ECCLESIASTICAL TITLES ASSUMP TION ACT. An act of the Parliament of Great Britain for the protection of the Established Church of England. In the year 1850 an edict was issued by Pope Pius IX., dividing Great Britain into territorial bishoprics under an Arch bishop of Westminster. This brief was imme diately followed by a pastoral letter by the newly appointed Archbishop. Cardinal IViseman. At the commencement of the Parliamentary session of 1851. this was spoken of as a Papal aggression, and the necessary measures to counteraet it be came the chief topics of discussion. It was under these circumstances that Lord John Russell in troduced the Ecclesiastic-al Titles Bill. By a pre vious act it had been provided that the right and title of archbishops to their respective provinces, of bishops to their sees, and of deans to their deaneries. as %cell in England a; in Ireland. hav ing been settled and established by law. any per son, other than the person thereto entitled. who should assume or use the name. style. or title of archbishop of any province, bishop of any bish opric, dean of any deanery, in England or Ireland. should for every such offense forfeit £100. The Boman Catholics claimed that this enactment struck only at the titles of existing provinces and dioceses. and that. while the Pope (mild not
create an Archbishop of Canterbury. there was no prohibition against the creation of an Archbishop of 1Vestminster. To meet this claim and to remove the doubt that existed. the Eeelesiastical Titles Act was passed, its object being to prohibit the assumption of such titles "in respect of any places within the Coiled Kingdom." The Catholics al ways considered the penal clauses of this net to be a grievanee. and in time an arrangement was made for its repeal. .kti act was missed which. a (ter deelariwr that "no eeelesiast ieal t it le of honor or dignity derived from any see. province, diocese, Or deanery recognized by Inv, or from any city. town, place, or territory within this realm• can be validly created," and that no "preeminence or coercive power can be conferred otherwise than tinder the authority of her lajesty," repealed the Ecclesiastical Titles Assumption Aet as inexpe dient. The result is that, while no prosecution can now be had for assuming such titles. this as swnption is still treated by the law as an illegal act.