Father Richard Smith
Encyclopedia
Richard Smith (officially the Bishop of Chalcedon), was the second Bishop over England
, Wales
and Scotland
after Catholicism
was banned in England in 1559. He followed Father William Bishop who died in 1624.
, England. He studied at Trinity College
, Oxford University and in Rome
, where he was admitted to the English College in 1586.
, where he became a Doctor of Theology
, and in Seville
.
He served as a priest in England at a time when Catholicism
was officially banned, and could have faced death if caught and tried. From 1603 to 1609 he was chaplain to Viscountess Montague, wife of Anthony-Maria Browne, 2nd Viscount Montagu
, at Battle Abbey
in Sussex, England. He left Sussex in 1609 to go to Paris
to study and write at Arras College
, which had been founded for English priests.
at the house of Lord Montagu. In 1628 a warrant was issued for his arrest. He resigned his post in 1631, when he fled to Paris
.
, resigning in 1648. He died in the Paris convent
of English Augustinian nuns.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
after Catholicism
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
was banned in England in 1559. He followed Father William Bishop who died in 1624.
Early life
Richard Smith was born in LincolnshireLincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
, England. He studied at Trinity College
Trinity College, Oxford
The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity in the University of Oxford, of the foundation of Sir Thomas Pope , or Trinity College for short, is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It stands on Broad Street, next door to Balliol College and Blackwells bookshop,...
, Oxford University and in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, where he was admitted to the English College in 1586.
Priesthood
In 1592 Smith was ordained as a priest. Between 1598 and 1603 he spend some time in ValladolidValladolid
Valladolid is a historic city and municipality in north-central Spain, situated at the confluence of the Pisuerga and Esgueva rivers, and located within three wine-making regions: Ribera del Duero, Rueda and Cigales...
, where he became a Doctor of Theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
, and in Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
.
He served as a priest in England at a time when Catholicism
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
was officially banned, and could have faced death if caught and tried. From 1603 to 1609 he was chaplain to Viscountess Montague, wife of Anthony-Maria Browne, 2nd Viscount Montagu
Anthony-Maria Browne, 2nd Viscount Montagu
Anthony-Maria Browne was an English peer during the Tudor and Stuart period.He was born in 1574, and become the Second Viscount Montagu on the death of his grandfather in 1592. He married Jane Sackville, the daughter of Thomas Sackville, 1st Earl of Dorset, in 1591...
, at Battle Abbey
Battle Abbey
Battle Abbey is a partially ruined abbey complex in the small town of Battle in East Sussex, England. The abbey was built on the scene of the Battle of Hastings and dedicated to St...
in Sussex, England. He left Sussex in 1609 to go to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
to study and write at Arras College
Arras College
Arras College was a Catholic foundation in Paris, a house of higher studies associated with the University of Paris, set up in 1611. It was intended for English priests, and had a function as a House of Writers, or apologetical college...
, which had been founded for English priests.
Bishopric
Richard Smith was appointed Bishop over the whole of England, Wales and Scotland in 1625. He followed Father William Bishop who held the post for less than a year. As Catholicism was illegal in England at the time his title was Bishop of Chalcedon. He arrived in England in April 1625, and stayed in Turvey, BedfordshireBedfordshire
Bedfordshire is a ceremonial county of historic origin in England that forms part of the East of England region.It borders Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the west and Hertfordshire to the south-east....
at the house of Lord Montagu. In 1628 a warrant was issued for his arrest. He resigned his post in 1631, when he fled to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
.
Death
In Paris he lived at first with Cardinal Richelieu until the latter's death in 1642. He held the commendatorship of Charroux AbbeyCharroux Abbey
Charroux Abbey , is a ruined monastery in Charroux, in the Vienne department of Poitou-Charentes, western France.-History:Charroux was a Benedictine abbey, founded in 785 by Roger, Count of Limoges. It had up to 213 affiliated abbeys and priories. The Council of Charroux was held at the abbey in 989...
, resigning in 1648. He died in the Paris convent
Convent
A convent is either a community of priests, religious brothers, religious sisters, or nuns, or the building used by the community, particularly in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Anglican Communion...
of English Augustinian nuns.
Works
He wrote:- "An answer to T. Bel's late Challenge" (1605), against Thomas BellThomas Bell (priest)Thomas Bell was an English Roman Catholic priest, and later an anti-Catholic writer.-Life:He was born at Raskelf, near Thirsk, Yorkshire, in 1551, and is said to have been beneficed as a clergyman in Lancashire. Subsequently he became a Roman Catholic, and was imprisoned at York, around 1573...
; - "The Prudentiall Ballance of Religion", (1609);
- "Vita Dominae Magdalenae Montis-Acuti" i.e., Viscountess Montagu (1609);
- "De auctore et essentia Protestanticae Religionis" (1619), English translation, 1621;
- "Collatio doctrinae Catholicorum et Protestantium" (1622), tr. (1631);
- "Of the distinction of fundamental and not fundamental points of faith" (1645);
- "Monita quaedam utilia pro Sacerdotibus, Seminaristis, Missionariis Angliae" (1647);
- "A Treatise of the best kinde of Confessors" (1651);
- "Of the all-sufficient Eternal Proposer of Matters of Faith" (1653);
- "Florum Historiae Ecclesiasticae gentis Anglorum libri septem" (1654).