Ecclesiastical courts were rightly seen by nineteenth-century thinkers as a closed shop, a court system separate from the general court system which had its own proctors, advocates and judges. These courts had jurisdiction over the laity in a number of matters such as marriage, burial and probate of wills, though this changed during the century. The chapter describes the attempts at reform, and the difficulties with discipline of the laity as well as clergy that were addressed in the course of legislative change. Appeal lay with the secular courts and here too lay problems, where the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council served as the final court of appeal

The Conclusion looks at what has happened from the twentieth century onwards, with social change affecting the relationship between Parliament and the Church of England. It traces the history of increasing lay involvement in a society that is growing ever more multicultural and multifaith. The Church of England has entered actively into ecumenical dialogue and inter-church cooperation. The wording of the liturgy has been modernised. The Conclusion looks at a series of attempts, still in train, to make more satisfactory provision for clergy discipline. It reviews the changes in property law as it affects the Church of England and modern Faculty jurisdiction. Parliament now exercises only a light touch in the making of the Church’s legislation.

This chapter sets the social and ecclesiastical scene. It introduces the place of ecclesiastical law in the law of England. It explores the changing place of the Church of England in the life of the nation from the early nineteenth century, the role of the universities in educating future clergy and the significant place of the bishops in political as well as pastoral and spiritual leadership. It describes the need for more churches as the Industrial Revolution took a growing proportion of the population from the country into the towns. It introduces the challenge of the Dissenters with their rival chapels and the complexities of applying ecclesiastical law when there were controversies.

Nineteenth-century England had a large population of Christians who did not belong to the Church of England, and a proportion of Jews, though as yet almost no Muslims. The civic position of Jews had partly improved by this time. There was growing interest in the problems presented by what would now be thought of as ‘ecumenical relations’, with the first Lambeth Conferences giving the matter consideration, though excluding the Roman Catholics. This chapter explores the relationships between the main categories of non-Anglican Protestant Christians, including the ways in which they might be regarded as being part of the Church, that is, having an authentic ecclesial identity. The refusal of the Friends (Quakers) to take oaths was accommodated and the rights of Roman Catholics were thought through, with particular reference to Ireland. Dissenting academies were providing an excellent higher education. Problems were arising about the payment of clerical income and the costs of maintaining churches because non-Anglicans resented having to make a contribution.

This chapter discusses a series of high-profile cases in which significant disputes arose involving the application of ecclesiastical law. It begins with Parliament’s debates on its role and authority in this area as it attempted more than once to frame legislation for clergy discipline and the discussions in Convocation. It considers the Gompertz case, raising questions about the role of the bishop; the contrasting churchmanships of Evangelicals and Tractarians; and the controversy about biblical interpretation prompted by the publication of Essays and Reviews. The case of James Shore tested the law on the effect of a clergyman’s finding his opinions had changed to such an extent that he was no longer a member of the Church of England, while still effectively retaining his Anglican priesthood. The chapter also covers the cases of William Bennett and the ‘real presence’, and George Denison’s lengthy dispute with the Bishop of Exeter on the effect of baptism. It ends with the case of Alexander Mackonochie and controversy over the regulation of public worship.

This chapter turns to the experiences of the laity when they found themselves in ecclesiastical courts in disputes over marriage, wills and burial, disorderly behaviour, or unacceptable use of language: speech crimes: brawling, defamation and blasphemy. It looks at examples of the costs and consequences to the laity of finding themselves in ecclesiastical courts, and the role of the debtors’ prisons.

This chapter explores the history and extent of the jurisdiction of Parliament over the ecclesiastical law of the Church of England and the role of bishops sitting as members of the House of Lords, some of them prominent and controversial. Among the ecclesiastical lawyers were several who served as Members of Parliament. The nineteenth century saw the revival of Convocation, the Church’s own Parliament, and the chapter follows it in its efforts to re-establish itself. The Church owned a great deal of property, and lay property holders had opportunities to exploit their rights to the gift of clerical livings. There were accusations of simony. In both contexts there were property disputes. All this sharpened the long-standing question of the relationship between temporalities which were the proper business of secular law and the spiritualities which were not.