner and his fellow Bishops occured. Milner survived less than a year, his death taking place at his house at Wolverhampton on 19 April, 1826.  Milner was a man of words and a man of action. He had an almost fanatical allegiance to the Pope and didn't care who he upset. He was admired , feared , hated in equal measure and made a lasting impression on all who met him.

There are many portraits of Milner: (1) sketch, age about 25; (2) miniature, as a bishop about 1803; (3) miniature by Kernan (1808 — considered the best likeness); (4) painting by Barber, drawing master at Oscott, 1817; (5) painting by Herbert, R.A. — said to be the most like, but it is in Gothic vestments and mitre, having been painted long after Milner's death. (These are all at Oscott.) (6) Painting of Milner as a priest, age about 45, at the convent, east Bergholt. (7) Painting at the presbytery, Norwich, very similat to (5). (8) Engraving in "Laity's Directory", 1827, from a painting by Radcliffe (Orth. Jour., I, 173). (9) Bust, by Clark, sen. of Birmingham: many copies to be met with. (1), (2), and (6) reproduced in the "Dawn of the Catholic Revival"; (8) in Miss Harting's "Catholic London Mission"; (4) in "Catholic London a Century ago"; (5) in the penny "Life of Milner," by Rev. E. Burton (Catholic Truth Society). His chief works are: "Funeral Discourse on Bishop Challoner" (1781); "The Clergyman's Answer to the Layman's Letter" (1790); "Pastoral of the Bishop of Leon" (translated 1791); "Discourse at Consecration of Bishop Gibson" (1791); "Divine Rights of Episcopacy" (1791); "Audi Alteram Partem" (1792); "Ecclesiastical Democracy detected" (1793); "Reply to Cisalpine Club" (1795); "Serious Expostulation with Rev. Joseph Berington" (1797); "History of Winchester" (1798); "Brief Life of Challoner" (1798); "Letters to a Prebendary" (1800); "Case of Conscience solved" (1801); "Elucidation of the Conduct of Pius VII" (1802); Arguments against Catholic Petition" (1805); "Cure of Winefride White" (1805); "Letter to a Parish Priest" (1808); "Letters from Ireland" (1808); "Pastoral Letter on Blanchardists", "Sequel", Supplement", and "Appendix" (1808-9); "Appeal to the Catholics of Ireland" (1809); "Discourse at Funeral of Sir William Jerningham" (1809); "Treatise on Ecclesiastical Architecture" (1810); "Instructions for Catholics of Midland Counties" (1811); "Letter to Prelate of Ireland" (1811); "Explanation with Bishop Poynter" (1812); "Pastoral on Jurisdiction of Church", I, II, and III (1812-3); "Brief Memorial on Catholic Bill" (1813); "Multum in Parvo" (1813); "Encyclical Letter" (1813); "Inquisition. A letter to Sir John Cox Hippisley" (1816); "Humble Remonstrance to House of Commons" (1816); "Memoir of Bishop Hornyold" (Directory, 1818); "End of Religious Controversy" (1818); "Supplementary Memoirs of English Catholics" (1820, and "Additional Notes to" in 1821); "Devotion to the Sacred Heart" (1821); "Vindication of the End of Controversy" (1822); "Exposer exposed" (1824); "Parting Word to Dr. Grier" (1825). Ref: Catholic Encyclopedia

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10315a.htm

Joseph Bowdon , who was born in 1778 at Radford , Oxfordshire , the son of George Bowdon , the third of four children. He was a descendant of the Bowdon Family of Chapel en le Frith who owned Bowdon Hall.

Up until the age of 12 , Joseph was taught by his mother. He was then sent to Sedgley Park as a parlour-boarder , and stayed there for five years. From the Park , Jospeh went to Oscott where he studied for a year in Dr. Bew. He returned home and after two years Joseph decided to become a priest. He entered St. Edmund's College where , in 1805 , he was ordained.

A vacancy came up on the staff at Sedgely and Joseph told Bishop Milner of his wish to return there. The President of the Park at that time was Rev. Thomas Southworth , who is considered by those who knew him to be "a saintly man ...whom to know was to revere."

