DUNEELD
193
DUNKELD
churches, and discharged faithfully the other duties
of his pastoral ministry. In the exercise of these
duties he came into conflict with the Prussian Govern-
ment on the question of mixed marriages. The con-
ditions laid down by Benedict XIV (1740-58) in the
Constitution "Magnae nobis" (29 June, 1748), by
which marriages between Catholics and members of
other Christian denominations became lawful, had
been well observed in Catholic Poland. But in a
treaty concluded in 1768 with various European
powers the Prussian Government undertook to en-
force another order of things. Jlixed marriages were
no longer forbidden; male children born of such
marriages were to be brought up in the religion of
their father, the female offspring in that of the mother.
The marriage was to be blessed by the ecclesiastical
minister, under whose jurisdiction the bride was; if a
Catholic priest should refuse to solemnize the mar-
riage, the minister of the other party was to ofliciate.
Similar provisions were contained in the code of Prus-
sian law extended to Prussian Poland in 1797. By a
royal decree of King Frederick William III (1797-
1840), 21 Nov., 1803, they were further modified in
an anti-Catholic sense: all the children of mixed
marriages were to be raised in the religion of the
father.
Such legislation was unquestionably hostile to Catholic interests. It often happened, therefore, that Catholic priests blessed mixed marriages without first requiring the usual promise concerning the free exer- cise of religion for the Catholic party and the educa- tion of all offspring in the Catholic Faith. The bishops were silent; both priests and bishops seemed to be- lieve that they must endure what they could not pre- vent. Penalties were inflicted by the Government on all priests who refused to bless raLxed marriages con- tracted without any of the above conditions. The Catholic conscience was finallv aroused by the Brief "Litteris altero abhinc" of Pius VIII (1829-30), 25 March, 1830, forbidding priests to bless a mixed mar- riage if no promise were given relating to the educa- tion of the children in the Catholic Faith. In case of such refusal Pius VIII agreed to tolerate a passive assistance (asst'stentia passim) on the part of the priest. Realizing the harm done to the Catholic re- ligion by the lax practice observed so far, Archbishop Von Dunin resolved to break with it. In January,
1837, he requested from the Ministry of Ecclesiastical Affairs in Berlin permission to publish the Brief of Pius VIII, or at least to direct his clergy to obey its provisions. His request was refused. A petition sent directly to Frederick William III, 26 Oct., 1837, was similarly treated. Determined not to betray his high office he sent an instruction to his priests, 30 Jan.,
1838, in which he inculcated the principles of the Church relating to mixed marriages; soon after (27 Feb.) he suspended ipso facto any priest of his diocese who should henceforth bless a mixed marriage without previous assurance as to the Catholic education of the offspring. The king was notified of these acts, 10 March, 1838. While the instructions of the arch- bishop were well received throughout his diocese, the Government was highly indignant and sought by all means to render them ineffectual. They were de- clared null and void ; the archbishop was asked to re- call them, and finally fin July, 18.38) a regular trial was commenced against him in the Court of Posen, to which, however, he always objected as conducted by 3, non-competent authority. In the midst of this stru"le he received nmch consolation from the unan- imous support of his clergy, and from an Allocution in his favour bv Gregory XVl, 13 Sept., 1838. At the conchision of his trial in 1839 he was summoned to Berlin, where he arrived 5 April. A last ineffectual attempt was made to h.ave him recant; finally the sentence of the court proclaiming his deposition from
V-— 13
office, inability ever to hold one, and a confinement of
sLx months in a fortress, was read to him. He ap-
pealed directly to the king for clemency, but nothing
was changed except that he was detained in Berlin
instead of being sent to a fortress.
Meanwhile the archbishop began to think of the needs of his diocese, and being unable to obtain per- mission to return, he departed secretly from Berlin and arrived in Posen, 4 October. In less than two days, during the night of 5-6 Oct., he was arrested and taken to the fortress of Colberg, where he remained until the death of Frederick William III (7 June, 1840). After his departure the diocese put on public mourn- ing; the bells and the organs remained silent during the celebration of the Holy Mysteries ; on all Sundays and feast days public prayers were said for the speedy return of the archbishop; and both the clergy and the nobility of Posen made several fruitless attempts to obtain his release. With the accession of the peaceful king, Frederick William I V(1S40-01), matters changed. On 3 Aug., 1840, Von Dunin was set free, and on the 5th of the same month he arrived in Posen amid the rejoicing of his faithful flock. According to an agree- ment reached with the Government he issued a pas- toral letter, 25 Aug., in which his previous instruc- tions were somewhat modified, without detriment, however, to Catholic principle. He recommended his clergy not to insist absolutely on the fulfilment of the usual conditions required for mixed marriages, but at the same time to abstain from all active participation in such marriages, if the usual promises were not given. No mention was made of any jjunishment in the case of contravention. Later on (21 Feb., and 26 Sept., 1842) he issued new instructions relating to the man- ner of dealing in confession with the husband or wife of a mixed marriage. The priests were directed to be indulgent towards those who tried their best to influ- ence their children in favour of the Catholic Faith, and to distinguish them from those who were altogether careless in the discharge of this sacred duty. With this the whole controversy ceased. Archbishop Von Dunin did not long survive these conflicts. His mem- ory is held in respect for his unswerving loyalty to Catholic principles, and for his courage, frankness, and prudent moderation displayed in their defence.
PoHL, Martin Von Dunin, Erzbischof von Gnesen und Posen (Marienburg, 1843); Bruck, Gesch. der kath. Kirche in Deulschl. im neumehnten Jahrhundert (Miinster, 1903), 11; Pohl in Kirch' enlex., s. v.; Mirbt in Realencyklopddie, s. v.
Francis J. Schaefer.
Dunkeld, Diocese of (Dunkeldensis), in Scot- land, constituted, as far back as the middle of the ninth century, the primatial see of the Columban Church by King Kenneth Mac Alpine, who rebuilt there the church and monastery founded by King Constantine (afterwards destroyed by the Danes), and translated thither St. Columba's relics. The first oc- cupant of the see is styled in the Annals of Ulster (a. d. 865) Bishop of Fortrenn, the name by which the kingdom of the Southern Picts was then known. He was also Abbot of Dunkeld, with jurisdiction, form- erly enjoyed by lona, over the other Columban mon- asteries in Scotland. The seat of the primacy was, however, subsequently transferred to Abernethy, and then to St. Andrews, and Dunkeld became subject to lay abbots, from one of whom, Crinan, sprang Mal- colm III and his successors on the throne of Scotland. In 1127 Iving Alexander, who had already founded the Diocese of Moray farther north, erected Dunkeld into a cathedral church and replaced the Columban monks by a chapter of secular canons. The new bishopric included a great part of what afterwards became the Dioceses of Argyll and Dunblane, and retained its ju- risdiction over various churches representing old Columban foundations. The .Vbbots of lona re- mained, as heretofore, suliject to the ancient prima-
