Catholic Chaplains to the British Forces in the First World War

This article outlines the complexities facing the Catholic Church in Britain and Ireland as it sought to minister to Catholic combatants in the First World War. Some of the problems arose because of Catholicism's place in British society as a not wholly trusted minority. Nevertheless as the war continued the government made generous provision for Catholic chaplains quite out of proportion to the number of Catholics engaged in the war. The political tension between Ireland and Britain, exacerbated by the 1916 Rising, contributed to difficulties in recruiting chaplains from Ireland, and the shortage of chaplains was a problem throughout the war years. Nevertheless, the service Catholic chaplains provided made a deep impression on combatants and on general public opinion. Catholic padres were not necessarily any more heroic than those of other denominations, but the fact that Catholic sacramental practice necessitated priests being at the side of dying soldiers and sailors meant that their services were more conspicuously in the front line of action than the ministry of other denominations. The pastoral effectiveness of Catholic priests in the services is attested even by non-Catholic sources, but it is here argued that this effectiveness was in virtue of the needs and desires of Catholic combatants themselves, who had been brought up to view the sacraments administered by a priest as the only sure means to salvation. The difficulties of sacramental administration in the circumstances of total warfare were increased by initially chaotic organisation on the part of the War Office and by internal problems posed for the church by Cardinal Francis Bourne, archbishop of Westminster, who wanted complete control over chaplaincy arrangements. This angered his fellow-bishops, especially the Irish, and provoked Vatican displeasure. The War Office was indifferent to papal intervention because of the perception that the pope was pro-German. Ultimately the experience of the war confirmed for the Catholic Church its role in ministering to those engaged in warfare despite the ambiguities arising from Christ's teaching on the matter of violence.