Matthew Gibney (1 November 1835 in Killeshandra,

Cavan Cavan ( ; ) is the county town of County Cavan in Ireland. The town lies in Ulster, near the border with County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland. The town is bypassed by the main N3 road that links Dublin (to the south) with Enniskillen, Bally ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

– 22 June 1925 in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, Western Australia), an Australian

metropolitan bishop In Christian churches with episcopal polity, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan (alternative obsolete form: metropolite), pertains to the diocesan bishop or archbishop of a metropolis. Originally, the term referred to the b ...

, was the third

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

Bishop of

, serving from 1886 until 1910. Gibney gave Australian

bushranger Bushrangers were originally escaped convicts in the early years of the British settlement of Australia who used the bush as a refuge to hide from the authorities. By the 1820s, the term had evolved to refer to those who took up "robbery under ...

Ned Kelly Edward Kelly (December 1854 – 11 November 1880) was an Australian bushranger, outlaw, gang leader and convicted police-murderer. One of the last bushrangers, he is known for wearing a suit of bulletproof armour during his final shootout wi ...

his

last rites The last rites, also known as the Commendation of the Dying, are the last prayers and ministrations given to an individual of Christian faith, when possible, shortly before death. They may be administered to those awaiting execution, mortall ...

following a shoot out at Glenrowan,

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

in 1880.

Early years

He was raised on the family farm in Killygorman townland, parish of

Kildallan Kildallan civil parish is situated in the Barony of Tullyhunco, County Cavan, Ireland. Etymology The name of the parish derives from Kildallan townland which is an Anglicisation of the Gaelic ''Cill Dalláin'' meaning the 'Church of Dallán Forga ...

, County Cavan. Gibney studied for the priesthood at the preparatory seminary at Stillorgan and from 1857 at the Catholic Missionary College of All Hallows, Drumcondra,

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

. He was ordained priest in 1863 and arrived in

, Western Australia later that year. On a trip to the colonies on the east coast of Australia, Gibney was travelling by train between

Benalla Benalla is a small city located on the Broken River gateway to the High Country north-eastern region of Victoria, Australia, about north east of the state capital Melbourne. At the the population was 10,822. It is the administrative cent ...

and

Albury Albury () is a major regional city in New South Wales, Australia. It is located on the Hume Highway and the northern side of the Murray River. Albury is the seat of local government for the council area which also bears the city's name – the ...

when at Glenrowan, he heard of the Siege of Glenrowan and left the train. Gibney tended to the injured

, heard his confession and gave him the

Bishop of Perth

In January 1887, Gibney was consecrated as the Bishop of Perth. His episcopate was marked by a number of poor investment decisions as the diocese purchased shops, offices, houses and a hotel in Perth as well as a newspaper, exerting editorial influence by banning the publication of horse racing information; leading to the paper's eventual demise. As the diocese's debts mounted, Gibney was forced to resign in May 1910. During his episcopate he was closely involved with the founding of the Beagle Bay Aboriginal community north of Broome, along with what eventually became St John of God Health Care. Gibney died of cancer on 22 June 1925 and was buried in St Mary's Cathedral.

Exhumation

During restoration work in the cathedral from 2003 to 2006, the brick and plaster

crypt A crypt (from Latin ''crypta'' "vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, sarcophagi, or religious relics. Originally, crypts were typically found below the main apse of a chur ...

containing the coffins of Gibney and Bishop

Martin Griver Martin Griver y Cuni (11 November 1814 in Granollers, Spain1 November 1886 in Perth, Western Australia), an Australian bishop, was the second Roman Catholic Bishop of Perth, serving from 1873 until his death in 1886. Early life in Spain As a y ...

were discovered by archaeologists under the floorboards of the cathedral.

References

* Appointment of the Very Rev. Matthew Gibney, Vicar General of the Catholic Diocese of Perth, '' Western Mail'', 25 Sept. 1886, p. 11 *

Early years

Bishop of Perth

Exhumation

References

Further reading