Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

Thomas Hussey (1746 – 11 July 1803) was a diplomat, chaplain and

of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Waterford and Lismore The Diocese of Waterford and Lismore (Irish: ''Deoise Phort Láirge agus Leasa Móire'' ) is a Roman Catholic diocese in Ireland. It is one of six suffragan dioceses in the ecclesiastical province of Cashel (also known as Munster) and is subjec ...

from 1797 until his death in 1803. He is best known for taking part in talks with Richard Cumberland in a failed attempt to arrange a peace treaty between Spain and Britain during the American War of Independence.

Early life

Hussey was born at Ballybogan,

County Meath County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the ...

in 1746. Due to the restrictions of the Penal Laws, Hussey went to the Irish College at Salamanca for his religious training, and joined the

Trappists The Trappists, officially known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance ( la, Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae, abbreviated as OCSO) and originally named the Order of Reformed Cistercians of Our Lady of La Trappe, are a ...

upon completion of his studies.O'Donoghue, David. "Thomas Hussey." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 21 December 2017

Diplomatic career

Given Hussey's ability, the

Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

requested him to take Holy Orders. Hussey was associated for a time with the court of the King of Spain, and soon became prominent in Madrid. Around 1767 he was appointed chaplain to the Spanish embassy in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. In 1793-96, shortly after the

Roman Catholic Relief Act 1791 The Roman Catholic Relief Act 1791 (31 George III, c. 32) is an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain passed in 1791 relieving Roman Catholics of certain political, educational, and economic disabilities. It admitted Catholics to the practice ...

repealed some of the laws affecting Catholic worship, a chapel, St James's, Spanish Place, was built to designs by Joseph Bonomi. Hussey became rector of the chapel. Embassies which maintained their own Catholic chapels provided a safe place for the London Catholic community to worship, and many of them had a number of English-speaking chaplains on staff. When the Spanish ambassador had to leave London because Spain took sides against England during the American War of Independence, Dr. Hussey became Spain's unofficial diplomatic contact with England. Following discussions with the government of

Lord North Frederick North, 2nd Earl of Guilford (13 April 17325 August 1792), better known by his courtesy title Lord North, which he used from 1752 to 1790, was 12th Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1770 to 1782. He led Great Britain through most o ...

, Hussey was sent to

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...

to discuss Spain's withdrawal from the American cause. Upon his return to Madrid, he attracted the notice of English Catholics in exile, and was deputed by the English Catholics to go to Rome to lay their position before the pope, but the Spanish embassy would not grant him leave of absence. He was befriended by Irish born politician

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while in London. Hussey was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

in 1792.

Maynooth and Waterford

George III, Pitt, and the Duke of Portland entrusted him with a mission to the Irish soldiers and militia in Ireland who were disaffected, but when he heard their grievances, he pleaded in their behalf much to the distaste of the Irish executive. When he returned to Ireland, Hussey played a role in the establishment of Maynooth College, and became its first president in 1795. In 1797, he became the Bishop of the Diocese of Waterford and Lismore. Despite his earlier protest at Catholic soldiers being obliged to attend Dublin Castle services, the Protestant authorities honoured his consecration at St. Nicholas of Myra church in Dublin with the presence of an armed detachment. He attracted widespread attention in 1797 by issuing a pastoral letter to his clergy, strongly resenting Government interference in ecclesiastical discipline and the

proselytising Proselytism () is the policy of attempting to convert people's religious or political beliefs. Proselytism is illegal in some countries. Some draw distinctions between ''evangelism'' or '' Da‘wah'' and proselytism regarding proselytism as invol ...

of Protestants in Ireland through the establishment of religious schools.

Death and burial

Hussey officially opened the first monastery and school of Edmund Ignatius Rice at Mount Sion in Waterford on July 7, 1803. By now in his mid-50s and in poor health, Hussey then settled his estate and had his will drawn up, which amongst other things dealt with the upkeep of Edmund Rice's education of Waterford's poor boys, and ensured the survival of his fledgling

religious congregation A religious congregation is a type of religious institute in the Catholic Church. They are legally distinguished from religious orders – the other major type of religious institute – in that members take simple vows, whereas members of religi ...

. After signing the will on July 10, Hussey went on a holiday to nearby Dunmore East. The next morning, he went with

Dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

Hearn for a swim, but suffered an

apoplectic fit Apoplexy () is rupture of an internal organ and the accompanying symptoms. The term formerly referred to what is now called a stroke. Nowadays, health care professionals do not use the term, but instead specify the anatomic location of the bleed ...

and never regained consciousness. Hussey's remains were brought back to Waterford for burial, but his funeral became the focus of sectarian violence. During the funeral procession to the Great Chapel, the coffin and Hussey's mourners were set upon by a group of drunken soldiers returning from an Orange Order meeting. These men abused the mourners and attempted to throw Bishop Hussey's remains into the

River Suir The River Suir ( ; ga, an tSiúr or ''Abhainn na Siúire'' ) is a river in Ireland that flows into the Atlantic Ocean through Waterford after a distance of . The catchment area of the Suir is 3,610 km2.

that runs through Waterford. A riot broke out, and the local

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

were forced to intervene and recover the remains, which were eventually interred in the Great Chapel as originally intended.

William Edward Hartpole Lecky William Edward Hartpole Lecky (26 March 1838 – 22 October 1903) was an Irish historian, essayist, and political theorist with Whig proclivities. His major work was an eight-volume ''History of Ireland during the Eighteenth Century''. Earl ...

described Hussey as "the ablest English-speaking bishop of his time".

References

External links

Hussey's Pastoral Letter to the Diocese of Waterford and Lismore (1797)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hussey, Thomas 1746 births 1803 deaths Roman Catholic bishops of Waterford and Lismore Presidents of St Patrick's College, Maynooth Fellows of the Royal Society People from County Meath 18th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Ireland 19th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Ireland