Paul Cullen, John Henry Newman, and the Catholic University of Ireland, 1845-1865.
Thompson, David M.
Paul Cullen, John Henry Newman, and the Catholic University of
Ireland, 1845-1865. By Colin Barr. Notre Dame, Ind.: University of Notre
Dame Press, 2003. xvi + 288 pp. $30.00 paper.
Newman's Idea of the University is remembered long after the
Catholic University of Ireland that prompted it has been forgotten, and
Archbishop Cullen is often blamed for Newman's resignation and the
University's failure. Colin Barr reappraises the roles of both men,
showing that Cullen was the prime mover behind the Catholic University
while at the Irish College in Rome, that he picked Newman for the job of
Rector and persuaded him to accept it, and that the reasons for the
failure of the University were more complex than often supposed. The
story is firmly set in its Irish context and Cullen's concern at
the readiness of some Irish bishops to compromise with the "godless colleges," founded by the British government in 1845. Although
Cullen, as Archbishop of Armagh and later Dublin, sought to mobilize the
bishops behind the University, some remained sceptical and were
alienated by his recruitment of English (rather than Irish) teachers,
especially Archbishop MacHale of Tuam. This alienation led to a failure
of financial support. Newman's treatment of the rectorship as a
part-time job was a further difficulty, and the resulting tension led to
his resignation. But failure to recruit students was the underlying
problem, principally because there was no university charter.
Palmerston's opposition left few political opportunities to secure
one from the government before 1865. The book is a valuable reminder of
the significance of institutional problems and the dangers of a purely
personal interpretation.
David M. Thompson
Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
