Bishop Porteus’ Visitation of the Diocese of Chester, 1778

Abstract

BEFORE DIVISION in 1836, the diocese of Chester was a huge rambling area of the country with its administrative centre, Chester, situated at one end. The diocese included not only Cheshire but also Lancashire, south of the Ribble, the counties of Denbigh and Flint plus isolated parishes in Carmarthen and Caernavon. Administrative problems were intensified by the inclusion in the diocese of the archdeaconry of Richmond, almost a diocese in itself, which incorporated the territory north of ~heRibble, south Cumberland, south Westmorland and, across the Pennines, the deaneries of Richmond, Catterick and Boroughbridge, terminating at Nun Monkton some seven miles west of York. This enormous diocese was 120 miles in length, 90 miles in width and 570 miles round the perimeter, containing 533 churches and chapels to serve a population of approximately two million souls. The appointment of Beilby Porteus as bishop of Chester in 1777 marked a new approach to the supervision of a diocese whose communications were poor and population scattered. Porteus was the nineteenth child of Robert Porteus, a tobacco planter from Virginia, who had married the daughter of Colonel Jennings of Ripon. Beilby was born in York, educated at Ripon grammar school and Christ's College, Cambridge, where he became tutor to Thomas Robinson, son of Lord Grantham of Newby Hall. This lead to the formation of a close friendship with the family which lasted throughout Porteus' life. From Cambridge he moved to the post of chaplain to Archbishop Seeker, master of St Cross Hospit~l, Winchester, rector of Hunton in Kent, and finally rector of Lambeth, and chaplain to George 111.1 Following the death of Archbishop Drummond, a translation to York was offered to Terrick of London but he declined on account of his age. The see was then offered to William Markham, bishop of Chester and dean of Christ Church, Oxford, who accepted the offer, so creating a vacancy at Chester. George III insisted that Chester should be offered to Beilby Porteus since, 'he would be an ample match in any debate in the