Joseph was of medium height and well built - stocky in todays terms. He had a pleasant enough face but was serious in expression. He dressed as a layman as all clergy did in those days. He always wore a neckerchief. He was a shy unassuming man until you got to know him , and he seemed a typical English gentleman , reserved. He was scholarly , and yet practical and this endeared him to the boys. He in particular was good in class , using illustrations to make his lessons interesting. He would also have the boys up to his room in the evenings , chatting , getting to know them and basically gaining their trust and lifelong friendship. Ultimately it was this tactic that made Joseph Bowdon one of the best loved characters at Sedgley Park. His health caused him a great deal of problems throughout his life. He used to suffer dreadful colds in the winter - every year would see him with bronchitis or a bout of flu.

In his day , Chemistry was taught and he would do a few simple experiments that would amaze his charges. Boys being boys , they can be a handful but it is said that Joseph never lost his temper , whereas other Masters could be holy terrors.

He had faults as all of us do. His main one was that he preached a boring sermon. For someone so skilled in class , you'd think he would transfer well to the pulpit. But without his little illustations or experiments to fall back on , his sermons bored the pants of any who cared to sit through one. I suppose today , Joseph would have his flipchart , his guitar and any manner of props that our clergy can put their hands on. In those days you had to be careful about upsetting the Bishop by being too modernistic.

Joseph also had views which he is said to have regretted in later life. He described these views as 'Jansenistic' , without actually stating that he supported them politically - Bowdon was not a political animal. Jansen , a European Catholic , argued in favor of absolute pre-destination, in which humans are perceived as incapable of doing good without God's unsolicited grace and only a chosen few are believed to receive Salvation. Joseph declared that he did not know how close he had come to heresy by living his life along these lines. These views made him a strict taskmaster - but he was strict on himself to the point of severity , especially with fasting.

Bishop Walsh considered appointing Joseph as his coadjutor. Bowdon was unpleased at this. He kept away from the Bishop , with whom he was very friendly and eventually Walsh turned his attention to another.

Joseph served under three Presidents. On two occasions the post had been offered to him but he declined , his humilty that came from his views preventing him. By 1835 Joseph was basically running the place because of the ill health of Mr. Blount , the then President. It was actually considered that the school should uproot to Oscott. Eventually the Bishop abandoned that idea and prepared to appoint  Mr. Foley , known to be a volatile man , to the role of President. Joseph was not happy about this and said that the day Foley took his place , Joseph would up sticks and spend the rest of his life in Brussels. The Bishop immediately had second thoughts and asked Bowdon if he would take the post. Joseph accepted.

One thing Bowdon brought with him to Sedgley and which very much helped make his name was his wealth. During those years , the long lease had been replaced by an annual one. Joseph was willing to spend substantial amounts to improve the structure of the building and bring it up to modern standards. He was on friendly terms with Lord Dudley , the owner , and a twenty one year lease was agreed. Bowdon was now able to spend his own money on painting , renovating , replacing rotten woodwork , fixing new windos and generally renovating the whole fabric of the building. He even created an indoor 'lav.' Joseph Bowdon was now the biggest benefactor in the school's history.

One of Joseph's first duties was to appoint a Chaplain. He chose Rev. Henry (Robert) Smith who could preach a great sermon but sang woefully out of tune , much to the delight of the boys.

Once President , Joseph rarely left Sedgley's precincts. Before , he would into Wolverhampton almost daily. Now it was rare that he'd go into the town , and on even rarer occasions he'd visit Oscott or Birmingham. With the arrival of the railways , Joseph found that more boys were leaving school for holidays rather than having to remain at the school , as travel before this had been difficult. Bowdon himself was persuaded to go on holiday with his niece up to Stonyhurst on the train , via Liverpool. He said Liverpool was a fine city but he hated Manchester " ...the people are uncivil and uncivilised....".  Of Bolton , where he went through on a coach  , he said , "Bolton is a horrid place  , but the people more civil than in Manchester."  They finished their journey at Stonyhurst College. Stonyhurst was run by the Jesuits who he described as "civil" , but the President as "cautious". There had been 'history' between the Jesuits and the Seculars.

Joseph always had a way of describing people and one man fell under his eye. Dr. Wiseman , an Old Parker and the future Cardinal , came to Bowdon's attention as a great preacher - one who had taken London by storm. Bowdon dined with Wiseman and described him as "...pompous and stiff , like a Roman prelate." Bowdon wasn't impressed with his attitude ." ...he appeals to the head , not the heart." Wiseman was described by his housemaster at the time of his student days as "...full of fun & sport... " This seemed to be missing on the occasion of their dinner together. But after more meetings between the two , Joseph and Wiseman became firm friends. It was on Cardinal Wiseman's request to Pope Gregory XVI that Doctor of Divinty was conferred on Bowdon.

In 1839 Bowdon , Vice-President Henry Smith and F. Husenbeth dined together and decided to create The Society of Associated Parkers. They were the first three members of the Society and they decided it should open not only to Old Boys and Ushers ( Masters) but also that others could join as Honourary Members.

Bowdon's health was now failing. Rheumatism was taking its toll and his letters to friends and colleagues became less cheerful. He was definately feeling very despondant about the future of Sedgeley but a change in the law allowing Catholics to leave money to educational causes boosted him. His friend , Hawksford , the family being closely associated with Sedgley ( Dr. Hawksford , a relative , became Headmaster at Cotton) who acted as his Solicitor , arranged for him to leave substantial bursaries for pupils , particularly those wishing to become priests ,  along with donations to help maintain the school after his death.

In 1844 a close collegue Mr. Richmond died. He had know this gentleman for over 40 years. His death knocked what was left out of Bowdon. In six months Joseph Bowdon , Sedgleys greatest President was dead.

Joseph Bowdon was buried in Sedgley Catholic Churchyard.

Ref: Canon Buscots History.

Cardinal Wiseman - Dr. Joseph Bowdon had a lot to say about Sedgley's Cardinal.

Frederick Charles Husenbeth was  born at Bristol, May 30, 1796, was the son of Frederick Charles Husenbeth, a wine merchant in that city, and his wife Elizabeth James, a Protestant lady of a Cornish family, who afterwards became an excellent Catholic.
 His father was born at Mentz, in the Grand Duchy of Hesse and received his early education amongst the Jesuits, in whose order he had two relations who were professed fathers.  For some time he resided at Manheim, as a professor well skilled in classics and languages.  He left that city to perfect himself in English and placed himself at Dr. Ireland's academy at Brislington, near Bristol, in Dec. 1787.  The French revolution prevented his return to Germany and three years later he established himself as a wine merchant in Bristol, where he resided till his death, March 15, 1848, aged 82.  He was very exact and methodical in his habits and was much esteemed in Bristol .  He was an accomplished musician, and a celebrated violinist of the day used to be a frequent guest at his house.  He was also intimate with the poet Coleridge.  His wife died June 29, 1816, aged 43 and with her son George was buried in the lobby of St. Joseph's Chapel.  Amongst the obituaries in the "Laity Directory" for 1828 is that of Mrs Josephine Christina Husenbeth, who died at Barrow House near Bristol Feb 4 1827, aged 27.  Thus Dr Husenbeth told Dr. Oliver that he was left " the last of his family and even name, upon the earth ", adding in the words of the psalmist (cxl), "Singulariter sum ego, donec transeam ".
 At the age of six years and eleven months, Mr Husenbeth sent his son Fred to Sedgley Park School, with the intention that he should be educated for trade.  He arrived on April 25, 1803 and there under the care of the president, the Rev. Thomas Southworth, he became conspicuous amonst his companions in every branch of education given at the school.  When nearly fourteen years of age, April 4, 1810, his father removed him to his own counting- house, where he remained for three years.  He then addressed a letter to his father, in which he informed of his desire to enter the Church. His request was reluctantly granted and he returned to his studies at Sedgley Park, April 29, 1813.  Bishop Milner and the superiors were so pleased with his progress that he was removed to Oscott College Aug. 1, 1814.  There on Feb. 25, 1820 he was ordained priest by the bishop. and was retained at the college, with duties attending to the mission at Stourbridge, co. Worcester, every Saturday till the following Monday, walking there and back, a distance of thirteen or fourteen miles.  After a few months he was sent to Cossey hall, in Norfolk, as chaplain to Sir Geo. Wm. Stafford Jerningham, Bart, who suceeded to the barony of Stafford after reversal of the attainder of Sir Wm. Howard Viscount Stafford, in 1824
 Mr Husenbeth arrived at Cossey July 7, 1820 and, by his own desire, was provided with a cottage in the village instead of residing in the Hall, as was customary with previous chaplains.  At the end of 1824 ( or early in 1825)   he returned to Oscott College to teach divinity, but dissatisfied with some arrangements which had been made , he soon resumed his mission in Cossey.
 There for more than half a century he devoted himself to his flock, forming a large proportion of the parish, with willing fulfillment of the calls of duty, which scarcely admitted of relaxation.  His generous kindness and attention to the personal wants and spiritual welfare of his people was dictated by a deep interest in those he was ordained to instruct and guide.  But he was otherwise known than by his pastoral duties.  His literary labours. which he commenced immediately after his settlement at Cossey, were unceasing and widespread.
 In 1827, Dr, Walsh, who had suceeded Dr. Milner to the vicariate of the midland district, appointed Mr Husenbeth his grand-vicar,  the bishop entertained a high opinion of his solid learning and activity.  On May 26, 1841 he opened St. Walstan's Chapel at Cossey.  It was designed by Mr Buckler (Senior), of Oxford, who also built the presbytery.The good missionary was most assiduous in collecting funds for the completion of the building, in which he was generously assisted by Lord Stafford and others.  On July 7, 1850, his Holiness awarded him the degree of Doctor of Divinity.   In this  year the English hierarchy was re-established, and on June 24, 1852 Dr Husenbeth was appointed provost of the Chapter and vicar-general of the diocese of Northampton, of which Dr. Waring his former comrade at Sedgley Park and Oscott, was the first bishop.  He was also a member of the old English Chapter of which he was elected president in succession to Dr. Rock, shortly before his death.  Thus he continued his labours, save that he relinquished the private chaplaincy at the Hall some years previous to his decease.  It is said that during his fifty-two years' missionary life he was but thrice absent from home on a Sunday !  At length an affection of the heart became apparent, and a few months before his death he retired, by medical advice, from the active duties of his chapel and the care of that flock to whose welfare he had devoted his long and valuable life.  He died at the presbytery, adjoining St. Walstan's Oct. 31 1872, aged 76.
 In private life Dr. Husenbeth was an agreeable and eminently cheerful companion.  He posssessed much conversational power, high classical and antiquarian talent, and not a little humour.  He was kind-hearted and always ready with his pen to give information  to those who applied to him.  His punctuality in answering letters was remarkable and in this he expected his correspondents to imitate him.  The order and regularity which he observed in his habits, in his house and in his daily life, were admirable.  It was the possession of these specialities which enabled him to accomplish so much literary labour, in addition to his clerical and pastoral duties.  Possessing a robust frame and good health, with indomitable perseverance, he was able to undergo the vast amount of mental and personal labour which distinguishes his long life.  His days were all full  days.  after he had attended to his duties during the day, he devoted most of the evenings to his correspondence and to the composition of his works.  He went on writing almost to the very  last.
 His character as a priest was that of life of personal innocence, ardently desiring the promotion of the honour and glory of God, the good of his neighbour and above all that of the flock entrusted to his care.  He was a wise and prudent director of souls, a zealous   but not very eloquent preacher, and an admirable catechist, who knew better than most priests how to adapt his instructions to the capacities of both children and adults.  He certainly was not without peculiarities in ways and ideas, but these were outweighed by his purity and simplicity of intention.  In his intercourse with his people, he sometimes appeared too rigid and dogmatic, not making sufficient allowance for their failings.  Indeed his biographer Canon Dalton, was of the opinion that he was more adapted for a college life than for a missionary priest.  The canon says  :  '' He did not keep up with the progress of religion.  He disliked new devotions, religious communities as teachers and would never introduce into his chapel any popular devotions such as ' Quarant 'Ore or the 'Month of May' or retreats given by any religious order.  He was indeed a priest of 'the old school' but at the same time a priest of which that school may well be proud. "
 For many years before the mission of Fr. Matthew, Dr. Husenbeth was a total abstainer and was hailed as the patriarch of the movement by the apostle of temperance, when they met in England some thirty years before his death.

The funeral of the Very Rev. Provost Husenbeth, D.D., V.G., was held at St. Walstans Chapel,  Cossey, on the 6th Nov. 1872.  conducted by the Very Rev. John Dalton, Canon of Northampton .
The funeral sermon was published (Lond., Burns, Oates & Co., 1872, 8vo. pp 26) and   dedicated to the Right  Hon. Valentine, Baron Stafford.